Texsox

A sniffer dog died from an overdose after searching a suspect car

Japanese Man Arrested After Writing 'Suicide Bomb' On Plane Link Here He wrote down suicide bomb so he would look it up later and learn it's meaning. I guess this is one lesson he will not soon forget.

Believe it or not, the Rio Grande Valley is hoping for a major storm to dump lots of rain in our reservoirs.

Sushi lunch

Minny is on pace for 92 wins. We would need to be 39-21 the rest of the way to reach that same win total. It's crunch time.

18-10 and we may pick up 2 or 3 games. Minny is keeping pace to have a great season. If my math is correct they are on pace for 92 or 93 wins. For the Sox to reach 93 wins we need to be 40-20 the rest of the way.

Botch

What are Cub fans Alex? Correct! Please choose another answer.

I have a question or two: If a US company opens a plant in China, is it OK as long as they do not send product back to the US? How about if they stop exporting from the US to Europe and instead open a plant in Spain, for example?

If I may clarify a couple things based on 8 years in and around Maquillas. Some easy to understand info The major growth for Maquillas have been Pacific rim companies setting up shop in Mexico. The largest Japane Chamber of Commerce outside Japan is in Reynosa, Tamps. Mexico. For logistical reasons they are investing in Mexico, and hiring US management, instead of shipping products from outside NAFTA. Some of this is also because of import duties on non-NAFTA products. Maquillas are only exempt from import tarrifs if the sub assembly or raw material originates in a NAFTA country. Tarrifs have actually increased on non NAFTA materials. In this area, NAFTA is working. It has brought economic development to North America. It is misleading to compare maquilla wages. For example, most maquilla plants are required by law to have a Doctor on staff to treat the employees and their families. It is mandatory to offer free meals for every employee. It is required to offer free transportation to the workers. Employers pay death benefits. I can assure you that Maquilla wages are not .70 per hour, even before benefits. That is closer to the number that China is reporting. Every Maquilla plant along the Texas-US border is unionized, I cannot speak with authority on the others. The unions negotiate contracts for their workers. Mexico has resisted, and has the maquillas, US unions from coming into Mexico. The UAW and others have tried to bring their unions but so far they have been unsuccessful. The Mexico unions work far closer than their US counterparts in plant operations. I have watched as the Mexico unions have worked side by side with management to compete. They understand they are in danger of losing jobs to China. Already we have seen companies that are very manual labor intense leave Mexico for China and some of the former Soviet block countries. Just like in the US, if you have been fired from 3 jobs in 3 months, you will have a hard time finding another job. Maquilla managers meet regularly and are very organized. You are correct, poor employees have a hard time getting employment. Plus Mexico allows employers to share more information that dates employed. The US courts have stopped US employers from doing that.

I believe that Mexico and to a smaller extent Canada are the best options for most companies trying to compete. We have a much better chance of selling our stuff to workers in Mexico than China. Also, Mexico encourages production along the US border, allowing US companies to keep their higher earning managerial jobs in the US. Most Maquilla managers are US citizens and live, work, pay taxes, and play in the US. The threat to American workers is needing to compete with workers in other countries. US companies have been very successful in overseas operations. Look at Coca Cola, it's in almost every country. They bottle locally, employing local labor. We do not seem to have an issue with that, anyone who owns Coke shares, loves the dividends. We also love it when our companies export products. On one hand if an equipment company negotiates a big sale to China for injection molding equipment and dies, we are happy. If those same molds are used to manufacture parts coming back to the US we are unhappy. We are also in love with cheaper prices. When was the last time anyone looked for Made in the USA and paid more for a product?

He passed their physical -- No trade backs

Shaving: Hey it's a tradition, it's what makes the Yankees Number: Mixed Ability Link to thread here

I am happy our struggles are now and not in 6 weeks. The team is going to get hot and stay hot into the playoffs. I suspect we'll see one, if not both of our injured stars return. It's all good.

I believe this is what my daddy called "lighting a fire under his ass"

Depending on the time and day, deal me in

:headshake

On the surface I like the trade. However, the Yankees are not idiots and traded him for a reason, and it is probably something we have not heard. For once, we may have traded a guy (E-Lo) at his peak of value and right before he implodes. I like the trade, but am not as giddy as some. I cannpt believe we robbed the Yankees and the Marlins in the same year.

I thought they meant the Yankees getting Estaban Loiza

Couple thoughts: 1st Off, could someone find a link to the food exception that would benefit Heinz? I couldn't find anything. 2nd: Whenever you buy a product bought offshore you benefiting the workers in that country. If that happens to be a foreign owned company, you also benefit the owners in that country. If it happens to be a US firm, with an overseas subsidiary, you are benefitting the US owners. Either way the workers in logistics, transportation, customs, etc. benefit, and they are Americans. 3rd: I thought if we let the owners keep more money via tax breaks etc. they would expand their businesses and hire more US workers? Is there a flaw in that logic? Would these people actually use that money to hire workers in Malaysia? 4th: Outsourcing has been going on for decades. Using the auto industry as an example. The "Big 3" in the 60's made everything for the car except the tires. Buy a GM and it would have a GM stereo, GM seats, GM steering wheel, GM plastics, GM cast aluminum parts, GM transmission, etc. Then they started going to other firms to buy some of this stuff. They would go to a stereo manufacturer and buy stereos, they would buy plastic parts from plastic einjection molders. We didn't pay that much attention because those suppliers were near the point of assembly and jobs were not impacted as greatly. Now they are outsourcing to companies overseas. 5th: Not just manufacturing jobs are going bye-bye. Now it's the better paying jobs and it has the nation's attention. Lose 500 assembly jobs at a textile plant in New England and no one really cares. Lose 500 IT jobs in Boston and whoa. 6th: Finding cheaper labor lowers prices. Company A is from China and makes widgets. Company B is a US company and makes their widgets in Michigan. Wal*Mart is buying 1,500,000 widgets for their stores. Company A is at $4.80 Company B is at $5.50. Wal*Mart knows that selling the widget at $5.99 will allow them to sell a lot, not so at $6.75. Company B needs to somehow get closer to Company A's price. Hmmm, how do they do that? In defense to the companies, and I have worked with and for many in this boat. They need to be competitive in a global economy. Someone can build products in Yugoslavia and ship them to the US cheaper than someone can build them stateside. It becomes surival mode. No company that I've ever worked with was eager to outsource off shore. It is a logistics nightmare. I've set up several procurement offices in various countries and watched companies agonize and agonize, but they realize it is either that or going out of business. Get an education. Low skilled, easy trained jobs are leaving this country. The Dems are holding out, trying to stem the tide, but they can only slow it down, they cannot prevent it.

"I'm happy to be here, so I'll do what it takes to be in the pinstripes. . . " Maybe there are some side benefits to in team unity. York High School's Cross Country Team the "Long Green Line" always had crew cuts. They also won half of the state championships in Cross Country over a twenty year span.

I've always enjoyed the weekend silent retreats at Bellarmine Hall in Barrington. I enjoy days spent in the wilderness, especially when I can get away solo.

The Blackhawk players has subtly and not so subtly told players to dump the face shield. Since that is a safety issue, I think that is probably worse. Chuck Finley paid bonusses to players to grow handlebar moustaches. Baseball players are entertainers. If their employer believes it increases business by having players clean shaven, that is their right. The Rockettes will only hire dancers within 1/2 inch of a standard because the "look" is something they promote. If the Yankees want to promote a clean shaven team, I do not see a problem with it. They already pick what each player wears. I wish more teams would enforce a cap rule, the sideways crap look minor league to me. I haven't heard any player complain about going to the Yankees. Even some minimum wage jobs have dress and grooming codes.