JUGGERNAUT

boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/10/03/petition_bid_to_ban_gay_marriage_said_to_gain Need: 65,825 certified signatures. Expect: 120,000 signatures. It would appear on the 2008 ballot. No doubt it will play a role in local elections before then. This will only add more fuel to the fire.

I could produce links where the cable company has estimated the number of homes that have made use of parental controls but why bother? I'll agree with you that maybe no one in a Dem household cares but there are plenty who care amongst GOP households.

Some of you don't get it. But considering that the SOX fans split 50/30 between Democrats & Republicans I'm not surprised. Because of the harsh treatment this parent received the story got National news. If they had been more reasonable they would never have happened. Now the GOP throughout the nation has more ammo to fire at the Democrats on the issue of gay marriage & how it threatens our school system. This is a dream come true for the GOP. Not only does this issue affect gay-marriage but even better the sinful liberal influence on our school systems. Nothing sells a hypothetical better than reality. Especially when it's occuring amongst 5-6 yr olds.

This week a neighbor of mind got his hands on some cool looking WHITE SOX banner flags. So he passed them out to those who wanted them & now we have about 1/2 dozen homes flying the WHITE SOX flag alongside old glory. It's so COOL to see the banners on the block! Pretty surprising in what I would call Cub terrirtory. He's never said squat about his allegiance to either so I figure he's a casual fan. Any one else got stories like this? I'd love to hear about them!

Konerko's Dad believe Paulie will test FA. So I think it's doubtful the White Sox will get him signed. What's the track record for teams to retain their own players once they test FA? It can't be very good. As for Frank try to put it in perspective. He had about 2 productive months for the White Sox this year. So he earned about 1/3rd of his 2005 pay. The rest is a gift. Then you have the $3.5M buyout. If the White Sox offer him a base of say $3.5M for 2006. He still comes out with about $17M for at best 8 months of production. That's not bad at all. The White Sox payroll sure has grown quickly. W/out Everett+Konerko+Thomas I read it's expected to be at $77M. They figure with Paulie it jumps to $90M. How many of you thought we would be at $90M in 2006? I sure didn't! If Konerko does sign a $65M/5 yr with the White Sox I expect it to be backloaded & include deferred $$$. I firmly believe if a player is not willing to do that to help the ballclub remain competitive then the team is better off without him. It's a clear sign the player is putting $$$ before the team & I just don't think that type of player often leads a team to the World Series.

I'd agree with the 18K figure .. if the White Sox win the World Series. We know for certain that the orders exceeded the supply of WS tickets. So 15K sounds reasonable. But then you have to add the WS win factor. In a city starving for a winning atmosphere I'd even go as far to say 20K is not unreasonable!

http://www.newsday.com/sports/printedition...&vote19916654=1 http://www.insidebayarea.com/montepoole/ci_3138470 http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/l...white-sox_x.htm http://www.dailysouthtown.com/southtown/ds.../pro/211sd3.htm SOX in 6. http://www.suntimes.com/output/jackson/cst-spt-jax21.html FOX analysts http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball...1p-304858c.html NY Daily News http://www.dcexaminer.com/articles/2005/10...ol_williams.txt Washington Examiner http://www.suntimes.com/output/worldseries...ws-organ21.html I'm a BIG AC/DC fan! Finally weather report: Sat night: upper 40's - lower 50's for Sat night. Sunday: low to upper 40's for Sun night. Rain in forecast for both days. The Cell is well-known for being one of the best drainage parks in MLB.

I am still in a state of shock & awe with what I witnessed last week. This team not only will forever be remembered for the feat of 4 CG (take that Kotex Boy!) but it now has a national identity leading into the biggest spectacle in MLB. Whoever coined this term the first time .. (we need a salute icon). Thank you ever so much. I couldn't imagine flying any higher right now. I feel like I'm living in a dream & I pinch myself all the time to make sure it's real. Thanks goes out to everyone: the players, the GM, Ozzie, AJ, & even JR. If nothing else he had the presence of mind to hire KW who in turn not only hired Ozzie but didn't fight him on the direction he wanted to take the club. Ozzie has never been strong on patience so I am not surprised he pushed KW to move quickly. MOUNT SOXMORE. Damn! That is so F'g GOOD! I imagine telling my grandchildren some day about this year. About MT Soxmore. I hope FOX takes that angle & maxes out it's potential. I'm loving it!

I saw this on ABC news the other night. It's just another sign that liberals have no credibility. On the one hand we have the courts stating that an opt-out policy from school prayer is not sufficient because of the social consequence that student or parents could face. But here we have a school not even willing to provide the parent insurance that the student can opt-out without consequence on grades. Double standard. Moral relativism at it's worst. Personally K-8 school should be focused on Reading, Writing, Math. & Physical Science. Morality should be taught in CCD, at Home, or from other community based organizations. There is a fine line between social science, psychology, & morality and that is best left outside of a state institution which is suppose to draw a line between Church & State (Morality & Law). Likewise what this school is forcing is acceptance. It has nothing to do with tolerance. It's okay to teach that kindness should be the rule of thumb for treating others. Including those who some view as living sinful lifes. But it's not okay to force students into a relavists viewpoint of what is & is not a sinful life. That's what the school is forcing here. In the end this will simply provide another issue for the Republicans to use in the local elections in MA & elsewhere. One of these days liberals will figure it out. The more they push the less they pull voters to their side.

Let's not confuse this with censorship. No one is preventing Family Guy from being aired & FOX isn't about to pull or change a top drawing show. As for whether or not any one cares about the PTC many people do. Or more precisely many parents do. It does make a difference. We found that out with the SB incident. But I can't stand double standards & jumping all over FOX for 2 toons & an off-the-wall sitcom (like Married With Children) & not saying much about DHW in my opinion is a BIG double standard. It's like saying Disney is bad but FOX is much worse. So let's get FOX. Outside of their double standard they do have a point but they lose focus with it. I think they have a valid point that TV14 is insufficent for shows that are heavily immersed in sexual themes. Toons or otherwise. It's hard to control tweeners now (my only personal testament to that) & things of this nature becoming pop culture in junior high & elsewhere make it even more difficult. Such shows should be given TVMA. If you look at other animated ratings for VG, anime, etc. they have about the same amount of sexual themes & yet they get an MA rating. Yet somehow FOX is able to get a TV14 for FG. Again the double standard. That's why the PTC would be better off to emphasize that these shows should deserve an MA rating than to suggest they should be taken off the air.

I'm collecting the papers during this run so I can't help but scan it. But really it's the same old crap from Kotex Boy. Slide in a compliment admist a whole bunch of mud slinging. I did read Slesak's column though & I can't help but think she has a point. The Sox fans are no doubt going gaga over this. But we are spread out all over the metro area. The Cub fans in Wrigleyville & the casual fans located around the college campuses in the Lawrence, Kennedy, Fullerton area don't seem to be going gaga like they did over the Cubs. I can't explain that. Why isn't the casual fan jumping for joy over the White Sox?

Congrats! for AJ's, Joe's, Freddy's, Paulie's new additions to their families. When the White Sox win the World Series they'll always be known as the Championship babies.

http://www.yahoo.com/s/258402 "Families should not be deceived," he said. "The top three worst shows all contain crude and raunchy dialogue with sex-themed jokes and foul language. Even worse is the fact that Hollywood is peddling its filth to families with cartoons." Okay I'm as conservative as they come but come on now. Family Guy is slap-stick comedy rated TV14 that takes pot shots at contemporary issues. Like the Simpsons it tries to teach a moral in between there somewhere. As for sex-themed jokes there are plenty of those in Shrek & Shrek 2 or maybe they go over some people's heads. I just think picking on cartoons like this is going overboard. I nearly fell over when I found that Desperate Housewives is mentioned as simply being on the list. That's the worst family show on TV right now. All that's missing I suppose is incest though I don't watch the show personally so I'd never know. I learn about it from WOM. I mean how can a show featuring Mom's hooked on Ritalin chasing after high school boys not make the top of the list?

He is not horrible but amongst regulars he's probably the worst. Can we agree on that? Manny's fielding gaffe's are much more mental than physical. He is capable of producing a web gem. He has produced his share over the years. He can do it with his glove or his arm. But too often he has a mental lapse & looks like a lil' leaguer. That leads to poor ZR

Bummer. Lousy Cub fans serving in DoHS no doubt.

We can't rule out the Yank$ either. Despite the likelihood he'll win the AL MVP this year there are already grumblings in NYC that ARod could be headed out. His failure to emerge as Mr Oct 2 yrs in a row doesn't sit well with the fans there. The could trade ARod + $50M to to free up cash for Kong. As if freeing up cash has ever been a necc for them

I saw K Brown & said Huh? We already have 6 capable starters signed for next year why would we be interested in Brown? Unless we are trading 2 out of the 6 that's insanely crazy! Up until then I was thinking .. not too bad of a list .. but he's selling Kong way short. I wonder if his list was made prior to the ChiSox winning 8 straight on the road.

That's harsh. But he is at the bottom. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/fieldi...lumn=zoneRating http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/fieldi...lumn=zoneRating http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/fieldi...lumn=zoneRating SPods #4, ARow #2, JDye #5 If not the best in the league certainly amongst the best for a trio of OFers. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/spli...2&type=batting3 The ALC would be shaking in it's boots. Look his RISP & RON numbers. Wow! Barry-esque!

I can't believe you said that. Last year's ALCS MVP & WS MVP not to mention this year's potential AL MVP does not do a dissapearing act in the post. He's no A-Rod. 2005 post: 300A/417OBP/900SLG/1317OPS 2004 post: ALCS MVP, WS MVP

I strongly disagree & you can look at his assist numbers dating back to his CLE days as well as on the road. Manny has a strong enough arm (when he wants to use it) to throw runners out at home plate. I've seen him do it. I don't know if he can catch it near the wall on a regular basis @ the cell but I've seen him do that as well when he plays on the road. When I think of Manny I ask myself could Carlos play the bank shots off the wall that good? I don't think so. That's why I think overall Manny is a better athlete. I think Boston did try him at DH for a long duration once or twice & he had a similar slump to what Kong experiences in that role. That's one of the reasons why Bos went after Ortiz.

I think that would depend on whether Manny can make the at-the-wall catch. That's a much bigger deal playing LF & CF than RF @ the Cell. Still don't count Kong out. Where he plays next year is not just about himself, his agent, & the White Sox. There will be plenty of Chicago corps that want his mug selling their products & service. I think his agent is definitely going to be taking that into consideration & is probably in talks with some of them now.

Don't blame me for reading the Times today. I am collecting the papers both here & in Bos, Ana, & Hou/Stl for my World Series keepsakes this year. So I did read Kotex Boy today. As I expected he slides a compliment in with a lot of crap in his first paragraph. From there you pretty much know what to expect so I won't bother with the rest. But then he does what I have yet to see any reporter do: start the bid price for Kong. He starts it at $70M/5yr. Basically what he stated repeatedly last year as the price the White Sox owed Magglio. If Maggs stays healthy the Tiger deal could be $105M. Of course any team fielding a payroll north of $60M is likely to want to be at that auction so I don't think it's unreasonable. But I do think it's classless for him to be the one to start the bidding. We don't need a popular Chicago columnist being our #1 nemesis in the sports writing world. We have plenty of qualified candidates at ESPN for that job (notice the lack of the White Sox being the lead MLB story on their site .. the only site to NOT have them as the lead). Well now that Kotex Boy has thrown it out there I doubt very much if it's going to be the ceiling. Which brings us to the bigger question. Which would be of more value to the 2006 White Sox: a cut-rate price for Manny or an over-priced Kong? The price to get Manny is going to be no less than a starter. If I had to guess it will be Garland because his price vs performance is at an all-time high. So Manny at $13M a year (with the cash BOS throws in) for the price of Garland & minor leaguers doesn't look all that bad. I don't think any other team will be able to offer a package that match's Garland as the centerpiece. But where would he play? DH, RF, or 1B. I mention 1B because Manny has proven adept in Bos at playing hard hit grounders & balls hit off the wall. He has shown better IF instincts than OF ones & his arm is certainly adequate for 1B. If not at 1B then you could slot him in at RF. Again with Pods speed, Rowand can cheat to his right to reduce the coverage area for Manny. Dye then would take over 1B. DH is obvious but when you consider the potential of Thomas-Manny-Dye as a 3-4-5 well it should give you goose bumps. There's a potential of over 100HR's a year in that middle. Of course with the $13M a year Boston would save in the deal they could then turn around & sign Kong. So it works out for both teams. Kotex Boy is selling Kong at Thome-like prices. I hope he's wrong. I hope Kong will stay for no more than $60M/5. But I fear he's correct. I fear that Kong is boosting his price by $1M a year with every HR he hits in Oct. I fear that his next contract will be in the neighborhood of $90M/6. Even with a WS win we can't afford that. I will greatly miss Kong's defense at 1B. I think he's well-deserving of a GG this year. I'll continue to pray that Kong's love for the White Sox is greater than Giles love was for the Pirates or Griffey's love is for the Reds. It's not out of the question he might choose to remain with us than to seek greater riches elsewhere. One thing we have in our favor: if he's not the #1 sports personality in Chicago now he soon will be. He can talk to MJ directly to see what that's worth a year

Who said anything about firing them for religious reasons? Surely not I. If you read my last post & concentrate on the words you'll see I'm saying the opposite. I'm saying a non-religious person performing poorly can't hang on to their job with the threat of a discrimination suit. If this passes it will allow the faith-borne institutitions to fire them for poor performance more easily. I further added that the loyalty such insititutions show to their employees is a good indicator that non-religious people performing admirably in such places have little to fear.

http://www.yahoo.com/s/257963 When I say Mel Gibson's film I thought he had exagerated a LOT. Now I think he might have been dead on. This is scary stuff for celebrities. When you combine organized crime with ever-increasing spy technology it's impossible for these famous people to even find private times in their life. Local laws are probably not enough. Even if you got tough with American publishers of such mags & rags there are plenty of foreign ones in foreign markets that will pay greatly for these pics. Scratching my head on this one the best I can come up with is police escort. The celebs would pay for the escort service. I don't think private security would work. These guys fear the presence of the law but not much else. So it needs to be a force linked to the authorities.

Kenny is trully blessed. God spoke to Disney in a dream to say no to Garland. He wasn't going to let Kenny ruin a good thing after he saw the team get off to a great start. Likewise he knew KGJ would get hurt in Sept so he spoke to the Cincy owner to say no as well. God trully does work in mysterious ways