Balta1701

QUOTE (oldsox @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 03:33 PM) The White Sox don't either. Abreu is not mentioned on the web site's top twenty. But since he has never played in the minors or majors, it seems as if he shouild be considered a prospect, unless there is an age qualifier. There is no age qualifier and he is technically a rookie on day 1 of this season. If/when he hits 75 home runs this year his rookie of the year award should be quite certain.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 03:20 PM) But how many times is this going to happen? How many people, who aren't particularly educated, are going to think "We'll keep our babies corpse loosely clinging to 'life' because the government is picking up the tab"? My guess, in a country like ours where the vast majority treat everything like Old Country Buffet, is a lot. Enough for it to make a difference. Let it be known I was against this idea of shared healthcare from the start, but now that reality in imminent and we better start learning to force irresponsible stupid people into doing something they don't want to. Very, very few honestly. People just don't wind up this way very often, and when they do people generally accept it. You're probably having your health insurance dollars right now go towards keeping a handful of people in states like this alive where they were covered by solid insurance when it happened, but you don't care about it because it's not on the news. And if you want to prevent it from happening...you should strongly support having the government work with people in creating end-of-life plans. It's easier on the family and on society. That's the end-of-life planning services that should have been in the PPACA but were termed "Death panels" and removed.

Vigilante Porter sounds good today.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:58 PM) But she is dead. Look this has turned into a national story and I have a major concern that the crazy, nonsensical brand of hope these people are holding out that the dead body will somehow reanimate is going to inspire others to feel the same way. We are transitioning into a system where medical costs are shared amongst the public. Its one thing if its emergency surgery, or even Reddy's vocal chord exam... I'll be an indignant little b**** and whine about it but I'll comply. But if we don't have the balls to tell families "Look, your daughter is dead and while that is sad this f***ing game where you are trying to mechanically pump the heart of a corpse is retarded and will end now" and will instead funnel millions into a hopeless endeavor to avoid looking unempathetic the idea is just completely doomed to failure. This is a colossal waste. A waste of doctors, a waste of a room, a waste of a life support machine and a waste of countless people's time. This hospital assuredly has people in it who's lives are hanging in the balance and this distraction is soaking up resources. Normally I don't think I'm in much of a position to comment on something like that, but if my brother was in that hospital fighting for his life I would be irate. A dead body is receiving superior medical care to 99.9% of the world's living population. You're 100% right. It's a waste of a room and of life support machines. But like I said...end of life issues are simply some of the most complex issues people will ever have to deal with and I honestly hope from reading your reactions you never are confronted with them yourself. We're the richest country on the planet, possibly the richest country ever. This is one hospital room. It's being fought out in the courts as it should be. If we're in such desperate need for medical facilities that it's an absolute emergency and we need this room...the problem is not with the family, its with the fact that the richest country in the world can't afford to give the family a month.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 03:00 PM) So do they have to wait for the fetus to die before pulling the plug? I mean, if the fetus can make it I see no reason to pull the plug because a life actually hangs in the balance there but if not that just seems barbaric. Not just that, if the fetus is brain-damaged and will not be viable anyway, which is very likely the case given the type of injury suffered...the dead body will have to be kept on life support until the non-viable fetus is delivered.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:39 PM) Just the battery light that showed up when I tried starting it....Should be pretty telling as to what the problem is. Main question I had was will it revive itself in the "warmer" weather, and balta answered that. I've got road side assisstence so if hasn't started by ~3p tomorrow I'll go ahead and get in contact with my insurance. Would waiting do more harm? The only way waiting would do harm is if somehow the battery itself has burst open. If you see battery acid leaking from the car, you have a problem.

QUOTE (balfanman @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:40 PM) What can be done for a prospect like this? He obviously has some good quickness and hand eye coordination if he is that good on defense. Is it a matter of finding the "right" hitting coach? Refining his technique , meaning making him more of a singles, walk, type of approach? Not that I have any faith in the White Sox Hitting instructors, but it seems a waste of talent. If he could even hit .250 with a .320 OBP he would be very valuable. There is now a legend of Omar Vizquel talking to Jose Iglesias last year during the offseason and saying "don't practice fielding the entire time, pick up a heavy bat and swing it a thousand times per day". Iglesias then hit .303 on the season (with a .356 BABIP helping him). Sometimes it's not just the coaching, it's the physical abilities.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:24 PM) So in other words, it's more than likely the battery....Will it "revive" itself when it gets warmer (don't really NEED it till Wednesday) or will it need a jump regardless. If it's the battery yes it should revive itself on wednesday, but you should not try to start it before it warms up some, and if you do get it started give it a few minutes to idle. If the battery is several years old this could be a sign that it's approaching time for a new one.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:06 PM) If you paired him with the mythical creature known as a healthy Derrick Rose, they might have a shot. Maybe if we're lucky, Mirotic as well.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:00 PM) Its been a month. They've been providing medical care to a corpse for a month. This isn't something where it takes a day or two to say goodbye and accept what has already happened, that's understandable. The hospital tried repeatedly to get it through to this family that there was no hope. They declared her legally dead, and I'm no doctor or lawyer but I would assume the legal and medical requisite to being declared dead does not leave much room for interpretation. A corpse that a month ago was their daughter or sister, who was having a comparably minor procedure and who's death no one was prepared for. The Schaivo family fought their fight for about 15 years and based on their recent interview they still are dealing with it.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:01 PM) Sigh, my car won't start. Gas gauge is just a bit lower than half a tank. Single car house, ghetto neighborhood where I don't know anyone around so I can't really jump it. Will the problem fix itself as it gets "warmer" or will it no doubt need to be jumped at some point? Add a gallon of gas??? Any other tips? What happens when you turn the key?

Who is Cleuluis Rondon?

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 11:45 AM) Qi is a word that is played far too often in Words with Friends Student with that name has been emailing me for the last several days.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 12:36 PM) if the original question had been proposed by a poster with a more liberal bent, would you keep bending over backwards to keep bringing Terry Shiavo into this? Somehow I don't think so. Will you have the same reservations when Obamacare starts deciding not to pay for life extending treatment? i mean, how you can force people to let go is not open and shut.... Frankly, yes. End of life issues are some of the most complex ones we have to deal with both as a family and as a society. There shouldn't be an easy answer here. The last comparable times we dealt with this were...the Schaivo garbage, which was IMO one of the most embarrassing episodes I've ever seen in public life...and the "death panels" thing. The Schaivo case might well have had some positive effect if it forced people to confront those issues. The PPACA contained language and money to try to help prevent these kind of problems...but "end of life counseling" was termed "death panels" and became a political hit piece, so instead of being able to deal with these problems beforehand we made sure it's even harder to do so and scared people from talking to their families and doctors beforehand. There will never be a simple answer in one of these cases. As a society we should endeavour to prevent them from reaching this point...and when they still do, as in the case of an accident...then a combination of trying to find money, talking to judges, and talking to the hospital is exactly what should happen. Eventually in this legal case either the hospital will win or they'll find some alternative center with a different line of funding willing to keep the body alive. That's how it will happen this time, that's how it should happen, and that's how it's going to happen when the PPACA is fully enforced. The hospital is trying to avoid spending money on the patient. The family doesn't want to lose the patient. Literally the best statement on this case I can give comes from the South Park episode on the Schaivo embarrassment. The hospital is right, but for the wrong reasons. The family is wrong, but for the right reasons.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 10:31 AM) We are in a snow emergency here. Up to $2500 fines for being on the road if you aren't essential personnel. Also the entire South Shore train line is shutdown from South Bend to Chicago. I've got about three feet of snow drifted up against my backdoor, and now it is -10 degrees outside. Gotta love winter in NWI Indiana. Thank god for telecommuting. QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:50 AM) Grow a pair, Chicago. Large swaths of this country endure much worse and do just fine.

QUOTE (The Ultimate Champion @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 09:59 AM) Unfortunately I don't see any single prospect on the farm that I'd trade Castro for. Houston would at least demand our 3 best guys, probably 4. And given the scarcity of young, high quality catchers who are cheap and under control, they would have no reason to settle for anything less than a haul. Just look at what AJ brought back from the Giants for example. Look at what someone like Bedard brought back to the Orioles. In a sane world Castro should have higher value now than either of those guys did at the time they were dealt. Would you gut the top end of your farm for him? I'd definitely consider it if doing so would mean trading guys who are likely 3+ years away anyway. This is the kind of move that would bring that contention window a lot closer. We're also probably in line for a top-12 or so pick next year even with Castro, so another high pick is probably coming after this season. But then maybe you "just" trade Quintana. That makes it a lot harder to trade Danks if he rebuilds his value. We should probably be trying to extend Q. The problem is that the Astros aren't going to take guys who are 3+ years away and people here haven't been talking about guys 3+ years away. The list someone put up earlier included Danish, but also included Johnson. Danish + Tim Anderson as the key guys doesn't seem likely to get it done.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 09:57 AM) I helped push a lady who was stuck getting out of a parking lot on a side street yesterday. When she got unstuck, she drove right into a parked car. LOL.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 09:09 AM) I genuinely do not believe this is a good idea in any of the numerous ways that have been suggested. The Sox I agree. The sox

QUOTE (GoSox05 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 09:27 AM) They need some help on defense, but I don't think they are totally devoid of talent. They have some really good players on defense, just none of them play. Safety is the one position they really need help. Bad. Part of the problem for them is that they seem to completely forget that Kaepernick can run during their game preparation. Or if they're not forgetting, they have other priorities. They don't want to let Gore beat them or Kaep beat them through the air, and that requires putting all 11 guys into things and having no one focused on the QB running.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jan 5, 2014 -> 10:38 PM) This makes me hate the Dunleavy signing. He's still eminently movable this season. Just have to have management willing to...uh, do so.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 02:50 AM) I've driven in worse. Should get ~400 miles tomorrow as long as the fuel additives keep the diesel from freezing up. Same s***, different day. Wyoming initiated me weeks ago to misery that far exceeds what the Midwest is going to get. I've got 44,500 lbs in the box so I should have enough traction to keep at 50 mph through this crap. Grow a pair, Chicago. Large swaths of this country endure much worse and do just fine. This is idiotic.

Not easily able to look when your spouse is sitting next to you.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Jan 5, 2014 -> 10:06 PM) My understanding of brain dead ( correct me if im wrong) is there's no oxygen and or blood getting to the brain. If this is true, this girls brain has been without blood/oxygen for weeks so its difficult for me to understand how this girl has any hope of recovery. Hospitals are businesses so you bet the bills will fall on the family and their insurance, at least until the inevitable law suit is settled. What really bothers me is this family refuses to let go despite the brain being dead. I understand they love their daughter and they are good people for that but if the brain is dead you have to let go. I can only hope my wife would do this for me should i ever become brain dead because that's not living and even if by some f***ed up crazy circumstance I would wake from it, I wouldn't be me and would rather not be alive if you could even call it that. I certainly do not mean to judge the family and my heart goes out to them, but if in fact the brain is dead then its time to let go as difficult as it may be. I think she's brain dead in the sense of there's no detectable brain function and currently all functions of the body including respiration are being driven by instruments. However, if blood is being pumped through the body and respiration is being sustained artifically then oxygen is being moved through the body to keep the tissues alive. That doesn't mean the brain can function, that doesn't mean there isn't significant damage already, but it is probably enough to slow the deterioration of tissue from this point. However, you're 100% right that there's no hope of recovery. At some point, yes, people will have to let go...but the question of how you can force people to do so is not open and shut. As I said, when it was a white woman in Florida, a significant part of the country thought a condition almost this bad which had gone on for half a decade should continue to be maintained indefinitely regardless of the cost, to the point that there were widespread protests and we had the remarkable spectacle of the Senate Majority leader, a trained M.D., giving a diagnosis on the Senate Floor based on a highly edited couple minute clip of video. I understand completely that the family does not want to let go and I completely agree that there's a point the hospital will need to force them to do so. But it's not a decision that should be made lightly and if the family wants to fight for now, they have that right.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Jan 6, 2014 -> 03:01 AM) We are talking about older minor leaguers for young major leaguers. That's not typically something that kills the youth in an organization. If it's one for one no. If it's 4 for 1...

I kinda, do, but I also am pretty impressed with the rest of that division.