Texsox

Again, these are some great athletes with ties to Chicago. Just some I passed over in favor of "lifers".

And let's look at what the state did: There identified a safety problem when the crew chief could not communicate with the firefighters. The state changed their bid requirements to require that the Crew Chiefs speak the same language(s) as the firefighters. What happened after that was left up to the private companies that bid on those contracts.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ May 22, 2008 -> 01:07 PM) I know you have too many posts to remember them all, and with all the replies, the amount gets staggering, but I didn't say that. It would take a federal law to keep non English speakers out of the workforce. You are advocating more restrictions on who you could, and could not hire. Down here there are so many bilingual people, we are never short someone to interpret. Retail stores would be killing themselves if they did not have Spanish speaking clerks. Our best buyers are Mexican Nationals. There are so many jobs out there where it just does not matter if you can even speak. Again, if a company wants to bid on that contract then one of the requirements is that the crew chief be able to communicate with everyone in his crew. That does not say, fire supervisors who do not speak Spanish. The state is leaving it up to the private companies who bid on these contracts on how to meet that requirement. It would seem that a company could elect to not hire firefighters who only speak Spanish if they do not have Spanish speaking supervisors. But the report said there is an urgent need for firefighters because fires were burning.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ May 22, 2008 -> 10:06 AM) No, I am saying it is wrong that people can get a job in this country and not speak any english. I guess if you want the Federal Government to help you make hiring decisions, go for it. I just think private companies should be allowed to run their business the way they feel is best. The fewer government interventions the better.

The state sends out for bids for firefighting services. They want the best price possible for these services. They discover a problem when the crew chiefs do not speak the same language as the workers. Does the state accept higher prices, and pass it on to the taxpayers and demand English only Crews, or allow the companies to hire anyone they want as long as safety is maintained? The state is not discriminating at all. They are saying hire anyone you like, but if you hire people who only speak one language, you will incur this extra burden of also hiring chiefs who speak their language. Seems like this policy would encourage companies to hire English speakers.

The state mandated in their bids that all supervisers need to speak the language of every crew member. Are you saying that is wrong? There were enough bilingual people around me that not speaking Spanish was a bother, but not critical. And yes, I was on an American payroll and crossed the bridge every day.

QUOTE (kapkomet @ May 21, 2008 -> 10:33 PM) Who can walk right into a hospital and still get seen for free anyway (as a government entity = public hospital)? For emergencies. Which is a problem. It over taxes our emergency rooms with minor stuff. They ain't getting radiation treatments.

Probably the same way I got a job in Mexico without speaking Spanish. I filled a need and had the necessary jobs skills to get the job done.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ May 21, 2008 -> 10:29 PM) Who will NOT be refused health care. Surgery and related treatment for a brain tumor?

QUOTE (YASNY @ May 21, 2008 -> 10:00 PM) Fixed wrong board

Just like to mention I am 7-0 when starting positive game threads. I'm like a PED

where are we at? I was a little busy. Score/Inning?

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ May 21, 2008 -> 07:49 PM) In state-sponsored health care, an average person in teddy's position would take 6 months to even get to see a doctor for treatment, and by then he would be already dead. Or if he did get to see someone before he died, they sure wouldn't want to 'waste' their resources on a 70+ year old man who is of dubious health at best. Contrast that to one of millions of working Americans without insurance?

I would not jump to the conslusion they were drafting garbage. The homerun, to use that metaphore, would be a blue chip willing to play the kickback game.

QUOTE (knightni @ May 21, 2008 -> 01:37 PM) Ah dammit. LINE?

QUOTE (mr_genius @ May 21, 2008 -> 05:45 PM) Actually, a trip to Cuba is a drastic drop in health care quality for the average worker. DRASTIC drop. Depemds if they have health insurance or not. Depends on what treatment their HMO will authorize. Bottom line, they are probably financially crippled at the end.

QUOTE (juddling @ May 21, 2008 -> 03:38 PM) so nice....you had to say it twice.......LOL It's the only way I can stay on pace for 50,000 lifetime posts.

QUOTE (DrunkBomber @ May 21, 2008 -> 03:34 PM) The date on the video says May 8, 08 That's what I was trying to figure out. At first I just thought it was one of those internet things that circulates forever. (Did they ever pass that tax on emails?)

QUOTE (juddling @ May 21, 2008 -> 02:22 PM) maybe Ted can hop on down to Cuba with Mikey Moore and get some of that great Cuban healthcare I've been hearing so much about...... Actually this highlights that even with the best health care money and power and gain, some stuff just sneaks up and kicks you in the balls. But clearly he is better off than the average worker in American, and for them, a trip to Cuba would be an improvement.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 21, 2008 -> 01:41 PM) I find it quite interesting that your instinct was to care more about the race and age of an Obama VP choice than to care about the policies they advocate or their leadership skills or anything else. I believe with McCain and Obama, the major issues will be pretty well defined. It's going to be intangibles. If a Dem wins, I will be very wrong on a statement I've made for two decades. I always felt the first minority or woman President would be from the GOP.

QUOTE (Controlled Chaos @ May 21, 2008 -> 01:57 PM) She helped get me through puberty. Along with And

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 21, 2008 -> 02:31 PM) Scrubs I should have offered that option, but I felt her role was too small and not frequent enough.

I think the GOP and DEM only threads have gone about the way I envisioned they would. A nice place to commiserate with like minded posters. Mild disagreements are fine, but a Dem in the GOP thread is about the same as a Cub fan in Pale Hose. They may be welcome, but act nice. Like SS said, it's nice to not get stalked. For the upcoming general, candidate specific is necessary, and we should try and keep the trolling down. I'd rather see smaller issue dominated threads, then a massive everything thread. I'd also like to have a non partisan discussion on the overall campaign.