Balta1701

Bush's budget this year proposes the smallest increase in military pay since 1994. Link.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 03:44 PM) Technically speaking, probably not. But IIRC he was who they wanted and he told them he wasn't interested and that he was happy at Iowa. Right after that Iowa extended his contract till 2009. Wasn't there also some element of the IU players at the time demanding that Davis keep the job because of the way Knight had been fired right at the start of a season?

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 03:25 PM) That said I'd understand it, since it is potentially his dream job. But if it were his dream job he should have taken it the first time he was offered it. When was he actually offered the job?

QUOTE(TheBlackSox8 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:51 PM) agreed....it's a bonus he's a lefty, and has some experience as a starter...so he's able to go more than just a few batters or an inning. He is the key in the bullpen next year for sure Personally I'd say that Jenks is the key if we're picking 1 single key, but Cotts is pretty close in there too.

QUOTE(Steff @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:49 PM) No sense in living in the past...? I agree it's all bulls*** and they are all cream of the crop bulls*** dishers.. but 2 wrongs don't make a right Kap. In order to make changes to make the future better we have to correct things as they happen. No? So you're saying we should ban guns so that Cheney doesn't get his hand on one again?

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:46 PM) What else would you call people picked up on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq? In the case of many of the folks from Afghanistan, and this has been reported over and over and over by dozens of sources since Gitmo was created, a significant fraction of them are people who were picked up and given to the U.S. by opposing warlords in exchange for reward money. You get a nice reward, and get to reduce the size of your enemy by 1 man. You want to know how little we actually know about the people there? Of the ones we let go in those "Mass releases" they do every now and again when people aren't watching, a bunch joined up with Al Qaeda. So either us holding them and sodomizing them with light bulbs radicalized them somehow, or we really haven't a clue who is actually who down there. Even a guy who at least at 1 time was the Second in Command at Gitmo says that most of them were just rounded up and will probably be released at some point. (Original quote appeared in Financial Times, currently behind a subscription wall, that blog post has the text)

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:47 PM) When did Kindergarten let out? :rolly Funny how you think it let out and that we're not all in the same room typing instead of speaking.

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:44 PM) Funny how you think terrorists who want you dead are saints or something. Funny how you think that even a majority of the people at Gitmo are actually terrorists.

A Federal Judge has ruled that the government has 20 days to turn over documents related to the program to the court in a case brought by civil liberties groups. The DOJ will almost certainly appeal, and there will be a lot more delays due to that, but it's a start.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:36 PM) Bravo. If they had just done things like this to begin with, instead of inciting violence, then I'd have a lot more respect for their government. How much violence did Iran incite? Compared for example to Egypt and Saudi Arabia?

This is probably a step in the right direction. At least the Administration seems to be working with someone in Congress for this. It's probably going to wind up being worse than I hope, because it looks like the WH only worked it out with 1 Senator, and he's a Republican, which means that just like every other bill the White House decides to shove through Congress, they'll wind up having to slam this through over Democratic opposition which probably could have been avoided had they bothered asking the Democrats what they thought. But that still, of course, doesn't settle the issue of the fact that they seem to have violated the law to run this program before it was legal. And of course, if it truly was legal...why the need to change the law? It's almost as if they don't buy their own B.S. explanations.

QUOTE(greasywheels121 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:18 PM) I won't miss Vaden too much; he's really become Bracey-lite of late. He's either hot or cold, never inbetween, and it's hard to depend on that. I will miss DJ a lot though. He was huge for this program, and none of this would be news, if he never got hurt. He's that important. I'm surprised he's so quick to react on this though; he'll be sitting out almost 2 full seasons in a row now. It'll be interesting though. I don't know if Davis catches on to somewhere that fast, or even a place in colege. Davis has always been a huge NBA guy; I wouldn't be surprised the least bit to see him catch on as an assistant somewhere in the NBA. I still think DJ will figure out that the best thing for his future is to stay. For him to follow Davis, he'd have to sacrifice a year of eligibility to transfer, and coming off of his injury, that would not only set him back a lot, that would make his senior year a make or break year for the NBA Draft. If he got hurt that year at all, then he'd wind up going from being a potential 1st-rounder to a potential guy playing in Europe. There's a lot on the line for him after this injury. It's also worth noting that sometimes things do change. You get a new coach, with a quality reputation, into that slot sometime in April or May at the latest, have him sit down with these guys and tell them where he wants to go with that program, and let them decide then once cooler heads prevail.

Picturing Kent Brockman telling folks how he won't go on TV without his "Rose of the Prophet Muhammad" is just disturbing, I tells you whats. Linky. Well, if it worked for the U.S. and France...

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 02:18 PM) Read my post again please. His intent was to incite hatred not violence. If you read the select AP quotes, it sure seems that way. The more you actually read of the speech, the less it seems that way.

QUOTE(Steve9347 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 12:02 PM) I dont give a s*** if they blow up an atomic bomb... sold out against the royals?? haha Man, I can't wait to shove that crowd in John Kruk's face.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 11:33 AM) Oh jeez, you live in Cali? Well that explains the drivers right there. Glad you are still OK. Do the local arteries have bike lanes out there, like we have in Chicago? Those have been a savior here (though, as Balta points out, you still have to assume people won't see you). In Pasadena a few roads have marked bike lanes, lots of others have signs which say "Bike route", but you still have to make sure you're careful. There are enough bikes around that most people at least do pass them while driving so it's not going to be a shock if they see you here. Can't speak for Hi8is's area.

QUOTE(Adam G @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 11:34 AM) Did I read this correctly? If you have to question it, then no, I think it makes perfect sense. If he had his worst season of his career...out of every person who is considered a "5th starter", he'd be by the best of them. In other words, no matter what he does, he's the best 5th starter in baseball on paper.

QUOTE(knightni @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 10:50 AM) They will regret not trading Contreras when he had the most value. Mark me down as a Count skeptic. Somehow, I just have this feeling that the offers just weren't there. Yeah he had a great 2nd half last year, but how much are you willing to mortgage your future for a guy with 1 great 2nd half behind him that's a FA that you might not be able to keep beyond this year? I just don't think I was thrilled with any of the offers I saw rumored.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 10:34 AM) All I can hope, is that this man is now eligible for a Darwin Award. Well, i don't think he died...does sterilization make oneself eligible? He would have removed himself from the gene pool if that were the case.

QUOTE(GreatScott82 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 10:11 AM) So Crede will be hitting 9th? That doesnt make sense to me. Anderson is faster, you would have a quick 9,1,2 in the lineup. Hmmm interesting... Anderson is also the Rookie, with the least amount of experience. With Crede hitting behind him, it at least gives him a bit of protection, which could make the shift to the big leagues easier. (btw, that's not my opinion, the article was posted here a few weeks ago saying it would be Anderson then Crede 8-9.)

Oh. My. God.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 10:19 AM) Tim Floyd was an excellent college coach... You do realize he's currently a college coach as well right?

QUOTE(ZoomSlowik @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 09:45 AM) I'd love it if we could somehow turn Gordon, Chandler, our pick, and our #1 next year into O'Neal, but that seems a little light for a player of his caliber. If we do the proposed trade, I think we move into the same territory as the Timberwolves and Garnett: simply not having enough players around the star to win big. Honestly, if after the lottery it doesn't look like we'd be able to get Aldridge with the Knick's pick, I'd be willing to deal it. We're not really going to get any immediate help with that pick unless we could get him. Well, just remember, Chris Paul wasn't the #1 pick last year either. Just because you don't have the #1 pick doens't mean you can't turn it into something solid. Right now it looks like the worst possible case scenario would mean that Knick pick will be top 5, and it has a very very high probability of being top 3. And if the Knicks stay in their current free-fall for much longer, it will have a good chance of being 1-2. It's also worth noting that right now the only team with a worse record than the Knicks is Charlotte, and Charlotte may well decide they're not in the market for another big guy this year, with Okafor, May, and Brezec all on their team (is Brezec a FA this year?). It's also possible that Okafor could come back sometime in March and push them ahead of the Knicks record.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 16, 2006 -> 10:12 AM) I wonder if Majerus's health issues are rectified? If so I would have to say he would be my #1 choice for the job. The guy has won everywhere he has been, and even turned somewhere like Utah into a place to go for NCAA hoops. Can you imagine what he could do in a place that almost recruits for itself? I don't think he's even worth the risk, entirely for his health reasons. He still isn't exactly what I'd call "Slim", and IU really couldn't afford to risk taking him on, having him start up the season or even play through a season or two and then all of a sudden have him decide that his health concerns are too much or actually have him suffer from a major problem like a heart attack. The last thing we want is to wind up with Tim Floyd on the bench.

It's things like this which make me very, very concerned about the quality of the "Iraqi troops" we're putting in place to run that country when we do depart. The latter part seems the most chilling to me. Whether or not we hand over to the Shi'a or the insurgents, it sounds like both have been doing the same dirty work over there.