NorthSideSox72

No surprise on Griffey. Hall, I wonder if they will now try to re-work something, or if they plan to go internal (Lucy, Armstrong) or go elsewhere.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 30, 2008 -> 11:32 AM) You seem to have the basic assumption that if the banks are going to use the money for anything else but lending, that is wrong. The fact is that there are beause of Depression era banking laws and modern stupidities such as Sarbanes Oxley, there are more things to consider than just lending. If a banks capitalization falls too low, investors panic, sell, and it fails. If a bank doesn't have enough capital reserves to cover a specified percentage of assets, it fails. If value of assets fall to too low of a ratio as related to money lent out, it fails. It's not nearly as simple as people are trying to make it out to be. Sure it would have been great to have years to reform things the way they should have been done since the 1930's, but the fact remains, that at the rate that major financial institutions were failing, there wasn't time to waste. It's not like we were talking about Mom and Pop's bank down the street. The 4th largest investment bank in the United States failed. Most other banks have assets with other banks to fulfill their own reserve requirements. Banks are very interconnected. If the largest banks on the planet were starting to fail, it was time for action. That seems pretty obvious to me anyway. The whole idea of all of these "regulations" that you keep referring to making some sort of a difference is a myth. Places all over the world that are MUCH more heavily regulated than the US have been failing or getting governmental bailouts. Britian, Iceland, France, German, and Russia are places that come to mind right away. Please tell me what exact regulation has most of the world been missing that would have prevented this? I had posted earlier about this, and was in basic agreement with you. But I do want to actually give somewhat of an answer to your last question. There are some regulations that should be put in place, that have come to mind during this crisis. Here are a few ideas: --The swaps market needs to be reigned in. Some of this capital from the bailout package should find its way to the LCH and CME Clearing, both of whom are working towards setting up a swap clearing house. This would be an immense help to stabilizing swaps risk and trading, and protecting assets. Further, regarding swaps, the rules as to valuation of swaps need to be standardized and more realistic. Buying protection on debt should NOT result in that debt being reflected as therefore risk free - that is a mirage. It would also be a good idea to require disclosure from banks and insurance companies as to how they are treating debt instruments as they pertain to the assets that are held on behalf of investors, shareholders and insurance clients. --There needs to be more transparency into lending institutions, regarding their standards for lending at various risk levels. Generalized statistics can fairly easily be generated, which should be accessible publically, for lenders who lend to the public. --The enforcement mechanisms in all the various financial agencies - SEC, CFTC, FRB, FDIC, etc. - need to be better funded and better trained. And there needs to be an enforcement mechanism that can look at ALL aspects of a given firm's financial risk as a total package. They can then report problems to people in power who can head off problems before they occur.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 30, 2008 -> 10:10 AM) Handheld GPS Unit Camelbak water pack (Wife had to go & break my last one...argh) Sunscreen Toilet Paper Tupperware for holding lunch Packet of Swedish Fish Claritin IPod Extra layer of clothes Can you tell I do a different style of traveling from many of ya? Heh. The list of camping/outdoor essentials should be a different thread.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 30, 2008 -> 10:17 AM) Ugly. God I hate this regulatory system. This is just a joke right? The Washington Post was bought out by the Onion yesterday? That article is misleading, and full of misunderstandings of the way stock dividends work. First example: this article is playing games with accounting. They are saying that this bailout money is being paid to shareholders, as if it was some sort of a transfer. This is not at all the case. Using this type of logic, you could also say that the bailout money is going to paying janitors, or to purchasing paint for office walls, or literally any other expense for the bank in question. So saying that this is bailout money being given to shareholders is disingenuous. Second example: the article forgets the key fact that the stock price of the bank is highly relevant to its financial state, and that financial state is highly correlated to their ability to lend money. When a company elects to stop paying dividends on its stock, after doing so previously, the stock price WILL tank. Its only a question of how much. You are then removing capital from the bank, offsetting whatever gains you had from the bailout money to begin with, and now you can't lend. There are other examples, but those stuck out to me. Now, I am NOT defending the bailout package in its entirety. I think overall it was a good idea, but, it lacked the rules and structure necessary to work well. The money should have come with legal caveats as to using it - certain percentages needed to be DIRECTLY used for lending, for example. But, just so we all understand, you could not possibly expect that number to be 100% or really anywhere near it. If they can actually, in the short run, lend out 25% of it, then I'd be ecstatic. The rest is a LONG TERM investment in the health of the system, which ultimately will lead to a stronger credit market.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Oct 30, 2008 -> 10:04 AM) More divisive talk from the GOP. Pathetic. Given the McPalin campaign's recent turn towards fear (9/11!!! TERROR!!!) and smear (insults), and away from the economy, I think they are getting scared that the conservative "base" isn't going to turn out.

QUOTE (yoyozuna @ Oct 30, 2008 -> 09:16 AM) If so was it for 16 million? We wouldn't be re-signing him. It would be a team option for $16M (which I highly doubt they pick up), or a buyout for like $4M (I think), and then MAYBE after the buyout they could make him an offer (which I also doubt).

QUOTE (mreye @ Oct 30, 2008 -> 10:09 AM) Fixed I think Jindal may be in there too, and possibly Chuck Hagel.

I didn't get to see the adfomercial. But I read something interesting about it this morning... supposedly, the ad did not once mention John McCain or the GOP. And meanwhile, the McCain campaign made an ad and aired it yesterday mocking the ad time, and talking about why Barack Obama can't be President. The ad would had to have been made beforehand of course. So, Obama buys 30 minutes of primetime air, and talks about his vision for the Presidency. McCain responds with a 30 second ad about... Obama's vision for the Presidency. McCain's campaign just keeps getting worse at this game, instead of better.

QUOTE (3E8 @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 11:15 PM) If you like beer, check out Chumley's. 50 beers on tap and 100 bottles. Food is so-so but the place is worth it just for beers alone because you won't find many of them elsewhere This is unfortunately just a day business trip - no chance for beers. Just looking for a lunch joint really.

QUOTE (Texsox @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:41 PM) The moment you know you are a true road warrior is waking up in a hotel room and needing to check the phone book to learn what city you are in. Business travel is fun and it sucks at the same time. We live in Generica. Every airport and every hotel looks the same. Same food, same rental cars, same experiences. And there really isn't a chance to discover anything different. You are only there for a brief time, or at least that was the experience I had. Yeah, those are always weird moments - not knowing where you are, laying in the dark. Funny later, but a bit freaky at the time, when you are half asleep.

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:31 PM) It's a little genie-bottle-looking thing used for (yuk) sinus irrigation. um... I'll pass. I could just laugh milk out of my nose and accomplish the same thing. I tried to wear one of those strips once - the ones you put over the bridge over your nose to unclog things. Not only did it not work, but I was in quite a bit of pain for hours after, and had even worse sinuses.

Oh that reminds me of another one - my watch that changes time zones for me.

So, Obama is running his 30 minute ad tonight, right? I looked on 5 different f***ing "news" websites that had articles about the ad, and NOT ONE said what time or day the speech airs. How idiotic is that? Pet peeve - I see news articles do this all the time. They talk for many paragraphs about some upcoming event, and then never put in the time and date. What happened to who/what/where/when/why? I'll be out tonight, I wish I had set the DVR to record it. I think it could be an interesting watch. Hopefully it will be available afterwards, somewhere.

So, I have to spend the day, a week from today, down at Purdue doing some recruiting. Anyone have advice on where to get lunch? Or any tips on getting in and out of town?

This is primarily targetted at those who do, or have, travelled a lot. What tools or items do you find indispensible? What do you always carry with you that makes travel easier? Here's a starter list, from my experiences... --Shoes easy to get in and out of (clogs, zip tie shoes) --Sound cancelling headphones --DVD's for the laptop --Book(s) --Wifi account of some kind for public areas (cell company or Boingo or the like)

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 12:54 PM) Funny offshoot story. When I was traveling almost 200k miles a year, I burned and watched alot of movies on my laptop. Usually i am in my own world zoned out because I hate flying, but I packed American Psycho for one of my flights, and as I am watching the chainsaw scene, a lady behind me taps on my shoulder and tells me to turn off the movie because its making her sick. 1. I never realized other people watch the movies I was watching 2. How can you not like that scene? Weird. Needless to say, I put a little more thought into the movies I packed on flights from then on. People watch over your shoulder all the time. I'm always careful of what I play, and also, what I work on while on a plane.

QUOTE (Texsox @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:10 PM) I thought the governor always had an office in Chicago? I recall a meeting in Chicago with Jim Thompson when I was the non voting student rep on my college board. Office, not residence, necessarily.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:44 PM) Isn't ACORn supposed to be a non-partisan organization? And Obama and Biden have both come out and said that they have no ties to ACORN. I guess they just give their donor list to anyone who asks, right? Hm. Well, they don't have to be, do they? I personally think that people should only be able to register to vote at a government agency, but, that's just me. With the law as it stands, there is nothing saying a biased organization can't go collect voter registrations.

QUOTE (Texsox @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:55 PM) By living in Springfield do you mean anywhere other than Chicago / Cook County, or do you mean exactly Springfield? I think he means someone who resides in the governor's mansion, not commuting back and forth every week. Or, he means someone who is actually from somewhere downstate (not Chicago metro).

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:40 PM) I think Jindal is the future of the party. I don't know a lot about Jindal yet, but, what I've read leads me to believe he's a lot better choice for their future than Palin is.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 03:28 PM) I said a few months back that I look forward to the Romney v Huckabee war Are you saying that Romney is the poster child for fiscal conservatives but social moderates? Because he isn't anywhere near that - or at least he wasn't during the GOP primaries.

Assuming McCain loses, which it appears he will... the GOP does indeed face a huge identity crisis. For a number of years now, the GOP has been fracturing down the middle, splitting the small government types from the religious zealot types. This McCain/Palin ticket has only amplified our view into that divide. If Palin is the party's future, then the party is in a lot of trouble. Look at how the voting public reacted to her - everyone but the far right social conservatives started off liking her, then ran like hell the other way. She is a disaster, politcally. My prediction would be that she will be in the discussion for years, but in the not too distant future, she'll fade awy from the national spotlight.

QUOTE (Cknolls @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 02:07 PM) HARRISBURG — A former staffer for an affiliate of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now testified today that the organization was provided a "donor list" from the presidential campaign of Barack Obama in late 2007 for fundraising efforts. Anita Moncrief, a former Washington, D.C. staffer for Project Vote, which she described as a sister organization of ACORN, said her supervisor told her the list of campaign contributors came from the Obama campaign. Moncrief said she has a copy of a "development plan" that outlines how Obama contributors who had "maxed out" under federal contribution limits would be targeted to give to Project Vote, and that it was her job to identify such contributors. Moncrief testified that ACORN and Project Vote were virtually identical. Nothing to see here. Move along... Forgive my ignorance here, but, what exactly is wrong with this? I mean, the whole federal limits on campaign contributions thing is ignored anyway - look at how much some poeple have given to each candidate. Is this a 529 thing?

QUOTE (Soxy @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 02:17 PM) I'll be honest, I should have done it long ago. I have been told by a neurologist I have the worst sinuses he's seen in 20 years. I finally gave in and got one because my younger sister's been doing it--and I will not be afraid of doing something she does! Gosh darn it! I would recommend it though--it's AMAZING how well you can breathe after you do it. Mmmm, codeine. OK, I'll bite... neti pot?

QUOTE (BobDylan @ Oct 29, 2008 -> 09:47 AM) On what I signed, there are no terms of service. When I requested they mail me this and anything else regarding legal manners, they refused to send me anything and said that I should already have it. Does the contract refer to an external terms of service? Or just not mention them at all?