Texsox

When I asked CNN they replied that quoting a sample of the article and giving a link would be OK. They also asked about the scope of the site, viewers, pay/non profit, etc. A lesson we learned from Watergate, follow the money. If I'm making more profit out of your content than you are, there is going to be trouble. Sites like this, and there are so many, will not be targeted until Jason hits the Forbes list and has groupies.

QUOTE(Steff @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 12:46 PM) Yea.. maybe. Until it's your family tragedy hits. :headshake Exactly. Which is why I wish every drunk driver was sentenced to life in prison. The reason I said it was too harsh was examples like a 19 year old and his 15 year old girlfriend. Male and female drunk. Non violent sexual crimes like prostitution and pornography. Not every sex crime would seem appropriate for a life sentence. I'm not certain about activist judges and sentences. Judges are given a min and a max in most states and elected to use their judgement in sentencing. They would be an activist if they tried to go beyond the guidelines. I think instead of activist, incompetent would be a better choice of words. Hopefully they are removed from the bench as fast as possible. Either way I agree that longer sentences are needed. BTW, we already have longer sentences than a generation ago. We also have a better court system from the days when women would be put on trial and subjected to terrible questions about their sexual past, made to feel like they could have prevented it. Much of the harsher laws and privacy for the victim came out of the feminist movement and very much a liberal stance.

QUOTE(Steff @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 12:48 PM) No, because he won't hit 500 anywhere. It's just you. I loved watching Tom pitch, but two seasons just doesn't make him more than a "rent a player" to me. Steff, you were 8 years old when he pitched for the Sox And you are probably correct about Frank, but I just can't root against him. I'm still hoping for 500 and a trip to Cooperstown.

QUOTE(WSoxMatt @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 12:40 PM) Seaver won #300 with the Sox at Yankee Stadium with a CG so people should recognize him as a Sox player, more so than Steve Carlton, remember that? In ten years will someone be buying a Frank Thomas Oakland As jersey remembering when he hit 500? It must be me, I never thought of Tom's Sox career as anything more than a hired arm finishing his career.

QUOTE(Steff @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 12:12 PM) Oh silly me for not remembering that a rhetorical comment can't be posted around here.. Rhetorical or not, we do need to do something with the revolving door concerning sexual offenders. I don't like it when I read about someone committing a second and it always seems worse than the first, crime. Maybe life in prison is too harsh, but much better follow ups, and I'm not even convinced that would eliminate much. I find the idea of chemical castration for males interesting. Seems cruel and unusual, but this isn't working in some cases.

QUOTE(Cknolls @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 12:06 PM) Cut some social programs. Let me keep my contributions to SS. I will worry about my own retirement. Leave the Gov't out of it. Nice start. I find it sad to step past poor old people in Mexico who do not have money for retirement, but I'm certain we can get use to that in the US.

It's been rare, but I'd guess one or two may try. Of course we need to control our borders and keep this from happening. I wouldn't want the next terrorist attack be from some closer with a 100mph fastball just sneaking into the country.

QUOTE(Steff @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 11:38 AM) "The now twice-convicted sex offender..." The assholes that let this MF'er out should be charged with 2nd degree MURDER. How many times does it need to be said that these f***ers DON'T change... for Jetseta, her family, their friends, and the community. We would have to lock up every politician for not increasing the penalties for these crimes. What would have to happen is making all sexual assault crimes a life sentence without parole. I don't think a judge can just make up his own sentences, most states have a min and a max.

I love their stuff, and their ad here, but as I was getting ready to order I read Tom Seaver! Yes he spent some time on the Southside, but I never considered him anything other than a Met. Hell he was with the Reds for like 5 or 6 seasons. Jackson? Again, more a sideshow than a mainline player. Great guy, but certainly we could do better.

QUOTE(Cknolls @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 11:30 AM) By lowering taxes, the gov't is not giving you money. It is already your money, you just keep more of it. That is the fundemental problem right there. True. And then instead of US citizens paying to run our government this year, we will borrow money from foreign banks. The fundemental problem is we have stopped linking the cost of running our government from the income. Another fundemental problem is people do not feel like they have a responsibility to actually pay for their government. It's your money, yes, but it has been predetermined that you will pay some of that to live in this country. So it is also the government's money. We did not make paying taxes voluntary. Who cares about the income, we'll just borrow more. Who cares about expenses, we'll just borrow more. Our tax bill should have a direct correlation to our expenses. So tell me, if we continue to cut taxes from those people with the most resources, who is going to pay to run the government? Will we just borrow more money every year? Or will the middle class pay the debt plus interest?

QUOTE(Cknolls @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 11:21 AM) Medicare+Medicaid+Social Security>Defense Spending!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Medicare Medicaid Social Security Why would you link those together? Different programs, different administrations. Medicare+Medicaid+Social Security!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sister, Got Milk? There once was a 94-year-old nun in the 1890's whose worn-out body began to surrender. Her doctor prescribed for her a shot of whiskey three times a day, to relax her. However, not to be lured into worldly pleasures, she huffily declined. But her mother superior knew the elderly sister loved milk. So she instructed the kitchen to spike the milk three times a day.Eventually, the elderly pious one approached her final hour. As several sisters gathered around her at bedside, the mother superior asked if she wanted to leave them any words of wisdom. "Oh, yes," she replied. "Never sell that cow!"

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 11:08 AM) On the one hand, his tone bothers me. He seems to spend much of his speeches chiding someone - feel like a child being lectured after I missed curfew. On the other hand, Bush doesn't project that used car salesman feeling that Clinton was dripping with. Bush seems more genuine to me (though somewhat misguided). I didn't pick up a used car salesman feeling from Clinton until the middle of his second term. I think he was under so much stress that he wasn't able to relax and be himself. Same thing with Bush. I know if I had a weekend to spend backpacking with Bush or Clinton, I'd take Bush in a heartbeat. I think he is a much better conversationalist than he is a platform speaker. As a platform speaker give me Reagan, if it was a weekend retreat of a spiritual matter, send in Carter, if I just needed a big blow out party, send me the Bush daughters

Gee, they don't want to live in a war zone, I'm shocked

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 11:00 AM) It does seem worse with Bush, because his speeches are usually made up of shorter sentences, smaller words and more succinct dialogue (not inherently bad, just the way his speeches are written and delivered). This makes for more pauses. He isn't as polished as Reagan or Clinton, but I do enjoy listening to him, but prefered his speeches before becoming Presidential.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 10:40 AM) How about being annoyed with the constant applauding period. Its so dumb and high-schoolish. The republican side would have stood and clapped if Bush sneezed. They should just stand up and sit down if they support his points, a la parliament. Plus some of it is staged, they know when the President wants applause. (ALL Presidents) Again, this is the same, no matter who is delivering the address.

How can someone defend this guy? I use to think the same thing, then had a nice conversation with a defense attorney. They are defended because an attorney believes in the US legal system. We all sleep easier at night knowing that the odds of an inocent person being wrongly imprisoned is very small. The system works when the judge and the jury determines who is guilty, after a fair trial, instead of a defense attorney listening to his client. Our system is based on the premise of innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. To be a defense attorney, you have to believe that your client is deserving of a vigorous defense. Without that, our system fails. I could not do their job, I'd want to see the guy in prison.

QUOTE(Rex Kickass @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 10:21 AM) Lemme get back to you, I left my chart at home Damn, I knew there was a secret family communications network

Ahh, sorry. My dad is a tv repairman, he's got some b****in' tools, we can fix it.

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 09:27 AM) Frankly, if it means we get to kick our oil habit then US multinationals can go to hell. Im as pro-business as they come but this is a national security issue above all. We're dependent for our energy from a group of nations who are lukewarm in their relations with us at best and downright nasty at worst. BTW, and this worries me just as much. We import so much food, and have reduced our capacity so greatly, that we could not feed ourselves without imports. The only reason we aren't more worried is the nice South Americans don't openly hate us, and even if they did, they don't have the resources to do much. Look at Jewel tonight, where did those strawberries come from? Look at the produce? What is "in season" in February. There is no national burger chain using American beef, and only a couple local ones. If there was a Tomato Cartel dressed differently than us, and controlling the tomato prices, and pizza went to $30 for a large, we'd be worried.

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 09:28 AM) I agree with you on all points there. The cartoon thingy said "protect us from hurricanes". I took that literally. I forgot about the cartoon. I am still puzzled by Bush's response. I believe he was getting some bad info, and from someone closer to him than Brown. This was a perfect opportunity for him to cheerlead, be tough while being compassionate, a little witnessing to a largly receptive Christian audience, and in general, be bigger than life. Believe it or not, I want our country to do well, no matter who is in power, and I was cheering for my fellow Texan.

The education system in this country needs a serious overhaul. While the public worries about local vs. national control and standardized tests, the text book publishing companies consolidate and the choices of textbooks dwindles. With California and Texas enacting laws on what content must be included, and those being huge markets, they are beginning to control what a child in New Hampshire or Indiana is taught.

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Jan 31, 2006 -> 08:08 PM) Yeah and dont forget about the Bush Weather stopping machine which can halt hurricanes in their tracks. :rolly Nuke, the government (local, state, and national) did a terrible job in responding. To suggest that the only way to improve was to stop the hurricane in the first place, is comical. The government should have done a better job, and Presidents are always there to take the credit, they should have to shoulder the blame. Compare 9/11 to the hurricane. Bush wrapped himself in the response to 9/11 for his re-election. How can he duck New Orleans with a straight face? I thought Bush was absolutely at his best during 9/11 and at ground zero, while some of it was, of course, scripted, I believe it was sincere and fully captured the man. I thought New Orleans would be another shining moment for him and would have carried him through this term. Sadly, he was waaaaay off his game and everything fell behind him.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 1, 2006 -> 09:08 AM) Is this what politics has come to? Stop the world I want to get off. That's the power of the internet. This one can't be directly blamed on politics, unless somehow the other party is involved. Looking at that blog and other internet sites, vs. the main stream media, how biased do they look now? I worry with all the blogs and ease of publishing that we will lose site of who is "legit" and who isn't. We may become so willing to accept news tailored to our views, we will lose the ability to know wrong from right. I try at least once a week to listen to and find areas I can agree with Rush. I usually can, once I get past the of his show.

Thinking about the debt posts from last night, I want to share one more thought on the matter. In the years before Reagan, we had "tax and spend" Democrats and fiscally sound Republicans. The Dems would want to start/expand a program and the GOP would fight because of cost, that it would raise taxes. Things would have to be cut in other areas, programs would have to be more modest, do more with less, and finally it sometimes came down to higher taxes or no program. Today, there is no check and balance. We don't have to cut other programs, we don't have to scale back, we just have to borrow more money from China. Reagan tought us we could have all this government spending *and* tax cuts. Open the flood gates to spending that's good for the economy (actually it just makes us feel better) and cut taxes. Ironicaly this quote was sent to me by a good friend and conservative as example of why Democrats would ruin this country. To me it reflects both parties equally. We are doomed when the only way for our economy to flourish is by borrowing money from China, and the oil scum bags that Nuke referenced.