Texsox

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 12:31 PM) Which is of course...why the government had that large program to help people buy the converters available...until it ran out of money in the late part of the previous administration. There is still a cost above and beyond the coupon price. Basically they want the "rabbit ear" set to spend money so someone else can use the frequency. I agree with Southsider, (a lot today it seems), the process was flawed from the start. The only way to assure it worked was to offer the converters free.

I believe it would be helpful to consider the qualifications the new Senator must have. Must be from the same party and willing to be "loyal" Should help the rest of the party to win or hold offices statewide Should be "confirm-able" Must not be a rival of the Gov or anyone he is close to Feel free to add to the list. My point is, the process starts out slimy and gets worse. What does highest bidder mean? Someone who can bring the most back to the state? Someone who will raise the most money for the party at a dinner? Someone who will load the Gov's freezer with cash?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 11:46 AM) The fact that the public wasn't demanding it doesn't mean it wasn't the right decision if it frees up a chunk of the spectrum for other uses. The public just expects that everything (Cell phones, radios, TV's, Wifi, etc.) is going to work, it doesn't care how that happens. In this case, that requires some change on the part of the public, and that's not going to happen unless it's done forcibly. I agree it is the right decision. But consider this. Who will be using the devices that will now use the spectrum? It probably will not be the "analog TV and rabbit ear" set. So we are taking from the poor and non tech citizens to give to the non-poor and tech class.

I really dislike it when we mix bills.

Long term $ short term $$$$ Sucks for the landlord/owner Are there any residence hotels that work?

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 11:58 AM) Sounds like Dawn of the Dead. It is so close. They bring a couple staff members and they sit in the McDonalds drinking coffee and meanwhile their "patients" and "residents" and tearing open packages, and starting conversations with everyone. Today one of their kids grabbed my cart to return it to the front where the 85 year old, I should have saved for retirement, greeter would say "nice job!". And it is Winter Texas time so the damn trailer parks are full and they all come to "WalMart's" with their name tags and helpful suggestions that start "up north we . . ."

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 11:57 AM) I hate shopping. I hate stores, particularly big and/or crowded ones, and I despise malls. There are maybe a few stores I actually enjoy being in - Abt Electronics, REI... that's about it. Everything else, my pulse and blood pressure rise notably when I'm inside, and I want to get out as quickly as possible. REI is more than a store . . . 5 hour drive to my closest one. I even let my membership lapse.

Geographically I have a WalMart near my house, it is damn convenient, I pass by it a couple times a day. Normally it would be an easy and quick stop to pick up everything from dish soap to a 52" HDTV. But instead I've stopped going there. Why? Because every adult day care center, every handicapable center, uses it for a freaking field trip. They never buy anything, the bus drops them off and they wander the store, drooling and blocking the aisles.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 11:01 AM) Come June 17th, there will still be the majority of these people who haven't done a thing about it. Wasn't the original date in 2005 or 2006 for going digital? Obviously that wasn't going to happen, but it just shows how this whole project has been screwed up. The screw up is the public isn't buying into it. From what I read, broadcasters are ready, but it's the public that is screwing this up by not going out and spending the money to continue watching "free TV". We are forcing consumers into something they do not want. Anyone that is still watching an analog TV through an antenna clearly is not all that concerned about picture quality, or any of the benefits of HDTV. Instead they are being told to spend money on something they don't want. Which is why the industry went to the government in the first place and asked for a mandatory conversion date. The public wasn't demanding it.

I still have to agree with Southsider on this one, if they have some really great evidence, which is what we all seem to believe, they could have released some stuff a few notches better than this. And they can't "save stuff for the trial", they have to disclose their case to the defendant. Perhaps both sides prefer some of this to remain private until it has to be disclosed. If this was a city councilperson in Smithville (pop 428) then that is one thing, but if you are going to prosecute the Governor of Illinois, take a lethal shot early.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 10:43 AM) Well, you can't just indict someone for no reason. So why not release the best evidence? They have to disclose what they have to the person on trial eventually.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 10:07 AM) No way the Feds showed the heart of their hand in those tapes. They've got a lot more, I have no doubt. They probably do. And it probably helps both sides.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 09:36 AM) Coming from someone with 36K posts on this website alone.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 27, 2009 -> 03:38 PM) If she gets the GOP nomination in 2012, you can pretty much hand a second term to Obama. Unless things are worse than today. Just like any Dem had a huge advantage over any GOP in their last election, the economy, Iraq, and security will be the litmus test for Obama. If he has failed, then any GOP will probably win. Allow me to phrase it this way also Any GOP would have a great chance, Palin may have the worst of the great chances, while other candidates, would have even better chances. But I would not discount her chances if Obama is Bush III

QUOTE (JorgeFabregas @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 09:06 AM) Did you read any of the criminal complaint? The feds have better tapes. They just didn't release them for the impeachment trial. I am always uncomfortable with "trust me, we have better evidence".

QUOTE (shipps @ Jan 27, 2009 -> 03:00 PM) A soxtalk poster? QUOTE (rangercal @ Jan 27, 2009 -> 11:23 PM) False The person below me has a new years resolution and has stuck with it so far. False The person below me has made a positive change in their life last year

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 09:01 AM) I think they blocked Facebook at work. I dunno if it's blocked or not but it won't load. Yeah, I had to drop you from my top mafia slacker

^^^^ Me too I have patience with people in real life, but not as much with things. I want people to see the "big picture" and all the sides.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 08:50 AM) Personally I believe the guy is guilty, I would just hope that they have more corroborating evidence, or even some more direct and damning tapes, because what I heard actually plays into Rod's defense. Exactly. I believe what is best is either a clean end or a 100%-no-doubt-about-it exoneration. Since the exoneration seems very unlikely, a quick, effective end would be best.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jan 27, 2009 -> 02:38 PM) Then he'll sign another one-year deal... You think the guy is going to sign some 5-year $25 million deal? Yeah right. They will, then scream, pout, whine until they have the deal reworked in year three.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 27, 2009 -> 07:33 AM) You know, I am no fan of Dick Cheney (in case that wasn't obvious), but I personally think that this was not a good idea. His and Bush's properties should really be permanently obscured. Just my opinion. I think this is an example of the laws not keeping up with technology. I agree, Chaney's house should be off limits.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 08:26 AM) So to make thier attacks 'proportionate' would the critics rather that Israel fire hundreds more rockets randomly to match the amount shot at them, or would they rather that Israel become bad shots like Hamas is? The issue becomes who is being targeted in return as much as how. We expect governments to be more responsible than the terrorist organizations. For example, there are gangs in Chicago that shoot at people and cops. We do not expect random shootings by police in return. We do not expect the FBI to counter terrorist bomb makers by planting their own bombs and detonating them. Perhaps it will be our own destruction, but so far we demand governments to act civilized against an uncivilized criminal.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 28, 2009 -> 08:17 AM) Did anyone else listen to the tapes last night and wonder if that was the best of the evidence they had? You really had to read into his statements to get out what the government is saying. I am sure there is more, but what was released yesterday was pretty weak on its own merits. Guys say exaggerated stuff all the time. How many asses have we threatened to kick or f***, without really meaning it? I'm not coming to his defense, but I agree with you, some of the tapes I heard and transcripts I read seem as much b.s. as reality and not exactly a knock out punch to an elected official.

There are so many different issues at work here than pro and con arguments could be made depending on what spectrum we are looking at. Overall, I think the airwaves have been divided up very well. We have so many technologies looking for a piece of the spectrum, it is a massive undertaking. Perhaps the messiness comes after the spectrum is allocated by technology and the individual frequencies within a range are administered.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 27, 2009 -> 07:58 PM) The only thing that really stops Israel from really fighting with their neighbors is relations with the US. If they felt that the US had abandoned them, I have 100% belief that they will pull out all of the stops next time they are attacked. There would be no reason for them to take all of the extra measures to stop civilian casualties. I believe there is a lot of truth in this statement. However, there is also some deeper philosophic issues here. Those nature of man debates that have raged for centuries. For example what prevents us from dropping an atomic bomb on Iraq? What, or more likely, who, is stopping us from an all out crush Iraq plan? What is stopping us from killing even more civilians? There is no clean answer to that, but I believe it is also what keeps Israel in check as well. I do believe there is decency in humanity. And again, reference my first line, currently the US is a strong influence on Israel, and does keep them in somewhat check. I believe Israel would become more aggressive without US influence. Perhaps the degree of that escalation is what could be debated.