[2015 Catch-All thread]

So some crazy woman from Oregon driving with a 3 year old in tow drove on to the sidewalk of the Strip near Flamingo, which is one of the busier areas. The blood results are not yet in but she showed signs of severe impairment.

 

Killed 1 and injured 36.

 

Woman Drives into Crowd on Las Vegas Strip

Jeez, didn't realize she had a 3 year old in the car with her. What a piece of s***.

 

Surprised only 1 died.

[NCAA basketball 2015-16 thread]

From my personal experience, it takes awhile to totally get over even the smallest of knee surgeries. Mentally and physically. He's already not that explosive of a player.

That would make it easier, IMO. He's not relying on his body/knees to do freakishly athletically things, so it would be easier to trust them after surgery.

[Judge deciding whether to reveal police shooting video]

This one is really bad. *Graphic* http://www.worldstarhiphop.com/videos/vide...2858ukJMVFxI4oG

Jesus. That's an execution.

[NCAA basketball 2015-16 thread]

WTF happened in this game. I was at Star Wars, checked the score right before the movie and ND was up 16. Come out of the movie, check the final and see that ND lost by 7!

IU closed the game on a 17-2 run. We switched to a 1-3-1 zone and Auguste and Colson, particularly, had trouble with it.

[The Republican Thread]

There is nothing wrong with limiting immigration from areas where there are high concentrations of people who want to kill us. There is no divine right for anyone to be allowed entry into the US. Trump just says it in the most bombastic way to get headlines. Carter did it back during the Iran hostage crisis, he even deported many iranians already here. All you people trying to show your patriotic bonafides by claiming anyone end everyone who wants to come her should and somehow THAT is American are just f***ed in the head. We have the OBLIGATION as a country to select who we want here. Saying 'ban all Muslums' may not be the right thingis an absolutely terrible thing to say because it is absolutely disgusting and actively hurts our interests, bit how about giving them some extra scrutiny? Maybe checking social media, international data bases, criminal records? And when the Italians start blowing up our embassies and killing people because they drew pictures of the Pope, then you can give them extra scrutiny as well.

 

Greg, Trump would be a terrible president. he is thin-skinned and not a Republican, but a Trumpican. He is in it for himself, has no real policies other than what is good for him or what the polls might say. While there might come a time where it would be a good thing to tell some of these pissant third world assholes to go take a flying leap off a cliff, i fear it would be at the slightest provocation with Trump.

Fixed that for you.

[NCAA basketball 2015-16 thread]

Also woohoo we won a game against a not-terrible team!

[NCAA basketball 2015-16 thread]

Dakich is disgracing himself today calling the IU game. Has no right to call a player selfish for every poor play.

He was definitely over the top, but I'd have a bigger problem with it if I didn't think selfishness was a big issue for this IU team.

[Judge deciding whether to reveal police shooting video]

I can't stand reading anything from the president of the FOP at this point.

It's bad. I have the same issue with the Minneapolis union head. Every time he opens his mouth, idiocy comes out.

[The Republican Thread]

As a guy who is entirely non-plussed by Hillary and the Republican candidates, here's what I heard from the Republican debate: 1) Let's give the military even more money than we already do; and 2) Guys shhhhh, our citizens don't need to know how much we spy on them.

 

Also thought it was hilarious (though unsurprising) that Trump's opening remarks were entirely about himself, and then later he complained that the media was focusing the narrative too much on him.

 

Rubio comes off as knowing what he's talking about which is more than what most of the guys on stage can say.

Yeah, at least when he was talking about bills he had specific points, though I didn't verify what he sai was actually correct.

 

I thought Bush came off fairly well.

[The Republican Thread]

Agreed on Cruz. Saw a story that mentioned when he met someone in law school, the first question out of his mouth was about their LSAT or IQ scores. Normally I'd be really skeptical of that. With him, it's 100% believable. Cruz as president is a lot more terrifying than Trump, IMO.

 

Who is going to watch the debate on Tuesday? I skipped the last one, but with Trump going full-idiot since that one I am curious to see which candidates are willing to call him out on it and in what way. I don't really care what he says, but what the others around him say. Also curious to see how Cruz does with his more prime slot.

I was planning on tuning in a bit for the bolded reason.

[Educating Your Children]

I grew up in great school districts (Oak Park and then Ann Arbor) and it really did help attending them, my high school had a fantastic reputation, offered a ton of support, had plenty of AP courses and prepped you well for college.

 

That said, when I was at the U of I there were a ton of students from school districts that sucked. Obviously they were intelligent individuals but you could tell that they had great role models in their life. So essentially what I believe is that schools make an impact, but not as much as the support system around the student (and there is give and take between parents, community, and the school system).

 

 

Also, I grew up right next to a private school (but I went to public school), those kids were nasty and insufferable. So glad my parents didn't send me there.

I had to the exact same experience. I graduated from New Trier. Couldn't ask for a better education or better opportunities. Indiana was a breeze compared to it. But you could tell a lot of people at IU were struggling, even ones who were valedictorians. You could really tell it in their writing, some was just awful.

[Alright begin]

Time to say good bye to Gould, for sure

Up until the past 2 games I would have said no chance

[Religion and Gun Attacks]

It would be easy to dismiss any activity that is broadly popular with this logic.

 

What you also miss are all the good deeds that happen because people are bound by a set of beliefs. Food pantries, homeless shelters, clothing drives, etc. The charitable works of religious groups are a huge part of the social safety net in our country. Name a secular agency that is involved in basic human services that are larger than religious groups? I agree we could do without the violent extremist in some religious groups, making a statement that the world would be better off without religion dismisses the good deeds that are done in the name of religion.

Anyone who thinks that getting rid of religion would magically solve the world's problems should watch the Otter King episode of South Park.

[Discussion Topic: The Big Board]

Kinda fun do to this in the winter... I put together my guesses as to the affiliate rosters. Looks to me like BHAM and KAN will have the most exciting teams, though the Dash rotation looks good and Charlotte's lineup can do some damage. Here are my guesses, then I'd love to hear thoughts as a weekend discussion topic...

 

CHARLOTTE

C Kevan Smith

1B Danny Hayes

2B Joey DeMichele

SS Tim Anderson

3B Nick Delmonico

OF Jason Coats

OF Jacob May

OF Scott Hairston

DH Matt Davidson

 

B1 Rob Brantly ©

B2 Leury Garcia

B3 Steve Lombardozzi

B4 Eudy Pina

 

SP Frank Montas

SP Chris Beck

SP Scott Carroll

SP Matt Lollis

SP Nik Turley*

 

RP Daniel Webb

RP Miguel Chalas

RP Kyle Hansen

RP Cody Winiarski

RP Onelki Garcia*

RP Zach Phillips*

RP Will Lamb*

 

--

BIRMINGHAM

C Omar Narvaez

1B Keon Barnum

2B Jake Peter

SS Eddy Alvarez

3B Trey Michalczewski

OF Courtney Hawkins

OF Adam Engel

OF Keenyn Walker

DH Nick Basto

 

B1 Jeremy Dowdy ©

B2 Brian Fletcher

B3 Marcus Lemon

 

SP James Dykstra

SP Tyler Danish

SP Brandon Brennan

SP Brian Clark*

SP Carson Fulmer

SP Colin Kleven (6 man rotation)

 

RP Matt Cooper

RP Peter Tago

RP Robin Leyer

RP Brad Goldberg

RP Andre Wheeler*

RP Jake Cose

RP Michael Ynoa

 

--

WINSTON-SALEM

C Brett Austin

1B Cody Daily

2B Ryan Leonards

SS Cleuluis Rondon

3B John Ziznewski

OF Louie Lechich

OF Michael Suiter

OF Mason Robbins

DH Zach Fish ©

 

B1 Sean O'Connell ©

B2 Michael Danner

B3 Toby Thomas

B4 Christian Stringer

 

SP Jordan Guerrero*

SP Spencer Adams

SP Thaddius Lowry

SP Zach Thompson

SP Luis Martinez

 

RP Kelvis Valerio

RP Jacob Morris

RP Connor Walsh

RP Tanner Mendonca

RP David Trexler

RP Manny Martinez

RP Ryan Riga*

 

--

KANNAPOLIS

C Seby Zavala

1B Corey Zangari

2B Bradley Strong

SS Danny Mendick

3B Johan Cruz

OF Jackson Glines

OF Landon Lassiter

OF Tyler Sullivan

DH Frank Califano

 

B1 Casey Schroeder ©

B2 Louis Silverio

B3 Grant Massey

B4 Ethan Gross

 

SP Yosmer Solorzano

SP Jordan Stephens

SP Aaron Bummer*

SP Brandon Quintero

SP Brandon Magallones

 

RP Tanner Banks*

RP Lucas Shearrow

RP Drew Hasler

RP Jonathan Frebis*

RP Matt Ball

RP Danny Dopico

RP Alex Katz*

 

--

REPEATING ROOKIE BALL

Jacob Cooper

Sikes Orvis

Dante Flores

Jake Jarvis

Victor Velazquez

Micker Adolfo

Antonio Rodriguez

Jake Fincher

David Walker

Daniel Gonzalez

Christopher Comito

Yelmison Peralta

Dylan Barrow

Taylore Cherry

Ryan Hinchley*

Jack Charleston

Ryan Powers

Victor Done

Jaider Rocha*

Richard McWilliams

Jhoandro Alfaro

Amado Nunez

Felix Mercedes

Maiker Feliz

Hanleth Otano

Joxelier Garcia

Andres Sanchez

Kevin Escorcia

Yeuris Guerrero

 

--

INJURED

Josh Richmond

Nolan Sanburn

Jace Fry*

Josh Goosen-Brown

Andrew Mitchell

Blake Hickman

 

--

THE ONES I COULDN'T FIND A HOME FOR

Jeremy Farrell INF

Mark Blackmar RHSP

Michael Johnson INF

Jefferson Olacio LHRP

Zach Isler RHRP

Tony Bucciferro RHP?

Tyler Barnette RHP?

Matt Heidenreich RHSP

Chadd Krist C

Ethan Wilson INF

Nolan Earley OF

Brannon Easterling RHSP

Was Nieto released?

[White Sox acquire Brett Lawrie]

ZIPS projection for Lawrie with the Sox: 255/310/406, 21 2B, 15 HR, 98 OPS+, 1.8 WAR in 125 G

I'd take that in a heartbeat.

[2015 TV Thread]

I never watched The League because I thought it was great and never expected Shakespeare. It created some phrases I use in real life.

That said, that finale was awful, much like a lot of the last few years.

Honestly I thought the finale was ok, which means it was better than most of the season.

 

Larry David as Old Ruxin was hilarious, though.

[The Democrat Thread]

Yes, I did. Look at their own listed examples: Bill Gates' parents were successful, wealthy lawyers who sent him to elite schools and had connections to the CEO at IBM (who gave Microsoft their first break). Phil Knight's father was a successful lawyer-turned-publisher, though Knight's marketing genius and cheap overseas labor really is what did it for him. Buffett's father was a wealthy businessman and Congressman. Stephen Schwarzman came from successful parents as well. Aside from Knight, the rest of that article's "self-made" examples all attended elite schools.

 

 

 

Or they were in the right place at the right time in conditions that never existed before and won't ever exist again (that one mainly applies to Gates). Society allows for intellectual property--without laws explicitly creating it, there would be no patent or copyrights and the wealth of guys like Gates and Zuckerberg and Bezos would be non-existent. Without important public spending in the first place, Facebook and Amazon aren't even a concept. For Microsoft, they repeatedly engaged in anti-trust behavior.

 

It doesn't devalue what they've done or created, but it puts the claim of "self-made" into perspective. Nobody becomes wealthy without the work of others.

 

Society created the conditions that allowed them to accumulate unfathomable amounts of wealth in the first place, so yeah, they should feel responsible to give back to society. More broadly, that sort of super-concentrated wealth is unhealthy for society in general.

 

 

 

Yes, I agree. However, for the capital class, their wealth is derived from holding wealth itself, not from labor. People who own shares in the company I work for make money off of the work I do. My work helps pay for the CEO's salary. This of course applies to everyone in the company from the top on down.

 

I'm not arguing for Marx's labor theory of value here, but just for some perspective on how "self-made" the wealthy really are.

The wealthy schools/great background argument I can buy. But saying they're not self-made because society was responsible for the internet is silly. A privileged upbringing is an advantage they had that most don't. They didn't have an advantage over contemporaries just because the internet happened to exist.

[2015 TV Thread]

So The League is apparently ending soon. I didn't realize they decided to stop making episodes. I've watched every episode for some strange reason, but it's been borderline unwatcheable for several seasons now. It still has a few moments here and there, but overall it's pretty awful. Taco especially.

Actually I think Taco has remained pretty consistent, but otherwise agree. It's time for it to end. Outside of two good episodes in October, this season has been a dumpster fire. How anyone thought the episode where animated Rafi and Dirty Randy go to Puerto Rico was a good idea is beyond me.

[2015 Catch-All thread]

Whelp, the wife and I are expecting baby boy #2 in June. The house is about to get more crazy.

Oh no, another Illini fan....

 

Congrats!

[Judge deciding whether to reveal police shooting video]

Well, then I maintain that we will see a report every bit as damning as ferguson's, and likely some federal oversight.

And Ferguson didn't even have a black site.

[Music and more Music]

You get the impression from Dave Grohl that Sonic Highways in general was a kind of "phone it in" thing. They toured all over the country and wrote cheap songs that sound like all their other songs about their experiences.

 

It's too bad, too. Wasting Light was one of their better efforts in some time.

At this point it's pretty clear Grohl is more focused on the expansion of the Foo Fighters brand (ie the HBO show) than the music itself. But the music is still enjoyable, even if it's not as good as the Colour and the Shape or There Is Nothing Left to Lose.

[The environment thread]

http://www.caiso.com/Documents/NVEnergyEnt...lanceMarket.pdf

Awesome! Gotta imagine that's a feather in your cap.

[NCAA basketball 2015-16 thread]

I'd say IU's defense is terrible, but that implies we actually play any defense at all. Just brutal. I don't understand how the personnel and talent can stay the same/improve, and the defense can regress this much.

[Judge deciding whether to reveal police shooting video]

While it probably won't get this far (sadly), this does have the opportunity to bring everybody down -- Rahm, Alvarez, everybody. And how fantastic that would be.

 

Sadly, while the US Atty may not be in Rahm's pocket, he could be pressured by Rahm's former boss to hold off 13 months or so. I'd like to think that wouldn't happen, but politics.

[Judge deciding whether to reveal police shooting video]

Republicans are immune to corruption? Who knew...

I don't care what party they're in. Just bring in entirely new politicians, in every spot. Even the inevitable incompetence of people learning on the job would be better than the status quo.