Balta1701

QUOTE (kapkomet @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 07:24 PM) It doesn't or wouldn't change your reaction. It's all in how you're spoon fed. Thanks for the insult.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 05:04 PM) Look, when you buy a service normally, what do you do? You shop, possibly compare or research, and then you buy. You can choose a product, choose a seller, work the price and quality... these key aspects to any market product are GONE with the insurance companies between you (the patient/consumer) and the providers. That pretty much ruins the whole thing. But of course, we can't just get rid of insurance of some kind, because most people can't afford the huge, unexpected and uneven expenses. One POSSIBLE solution is government provided healthcare via taxes, as you support. But that is NOT the only possible solution. So then here's my question to you...what other alternative is there other than some version of mandatory insurance that gets rid of the economic benefit that occurs for an insurance company when they are able to dump the most expensive people on to someone else or dump them on to the ranks of the uninsured? It doesn't have to be public sector here although I'm obviously a fan of that...but IMO, it must be universal...you simply can't allow a health insurance company to pick and choose who pays in to its insurance pool, because they'll pick and choose only the profitable ones.

QUOTE (kapkomet @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 05:56 PM) Yep - and if Obama said this, you would be slurping it up. This doesn't say a damn thing that means anything except to say we hope for an accurate vote over there. *gasp* a "Conservative" said this, let's put the figurative gun to our head!! Didn't we just finish spelling out why that was a bad idea?

At least you can't tell me it's a racial thing.

Lost, I think Congressman Pence deserves our smiley.

Link. Right now the Politico is the only one running with the blackmail angle.

QUOTE (Pants Rowland @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 04:05 PM) The Sodfather put in a new field there recently, though. Really ripped down to the absolute bottom to give them a major league field. It might help. At least the goalposts are out of the way.

QUOTE (mr_genius @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 02:50 PM) agreed. but there is major price gouging going on, that needs to end if there is going to be affordable health care. The problem is...any attempt to actually put those cost-controls in to the plan is being opposed by the people who oppose the plan as well. The cost-controls are probably the portion of the plan with the weakes support since both doctors and insurance companies will oppose them and the constituency for a public plan is stronger than the constituency for cost-controls...so the people who want to bring the plan down are attacking the cost-controls...things like focused preventative care, more efficient record keeping, and analysis of the actual effectiveness of treatments are running in to heavy resistance in Congress, esp. from people who tend to oppose "Big government spending".

The White Sox will continue to play vastly better on the road than at the Cell.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 02:01 PM) This is not a problem of not having universality - its a problem of having the insurers between, as I've said here lots of times before, and the universal government program thing is ONE POSSIBLE solution to that. Can you say that in a way that is a little more clear?

Again...this is another reason why universality is so necessary...because any time that a company is able to try to dump people who are more expensive in to the uninsured or on to another company, there is great profit for them in doing so. A system where you can't be turned down is a requirement.

QUOTE (kapkomet @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 01:25 PM) Just remember: the current system was created by the government in the first place. So, "universal health care" is going to solve it all and "reduce costs". Riiiiiiiight. Let's see if some of you libs know your health care history. If the AMA hadn't accused Truman of being a communist we might have single-payer already and not have to worry about this.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 01:26 PM) "To be clear, I have never taken illegal performance-enhancing drugs," Mr. Sosa said in a sworn statement. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/18/sports/b...18steroids.html That's actually not enough. He said Illegal...he could have taken something that wasn't illegal at the time, or he could have taken something while outside the country in an area where it was legal, or he could always go the "i didn't know" route that Bonds did.

D'Oh. Did Sammy say anything similar to Palmeiro at the Senate hearings? A firm denial that he had ever tested positive? If he'd been informed of that test's results then that would be perjury.

QUOTE (chisoxfan09 @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 09:20 AM) Thanx all for the nice welcome, I appreciate and watch the Sox from overseas in Spain. Have to stay up late to watch the night games on MLB.COM but hey the Internet is a neat medium. Back to DV, another thought I had which is really the opposite of the point of this thread and which is something that is being hotly debated is whether or not his defense will be cause for concern. Problem with MILB.COm is that they do not put up the robust fielding stats as opposed to hitting/pitching. If we project going forward that DV´s errors (15 to date) decrease as he also acclimate´s to the US style of fielding fundamentals does it really mean he will improve significantly or marginally? I mean I would argue for logic´s sake that he could actually have the most tremendous value to be groomed as the future DH and take Thome´s spot in 2011. Psychologically this is bound to take half of the pressure off him with regards to improving to MLB standards defensively. I just don´t think he is destined to be a Gold Glover at 3rd. We already have a couple of DH possibilities in AA (Allen and Flowers if his kness give out) so I don´t know. But to have just DV concentrate on his hitting and excel and grow at that is the purest way to him being a true stud. Frankly, I think Viciedo's final position is going to wind up being determined more by other people than by what he does. Bad 3b can stick if they have a ridiculous bat there...which hopefully he will...but the question is going to be the rest of our IF/OF. Let's hypothetically say that Getzy winds up being a .290ish, 10HRish hitter with good speed from the LH side of the plate with solid defense. Certainly within reason for him. You don't exactly get a ton if you trade a guy like that, but you also like having guys like that in your lineup, esp. if they can hit 1 or 2. Let's hypothetically say Alexei recovers from his crappy start to this season and can be a .300 hitter from the RH side. And let's say that Beckham does what he should do. Hell, then maybe even throw in Fields if he can get his swing ironed out. There's at least 4 guys who can also play IF positions, and the only one who probably won't be significantly better than Viciedo with the glove is Fields; and he might wind up at 1b anyway. And hell, throw in Allen there. If these guys in the IF can develop in to good solid contributors with 1-2 all stars in Becks and Lexs, and in the OF we can put together some combination of D2: the mighty Danks and Quentin...that leaves 2 spots open, and OF spot and a DH spot. And frankly, at Viciedo's age he ought to be able to handle a corner OF spot. There's no real obvious reason to stick him at DH if we can find a position on the field he's adequate at; it's a lot easier and cheaper to sign a 30 some year old DH than it is to sign a LF/RF/3b who can put up the kind of numbers we hope Viciedo can produce. If he can stick at a position you have to keep him there. The exact position may just depend on who else pans out.

I never thought he lost his stuff, he just couldn't throw the crazy offspeed pitches for strikes. Since people didn't have to be ready for a 40 mph difference between his average fastball and his crazy offspeed stuff, they could sit on the upper 80s fastball and crush it. If there's any pitcher in the world who ought to be able to pitch when he's 50 its a guy like Shingo; a guy who k's people on 49 mph pitches.

I believe the ballots will be issued in English, and no one who would vote for him will be willing to admit in public that they actually speak English, thus he will not get in.

QUOTE (Rex Kicka** @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 09:07 AM) Is it a lack of regulation keeping costs reasonable in McAllen? Is it that El Paso just hasn't caught up in charging as much? Or should health care just be this expensive? We can also throw out this specific case study and look at a larger data pool. Dartmouth college has for years published studies using a calculated index for the performance of health care between states and compared that data to the amount spent on health care by specific states. Here is what the data look like for basically every year: Basically, there really is no current correlation in this country between the quality of care given and the amount spent on it, in either the private or public health care markets. Here are some detailed responses, including several links to full studies, regarding the "Utillization" argument that HH is trying to make that somehow there's a demographic difference that is important.

QUOTE (forrestg @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 08:27 AM) If they dfa him they'll get nothing. Anything is possible. Not with that contract. They'll DL him for 4 years if they have to.

Don't even worry about taking names Danks. Just do the kicking ass part.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 09:04 AM) I'd love to believe articles like this, but with missing data -- and very important data -- it's impossible to agree. Like I said, I'd like to see the types of patients they treat, did he compare data to only similar patients, or did he say -- take a terminal cancer patient (because they happen to only be treated at hospital a) and compare it to a different sort of patient (because they don't even treat terminal cancer patients in El Paso), for example? It leaves important details like that out -- therefore I'm skeptical of the 2x the cost number he's throwing around while saying everything is the exact same, from technology to 'treatment'. That's why he analyzed the data in the way that he did; he went to 2 towns in similar areas with very similar demographic makeups in terms of race, age, economic state, etc.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 09:01 AM) No, watching him campaign and considering his political career, I think McCain almost certainly would've said that. It fits right in with his strategic view of the world, with America on top, everyone else following our lead, and scoffing at anybody who thinks that reactions to statements matter with any kind of depth to them. I know what ya mean, but you can always hope he'd have at least 1 or 2 sane advisors wouldn't you?

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jun 16, 2009 -> 08:58 AM) I actually think it would be more benficial for Dayan to start again in AA next year and see how he has progressed. I also think he should get a cup of coffee this fall in the majors to take a look at what he is up against. He is probably another 2 years away from the majors, but looks VERY on track. If Alexei's weaknesses/strengths are any indication, starting next year in AAA is going to be a bigger benefit to big V than starting AA again next year given the style of pitches he's likely to see and the type of ballpark he'd be playing in.

I can only hope that if I ever kill someone while DUI I get off with 30 days in prison.

Somewhere between options 2 and 3 depending on exactly what the Sox are doing. If we're in a legit race, then I'll root for the Cubs over the AL and ALC Rivals. If we're a ways back and needing help, then it cheers me up to have them suffer.