The Anti-Racist Halloween Project

I would like to give you all a homework assignment for this year. We have a full year to complete it.

Based on the constant barrage of racist halloween costumes each year (see here and here and here), I would like to challenge everyone to put their heads together and come up with some costumes that showcase American racism.

You can really come at this from any angle--you can present a white-face caricature of a white racist, or you can do something more creative or abstract.

Please post your ideas and we can discuss the best way to present them. Remember, the goal is not to make white people angry for the sake of making them angry, but to constructively address American racism.

If you want to constructively criticize ideas so that we can be the most effective, please do so. If you want to be cynical and shoot down this idea or some of the costume ideas because that's what you tend to do in general, email me and I'll start a different thread to discuss this issue. (Sorry, but actions like this tend to bring out the cynics and destructos.)

Since many of the people reading this are in different communities around the country, we don't have to actually come up with an independent costume for each person participating. On the contrary, if we come up with a good half-dozen, everyone in each community can dress up with their friends in those costumes and spread the message.

If people actually put in the effort on this, we can then take pictures and I'll put them up on the internet. It would also be helpful to pass out literature that explains what we are doing on the day of halloween.

To give one example, how about:

1. A & F white supremacist (pretty self-explanatory although obviously we have to think about what images to represent so that we don't get our asses kicked or upset other people of color).

My Recommendations to Kenny Williams, GM of the World Champion Chicago White Sox

Williams has done a fine job over the last two years (best in baseball in my opinion) and has started his off-season right, rejecting his option on Carl Everett and picking up Cliff Politte's.

Here's what I think he should do this off-season:
1) Let T.I.M.O. walk.
2) Podsednik for prospect(s) (non-majors ready)
3) Young in left.













4) Let Konerko walk
5) Peace out Hernandez even if it's necessary to part with most of his salary.

That leaves us with this starting 9:
Thomas
Pierzynski
Gload
Iguchi
Crede
Uribe
Young
Rowand
Dye

Bench:
Harris
Anderson
Owens/Brown (For Leftiness)
Catcher


Staff:
Buehrle
Contreras
Garland
Garcia
McCarthy
Cotts
Marte
Jenks
Hermanson
Vizcaino
Politte

So that leaves:
1) Do something clever to get one more big bat.
2) Grab another one of those utility idiots that we always have running around to backup our infield positions.
3) Find some sort of back-up catcher.

2) is minor.
We could solve 1) and 3) by picking making a good offer to Johjima.
He, Thomas and Pierzynski could share 400 ABs at DH and C.

The only concern would be handling the pitching staff--of course A.J. has trouble talking to half of them anyway.

Williams might have to go get someone mid-season, but that's going to be a ton cheaper than trying to win these off-season bidding wars.

A plus is that we are grooming our next starting OF for when Dye and Rowand's contracts expire in 2007 (or 2006 if the rookies make a ton of progress). I think Young is ready now. I hope he gets the chance.

Like any championship team!!!!!! the Sox are going to have to start making choices about who they are going to keep when the contracts start expiring. Podsednik is Young with less defense and power, so that's an easy one. Hernandez is a big name with a middling salary and not much left when the bases aren't loaded. The rotation is just going to get too expensive, so I'd say to try to throw up to $8-9 million extensions at the rest of the staff, pay Buerhle whatever he wants and fill in the rest with the wealth of arms in A ball when the time comes.

The infield is where I would invest the bulk of the money. Crede can walk when/if Fields is ready (can he play defense?). I'd retain Uribe. Make a choice on Iguchi/Harris or find an outside solution. Sign/trade for a big bopper at first.

Anyway, for now, let's celebrate this historic victory and prepare for next year, but it's worth thinking about what the future will bring.