BrandoFan

Don't pray for me

Who knows, could be. Or not. And don't worry about my arrogance, I'll have a coupla (I may be off by a few here) eternities roasting in Hell to regret it.

I think MaCain or Powell, to say nothing of my boy Clark would have been a solid choice. I have nothing against Kerry, just not that wild about him. No, but mine is. I fumbled that connetion between pre-Nazi Germany....wrong parties, but point remains.

How so?

And yet here you are.

You forgot to add "I happen to believe that " before "There is no way we...".

Yes?

Steve Perry is Journey, right? Didn't he like threw tantrums, got sick, lost his voice, left the band, rinse and repeat?

There's been a horrible breakdown in communication! THIS is what I meant by seven seas of rhye or whatever the hell it's called... I like it cuz I can play it on the P and sing to it and it's fun....all in one. Hehe

Notice how I said "one" of the reasons, NOT "the" reason. Who's to say that the real reason why hundreds of Rick Ankiels and Neal Cottses aren't sniffing the majors while Jaime Moyer and Mark Burhle are all stars isn't because of the mental aspect of the game, including but not limited to the ability to rise above unfavorable vicissitudes of fat, er, defense? If by "defense" you mean "fielding AND pitching", then I agree. But if you mean just fielding, you're absolutely wrong. This was true for 1930s-- well before James came into limited prominence-- and it will true in 2030's

It's not a Bill Jamesean theory -- it's a common sensian one. One that is supported by actual numbers. I didn't say that defense doesn't matter-- just that it doesn't matter quite as much. Defense in football = pitching PLUS fielding in baseball. That's why no one even ATTEMPTS to. Otherwise, it's easy to say that the reason why Magglio Ordonez hit into a bases loaded DP is because he was still under distess over the horrible fielding blunder he witnessed his teammate commit a few innings before..... I am not denying that good defense positively affects a pitcher's psyche. But then again, you could also say the same thing about a good BP and especially for run support -- both are supposed to inspire greater confidence in a pitcher. Who knowns why a pitcher starts falling apart -- perhaps because his SS booted a routine grounder leading to 2 runs scoring OR because he suspects his girlfriend of blowing his best friend behind his back..... And with all due respect....one of the reasons why Mark Prior is out there on the mound and not you is because he is extremely tough MENTALLY -- as a PRO, he is expected and is getting paid to OVERCOME fielding mistakes, crowd noise, media, etc, etc, etc.

Whoa, this is his line I guess from a few days ago: 25 points, 5 reb, 3 stl, 9 ass. He also appears to have shut down J. Williams defensively. Not bad for Kirkmeister.

Hey now....I guess not.

So you would compare this to the rise of the National Socialists made possible by the squabbles between communists and social democtrats or whatever else they were called back then?

Ebert and Roeper swear by it. Far from bastions of critical sophistication, but are perfectly credible (esp Eb) mainstream reviewrs nonetheless. So it's totally possible Melly employed one of the shrewdest and oldest marketing ploys in the book to generate great interest and controversy...and then toned down the rabid Anti-Semitism -- it's safer for his career that way -- H-wood IS being run by Jews afterall and blacklisting is not just a relic from the studio system of the past) in the final cut. As long as the movie is of true artistic quality (it appears to be but I will hold it t a higher standard than I would, say, Braveheart -- it's Jesus afterall!) and contains no funky gospelic interpretations......I may actually give Melly his dues. And I don't want to do that.

I wonder how many people feel this way..... Probably most.

How come nobody mentions it among the greatest sitcomes? In the 90's.......Seinfeld is a given....some of the early Fraiser is hilarious.....Newsradio had potential.....Simpsons don't count. That's it. Any fans? edit: is Jeffrey Tambore a Dr. Phil 2.0 or what?!

Democrats are not OWED anything by the voters. They owe TO the voters. Make a more compelling platform than Nader, and the Greensters will vote Democratic. Cynically become a carbon copy of the GOP on many issues, and don't be suprised that quite a few young idealistic folk want nothing to do with you. It's that simple.

Yep, those two brothas were crazy-talented. Gibson was the one who hit 80 homers. There was also Cool Papa Bell... But you talk about inferior pitching during Ruthian times....Negro Leagues had significantly weaker pitching than MLB. Josh Gibson could have been better better than Willie Mays or he could become another Reggie Jackson or even a Dick Allen. Nobody knows for sure. As for Mays....defense is not as important in baseball as it is in basketball or football (Ruth wasn't a butcher in the OF, either) and Wilie Mays hit during 50's -- offense-heavy era -- with many same ballparks already shrunk in dimensions as compared to when Ruth played just 30 years prior. And Mays was NEVER as comparatively dominant as Ruth, although he came close on a few occasions. Without dorking it up with the Win Share System or whatever other system James disciple Neyer wants to use....Ruth, Mays, Bonds, Wagner, Williams-- I have NO problem with this top 5.

I have not decided yet if Willie is gonna hit .300 with 15 homers or .015 with 300 homers this year.

Don't forget the juiced BALL. SS2K4 mentioned "new" pitches today. How about mentioning what the cheating pitchers used to DO to a BASEBALL back when Ruth played? Imagine every other starter having a Zito curveball or Pedro's change-up that looks more like Wakefield's knuckle. Besides, how many pitchers throw high-90's today? Very few. Lefty Grove and Walter Johnson threw some heat as well, mid-90's easily. Nobody today could touch Nolan Ryan in his prime in velocity, and I am not even gonna mention Dalcowski or Sam McDowell who were said to top out at 105mph. Baseball is unique. Shaq could power/size his way through Bill Russel. Barry Bonds wouldn't be able to intimidate Bob Gibson or Sandy Koufax no matter how much he puffed and panted. Babe Ruth's dominance cannot be touched. When Bonds has an OPS+ of 200 (with league average being a 100) or wins 100 games as a pitcher, then we'll talk. Oh and the fact that a boozed up Mickey Mantle and Mays were only 5'10'' and yet could hit an unjuiced ball 540 feet only adds to their greatness, not detracts from it.

What is the point of higher education, then? As opposed to, say, trade schools? See, there I go again defending "academia" even though I don't even had a HS dimploma. I must have an agenda

Ok. You mentioned agenda. I responded. I am in fact pro-Israel. I am in fact a liberal. Among other seemingly conflicting things........I will not be tied down to a single platform or a trend. Paraphrasing the brilliant Pasternak, sometimes it's imperative to even denounce your country and your family to attain moral character and greater truth. I am not there yet (lol), but I am proud to say I am somewhat open-minded. That includes all matters theological/religous. Mel Gibson was just another Bruce Willis for me until a few years ago. No agenda whatsoever. But enough about me. I find myself defending all kinds of views, from abortion to Jerry Reindorf. If you feel like you have all the facts at your disposal and the moral truth on your side, then please by all means defend Mel. It's your inaliable right as it were. Yes I did, yes I did, yes I do and no I wouldn't. CW and I believe Soxy beat me to it. It's even easier than that. Forget the books, everything's available online. Imagine that. And no, no links for you. Next. In a way...I am.

Yes, it's possible he is mis-informed. Yes, it's possible he is oblivious to his own bias/agenda. But you know what? I think he is neither and that there is viable THIRD option: he's done his research, he knows what he wants to accomplish and he simply played dumb and told Diane and the viewers what they WANTED to hear, probably cautious of the BO backlash or, worse, the damage to his whole career. I was surprised how weak/trite his rhetoric was and how unnaturally he carried himself. He had an eternity to prepare, to get his BS straight and yet there he was squirming under the microscope.... Jim, I think you did a good job reading between the lines and observing the behavioral nuances-- as Darwin said, a man will betray his true motivations/emotions/thought direction if only by irregular movement of the pinky finger.