Steff

By the way.. this was verified via snopes.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/sox/cst-spt-ssep09.html Sox deny steering Maggs to Vienna December 9, 2004 After declining to address agent Scott Boras' claim that the White Sox recommended a European doctor to Magglio Ordonez, general manager Ken Williams disputed that claim Wednesday. Asked to comment on various statements by Boras regarding Ordonez, Williams elected Tuesday to take the high road and only pay respect to the free-agent outfielder's production during his Sox tenure. A day later, Williams had a brief retort to Boras' statement that the Sox should have had access to key medical records regarding a second knee operation on Ordonez. ''It is important to note, No. 1, the name of the surgeon was given to Magglio from the staff of the White Sox,'' Boras told the Sun-Times late Monday. Boras was not Ordonez's agent at the time of the September surgery. Williams denied the Sox had directed Ordonez toward having a second operation in Vienna, Austria. Williams had been trying to get medical records from that surgery since he found out the procedure took place, and he would not extend a contract offer to Ordonez until he learned what procedure was done and what the findings were. ''It's disturbing that some info out of their camp is inaccurate,'' Williams said. ''I'm more concerned with making sure Magglio Ordonez's legacy is intact and the feeling that he will always be a welcome part of the Sox family than I am in trying to defend ourselves. ''I'm comfortable we have all the information and truth on our side. We will excuse ourselves from some of the things that have been said questioning our decisions and actions.'' Doug Padilla

He was in the first third grade class I taught at Saint Mary's School in Morris, Minnesota. All 34 of my students were dear to me, but Mark Eklund was one in a million. [He was] very neat in appearance but had that happy-to-be-alive attitude that made even his occasional mischieviousness delightful. Mark talked incessantly. I had to remind him again and again that talking without permission was not acceptable. What impressed me so much, though, was his sincere response every time I had to correct him for misbehaving: "Thank you for correcting me, Sister!" I didn't know what to make of it at first, but before long I became accustomed to hearing it many times a day. One morning my patience was growing thin when Mark talked once too often, and then I made a novice teacher's mistake. I looked at him and said, "If you say one more word, I am going to tape your mouth shut!" It wasn't ten seconds later when Chuck blurted out, "Mark is talking again." I hadn't asked any of the students to help me watch Mark, but since I had stated the punishment in front of the class, I had to act on it. I remember the scene as if it had occurred this morning. I walked to my desk, very deliberately opened my drawer and took out a roll of masking tape. Without saying a word, I proceeded to Mark's desk, tore off two pieces of tape and made a big X with them over his mouth. I then returned to the front of the room. As I glanced at Mark to see how he was doing, he winked at me. That did it! I started laughing. The class cheered as I walked back to Mark's desk, removed the tape and shrugged my shoulders. His first words were, "Thank you for correcting me, Sister." At the end of the year I was asked to teach junior high math. The years flew by, and before I knew it Mark was in my classroom again. He was more handsome than ever and just as polite. Since he had to listen carefully to my instructions in the "new math," he did not talk as much in ninth grade as he had in the third. One Friday, things just didn't feel right. We had worked hard on a new concept all week, and I sensed that the students were frowning, frustrated with themselves — and edgy with one another. I had to stop this crankiness before it got out of hand. So I asked them to list the names of the other students in the room on two sheets of paper, leaving a space between each name. Then I told them to think of the nicest thing they could say about each of their classmates and write it down. It took the remainder of the class period to finish the assignment, and as the students left the room, each one handed me the papers. Charlie smiled. Mark said, "Thank you for teaching me, Sister. Have a good weekend." That Saturday, I wrote down the name of each student on a separate sheet of paper, and I listed what everyone else had said about that individual. On Monday I gave each student his or her list. Before long, the entire class was smiling. "Really?" I heard whispered. "I never knew that meant anything to anyone!" "I didn't know others liked me so much!" No one ever mentioned those papers in class again. I never knew if they discussed them after class or with their parents, but it didn't matter. The exercise had accomplished its purpose. The students were happy with themselves and one another again. That group of students moved on. Several years later, after I returned from vacation, my parents met me at the airport. As we were driving home, Mother asked me the usual questions about the trip — the weather, my experiences in general. There was a light lull in the conversation. Mother gave Dad a sideways glance and simply said, "Dad?" My father cleared his throat as he usually did before something important. "The Eklunds called last night," he began. "Really?" I said. "I haven't heard from them in years. I wonder how Mark is." Dad responded quietly. "Mark was killed in Vietnam," he said. "The funeral is tomorrow, and his parents would like it if you could attend." To this day I can still point to the exact spot on I-494 where Dad told me about Mark. I had never seen a serviceman in a military coffin before. Mark looked so handsome, so mature. All I could think at that moment was, Mark, I would give all the masking tape in the world if only you would talk to me. The church was packed with Mark's friends. Chuck's sister sang "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." Why did it have to rain on the day of the funeral? It was difficult enough at the graveside. The pastor said the usual prayers, and the bugler played taps. One by one those who loved Mark took a last walk by the coffin and sprinkled it with holy water. I was the last one to bless the coffin. As I stood there, one of the soldiers who had acted as pallbearer came up to me. "Were you Mark's math teacher?" he asked. I nodded as I continued to stare at the coffin. "Mark talked about you a lot," he said. After the funeral, most of Mark's former classmates headed to Chuck's farmhouse for lunch. Mark's mother and father were there, obviously waiting for me. "We want to show you something," his father said, taking a wallet out of his pocket. "They found this on Mark when he was killed. We thought you might recognize it." Opening the billfold, he carefully removed two worn pieces of notebook paper that had obviously been taped, folded and refolded many times. I knew without looking that the papers were the ones on which I had listed all the good things each of Mark's classmates had said about him. "Thank you so much for doing that," Mark's mother said. "As you can see, Mark treasured it." Mark's classmates started to gather around us. Charlie smiled rather sheepishly and said, "I still have my list. It's in the top drawer of my desk at home." Chuck's wife said, "Chuck asked me to put this in our wedding album." "I have mine too," Marilyn said. "It's in my diary." Then Vicki, another classmate, reached into her pocketbook, took out her wallet and showed her worn and frazzled list to the group. "I carry this with me at all times," Vicki said, without batting an eyelash. "I think we all saved our lists." That's when I finally sat down and cried. I cried for Mark and for all his friends who would never see him again. By: Sister Helen P. Mrosla

2 hours, 29 minutes ago Top Stories - AP SEATTLE - Striking a blow for rebellious teenagers, the Washington Supreme Court ruled Thursday that state law prohibits parents from eavesdropping on a child's phone conversations. The case reached the high court because of a purse-snatching. A 17-year-old boy was convicted of the robbery, in part on testimony from his girlfriend's mother, who overhead him discussing the crime on the phone with her daughter. The daughter had taken a cordless phone into her bedroom and closed the door. In another room, her mother pressed the speakerphone button on an extension, listened in and took notes. The court ruled that the daughter and her boyfriend had a reasonable expectation of privacy on the phone. Washington state law prohibits intercepting or recording conversations without the consent of all participants. "The Washington privacy statute puts a high value on the privacy of communications," Justice Tom Chambers wrote in the unanimous opinion. The boyfriend will get a new trial. Unreal... :headshake

We just did and got a 3.7 5 year arm from Wells Fargo.

I think it makes JD a class act in not going back on his word. Nothing more, nothing less.

No one, especially an NL team, is going to gamble on anyone for $10 million that they have not seen run, jump, squat, sit, stay, roll over, etc, etc... Boras up to his old "I got an offer.. can you beat it" bulls***.

http://www.thewbalchannel.com/news/3984457/detail.html There is video at the link. Mom Disciplines Son By Making Him Wear Sign In Public Murafetis Says She's At Her Wits' End POSTED: 6:43 pm EST December 8, 2004 UPDATED: 10:44 am EST December 9, 2004 KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- What is proper discipline and what is going too far? You will find both ends of the spectrum when it comes to a punishment served by a 12-year-old Kansas City boy. The boy has attention deficit disorder, but according to his mother he's also defiant, on the wrong path and spinning out of control. At her wits' end, she meted out a very public punishment Wednesday. "He is a very smart and intelligent little boy, he just doesn't know how to use his ability," mother Jessica Murafetis said. But he does know how to walk, and walk he did. Dustyn, who is a seventh-grader, wore a sign for all to see why he was at a street corner in Kansas City. "And his teacher is the best teacher in the world. She has done everything possible to keep him in school. He got suspended (Tuesday) for the seventh time this year alone," Murafetis said. Murafetis had to go to work. Her son came along with his sandwich sign. Many people noticed Dustyn and his sign, which said he's being punished for being a class clown. Many approved of his mother's methods,. "It's reasonable, I guess it's better than getting a spanking so putting him out here, let everybody know what he's been up to. He'll think twice about doing it again," Andre Jackson said. Dustyn said that is true. When asked what he had learned, he said, "Not to act a fool in school because this is what I have to do every day I do it." But some people said they thought the discipline went too far. "That's humiliation for him, I don't believe in that, and it's cold outside," Robyne Warburton said. But Dustyn's mother said desperate problems require desperate measures. "I want my son to have an education, to be something in this world. I don't want him to go to his grave. I don't want to have to bury him before it's time, and that's exactly the way he's heading. He is heading down the wrong path with no one to pull him out but me, and that's what I'm trying to do," Murafetis said. Murafetis is a single mother of two. She said Dustyn has caused so many disruptions in their family that now she's worried about losing her job. She said she has gone everywhere she knows of for help, but has been told there's nothing anyone can do until Dustyn gets into big trouble. Murafetis said that she is not waiting.

Now that giving your kid a swat on the ass has become "abuse" I can see where it's become harder to stop them from acting up. Back when I was a kid I got plenty of cracks on the ass or my hands slapped. These days that, obviously, will land you time away from your family. Bulls***, IMO.

And stupid parents.. Sex Offender Playing Santa Faces Charges Wed Dec 8, 9:20 PM ET U.S. National - AP FOREST CITY, N.C. - A convicted sex offender who was playing Santa Claus has been accused of taking indecent liberties with an 11-year-old girl who portrayed Santa's elf. Zay Harold Jones, 73, was arrested Sunday at a highway rest stop in Davie County after the child told a woman in a restroom that Jones had touched her inappropriately in his vehicle, authorities said. Jones, of Ellenboro, was charged later in the day at the county detention center and released after posting a $25,000 bond. The girl got help after convincing Jones that she was sick and needed the stop. The woman she encountered called police and waited with her until police arrived, said sheriff's Detective J.D. Hartman. The girl, who had volunteered to work as an elf at Santa's House in Forest City on Saturday, was traveling with Jones to Greensboro, where he was to appear as Santa on Sunday, again with the girl as his elf. The child's parents allowed her to travel with Jones after meeting and talking with him on a couple of occasions, the father said. Jones pleaded guilty to assault on a female after being charged in 1981 with taking indecent liberties with a child, Rutherford County Chief Deputy C. Philip Byers said. In 1991, Jones was charged in Rockingham County with attempted rape and also pleaded guilty to assault on a female, Byers said. Forest City Downtown Development Director Danielle Withrow said Jones has been the Santa for the town's Santa House for the past three years. At least two adults were in the house with Santa and the children, she said. "You live and learn, even with Santa," Withrow told The Daily Courier of Forest City. "We'll have to do criminal background checks on whoever plays Santa." Jones was scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 16.

Oh it definitely happens in distribution. Every year about this time the firings at our Columbus Crossdock start happening... a tv here.. a couch there.

Regardless if it is or not, it's still good advice to check the boxes before you leave the store.

IWC.. I remember you telling that story before.. was it at SF last year..? I only buy CD's and DVD's at BB. Hate that place.

Uhhh.. duh! I didn't even see the link to the thread.

Killa was being sarcastic..

LMAO!!

#1. Tell that guy to call his CC company and tell them not to pay the charge. #2. Tell him to call the police.

Thu Dec 9, 7:24 AM ET Local - New York Daily News BY MICHELLE CARUSO, DAILY NEWS WEST COAST BUREAU CHIEF Cops found Michael Jackson's fingerprint and a fingerprint from the boy accusing him of sex abuse on the "same page" of a porno mag seized from the pop star's home last year, according to a published report. The fingerprints, allegedly found in a copy of Barely Legal magazine, could help bolster the boy's claim that Jackson used porno mags to get him aroused, according to a story in this week's National Enquirer. Jackson, 46, is accused of molesting the then-13-year-old cancer survivor and conspiring to hold the boy and his family hostage at Neverland early last year. Jackson has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The boy, who turned 15 on Dec. 2, told investigators Jackson kept a stash of porno mags in a briefcase in his bathroom. When cops searched Neverland in November 2003, they found the porn stash in that location, the Enquirer says. At a recent court hearing, Santa Barbara County prosecutor Ron Zonen said "magazines" were part of the evidence against Jackson. Barely Legal, which is published by Hustler mag honcho Larry Flynt, reportedly contains pictures of adult women dressed as saucy teenagers. Jackson's lawyer Tom Mesereau and prosecutors are under a gag order and cannot comment on the case. Cops raided Neverland for the second time Friday. They took photos and measurements of Jackson's home for use in creating trial exhibits, and a DNA sample from Jackson's mouth. Cops also nosed around the ranch's telephone and communications systems, a source told the Daily News. According to the Enquirer, investigators are trying to prove that from his bedroom, Jackson had the ability covertly to monitor and record phone conversations elsewhere on the ranch. The trial is set to begin Jan. 31.

Oh no, no... I didn't say what happened... I'm giving Murcie the whip for this one..

Uh... no. He didn't even bother to visit here.. and cancelled his left coast visits also. He's going to be on the east coast.

ROTFLMAO!!! So that's what you guys were doing when you disappeared during the tailgate...

It was yesterday.. no pun intended. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/s...000/2536321.stm

SAN FRANCISCO 'A parent's worst nightmare' 9-year-old girl sexually assaulted in her bedroom Jaxon Van Derbeken, Chronicle Staff Writer Thursday, December 9, 2004 Printable Version Email This Article A convicted sex offender broke into a San Francisco home in the Ingleside district and raped a 9-year-old girl in her bedroom in an hourlong attack that ended when the girl's mother walked into the room, San Francisco police said. The man, police say, fled on foot and was chased by the girl's father, who at one point struck him with a 2-by-4. The man continued fleeing through several backyards and was captured by police and identified as Roberto Gamero, 36, of San Francisco, police said. "It's a parent's worst nightmare,'' said San Francisco police Deputy Chief Morris Tabak of Sunday's attack. "It's pretty horrific. All of us who are parents, it sends chills up your spine.'' Gamero, a prior sex offender who was on probation for an earlier domestic violence case in San Mateo County, now faces charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child, child molestation, false imprisonment and burglary stemming from the attack, which shocked veteran investigators. "This is truly a horrific crime,'' said Assistant District Attorney Linda Moore of the sex assault unit. "We're trying to protect the family at this point.'' Gamero is jailed on a probation hold and $1 million bail. He is scheduled to be arraigned today. If convicted of all charges, Gamero could face a sentence of 25 years to life, said Debbie Mesloh, spokeswoman for District Attorney Kamala Harris. It was 7:45 a.m. Sunday when the victim's mother heard noises and entered her daughter's room in the Silver Avenue home and found her child with the suspect, who was nude. He apparently entered an unlocked window of the home, police say. The victim later told police that she was awakened to find a stranger in her bed and recounted an ordeal that lasted an hour in which she was raped and forced to engage in sex acts. When she resisted his demands, he asked her if she wanted him to be "mean, '' which she understood to be a threat, authorities said. After he was discovered, the suspect ran from the home, carrying a backpack. He quickly dressed and was soon chased by the victim's father, authorities said. The suspect allegedly threw a rock at the child's father during a backyard confrontation, and threatened the father with a knife. The father then hit him with a 2-by-4 piece of lumber, police said. The suspect ran off, but eventually was captured by police in a backyard, hiding behind a shed and bush. He lashed out at the officers, but two Ingleside station officers grabbed him by the arms and handcuffed him. Police believe he may have been living in a crack house in the area. He was found to have a crack pipe on him at the time of his arrest. Authorities are checking to determine whether he had registered as a sex offender in San Francisco. Police say the man was not known by the victim or her family. "It's very isolated, from what we can tell,'' Tabak said. My God.. I can't even imagine what this poor little girl is going through.

LMAO... you should know that nothing scares me..

Mine is right on also.