Balta1701

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 12:39 PM) I'm not sure what minimums exist, or how they can weasel around them yet. But those same types of minimums exist on car insurance, but if you've ever been in an accident, you'd know that those minimums aren't enough to protect anyone but those who don't have anything to lose and just "want to be within the law". For example, minimum car insurance is something like 25,000/35,000. The same exact thing will happen with health insurance now. But you've spent the last few months telling us that one solution to the health insurance cost issue is allowing states to offer plans into other states, the sole motivation of which is to allow one state to offer a plan that undercuts the minimum coverage requirements of another state.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 02:17 PM) The manager make the lineup that's supposed to optimizes the chances for ideal offensive production, Omar Vizquel hitting 2nd is not the work of a manager who knows what he's doing. Who should be hitting 2nd then? Beckham is hitting .143 the past week and .228 on the season.

Orlando (and Florida in general) is another place like Vegas, Phoenix, Riverside, that was ground zero for the housing boom/bust. The Case/Shiller index doesn't explicitly include Orlando as one of the cities it tracks. The graph here might be somewhat similar, and it suggests that much of Orlando has fallen to roughly where it was around 2001, if you include inflation. Long-term, I think the Case-shiller index tells the story correctly...except in bubble times, housing prices pretty much go up with inflation...because if housing prices go up beyond that, the natural economic response is to build more housing to satisfy the demand. If you build more housing when prices have gone up due to a constrained supply, you make more money on building it. In a place like Orlando...it's possible that investment dollars/crazy mortgages drove the market so much that the building industry actually responded by over-building, to the point that it could drive prices even below the normal market trendline before it recovers. Look at the 2001 or so prices, adjust for inflation, and that's probably about where things should be.

QUOTE (Jenksy Cat @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:54 AM) ehh, if we're jumping off this cliff, then KW has to go as well. Ozzie didn't put the team together, KW did. And as much as it blows ass, batting Nix instead of Vizquel isn't going to make a s*** bit of difference. The magical lineup doesn't make that big of a deal, its the players you have to put in that lineup - which falls on KW. And if you say "well KW listened to Oz", well then he shouldn't have, its on him. But would anyone want KW gone? I wouldn't, he just needs to take charge of the roster. If KW had taken charge of the roster...what would he have done differently? Would he have traded Beckham? That would have improved the roster. Dumped Quentin? Dumped Pierzynski? Given Podsednik $10 million?

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:44 AM) Lost control of this team? What's there for Ozzie to control right now other than lineups? He's not a psychologist. Frankly...that is actually part of his job. He's been out-managed in game lots of times. If he can't get his team's mental state where it needs to be...then he isn't really doing anything.

QUOTE (knightni @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:41 AM) Well, last year's game in Champaign drew over 60k. But, yeah at NW they only drew 32k. So yeah, if all they did was sell the exact same number of tickets, they'd probably come out ahead from improved marketing. Championship games are one thing, mid-season games are another. Hell, I'm debating driving to RFK this fall because I think IU is playing a game there.

QUOTE (dmbjeff @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:39 AM) Yeah you can do this when it is just 1 or 2 guys struggling and they need a breather and the rest of the team is hitting. In times like this, sitting 2 of your better players for Kotsay and Vizquel is just stupid. If Beckham isn't hitting and Quentin/Pierre aren't hitting...how exactly does playing either Kotsay or Vizquel make us worse? Beckham, Pierre, Rios, and Quentin can go 0/4 just as well as Kotsay or Vizquel right now. The only way it would make us worse is if that day would have been the day where the actual important guy snapped out of his slump.

QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:33 AM) What company in the real world would ever have that philosophy? Every single firm on Wall Street. Every health insurance company.

I feel like the right answer is "no one". Jones.

QUOTE (knightni @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:24 AM) How? Illinois and Northwestern's stadiums are both MUCH larger than Wrigley. Do they regularly fill them?

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:23 AM) Those two are the future regadless of how bleak it may be Omar and Kotsay are not and if you think playing them is a good thing I do not know what to tell you. If they served the roles they were signed for I would be fine but they are in the lineup way too often thus I think they shoudl be realeased. That and they both are worthless but keep thinkingthey will get better because ozzeroo thinks they will. Part of the role of a backup is to give a guy who's struggling an extra day or two off to work on his swing and clear his mind.

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:17 AM) But these guys are not back ups they are starting too often, that is the problem. Beckham and Rios do not need two days off out of four. Why might those guys be starting too often? It couldn't be because Beckham and Rios haven't been hitting any better than Vizquel and Kotsay, could it?

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 11:16 AM) It should be a DFA of Omar and Kotsay but it will not. Because you know what will save this team? Better backups.

QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 10:29 AM) Trading Danks would suck. I hate to weaken the rotation because they can't hit the ball. I don't think aquiring one hitter would be enough. Having everyone hit their career numbers would be like finding 4 new hitters.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 09:23 AM) Easy, if it was a right winger, this would be to insight hate-crimes. If it was a left-winger it would be a thoughtful attempt to changes minds and attitudes. The creators of south park are left wingers?

Get your head out of your tail, G.

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 09:33 AM) I have sided with JR and understand his philosophy but I am tired of being told I need to support the s*** product if I want them to spend. I should not have to watch this team because it has a $100M payroll. This team is not worth watching as guillen trots out two guys that I would not want to see in the independent league. I know Lucy is not a long term option but when he was hitting the ball he should have played. Now he will rot away as we watch AJ look like s*** play on Sunday go 0-4 and not play again for a week as AJ swings at first pitch and the ball never leaves the infield. You're arguing that Donny Lucy is part of the solution.

Don't you guys realize that the point isn't "They could start their own network" or "They're being deliberately offensive"? You're fundamentally missing the point here. Even if they do wind up censored...that's the point...and not for marketing/money reasons either. This has been true since pre-Carlin. When a comic is being deliberately offensive to the point of provoking a societal response...the point is to make you, the viewer/listener, sit there and think whether or not the societal response is appropriate.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 02:21 AM) Thanks for posting that article. Yeah, I've never heard of that type of loss in velocity and it not be injury related. Barry Zito?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2010 -> 10:43 PM) So what does it tell you when one stands out that much to the people who scout testosterone laden stars for a living? That you're taking a chance when you give him $15 million that in a few years there might be a video of him striking out and then flinging his bat at an umpire?

QUOTE (sircaffey @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 01:11 AM) Not to mention Dempster has already failed as a RP, and Zambrano is the only SP with reliever stuff. He has a 4.48 career ERA as a starter and a 4.11 career ERA as a Reliever. He has a .686 OPS against him as a reliever and .767 against him as a starter.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 07:21 AM) So in about a week, Ozzie has gone from any fan that disagrees with him should go root for the Cubs to feeling compassion for the people who pay to go watch the crap he throws on the field? Sometimes, when people are struggling mentally, you support them. Sometimes, if that doesn't work, you try a good swift kick in the arse. Remember, you're not Ozzie's only audience here.

QUOTE (fathom @ Apr 23, 2010 -> 08:46 AM) I really hope this team can do something to start getting some butts in the seats. We need all the payroll we can generate in order to turn this thing around. How? By offering people bribes to start hitting/pitching their career numbers?

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Apr 22, 2010 -> 11:41 PM) well, no one in the top 10, but Lynch was the 12th overall pick and McGahee was 23rd overall. There were a ton of other places they could have gone with that pick, but Spiller isn't the worst case scenario. Atleast he's got freakishly good talent. But now they force themselves to trade a RB for below cost and even if they do they're 2 deep at that position when the rest of their roster is incredibly weak, in particular on both of the lines. It's a Lions move.

Reid has filed for cloture on bringing the Financial Regulation bill to the floor. The cloture vote to start debate will happen after 72 hours...basically Sunday Night/Monday morning.