NorthSideSox72

I would have liked that deal.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 12:40 PM) You know what? Right now, I can actually think of a couple that might hurt more than New Madrid going again. A Category 2 hurricane hitting New York comes to mind, which is entirely possible any one of these years. Both the S.F. and L.A. areas are due for a couple of major quakes out here also. And then there's the Levees around Sacramento; basically that city is protected from a series of rivers by some earthen levees that date back to the 1870's, and we're only just now starting to repair them, so a big storm up in the Sierras could quite literally turn it into NOLA. And there's also a tsunamigenic fault, capable of a Sumatra scale event, sitting off the Oregon and Washington coast that hasn't gone in a couple hundred years (it's recurrence interval seems to vary between 100 and 1000 years, so we don't really have a clue when it will go again) Of course, I think 5 years ago someone made a list of the top few potential natural disasters to hit the U.S., and the inundation of NOLA was about #2 on the list following up a magnitude 7+ event in the L.A. Basin. (You hit the right fault out here and you literally destroy 10,000 buildings.) I think the key with cities in Cali is that they are actually semi-prepared for those events. I'm not saying you can properly prepare for that one really nasty one that destroys 10k buildings, but, I think the fact that California has been preparing for these things for so long will end up saving a lot of lives. People around the New Madrid are, I have found, either mostly or completely unaware of the danger they are in. Then there is the fact that any quake in California will likely have a much smaller range of effect than New Madrid because of the terrain. Now New York, I have no idea what if anything they've done to prepare for a major hurricane.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 12:33 PM) If you use minor league numbers to project OBP, I would imagine Crede had superior numbers as far as OBP goes in the minors. To say that if Crede is totally healthy, you are not losing anything if Fields performs exactly as he did in 2007 is silly. The biggest loss is defense of course. Fields may eventually be an average defensive 3B, but probably no better than that. Crede has been well above that for some time. Offensively, Fields will probably have a much better career than Crede. Probably, not definitely. Its possible that Joe had "figured it out" in 2006, and 2007 was an injury-riddled aberration, and that his back is now 100% or close to it. Not likely, though.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 12:14 PM) So burying the food producing plains states is any better? Also, what were the odds of a 9.3 earthquake in the Indian Ocean causing a tsunami that would kill 250,000 people? Just because something isn't likely, doesn't mean we shouldn't be aware of it. Yellowstone shouldn't be this country's biggest worry for a geological disaster. The one that the country is least prepared for, and which is in fact overdue and semi-imminent (if anything geological can be called imminent), and which is likely to do the most damage (of those events that are likely), is New Madrid. It won't do as much as that supervolcano of course, but its not a 1 in 1000 shot in the next century - its a 800 in 1000 shot that there will be a significant quake there in this century.

I have no problem at all with teachers making 6 figures, if they and the school are performing well. And I will gladly pay more in property taxes for good schools. Very few things are that important to me, but education is one of them. And LCR is right about the balance of funding. That is a huge embarrassment. For anyone who wants to explore how education funding is amplifying the gap between rich and poor in the Chicago area, you should read Kozol's Savage Inequalities. I am not saying that all teachers should be paid 100% equally, but, the current system is unfair in the extreme. As for striking... I would agree to the extent that it should be absolutely a last resort. Perhaps the solution is for the state to employ some sort of mediation team that can be brought in when these impasses become critical. One made up of people with backgrounds in education as well as business.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 11:58 AM) Just FYI, it's a bit buried and lacking specifics, but this is sort of what his "Issues" page brings up on the Transit issue. Saying he will "re-commit" resources is no better than saying keep the status quo.

QUOTE(BigSqwert @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 11:00 AM) Note I just submitted on the Obama website: Well done. I might do similar for him and Richardson.

I've looked at the policy statements and goals and what not for a number of the candidates on their websites, and not one mentions mass transit. Has anyone else seen one of them mention it? I agree with SS, this is such an obvious thing to truly help use less oil and gas, but also to create less pollution, make it cheaper to maintain our roads, take some load off the overpacked air transportation grid, and reduce traffic deaths. I really wish someone would make it a priority.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:39 AM) No one else? I have to concur with Rex. The relevant question, to me, is whether or not its even effective. If its not, then the other discussions are moot. In the ticking time bomb scenario, which basically never happens, I'd be OK with breaking the rules. But that's just it - the rule should still be no torture.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:49 AM) Its seems movie viewers are getting Iraqnaphobia at the theaters... http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=07...;show_article=1 The Kingdom and Rendition were both horrible movies. They weren't "treatments" of Iraq, like say United 93 and World Trade Center were for 9/11. They are both poorly done action films. That's why they bombed. In the Valley of Elah I hadn't even seen hit the theatres.

QUOTE(Steff @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:32 AM) I suggest comments on personal appearance be avoided as well. Whatever. I hate little yellow cartoon characters that wear baseball hats.

QUOTE(Controlled Chaos @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:24 AM) Who the hell are you to judge how he parents his kids? OK. I am going to respectfully suggest that any pet peeves related to parenting techniques be left out of this thread henceforth. I'd hate to see the thread go really bad, I think its a fun one. Wasn't picking on you CC, yours just happens to be the most recent post.

QUOTE(Controlled Chaos @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:19 AM) back on topic...and this should stir things up a little....but talking or even worse texting while driving. I know most people think they are, but trust me...you are not the same driver on the phone as you are off the phone. Not too mention there are already bad drivers out there, put them on the phone and we're looking at disaster. Also, and this has to do with the phone as well...I absolutely dread getting behind anyone at an arrow light anymore. I would say at least 50% of the time some person isn't paying attention. That percentage grows with more people in front of you. It is probably my absolute biggest pet peeve. I don't care if you are a slow driver...fine everyone is different...I just want you to go when the light changes. You should be doing one thing at a red light and that's watching for it to turn green. Getting into the driver's seat lowers your effective IQ by about 20 points. Talking on the phone takes away another 10. Texting is 20. By the time serial texter is done driving, he/she has seen their semi-average 110 IQ become 70. They are now officially retarded. This is, to me, the biggest single safety issue this country faces - people do not take driving seriously. Thousands or even tens of thousands of lives could be saved every year if people treated driving as they should - like they are driving a 4000 pound semi-guided missile. Don't drive drunk, don't text, don't eat, don't yell at your spouse, don't do 80 in a 40 to show off to your teenage friends... and suddenly, we have a lot more people alive today, and much lower insurance costs.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:11 AM) Wouldn't saying Fields in LF and Crede at 3rd is a viable option rather than saying we have 2 thirdbasemen and Fields might have to go back to the minors drive up demand a little more? KW has said nothing about Fields in LF. They scrapped plans to have him work on it during the winter. He's not going to play LF anymore unless perhaps in a pinch. Unless, maybe, he's trying to market Fields for trading, as a 3B. He may be thinking in terms of trading Crede OR Fields, and the market needs 3B's, not LF's.

QUOTE(The Critic @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:12 AM) Wow, that's kind of an irrational thing to hate. I kind of know what he means, though. I mean, I really hate using my brakes.

QUOTE(FlaSoxxJim @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 09:12 AM) I thought Lojack was the bald detective who sucked lollypops and hustled Players Club cards on tv. . . I though Kojak made cameras...

So, entirely seperate from the debates about CTA's operating expenses and budget is the fact that the system itself is crumbling and is badly in need of updating. In fact, they estimate that the system needs $6 billion dollars of work on its infrastructure. This is not something that can easily be blamed on operating costs or management overhead - this is mostly just the reality of maintaining such a huge transit system. 6 billion is a huge number. But then, as has been shown repeatedly over the years, that 6 billion invested in mass transit will save even more than that on the roads. Unfortunately, not everyone is willing to see that relationship.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 08:48 AM) So that makes 4 of top 6 (at least) Presidential candidates that have had close relations with people who have been at least indicted of impressive crimes. (Guilliani, Clinton, Thompson, and Obama) Yeah, election of change my ass. Give me a Richardson - McCain or Richardson - Paul matchup and I'm happy. But that ain't happenin'. Actually, I think Obama's connection isn't as bad as the others, and Thompson's is similar. Clinton takes the cake, not just with Hsu, but not bringing in Berger. What a joke.

QUOTE(FlaSoxxJim @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 08:45 AM) That was Loman I believe, not Lomax. Not to be confused with Lo mein, which I had the other night for dinner and enjoyed quite a bit. I thought Lomax was that car theft deterrent system the advertise during the Sox games. Oh wait, that's Lojack.

QUOTE(Rex Kicka** @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 08:36 AM) How is this not fair? Guiliani was all about Kerik, even last week. Citing Kerik as the main reason behind the 60% drop in crime in NYC during his tenure. Despite the fact that Kerik was only put to the Top Cop job in 2000, and crime decreased less than 10% under his watch. I didn't say it was unfair. That was why I placed the caveat. Some will think its just mudslinging because he was Giuliani's appointee. Others will point at the close relationship and say its relevant. I'd say it has some relevance.

QUOTE(Rex Kicka** @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 08:34 AM) It's a shame. This guy is one heck of a lot better than Gonzales, who was probably the second worst Bush appointee, and that's saying something.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 08:25 AM) There are tens of thousands of books that could be chosen. Is there a difference between a High School teacher that looks at the above, or similar works, and elects to use a different work and the public that asks that the same action be taken? We can look at this list and obviously agree that they are classics and great readings for adults. I would state they are clearly not appropriate to use in fifth grade, but maybe that too would be a point of disagreement. Perhaps they are appropriate for High School. Bottom line, teachers should not be omnipotent, nor should one parent. I cannot take the leap from learning A&P by dissecting a pig and teaching students about anal sex in English. I can see some value in seeing internal structures of the body. I could see covering anal sex in a health class, but it seems unnecessary in English. Bottom line I support parental involvement in their children's education, beyond selling candy for the senior trip. I know that is so threatening to teachers in their ivory towers. Again... the book is not about anal sex. This is what I was getting at earlier. High school students in advanced, elective classes should be exposed to challenging material. That material may contain plot devices covering matters that happen in real life but which are not pretty - war, murder, hate, violence, etc. That doesn't mean the books are about those things. It means the books use real life situations to more effective get their points across.

So, here is something interesting that the US should look at as a goal. Someone (Rex maybe?) mentioned a few days ago that Brazil had, thanks to sugar-based ethanol and other alternative fuel efforts, become basically energy independent. Well now, they stumbled onto a huge new oil field, with something like 8 billion bbl of usable light crude just offshore. So now, they have suddenly been vaulted into the top tier of oil exporters worldwide. If Brazil hadn't bothered with the alternative fuels, this find would have, perhaps, made them self-sufficient. Instead, its now huge money in their pockets, because the rest of the world still needs oil. The US still has pretty large oil reserves too. Something to think about.

Its official. Mukasey confirmed.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2007 -> 07:54 AM) That's I think the problem here... we were in different economic classes, I think I was envisioning more like grunt labor, you know, manufacturing and industry. Also another interesting tidbit of info I picked up this morning... The trade deficit narrowed way more than expected. They had predicted $58.5 billion, and it was actually $56.5 billion. If I recall, that decrease is partly due to the dollar's fall in value, isn't it?