36 Comments - Conservative Republican - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:10 am: Bruce, don’t pay attention to Mr. Miller here. His take is that of the hardcore Democrat who can’t be won over anyway. The voters you need and who can be won over will distinguish between Ditka’s metaphor and the shortcomings of certain NFL players. It’s a good ad, and Mike Ditka still has good draw in Chicagoland. - 47th Ward - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:15 am: Ditka has said and done so many idiotic things over the years that it’s hard to keep track of them all. Apparently, if you coach a team to a championship, all is forgiven in Chicago (soon, Ozzie, soon). - wordslinger - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:16 am: It ran last night during the Cards/Chargers game. Roger Goodell was so busy counting up the NFL money that he didn’t realize how badly it looked to initially give Ray a two-game suspension for beating the lady unconscious when he gave Josh Gordon a one-year suspension for weed. - walker - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:19 am: Conservative Republican: I am a =”hardcore Democrat=” — (Rich Miller clearly is not to any fair observer) — and I would say for Rauner to stay with the ad. The average watcher won’t make any unfortunate connection with Rice. Rauner still needs as much name recognition as he can get and Ditka helps. - Joe Bidenopolous - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:21 am: CR - Don’t worry, Bruce won’t back down on Ditka. Remember, he’s awfully concerned about earning power too. Then there’s Ditka on the Redskins: “Even though it was called a Redskin, what are you going to call them, a Brownskin?” I can’t be sure because Ditka is generally an incoherent doofus, but I believe the “it” he is referring to here is the race of Native Americans. Classy act, that one. - 47th Ward - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:23 am: Even more bizarre than Ditka’s being asked to comment on Ray Rice was ESPN asking Ray Lewis for his opinion on the subject. Did they ask him as a former teammate, or was Lewis’ perspective valuable because he was once charged with murder? How long was Ray Lewis suspended for after that incident? Goodell blew this one from the start. When abusing dogs is taken more seriously than abusing women, you’ve failed. Goodell said he lowered it to two games, in part, due to the pleading of now Mrs. Rice, the victim, who presumably stands to lose as much financially as her husband from a prolonged absence from the game. Goodell deserves all of the bad press he is getting on this and more. - Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:25 am: What did people think happened in that elevator? It was a weak punishment to begin with by both the league and the justice system, and it is amazing to see so many people suddenly outraged after-the-fact by seeing the video. Any form of abuse is unacceptable, whether you see visuals or not. - Loop Lady - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:27 am: hehe…Rauner spending good money after bad…even if the ad cost very little to produce, I guess he has plenty more cash to make his positions on the issues so much clearer to the electorate…his campaign is pretty amorphous given the date and all the cash he has raised/given himself…Bruce, what do you stand for? - CircularFiringSquad - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:30 am: Ad got Mitt a day of very mixed media in Chicago. Ditka did not help himself…..Guessing Mitt bought a lot of steaks and cheap vino before the taping. - Almost the Weekend - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:31 am: I agree with Rich better safe than sorry. Ditka is asked dozens of questions on national TV and Radio and millions of people can hear him. If he says one thing politically incorrect it could be costly. Many people view Ditka as their own grandpa who can get away with saying anything, but when you are running for governor in one of the most watched races in the country the risk is not worth the reward. - anon - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:32 am: I can see a gif coming. - Amateur Hour - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:34 am: lol at Rich Miller being a “hardcore Democrat” … um. what. - Nonplussed - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:36 am: Conservative Republican: Quinn needs to improve his numbers with suburban women. You think the Ditka brand will help Rauner with them even though Ditka is sympathizing with a wife-beater. Good luck with that! - Mason born - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:40 am: Okay sorry but I disagree most viewers will make that leap. Ditka isn’t Rice and for most viewers a known and respected quantity. Not only that but any attack on Ditka over the add helps Rauner. Run it again Bruce needs all the inoculation against the Quinn attcks he can get. - Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:41 am: Meanwhile, just published “Moody’s: Illinois’ pension debt versus revenue is worst in nation” http://www.sj-r.com/article/20140906/NEWS/140909627/10511/NEWS?rssfeed=true - me - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:44 am: 47th Ward, exactly. Ditka won a lot of games many years ago. That doesn’t make him any more special than millions of other ignorant, obnoxious chumps - he just happens to be famous. The fact that anyone would care about what he says now is disturbing. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:51 am: luckey mike didn`t smack”special interest bruce~right in the kisser - wordslinger - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:51 am: I haven’t seen any evidence that a Ditka endorsement has moved the needle for anyone over the years. Did Ericka Harold rack up a lot of white male votes? - Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:53 am: == Ditka won a lot of games many years ago. == Somewhere along the way, he has also managed to remain on national television every week; appear on national and local radio every week; build a successful restaurant franchise; create a wine, salsa and additional successful products and brands; and donate significant amounts of time and effort to various charitable groups. Don’t let personal dislike of Rauner confuse you into thinking Ditka is a nobody who stays famous by accident. The guy still works his tail off. - Pickle - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 11:55 am: Everybody’s first, natural and correct reaction is “What a horrible guy” and “There’s no place in the NFL for someone like him” but Da Coach does make a good point. Two lives were ruined over this incident. Maybe more if they have children. Now the woman if being punished again for sticking with this man by being publicly humiliated and being financially penalized. Where was the criminal justice system in this graphically violent incident? - wordslinger - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:01 pm: –Where was the criminal justice system in this graphically violent incident?– Look it up. In was in all the papers. - Shark Sandwich - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:01 pm: “Beats by Ray” is one of, if not, the most popular fantasy football team names. So to male football fans / those who see this type a trash talk as a way to fire people up like a sports event, probably not a big deal. But to people who cringe when they hear a Honeymooners clip (”One of dese days, Alice, bang zoom, lunar themed domestic violence catchphrase…”) they might make a pretty strong negative connection. Might. - Wensicia - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:02 pm: ==Two lives were ruined over this incident.== Is it better when just one life (the woman’s) is ruined or possibly ended due to domestic violence? - forwhatitsworth - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:05 pm: Mike Ditka has never been known to have an intellectual approach to anything. This is probably why he despised Buddy and his defensive schemes so much. Ditka is still trying to ride the nostalgia train the left the station almost thirty years ago. - Gooner - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:07 pm: I sure hope Rauner listens to people like “Conservative Republican.” That’s wonderful advice and the added “Miller is a Democrat” is a nice paranoid touch. Keep up the good work, CR! - Gooner - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:11 pm: In any case, I agree that most people will not make the Rice connection to the Ditka ad. Instead, I think that the bigger problem is that it makes Rauner look like a happy puppy dog in comparison to Ditka. Rauner really looks amazingly weak. The ad is not going to convince anybody on the fence, but it may hurt a bit. You never want to look weak. - And I Approved This Message - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:11 pm: According to the Baltimore Sun, Rice keeps $22 million of guaranteed money from his most recent contract, money which has already been paid to him. So someone should reassure The Coach that he doesn’t need to hold a Tag Day for the Rice family. - fisher - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:23 pm: If people can’t distinguish between Ditka’s language in the context of the ad and an act of domestic violence, then we might as well stop talking period because we really have no ability to understand each other. - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 12:48 pm: Did he say, “hit your fiancé in the mouth?” If Ditka was in that elevator with Rice, it would have been Mike dragging Ray’s unconscious butt out that door! - MrJM - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 1:14 pm: “If Ditka was in that elevator with Rice, it would have been Mike dragging Ray’s unconscious butt out that door!” If I were going to have a coach for my imaginary superfriend, I’d pick one who’d won a second championship. – MrJM - Norseman - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 2:48 pm: Formerly Known As…, nice try to divert attention from the post. - Norseman - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 2:58 pm: Listening to the sports talking heads, I was amused to hear that Ditka supported Quinn last time around. While I’m not a fan of either participant in the commercial, I think folks too often try to make things into optics (love that new Obama euphemism) where they don’t belong. My reaction to the commercial was that it was stupid, not that Ditka was down playing or condoning or whatever Ray Rice’s abuse of his fiance/wife. - Enviros-Anon - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 3:42 pm: “Now the woman if being punished again for sticking with this man by being publicly humiliated…” Here is what’s really happening: She is saying and doing what she believes she needs to do to avoid further violence from her abuser. She knows she should leave him, but leaving an abuser is often even more dangerous than staying. - Coffee Cup - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 5:43 pm: The vast majority of the people love the fact that Ditka doesn’t give a rat’s rear-end about being politically correct when he speaks. Ditka just speaks from his heart and that is why people believe in him whenever he says something. Rauner would be wise to follow the Ditka and to keep running the spot with Ditka. “Lack of credibility” is the number one problem with our President as well as with our state elected officials. People are looking for somebody (ANYBODY”!) to believe in when it comes to our state and national government elected officials. Mike Ditka oozes “credibility” with the people in Illinois. Bruce Rauner should sit as close to Mike Ditka as he can and hope what Mike has rubs off on him as well. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 6:26 pm: CC, why don’t you tell us all about the “credibility” of Rauner’s fiscal “plans?” He’s not speaking from the heart, but out a lower body part. - Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Sep 9, 14 @ 6:36 pm: Thanks, @norseman. Sometimes frustration with the focus on style over substance by both candidates in this race bleeds over into my comments, as you have noticed. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.