NorthSideSox72

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 03:29 PM) Oh the irony. (awaits the liberal explanation that the world is different now and increasing the debt ceiling was absolutely necessary to our survival) Most of the increase falls onto the laps of the GOP, and they can feel free to use whatever excuses they want to. Most of this debt run-up is the direct results of actions of GOP-led Congresses and a GOP President, and they did it in times that were far better economically than the one we've been in for the last 3 years. That's what many Republicans are failing to acknowledge - that this debt and deficit problem in the federal government (and it is a big one) is in great part their own fault. Obama and the Dem Congress get some too of course. But the idea that its a Dem thing is outright false, when looking at the past decade.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 12:30 PM) Which budget? They sold the meters years ago now, and since that sale they've raised property taxes, licensing fees, sticker fees, etc. I'm not even sure if they raised other taxes, but I know they raised how much city stickers cost (esp for suv/truck owners), licensing fees (drivers licenses cost more). If you specifically mean THIS year, maybe they didn't raise anything, but then again, they didn't sell the skyway and meters this year. OK for one thing, property taxes are mostly the county, and license fees are not the city at all. For another, the property taxes that are the city portion have not gone up for a few years. Sticker fees did go up, as I recall, last year or the year before. I thought they were staying put this year though. So, your claim that the city is increasing all these taxes really just isn't accurate.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 07:47 AM) It seems like I've become the bulletin guy in this thread, so here we go... From yesterday... --ISM manufacturing index came in at 57.0 for Dec, up from 56.6 for Nov and exactly at expectation --Construction spending was up 0.4%, better than the 0.1% expectation, but down from the 0.7% prior month reading To watch today: Factory orders for Nov, 9am (expectations: 0.3% drop) FOMC minutes, time ? (expectations: no rate moves imminent, but comments on state of economy are key) Auto sales numbers for Dec, time TBD (expectations: 1.13 M units) Factory orders surprised up, rose 0.7% versus expectations of a drop. Non-defense excluding aircraft rose 2.6%. Excluding transportation generally, it was 2.4%.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 08:53 AM) I don't think it's laziness...I think it's one case where a "Slippery slope" isn't a logical fallacy, it's reality. I mean, honestly, if Tom Crean could go out to every IU alum and ask for a contribution of something valued at $5 to help him sign a basketball player, you don't think he'd be able to cut the kid a million dollar check the next day? He'd have $5 from this alum. And you could even give me something of value, like an autograph, back, so that I'm buying merchandise. These are all cases where the benefits of getting a player or keeping a player are so much larger than the costs, and where the competition is so massive (100+ universities) that the arcane, restrictive, seemingly silly rules wind up being useless if they're not written so strictly that they sound stupid on the surface. Its simple, really. Document. As a player, you have to document what money you receive, from whom, and for what. Any free or discounted services, same thing. No need to make it against the rules to receive it - just make the actual, real, material problems illegal. Got a free tattoo from a parlor, because they want the marketing? Fine, just write it down. Got a check for a million from a guy in Vegas right before the bowl game? Uh, probably not fine. This should not be hard, and the slippery slope argument should not be used to excuse to universally place ridiclous rules on everyone. NCAA rules should have their place. They should be about cheating the game, cheating the school, breaking actual laws, setting up competition, officiating, etc. And, colleges should get to add whatever more rules they want, individually - that's up to them (this part is sort of true now).

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 08:59 AM) Does anyone know if shower scrunchies contain BPA? I tried googling to no avail. What the hell is a shower scrunchie?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 08:11 AM) A lot of these zillion little NCAA rules seem arcane and wierd, but when you spend some time thinking about how they relate to the recruiting process and where the money is, they start making more sense. For example, selling memorabilia, one of the exact ones you cite, is a great way for people to buy off athletes to make decisions that a booster or gambler would want. Memorabilia in particular is odd because it's hard to come up with an exact value for it...the market value of the materials that go into making a Big Ten Championship ring could be $1000, but if I were a graduate of a Big Ten school and my team won a big ten championship, I might be willing to pay a lot more than that for the item and I could testify accurately about that. Meanwhile, the guy who sells me the ring, or pants, or helmet, whatever, gets $500,000 with the understanding that he's going to stay at Ohio State as a Senior rather than go pro. That's a great way to set up a bribery system. The one I always come back to is the Kelvin Sampson at Indiana mess. His biggest crime was sending too many calls and text messages to recruits. How awful is that right? He's just calling them too much. Big Deal. Well, for one coach to do it maybe it's not a big deal, but then the other 30 coaches trying to recruit that player realize the NCAA thinks it isn't a big deal, and next thing you know, the recruit isn't sleeping because he's spending 24/7 receiving recruiting calls. Free Tattoos? Fine. Where do you draw the line on free stuff that a player can get? The NCAA has chosen to define anything free as an inappropriate gift. Say you allow each gift if it's under $100 in market value. Hey, five star recruit, I've got 10,000 alums lined up each of whom are willing to give you a $99 gift. Oh sure, they're just coffee makers, baseball cards, and collectables, but you can sell them all off and pocket everything you want. Or, you're never paying for your own meals again, just come to our school I understand how they arose, I just think they got lazy. Instead of actually enforcing reasonable rules, they layered on a multitude of arcane, ridiculous ones in the hopes of burying players into submission. The rules should be about cheating, competition, recruiting violations, etc. - things that actually effect the team, the school, the league.

It seems like I've become the bulletin guy in this thread, so here we go... From yesterday... --ISM manufacturing index came in at 57.0 for Dec, up from 56.6 for Nov and exactly at expectation --Construction spending was up 0.4%, better than the 0.1% expectation, but down from the 0.7% prior month reading To watch today: Factory orders for Nov, 9am (expectations: 0.3% drop) FOMC minutes, time ? (expectations: no rate moves imminent, but comments on state of economy are key) Auto sales numbers for Dec, time TBD (expectations: 1.13 M units)

QUOTE (Kalapse @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 01:50 AM) I truly wish Phil Rogers would just go away, the man is a f***ing braindead clown. He's actually a decent writer, that's not the problem. The problem is that he's baseball-stupid. There is a difference. QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jan 4, 2011 -> 02:43 AM) Doesn't Tommy John surgery take two years to recover from? Plus, Nathan is in his mid-30's. I don't know of any real study on this, but in my memory, it seems like pitchers having TJ or other majorly invasive arm surgeries typically miss a year of play (or close to it), then pitch a year badly while adjusting, then get back to form (if they reach the last part at all).

I think some of the rules and expectations surrounding NCAA football are a joke, just like the writer is saying. But I disagree with his overall stance that the players should be compensated financially. College football is not minor league football. The NFL wants it to be - but it still isn't, and shouldn't be. These are universities, first and foremost, so the idea that players should be paid to play (beyond what other students get through scholarships and assistantships) is stupid. If the NFL wants a minor league system, then they can pay to create one. And the argument that players should be able to cheat or break the rules or laws because they rake in money for the school is intentionally keeping one eye closed to the math. A football team at a university rakes in money... which then goes out the door to more scholarships, to allow more students to go to school and get an education. So the money these players help rake in is really benefiting them anyway. Its just the full circle. Its amazing to me that people talk about players raking in millions, and then dismissing the tuition, room, board and even job oppportunities that these pay for. Last I checked, tuition/room/board/part-time job at a university like OSU or other schools would typically cost something like $50k-$100k over four years for out of state residents, not to mention the huge value having a degree at all gives these players. Even if you split up the million dollars (net) that a very successful program might rake in, each player would STILL get less money that the value they currently receive. And how about the fact that a lot of these athletes would likely not be able to get in OR afford school if it weren't for these programs? I'm sorry but people whining for the players here as if they are victims is laughable. That's from the perspective of the University. But... I also have zero problem with players finding ways to make money outside of the university, as long as it doesn't interfere with the operation of the team or the school. Getting free tattoos, selling memorabilia, etc., I think should be perfectly fine. Its immature and stupid, but that's what 19 year olds go through, and they need to learn their way through the life lessons. As long as they aren't actually cheating in the games, or cheating the school in some fashion, then I see no reason why its not OK. These players are adults - treat them as such. Don't coddle them or write a zillion stupid little rules they have to follow, and don't allow them to take something of great value and then complain when they don't get more. Let them make money outside of school however they want to, even if its immature and idiotic - as long as it doesn't result in cheating on the field or breaking real, actual laws (not NCAA rules). The set-up is f***ed up, no doubt. But not in the way the author states.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 08:51 PM) Its on ESPN3.com if you have that. And yea, losing your top scorer and top 3 point threat in the Big 12 hurts. Jake Anderson just went down too. And the backup big man, on a team without a true center. As long as Anderson and Christopherson are back for start of B12 play this weekend, I'm not too worried. Still looking forward to seeing if this team can make a run at a .500 record in the conference. Not likely to happen, but they may get close.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 08:47 PM) ISU still with only a 12 point lead in the 2nd half, 5 minutes left. It was nearly tied early in the 2nd half. Not having Cristopherson really hurts that much? Vanderbeeken is 4/13 from the field, but he does have 7 boards and 5 blocks. Jeez, check that, now down to a 5 point lead. I need to stop watching.

ISU still with only a 12 point lead in the 2nd half, 5 minutes left. It was nearly tied early in the 2nd half. Not having Cristopherson really hurts that much? Vanderbeeken is 4/13 from the field, but he does have 7 boards and 5 blocks.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 02:45 PM) Where did you hear this? As a general rule, I'd tend to believe this particular source.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 01:33 PM) Or even better, take the rather simple steps the private company took and start making money? Oh, and they DID raise taxes again, anyway, not to mention the increased sticker fees, license plate fees, drivers license fees, etc. The city raised taxes? Which ones and on whom? I'm genuinely curious, because I thought the budget they passed has no new taxes.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 01:40 PM) Iowa State added two football players to their basketball team today. Really? Interesting. Any news link on that? Just curious who, and why.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 12:53 PM) Northern Illinois, prepare to eat s*** tonight. If they win, their 13-2 OOC mark will be the best they've had since 2000. Of course the competition has been weak, but its still progress, which is all I was really hoping for from Freddy. That UNI loss still stings. 14-1 with the only loss being to Cal, that would look pretty good right now.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 09:04 AM) He already spent almost all the money from the Parking meters...whatever is left isn't enough to cover much for the next guy (or girl) in line. It's pretty known fact that he got ripped off selling the meters...the company that bought them (for 75 years), will make that money back 10 fold. http://www.streetsblog.org/2010/11/17/citi...-did-goldsmith/ According to a report in the Sun-Times this morning, the budget gap approaches $700 million when CPD and CFD contracts are added in. And as for the $1.15 billion parking meter deal? The Sun-Times reports there's only $180 million left after less than two years have passed on the 75-year lease. And then there are the Skyway reserves, a $1.83 billion deal of which there is only $550 million remaining after less than five years of that 99-year deal. Awesome. That was kind of the idea. The city was sitting on a lot of forward value, and a private company was able to provide the services. When the city is in financial trouble, they sold it - which makes a lot of sense. I hope they do the same with Midway and other areas where the same plan will work. They city meters deal is basically going towards keeping the city afloat during a terrible recession. I'd hope future deals will use that money wisely too, and fixing the pension system should be near the top of the list.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 08:57 AM) I guess it depends on who's shoes your in when talking about a "renaissance". Let's stop pretending this man is leaving the city in awesome shape. He's quitting now because he knows it's over, not because he can't win again...but because he doesn't want to be here when it all implodes (and it's happening now). He's responsible for severely underfunded pensions across the board, so much so that the state JUST passed a law about Chicago's pensions, cutting off the city's ability to continue stealing from them (oh, and we get to pay for these pensions now via taxes, because someone has too). He mortgaged the skyway, the parking meters, and who knows what else, using one and done money from those sales to cover severe financial underfunding and cover holes in the budgets...which of course he doesn't have to care about, since they're funded with the proceeds from those sales for now...but the next guy to take the job can't cover these holes in the same manner. The schools are awesome, too! That said... Will I say the man did NO good for the City? No. But I also won't sit back and pretend that everything is so glorious that he can't be replaced. Well to be clear, I'm not saying he can't be replaced - in fact he SHOULD be. Its just that whomever replaces him will likely not be able to be nearly as effective, at least not at first. The city pension mess was not made by him, but he definitely is partly responsible in that he left it to rot like it is. But, he's done some shrewd things financially, such as selling off the parking meters, that will help towards that end. Thing you have to understand about the pension mess is, its bad like that all over the country. Its because the pension system itself was a bad idea, and this was a reckoning a long time coming. Now its a huge monster that will be very difficult to truly fix. Any new mayor will definitely be given a s***ty situation there, and Daley is in part to blame. And the schools by the way, which are still pretty bad, are a lot better than they were a couple decades ago.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ Jan 1, 2011 -> 01:30 PM) http://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/org.jsp?id=cws No idea who Hector Santiago is, but he is doing quite well. 24 IP, 15 H, 3 ER, 0 HR, 10 BB, 26 K, 2.6 K/BB, 1.14 ERA Johnny Nunez - 17 IP, 17 H, 2 ER, 0 HR, 3 BB, 17 K, 5.67 K/BB, 1.56 ERA Miguel Socolovich - 21 IP, 15 H, 6 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 21 K, 7 K/BB, 2.57 ERA Christian Marrero put up a .360/.484/.600/1.084 line. Santiago is one of only a few decent lefty relief prospects in the system. But he's nowhere near major league ready. Good to see Marrero doing well, but he had a pretty unimpressive 2010, and I'm not expecting him to make it.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jan 3, 2011 -> 08:32 AM) LOL is all. To whom do you give credit for Chicago undergoing a renaissance from the 80's to today that few if any other cities in the US has had? I mean, obviously it isn't ALL Daley, but he's certainly been a big part of it.

Alright, I want to add a little color to four of the Honorable mentions, that were on my list. Hopefully this will cause some of you folks to give them a try. By the way, to reveal a bit of bias here, I tend to like scottish ales and most beers that are in the reddish to coppery range in color (and taste)... My four to highlight: 90 Shilling by O'Dell's: Unfortunately this, probably my favorite beer of all time, is only readily available in Colorado and some surrounding states. It can be order from their website and delivered anywhere in the US though. Its a strong amber ale with nice heft, and a difficult to find combination of body and crispness. Flavor is just red enough to make it interesting, but not so powerful that its too sweet. Its a beer in contradiction - cloudy and heavy in appearence, but clean in feel. I highly recommend it, especially when outside on a summer evening. Lia Fail by Inveralmond: This one is also a bit obscure, but not SO obscure, as I found it in a beer store in Chicago (West Lakeview Liquors). Also a cloudy amber color, but a bit darker than 90 Shilling. Its considered a Bitter/ESB on RateBeer, but I'd consider it a Scottish Ale. Its a rich tasting beer, but not as cakey as a stout often is. Excellent flavor, its a perfect sitting by the fireplace and sip it kind of beer, and a great winter brew too. Chimay Red Label, by Chimay: Chimay used to hard to come by, but you can find the red or blue all over the place now, and the white is coming into vogue. All three are excellent, but I prefer the red - again, my bias towards coppery ales (or in this case, a Trappist Ale - made by monks). This is a neer you pour into a glass that gets lots of air, and you sip it slowly. Its kind of a beer for people who wish they liked dessert wines but just don't. Dynamo Copper Lager, by Metropolitan: This is my best local area entry. I know of no beer from any Chicago area brewer, including Goose Island, that I'd rather have. Its a copper ale with real flavor but enough satisfaction and understatement to be able to have a few, and still have it taste like a real beer. Metropolitan is in Chicago.

I think its interesting these people switched AFTER the major GOP wave.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 2, 2011 -> 12:58 PM) An area the size of Texas is under water in Australia. Those pics at the bottom of that river in New Zealand are amazing.

I have to agree with SS2K5. Despite the corruption that was always associated with the city's offices, Daley was an amazingly effective leader of the city in many ways. It would be shocking if anyone could match his leadership.

QUOTE (MuckFinnesota @ Jan 1, 2011 -> 04:59 PM) Just because I have a business degree, doesn't mean I want to go into business. I should have a communications degree because I can write pretty easily and would do better doing technical writing, speech writing or something PR related. This is why I mentioned getting a master's degree at DePaul in Public Relations. Basically, I realized the major that I was best suited for too late in college. Interning in what though? I have researched and all I read is sales, sales and sales. I'm seeing nothing on the communications end at all. Where in the hell are those positions as they have to be advertised somewhere? Who am I putting down? I'm just outlining what I don't think I would be successful at. What professions am I not aware of? I took the courses and didn't care for them, so I doubt I would like the work that goes on in the real world. I am doing something - researching careers, going to career counseling and most importantly, trying to sell to my parents that I think I'm best at communicating through writing and that by working part-time and going back to school closer to home (DePaul or whatever), I will be in better shape since I'll have something to bring to the table. Without that education, I don't think I will know as much in terms of how to write for different organizations and if I can compete with freshly minted communications grads. I don't give a rats ass about six figures or becoming a millionaire. Money means s*** to me, what would motivate me is doing something that I don't hate for the rest of my life and still allow me to support a family or at the very least live independently. And that's perfect because the field I'm considering is one where you won't get paid much. Key words that you mentioned. Blind luck, networking, skills and personality. That is what I was trying to convey to the message board by trying to get into something that would mesh with my personality and skills, which will take blind luck and networking. I'm not entitled, just like any other college graduate to anything, other than being given an opportunity to do something with themselves so that they can live a life they wanted. Otherwise, if we're living something we hate and never reach our dreams (whatever it may be, career, marriage, family, etc.), then seriously, what is our reason for living? So, its hard to sift through all the layers of self-contradictory statements here (you chose a business degree, you want to write for a living, but you don't want to work in business). But I do want to point out one thing... Do you really think Enterprise doesn't, on any given day, do a whole heck of a lot of written communication? You don't think you'll get more than a good opportunity for that in that environment? Also, stop focusing on your major. Unless your undergrad was in Engineering or a few other very narrow disciplines, for the most part, it doesn't matter what field you got your degree in. Just having the degree at all is the key. Hell my degree (undergrad) was in Political Science... my first "real" job out of college was in law enforcement... then I ended up in financial technology, which is where I have spent the past 12 years. Got an MBA a few years back, once I was well-settled into a career. QUOTE (The Gooch @ Jan 1, 2011 -> 11:50 PM) This is my problem with college education today. I would like for people to be able to show employers that they are capable of accomplishing things without spending thousands of dollars and putting in 4 years of their lives. I am not saying college is worthless. I just think undergrad should just be treated more like grad school. At grad school they pound necessary skills students' heads so that they leave with marketable skills in their field that most other people don't have (some undergraduate majors do this too, but a lot don't). People should be able to work their way up the ladder at Enterprise Rent-A-Car without going into debt. The point of college education should be to learn useful skills. Instead it is more of a selection tool for employers. A bachelors degree is the new high school degree except it is more expensive. See here is the thing about having a college degree. You say you want it to be about giving you marketable skills. Thing is... it does. Just maybe not the ones you are thinking of. The key elements in pretty much any job in business are things like maturity, communication skills, the ability to learn and adapt quickly, work ethic, and dynamic thinking. Four years of college is meant to give you exactly that, and here's the real killer - part of getting those skills includes the partying, the extra-curriculars, the sports, the friends... all the non-school stuff. Going off to school and learning to function on your own in all of that is a key part of what college gives you. Of course, no one in these colleges, or your high school counselor, will tell you this. But it is unmitigated fact. What specific skills you learn from a specific class are only a part of the reasoning for requiring a degree for a job.