Guard Dog

Well, one thing we know for sure about the Rays is they are better than the Orioles. Not as good as the Yankees apparantley, but better than the O's. Another win in Baltimore 9-1. BJ Upton homered two times. Little scrawny BJ Upton. Cool. BTW did anyone see Obama after throwing out the first pitch (weakly... again) for the Nats? He was talking about being a White Sox fan all his life to Nats radio commentator Rob Dibble and then could not name a single White Sox player and could not even pronounce Commiskey Park right. God, what an utter jackass.

Planning to go on vacation next week. I'm taking one of my dogs with me. Should be interesting.

What a bummer Wals. Best of luck, we are all pulling for you to get back in action.

Another great quote from Gromnir!

I thought learning German from English was not all that hard. I took it for two years in HS. I was nowhere near fluent and probably had a terrible accent but at least I did not need the subtitles when watching Das Boot. Since English evolved from German (somewhat) at least the words were easier. Syntax & gender was hard. If she had woken up speaking a non-latin based language she had not been exposed toothat would have been freaky.

Well, we are a week into the season, they Rays had a great opening series against the O's then had trouble with the Yankees. Kudos to Sabathia for almost throwing a perfecto, then almost a no hitter. Girardi said he was pulling Sabathia in the 9th no matter but if the no hitter was still on and he did, he might as well not return to New York. Hey Volo, how about that Mets-Marlins series. Ouch. So far the Fish are hot, so long as they score more runs than the bullpen can choke on.

You ARE Pop's alt. I KNEW IT!!!!!! Ok, I got that out of my system, I'll go back to ignoring you now.

Actually Sando, all you really need is to get laid. As far as depression goes, I'll give you the same advice I gave Aram, just drink copious amounts of alchohol and keep a loaded pistol next to your bed. All those depression problems just sort of solve themselves after a while. Speaking of which, has anyone heard from Aram lately? I'm joking obviously. Exept for the first part. In all seriousness, have you ever though about just pulling up stakes and putting Ames in your rearview mirror permanently? Do you have family or financial reasons for staying? If not a change of scenery might help. Also you are a veteran IIRC, there are a number of job placement aids in the VA.

I guess everyone is still pissed that Castro accepted our aid and money, then went Commie. Then there was the whole missle crisis. Also the Mariel Boat Lift where he packed all of his criminals and mental hospital patients and sent them our way. Lets not forget that he shoots down private planes over international waters (remember the Hermanos al Rescate incident?). How about his role in Grenada? Then there was his bankrolling Noriega's drug operations, plus his aid to the Columbian drug cartels. Oh yeah, lets not forget him arming Honduran/Angolan/Bolivian/etc communist rebels. Then there was the whole Nicaragua thing. Nah not much bad blood there.

Uprecedented? They've been doing it since FDR. Almost the entire Federal government is unconstitutional by now. And yet if we ran strictly by the constitution, we'd fall apart, go figure, we need to change things and expand things simply to exist as a single entity/nation. Then there is no law, you have no rights, and the government can do whatever the hell it likes to you. In theory, perhaps. In practice, no. Does not is not the same as can not. I am far more suspicious of government and the people in it than you are. But then again I've actually worked in it. You have not. I can tell you for a 95% certain fact that Obama, Pelosi, et al do not give a damn about who has or has not got health insurance. If their motives are not altruistic than why do you think they feel compelled to extend the reach of government power into places it has never been?

That was not an Ad-hominem. Merely an observation on the tone of your post. If I were to call you a nasty, condescending a-hole, THAT would be Ad-hominem. But I didn't did I? You know what else I did not do? Express any support for AD as a factual explanation for the origin of life. I simply pointed out a few things that you and a few others posted about it that were factually incorrect. And I was not wrong about that. Isn't it odd that the whole concept of ID generates so much rage in people that a thread that had nothing what-so-ever to do with it gets sidetracked far OT. Almost like it was heresey or something like that. Ironic isn't it? Actually this thread was about what the history books in Texas were going to say about the history of Texas and it's place in US history.

Here is some interesting reading on the subject of this post: http://www.walterlippmann.com/docs1135.html

Reminds me of a bit from The Tenth Planet: Polly: Don't you care?! Cyberman: Care? No, why should I care? Polly: Because they're people and they're going to die! Cyberman: I do not understand you, there are people dying all over your world yet you do not care about them. Kudos for the obscure!

Uprecedented? They've been doing it since FDR. Almost the entire Federal government is unconstitutional by now. And yet if we ran strictly by the constitution, we'd fall apart, go figure, we need to change things and expand things simply to exist as a single entity/nation. Then there is no law, you have no rights, and the government can do whatever the hell it likes to you.

You should take a drive down to Ames and go shopping for Slurpees and Big Gulps. You never know who you might meet!

BTW since Cuba is so great it really makes you wonder why Cuban citizens seeking asylum wash up but the dozens on the shores of South Florida every single day. They come clinging to driftwood, innertubes, makeshift rafts, or anything they can float the 90 miles of treacherous, shark infested seas. From what we hear, far more die on the way than make it. It really makes you wonder whay they wpuld leave such a paradise to come to what LoF would tell you is the worst country in the world.

Ewww. BTW if we all pitched in maybe we could by LoF a one way ticket to Havanna so he can sigh up. I'm in for $100!

Actually you're just a little off on this one point. The rest was correct. ID is based on the lack of evidence of an evolutionary path from single cell to complex organisims. As Oblarg correctly pointed out it is a "God in the Gaps" argument that presumes there is no such a path, not that it is just unknown. The idea that complex life was seeded here by aliens also explains the "missing link". Still I really don't see the issue with presenting the idea as an unproven hypothosis with the caveat that it is a hypothesis. Natual Selection does fine explaining the progession of life over hundreds of generations, but it is mute on the origin of compex life. I have to say I find the hostility on this board to the idea to be pretty remakable. By the tone of his posts I'd say Oblarg was foaming at the mouth and slapping his keyboard in his anxiety to get his words out. Others too. You know, 100 years ago you could be thrown in prision for teaching Natual Selection (look up the Scopes Monkey trial). 300 years ago they would excecute you for it. In Iran they still would. By the sound of most of you I think you would be in favor of similar treatment to anyone who presents an alternative idea like ID. Like I said, it's funny how the shoe is on the other foot now.

My biggest problem with Obamacare is that it is a raw and unprecedented abuse of the Commerce Clause. The Commerce Clause empowers congress to regulate interstate commerce (note it does NOT empower it to interfere with intra-state commerce, in fact the 10th amendment specifically forbids it). Obamacare twists the power from one that regulates commerce to one that compels it under threat of jail and fines. In order to be a law abiding citizen in the US the Federal Government is commanding everyone to purchase a service from a third party. It makes no distinction for circumstance. For example the Amish have their own doctors, and practice their own fashion of healthcare in their communities. They are now compelled to do something their religion forbids them to do. People who are into holsitic medicine, natural cures, etc are likewise compelled to conform to something they do not wish to follow. It gets worse too. Congress is now ordering everyone to buy something want it or not. As you all now Obama and the Federal Government has seized and nationalized GM. This same abuse of the Constitution could be used to empower the government to force everyone in the US to buy a GM car. Or force everyone to shop in a certain store. One other thing that bothers me is the federal government is compelling the states to spend state tax dollars on medicare extensions. They cannot do that. You need to remember the US is a union of 50 sovreign states. It is beyond the central governemts authority to tell a state how to spend its revenue. Let alone the fact that 46 of the 50 cannot afford to do what it's being ordered to do. I do think the Constitutional challenges have a lot of merit and I truely hope the Supreme Court will strike down the entire law. Many states are providing health plans to their citizens now. This Federal takeover is just not necassary and is more than a little frightening.

No wonder Obama likes Chavez so much. I'd bet he'd LOVE to do that here in the US. Kidding of course!

That's a bit harsh, I think. The truth is harsh. People who honestly believe that god created the world and all the animals exactly how they are and nothing in the natural world changes by means of evolution have no right to be on a board of education. Ever. In order to have that belief, you have to actively disregard a *very* large chunk of well-established scientific knowledge. Ummm, you do realize intelligent design is not incompatible with evolution right? There is a great book out there, Signature in the Cell that lays out all of the scientific evidence supporting the principle of irreducible complexity, the basis for the theory. It is beyond refute at this point that complex bio-machines (cells, life, etc) evolve and that humans and apes did have common anscestors but evolutionary theory has no answer for the jump from single cell organisims to more complex life. There is no evolutionary map there. ID is just a theory that explains the gap. It, like Darwinisim is just a theory that does have some merit and has been neither fully proven or disproven. Personally I do not see how it is harmful to present it as such, just as darwinisim is, in school. Denying children access to knowledge just because you don't like the potential ramifications if the theory is eventually proven correct is every bit has despicable as putting John Scopes on trial for teaching evolution back when it was not widely accepted. Funny how that shoe is on the other foot now isn't it? And if ID is ever proven incorrect, what was the harm of presenting it as a theory? None. But we are digressing here. The dispute in Texas was over history, not ID. Reply if you wish but I'm dropping it here.

I've gotten pretty good at appearing busy at work. So little to do right now but things should start heating up next month. Right now I'm drinking a beer, sitting on my poerh and tapping on my Blackberry

You ever heard the story about the guy who brought a knife to a gunfight? It's pretty short.

Spring has come again and the 2010 MLB season is just three weeks away. All the camps are in full swing and Grapefruit and Cactus League games come to me everyday on my XM Radio. There is a lot going on coming into this season. Bobby Cox will retire and finish a Hall of Fame career. With the steroid era now thankfully behind us slugging percentages were way down last year (go figure), the new key skill is speed and OBP. We should see more steals, more agressive base running, and more attention to defensive fundamentals. In short, better and more interesting games. Also we now have the USA's first female pro baseball player. Eri Yoshida who spent last year with the Kobe 9 Cruise in Japan, will begin her second season in the Arizonal Fall League. And to top it off she is nice to look at too. Here are my predictions for the 2010 Season AL EAST Yankees - Still loaded w/ cash & talent, but also one year older. Rays - A revamped bullpen starring Rafael Soriano = more wins. The middle of the order is strong with Pena and Longoria. Good enough to be the Wild Card team. Red Sox - The best team to not make the playoffs. Pitching is stong 1-4 but Victor Martinez is about all of their offense. Orioles - Going nowhere but up, but they have along way to go to catch the Big 3. Blue Jays - Cutting payroll, trading talent, riding a greased pole into the cellar for the next few years to come. AL Central Twins - Took a big hit yesterday losing closer Joe Nathan but there is a lot to like about this team. Should walk away with the AL Central White Sox - Best rotation in baseball, no doubt. Too bad there are no bats to support them. Look for lots of 1 run losses. Tigers - Hmmm starting Rookies at 3B and CF huh? Looks like GM is not the only home team whose stock is tanking. Royals - Not a bad team... just not a good one either. Indians - Should be out of contention by the end of May. They are still paying salary of players long since gone. AL West Angels - The lost a lot of talent over the offseason. But they are still the best in the west. Rangers - They can win this division IF Harden & Hamilton stay off IR, IF Smoak finds his stroke again, IF their young pitching staff gels, IF the Angels stumbel, IF, IF, IF Mariners - Much improved. young and strong with a few choice veteran leaders. But still probably a year away. A's - Very young. Very, very young. NL East Phillies - Not just good, scary good. Great pitching, hitting to match, excellent defense. In a 7 game series they could beat any team in the world right now. Braves - Bobby Cox goes out a winner with Prado, Jones and McCann powering a tough offensive line up. But they become even more dangerous once power hitting phenom Jason Heyward joins the team. Marlins - Lowest payroll and third best record in the NL. Too bad all they'll get is a comfy seat on the coach come October. Mets - Great pitching staff but where is the offense? Beltran & Wright barely had 100 RBIs between them last year. Good hitting only helps if someone is on base. Jason Bay should improve their luck but the Mets have a way of breaking hearts. Nationals - Great, you've got Strasburg. What else? Nothing. NL CENTRAL Cardinals - This team is a little schizo, what they are good, they are really good. But when they are not... Pitching is still solid with Carpenter and Wainright and having Pujols playing for you never hurts. Cubs - Finally have a new owner who wants to win. Too bad he can't play RF or lead off. Looks like the streal will extend to 107 years. Brewers - Has the talent to win the Central but so far has not been able to put it all together. Reds - Prediction: Dusty Baker will be the first manager to get fired this year. Astros - Good manager, bad team. They do have a good farm system so the rebuilding period will be short. But this year will suck. Pirates - The misery continues. AL West Rockies: Any team in the division could win it (except the Padres) but the Rocks return their entire team from last year. Giants: Last year they were top five in every pitching category but bottom three in all offensive catagories and dead last in runs scored. Pitching wins championships but offense wins games. Dodgers: Interesting fact, the dogers had four player with over 90 RBIs last year, not one was named Manny. I think he is now crossing the T in BUST. Diamondbacks: Having Brandon Webb & Conner Jackson will make them better... just not good enough. Padres: Hmm, can anyone other than Kelverin name more than 3 guys on this team? Me neither. Thats my $.02 what do you guys think? We had a pretty good thread going last season, lets do it again!

Geez, how is it every thread on this board ends up turining into a pointless debate about the pros and cons of communisim? And for that matter I'd lay large odds the pro-communisim posters are all the same guy. Anyway, since this road has been tread before, many, many, many times I'll make this my last post. Going back three or four pages, before the derailment, I'll cap off what I was saying by adding that a society where the government has control over all aspects of life and business and property is not free. If you are relying on the government for all of the services you depend on, there is a word for that condition: subjegated. It boggles the mind how many of you think that is a desireable way to live. I'd rather die free and poor than live enslaved and well kept.