Loading summary
Progressive Insurance Announcer
Truckers aren't just moving goods, they're making sure bakers get their chocolate chips and hotels get their tiny soaps. But truckers can't do this if they're not on the road. That's why Progressive has over 360 heavy truck employees to help truckers stay on time and on track. Quote Truck insurance today in as little as eight minutes at progressive, commercial.com, progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates for a
small business owner, every day is full of surprises. Some great, some not so great, like when a client can't cancels their order at the last minute. But here's a surprise you will like. Progressive provides small business owners with 30 customizable coverage options to help keep their business going strong. So go ahead, surprise yourself. Get a quote in as little as 8 minutes@progressivecommercial.com Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates and third party insurers. Coverage is not available in all states or for all vehicles and coverage selections.
Progressive Motorcycle Insurance Announcer
Support for this podcast comes from Progressive, America's number one motorcycle insurer. Did you know Writers who switch and save with Progressive save nearly $200 per year. That's a whole new pair of writing gloves and more. Quote today Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates national average 12 month savings of $197 by new customers surveyed who saved with Progressive between October 2024 and September 2025. Potential savings will vary.
Dan Bernstein
Dan Bernstein Unfiltered Unfiltered on 312 Sports
Co-host/Guest Analyst
DBU on 312 brought to you in partnership with my bookie. I think we're in the the denouement of this latest Bears stadium story. And perhaps the the little final bit came from the turn from Mayor Brandon Johnson who was on the score yesterday putting on quite a show. And if you haven't gone back and watch it and by the nice job I think by Layla and Marshall because when you get Brandon Johnson to point at you, that means that means you're getting to him a little bit. And I saw two, at least two, maybe three of the of the points in there from Brandon Johnson. So I thought that both of my former partners handled that quite nicely. And we'll get to the one part that wasn't a part of that that I wish had been broached that had not. But in large part he's clearly on a different planet at this point and that's okay because if I was trying to think of if you are in his political position right now where he's not really doing that well as mayor and I voted for him. And, and I'm not all that happy with the job that he's doing. And I've come to terms with what a lot of people say about him. He's a much better activist than he
Dan Bernstein
is
Co-host/Guest Analyst
actual governor of a city. He's great at speaking and ideas and saying things that he wants and why he wants it, and looking out for the interests that. For which he wants to argue, that's awesome. That's activism. Fighting for causes is active. It's not governing. It's not the nuts and bolts yar of. Of taking care of a giant city. They're different things. And while I wouldn't take back my vote because Paul Vallis makes my skin crawl for a lot of reasons, and he was representing some. Some influences and some voting blocks that I find very, very distasteful and ugly and mean, but I'll give you that I'm not, I'm not defending the job that Brandon Johnson's done. So he's probably looking at an uphill battle for reelection. So what else does he have to do other than cheerlead? At the moment, he doesn't have anything. He's got nothing. So he's going on offense for no reason because he can, because that deal blew up. He does not like the governor. The governor doesn't like him. And if he wants to be a chaos agent at this point and just say, hey, Chicago's great. Chicago's great. Chicago's great. We got the deal. We got the lake, right? He can't deliver on any of this. There's no there there with any of it. But it's certainly entertaining and it's nice to hear him say nice things about the City and the 1901 project and Joe Mansueto Building in the 78 and everything else that's going on. But that was a whole lot of hoo ha, signifying, mostly nothing yesterday. And I do think that there is something, there's some conclusions to be gleaned here into what's going on. The more I've heard from people, and this is how this usually happens, I keep saying this, that when you get into something like this, there's then a little bit of a delay when thoughtful people then take the time to text, to call, to email people with information who are very eager to say, hey, you should know this, you should know that. And I've been, I've been doing this for enough years in this town that there are enough people to say, hey, you know, just. Just for background check into this, give this look, this Might explain this. And there isn't much to explain the behavior of the mayor right now other than he's got nothing to lose. There's no downside for him at this point. There's no downside for him. Just go. Just cheerlead. He's just running all verticals. Whatever you got down there, everybody go deep. And I'll sit back here as long as I can and just fire that thing down the field somewhere. Whatever metaphor you want to use is your choice.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I think when we were talking about it before Dan, it was the other side doesn't have an offensive line, and so he just sends all 11 players at the quarterback.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah. He's running goal line defense at the 50.
Dan Bernstein
He's got nothing to lose.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Right. It's. It's zero blitz. It's goal line defense or whatever metaphor, whatever side of the ball you want to use at this point that he can just kind of contribute to a lot of the noise here when it comes to. He says he. He said he spoke with Bears management. The Bears say, no, no, no. It was never management. It was only lawyers talking about infrastructure. And I still think the Bears are telling less than the whole truth about what was. Also think that the mayor has a penchant for hyperbole. I think both of those things are true in this case, but it's. He's. He is dancing around smoldering ruins right now of this deal. He's happy to have sunk this deal. Now, what's fascinating is that his apparent political opponent. Actually, I take that back. It's more a personal opponent than a political opponent in J.B. pritzker. Pritzker's calculated this nicely. Pritzker's fine, because now presidentially, he can say, I held my ground and did not give tax breaks to billionaires in our state. We don't do that. If other states want their crappy roads and bad health care and bad schools and they just want to give money to billionaires, they can't. We don't do that here. Pritzker's fine. I think the mayor's in some trouble because of the number of people and the rumblings about who's going to be running against him. And we can see all of that. I mean, you can tell who's coming after him, and there's some powerful people. The money is already lining up. The money's already finding the places where it's going to be to probably take him out so he can go down guns blazing and just keep saying all these things because it doesn't cost him anything. And there might not be anything behind it, but he. He can say the stuff I did. I did find it interesting that he offered the fact that he left the Bears packers game early and. I don't care. That doesn't bother me, Dan.
Dan Bernstein
I. I don't care either. I. I put it out on social media. I. I don't care because I would do the same thing if I thought a game was over.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
To me, it's. It's the political judgment more than it is the actual doing of that.
Dan Bernstein
Yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
So that, that's where I come down on this. It's. And I needed to delineate specifically what I mean. When you buy a ticket to an event or you're giving it, do whatever you want.
Dan Bernstein
Yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Do whatever you want. Come late, leave early. And like you said, don't watch. Don't matter. Don't watch. You want to wander around and have a beer and leave after five minutes that. I. I'm not judging your fan experience.
Dan Bernstein
Correct.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You're not a true fan if you don't stay for the whole game. Nothing to do with it. When did we. I got into this with Rick Tellender with a Bulls playoff game against the Wizards. Oh, boy. Remember that series with Gilbert Arenas?
Dan Bernstein
Yep.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And it was. And you know, Andres Noccioni was going crazy, and it was. It was. And then. And there was like, this stirring comeback the Bulls had in one of these games are they roared back behind Gennaro Pargo, if I remember correctly, that it was the crazy Pargo game and they won it, and the people left early. And I said, why do you care? You're not supposed to leave early. According to whom? Why do you care? If you really believe that's on you and you missed it and you pay the price. I don't care if you saw it or not. What matters if I see it or not? It doesn't matter. You made your choice. You're exactly right on that. And traffic does suck.
Dan Bernstein
Yep.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And it sucked. Sitting in traffic sucks. So cool, man. Do whatever you want to do with the game. But politically, when you're dealing with an electorate that is largely stupid and tribalistic, it's not the greatest political instinct to say, oh, I couldn't wait to get out of there to beat the traffic in one of the greatest games that has ever happened in Bears history.
Dan Bernstein
Right. If I'm part of his team, I'm like, hey, dude, I. I wish you wouldn't have said that.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah. You know better.
Dan Bernstein
Because, I mean, this crowd, he knew it too. This crowd is just stupid enough to hold on to that.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yes. That's the guy who left Bears backers early. And it probably doesn't.
Dan Bernstein
He's the greatest. The greatest mayor ever. He says that over. He's dead to you.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And it probably. It probably doesn't matter for him because I, I think he's. He's. He's a one termer here. Anyway.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, that was funny. I heard that. And I was like, dude, I, I could. I. I pictured his people like, whoever was there with him, they probably went,
Co-host/Guest Analyst
oh, why did you say that?
Dan Bernstein
Oh, dummy.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Stupid. Is that like the. The look on the Illinois ad's face when we had Tim Beckman in Studio.
Dan Bernstein
Oh, 100%. The identical face. Like.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Oh, I'll never. What was that guy's name? Mike Thomas. Was that his name?
Dan Bernstein
That sounds correct.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I'll never. I'll never forget that.
Dan Bernstein
That was. That was amazing.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
When he's doing the whole wind bit and the whole thing and this his boss too.
Dan Bernstein
Man, that stuff wasn't on video then.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I know.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, the.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
The better part was like the. All you needed was. That was for the camera to pan over and the. Curb your enthusiasm. Loud calliope music just comes in.
Dan Bernstein
What are you gonn. Yeah, so I'm sure his people were like, oh, Mr. Mayor, I wish you wouldn't.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Oh, sir, you left early. Oh, I would know that. Well, that's sort of like what I'm reading about. About Caleb Williams going on the New Heights podcast, saying he likes tavern style pizza man again.
Dan Bernstein
Okay, great.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Whatever.
Dan Bernstein
That looked good. The place he named. I saw the pictures, looked amazing.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah, whatever you want. Yeah, go ahead. Which is the mood you're in. You don't have to pick one. You pick whatever you want because it's you. It's not me.
Dan Bernstein
What. What about the other part? Of what. Of what Mayor Johnson said the last time he spoke to the Bears.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah, I didn't find that really material because April isn't that long ago. And they. It's just when he says term sheets. Term sheets. Term sheets. Anything could technically be a term sheet. I wanted. I would like to have heard a drill down. Like, what do you mean by term sheets? What was on the term sheet? And you're talking already. With whom were you negotiating regarding revenue sharing?
Dan Bernstein
So here's what I took about the term sheet. I just, you know, I imagine in doing sales, to have a sales order. Like I could have a thousand sales orders written up and I could bring those thousand sales orders to my forecast meeting with my manager and say, oh, look at all these. I have.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
It's a proposal.
Dan Bernstein
Right? It's a proposal. And my manager would say, well, why do you have them? Why aren't they with your clients or prospects? Because they, they mean nothing unless the buyer has them. So I, I, that's a great point.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yes. You shouldn't have the term sheets. They should.
Dan Bernstein
Right. It doesn't matter what you have.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Right.
Dan Bernstein
That's just, that's just a paper with words and numbers. It doesn't mean anything unless the buyer has it and is signing it. So I, I thought it was interesting, though. I mean, I'm surprised that you had that, that, that take on it saying, because he said the same thing. Well, April wasn't that far away just a month ago.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah, I just, I don't, but since,
Dan Bernstein
but since April, though, Dan, they, the
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Bears have said, you're out.
Dan Bernstein
Said twice, you're out. And they got to the point where the commissioner of the NFL has said, according to the Bears, there's two sites.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Here's the thing. I think they would have said that in March. I think they would have said that even as all those discussions were going on, I think he still would have kept to that because they had to.
Dan Bernstein
You're probably right.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
But they have no choice.
Dan Bernstein
But that's not what happened. What happened was his last conversation was April. And since that last conversation, they twice have said Arlington Heights and Hammond, they've got to the commissioner where the commissioner said, well, yeah, they have two sites, Arlington Heights and Hammond, Indiana.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And now, but here's the thing, though. Now his point is, since the collapse of the deal on Sunday, it's a different playing field now. So I think his. Where he sees the opening and you could tell when he was going out of his way to trash the other two bids.
Dan Bernstein
Yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Not just talking about the, he was talking about the Hammond environmental study. And clearly he's been given those two talking points. When you mention Arlington Heights, talk about just, just hang on that traffic study. And when you talk about Hammond, hang on the environmental study, he kept getting back to that as these, as these sort of tent poles of, of where to stake his, his naysaying of those opportunities. But that's just part of it. I think he's saying that whatever happened then, who cares? Chicago. Chicago. Chicago. Hooray, Chicago. He's banging the drums and fanning the flames of nothing.
Dan Bernstein
Right. That's the whole point. He's delusional to think that Chicago is an option because it's not. Except for, and which we've said this, it seems like months ago now. And we're talking about all this. We're like, what if none of this happens and the Bears just end up staying in Soldier Field? That seems like the most realistic option right now.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Well, they're gonna stay there. So let me get to the next point. And when I talked about talking to a lot of people, okay, the next point is, and this was a question that a very smart person said, hey, Bernstein, ask this. And I'm going to. Well, you know what, let me put a bow on the mayoral thing first. The other question I wanted asked with the personal stuff with Pritzker because it matters and it's, this is about the, and I need to be careful here because this is just one of these things where no matter what, somebody gets mad at you. But there's, there is deep seated Israel stuff going on here, deep seated stuff with Pritzker. And this is a really, really, really difficult place for American Jews and liberal American Jews who aren't even involved in politics to try to help people understand that being critical of Israel's militarism and, you know, bellicosity and cruelty is not antisemitism. That there are a lot in this city and elsewhere, maybe majority, silently of, of American reformed Jews who are aghast at a lot of what Israel's doing. But it's lost nuance. We've lost the ability to articulate some of this. And I do think that some of these concerns are mucking up the relationship between Johnson and Pritzker. And it all comes down to money. It comes down to your donors. It comes down to trying to mollify hardliners on either side of it because these are the people that have the money. It is, it is hard to discuss in a way that can make anybody happy. I know it's always been this way my, my entire life in one way or another. There's been something in this aspect. But this is what you could really find out about the relationship between the mayor and Pritzker and why there's personal enmity there. Now, here's the question that I was told to ask. It's a simple one. Where are the renderings for Arlington Heights? Why haven't the Bears in their lobbying privately and publicly, why haven't they commissioned the actual building design studies and renderings to plan and show what they're going to build in Arlington Heights? Why can't Kevin Warren and why hasn't Kevin Warren, however he wants to do it, Believe me, I bet he'd be it fits into his thin salesmanship abilities. Look over here. Look at this. He loves fancy pictures and big promises, and he doesn't have it. Why isn't he saying, pointing to this, saying, here's what we're building. This is what you're voting no on. This is what you're against. Gleaming pictures of the stadium, of hotels, of the neon signs of little taco stands and whatever you're gonna put around this. Where are the pictures? Where's even the fantasy? Here's what we've got, here's what you're getting. And we know that what's actually built never lives up to it. There was one nebulous thing at the very outset, but you should be so far down the line with showing people what the actual building plan is and saying, here are the jobs and all the phony baloney stuff. You know, here are the jobs and here's the economic impact. Here's the driver. Here's where your kids are going to play, and here's all the money that's going to come to your schools and all of this commerce and everything. There's. There's no renderings. There's no plan to build even if that passed. And all of a sudden you're like, hey, okay, we're ready to go. They don't have shovels ready to go on the ground. So why, why, why haven't we seen the bears telling you this is. This is what you're voting against. Here's a concrete, tangible picture, even if it's made up of what you're gonna have. They haven't done it yet. And the answer lies in money, as it so often does. And I don't mean that cynically, it just does. Do they have the money to go do this when the time comes? Whatever the profit sharing is that the. And the question is, is the lack of renderings evidence that they just don't have the financing that they're not ready to build? If you're ready to break ground, why wasn't Kevin Warren. Why isn't Kevin Warren out everywhere showing retail and restaurants and hotels and telling people, well, look, you have to worry about Soldier Field now. The city can use Soldier Field more often. There's no blackout dates. You can do this. And we now everybody gets the best of all worlds. Soldier Field isn't going anywhere. The bears are going to be out here handling all their stuff, bringing all this out here. Soldier Field can be this, this. This next generation massive entertainment venue that this, the city does own. But they haven't the Bears may just not be ready to build because they don't have. Have the finances in order. And this gets Back to the McCaskeys, the management of their wealth over generations. And how. How can the Chicago Bears not have enough money to build? But they might not.
Dan Bernstein
Well, we know they don't. George McCaskey said they would have to go and borrow that $2 billion. So wouldn't you. If you were in this position, wouldn't you have that established already and say, yeah, we have this money ready to go wherever it comes from, wherever they borrow it from. So is that not done yet and they're just not talking about it, or is that just not done yet?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I just think that I would like to know the answers to some of these questions. Why aren't you further along where the mayor is hung up on this traffic study? Oh, we were supposed to get a traffic study. We haven't gotten a traffic study. More, More than that. Where are the images? What are you building? What do you plan to build? We're three and a half years since they hired Kevin Warren and longer since they bought that land. What have you been doing? Who's planning this? While your building costs have. Have gone up another 33%, while the costs are spiraling of whatever you want to build. I'm going to stick with that question. Where are the renderings? You can make them up, but that shows me you're ready to build something. When you have actually brought people together and made a plan to build something and it doesn't seem like they have. This thing's further away. This thing. This thing is just. It's all further away than everybody says it was.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. And Johnson was talking about the, the, the issues of, of getting out to the suburbs and being in the suburbs. I don't know if he was ever at Arlington Park. Maybe he never was. Were you ever at Arlington park on a busy time?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Oh, yeah. Derby Day.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. Okay. So I, Yeah, I worked out there for a few years, and so I was there on the busiest days, and they would have upwards of 50,000 people out there, and there was, There was no issues getting in and out. It wasn't that difficult. And that wasn't even rebuilt and redesigned to hold the capacities of a giant football stadium and everything that came with it. That would have been fine. I mean, it was. I, I was, I almost laughed at the fact that he was talking about how hard it would have been to be out in the suburbs. I mean, with the Metro and driving, it wasn't going to be difficult. At all.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I mean, compared to the lakefront. Yes. Compared to what you have to do and what. The time that you have to devote.
Dan Bernstein
Right.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
To ingress and egress down there.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. That's a total clusterfuck. But Arlington park wasn't bad at all and it would have been redesigned and meant for more people, so. Yeah. That I didn't get at all. That was. That was interesting.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah. So this is where we're set back many pieces in. In whatever this, this child board game is that we're playing, where we're just. We're set back and spaces and looking at this. But I just. I found it very entertaining and not much more than that. Brandon Johnson, yesterday.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. There was nothing. There was nothing substantial to its substance substantive at all. But what was interesting is the whole idea of this plan of Chicago and a new stadium on the lakefront. It defeats the purpose of the Bears owning it and getting all the revenue. That's the whole point to it. If they didn't really care, then they would have stayed Soldier Field.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah. This was their shot. This was. This was their shot to play the big boy game. And they. And they hired the wrong guy and they blew it. They blew it so far. They blew it. They got to fire the guy. But they're. I don't know if they're going to because they don't. They may not even know how badly they've blown it yet because too many Bears are completely oblivious to what's actually happening. If they know that one of the critical junctures of the history of McCaskey ownership of the Bears was just fumbled at the goal line by their guy. Fumbled at the goal line. You caught him.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I just. I still can't get over the fact that it's the final weekend of the. Of the spring session and it's coming down to the wire for your bill to pass to help you build a stadium, and Kevin Warren's not there and the chairman and the chairman of the board is not there. Like the fact that those two guys were not in Springfield.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Couldn't be bothered.
Dan Bernstein
Absolutely. I mean, there is. There's. There's no coming back from that.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
One of the most important junctures in franchise history and you're. And you're busy. You got something else going on in your. What possibly could have been more important than being there?
Dan Bernstein
Nothing. Right.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Okay. Just. Just. Just checking on that.
Dan Bernstein
I mean, you're. You're the chairman of the board and you're not there.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
That.
Dan Bernstein
That's your responsibility to make sure this happens and the guy that you single handedly hired and brought in to get this deal done, they're not there at the final hours of this happening. Your deal could die on the vine and where are you?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And it did.
Dan Bernstein
And it did.
Progressive Insurance Announcer
Truckers aren't just moving goods. They're making sure bakers get their chocolate chips and hotels get their tiny soaps. But truckers can't do this if they're not on the road. That's why Progressive has over 360 heavy truck employees to help truckers stay on time and on track. Quote Truck Insurance today in as little as 8 minutes@progressive commercial.com progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates for a small business
owner, every day is full of surprises. Some great, some not so great. Like when a client cancels their order at the last minute. But here's a surprise you will like. Progressive provides small business owners with 30 customizable coverage options to help keep their business going strong. So go ahead, surprise yourself. Get a Quote in as little as 8 minutes@progressive commercial.com progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates and third party insurers. Coverage is not available in all states or for all vehicles and coverage selections.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You know, every sports fan has an angle. The team you trust, the favorite you want to fade. The player you think is. Do that live moment you can feel coming before everybody else sees it. Were you like that last night? Watching the NBA and looking at that last five minutes and seeing that surge from Jalen Brunson in the Knicks? More power to you if you were because settle in. I can still get my spurs in five. But that was a big blow to that, huh? That's where my bookie comes in. My bookie gives you a place to turn opinions into action whether you're watching the NBA Finals now or getting ready for the World cup this summer. The promo code DBU right now gets you an exclusive offer just because you're listening. So don't forget it. When you do that, you can back the team before the game or follow the momentum live. There's always opportunities in chaos and make those moments you already care about feel bigger. That's why you should check out my bookie. You're already watching. You already have a take. Now you can play it. So bet anything anywhere, anytime with my bookie. Must be 21 plus. Please gamble responsibly. This this Cubs experience will just suck the life out of you. If the the highs and lows of this season are just from a from a Cubs perspective. Cubs are up here down there. So I thought about something a little differently yesterday and that is and I wish it weren't the case, but I'm going to acknowledge a truth here and if you think I'm wrong, you can fight me because I'm not wrong. There remains to this day, and I'm not I'm not going to tell you that this is the way you should look at your teams or the way you should feel, or whether this is it's incredibly unhealthy and stupid. Let me say that.
Dan Bernstein
Stupid for sure.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And I think unhealthy, very stupid. But there remains a very strong percentage, a very strong subculture of White Sox fans that hold as the schadenfreude of Cubs losing, Cubs lack of success, Cubs failure, Cubs misery, Cubs disappointment. Drinking the tears of Cubs fans is, if not as important, more important than it should be to the everyday well being of these Sox fans where, and I know this to be true, that there there remained Sox fans who get almost as much pleasure from Cubs misfortune as they do from their own team success. The Sox fans who would rather curse the darkness than light a candle. This has always been there. It's probably less than it used to be, but it's still there. No, it's not. Yet it is. And it's not like it's different than the Bears packers thing. They'll think I don't care if the Bears only win two games as long as it's over the Packers. And that's all fine and good, but. But it's deeper. It runs much deeper culturally than that. But I'm always getting reaction from White Sox fans because at 312 we have a Cubs podcast. We don't have a White Sox podcast. We have a Cubs podcast. We may have a white Sock podcast. The future. We know that we're going to expand it all kinds of different things when the time comes when we've only existed for nine months, this entire company of three 1, 2 sports part of gamut Podcasting. And by the way, we just found out a couple of days ago a couple things that Gamut Podcasting in two years of existence is now the is broken into the top 10 podcast networks in the country. So congratulations to our bosses and our people at Gamut Podcasting, which is part of Hubbard Media that connects and it's people are really proud in two years of getting there and so and we're proud too in nine months of doing what we're doing. And thank you for that, by the way. I really appreciate your listenership. I mean it. And you know that. And I'll tell you that when you email me, I always, always try to send you a note back that there might be a White Sox podcast. I think it would make sense, over time to add everything. We're going to add a ton of podcasts here. It's going to take time. We're going to move deliberately. But I keep hearing from people like, how do you hate the Sox? Why are you. Business man. There's a lot more Cub fans than Sox fans. Just. And going into the season, they're just a much better. It's a bigger product. There's a much, much, much, much bigger market footprint. So I also get the bitterness. I'm a Sox fan. I get it. I grew up that way. And a lot of times, I always talk about my cynicism and my worry and that my nature is much more Sox fan than Cub fan. I'd rather curse the darkness than light a candle and grumble to myself and grovel in my own misery sometimes, because that's where I feel good. And like Oscar the Grouch loving his garbage can. Oscar the Grouch would be a perfect sox fan.
Dan Bernstein
Yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
100% just a perfect Sox fan.
Dan Bernstein
Yep.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
He just. He likes. He likes it. And he'll. And he'll pop open his garbage lid and he'll have his campfire milkshake, and then he'll go away.
Dan Bernstein
Okay, but why, though? Why. Why is it there? Why. Why is it more importantly, better than the Cubs?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
That. That. That is a. That is a question for our. Our clergy. That. That's a question for people. I. I can't answer that.
Dan Bernstein
I can't answer all the comparisons of the current records because of the payroll. Yeah, I get it. But you know what? When the. When the White Sox suck, we don't care.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I knew that. See, that's the other talk about that. That's the best part of it.
Dan Bernstein
That don't care.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
But that's what makes it so exquisite.
Dan Bernstein
It's not exquisite. It's pathetic.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I know.
Dan Bernstein
Like the Bears fans that say, hey, as long as we go to and 15,
Co-host/Guest Analyst
you're losers. Okay, but. But that's. I'm not. I'm not debating the why. All I want you. You do acknowledge, though, that pathology still exists, right?
Dan Bernstein
100%.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Okay. So.
Dan Bernstein
Okay.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Thank you. Thank you. Nothing further. That has there ever been, for that White Sox fan at the moment, a better time in their lives than right now? Does this make up for 1984? Because for a lot of White Sox fans and I went through this in 84, when I was a loud mouth, jerk off Sox fan, dealing with my summer camp Cubs fan friends, when we would go away and we'd sit in the woods and we would get, you know, old newspapers and try to follow the scores, and this is after 83. And the Sox won 99 games. Like, all right, here we go. Putting the band back together. Here we go, 84, Sox. And it was just brutal. And out of nowhere come comes one of the most likable, awesome, exciting, culturally significant Cubs teams and Harry Carey, the transformation of Wrigleyville and everything that started with 84 in the Sandberg game. And, and, and as a Sox fan, you felt this big. It was just. It was the absolute worst. It was the worst. And if I. And I don't think I've ever told this story before, the way that year culminated for me as a fan, we. I was so 84. I was 15. 14. 14, is that right? I think I just turned 15. Whatever.
Dan Bernstein
You're 15, buddy.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
And so math. And we ended up as the oldest campers at camp. We did something called the car trip. Or at the end of the year, we go to Minneapolis and it's just, you know, we just hang around Minneapolis. I don't even think they do it anymore. It was a big deal to leave the north woods and all of a sudden be in the big city. And we went to an amusement park and they had a. The. You throw two pitches, you get the speed, and then you. And if you call the speed of the third pitch, you win a batting helmet of your choice. A plastic replica batting helmet. And everybody else in my cab and all my. I mean, so many of whom are probably listening to this right now and still chuckling. All Cub fans who are just murdering me. All summer, all summer, every day or every two days, we would get the scores of the games and showing me the Sports Illustrated covers and just like, hey, how your socks done? Okay? It was. It was so. And these are my best friends in the world. And it was just so painful and so awful. When they say all politics is local. They all won Cubs helmets. And I'm like, screw you guys. And I threw harder than any of them, too. And I'm out there hanging my arm and I. And I was like, you know, whatever. I was at 15. It was like, you know, 68 miles an hour. 68 miles an hour. Like, all right, 70. 68 miles an hour. God. I spent 30 bucks, which. That's eight. 1984 was a lot of money that you get this minimal amount of cash you get from your reserves or whatever your parents put in for the car trip, I spent it all and did not win a Sox helmet. So for the rest of that trip, my friends all wore their Cubs helmets and then would like I'd fall asleep and they put the Cubs helmet on me. I mean, it was, it was, it was brutal. So I know it, I get it. But this year, if you are a White Sox fan and the socks are shockingly good in a terrible division and fun and, and this nosedive for the Cubs after, why aren't you talking white socks? Talk more white socks. They must be whatever is left. Whatever is left of that dead end. Self defeating if you are. And I, I will say this. The moment Steve Garvey hit that home run was the biggest damn sigh of relief a lot of us had.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, that's pretty sad.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
It's terribly sad. Yeah. And, and I think, and I, and I. It's taken me years to evolve. I was the biggest dipshit jerk off Sox fan that you could imagine. I know that mentality when. Who's your favorite, who's your favorite White Sox player of all time? Steve Garvey. Because he knocked the damn Cubs out of their World Series possibility.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. I would just say enjoy what the Sox are doing right now. I mean, I know you're low payroll compared to the Mets, you're low payroll compared to the Phillies. But I also, you know, if you're in the NL Central, what place are you in? White Sox.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I mean, you're, but you're right, that's not the point. I'm, and I'm not engaging in this debate. I'm not going.
Dan Bernstein
But there's no debate.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I'm just, I'm just telling you, I'm just telling you if, if, if your lifeblood, if your nectar is Cubs tears and you're one of those pathological White Sox fans.
Dan Bernstein
And I'm, and I am judging off, like you said.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yes. Because it's, it's, it's self defeating. It's wrong, it's mean. It says a lot about you. I could be that when I was 15. Because I was 15.
Dan Bernstein
And I also think on that helmet deal, you actually won out by not having one. If you were a group of 15 year old boys walking through the downtown part of Minneapolis more than. Or all the group has helmets on and you don't. You look like the winner in that group.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
It's like, yeah, we were looking at.
Dan Bernstein
Nice. That's a nice volunteer lead. I also, it was the kids around this city.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
It was not the worst way. I lost money on that trip.
Dan Bernstein
Okay.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Because there was a. There was a guy playing the shell game on Hennepin Avenue and he did the like, oh, this guy beat me and this guy beat me. I'm like, I. I know where the thing is. Under the shell. I could do that. And they took my money. So you learned. I learned that lesson. But that's when. Hennepin Avenue, you could see all kinds of stuff. They cleaned it up since. And all of our friends and our Hubbard brethren and our gamut brethren in Minne probably laughing at me right now. But. Yeah, there used to be kind of a little seedy area with like naked ladies and things. And when you're 15 and you're walking through there like, hey, with a helmet on.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, naked ladies, helmet.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Well, they wouldn't avoid you if you had enough twenties in your hand. But there was a. Yeah, that was a different Minneapolis back then. And then we also. There was like an all ages show. Did we. No, that was a different trip that we saw the dead milkman at the. The club next to First Avenue. That was awesome. But I would. I would just say that there is a. If somebody. Somebody needs to look out for the pathological jerk off White Sox fans and understand when they're feeling what they're feeling. So just. I just want you to know that.
Dan Bernstein
That you said dipshit jerk off.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
That's. Whatever it is. Put any modifiers. They're all right. They're all correct. And you. And if you are one, you know it. And you're naughty like.
Dan Bernstein
Yep.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You have to admit I'm right. You have to. If you're. If you still are one of those. I don't care how old you are. You can be 86 years old and sitting in the home right now with an oxygen cannula in your nose and. And your. Your pacemaker and everything else, and you're barely even. But you're still. You're still drinking Cubs fan tears.
Dan Bernstein
You could be in the Vatican and have those thoughts.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You think he is. I don't think so.
Dan Bernstein
Who knows? You know, here's. Here's one for you.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Bob is like, hey, the Cubs lose. You know, he did say that. You know, I think Bob might be. Because they showed him in one of those parades and they're like, there's some guy says, go Cubs. And he said so? Like, they lost yesterday.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I'm sure he is.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
So he might be. That would be even funnier if he's not just a Sox fan. If the Pope is a dipshit, jerk off, self defeating pathological socks fan, the
Dan Bernstein
Cubs did something that's historic. I saw this from Jesse Rogers yesterday. Dan the 23 game span of the Cubs have had at home where they won 15 in a row and then lost eight in a row.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yes.
Dan Bernstein
First time ever.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Hey, congratulations. Yes, nicely done. Whatever. This is.
Dan Bernstein
What a great season.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
God, this is wild. It's so hard to unpack.
Progressive Motorcycle Insurance Announcer
Ever notice how life's best stories don't happen in your living room. They happen on the open road, out on the water or parked under the stars. At Progressive, they get that you want to focus on the experience, not worry about the what ifs. That's why they offer quality insurance designed for your ride, whether That's a boat, RV or motorcycle adventure with confidence. Visit progressive.com and see how easy it is to protect your favorite way to get away. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates not available in D.C. prices vary based on how you buy.
Progressive Insurance Announcer
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it@progressive.com Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
NBA Finals game did not disappoint last night. Nothing about it. Disappointed. The broadcast was terrific. The game was exciting and it was, it's, it's going to tell you a lot about how this series is going to go because Carl Anthony Towns was just a beast. That's what you need that if you want to be physical with him and have the ability to just do something more than just beat him up and actually move him around a little bit. That's not Chad Holmgren. That's not Chet Holmgren and Carl Anthony Towns had and all you, all they had to do was stay in it long enough to let Brunson prod and, and check and look and see. Okay, I can get this angle. I can get that angle. His, his Euro steps. What Brunt. The space that he is able to create for himself by changing laterally on the dribble. James Harden made a career out of it and, and Brunson is outstanding at knowing his own place in space. Usually when we talk about proprioception, we're talking about, you know, larger guys sometimes about moving those, all those levers and those big. But, but his boy, he, he knows where everybody is. He knows where he is. He knows exactly how much space he needs at what angle to get some of those shots off and to. Just to get an angle. And when you get any kind of secondary shot creation, they become much more formidable. Now we're in. We're in for a real series here, but it usually you say the series doesn't start until the home team loses a game. Well, it's on. I can still get spurs in five, but Jalen Brunson has a chance to prove some things. And we talked through it a little bit on. On OWC as well, with some of the matchups and. And some of that. So check out a new episode of OWC is out if you like. And we had a blast. Instead of the showdown, he and I did a face off of 82. Zero live. That was fun. And. And thank.
Dan Bernstein
That was fun. Did you see what Tyrese Halliburton put out on. On Twitter? He said that he's retiring from 82. Zero.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
He is.
Dan Bernstein
He's retiring.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Why?
Dan Bernstein
He put together a team of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Moses Malone, and Larry Bird, and they won 77 and 5. So he was like, if they can't. And they were all in the right eras, all the right teams, and he said, if they can't go 82 and. Oh, I'm done.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I'm starting to learn that it's hard to put in a real 82 and. Oh, possibility together without 60s warriors. Wilt.
Dan Bernstein
Well, yeah, you have to have warriors like that.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You've got to have six.
Dan Bernstein
40 and 24. Whatever. It was. 40 and 25. You saw what our guy did, though. He won 82. Zero.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Who?
Dan Bernstein
In our text message. You didn't see it?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Oh, when did you send it?
Dan Bernstein
Yes. No, yesterday. No, our guy, Bill.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Bill. I did not.
Dan Bernstein
Yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
That jerkus.
Dan Bernstein
So he had Jerry West, Grant Hill, Kevin Durant, Elvin Hayes, and of course, Will Chamberlain.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
He.
Dan Bernstein
He got 82 0.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
God damn it. If Bill on Capitol Hill did it. Yes. Oh, wow. He did. I guess I didn't realize. I thought. I thought that was somebody else. No, that was him. That was him, man.
Dan Bernstein
And then I. I sent it to one of my buddies yesterday, and he's sitting in his office. He's a lawyer. He said it's all he did all afternoon.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Of course.
Dan Bernstein
It is so much fun. It's so great. I got my kids doing it yesterday. Yeah, but of course, it was funny. I mentioned it. I was showing it to Natalie. Hank was in the kitchen, and he was like, oh, I know that game. And he flipped his phone around. He showed me. Oh, the kids. The kids all play it well.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
The best part is when you see some of the names and you're like Victor Kriyappa, you know, like, oh my God. I. I love that part when, when you get a little dolly boar baga reach in your life. Yeah. When you can get some Darius Sungaila in your life that you didn't think you needed a little.
Dan Bernstein
I had to do one game where I had Dyson Bailey or what's his name, Bison Daily. Yeah. I had to have him at my center, I think.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Well, because you know, Brian Williams and that game is going to be different from Bison Daily. You don't want to end up get.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You don't want to end up getting screwed. Is. Has anybody. I think Jason was going to. Who. Who said they were going to do the all white. Is that you?
Dan Bernstein
That's me. Yeah.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Okay. Have you done all white?
Dan Bernstein
No, not yet. I will. I want to do an all white team and see how, how if I can get out of like 30 wins.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I think if you try to do that, your phone should blow up. There should be. There should be something, something in the app or your computer, you know, another one. I thought if you, if you actually produce an all white team, it screws up like your power in your house or something.
Dan Bernstein
What could you do? Is that another one? I thought maybe like an all Johnson team. Like what, what's, what's the last name?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You could do Williams.
Dan Bernstein
Okay. Williams would be a good one. That would be fun too.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You'd probably do a Smith with all the Jones.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. See what the all Williams team also.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Yeah. What would you. An all time all Johnson team.
Dan Bernstein
The all white team.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
You know, Buck Johnson, Magic Johnson. I mean Johnson. You could. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well that.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Then, then you've got one spot. One, three and four.
Dan Bernstein
So we'll have to start.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
We'll have to say Mickey Johnson and our group.
Dan Bernstein
Well, they start doing like specific like that and have the best. The best versions possible.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I think that's where it'll get fun is if you have. Or like all. Everybody but they had to have giant afros or just some arbitrary teams that were putting together for reasons other than just trying to be the best.
Dan Bernstein
So like oh, the all arrest team. Like guys that have been arrested. You have to have that.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Well convicted. How about that? A lot of people have been arrested. Or you could do like anybody who actually went to jail. You could do an all drug team. There's. There's, there's all sorts that they do. Oh yeah, that'd be fun. All right, good idea. We will. We'll. We'll vote on that later. But I like it. Some quick news here. DBU Merch is in the pro shop right now. Launched late yesterday. There is DBU Merch. There are DBU T shirts at the moment and there's going to be more. But right now it just. It's DBU with three one, two sports underneath. You want to get yourself. I don't even have one yet, but there's already a bunch of been sold and I haven't even mentioned it yet, haven't even put anything on social media about it. But if you go to the pro shop at the app, the 312Sports app, which you need to get at Google Play or the Apple App Store, or you just go to 312Sports.com, click on Pro Shop and you want to buy some DBU stuff for the summer or for somebody. And it's. Beth made a joke today. She looked at it and she goes, oh, and it's in, it's in distressed lettering. And she said, that's perfect for you. She said, of course, D.B. you should be distressed. And I said, no, it should be tormented. I said that, that I'm not more. I said, I'm much more tormented than I am distressed self. Tormented, sure. Or whatever. It's, you know, whatever. But. But she just said, oh, that's so cute. It's tormented just. Or it's distressed just like you. Thanks, honey. My wife, ladies and gentlemen, My wife, folks.
Dan Bernstein
Oh, did she get home yesterday?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
She is home.
Dan Bernstein
Any issues with Stan Van Gundy or.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Oh, I. I took it out of there. I put it back in Jason's room.
Dan Bernstein
Oh, you didn't, did you?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I didn't. I was out when she got home, so I had been out and I was out. I was out. Apparently it was only rock bass that wanted to chomp on the Ned rig yesterday.
Dan Bernstein
And you didn't. You didn't talk to your daughter with it either?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
No, I didn't want to bother. She got. She had a long day at work and then she got home late. Perfect.
Dan Bernstein
Then. Oh, even better.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
I. I wasn't long a stressful day. You should have give Stan a hug. Yes, I should have done that and said, if you really need relief from your day, this man needs a hug. You need a hug. That's the point of the Stan Van Gundy life size body pillow. This is. It's still the greatest gift I've ever gotten. It really is like every. It's Christmas morning every day that I remember I have it.
Dan Bernstein
That's better than the baseball card I gave you.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
That's rude. That's right over there. Thank you. That's for us. That, that's. We share that. You. You got that for. For everybody. I thought it's for the room. Yeah. I think it makes. I think it. It sets up nicely. Can I finish with one quick story here that I need a ruling on from you? And the answer is, would you. And I think the answer from you is going to be yes.
Dan Bernstein
Okay, what do we do?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Do you know that. Do you remember the mummy that was known as Etsy the Iceman Oetzi. And it was. It was found in 1991 in the northern Italian Alps. A couple of German hikers found it. And this is a 5300 year old mummified guy who apparently was killed by an arrow in the back when he was strolling through the Alps and he froze. So his remains, you remember this? His remains were preserved at -6 degrees Celsius 5,300 years ago. It's before the Egyptian pyramids were built. And he's been studied for a long time. And they're always finding new things because technology is changing. So they always go back to Etsy or Utsi or whatever they call them. The Iceman. I think he could actually, now that I think about it, why didn't he. Trademark Iceman.
Dan Bernstein
I think it's Otsy. Right, Otsi, Not Schmutzy, but Otzi.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
No, Schmutz is different. They also. Scientists are also studying Schmutzy too, just to find out things about everything. They're constantly showing up and taking tissue samples and biopsying him to make you always. We need to study Schmutzy to make sure that that doesn't happen again. So what they've done now, they have found yeast growing in the guts of this mummy and they have used it to make sourdough. Oh. The latest research published in the Microbiome journal.
Dan Bernstein
The answer is yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
An Italy based team found evidence that ancient and modern microbial life remain active in the mummified body of Otzi. What we didn't expect to find was yeast, said lead study author Mohammed Saron of the Yurek Research Institute in the Italian city of Bolzano. His body hosts living metabolically capable organisms that are actively responding to their environment. The cold adapted yeasts are growing. Certain bacteria have colonized and persisted across his tissues for decades. The mummy is, in a very real sense, a living biological interface, a meeting point between the ancient world and the present. Where microbes from 5,000 years ago coexist with organisms that arrived last decade. So the scientists discovered four different yeasts that can survive sub zero temperatures in Utzi's guts, skin and brownish water that melted off his body when he was partially unfrozen. These kinds of yeast only live in very cold conditions such as Antarctica. They're believed to have entered Otzi's body at some point after he died. Genetic analysis revealed DNA damage levels very comparable to the original microbes in the iceman's guts, suggesting the yeast entered his body soon after death. They have accompanied him on his long journey through the millennia. They then reproduced that gut yeast in a fridge. And if you tell anyone you have yeast, they immediately ask, according to Sarhan, can we use it for bread? So they tried to make a sourdough loaf and it didn't work, he said, but after three months of effort, we had a very, very good sourdough. When asked if the scientists were considering using the yeast to brew beer, he responded, it's on the list. And then in all seriousness, that they said there were more serious uses for the yeast, that the yeast is able to eat phenol, saying it could help break down phenol in chemical contaminated environments, etc. But they're, they're going to try to brew beer with this. Would you try that sourdough?
Dan Bernstein
I would try the sourdough, yes.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
So would I.
Dan Bernstein
Why not?
Co-host/Guest Analyst
So would I. And I actually had a friend that made a huge, thick sourdough bread using a grain called spelt. And it was so good, I made a meal. I went and I bought a block of European, like normandy butter, like 60% fat butter, and I made a. I made a meal out of this bread just covered in this awesome butter.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, it sounds good.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Oh my God, it was so good. Like every once in a while, just to remind myself, it's of like, you don't need much for like a really pleasurable like, but like great bread and great butter.
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. Sourdough is very good for you. I would definitely try it.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Is it good for you because of the microbiomes and what it does for your, for your gut health?
Dan Bernstein
Absolutely.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Is it probiotic?
Dan Bernstein
Sure.
Co-host/Guest Analyst
Which is a biotic that's just lost its amateur status because it's signed with an agent. Oh, boy. Okay. I guess that's. I guess we got to stop.
Progressive Insurance Announcer
Insurance isn't one size fits all. That's why customers have enjoyed progressives name your price tool for years. Now with the name your price tool, you tell them what you want to pay and they'll show you options that fit your budget. So whether you're picking out your first policy or just looking for something that works better for you and your family, they make it easy to see your options. Visit progressive.com find a rate that works for you with the name your price tool Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates Price and coverage match limited by state
Co-host/Guest Analyst
law the NBA Finals Easy money at my bookie. Just don't overthink it. You don't need a crazy parlay. You don't need spreadsheets. You need a team you trust. And playoff basketball Finals basketball was made for my bookie. Clean board. Keep it simple. Got your Knicks, you got your spurs. And then you can ride the teams built to win. And if you're new to my bookie, if you never made a deposit, there's even less reason to sit this one out. If you use DBU right now as your promo code and you can I have it. That's what it is. DBU. Any bet you choose up to $500 is fully covered. That means you make your play and if it doesn't hit, you get it right back when you opt in using your bet back bonus token. So pick one of these squads. Go with Wemby. Go with Jalen Brunson. Take your shot. Don't just watch the playoffs. Cash in on them. Only at my bookie. And that will do it for Dan Bernstein. Unfiltered today thanks for being here. We're brought to you in partnership with my bookie, Dan Bernstein. Unfiltered unfiltered on 312 sports, you know what's missing? Real talk about what black men go through mentally and emotionally. Man Listen Mental Health Conversations for Men of Color we're diving into the real stuff. The pressure, the struggles, the healing. No filters, just brothers sharing their truth about navigating life and finding purpose. Whether you're living it, supporting someone who is, or just want to understand, this is for you. I'm Mark McRae and I'm ready to have these conversations. Find us by searching Man Listen Mental Wherever you get your podcast.
This episode delivers a frank, sharply observed breakdown of the collapse of the Chicago Bears' stadium deal and the roles played by Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Governor J.B. Pritzker, and the Bears organization itself. Dan Bernstein and Matt dissect recent public comments by the mayor, probe the Bears’ lack of concrete plans, and question the political and logistical landscape shaping the team’s stadium future. The episode also veers into classic Chicago sports psyche, including White Sox-Cubs fan dynamics, and closes on a lighter note exploring science news about ancient sourdough.
[01:34–08:54]
Showmanship vs. Governance:
Political Calculus:
Hyperbole & Disconnect:
[16:21–16:57]
[16:57–24:33]
Where Are the Stadium Renderings?
Financial Uncertainty:
[16:01–16:21, 24:33–27:58]
Staying Put:
Epic Mismanagement:
[28:56–43:43]
Sox Fans & Cubs Misery:
Personal Fan History:
[45:23–51:42]
NBA Finals Recap:
DBU Merch Announcement:
[54:33–59:53]
| Timestamp | Segment | |---------------|----------------------------------------------------------------| | 01:34–08:54 | Mayor Johnson’s stadium rhetoric and political strategy | | 16:21–16:57 | Johnson-Pritzker relationship, Israel politics, and donors | | 16:57–24:33 | Lack of Bears stadium plans/renderings and financial doubts | | 24:33–27:58 | Soldier Field fallback, Bears mismanagement | | 28:56–43:43 | Cubs/Sox fan culture, schadenfreude, personal stories | | 45:23–51:42 | NBA Finals, 82–0 simulator game, DBU merch | | 54:33–59:53 | Otzi the Iceman’s sourdough yeast discovery |
The tone is unfiltered, sharp, and colloquial—true to Dan Bernstein’s “tell-it-straight” Chicago sports roots. The hosts veer from sarcasm and exasperation to humor, self-deprecation, and thoughtful asides about city politics and sports obsession. For anyone following Chicago’s stadium saga, this episode is incisive, highly candid, and revealing.