iamshack

He does have an option. When they sent him down last season, he was down there for less than 30 days (or maybe it was 60), so it does not count against his options.

As I said in the video game thread a few hours ago, I bought a PS3 in December and have been completely pleased with it. I'm no video game expert, so I can't really compare it to the 360, but after extensive research, decided to go with the PS3 because of the blu-ray player, the much better construction of the units, and the problems Microsoft has had in the past. All in all, I could not be happier. It's been fantastic. All the games I've bought have been fantastic. And the blu-ray player has been quite a pleasure.

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Mar 3, 2008 -> 03:01 PM) I've put in like 120+ hours into Oblivion, and I've explored maybe a third of the entire world. I do have all 50 achievements, but I don't have the GOTY addition with the two add-ons. I'll get that when I go home for break in about 10 days. I'm not sure how many hours I've been put in (probably about 50), but I spent the first 30 with a bounty, so everything took longer. I finally went to jail and it has been a bit easier to get things done (and far less annoying). I've got about 18 quests done now, but I'm moving faster now. I just got into "the Fringe." Not sure if that is in the regular version or not since this is where you get into the Shivering Isles. But it just seems like the game could go on and on forever...

So I am back into the video games after about a 4 year lay off. I bought the PS3 as a Christmas present for myself back in December. I've played my way through Uncharted and COD4, played a crapload of Madden, and even a bit of Ratchet & Clank. However, a few weeks ago, I decided to get a new game, as I was getting bored with Madden. After a bit of research, I decided to go with Oblivion (Game of the Year Edition), because I used to be a big fan of the RPG's back in the day (Zork, anyone?). Anyways, what a game! I've never seen a console game (or any game, for that matter) with such a huge world to explore and so many things to do. I've been addicted to the game for the last few weeks and I doubt I have even scratched the surface of how many things there are to do. Just a truly amazing game, and well worth the $60 I paid. I'm sure people have posted about Oblivion in this thread, but I just wanted to reiterate it for anyone who is looking for a new game and hasn't played Oblivion yet. Believe me, if you like RPG's at all (or even if you don't), this game is unbelievable. I was really excited about The Show when I bought Oblivion a few weeks ago, but I'm not even sure when I'll play it (I am still going to go out and get it). All in all, I've been absolutely pleased with the PS3, including the blu-ray player.

QUOTE(Jenks Heat @ Feb 29, 2008 -> 09:45 AM) My $.02 was that the episode is not really time travel, at least I hope not, bit more along the lines of Desmond kind of..........oh to hell, I have no clue what is going on but it was done pretty good. Jack is starting to annoy me. Well, that doesn't explain how Sayid/Desmond/the helicopter pilot were gone for a day in island time for a 20 minute flight back to the boat. Aside from Desmond, there is some other element of time-shifting going on here...

Well, that was quite an episode! We now know for sure there is some sort of time transport going on...

And another single for BA...

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:47 PM) It wasn't just RISP; Crede tore the absolute cover off the ball when he returned from his injury. In September and the postseason, he put up a .333/.368/.676/1.044 line including almost 50% of his hits going for extra bases (17 XBHs (10 HR(!!!)) while he had 36 hits). And that's including a sweet 1 for 9 line in the ALDS while drawing only one walk. So basically, down the stretch and in the two 7 game series he was a stud. I agree with you, but to satisfy some of our more demanding friends in terms of sample sizes, I included the entire 06' season, in which he hit .343 with RISP and .351 with RISP and 2 outs.

QUOTE(StrangeSox @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:47 PM) Edwards didn't help Kerry at all last time. I think Obama benefits most from a VP with a strong economics or foreign policy background. Yeah, but Edwards wasn't running with an African-American candidate last time. Let's face it, there are areas of the country that are going to feel better if a southern white male is on the ticket along with Obama, Or maybe not- maybe they are so prejudiced already that it wouldn't matter...

QUOTE(Athomeboy_2000 @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:38 PM) Let the speculation begin... Obama said he has "reached out" to Bloomburg since he dropped out. Combine that with their "secret" breakfast meeting back in November. Hmmm... Obama / Bloomburg '08? I just don't see how that will help Obama in the General Election. Why not someone like Edwards, that may appeal to some of the southern states or red states more?

QUOTE(StrangeSox @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:35 PM) Question: what happens to all of this money if a campaign loses/ drops out? I believe they are free to keep it.

Well, from the time Crede came back from the hand injury he suffered in Oakland until the beginning of 07', Crede was an absolute stud with RISP. Rip on his OBP all you want, but if he's going to hit that way with RISP, I could care less how many walks he takes. And that's where is offensive value lies. If he can come back and produce like that again, he'll be a heck of a player. If not, he's a great defensive 3b with some pop.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:13 PM) The "X weeks of profits" isn't the point. And that's exactly what the author of that article wanted to suck you into. What do you think punitive damages are about then?

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:08 PM) ok, that's fine. But let's just pile on MORE threats and costs... Punitive damage awards are a fine line. It's ok, but to a point. Are you really concerned about an award that equals only 3 weeks of profits? In my view, that isn't anywhere near high enough. I would quadruple it- make it an entire quarter's worth of profits....

I guess this was what I was thinking of... http://www.debatethis.org/gore/enviro/mining.html "The lakes and rivers sustain us; they flow through the veins of the earth and into our own. But we must take care to let them flow back out as pure as they came, not poison and waste them without thought for the future." -- Al Gore, "Earth in the Balance" CARTHAGE, Tenn. -- On his most recent tax return, as he has the past 25 years, Vice President Al Gore lists a $20,000 mining royalty for the extraction of zinc from beneath his farm here in the bucolic hills of the Cumberland River Valley. In total, Mr. Gore has earned $500,000 from zinc royalties. His late father, the senator, introduced him not only to the double-bladed ax but also to Armand Hammer, chairman of Occidental Petroleum Corp., which sold the zinc-rich land to the Gore family in 1973. It also seems that zinc from Mr. Gore's property ends up in the cool waters of the Caney Fork River, an oft-celebrated site in Gore lore. A major shaft and tailings pond of the Pasminco Zinc Mine sit practically in the backyard of the vice president's Tennessee homestead. Zinc and other metals from the Gore land move from underground tunnels through elaborate extraction processes. Waste material ends up in the tailings pond, from which water flows into adjacent Caney Fork, languidly rolling on to the great Cumberland. Mining is intrinsically a messy business, and Pasminco Zinc generally has a good environmental record. But not one that would pass muster with "Earth in the Balance," Mr. Gore's best-selling environmental book. As recently as May 16, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation issued a "Notice of Violation." It informed Pasminco that it had infringed the Tennessee Water Quality Control act due to high levels of zinc in the river. Those zinc levels exceeded standards established by the state and the federal Environmental Protection Agency. A "sample analysis found that total zinc was 1.480 mg/L [milligrams per liter], which is greater than the monthly average of .65 mg/L and the daily maximum of 1.30 mg/L." Pasminco "may be subject to enforcement action pursuant to The Tennessee Water Quality Control Act of 1977 for the aforementioned violation," the notice stated. This was not the first time Mr. Gore's mining benefactor had run afoul of environmental regulations. In 1996, the mine twice failed biomonitoring tests designed to protect water quality in the Caney Fork for fish and wildlife. Mine discharge "failed two acute tests for toxicity to Ceriodaphnia dubia," a species of water flea, according to a mine permit analysis by Tennessee environmental authorities. "The discharge of industrial wastewater from Outfall #001 [the Caney Fork effluent] contains toxic metals (copper and zinc)," the analysis stated. "The combined effect of these pollutants may be detrimental to fish and aquatic life."

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 01:09 PM) OK. Well that's a different discussion - whether or not he's a saint versus just a capitalist with a charitable streak. In any case, he is definitely a good example of an opportunist in a capitalist society. In reality, what does it really matter? Who cares if it helps accomplish the goal- which is getting green technology on the map? We all know that the enormous challenge of getting this country running on more efficient and/or renewable energy sources isn't going to occur strictly out of the goodness of anyone's hearts.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 01:25 PM) And that I don't have a problem with... I DO have a problem with it when he claims he's just being a "good guy advancing the cause of global warming"... bulls***. If he weren't making money hand over fist, I doubt it would be as appealing to him. Right. If I recall correctly, didn't Al Gore either sell or lease some of his land in Tennessee for coal mining?

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 01:26 PM) They DID change their practices (for the most part... before Balta goes googling). There's more double-hulled ships now, and some things have definitely changed. I see your point... but there's a fine line there. And it CERTAINLY gets passed on. And why do you think they did that? A few reasons... 1) In anticipation of paying a huge punitive award; 2) In an attempt to mitigate punitive damages; 3) Public outcry.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 01:22 PM) Right. See, though, I think a major issue of "punitive" (read: the tort area of the law) carries over and drives up costs on things greatly, and the biggest area on this is health care. Medical mistakes happen, and the financial reprocussions and damages should be accurate, but some lady getting $50 million from McDonalds because she spilled coffee on her lap is ridiculous (of course that's THE outrageous example, but it's the point and it's there). Should people be reimbursed REASONABLY? Yes. And in this case, the Exxon judgement should be reasonable for actual damages, not punitive, which is what Justice Roberts was questioning. And then, he also doesn't have the means to "prevent it from happening again" like Balta was leaning toward, IMO. See, you're only looking at the cases you see that get publicized. Sometimes these companies or organizations need to be punished financially to stop them from acting completely irresponsibly. The healthcare industry, for all the advancements in treatment, drastically needs advancements in organization. Filling the wrong prescriptions, failing to write down or read notes correctly, improper surgical procedures...there is technology to fix all of these things, but the healthcare industry failed to invest in them when the money was actually flowing.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 01:01 PM) Well Balta provided something that changes my view - 32,000 plantiffs. But, I think that punitive damages is what mechanism I'm talking about. It's more simple then that to me, I guess. Don't make it "punitive" - make it damages that people actually lost, and are STILL losing... (and see, I can be civil in these exchanges once in a while... ... I'm on good behaviour today. ) Are you british today too? Oh! Perhaps I should have put that in the colour green. More seriously, why not punitive damages? Punitive damages are exactly what's needed to punish giant corporations who act either irresponsibly, or downright horrifically (because they'd deem the cost of paying actual damages to people they harm is lesser than the cost of doing things safely and responsibly). If there EVER were a company that was fit to get whacked with some huge punitive damages, it would be Exxon Mobil. A company like that that is making excessive profits at a time when many Americans cannot afford to pay their exorbitant prices (and I'm serious, go into any Mobile and everything costs more there) should at the very least have to pay for their gross negligence. And they have to be hit hard, otherwise, it's nothing to them- they won't change their practices. And will it be passed on to the consumer? I doubt it- they have to compete in a free market with others. And if they do try to pass it on? Guess what? Go to Shell or BP instead.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 12:58 PM) Choose A or B A. I support Hillary. Russert threw softballs at Obama while doing his best to bust Hillary's chops. B. I support Barack. Russert threw softballs at Clinton while doing his best to bust Barack's chops. This is pretty much what I've been reading. C. I support Barack. Russert busted their chops equally, and it was a nice change of style/pace from previous moderators.

QUOTE(bmags @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 12:53 PM) As for the first comment, my point exactly. Good TV journalists are ranked by how loud and interruptive they can be. And as for the next bulk paragraph, they can reserve that style for interviews on their show or news conferences. Is it getting repetitive now? Yes, 20 debates into a primary season would get tedious. But it's a debate, between candidates, on issues and character. This has just been an unusually long primary season, and debates b/w parties can only go so far. That doesn't mean as a moderator you can make it about you and do these silly "gotcha" questions. I don't consider Brian Williams to be loud and interruptive. Secondly, Russert didn't make it about him. YOU made it about him because he actually had the stones to not let the candidates give a bs answer to tough questions, and you weren't accustomed to that by the previous moderators. As long as he questioned both the candidates in the same manner, I really cannot buy that there was any harm done or that his style was not effective simply because he took a very active role in the proceedings. Obviously, some viewers have different opinions on his style, but I actually favor his. As we've seen with other moderators, otherwise, the debates just serve as another forum for stump speeches. These candidates have to be reeled in at times and forced to focus on important points/issues.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 12:29 PM) Like I said...when you have a gushing wound, the sooner you treat it the better. We've had one for decades. Well, you know how we do things in the United States that would require a change in our comfortable way of doing things, or something that might actually require some sort of sacrifice- we wait until we absolutely must act! Honestly, we should have known it would take some combination of circumstances like we have now, what NSS was speaking to, what probably is "The Perfect Storm" of events that has forced not only the scientists and the government to recognize there is a crisis, but also the American people, and therefore, the huge corporations as well. If there is a real beauty to Capitalism, it is that plenty of entrepreneurs will recognize that there is huge money to be made right now, and therefore, progress will occur. Such progress obviously would be easier made should the feds get their stuff together and realize that subsidies are necessary, rather than pulling current subsidies off the table (as was recently done), but I have full faith that Mr. Obama will get the ball rolling in a big way when he takes office in 11 months.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Feb 27, 2008 -> 07:26 PM) I disagree. I for one think the time to get serious on alternative energy, by removing the tens of billions of dollars in subsidies given to the oil industry, investing heavily in research into alternative energy, increasing the CAFE standards, investing in mass transit, etc., was the mid 90's. Back when Energy was in its last low cost period before the end of the era of cheap energy. Now, we're slapping a band aid on a gushing wound. Hopefully we have big enough bandaids to stanch the bleeding. If the time isn't now, when would you suggest that it is, other than obviously, in the past?

QUOTE(bmags @ Feb 28, 2008 -> 02:27 AM) How was he unwilling to do so, clinton and russert were looking for a specific synonym to what he already announced. IF you do not agree with someones anti-semitism, you do not agree with their anti-semitism. so "farrakhan endorsed you, should jewish americans trust you?" ANd "I did not seek out Farrakhans endorsement and have distanced myself from him" more than answer that question. There is a difference between interviews and moderation, and aside from the fact that russert is terrible at both, moderators are supposed to guide, not seek. And he completely overtook the debate in a way I found disdainful. He's an egomaniac. Nobody cares about him, he forces it on. He had that "i'm looking out for the american people" logic in a way that isn't truly representative. It's so bad journalism logic. He's into creating a "gotcha" mode, and creating controversy, what we need now is a media that isn't so reactionary, that demands accountability. They aren't asking the obvious questions in results to things. It's one of the things i like about talkingpointsmemo so much, despite it's left slant, when something comes up, they get you the document, they check the facts, they don't report on the report. And Russert is just a blowhard, posing as someone searching for real truth just by yelling louder and acting more incredulous. And he's not the only one, but it's an unfortunate dimension to TV news. It is just shallow. And the once shining beacon of it, 60 minutes, is dead. Dateline is a joke. The news magazine has been taken over by hidden cameras and celeb interviews. Well, I disagree with you, and apparently NBC does as well, as Russert is considered one of their top reporters/commentators. I like the pointed questions, and I think it's necessary at this point in the campaign to do a little seeking. These two candidates are far too sharp and rehearsed to simply be "guided" at this point. Should Russert and Williams have simply sought to guide both Clinton and Obama they would have received the same answers and the very same debate as was held less than two weeks ago on CNN, which was already a litany of the same answers the candidates have been giving in their speeches on the trail. These two asked different questions, held the candidates to actually answering them, and therefore, I think at least on a few accounts there was some new information exchanged, if nothing else. Some will not like Russert's style, although judging by his career trajectory there are quite a few more that do.