Hopeful Bears Fan's Manifesto

It hasn't always been easy to be a Chicago Bears fan.  I remember one of the "dark days" back in 1995, when 1985 Bears Super Bowl Kicker Kevin "Butthead" Butler missed a chip-shot field goal, in sudden-death overtime, against the Minnesota Vikings and the Bears ultimately went on to lose the game.  That game is still immortalized by my little brother, who still recalls my tears (I can admit it now) and my ranting and raving for hours afterwards.  One of my cries "Why couldn't they win??" still echoes through the walls when we get together.

So why do I continue to watch?  And not only watch, but read about, analyze, and count the minutes to each game?  I love sports in general, and competition.  But I think there is a little more to it, and watching the Bears over the years has taught me the following:
1) Kharma exists. For every game like the one above, there is a game like this year's season opener against the Lions, which many "objective observers" deemed a lucky or undeserved win.  I've seen enough Bears games to tell you with confidence that there is no such thing.  But there is Kharma, or as Stephen King calls it "Ka".  And Ka is a wheel.  The Bears deserve every win they get, if only to make up for all of the gut-wrenching losses through the years.
2) It is important to be optimistic and hopeful about the things you are passionate about.  If you are going to be a Bears fan, you might as well enjoy it, or else why bother?  To me, this involves having an optimistic outlook going into every season.  If you really believe that your team stinks, then what is the point of watching--validation?  Find something else to do with your time.  ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN.
3)  Have your own opinion.  The media is paid to get your attention, and too often people take the easy way out and let the media's opinion become their own.  Just because the media says the Bears stink, doesn't mean it is so.  Also, just because the media says the Bears will win the Super Bowl, don't buy your tickets to Jerry World just yet.  One of my goals with this blog is to offer an honest and measured opinion of the Bears performance every week, from a positive perspective.
4) It is fun to look ahead, and imagine the possibilities.  This is why, every week, I will publish a list of where the Bears stand in the NFC,  along with their playoff scenarios and possibilities (once we get a little bit closer to that time of year).  I'll also take an objective but swayed to "hopeful" look at the Bears upcoming game.

I hope you can take the information I provide and use it to formulate your own opinion of our Beloved Bears, and maybe we can play a small part in eliminating all of the negativity that is created by the media (and have a few laughs along the way).