Balta1701

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 27, 2010 -> 12:33 PM) And thinking back to the timing of the situation where there was literally banks going belly up because no one wanted to buy their assets, which by SOX standards makes them worthless, the defense seems like it would be pretty obvious to me. So in other words...you can't be mad at SOX here because if JPM did everything that law required, then the lawsuit will be tossed out rapidly.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 27, 2010 -> 11:55 AM) Hooray for SOX! Anyway, more seriously...if SOX was the problem, and JPMorgan was just trying to live up to its SOX requirements, then wouldn't this lawsuit be groundless?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 27, 2010 -> 11:57 AM) Like when we bombed the Chinese embassy while bombing in then Yugoslavia? It'd be a fundamentally different situation if China was actively aiding the other side.

QUOTE (chw42 @ May 27, 2010 -> 11:55 AM) Ryan Sweeney is the white Franklin Gutierrez. That's why I don't care if he's an average hitter. His numbers in RF are excellent, but as a CF, fangraphs counts him as average.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 27, 2010 -> 11:55 AM) Hooray for SOX! Let's hope they can win 2 series in a row against the Rays.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ May 27, 2010 -> 11:43 AM) If we did, especially after winning the last two series, that would change the nature of this season dramatically in just a week and a half. Yes indeed that would be nice. Incredibly unlikely, but very nice. That'd shake up the AL East like crazy as well.

The head of the MMS has also received hierPresidential Medal of Freedom walking papers.

Link, to blog with video from NBC5 Chicago.

Dwyane Wade questions Bulls' loyalty towards their ex-players. No word yet on whether or not Ex-Bulls John Paxson and Randy Brown agree with Wade that ex-Bulls aren't part of the organization.

Teahen

A couple days after being declared the starting CF because of Mike Cameron's injury problems, Jacoby Ellsbury is complaining of pain in his ribs again, similar to that which sidelined him earlier this year.

20 minute delay last night for a blackout.

QUOTE (WCSox @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:45 AM) Heck, he was devastating when he threw a 95-97 mph fastball and could throw the hook for strikes. That hook made him a stud, and his current inability to throw anything offspeed over the plate is making him a dud. Heck...I think there's a fair number of pitchers, especially in bullpens, who can get by throwing almost entirely 95-97 mph fastballs with the occasional offspeed pitch that doesn't even have to be a strike...if they have control of the fastball.

The Republicans are going to attempt to Filibuster the Defense Department allocation bill because they hate the troops are unwilling to give anyone in the Pentagon final say over DADT. Supposedly, Jim Webb has said he'll vote against the proposal in committee, no word yet on whether he'd support a Filibuster as far as I can see. If they could hold together the usual 40, minus Susan Collins plus Jim Webb, they could have 41 votes.

QUOTE (Tex @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:31 AM) It will be a war by proxy. At most we'll see advisers speaking Chinese and English. And what happens when 10 Chinese advisors are killed by a U.S. led air strike? We've seen that story before.

QUOTE (ChiSox_Sonix @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:21 AM) Would it even work to unite that country as one again? If you got rid of the North Korean leadership, I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work, except for the fact that no one, especially South Korea, wants to spend the money it would take to bring the North into the 20th century economically (and yes, I know what century it is now). The original partition line didn't really exist until the Cold War took hold. It's entirely a construction of the post-war Era.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:28 AM) And no way China wants such a conflagration. It does nothing good for them at all, and a whole lot of bad. Therefore, if an armed conflict occurs on the Korean penninsula, I'd predict that China basically does a lot of huffing and puffing but doesn't lift a finger in its military. And by then, Seoul is in ruins and 5 million people are dead. China doesn't have to get directly involved for things to go badly.

This article seems to fit into that discussion we had a few months ago about how when LEH and AIG went down, one possible reason why was that their creditors were deliberately writing down the value of their securities too far to extract higher payments from those companies.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:22 AM) The terrain has changed dramatically. I didn't think they'd done that kind of construction work. Yes, it's an entirely different set of circumstances. But even if my instincts say China would just let stuff happen...if my instincts are wrong, then we have a worldwide conflagration.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:19 AM) I don't know. Slightly more? If you are going to refer to playoff games, teams earned the home field advantage there, it's not a designated neutral site game. Now, I still hope the weather for those games isn't s***ty so the game can be played well - as TRU pointed out, that game in Pittsburgh was stupid - but at least there's a valid reason for it to be there. I hear your argument on playoff games, but what happens to the team that is fighting for a playoff spot and has to go to Green Bay or Chicago for their last game of the season? If Chicago weather is an advantage for Chicago, that's an advantage that Chicago hasn't earned. Similarly, what about the teams going to San Diego or Kansas City on 100+ degree days late in the summer, while the Saints get to sit at home in a temperature controlled dome? There's plenty of cases of teams having to go into hard weather conditions without having done anything to earn them.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:18 AM) They won't support NK militarily. OTOH...I'd agree with you if I couldn't point to an historic example of China deciding to assist North Korea militarily.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ May 27, 2010 -> 10:14 AM) LOL, I'm reaching? The majority of the games are played in the fall. You called it a winter sport, which is fundamentally wrong. Furthermore, how many games were played in the snow or terrible weather last year? Not very many. That's my point. Here's my question in reply...how much higher are the odds of a terrible snowy day in early Feb. than in late December or early January?

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ May 27, 2010 -> 09:59 AM) I'll say right now that if NK attacks SK, China will not "pour" troops into NK. China will sit that one out, in my view, unless the US takes over NK. Right now, I'm not sure what the strategic thought is on any side, although I hope it exists and has some coordination. Would China really be that badly off if the current South Korean government extended up to their border and they suddenly had a much more open trading partner there? I doubt it. OTOH, China seems excessively concerned about a refugee crisis in that area.

Some tentative, early, possible good news.

Man, one Red Sox/Rays series and one Twins/Yankees series and the top of the AL East suddenly feels a lot different.