Gregory Pratt

QUOTE(mr_genius @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 10:11 PM) yea right. no offense, but i think you just made that up. THe CIA spent significant time analyzing the 2004 tape, as they always do, looking for a reason for it to be released days before the election. They concluded that he was secretly trying to get hte public to think of him and thus strengthen Bush by threatening the nation from outside. Why? Not because he thinks htey're soft or anything -- CIA, FBI, everyone with half a brain...they all understand that Democrat/Republican doesn't really mean much to the War on Terror as nobody seriously running for President is going to roll over for al-Qaeda, but Bush is a fundamentalist Christian who uses and has used words like "Crusade" to describe his war and so you've got a brilliant propaganda campaign on your hands. It's easier to paint the country as a Muslim-hating place if a Christian fundie is elected and re-elected even after his wars, which the mideast generally detests. It's in several books about the CIA/War on Terror. The most recent one, if I recall correctly, that I read is The One Percent Doctrine. But you don't give a s*** about what the CIA says or what their speculation is or any of that. You don't know much about terrorist, terrorism, terrorist thought, terrorist training -- you don't know much about what the government does to fight them, you haven't looked too deep into it. Have you? IF you did, you'd know full well why al-Qaeda would want Bush in there. And I'm not saying that as a political condemnation. I'm not like you and Kap -- I don't believe that just because a bad guy says something in support of someone means much about that someone. So, whatever. I don't even know why I bother explaining the analysis or anything like that. You and Kap don't genuinely care about what the CIA says, what anybody says, bcuz Dems r bad, and everything else BEGS for a sarcastic, irreverent, irrelevant response.

QUOTE(fathom @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 09:50 PM) So the Dodgers and Giants got letters from MLB about cooperating with George Mitchell on the 'roids investigation. I'm STUNNED that the Giants are being mentioned.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 01:31 PM) We really need a "Tin Foil Hat" Club. There is nothing tinfoilish about it. It's very sarcastic but it's still a genuine question. Does he think we're stupid or are his scouts operating with broken radar guns? That offseason with Floyd/Masset = ridiculous talk about their stuff. Was it just bulls*** to make trades seem better or are our scouts that bad? It's a fair Q.

Yeah, but it's such a sleazy thing to say. There are plenty of right-wing terror groups that everything you believe in falls into but you have absolutely no interest in genuine political discourse. You believe what you believe and everything else is a sarcastic crack. That's okay, though. Good for you.

Let's go Patriots!

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 07:01 PM) Now I'm not jking here... seriously (and I haven't read the whole thing, it's just contextual at this point) but damn near everything he said are Democrat talking points. HOW SAD IS THAT? The CIA believes bin Laden wanted Bush to win the 2004 election because Bush is a conservative Christian and that plays well with the donors. HOW SAD IS THAT? Really, though. I didn't know "everyone become a Muslim" was a Democratic talking point but I guess that's why you're here to teach, eh?

It's Gwynn > Bonds Fred McGriff

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 05:21 PM) Purpura didn't build s***. Gerry Hunsicker built that Houston team, retired after the 2004 season, and Purpura came on board, signed Roger Clemens halfway through the year, and watched the team catch fire. And it's not hard to build a team when you have a top 3 hitter of all time putting up some of the best seasons baseball has ever seen. 1. I'm being facetious. 2. TONY GWYNN is a better hitter than Bonds. (Truthfully, I think there are at least six guys I'd rank higher than Bonds. Tony Gwynn is not one of them. BUT HE IS NOW)

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 12:50 PM) You are trying to find depth in a modern horror film? The most abused, poorly executed genre in all of film (at this point in time)? This movie was especially shallow. Rob Zombie's no good, no gut.

QUOTE(Tony82087 @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 04:10 PM) I saw her on the Today Show this morning as I was getting ready. They made her standup, and show the camera what she was wearing. As she sat back down, they had to blur out her crotch for 4 or 5 seconds..... LMAO Yeah, she has no complaint.

I mean, compared to the people that should come out. Personally, I can't wait to see what MLB and Mitchell cover up and what they reveal.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 03:07 PM) As long as it's not Thomas. And what if it is? What if, say, Frank Thomas was clean, like Barry, until he got hurt, struggled, and decided, "f*** it, everyone else is doing it." What then? (Just playing devil's advocate -- not making any allegation.)

QUOTE(knightni @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 03:28 PM) A little late huh? You know what I mean. Har har.

Still only the small fish.

Oh, and you know what else? Michael Myers kills people because 1. They're bad to his mom and him 2. He thinks he's ugly. 3. He got picked on. Oh, how deep! His "film," if we can call it that, was supposed to be Myers' backstory. And it has a little, but the backstory took a backseat to tits, gore and absurdities that go above and beyond the usual horror film's.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DYLAN I REMEMBERED YOU HONESTLY I SAW YOUR POST IN REX' THREAD JUST NOW BUT EARLIER I SAW IT WAS YOUR BIRFDAY AND I WAS GOING TO POST HAPPY HAPPY LATER HAPPY HAPPY YOU DEFINITELY HAVE MY FAVORITE AVATARS!!! HAPPY HAPPY! YOU DEFINITELY HAVE A HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAPPY BOY

Halloween is, objectively speaking and without thinking about the original, a crummy film. As a remake of the Carpenter movie it's a heinous abortion.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 11:40 AM) GP, it's a little over the top to say "how many ways have we been LIED to"... and that starts getting into the conspiracy stuff. And frankly, it gets beyond old. It's so kewl to sit here and rag on this team, because frankly, they suck. But to sit there and say that they are deliberately trying to hide crap from the fans, media, etc. is juuuuust a little misguided, to put it nicely. They were wrong on some things. Fine. But I certainly don't think it was "delibrate". I didn't say it was. I asked, Was it? Or are we that bad at scouting? Neither answer is pretty!

QUOTE(29andPoplar @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 12:16 PM) Yes I should have been more specific, 2007 but if I recall right they were 1-4 or 1-5 in 2006 and to me they weren't prepared to come out of the gate firing. Anyways I know their plan is to hopefully get the chemistry going early by trying to have the starters play together a lot the last week of spring. Subjective stuff I suppose but I would like to see them treat spring training a little more seriously. They put their work in no question but I do like this move of having the starting pitchers rev up early and not pitching these simulated games on the back fields just to cut them a break on a bus ride. Further I am a big big fan of bringing in non roster guys and a fair amount of them to make camp more competitive and I want to see them do even more of this. Get some guys in there who are blocked in other organizations, guys who are really hungry. Yeah, but they wound up 17-7 in 2006, so it's a rough example, IMO.

QUOTE(Steff @ Aug 30, 2007 -> 08:58 AM) A studio copy was relased and from what I saw it's not even close to all "blood and gore". Variety hasn't "gotten" horror films in a long time so the review isn't a surprise. I beg to differ. There is a ton of blood and gore as well as an unnecessary amount of sex. It completely craps on the spirit and style of the original, IMO. QUOTE(Kalapse @ Aug 30, 2007 -> 09:24 AM) My question is, did Zombie really need to add a brutal gang rape to the film? It just seemed so unnecessary. It was an absurd situation, too. Myers is f***ing huge and dangerous. He's unchained in his room. And they f***ing decide it's a good idea to rape one of the inmates in his room while he's painting when they've been told 1. Don't touch his masks 2. Don't talk s*** 3. He's a hella crazy motherf***er I don't care how big a piece of white trash the guards were, it simply didn't make sense whatsoever that they'd provoke Michael Myers and invite him to get in on it when they know that all he wants to do is paint. Jesus Christ, this movie was a piece of s***, and I'm glad all the critics agree. -- I saw "The Bubble," a foreign film about homosexual lovers in the middle east who live in Israel/Palestine, are Israeli/Palestinian, and suffer together. It was very moving and touching, though it laid certain things on far too thick. (That's about the sex, yes, but also made certain things oral that should've gone unspoken.)

foam party + alcohol = a lot of fun

Sabean and Purpura have built World Series teams. Guess they'd be good GMs if they had won that Series. But it's all up to the players. I'm glad Littlefield is gone. He's beyond bad.

Uh, we were brilliant early in 06/05. We've been cruddy late. I agree that we need to change many ST things, but "they have struggled early" doesn't sound right, per se. They struggled early this year but I'd say they did more than struggle early. They met the expectations that many, many people, from BP to people here, set for them.

QUOTE(fathom @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 11:23 AM) Not if anyone cares, but I was thinking yesterday if I would even be happy if I saw on the BottomLine some morning that Ozzie was fired and quit. To be honest, that wouldn't make me happy or sad. All that matters is getting better talent on this roster, and everything seems to be pointing to Hunter as the main target. Except for the article that says Eckstein is the main target, right?

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Sep 7, 2007 -> 11:20 AM) THE ENTIRE WORLD IS CONSPIRACY! SPORTS, POLITICS, FAMILY, EVERYTHING! /carry on. yeah, I'm not amused. I know you're trying to be funny, but no, especially since I'm not a conspiracy theorist. There are serious questions about our scouts that need to be answered. Was whoever it was that told KW Brian Anderson would be suitable as a replacement for Rowand/Young fired? Are they still advising him? Did KW KNOW that Masset wasn't "a tick" beneath Jenks and that Floyd's fastball loses x MPH in the stretch? That he has no control? It's all very disturbing stuff. Do we need new radar guns? Is that the problem? Why do all our pitchers lose velocity after a year or two here? What does Cooper get paid for? What is Kenny seeing and hearing from the scouts?