Studs Terkel on the Cubs

Chicago's most venerable writer, Studs Terkel, nails the Cubs phenomena with this analysis, part of an interview in Sunday's Tribune:

The Cubs have been a legend for years. Nothing to do with baseball. You have to understand that. The Cubs' popularity had nothing whatsoever to do with baseball. It's a place to come to as, say, the Air Show is, the Auto Show, the Art Institute. It's a place to be at, and many have come from suburbs and nearby towns. It's not really baseball. It's a place to be at. We see that with the bimbos and the louts and the Bud Lights.

We agree. This not only explains why the Tribune invested in the Cubs, it also explains why none of the stories the Tribune published for the Cubs' home opener were about baseball.