Jeff Jarrett in the WWE Hall of Fame????

Actually seeing this tweet on Monday it's actually going to happen the weekend of Wrestlemania

BREAKING: As first reported by @NBCSports, @RealJeffJarrett will be inducted into the #WWEHOF Class of 2018! https://t.co/30BwDTVo4J

— WWE (@WWE) February 19, 2018

In the mid to late 1990s Jeff Jarrett had two stints in the then World Wrestling Federation and also had stints in World Championship Wrestling. WCW was bought in 2001 by one Vince McMahon and decided to engage in this form of good TV [VIDEO]

For years I've heard there was bad blood from when Jeff Jarrett ended his second stint with WWF as he was said to have held up the WWF Intercontinental title for more money. Jarrett's contract had just ran out and WWF officials failed to get the title off of him. So Jarrett had one more PPV and was pinned by Chyna allowing her to become the first woman IC champ.

All the same Jarrett went on to main event WCW during the waning days of that company. Then created the closest competitor McMahon's WWE has since it bought WCW, it's an organization now called Impact Wrestling. Though when Jarrett started the organization with his father it was known as Total Nonstop Action and in the early days was affiliated with a longtime organization known as the National Wrestling Alliance.

Of course things change and ultimately Jarrett is no longer affiliated with Impact then he started Global Force Wrestling which seemed to become part of Impact - though it appears that didn't happen ultimately. And now all the sudden something happened where Jarrett becomes a member of the WWE Hall of Fame. Most fans including myself never saw this happening. Perhaps even Jarrett himself [VIDEO]

Many have theorized that gradually McMahon is relingquishing control of WWE to the next generation i.e. Shane McMahon & Stephanie McMahon -Vince's progeny. Also Stephanie is the wife of WWE legend Triple H who basically created a program called NXT to train the next generation of WWE superstars. And now another sign of that shift Jarrett is going to be in hall of fame.

You know the signal this sends. It means perhaps there are more plans for Jarrett. Maybe he won't be on the road full-time, but usually if you have this distinction this means you're part of the fold again. Perhaps appearances on WWE programming, perhaps a DVD set, perhaps a few more matches because it's possible Jarrett can still wrestle and is ready to go today! I suppose we'll have to see as of now, the main thing is when Wrestlemania weekend comes, he's going to get his ring!

CBS Chicago: Why Are CTA's Train Lines Color-Coded?

Whew! A lot of linking although if you don't feeling like checking the links just check out the video above as it will tell you all that you need to know about the significance of the color coding of CTA's L lines

[VIDEO] I'm a fan of Graham Garfield's Chicago-L.org. This site has been a must visit since I attended community college in downtown Chicago. The L had become a daily routine at that point and now I had the time to find a site about the history of Chicago's L-trains in a computer lab. Of course looking up information on CTA trains instead of actually doing class work.

Tuesday we marked a milestone on February 20, 1993 the Chicago Transit Authority coded their train lines with a color. Before 1993 lines were known by their geographical designations. For example the Red Line used to be Englewood-Jackson Park-Howard then changed to Dan Ryan-Howard in 1993 which is the current Red Line. Another designation for CTA trains were direction for example the Red Line would've also been known as the North-South line.

Now the Dan Ryan is the train I would take every day and takes its designation from the fact that the route runs within the middle of the Dan Ryan Expressway. It's a line I've known most of my life back in the 1980s and early 90s it was designated the West-South line when it was connected with another geographically designated line, Lake. Of course as happens with change Dan Ryan becomes linked with the Howard line, so thus Lake instead gets connected with the Englewood-Jackson Park (aka Cottage Grove today) to become the current CTA Green Line.

Another interesting case the Blue Line was known as the West-Northwest route. And like the Green Line at one point has three lines also designated with geographic names Congress-Douglas-O'Hare connected through downtown in a subway - just like the Red Line incidentally. Anyway by 2006 the Douglas became the Pink Line which on later maps became known as the Cermak route which is routed into the Loop elevated tracks through the Paulina connector. This was as opposed to the connection through downtown to O'Hare.

Ah you notice a pattern here? When I say geographic what does this actually mean? It could mean a neighborhood, it could mean a street, it could also mean a park, or an airport. I suppose whatever is nearby.

For example, I could surmise that the Douglas line was named for a west side park known as Douglas Park (though it also runs along Cermak Road hence the Cermak line designation). The Congress line which actually runs in the middle of the Eisenhower expressway was named for the street that leads into the Ike - well the Ike used to be known as the Congress expressway. One upon a time the O'Hare line was know as the Milwaukee branch because that branch used to run along Milwaukee Avenue. Also the Jackson Park line used to run all the way to the edge of Jackson Park, however, over the years the line got contracted until the eastern terminal of the Green Line became Cottage Grove.

Through Chicago-L.org I see an evolution of the CTA L system. It continues to evolve as I hope the Red Line is extended south from 95/Dan Ryan station to go further south into Roseland. There are some lines I wish CTA had the foresight to continue. On the other hand it can be on it's best days the best way to see Chicago, and of course there are times where it's not so great!

ABL reviews #BlackPanther

[VIDEO] On a whim I saw the film on Friday, and not long after writing yesterday's post about the SJWs complaining that the film didn't contain much representation of LGBT people. I will add my own thoughts about the film as we go along here, however Anthony Brian Logan shares some of his own thoughts in video above.

Now there were some SJW elements in the movie and he says they weren't overwhelming. There was a mention of ancestors who died in the ocean - he's talking about the Atlantic slave trade. There was a pro-Black message imo, however, this is still a superhero movie above all. So yes, we have a movie featuring a Black superhero who rules an African nation that is a modern technological marvel (no pun intended).

Some of what Logan discusses in this video was reports - probably through social media especially - was that there was a lot of "cosplay" (and I have no idea what that really means other than people dress up like their favorite comic book character). Logan reports that throughout the nation many dressed in some form of African garb. In some cases some walked around banging on bongo drums. I've seen African dancing in a theater on FB. When I went to a theater in downtown Chicago, this wasn't something I experienced although there were people who were about to see the movie that did sport some African garb.

Logan also addresses reports of harassment and while it's not entirely clear whom was doing the harassing and whom was being harassed I have little to say about other than this. It's a shame when people can't just enjoy a movie in peace. Knowing that Black Panther is a movie that is produced, directed, written, and acted by Blacks - though certainly it wasn't produced and distributed by a Black production company - one segment of the population aren't the only ones who enjoy the movie. And also it's also been reported that some harassment were proven false.

As far as my own thoughts, it was a great movie. Very action packed as comic book movies are and if most saw this as a reflection of African culture - or certainly the best of it - it did it's job. I'm tempted to write a post on my neighborhood/community oriented blogs with regards to how Black neighborhoods could be transformed into a Wakanda (the fictional African nation where the "Black Panther" rules). Sure there are some political messages of not being isolationist or protecting the borders. Certainly in having a hand helping the world solve its many issues.

Regardless if Black people were looking for another positive portrayal Black Panther is one. Though lets not forget that this is a comic book movie. Someone out there will see this movie and find an issue where Black Panther is a featured character (if not with his own comic book) and they'll want to be him. Perhaps they won't be king of an African nation though they'll always fight for what's right.

CNN: The genre that made Black Panther - afrofuturism

So what exactly is "afrofuturism"?

Afrofuturism intersects science fiction, technology and ancient African mythologies.

"It's people of African descent looking at themselves in the future and what their society and their culture will look like ten years from now, twenty years from now, a thousand years from now," Fikayo Adeola, founder of arts and animation company Kugali, told CNN.

The term Afrofuturism was first coined by author Mark Dery in a 1993 essay "Black to the Future," but the ideas were around long before.

From the 1950s, American jazz musician Sun Ra -- who is considered one of the earliest proponents of Afrofuturism -- drew on ancient African influences as well as space imagery in his music and performances.

"This was in an era where African-Americans looked very much like second class citizens. Afrofuturism was a tool that they could use to imagine a better future, and the movement continued into the contemporary era," said Adeola.

Afrofuturism spanned literature too.

"Science fiction authors like Octavia Butler took it to the next level bringing in futuristic technology and interactions with aliens. The science fiction genre wasn't very inclusive of black people in the early days.

"It was very much up to these early African-American authors to say that actually 'no, there are other people in the future,'" Adeola explains.  

Well while I'm not a Marvel fan this one movie that's worth seeing. Black Panther isn't the first Black superhero ever, however, with his first appearance in Captain America: Civil War he made an impression. An African king who doubles as a masked warrior to protect his people and his characterization is perfect for Marvel's universe. Just to explain I do see a difference between the Marvel Comic and the DC Comic universes.

As for afrofuturism, I want to find out more...

Snowday on the south side and no snowday for Metra

[VIDEO] On Friday I shot this video on my iPhone along 95th Street from between Michigan to State. 95th & State is actually the location of the 95th CTA terminal. All the same just scenes during this past weekend's snow storm. I had actually posted this to my more visual blog at My Mind's Eye (you might actually remember that name though in a different iteration).

Via Railstream on YouTube, a video of a Metra train during this past weekends snow storms leaving Union Station. The title appropriately enough was "No snowday for Metra". Alas no embed for this one so just click this >>> [VIDEO]

The Railstream YouTube channel will on occasion have webcams featuring railroad action. Unlike Virtual Railfan - visit their two live webcams feeds here on this blog - they seem to have a free preview of the week that seems to go from location-to-location. This week they have a cam in Fostoria, Ohio. Once they also had a free preview live video from Chicago where you will see trains leaving Union Station. Like Virtual Railfan they also have a paid subscription website where you can view other live video of trains around the world.

How did you fare in this recent heavy snowfall?

Found this perhaps forgotten 80s Don Adams sitcom recently

I didn't know this that Don Adams had a daughter who appeared on Star Trek. Cecily Adams starred as Quark's mother Ishka on several episodes of Deep Space Nine. She had to don some make-up to become a Ferengi - actually I also learned the Ishka character was at first portrayed by different actress.

And then curiosity got the better of me. Adams who passed away in 2005 (and sadly his daughter passed away the year before) starred in one of my favorite sitcoms of all-time Get Smart. And I remember in the 1980s that he starred in another sitcom called Check It Out. I barely remember it and likely saw it in first run probably on cable - it did air on the USA Network back then.

Check It Out probably doesn't have the same popularity as Get Smart does. In fact the episodes I have seen causes me to cringe. Not that this is a know but I didn't know that back in the 80s,  Check It Out was actually a series that aired, produced, and set in Canada. It strikes me as a typical 1980s sitcom and while there have been some good ones this one wouldn't even rank very high on my list.

Here's one I episode found on YouTube recently. In this episode Adams' character Mr. Bannister - a grocery store manager - finds out that he's under consideration for a job with an international hotel chain. He'd have to go to Vienna to interview so most of the events in this episode revolves around that. No pun intended but "check it out"! [VIDEO]

NOTE: usually this is a video I would embed unfortunately this particular channel doesn't allow embeds.

Anyway I see that in a second season episode of the sitcom, Bannister grows a mustache. In the first season Bannister sports a different hairstyle and it was the least Adams like. By season two it goes back to normal I suppose to what I was used to, however, the mustache throws me off more. I recognize what's going on possibly - he doesn't want to be the character he played on Get Smart Agent 86 of Control a fictional spy agency. Nope, he has to play a manager essentially a regular guy with everyday responsibilities as far as his job. He needs not resemble a bumbling spy although he also seems to portray a bumbling store manager.

Another cool feature is how they incorporate Adams' voice into the opening theme. Adams is a well known name and we likely don't remember the other names involved with the show today. Perhaps to attract viewers the former star of Get Smart had been the hook. Imagine this Adams making an announcement and then expressing a new catchphrase for this show "don't just stand there" and then the chorus from the theme "check it out!" Heh, ingenious!

This series lasted three years and probably is in the dustbin of history as far as TV sitcoms. I found it out of curiosity and decided perhaps it's not really worth much of my time. Although it's was cool to see Adams as a different character than the one most in the public identify him with.

#12Strong

[VIDEO] On Tuesday I saw 12 Strong which is  dramatization about the first American response after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. It's a real life story about a squad of special forces soldier who were the first in Afghanistan to fight Al Qaeda and the ruling Taliban. And Al Qaeda thanks to the events of this film suffered a major defeat at the hands of Afghan rebels against the Taliban and these special forces soldiers.

BTW, on Al Qaeda I just had to tweet this out upon seeing a few captions at the end of this film. I have it in my head that while Radical Islam/Islamic Fundamentalism isn't entirely dead as a violent force Al Qaeda is largely a dying force.

#12Strong so Al-Qaeda considers the battle they fought in that film to be the worst one they lost and then I realize....There’s still an Al-Qaeda?

— Levois J (@levois) January 31, 2018

All the same I wanted to compare this with a similar film 13 Hours directed by Michael Bay and released just about two years earlier. 12 Strong and 13 Hours are similar movies in different contexts.

12 Strong was America's first response to a very deadly terrorist attack on NYC and the Pentagon. 13 Hours involved the death of an American ambassador and violent attacks on US diplomatic staff and a CIA operation. While the men who were fighting this battle weren't active duty military at that time, they were former special forces soldiers who just so happen to be contractors to help protect the CIA operation.

Oh yeah, this was this Benghazi you might have heard about during the 2016 campaign. Resultantly 13 Hours is a drama about survival against the very violent attacks of rebel groups in Libya after the fall of Col. Qaddafi. This movie unfortunately depicted the deaths of four Americans.

With this movie in a very untrustworthy or unforgiving environment of Afghanistan these 12 American soldiers were successfully able to provide the first victories in the emerging War on Terror. And while many Afghan rebels died fighting Al-Qaeda and the Taliban, none of those 12 American soldiers depicted in this film were killed.

Between 2001 to 2018 what's changed? Well we're still concerned about Islamic fundamentalism (which could be called Islamofascism, Radical Islam). There were some terrorist plots or actual acts of terrorism in NYC last year - a car running down people similar to what happened in London and an attempted suicide bombing at a train station. It's still unfortunately a concern even if America did essentially eliminate Al-Qaeda as a force.

While we may still be fighting this dangerous ideology the front seems to have gone from the many battlefields in the Middle East to the issue of immigration. The need for extreme vetting, the need to limit undocumented immigrats in America.

Thankfully we've yet to see another attack on America as seen as 2001. Hopefully we can keep it that way.

12 Strong is a movie I would recommend seeing.