Balta1701

QUOTE(Sox It To Em @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 06:38 PM) A's/NL Yankees Death How the heck can you guys root for our heated divisional rivals before other teams? That just doesn't make sense to me. I like the fact that we're the only AL Central team with a recent World Championship and would like things to remain that way. Because they're not doing their best to ruin the game of baseball by buying out the rest of the league.

QUOTE(Rex Kicka** @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 04:36 PM) Truman also prevented a democratically elected communist government in France after liberation, btw. I only have so much time during the day man...can't list all of the great stuff Truman did.

Abe...if we want to talk about presidents who's policies had a singular effect on the Soviet Union...I don't think you can possibly ignore the gigantic contributions of the Truman administration. Harry Truman's decision to contain the Soviet Union rather than to invade, to support Democracy as an alternative to communism with force when necessary (but not excessive) and allow the Soviet System to work itself towards its own economic collapse? All of these form the fundamental basis for the reality which allowed the collapse to happen. There was a communist insurrection in Greece after WWII? We're going to support the anti-communist forces. Western Europe is in chaos and Communists are starting to gain traction? Spend a bunch of U.S. dollars on rebuilding. North Korea is invading the South? Send in the U.N. forces. Chinese forces entered on the other side? No, we're not going to invade China, we're going to stop here, and go away Mr. Macarthur. Several Presidents had impacts. Reagan cleary did...Ike, Kennedy, etc., but the whole reason that you get to say that the Soviet System was unstable and was going to eventually collapse is that the Truman Administration basically planned for exactly that.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 12:38 PM) That would result in some ENORMOUS prices at the municipal level for vehicle ownership. I assume you mean something non-local? Also, when you convert revenue from something instantaneously charged (sales tax) to something collected (permits), you lose a percentage of that revenue due to much higher failure to pay rates. What exactly did you have in mind? First of all, there are ways one could overcome the failure-to-pay rates. Tickets for people not having them, is one option...having it be a standard part of the tax paid when purchasing a car would be another one. Yes, it would result in significant price increases for vehicle ownership...but the key is, it would result in much more significant price increases for heavily polluting or gas-guzzling cars. And thus, it would be a very very heavy disincentive towards purchasing or using said vehicles. I'm not sure of a good way to make it a perfect system...but when compared with highly regressive gas taxes that only do a small amount to discourage consumption, I think that a system that taxes based on the EPA ratings or on the MPG of a car would be a significant improvement.

I would be in favor of eliminating all taxes on gasoline and making up the entire revenue through exactly that system.

QUOTE(Jenksismyb**** @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 11:23 AM) Assuming the program is used for domestic spying (very very rare I'm sure), any evidence obtained would be thrown out. The person couldn't be convicted unless some other evidence is found through legal means. Of course then it's argued that the illegal tap is just a front and it could lead to finding other evidence legally. At this point, though, who cares? Like I said earlier we're not talking about people who are stealing cable or smoking some pot or whatever small ass crime that a million other people in the country are doing at the same time. I guess this just goes back to the 'if you're innocent you have nothing to worry about' argument. To me there are adequate protections in our justice system to keep innocent people, wrongly accused, out of jail. If a couple of innocent people have to go through the process in order for the government to catch a few terrorist or expose plots before they move into action, so be it. They'll get a hefty chunk of change in their lawsuit against the government (which the american people, as jury, would rightly give them). People fear the NSA (and Patriot Act) will lead to a 1984 style society. This country would revolt if such a situation would arise. It's just not possible and to me it's an unreasonable fear. But here's the real kicker...information can be obtained through domestic spying that can be used in other ways other than National Security. Which is the single biggest reason that we need the FISA Act and its limited protections. In the 60s-70s, for example, that information was used by Mr. Nixon and Mr. Johnson to have direct impacts on the national elections. Nixon, for example, had journalists wiretapped to both find out who their sources were and to find out the things they were writing beforehand. Johnson had Nixon's plane wiretapped in 1968 before the election. Both of them justified their wiretaps by saying, guess what, it was in the interest of national security. But in neither case was it actually so. There were hundreds of other examples. In the right circumstance, that sort of information can swing elections, can cost people jobs, and can be worth millions of dollars. Just the sort of stuff you'd say on your phone or in your office. In national security circumstances, the President has the right to gather that information...but the President does not have the right to determine on his own what circumstances are related to national security, and that is the key point.

QUOTE(JackTalkThai @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 11:44 AM) The Tigers added a lot more than just that. They also added Justin Verlander, Todd Jones and Joel Zumaya. They also didn't have Chris Shelton, Placido Polanco and Curtis Granderson for the first half of the season last year. Or Magglio Ordonez.

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 11:01 AM) Now that I have paid proper respect to the Gipper........ Appeaser? Was he the one that said the Soviets couldn't be defeated? Was he the one that said we should try to co-exist with communisim instead of trying to defeat it? ........ ...........not going to hold my breath waiting for an answer. Actually, I would say that he was the one both willing to negotiate with the Soviets and with the domestic credibility to do so. I can't recall him actually attacking the soviets militarily.

QUOTE(Jenksismyb**** @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 10:16 AM) But if it's this easy then who cares? It just becomes an administrative step that wastes time and money. If there's a situation in which they have a feeling some guy X will be contacting some guy Y tomorrow, they might miss the conversation completely by having to file a report to a commission. Who knows how long the process works, but even if it delays it 10 minutes and we miss that phone call it could be huge. I'd be fine with a system simliar to the Patriot Act in which government agencies are allowed to undergo the warrantless tap but have to come back with evidence later (if they couldn't do so before hand) that would validate the tap. So long as we don't miss out on an opportunity to catch people or gain more intelligence because of a formality that, as you say, almost never gets denied, i'm fine with putting SOME 'protections' in place. I just don't agree that we should fundamentally oppose any alteration or exception on a 'right' that the Court has defined and molded to fit certain situations already. Well, that's the real beauty of the FISA system as the U.S. has it. First of all, the Executive branch has the right to conduct a tap without even filling the paperwork for 72 hours. If that deadline needs extended then extend it, but it's worth noting that the President didn't bother asking to extend it in the Patriot Act or in Patriot 2. So in other words, no it doesn't delay a thing. If it was causing problems...then all they need to do is ask for that deadline to be extended...that is one I'd be happy to grant them if they thought it was a problem. Secondly, it's actually a fairly vital administrative step...because it assures that the NSA is not being used for strictly domestic purposes that have nothing to do with national security. Some folks here would like to argue that such a thing could never happen, and that we should trust our leaders all the time...but the problem with that is that those sorts of wiretaps were exactly what prompted the creation of FISA in the first place. The constitution grants the President the right to use wiretaps without obtaining a 4th amendment warrant in any case related to national security. But administrations like Nixon and Johnson decided that their political opponents were threatening the security of the United States, or something like that, so they deployed the surveillance equipment against their political opponents. Johnson had Nixon's campaign wiretapped in 68, Nixon wiretapped everyone he could think of. Because of these actions, the Congress took the step in the late 70's of providing a method through which the courts could confirm that there was some national security reasoning behind a wiretap...the creation of the FISA court. After the Patriot Act revisions, basically all the administration has to do is show that there's some remote reason to think vital foreign intelligence could be gathered through that wiretap and it is supposed to be approved.

The only veterans who should play in this last week are the ones who are at the top of our "to be traded" list.

QUOTE(Jenksismyb**** @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 09:21 AM) As was pointed out it's difficult to tell if it has worked. However there was the 'threat' on New York financial institutions a year ago that they say was uncovered by listening to phone conversations. Also, I believe the plot to blow up planes using hair gel/liquids in the UK was uncovered by using warrantless taps.First and foremost...no one at all, as far as I know, is opposing the government having the right to wiretap terrorists, people with actual terrorist ties, people making international phone calls, or in cases where there is a "significant national security purpose" for the wiretap. All we're asking is that the President has to go to the trouble of going to a secret court which almost never denies requests and submitting some evidence to that court to show that there's some reason for people to believe it's related to national security. That's it. Secondly, there is no evidence that Mr. Bush's actual warrantless wiretapping program had anything to do with uncovering the london Plot. Several sources wrote this in the weeks after the plot was uncovered: Furthermore, several sources also strongly suggested that there was "no U.S. connection" to the London plot, and therefore, there would have been no reason for the "Warrantless wiretapping" program to even matter...because none of the individuals involved were U.S. citizens. And finally, British law is actually somewhat more strict than the U.S. law with regards to wiretapping. It's probably also worth noting that the suspension of Habeus Corpus was challenged in ex parte Milligan (71 US 2 [1866]) and was found to be unconstitutional.

QUOTE(The Critic @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 09:22 AM) Not much pop there, maybe they'd finally be forced to try some hit-and-run plays or steal some bases. Anderson would be the "masher" on that team, with 8 bombs. Rob Mackowiak = INSTANT OFFENSE!! Didn't you know that?

QUOTE(Brian @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 08:03 PM) Yeah, I may have to bench him in fantasy until he gets going. I really thought he would turn out to be a huge surprise due to his versatility but hasn't happened yet. I think some of that is in the fact that teams are game-planning to stop Bush first...and winding up having Brees beat them.

QUOTE(Hangar18 @ Sep 26, 2006 -> 06:34 AM) Why is Frank Thomas in this conversation? Balta brings up a good point, how much have Thomes alarmingly low HR & RBI numbers because of Scott Podsednik? Im sure it doesnt help Thome, but Thome has batted with men on the second half, and ive seen plenty of popups, strikeouts from him. I trust Jermaine Dye with men on more. Now this is a different story from the one we've been talking about. Was Jim Thome "not very good" in the 2nd half, or was Jermaine Dye simply better? I think the answer is the 2nd one of those...the reason almost all of us would have wanted JD up instead of Thome in the 2nd half was that JD was simply better in the 2nd half. With RISP in the 2nd half, JD hit .342 wiht a 1.053 OPS (and a whopping 1.240 OPS in the first half). Thome also has one thing unique from JD in his career though...Thome has a significantly higher BABIP, despite the fact that they have similar career batting averages. This is due to the way Thome swings...he swings hard at everything in case he hits it. This helps him get all that power (when he hits the ball, he hits it darn hard), but it also leads to a lot of strikeouts...which is one reason why it's nice to sandwich him between guys like JD, Crede, Konerko...because if you get a guy on 3rd, Thome's less likely to get him home with a fly ball or ground ball to the right side. So it makes statistical sense to trust JD more with men on, especially last year which was the best of his career, but again...none of that means Thome was bad, terrible, bad in the 2nd half, or to blame for this team losing.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 08:58 PM) Terrorists operate outside of the law. In a democrat Iraq, the good people of the country could elect the very people we want out. Our security will be affected by events and countries all over the globe. Iraq is small in many ways. On a global scale, I don't see how you can say major. Major to me will be Korea, China, Pakistan, India. Then we can list countries from Bolivia to Iran. One country? Not major. And I agree 100%, anti terrorist measures at home are more effective. And you don't think there's a difference in how we'd react to say, Iran, or North Korea, or even China and Pakistan, with a different set of leaders in power?

Oakland. Big gap. The Phillies and the NL West winner (or the West Winner and the Wild Card). The rest of the AL Central The Cardinals (man, they actually made it?) The moneybags.

QUOTE(ChWRoCk2 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 08:55 PM) Congrats Twins and Tigers your team showed more heart than ours. Off topic: Im rootin Philly if they make it, well Pro NL in general. Anything but another "We can buy the world series, nyah nyah" Subway series.

QUOTE(CWSGuy406 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 08:24 PM) I can't tell if you're being serious or not, but it is a fairly good idea. I know he's an a-hole and all, but he's an a-hole who is still putting up a .461 OBP this year. It'd make sense for the Sox, too, as they could give Sweeney one more year at Charlotte so he could take over in 2008. So long as you don't put him ahead of GIDP err Konerko, you'd be alright. Of course, you'd have to deal with the daily barrage of assualt from the media and fans, so.... On paper, looking only at the stats...saying he'd be a tolerable DH or LF is not a bad idea. That siad...I don't watch a single game next year, and maybe several years thereafter, if Barry Bonds (or Giambi for that matter) wears a White Sox uniform any time in his career.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 08:47 PM) No matter who is in power it will not change our security. Now that is simply not true. Whether you're on the right or on the left, the fact is there are 2 dramatically different approaches to stopping Al Qaeda as a threat. The Right thinks staying in Iraq is the key part of a solution, I certainly don't. I think things like funding port security, airport security, first responders, etc., is more important than wiretapping everyone in America, and I think that torturing prisoners only makes things worse for the U.S. But whether you agree with me or not, there are very significant choices at stake based on who is in power in this country in the next few years, which will have major impacts on the security of this nation.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 06:54 PM) The really sad thing is that I expect nothing more of him. I think if my pastor started talking about who I should vote for, and who is the canditate of God, I would never listen go back. His job is to teach the word of God. How I understand it is an issue for me, God, and the Holy Spirit to decide.... But thanks for all of the help Actually, I for one think the really sad thing is that while he gets to go off and do that...there's a pastor right here in Pasadena who's under investigation by the IRS for a sermon he gave opposed to the Iraq war in 2004.

QUOTE(greg775 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 08:37 PM) No Mack. Trade audition. Play him if there's room somewhere (2b?). Remind teams that he's not just the best CF in human history, but he can also play 2B!

QUOTE(DBAH0 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 07:34 PM) Can I just ask if you trade Thome, who do you trade him for, and how are you going to replace his power output in the lineup (and please don't say Ross Gload). Just as with almost everyone else in our lineup...Thome is only tradeable for the right price. The right price is significantly more than we got for him now that he's proven he's not finished. You want to trade Thome, you better get a real real freaking stud back right now. QUOTE(chisoxt @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 07:24 PM) Reagardless of his batting average, the important statistics, HR and RBI clearly indicate that Thome was not very good in the second half. I am not sure how much the Sox are on the hook for Thome's remaing three year deal at about $13.5 million per., but I would implore Kenny to seek a deal for this guy before becomes a huge liability down the road. Trade him while he still has value. First of all, and this I'm sure of...Thome only has 2 years left on his deal. His 3rd year is an option year. And the Sox are paid roughly 1/2 of those last 2 years. Secondly...Thome had 67 At bats with RISP in the first half. 44 of those with a runner on 3rd. He only had 46 with RISP in the 2nd half...32 with a runner on 3rd. Thome's numbers are slightly down in the 2nd half. But you simply can not say he was "not very good". He was very good, just not great.

There are enough "Rush haters" amongst the Rock & Roll hall of fame people that it will probably be a long time before they get in, if ever. And I'm not totally sure that's a bad thing.

QUOTE(Hangar18 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 02:49 PM) Say, thanks for digging this up while I was away. Hmmmmmmmmmmm. Look at that. According to those gaudy numbers, Thome has pretty much been scalding the ball off of everyone. .322 first half, .321 second half? My gosh he is amazing. But lets look a bit further, in the power numbers, the ones that should be consistently HIGH, seeing that hes our/was our #3 hitter. April 10 HR, May 10 HR's while hitting pretty "good" about .300. Well June came and he dropped badly, hitting 5 homers, and his average at .260. Thats ok I guess for all the Thome apologists out there, but you cant have a .260 hitter in the #3 hole, while another guy is hitting .300 plus. In July, he gets his homers up a bit to 8 HR's, and his RBI's to 17. August wasnt good at all again, he dipped to 3 homers, and only 10 RBI. Boy did we need him in August too. There are only a couple games left in the season, and Thome has 6 homers this month, and 15 RBI. According to ESPN, Thome hit .298 before the break, and .279 after the break. Before the Break, he had 30 homers and 77 rbi. For sure on MVP pace. After the Break, he had only 12 homers and 30 rbi. Take from that what you will. Man, those are some prime examples of cherry picking data and taking way too small of sample sizes with no context. Yes, Jim's RBI are down in the 2nd half, and especially in August. Know why? Because Scott Podsednik put up a .284 OBP in August, so Jim almost never had RBI chances. Yes, his HR were down that month, but he also hit 9 doubles, and hit .329. Yes, Jim's home runs are down in the 2nd half. But he also has more doubles in the 2nd half than in the first half in 100 fewer at bats. Yes his RBI are down, but how much of that is Scott Podsednik's terrible 2nd half? His OBP is higher in the 2nd half than in the first, so he's walking more and striking out less. If you want to cherry pick data...Jermaine Dye only hit .265 in May, and only had 16 RBI that month. Man, he must have been hurting us badly then right? Of course, I neglected to mention the 8 home runs or the 1.035 OPS there. Or the .250 Average and 12 RBI for JD in September? When you take a full sample set, like a player's career, and start breaking it down by seasons, you'll find some that are good and some that are bad compared to the player's average. When you break it down even more, into months and weeks, you get into sample sizes that are barely statistically significant. You're going to find months when Jim hits less home runs because a few more bounced off the wall and wound up as doubles. Or because fewer people pitched to him. Just as you will with every hitter.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Sep 25, 2006 -> 01:33 PM) The biggest problem with Chicago;s overall rapid transit system is much of the infrastructure is aging quickly and isn't able to be fully utilized because it is literally crumbling. So...can someone explain to me how spending all the money on security improvements, new stadia, police overtime, and so forth is worth the extra billions it would cost beyond simply spending the money to improve the transit system?