Ha:
TAYLORVILLE, Ill. — The sign on the door of the American Tap warns patrons not to smoke. But sitting at the bar, customers merrily puff away, sharing cigarettes with the bartender and the owner while openly defying and mocking the state's ban on indoor smoking.
"I told the health department weeks ago, 'Go ahead and fine me,' " said owner Gary McWard, flicking an ash from his cigarette into an empty beer can on the bar top. "And I'm still waiting."
Enforcement could be a long time coming. Light up indoors in Chicago and the suburbs and get caught, and it's virtually certain the law will try to snuff it out. But in Downstate Illinois, where state smoking rates are the highest and opposition to the smoking ban is most vociferous, some communities are refusing to halt indoor smoking or levy fines.
Why?
Some rural prosecutors and county health departments say they are in a legal bind: The law that took effect Jan. 1 is not specific in how it should be enforced.
Though the law spells out fines from $100 to $250 for smokers and from $250 on up for business owners, it does not detail a due process to enforce it, they say.
And it leaves it up to local authorities to wrestle with the ambiguity. Officials in Chicago and the suburbs are enforcing the ban despite the lack of certain guidelines, but some Downstate prosecutors are reluctant to—especially with strong pockets of public sentiment against the ban.
This guy is kind of my new hero:
Peoria attorney Daniel O'Day, who believes the ban infringes on personal liberty, travels across the state working for free to represent smokers cited under the law. He said the ban has a number of flaws, including no specific requirements for bartenders to enforce the law; no penalty for failing to remove ashtrays; and no legal limit on the dollar amount of fines for bar owners.
I recommend reading the whole thing. It's the most heart-warming article I've read in a long time. It ends with one last nanny-stater sniffing:
"We would like to get this stopped, but we can't," said Gerry Grigsby, administrator for the Christian County Health Department. "We're stuck with a bad law, and it's a health hazard."
Ha ha!
Monday, June 30, 2008
And here you thought it was just selective posting by me
Welcome to Chicago, the large US city with the most paternalistic government. This is completely unsurprising, since the city council is just a bunch of busybodies, as I've documented over and over again:
Chicago reigns supreme when it comes to treating its citizens like children (Las Vegas topped our rankings as America's freest city). Chicagoans pay the second-highest cigarette tax in the country, and the sixth-highest tax on alcohol. Chicago has more traffic-light cameras than any city in America (despite studies questioning their effectiveness), restricts cell phone use while driving, and it's quickly moving toward a creepy public surveillance system similar to London's.
Chicago reigns supreme when it comes to treating its citizens like children (Las Vegas topped our rankings as America's freest city). Chicagoans pay the second-highest cigarette tax in the country, and the sixth-highest tax on alcohol. Chicago has more traffic-light cameras than any city in America (despite studies questioning their effectiveness), restricts cell phone use while driving, and it's quickly moving toward a creepy public surveillance system similar to London's.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
PETA is fun
The animal rights goofs are starting to target celebrities who eat meat:
Alistair Currie, a spokesman for Peta, said: "Jessica Simpson might have a right to wear what she wants, but she doesn't have a right to eat what she wants – eating meat is about suffering and death. Some people feel like they are standing up against a tide of political correctness when they make a statement like this – what she is really doing is standing up for the status quo."
The animal rights group doctored a photo of Ms Simpson to read "Only Stupid Girls Eat Meat", and listed "five reasons only stupid girls eat meat".
When they've gone after fur-wearers in the past, most people didn't care much because fur is a luxury that they don't personally own. The problem here is that just about everybody eats meat, and a large chunk of those that don't aren't against it for these silly reasons. I'd predict a backlash if not for the fact that everyone laughs at PETA anyway. They just haven't picked up on it yet.
Alistair Currie, a spokesman for Peta, said: "Jessica Simpson might have a right to wear what she wants, but she doesn't have a right to eat what she wants – eating meat is about suffering and death. Some people feel like they are standing up against a tide of political correctness when they make a statement like this – what she is really doing is standing up for the status quo."
The animal rights group doctored a photo of Ms Simpson to read "Only Stupid Girls Eat Meat", and listed "five reasons only stupid girls eat meat".
When they've gone after fur-wearers in the past, most people didn't care much because fur is a luxury that they don't personally own. The problem here is that just about everybody eats meat, and a large chunk of those that don't aren't against it for these silly reasons. I'd predict a backlash if not for the fact that everyone laughs at PETA anyway. They just haven't picked up on it yet.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Rant time
Most people think I'm kind of a mild-mannered guy who doesn't get worked up about anything. Well, folks, prepare yourself for a rant that's been building in me. There is going to be some foul language, so be warned.
Auditors are fucking idiots. There, I said it. IDIOTS. What do you need to do that? An accounting degree right? You know who gets accounting degrees? Business majors with ZERO personality. What cranks me off about it is that the lay person thinks accountants are good at math. That is so fabulously untrue I almost cry whenever I see it. If they were good at math they would have been, you know, MATH majors. A corollary is when people think accountants and actuaries are similar. NO. NO. NO. Accountants make sure the numbers add up in a column. Actuaries have to actually think about the numbers to make sure they make sense (ignoring for a moment the fact that actuaries also use math functions more complicated than addition and subtraction).
I first learned this fact when I worked at the credit insurance company. Every month, I had to send some premium, claim, and other information to the internal accountant so he could put together his reports. Every once in a while, I would send numbers with a mistake. I was new, so I didn't really know how to analyze the numbers terribly well, and I had to send lots of them. Still, this dope wasn't smart enough to figure out when he used them that these obviously wrong numbers didn't belong. He would just go ahead and dump them into his spreadsheet. "A negative number? Who cares? The numbers add up! Also, I have to go to my Special Olympics training now!"
Different, but similar, situation now. This dumbshit auditor keeps asking for all kinds of information that no auditor has ever asked for before (and I've been doing this for 9 years). It's the most mundane shit that, if she had any clue how pension plans and their administration worked, she wouldn't ask. I mean, at this point it's just embarrassing. I would feel sorry for her if she wasn't such a stupid-ass who keeps annoying me with these silly requests. I blame Sarbanes-Oxley. Yeah, it makes PwC and other accounting firms rich as hell, but it gave auditors too much power. As a result, morons like this who have no idea what they are doing hold everyone who works on the plan over a barrel while the poor plan sponsor has to pay out the ass to the audit firm AND us. I would name the firm this dullard works for, but I don't think it's terribly big. I mean, it's nice they hire the "mentally challenged" and all, but I have real work to do!
You know how every once in a while you run into people who are just really stupid? You kind of wonder, "How does that person get through life? What does he do for a living?" I will forever now assume the answer is auditor.
If you are an auditor and you read this, it's time you heard the truth. The rest of us hate the work you do, as you are a nuisance and drag on the economy and all who actually produce things. Auditors are even starting to reach the level of lawyers in my mind.
Auditors are fucking idiots. There, I said it. IDIOTS. What do you need to do that? An accounting degree right? You know who gets accounting degrees? Business majors with ZERO personality. What cranks me off about it is that the lay person thinks accountants are good at math. That is so fabulously untrue I almost cry whenever I see it. If they were good at math they would have been, you know, MATH majors. A corollary is when people think accountants and actuaries are similar. NO. NO. NO. Accountants make sure the numbers add up in a column. Actuaries have to actually think about the numbers to make sure they make sense (ignoring for a moment the fact that actuaries also use math functions more complicated than addition and subtraction).
I first learned this fact when I worked at the credit insurance company. Every month, I had to send some premium, claim, and other information to the internal accountant so he could put together his reports. Every once in a while, I would send numbers with a mistake. I was new, so I didn't really know how to analyze the numbers terribly well, and I had to send lots of them. Still, this dope wasn't smart enough to figure out when he used them that these obviously wrong numbers didn't belong. He would just go ahead and dump them into his spreadsheet. "A negative number? Who cares? The numbers add up! Also, I have to go to my Special Olympics training now!"
Different, but similar, situation now. This dumbshit auditor keeps asking for all kinds of information that no auditor has ever asked for before (and I've been doing this for 9 years). It's the most mundane shit that, if she had any clue how pension plans and their administration worked, she wouldn't ask. I mean, at this point it's just embarrassing. I would feel sorry for her if she wasn't such a stupid-ass who keeps annoying me with these silly requests. I blame Sarbanes-Oxley. Yeah, it makes PwC and other accounting firms rich as hell, but it gave auditors too much power. As a result, morons like this who have no idea what they are doing hold everyone who works on the plan over a barrel while the poor plan sponsor has to pay out the ass to the audit firm AND us. I would name the firm this dullard works for, but I don't think it's terribly big. I mean, it's nice they hire the "mentally challenged" and all, but I have real work to do!
You know how every once in a while you run into people who are just really stupid? You kind of wonder, "How does that person get through life? What does he do for a living?" I will forever now assume the answer is auditor.
If you are an auditor and you read this, it's time you heard the truth. The rest of us hate the work you do, as you are a nuisance and drag on the economy and all who actually produce things. Auditors are even starting to reach the level of lawyers in my mind.
I love the Sox, but South Siders are morons UPDATED
I guess Jimbo's, the famous bar close to Comiskey Park, was supposed to be turned into a John Barleycorn. Whatever, I never went there anyway.
What grinds my gears is these doofus South Side guys who think that North Side bars are full of metrosexuals who drink fancy drinks:
"Far as I'm concerned, that's a North Side Cubs bar. I don't go up there. They shouldn't come down here," South Side carpenter Tony Rapsys says. "We're shot and a beer down here. They're Grey Goose vodka up there."
Oh yeah, we don't have any shot-and-beer joints up here.
(Durkin's. Gin Mill. Kendall's. Halligan. Bob Inn. The Surly Greek. Miller's. Addison Inn. Etc., etc. just off the top of my head.)
And sure, everyone who lives north of Madison is some effette nancy who drinks Grey Goose. Let me tell you, Tony Rapsys, I have never had Grey Goose in my life. I'd like to see your pansy ass step up and drink Malort and Miller Lite with me all night and see who caves first.
One last thing...the owner of Jimbo's is kind of a jerk:
Even Cubs fans are welcome. But Jimbo has rules about you people.
"You can't walk in here wearing a 'Sox suck' shirt, no way around it," says Jimbo. " 'Cubs suck' shirts -- that's what it's all about. This is a Sox bar, and that's the bottom line."
You are going to turn away customers? Let in the Cub fans wearing those shirts so you can make fun of them!
UPDATE: How could I forget the ULTIMATE North Side shot-and-beer place? It's like my Disneyland as the most fun bar I've ever been in. That's right...FOLEY'S. I'd put that joint up against anything on the South Side.
Oh yeah, and I've been to Bourbon Street down south. It's a nice place, but there are more fancy metrosexuals there than 95% of the places up here.
What grinds my gears is these doofus South Side guys who think that North Side bars are full of metrosexuals who drink fancy drinks:
"Far as I'm concerned, that's a North Side Cubs bar. I don't go up there. They shouldn't come down here," South Side carpenter Tony Rapsys says. "We're shot and a beer down here. They're Grey Goose vodka up there."
Oh yeah, we don't have any shot-and-beer joints up here.
(Durkin's. Gin Mill. Kendall's. Halligan. Bob Inn. The Surly Greek. Miller's. Addison Inn. Etc., etc. just off the top of my head.)
And sure, everyone who lives north of Madison is some effette nancy who drinks Grey Goose. Let me tell you, Tony Rapsys, I have never had Grey Goose in my life. I'd like to see your pansy ass step up and drink Malort and Miller Lite with me all night and see who caves first.
One last thing...the owner of Jimbo's is kind of a jerk:
Even Cubs fans are welcome. But Jimbo has rules about you people.
"You can't walk in here wearing a 'Sox suck' shirt, no way around it," says Jimbo. " 'Cubs suck' shirts -- that's what it's all about. This is a Sox bar, and that's the bottom line."
You are going to turn away customers? Let in the Cub fans wearing those shirts so you can make fun of them!
UPDATE: How could I forget the ULTIMATE North Side shot-and-beer place? It's like my Disneyland as the most fun bar I've ever been in. That's right...FOLEY'S. I'd put that joint up against anything on the South Side.
Oh yeah, and I've been to Bourbon Street down south. It's a nice place, but there are more fancy metrosexuals there than 95% of the places up here.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Chad Ford's final NBA mock draft
Here it is. As much as I don't really enjoy watching the NBA, my innate love of basketball and fascination with pro sports team-building has me captivated every year.
The Bobcats yesterday gave up a future (protected) #1 for 20 from Denver. What does that tell me? Charlotte really thinks they are about to turn the corner and they want to load up on talent now. If the draft unfolds as Fords predicts, Michael Jordan (Charlotte's GM) will go nuts with joy in landing both Kevin Love and Roy Hibbert.
The Bobcats yesterday gave up a future (protected) #1 for 20 from Denver. What does that tell me? Charlotte really thinks they are about to turn the corner and they want to load up on talent now. If the draft unfolds as Fords predicts, Michael Jordan (Charlotte's GM) will go nuts with joy in landing both Kevin Love and Roy Hibbert.
And with that, some former Rambler sheds a tear
ESPN has a list of the worst lottery picks, by draft position, in league history. One of the "dishonorable mentions" from the number 14 slot will upset some readers of this site.
And with that, I say, "Bring on Derrick Rose!"
And with that, I say, "Bring on Derrick Rose!"
Response to MoveOn.org
MoveOn.org, a big left-wing group, put out a fairly pathetic ad recently that they have been showing on TV and whatnot. You should watch it if you haven't, but set aside for a moment the breathtaking dishonesty they have by asserting that McCain wants our military in Iraq for 100 years.
The sad thing is the contining infantilization of of the members of our military. Anti-war types constatntly talk about how "our children are dying", or some such nonsense. In truth, everyone who joins the military is an adult who does so on his or her own free will. To call them "children" or something like that seems very insulting to me (I can't speak for any soldier, since I have never been one).
(A similar theme is when these left-wingers like Michael Moore go around asking supporters if they would "send their children" to Iraq. Um, no one can force his or her adult child to do anything, let alone join the military.)
Anyway, a now-retired Navy guy wrote a long and thoughtful e-mail in response to the ad, and the whole thing is very good. Here are my favorite parts:
You see, service to your country isn't something that fits into every heart very easily because it involves sacrifice, and unfortunately, to so many people today, sacrifice is just a word, but to the men and women in uniform, it means honor, courage, and commitment. Those are words that can't just be thrown around because to live up to them requires genuine integrity and honesty, and all of these things I just mentioned are the values associated with wearing the uniform of any branch of service and they are not something taken lightly. When you commit to the uniform, you commit to the country. So, please, forgive me if I sound a little proud of my service to our country.
...
I see the same values and appreciation and gratitude in the faces of the men and women who journey to our nation’s capital everyday to witness the monuments that have been erected in honor of their service--I've seen them cry, sob tears of joy, relief, and sorrow as they recount days gone by, memories of a time they spent proudly serving America.
Their mothers, wives, girlfriends, and family didn't want them to go either, but America called and they responded, because that is what Americans do.
The sad thing is the contining infantilization of of the members of our military. Anti-war types constatntly talk about how "our children are dying", or some such nonsense. In truth, everyone who joins the military is an adult who does so on his or her own free will. To call them "children" or something like that seems very insulting to me (I can't speak for any soldier, since I have never been one).
(A similar theme is when these left-wingers like Michael Moore go around asking supporters if they would "send their children" to Iraq. Um, no one can force his or her adult child to do anything, let alone join the military.)
Anyway, a now-retired Navy guy wrote a long and thoughtful e-mail in response to the ad, and the whole thing is very good. Here are my favorite parts:
You see, service to your country isn't something that fits into every heart very easily because it involves sacrifice, and unfortunately, to so many people today, sacrifice is just a word, but to the men and women in uniform, it means honor, courage, and commitment. Those are words that can't just be thrown around because to live up to them requires genuine integrity and honesty, and all of these things I just mentioned are the values associated with wearing the uniform of any branch of service and they are not something taken lightly. When you commit to the uniform, you commit to the country. So, please, forgive me if I sound a little proud of my service to our country.
...
I see the same values and appreciation and gratitude in the faces of the men and women who journey to our nation’s capital everyday to witness the monuments that have been erected in honor of their service--I've seen them cry, sob tears of joy, relief, and sorrow as they recount days gone by, memories of a time they spent proudly serving America.
Their mothers, wives, girlfriends, and family didn't want them to go either, but America called and they responded, because that is what Americans do.
Second Amendment rights upheld
The Supreme Court struck down DC's handgun ban today.
I'd like to make a prediction. There will be all kinds of wailing about how our cities will become engulfed in a bloodbath now (that wasn't the prediction; it's too easy). However, I think there will now be less gun violence in these cities than now. It's not like gun bans did anything anyway, other than keep them out of the hands of law-abiding citizens who will now be able to defend themselves.
On the other hand, there are still laws preventing felons and others from buying guns, so the gangbangers will still buy theirs on the black market so they can shoot each other.
One other thing: you agree or disagree with the effect of the ruling, but it's hard to argue with the clear meaning of the 2nd Amendment. If you don't like it, have it repealed through another amendment.
I'd like to make a prediction. There will be all kinds of wailing about how our cities will become engulfed in a bloodbath now (that wasn't the prediction; it's too easy). However, I think there will now be less gun violence in these cities than now. It's not like gun bans did anything anyway, other than keep them out of the hands of law-abiding citizens who will now be able to defend themselves.
On the other hand, there are still laws preventing felons and others from buying guns, so the gangbangers will still buy theirs on the black market so they can shoot each other.
One other thing: you agree or disagree with the effect of the ruling, but it's hard to argue with the clear meaning of the 2nd Amendment. If you don't like it, have it repealed through another amendment.
Dumb hippies
You know what grinds my gears? Simplistic ideas from lefties who think they have stumbled upon something brilliant. It's usually the same dumb crap.
Take this silliness I found on CTA Tattler today. Now, I like this website for its information about the CTA. The sidebar on the right, however, is just mindnumbing.
Someone or another is interviewing random people on the CTA for some purpose. Fine, whatever floats your boat. The subject is some dopey high school kid who answers thusly to a question:
If he could say one thing to the entire world what would it be?: World Peace Now!
OK, he's just a stupid 18-year-old, right? (Except he can vote despite his extreme naivette, which is mildly disturbing.)
Here is the beginning of the interviewer's summary:
I think that it is very mature of him to think on World Peace at his age. I sheds a light of hope for the future of this world.
Um, no.
Demanding world peace now is NOT going to bring it. Does this kid think that Kim Jong-Il will read this and say to himself, "You know what? He's right! Let's have world peace. I am going to give up my nukes." Does he think Iran and Columbia and Syria and China will do the same? Oh my, if only the world listened to his wisdom.
The interviewer has earned a special scorn from me, though. How is is mature to say such things? I's what kindergartners say! "Stop fighting." Wow, really mature. And this kid's attitude sheds something on the future of this world, but it sure isn't hope. It's more like the pansification of our foreign policy the likes we haven't seen since Jimmy Carter (and soon, possibly, Barack Obama, aka, JC2).
You know the best way we can have world peace? By taking out bad guys and having a benevolent superpower with a kick-ass military like us who up-and-coming bad guys are scared of.
Take this silliness I found on CTA Tattler today. Now, I like this website for its information about the CTA. The sidebar on the right, however, is just mindnumbing.
Someone or another is interviewing random people on the CTA for some purpose. Fine, whatever floats your boat. The subject is some dopey high school kid who answers thusly to a question:
If he could say one thing to the entire world what would it be?: World Peace Now!
OK, he's just a stupid 18-year-old, right? (Except he can vote despite his extreme naivette, which is mildly disturbing.)
Here is the beginning of the interviewer's summary:
I think that it is very mature of him to think on World Peace at his age. I sheds a light of hope for the future of this world.
Um, no.
Demanding world peace now is NOT going to bring it. Does this kid think that Kim Jong-Il will read this and say to himself, "You know what? He's right! Let's have world peace. I am going to give up my nukes." Does he think Iran and Columbia and Syria and China will do the same? Oh my, if only the world listened to his wisdom.
The interviewer has earned a special scorn from me, though. How is is mature to say such things? I's what kindergartners say! "Stop fighting." Wow, really mature. And this kid's attitude sheds something on the future of this world, but it sure isn't hope. It's more like the pansification of our foreign policy the likes we haven't seen since Jimmy Carter (and soon, possibly, Barack Obama, aka, JC2).
You know the best way we can have world peace? By taking out bad guys and having a benevolent superpower with a kick-ass military like us who up-and-coming bad guys are scared of.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Top House Republican amnesty proponent loses primary
Ah, now this is good news. My girl Michelle Malkin hits it on the head with her post, but I'll excerpt the beginning:
Every time an immigration enforcement proponent loses a seat in Congress, the open-borders Wall Street Journal and their ilk use it to argue that Republicans need to support shamnesty to maintain political viability. The WSJ falsely framed the 2006 midterm election losses of GOP Reps. John Hostettler, Randy Graf, and J.D. Hayworth as electoral rejection of strict enforcement of immigration laws–conveniently ignoring the fact their opponents campaigned to their right on the issue.
Well, what will the WSJ and company say about what happened today to one of their favorite shamnesty/DREAM Act shills, GOP Rep. Chris Cannon? The six-term incumbent went down in flames in the Utah primary, defeated by Republican Jason Chaffetz–an underfunded political newcomer who made opposition to illegal immigration, rejection of amnesty, and support for tough deportation policies a top campaign issue. Cannon outspent Chaffetz 7-to-1 and had the entire GOP establishment from the White House on down backing him.
Cannon’s open-borders supporters can spin it all they want. They’ll shamelessly accuse the same voters who stuck with Cannon for six terms of incurable bigotry. But the simple fact is that voters finally got fed up with Cannon’s constant water-carrying for La Raza and MALDEF (watch him proudly boast, “We love immigrants in Utah. And we don’t oftentimes make the distinction between legal and illegal. In fact I think Utah was the first state in the country to legislate the ability to get a drivers license based on the matricula consular and of that I am proud.”) They got sick of the lies and arrogance (for my personal experience with the bloviatingly crude, rude, and clueless Cannon, see here.) They got sick of Washington business as usual.
Every time an immigration enforcement proponent loses a seat in Congress, the open-borders Wall Street Journal and their ilk use it to argue that Republicans need to support shamnesty to maintain political viability. The WSJ falsely framed the 2006 midterm election losses of GOP Reps. John Hostettler, Randy Graf, and J.D. Hayworth as electoral rejection of strict enforcement of immigration laws–conveniently ignoring the fact their opponents campaigned to their right on the issue.
Well, what will the WSJ and company say about what happened today to one of their favorite shamnesty/DREAM Act shills, GOP Rep. Chris Cannon? The six-term incumbent went down in flames in the Utah primary, defeated by Republican Jason Chaffetz–an underfunded political newcomer who made opposition to illegal immigration, rejection of amnesty, and support for tough deportation policies a top campaign issue. Cannon outspent Chaffetz 7-to-1 and had the entire GOP establishment from the White House on down backing him.
Cannon’s open-borders supporters can spin it all they want. They’ll shamelessly accuse the same voters who stuck with Cannon for six terms of incurable bigotry. But the simple fact is that voters finally got fed up with Cannon’s constant water-carrying for La Raza and MALDEF (watch him proudly boast, “We love immigrants in Utah. And we don’t oftentimes make the distinction between legal and illegal. In fact I think Utah was the first state in the country to legislate the ability to get a drivers license based on the matricula consular and of that I am proud.”) They got sick of the lies and arrogance (for my personal experience with the bloviatingly crude, rude, and clueless Cannon, see here.) They got sick of Washington business as usual.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Fear Itself
There's a new summer show on NBC on Thursday nights called Fear Itself. I haven't watched an episode yet, but I am recording them all. It's supposed to be some kind of weekly hour-long horror episode like Tales From The Crypt or something.
I started recording it because I like that kind of thing. Hopefully after watching it I can report back.
Yes, I was just looking for something to make sure I had a post today. I did watch a really crappy movie this weekend that deserves a long review, so maybe I can work on that. Hint: it received a crapload of critical acclaim for reasons that I cannot fathom. Good luck guessing what it is.
I started recording it because I like that kind of thing. Hopefully after watching it I can report back.
Yes, I was just looking for something to make sure I had a post today. I did watch a really crappy movie this weekend that deserves a long review, so maybe I can work on that. Hint: it received a crapload of critical acclaim for reasons that I cannot fathom. Good luck guessing what it is.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Jerry Manuel has gone crazy
Jerry Manuel managed the White Sox for a number of years, his last in 2003. I always considered him to be perfectly competent, but not worth keeping around necessarily, so his dismissal didn't bother me much.
In addition, he had a calm, gentle, patrician public demeanor when he was here. I always thought he was quite professional is his dealings with his team and the media.
Apparently the his firing from here did not treat him well, because he appears to have lost his mind in the intervening years. I understand that the New York media will blow everything out of proportion, but Manuel still appears to be acting very unlike he did when he was here. He's publicly ripping his players and the fans. We can assume that he probably won't get the job on a permanent basis this offseason.
In addition, he had a calm, gentle, patrician public demeanor when he was here. I always thought he was quite professional is his dealings with his team and the media.
Apparently the his firing from here did not treat him well, because he appears to have lost his mind in the intervening years. I understand that the New York media will blow everything out of proportion, but Manuel still appears to be acting very unlike he did when he was here. He's publicly ripping his players and the fans. We can assume that he probably won't get the job on a permanent basis this offseason.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Slow times at With Leather
I've linked to the website With Leather before. It's a very snarky and profane sports news blog. It's also funny.
There are usually about 10-12 posts per day over there, but for some reason there haven't been any new ones since yesterday morning. But it's, uh, OK with me. That last post is good enough for me.
There are usually about 10-12 posts per day over there, but for some reason there haven't been any new ones since yesterday morning. But it's, uh, OK with me. That last post is good enough for me.
My hypothesis
From experience of riding the train to work at various times in the morning, I have long thought that attractive women don't go to work until 9 AM. Why would it be so? A few ideas: they are so good-looking that no one cares if they aren't early, or maybe they aren't smart and thus don't work in jobs that require heavy hours. Who knows what the real reason is? Let's just enjoy arriving later sometimes, I say.
Anyway, arriving at work at 8:45 AM today provided another data point in favor of the hypothesis.
Anyway, arriving at work at 8:45 AM today provided another data point in favor of the hypothesis.
McCain still sucks
Reading more and more about the leftism of Barack Obama makes me creep closer and closer to wanting to support John McCain. Then he does something like this that sends me way back against him:
CHICAGO (AP) - Republican presidential John McCain assured Hispanic leaders he would push through Congress legislation to overhaul federal immigration laws if elected, several people who attended a private meeting with the candidate said Thursday.
Democrats questioned why the Arizona senator held the meeting late Wednesday night in Chicago. But supporters who were in the room denied that McCain held the closed-door session out of fear of offending conservatives, many of whom want him to take a harder line on immigration.
The money quote:
"He's one John McCain in front of white Republicans. And he's a different John McCain in front of Hispanics," complained Rosanna Pulido, a Hispanic and conservative Republican who attended the meeting.
Pulido, who heads the Illinois Minuteman Project, which advocates for restrictive immigration laws, said she thought McCain was "pandering to the crowd" by emphasizing immigration reform in his 15-minute speech.
And here I thought that being out until 2:30 last night would make me too drunk/hungover to post today. That's what McCain does to me! More details here.
CHICAGO (AP) - Republican presidential John McCain assured Hispanic leaders he would push through Congress legislation to overhaul federal immigration laws if elected, several people who attended a private meeting with the candidate said Thursday.
Democrats questioned why the Arizona senator held the meeting late Wednesday night in Chicago. But supporters who were in the room denied that McCain held the closed-door session out of fear of offending conservatives, many of whom want him to take a harder line on immigration.
The money quote:
"He's one John McCain in front of white Republicans. And he's a different John McCain in front of Hispanics," complained Rosanna Pulido, a Hispanic and conservative Republican who attended the meeting.
Pulido, who heads the Illinois Minuteman Project, which advocates for restrictive immigration laws, said she thought McCain was "pandering to the crowd" by emphasizing immigration reform in his 15-minute speech.
And here I thought that being out until 2:30 last night would make me too drunk/hungover to post today. That's what McCain does to me! More details here.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Best cartoon ever
It's so true. You math majors really need to see it. As John Derbyshire describes his undergraduate years:
It is a fact, though, that the cartoon does represent the way a lot of mathematicians think. Math undergraduates — my cohort, anyway — are terrible intellectual snobs. We were just about willing to forgive physicists for actually using our precious theorems, but heaven only knew what chemists and biologists got up to in those filthy labs of theirs, and the "soft sciences" — psychology, sociology, and the like — were beneath contempt. As for people who studied literature and history (what's the difference?), well, they were just figures of fun. "You mean to say they'll give you a degree just for reading novels? Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo! Hey, listen to this, guys …"
I really am a math snob.
It is a fact, though, that the cartoon does represent the way a lot of mathematicians think. Math undergraduates — my cohort, anyway — are terrible intellectual snobs. We were just about willing to forgive physicists for actually using our precious theorems, but heaven only knew what chemists and biologists got up to in those filthy labs of theirs, and the "soft sciences" — psychology, sociology, and the like — were beneath contempt. As for people who studied literature and history (what's the difference?), well, they were just figures of fun. "You mean to say they'll give you a degree just for reading novels? Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo! Hey, listen to this, guys …"
I really am a math snob.
I somehow found a story less surprising than my previous post
Elgin is the fattest city in Illinois:
"One out of two children in our Elgin-based U46 schools are overweight or obese -- 50 percent; that's a problem," he said. "According to driver's license data from the state, Elgin is currently being identified as the fattest city in the state of Illinois."
"One out of two children in our Elgin-based U46 schools are overweight or obese -- 50 percent; that's a problem," he said. "According to driver's license data from the state, Elgin is currently being identified as the fattest city in the state of Illinois."
Surprise, surprise
Everybody remember the famous new 5 cent per bottle of water Chicago tax? It's a real shocker, but money is coming in at less than half of projections.
Two posts in one day about how so many Democrats don't understand economics? Today's news is a veritable goldmine:
David Vite, president of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, responded by essentially saying, "I told you so."
Vite predicted the tax would fall far short as Chicagoans fled to the suburbs to buy cases of bottled water, along with the rest of their groceries.
"Single-bottle sales have not been dramatically hurt. It's the bulk purchase, the six-pack and the case that has just been killed. There's no reason someone is gonna pay $1.20 extra for a $4 dollar case of water when they can go to the suburbs to buy it without that," Vite said.
So when you tax something, you get less of it (in this case, bottled water purchases)? Revolutionary! If only there were people out there who understand such phenomena and implement it into their political philosophy...
By the way, I just noticed the comments at the bottom of the article. It's full of the usual stuff like, "When will these guys stop taxing everything?" Are people this stupid? When you elect an entire city council of liberal Democrats, you are going to have liberal governance! That means high taxes and spending, and you will also have high rates of nanny-state-ism such as the smoking and foe gras bans. Why not mobilize and vote some of them out? A real shocker would be to start electing conservative Republicans, but that will never happen because to too many people in the city think they are "mean". Yeah, well, how "nice" is it to tax the crap out of everything just to piss the money away on the Olympics?
I just wish people who vote for certain candidates would understand what they are getting. If you vote Democratic, this is what you will get. If you are fine with that, then that's OK. Just don't complain afterwards when the guys you vote in do exactly what anyone who follows politics at all could figure out they would do. At that point, you are just being dumb.
Two posts in one day about how so many Democrats don't understand economics? Today's news is a veritable goldmine:
David Vite, president of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, responded by essentially saying, "I told you so."
Vite predicted the tax would fall far short as Chicagoans fled to the suburbs to buy cases of bottled water, along with the rest of their groceries.
"Single-bottle sales have not been dramatically hurt. It's the bulk purchase, the six-pack and the case that has just been killed. There's no reason someone is gonna pay $1.20 extra for a $4 dollar case of water when they can go to the suburbs to buy it without that," Vite said.
So when you tax something, you get less of it (in this case, bottled water purchases)? Revolutionary! If only there were people out there who understand such phenomena and implement it into their political philosophy...
By the way, I just noticed the comments at the bottom of the article. It's full of the usual stuff like, "When will these guys stop taxing everything?" Are people this stupid? When you elect an entire city council of liberal Democrats, you are going to have liberal governance! That means high taxes and spending, and you will also have high rates of nanny-state-ism such as the smoking and foe gras bans. Why not mobilize and vote some of them out? A real shocker would be to start electing conservative Republicans, but that will never happen because to too many people in the city think they are "mean". Yeah, well, how "nice" is it to tax the crap out of everything just to piss the money away on the Olympics?
I just wish people who vote for certain candidates would understand what they are getting. If you vote Democratic, this is what you will get. If you are fine with that, then that's OK. Just don't complain afterwards when the guys you vote in do exactly what anyone who follows politics at all could figure out they would do. At that point, you are just being dumb.
This is mildly horrifying
A bunch of girls at some high school, none older than 16, made a pact to get pregnant. People are trying to figure out why they would do so. Um, part of it may be the school's culture towards high school mothers:
The high school has done perhaps too good a job of embracing young mothers. Sex-ed classes end freshman year at Gloucester, where teen parents are encouraged to take their children to a free on-site day-care center. Strollers mingle seamlessly in school hallways among cheerleaders and junior ROTC. "We're proud to help the mothers stay in school," says Sue Todd, CEO of Pathways for Children, which runs the day-care center.
Sure makes having a kid in high school seem not so bad, huh? I mean, except for all of the other kids that have to deal with strollers in the hallway.
The high school has done perhaps too good a job of embracing young mothers. Sex-ed classes end freshman year at Gloucester, where teen parents are encouraged to take their children to a free on-site day-care center. Strollers mingle seamlessly in school hallways among cheerleaders and junior ROTC. "We're proud to help the mothers stay in school," says Sue Todd, CEO of Pathways for Children, which runs the day-care center.
Sure makes having a kid in high school seem not so bad, huh? I mean, except for all of the other kids that have to deal with strollers in the hallway.
The Shakedown King may be nearing the end
Or so we can hope. The IRS is digging very deeply into the finances of Al Sharpton's National Action Network:
News of the fresh subpoenas comes just days after The Post chronicled Sharpton's relationship with some of the country's largest corporations.
Sharpton threatened boycotts or protests against corporations while simultaneously soliciting donations and sponsorships of NAN events, The Post detailed.
Couldn't happen to a better guy.
News of the fresh subpoenas comes just days after The Post chronicled Sharpton's relationship with some of the country's largest corporations.
Sharpton threatened boycotts or protests against corporations while simultaneously soliciting donations and sponsorships of NAN events, The Post detailed.
Couldn't happen to a better guy.
House Democrats want to nationalize an industry
They are not only adamantly opposed to off-shore drilling for oil, but now House Democrats want the federal government to take over oil refineries. Government bureaucrats obviously know best how much oil should be refined and not the market.
I guess basic knowledge of economics isn't necessary to most voters to be in Congress.
I guess basic knowledge of economics isn't necessary to most voters to be in Congress.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Coming soon to Logan Square
Yes, we have an actual nice bar! It's by the owners of Northside in Wicker Park, which is across the street from Cans.
Logan Bar and Grill is almost exactly across the street from the California train station. I'm excited beyond belief. It should be here within the next two weeks.
Logan Bar and Grill is almost exactly across the street from the California train station. I'm excited beyond belief. It should be here within the next two weeks.
Obama and his Social Security tax proposal
The details and political effects of Obama's plan to expand the Social Security payroll tax to income above $250,000 are pretty well spelled out by Mickey Kaus. I find it fascinating, though I don't agree with it all. It's worth a read.
LIAR
Clay Bennett bought the Seattle SuperSonics with the intent of moving it to his hometown of Oklahoma City. Everyone knows this, yet he continues to lie:
Bennett testified Tuesday that he was a "man possessed" to keep the team in Seattle -- despite e-mails that show he and co-owners discussed relocating soon after buying the team. He cited his efforts to have a new arena built in the Seattle suburbs.
Why destroy the NBA in Seattle, which has been a good city for the league? Why not buy a team that gets crappy support (not that they've had good teams to cheer for), like Memphis, Charlotte, Atlanta, or until this year, New Orleans?
(By the way, can anyone spot the geographic trend with cities?)
Bennett testified Tuesday that he was a "man possessed" to keep the team in Seattle -- despite e-mails that show he and co-owners discussed relocating soon after buying the team. He cited his efforts to have a new arena built in the Seattle suburbs.
Why destroy the NBA in Seattle, which has been a good city for the league? Why not buy a team that gets crappy support (not that they've had good teams to cheer for), like Memphis, Charlotte, Atlanta, or until this year, New Orleans?
(By the way, can anyone spot the geographic trend with cities?)
Let's lighten the mood around here
Posts about the oncoming destruction of Western civilization by medieval Muslims kind of kill the vibe. Let's mix it up. The best way to find a goofy story is to swing by Drudge. He has lots of regular news, but also news-of-the-weird-type stories.
This isn't it. Neither is this. We are getting warmer, only because it involves trannies, but not so much given the story itself. Closer still. Almost there...
Found it:
SANFORD, Fla. -- A gang of female bandits dressed in nursing costumes is stalking and targeting women and elderly shoppers at Central Florida businesses.
Here's an interesting tidbit that's not too flattering to one of the perps:
Investigators said several women are involved in the theft ring but they are looking for one specific woman. She is a heavy-set woman with very short hair and can be mistaken for a man, detectives said.
This isn't it. Neither is this. We are getting warmer, only because it involves trannies, but not so much given the story itself. Closer still. Almost there...
Found it:
SANFORD, Fla. -- A gang of female bandits dressed in nursing costumes is stalking and targeting women and elderly shoppers at Central Florida businesses.
Here's an interesting tidbit that's not too flattering to one of the perps:
Investigators said several women are involved in the theft ring but they are looking for one specific woman. She is a heavy-set woman with very short hair and can be mistaken for a man, detectives said.
Muslims can't wear pants UPDATED
Ah, even more serious stuff. There is a large Somali Muslim immigrant community in Minneapolis that has been causing lots of trouble. Apparently they are trying to force our country to conform to them, rather than them assimilating to us. As if they should have to, coming to our country and all. They use lawsuits and hysterical cries of racism to try to get their way. Don't believe it? Check out Europe, which has had rampant Muslim immigration for years. In 50 years or so they will likely have a cultural war between Muslims and everyone else (I mean actual war within Europe, not a culture war like here between Hollywood and everyone else).
Anyway, in the US we have a much smaller proportion of Muslims, but they have learned how to subvert Western democracies through the courts and through left-wing laws. Here is the newest example, of course from Minneapolis:
Yet this soft-spoken 22-year-old became an unlikely hero within the Somali community when she and five of her Muslim co-workers were dismissed last month from the Mission Foods tortilla factory in New Brighton, Minn., for refusing to wear a new company uniform — a shirt and pants — they consider a violation of their Islamic beliefs.
Of course, the great civil rights organization (not really; more like terrorist-sympathizer) CAIR is coming to the rescue to sue on their behalf. As see-dubya writes:
So Mission can either continue to ban unsafe, loose-fitting, but culturally sensitive clothing and be sued and slandered by CAIR, or they can give in and take a hit from a personal-injury lawyer when a burqa-clad employee gets tangled up in an industrial tortilla press. Tough decision.
What's the solution to the encroaching madness? Why not stop Muslim immigration and deport those that are here now? We need only to look to Europe to see our future if we don't.
UPDATED: To answer a couple of good points by a commenter, first, the Bill of Rights isn't a suicide pact, but religious freedom has nothing to do with it anyway. We as a country can decide who we let immigrate and who we don't. If we don't want Muslims, so be it. I'd at least like to see that debate occur.
Second, your Muslim friends are most likely American citizens. They cannot (obviously) and should not be deported, and they can worship as they please even if they are not citizens. Note that the ones I have problems with are recent immigrants with hard-core beliefs in sharia law. More is here on that topic.
Anyway, in the US we have a much smaller proportion of Muslims, but they have learned how to subvert Western democracies through the courts and through left-wing laws. Here is the newest example, of course from Minneapolis:
Yet this soft-spoken 22-year-old became an unlikely hero within the Somali community when she and five of her Muslim co-workers were dismissed last month from the Mission Foods tortilla factory in New Brighton, Minn., for refusing to wear a new company uniform — a shirt and pants — they consider a violation of their Islamic beliefs.
Of course, the great civil rights organization (not really; more like terrorist-sympathizer) CAIR is coming to the rescue to sue on their behalf. As see-dubya writes:
So Mission can either continue to ban unsafe, loose-fitting, but culturally sensitive clothing and be sued and slandered by CAIR, or they can give in and take a hit from a personal-injury lawyer when a burqa-clad employee gets tangled up in an industrial tortilla press. Tough decision.
What's the solution to the encroaching madness? Why not stop Muslim immigration and deport those that are here now? We need only to look to Europe to see our future if we don't.
UPDATED: To answer a couple of good points by a commenter, first, the Bill of Rights isn't a suicide pact, but religious freedom has nothing to do with it anyway. We as a country can decide who we let immigrate and who we don't. If we don't want Muslims, so be it. I'd at least like to see that debate occur.
Second, your Muslim friends are most likely American citizens. They cannot (obviously) and should not be deported, and they can worship as they please even if they are not citizens. Note that the ones I have problems with are recent immigrants with hard-core beliefs in sharia law. More is here on that topic.
Smelly, lazy hippies pour poop on cops
Not a joke. Michelle Malkin has the roundup on the insanity in Berkeley that the university has allowed to fester for 18 months. These dumb hippies need a serious ass-kicking.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Compare and contrast
Good questions! Reminds me a recent flood...
Where are all of the Hollywood celebrities holding telethons asking for help in restoring Iowa and helping the folks affected by the floods?
Where is all the media asking the tough questions about why the federal government hasn't solved the problem? Asking where the FEMA trucks (and trailers) are?
Why isn't the Federal Government relocating Iowa people to free hotels in Chicago?
When will Spike Lee say that the Federal Government blew up the levees that failed in Des Moines?
Where are Sean Penn and the Dixie Chicks?
Where are all the looters stealing high-end tennis shoes and big screen television sets?
When will we hear Governor Chet Culver say that he wants to rebuild a "vanilla" Iowa, because that's the way God wants it?
Where is the hysterical 24/7 media coverage complete with reports of cannibalism?
Where are the people declaring that George Bush hates white, rural people?
How come in 2 weeks, you will never hear about the Iowa flooding ever again?
Where are all of the Hollywood celebrities holding telethons asking for help in restoring Iowa and helping the folks affected by the floods?
Where is all the media asking the tough questions about why the federal government hasn't solved the problem? Asking where the FEMA trucks (and trailers) are?
Why isn't the Federal Government relocating Iowa people to free hotels in Chicago?
When will Spike Lee say that the Federal Government blew up the levees that failed in Des Moines?
Where are Sean Penn and the Dixie Chicks?
Where are all the looters stealing high-end tennis shoes and big screen television sets?
When will we hear Governor Chet Culver say that he wants to rebuild a "vanilla" Iowa, because that's the way God wants it?
Where is the hysterical 24/7 media coverage complete with reports of cannibalism?
Where are the people declaring that George Bush hates white, rural people?
How come in 2 weeks, you will never hear about the Iowa flooding ever again?
Monday, June 16, 2008
Now here's a boring post
I am tired and near the end of my day, but I'd like to point out a couple of articles I read that I enjoyed today. They are long, so be warned.
The first is by Noel Sheppard on how our national energy policies are the main driver behind $4 per gallon gasoline. Here's an excerpt:
Closer to home, our neighbors also ramped up oil production. To the south, Mexico has seen its crude output jump 64 percent since 1980, while Canada’s increased 85 percent.
Did I mention that our production declined by 22 percent in the same period?
Putting this in its proper perspective, if America had responded to the second energy crisis by increasing oil production only at the average rate of our North American neighbors, we’d currently be supplying ourselves with 18.86 million barrels of crude per day, or 91 percent of our usage.
Think oil would be $135 a barrel if that were the case?
The second is by Noemie Emery on why Obama, along with most other Democratic presidential candidates over the past 40 years, has trouble with blue-collar white Democrats (who he calls "Jacksonians"). It's also why I think McCain is going to win in November. Hint: it's not race:
Now let us imagine a different candidate, one who looks like Barack Obama, with the same mixed-race, international background, even the same middle name. But this time, he is Colonel Obama, a veteran of the war in Iraq, a kick-ass Marine with a "take no prisoners" attitude, who vows to follow Osama bin Laden to the outskirts of Hell. He comes from the culture of the military (the most color blind and merit-based in the country), and not the rarefied air of Hyde Park. He goes to a church with a mixed-race congregation and a rational preacher. He has never met Bill Ayers, and if he did he would flatten him. He thinks arugula is a town near Bogota and has Toby Keith on his favorites list. Would he strike no chords at all in Jacksonian country? Does anyone think he would lose 90 to 9 in Buchanan County? Or lose West Virginia by 41 points? For those Jacksonians who would be fine with a black man in the White House (not as tiny a group as Newsweek thinks), Colonel Obama is the one we are waiting for. When we will get him is anyone's guess.
The first is by Noel Sheppard on how our national energy policies are the main driver behind $4 per gallon gasoline. Here's an excerpt:
Closer to home, our neighbors also ramped up oil production. To the south, Mexico has seen its crude output jump 64 percent since 1980, while Canada’s increased 85 percent.
Did I mention that our production declined by 22 percent in the same period?
Putting this in its proper perspective, if America had responded to the second energy crisis by increasing oil production only at the average rate of our North American neighbors, we’d currently be supplying ourselves with 18.86 million barrels of crude per day, or 91 percent of our usage.
Think oil would be $135 a barrel if that were the case?
The second is by Noemie Emery on why Obama, along with most other Democratic presidential candidates over the past 40 years, has trouble with blue-collar white Democrats (who he calls "Jacksonians"). It's also why I think McCain is going to win in November. Hint: it's not race:
Now let us imagine a different candidate, one who looks like Barack Obama, with the same mixed-race, international background, even the same middle name. But this time, he is Colonel Obama, a veteran of the war in Iraq, a kick-ass Marine with a "take no prisoners" attitude, who vows to follow Osama bin Laden to the outskirts of Hell. He comes from the culture of the military (the most color blind and merit-based in the country), and not the rarefied air of Hyde Park. He goes to a church with a mixed-race congregation and a rational preacher. He has never met Bill Ayers, and if he did he would flatten him. He thinks arugula is a town near Bogota and has Toby Keith on his favorites list. Would he strike no chords at all in Jacksonian country? Does anyone think he would lose 90 to 9 in Buchanan County? Or lose West Virginia by 41 points? For those Jacksonians who would be fine with a black man in the White House (not as tiny a group as Newsweek thinks), Colonel Obama is the one we are waiting for. When we will get him is anyone's guess.
Steven Gerrard is busy
I guess I made some dumb vow to post at least once a day around here. I'm pretty uninspired, so here's something from With Leather on what Steven Gerrard of Liverpool is doing lately.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Drunk post
Um, so here I am still up all night from Saturday. After eating a burrito (don't ask), I am at home watching 300, which is my new hangover movie on my DVR.
So, rumor has it (don't ask me who told me so), King Leonidis is in some other horrible chick flick. I don't ever wan't to believe it, but apparently it's true.
Xerxes! I love this movie!
So, rumor has it (don't ask me who told me so), King Leonidis is in some other horrible chick flick. I don't ever wan't to believe it, but apparently it's true.
Xerxes! I love this movie!
Friday, June 13, 2008
Big homecoming
OK, not big, but Scott Podsednik (of the 2005 champs) is coming back to Chicago this weekend as a member of the Colorado Rockies. As much as I disliked him as a player, I can't complain that the guy won a World Series game with a walk-off home run.
Spot the media whitewash
I shouldn't expect much from his hometown paper, but could they at least pretend to have some objectivity when it comes to covering Barack Obama? I don't think I have to spell out out how ridiculous this article is.
For CReut
Apropos of nothing (since I'm still drunk from last night and on my way to my company picnic in 20 minutes), here's a link for the Steeler fans out there. And by that I mean Craig.
Yes, this is just to hit my daily quota of one post (to quote Butthead, "A quota? You mean, like, 25 cents?").
Yes, this is just to hit my daily quota of one post (to quote Butthead, "A quota? You mean, like, 25 cents?").
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Budweiser may get bought out
Right into it:
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Belgian Brewer InBev is offering a big payday to shareholders of Anheuser-Busch Cos. (BUD) (BUD) Inc., but its bid to create the world's largest beer company is already facing a major obstacle - U.S. election-year politics.
InBev SA, whose brands include Beck's and Stella Artois, delivered an unsolicited all-cash bid of $65 a share for Anheuser-Busch, which makes Budweiser, Michelob and Bud Light. That's well above the St. Louis-based company's closing share price of $58.35 Wednesday.
But politicians and activists are already lining up against the deal, saying it could cost jobs in the United States and send ownership of an iconic American company overseas. With economic concerns at the front of voters' minds, the opposition could cause a headache for InBev.
I say, "Who cares?" We own everybody else's stuff, so why can't they own some of ours? There is still Miller (sort of) and Coors (also sort of)! And, of course, Sam Adams.
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Belgian Brewer InBev is offering a big payday to shareholders of Anheuser-Busch Cos. (BUD) (BUD) Inc., but its bid to create the world's largest beer company is already facing a major obstacle - U.S. election-year politics.
InBev SA, whose brands include Beck's and Stella Artois, delivered an unsolicited all-cash bid of $65 a share for Anheuser-Busch, which makes Budweiser, Michelob and Bud Light. That's well above the St. Louis-based company's closing share price of $58.35 Wednesday.
But politicians and activists are already lining up against the deal, saying it could cost jobs in the United States and send ownership of an iconic American company overseas. With economic concerns at the front of voters' minds, the opposition could cause a headache for InBev.
I say, "Who cares?" We own everybody else's stuff, so why can't they own some of ours? There is still Miller (sort of) and Coors (also sort of)! And, of course, Sam Adams.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
ScarJo isn't dumb, but she is naive
Scarlett Johansson is an Obama supporter. Unlike most dopey celebrities, I'm willing to give her the benefit of the doubt and say she actually thinks about issues before she speaks. She reads The Economist, for example. I'm not trying to say that The Economist is a paragon of intelligent writing, but it's an interesting, well-written magazine that's not completely beholden to left-wing ideas.
So she e-mailed Obama once, and he replied. They have since had correspondence via e-mail (this can't make Michelle Obama very happy). Anyway, this "shocked" Johansson. Victorino Matus at The Weekly Standard has a list of other things that shock her:
Her personal trainer has time for hands-on demonstrations.
Her masseur cancels other appointments to prolong his massages free of charge.
Her cable installer shows up 30 minutes early and checks and double-checks the cable connections. In her bedroom.
Bartenders make her fancy cocktails on the house and they never skimp on the alcohol.
Air-conditioning repairman returns her call in minutes, offers same day service as well as dinner.
Auto mechanics offer to reupholster her carseats for free and keep the old ones for themselves.
Waiters are constantly bringing her free food and feeding her by hand because it’s “family-style.”
So she e-mailed Obama once, and he replied. They have since had correspondence via e-mail (this can't make Michelle Obama very happy). Anyway, this "shocked" Johansson. Victorino Matus at The Weekly Standard has a list of other things that shock her:
Her personal trainer has time for hands-on demonstrations.
Her masseur cancels other appointments to prolong his massages free of charge.
Her cable installer shows up 30 minutes early and checks and double-checks the cable connections. In her bedroom.
Bartenders make her fancy cocktails on the house and they never skimp on the alcohol.
Air-conditioning repairman returns her call in minutes, offers same day service as well as dinner.
Auto mechanics offer to reupholster her carseats for free and keep the old ones for themselves.
Waiters are constantly bringing her free food and feeding her by hand because it’s “family-style.”
Hillary's enemies list
Hillary and the Clintonistas have apparently taken note of who supported Obama over her in the Democratic primary, and they plan on remembering:
"I won't forget these people," said Susie Tompkins Buell, a co-founder of the Esprit clothing company and a longtime friend of the Clintons who describes herself as "a soul sister" to Hillary Clinton.
When asked to name "these people," Buell specifies "all the women who sold out Hillary." She declined to volunteer names on her list but answered "all of the above" when read a roster of prominent women supporting Obama that includes Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Governor Janet Napolitano of Arizona and Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas.
"I won't forget these people," said Susie Tompkins Buell, a co-founder of the Esprit clothing company and a longtime friend of the Clintons who describes herself as "a soul sister" to Hillary Clinton.
When asked to name "these people," Buell specifies "all the women who sold out Hillary." She declined to volunteer names on her list but answered "all of the above" when read a roster of prominent women supporting Obama that includes Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Governor Janet Napolitano of Arizona and Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Cheap pizza this weekend
For you locals, I got a flyer in the mail from the Domino's at 2455 W. Fullerton. It has a coupon for as many 1-topping large pizzas as you want, carry-out only, for $3.99 each. If any of you want the coupon to either entertain a crowd or just get fat, you can have it. First come, first serve.
UPDATE: I forgot to write that it's good from 10 AM to 5 PM on either Saturday or Sunday.
UPDATE: I forgot to write that it's good from 10 AM to 5 PM on either Saturday or Sunday.
Help! Some of you are enterprising...
I consider myself to be pretty good at tracking things down on the interwebs through Google due to my tremendous gift for knowing the right phrase to use. However, my weakest area, by far, is shopping online.
For example, I'd like to have some headphones that I can plug into the elliptical machine at the gym so I can hear the Simpsons episode I'm watching. However, I'm too tall to use regular headphones because the cord isn't long enough. I'd love to phone some regular, lightweight headphones with an extra long cord, and I'd think they exist somewhere. I just can't find them. Can anyone help? Any ideas on where to look, either online or brick-and-mortar? Please post suggestions in the comments.
Also, I'm note sure what happened to the format of this blog, but for some reason it's become harder to read due to no space between the main text and both the headline and the signature line. Does anyone know how to make it go back to having a space? I could (I suppose) just put in extra return lines at the top and bottom of each post, but that's kind of ghetto.
For example, I'd like to have some headphones that I can plug into the elliptical machine at the gym so I can hear the Simpsons episode I'm watching. However, I'm too tall to use regular headphones because the cord isn't long enough. I'd love to phone some regular, lightweight headphones with an extra long cord, and I'd think they exist somewhere. I just can't find them. Can anyone help? Any ideas on where to look, either online or brick-and-mortar? Please post suggestions in the comments.
Also, I'm note sure what happened to the format of this blog, but for some reason it's become harder to read due to no space between the main text and both the headline and the signature line. Does anyone know how to make it go back to having a space? I could (I suppose) just put in extra return lines at the top and bottom of each post, but that's kind of ghetto.
Obama's chief economic advisor hearts Wal-Mart
This is quite an interesting development. I had Obama pegged as basically a socialist on economic policy. Today he hired his chief economic advisor on his campaign, and it's a guy who likes Wal-Mart (from a liberal point of view):
So there's quite a lot of grumbling in labor circles today about his bringing on Jason Furman as his chief economic policy advisor, because Furman wrote a key, 2005 defense (.pdf) of Wal-Mart from the left, titled, unironically, "Wal-Mart: A Progressive Success Story."
The piece makes two arguments. The first is that Wal-Mart lowers prices, so low-income people (and others) can buy more. The second is that Wal-Mart's low-wage jobs are consistent with the Clintonite philosophy of making work pay, and that the right fix is to have government subsidize the low-wage workers' salaries and help provide them healthcare. He denies that Wal-Mart lowers local wages.
Except for having government throw tax money at poor people, I agree with the rest of the points as summarized here. Organized labor, which hates Wal-Mart with a passion even as many of its members love shopping there, is less than thrilled:
Furman's arrival is one more mark of the transition to a general election in which labor may grumble, but really has nowhere else to go, and in which virtually all major unions backed his rivals in the primary -- . giving them seriously diminished clout on his campaign.
Here is the kicker, which helps to soften my anti-Obama stance somewhat, at least given that he's a Democrat:
But is the hire reflective more broadly that Obama's more a Clinton-style centrist than a man of labor? The case has been made that that's a false distinction, but there's not much evidence (aside from a couple of weeks in Ohio) for Obama as an economic populist.
Indeed Austan Goolsbee, another economist and key Obama advisor, also seems capable of mentioning Wal-Mart without spitting. He wrote in his Times column last year, in making the case that American workers are more productive htan others, that "companies like Wal-Mart seem to be more adept at translating technology into productivity than anyone else."
So there's quite a lot of grumbling in labor circles today about his bringing on Jason Furman as his chief economic policy advisor, because Furman wrote a key, 2005 defense (.pdf) of Wal-Mart from the left, titled, unironically, "Wal-Mart: A Progressive Success Story."
The piece makes two arguments. The first is that Wal-Mart lowers prices, so low-income people (and others) can buy more. The second is that Wal-Mart's low-wage jobs are consistent with the Clintonite philosophy of making work pay, and that the right fix is to have government subsidize the low-wage workers' salaries and help provide them healthcare. He denies that Wal-Mart lowers local wages.
Except for having government throw tax money at poor people, I agree with the rest of the points as summarized here. Organized labor, which hates Wal-Mart with a passion even as many of its members love shopping there, is less than thrilled:
Furman's arrival is one more mark of the transition to a general election in which labor may grumble, but really has nowhere else to go, and in which virtually all major unions backed his rivals in the primary -- . giving them seriously diminished clout on his campaign.
Here is the kicker, which helps to soften my anti-Obama stance somewhat, at least given that he's a Democrat:
But is the hire reflective more broadly that Obama's more a Clinton-style centrist than a man of labor? The case has been made that that's a false distinction, but there's not much evidence (aside from a couple of weeks in Ohio) for Obama as an economic populist.
Indeed Austan Goolsbee, another economist and key Obama advisor, also seems capable of mentioning Wal-Mart without spitting. He wrote in his Times column last year, in making the case that American workers are more productive htan others, that "companies like Wal-Mart seem to be more adept at translating technology into productivity than anyone else."
Chicago drivers are complete and utter a-holes
In other news, the sun came up today.
Here's the set-up:
It was a true Chicago moment. Amid the taquerias and Polish sausage shops and fortune teller storefronts and factories, a lone undercover officer took his life in his hands Monday.
No, he wasn't working narcotics. He simply stepped out onto Belmont Avenue.
The goal: see if people would stop for him in the crosswalk.
The result: 101 drivers were pulled over -- and received warnings -- in less than two hours.
This piece of human garbage wins the award for being a lying jerk in about three different ways:
One highlight: the Blazer driver with a handicapped sign who shouted: "Get out of the street!"
He changed his tune by the time police stopped him down the block, officers said.
"No speak English," he said.
Here's the set-up:
It was a true Chicago moment. Amid the taquerias and Polish sausage shops and fortune teller storefronts and factories, a lone undercover officer took his life in his hands Monday.
No, he wasn't working narcotics. He simply stepped out onto Belmont Avenue.
The goal: see if people would stop for him in the crosswalk.
The result: 101 drivers were pulled over -- and received warnings -- in less than two hours.
This piece of human garbage wins the award for being a lying jerk in about three different ways:
One highlight: the Blazer driver with a handicapped sign who shouted: "Get out of the street!"
He changed his tune by the time police stopped him down the block, officers said.
"No speak English," he said.
Monday, June 9, 2008
More illegal alien sob stories
The New York Times checks in today with more crying about how hard it is on all those poor, hard-working illegal aliens out there who are getting caught up in the dragnet of racism spreading across the US against them.
Or so they tell it.
Of course, I think it's great. Conspicuously left out are any stories about all of the crime caused by the waves of illegals here, from identity theft to violent street crime. So much to choose from, here's just a part:
Meanwhile, at Emerald Coast Interiors, three employees — one black, one white, one Hispanic — independently said the police did, in fact, chase a handful of Hispanic employees who ran. Three women, they said, were caught in a ditch behind the main building.
Luis Ramirez, the plant’s operations manager, said the officers asked to see documentation only for the workers who fled. “It was racial profiling,” Mr. Ramirez said.
So...it's racial profiling because Mexicans (not a race, a nationality) were caught because they were running (not a race, a behavior)? Oh, the PC contortions!
Or so they tell it.
Of course, I think it's great. Conspicuously left out are any stories about all of the crime caused by the waves of illegals here, from identity theft to violent street crime. So much to choose from, here's just a part:
Meanwhile, at Emerald Coast Interiors, three employees — one black, one white, one Hispanic — independently said the police did, in fact, chase a handful of Hispanic employees who ran. Three women, they said, were caught in a ditch behind the main building.
Luis Ramirez, the plant’s operations manager, said the officers asked to see documentation only for the workers who fled. “It was racial profiling,” Mr. Ramirez said.
So...it's racial profiling because Mexicans (not a race, a nationality) were caught because they were running (not a race, a behavior)? Oh, the PC contortions!
Jason Peter liked to party
Jason Peter played in the NFL and has a bother who did/does too. I don't care enough to look it up. Anyway, I guess he wrote a book about how much drugs we was doing. With Leather has more.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Europeans are damn weirdos
So here I sit watching the first game of the Euro 2008 (some soccer tournament for the national teams), and there is some kind of opening ceremony. It's a bunch of goofy music and cubes and costumes. Since it's live, I don't have a video link to offer. Trust me, it's lame.
The worst part is the poor announcers. These guys are just here to call the game, and they have to describe all of this artsy crap. They must want to kill themselves.
Yet I can't turn away...
The worst part is the poor announcers. These guys are just here to call the game, and they have to describe all of this artsy crap. They must want to kill themselves.
Yet I can't turn away...
Friday, June 6, 2008
I can't top this
Great post on With Leather regarding Two-Meter Peter and his hella-attractive girlfriend. Snippets (but definitely click the link to see pictures and read it all):
Most notably, striker Peter Crouch went to the Caribbean with girlfriend Abigail Clancy, who you may remember from that time she wore a see-through dress or that time she frolicked on the beach or that time my boner tore through my underwear.
...and...
So Crouch, a scarecrow-lookin' dude who isn't particularly good at what he does, gets to date the lingerie model with low self-esteem. If anyone needs me, I'll have my head in the oven.
Most notably, striker Peter Crouch went to the Caribbean with girlfriend Abigail Clancy, who you may remember from that time she wore a see-through dress or that time she frolicked on the beach or that time my boner tore through my underwear.
...and...
So Crouch, a scarecrow-lookin' dude who isn't particularly good at what he does, gets to date the lingerie model with low self-esteem. If anyone needs me, I'll have my head in the oven.
Mancow on Chris Farley
Mancow Muller has a long Sun-Times column remembering his friend Chris Farley:
From his tiny “script room,” there was a million-dollar view of Lake Michigan outside, and inside was a mountain range of cocaine only Scarface or a movie star could afford. No fat kid from Madison, Wis., ever prays for that when they grow up. No, that was a gift from Hollywood U.S.A. I never did cocaine with him. But after he died the lure of it was unbearable, and I wanted to. What is the attraction? He would joke that it kept him skinny. He was ashamed and embarrassed if I watched him do “the toot! The nose candy! The booger sugar!” He would ask me to look away. In his heart he hated that he had become a slave to addiction. Around the time Chris was born, there was a classic “Star Trek” episode called “The Doomsday Machine.” In that episode there is a destroyer of worlds that would snort up planets. When Chris did cocaine, in my mind’s eye I saw Chris as the “Doomsday Machine” vacuuming up cocaine and barrel rolling into oblivion.
From his tiny “script room,” there was a million-dollar view of Lake Michigan outside, and inside was a mountain range of cocaine only Scarface or a movie star could afford. No fat kid from Madison, Wis., ever prays for that when they grow up. No, that was a gift from Hollywood U.S.A. I never did cocaine with him. But after he died the lure of it was unbearable, and I wanted to. What is the attraction? He would joke that it kept him skinny. He was ashamed and embarrassed if I watched him do “the toot! The nose candy! The booger sugar!” He would ask me to look away. In his heart he hated that he had become a slave to addiction. Around the time Chris was born, there was a classic “Star Trek” episode called “The Doomsday Machine.” In that episode there is a destroyer of worlds that would snort up planets. When Chris did cocaine, in my mind’s eye I saw Chris as the “Doomsday Machine” vacuuming up cocaine and barrel rolling into oblivion.
Chicago Sun-Times tackles the tough issues
Who has hotter fans: Sox or Cubs? It's an interesting question. Cubs fans are quite snobbish at even considering it, but it's pretty close.
Girls at Cubs games tend to be more understated in their dress. They will more often (seemingly) wear a hat with shorts and a t-shirt like the former sorority girls many of them were.
Female Sox fans, however, have the South Side trashy look going. When I write trashy, I mean that in a good way.
It's a tough call, so I won't vote. I bet the Cubs will the poll due to their reputation, though.
Girls at Cubs games tend to be more understated in their dress. They will more often (seemingly) wear a hat with shorts and a t-shirt like the former sorority girls many of them were.
Female Sox fans, however, have the South Side trashy look going. When I write trashy, I mean that in a good way.
It's a tough call, so I won't vote. I bet the Cubs will the poll due to their reputation, though.
UPDATE: Um, this picture comparison they put on the website isn't fair:
Airlines are run by clowns
No surprise, but some in the airline industry are considering charging people more if they are heavy:
American now charges $15 for one checked bag; Delta charges $25 for a phone reservation. Since record high fuel prices are a big part of the problem, some airlines have been looking to boost fuel efficiency, too, by eliminating extra weight. Could the next step be fares based on a person's size?
Not a big deal to me, even though at 220 pounds (give or take) I'm sure I'd have to pay more. No big deal, that is, if I also get a more spacious seat than the usual little one I have to jam my huge frame into. Something tells me that no one thought of that, though.
American now charges $15 for one checked bag; Delta charges $25 for a phone reservation. Since record high fuel prices are a big part of the problem, some airlines have been looking to boost fuel efficiency, too, by eliminating extra weight. Could the next step be fares based on a person's size?
Not a big deal to me, even though at 220 pounds (give or take) I'm sure I'd have to pay more. No big deal, that is, if I also get a more spacious seat than the usual little one I have to jam my huge frame into. Something tells me that no one thought of that, though.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Happy birthday, Theresa!
The girl whose character helped mess up Ryan's life turns 31 today. That means she's exactly two days older than my brother, for you trivia buffs.
Just say no, IOC
Chicago is one of the four finalists to host the 2016 Olympics. I couldn't be more cranky.
First, our taxes are high enough! This will just lead to more and more as the city will have to piss away money on all kinds of spending initiatives. And do the Olympics ever make money? No, they always cost far more than is projected and lose money, unless Mayor Daley hires Mitt Romney to run them. As if he would ever hire an extremely competent Republican with a great track record when he could instead hire one of political machine cronies to screw it up.
Second, if I am still living anywhere near the city, I don't want thousands of stupid foreigners running around. They are just going to clog everything up with their odd customs and practices.
Third, what's the point, other than Daley's giant ego? We already have a good city, and we don't need to host the Olympics to prove it. If people around the world don't think much of us, who cares? They are the ones living in third-world stinkholes.
First, our taxes are high enough! This will just lead to more and more as the city will have to piss away money on all kinds of spending initiatives. And do the Olympics ever make money? No, they always cost far more than is projected and lose money, unless Mayor Daley hires Mitt Romney to run them. As if he would ever hire an extremely competent Republican with a great track record when he could instead hire one of political machine cronies to screw it up.
Second, if I am still living anywhere near the city, I don't want thousands of stupid foreigners running around. They are just going to clog everything up with their odd customs and practices.
Third, what's the point, other than Daley's giant ego? We already have a good city, and we don't need to host the Olympics to prove it. If people around the world don't think much of us, who cares? They are the ones living in third-world stinkholes.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
MLB draft preview
The baseball amateur draft is tomorrow, and Kevin Goldstein over at BP has been on it like white on rice (or, at least on white rice). Today is his mock draft. I think it's open to non-subscribers, so check it out.
If Kenny Williams gets Justin Smoak (as Goldstein predicts), I will be a happy guy. Slugging college first basemen drafted high tend to do well (or so I hope), and the last time the Sox took one was in 1989 with Frank Thomas. With Jim Thome in the last year of his contract and Paul Konerko's deal expiring after 2010, the Sox could easily move Konerko to DH in 2010 and have Smoak as the everyday 1B. I'm giddy at the thought, especially since the farm system is bereft of impact hitters (I love you, Josh Fields, but you don't count). The Sox haven't drafted this high since 1990, which ended a streak of 4 years of top ten picks of Jack McDowell, Robin Ventura, Thomas, and Alex Fernandez. That was the backbone of those stud early 1990's teams that couldn't quite get past the Blue Jays and then Indians.
Goldstein is also going to have a chat over on the site later today, and it may also be open to non-subscribers.
If Kenny Williams gets Justin Smoak (as Goldstein predicts), I will be a happy guy. Slugging college first basemen drafted high tend to do well (or so I hope), and the last time the Sox took one was in 1989 with Frank Thomas. With Jim Thome in the last year of his contract and Paul Konerko's deal expiring after 2010, the Sox could easily move Konerko to DH in 2010 and have Smoak as the everyday 1B. I'm giddy at the thought, especially since the farm system is bereft of impact hitters (I love you, Josh Fields, but you don't count). The Sox haven't drafted this high since 1990, which ended a streak of 4 years of top ten picks of Jack McDowell, Robin Ventura, Thomas, and Alex Fernandez. That was the backbone of those stud early 1990's teams that couldn't quite get past the Blue Jays and then Indians.
Goldstein is also going to have a chat over on the site later today, and it may also be open to non-subscribers.
Why Hillary lost
The Boston Globe has an article today with a solid wrap-up of how Hillary Clinton lost the Democratic Presidential nomination that a year ago looked inevitably hers. Here's the part that I think really nails it, at least on a practical grassroots level:
...Her campaign had not set up grass-roots organizations in states that came after the initial four contests, analysts said, and was counting on her superior name recognition to carry her to victory in the Super Tuesday contests.
On Super Tuesday, Feb. 5, while Obama concentrated on building support in smaller states with caucus systems, where he could take advantage of his more enthusiastic backers, Clinton set her sights on the big, traditionally Democratic states. She won most of the biggest voting that day - including California, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts - but ended up no better than even with Obama in delegates.
The Democrats' proportional system of awarding delegates gives special advantages to candidates who win states by large margins - and Obama cleaned up in the smaller states that Clinton had ignored while remaining close enough in the larger ones to minimize her gains in delegates there.
While her remaining hope the last few months to superdelegates was to say that she would be the stronger candidate in November due to her having more popular votes in the primaries, caucuses reward candidates with very intense suport, even if it's smaller. Hillary's base of old people just isn't going to turn out for them. Obama did a great job of taking advantage of the system (and I don't mean that to be negative).
...Her campaign had not set up grass-roots organizations in states that came after the initial four contests, analysts said, and was counting on her superior name recognition to carry her to victory in the Super Tuesday contests.
On Super Tuesday, Feb. 5, while Obama concentrated on building support in smaller states with caucus systems, where he could take advantage of his more enthusiastic backers, Clinton set her sights on the big, traditionally Democratic states. She won most of the biggest voting that day - including California, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts - but ended up no better than even with Obama in delegates.
The Democrats' proportional system of awarding delegates gives special advantages to candidates who win states by large margins - and Obama cleaned up in the smaller states that Clinton had ignored while remaining close enough in the larger ones to minimize her gains in delegates there.
While her remaining hope the last few months to superdelegates was to say that she would be the stronger candidate in November due to her having more popular votes in the primaries, caucuses reward candidates with very intense suport, even if it's smaller. Hillary's base of old people just isn't going to turn out for them. Obama did a great job of taking advantage of the system (and I don't mean that to be negative).
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Computershare is a HORRIBLE company
I now have found a company that is even worse than Overstock.com (at least they refunded me for the incredibly late Christmas delivery). That company is Computershare.
"What is Computershare?" you may ask? Let me tell a story...
Back in the old days, I entered a Dividend Reinvestment Program (DRIP) for a certain stock. That way my dividends would be automatically reinvested in additional stock rather than paid to me in cash. In addition, I could have monthly deductions from my checking account used to purchase more stock. The company that ran this service was called Equiserve, and it was an excellent company.
You see, under Equiserve, I could easily find my complete transaction history (good for finding my cost basis) and make changes to my account preferences (such as how much to deduct my my checking and changing my mailing address). After all, that's what the internet is for, right?
A few years ago Equiserve was purchased by another company that (apparently) does the same kind of shareholder services. It's called Computershare. It's an Australian company, and since I liked Young Einstein and Crocodile Dundee and Andrew Gaze, I figured it would be just fine. I have never been more wrong.
(By the way, go ahead and try to get on to their web site above. I'll still be here. If it actually comes up, you aren't too unlucky.)
At first, it was very slow and I couldn't do everything I wanted (such as changing deductions or my mailing address). The site wasn't good, but I figured they were new or integrating the Equiserve stuff or something. The options weren't there, but maybe they would be integrating them in when they saw how awesome Equiserve's ideas worked. So I gave it some time.
That time has passed. I am officially ticked off at these guys. This morning, I tried to get my transaction history for purposes of calculating my cost basis. The site just dies when I do AS IT ALWAYS HAS. How is this possible? Their name is COMPUTERSHARE! It's not 1993 with dial-up internet access! What more does an individual investor want? I am afraid to sell any stock because I'd never be able to calculate my cost basis for capital gains tax purposes.
It's unfathomable that this can occur in 2008 absent a huge temporary server migration or something. So Computershare, you are now on my Enemies List as the worst company I have ever dealt with. You win due to the tremendous longevity of your incompetence and indifference to customer service. I am now going to punch the next Australian guy I meet and tell him it's for you, and I will not drink a Foster's again until you fix your problems.
"What is Computershare?" you may ask? Let me tell a story...
Back in the old days, I entered a Dividend Reinvestment Program (DRIP) for a certain stock. That way my dividends would be automatically reinvested in additional stock rather than paid to me in cash. In addition, I could have monthly deductions from my checking account used to purchase more stock. The company that ran this service was called Equiserve, and it was an excellent company.
You see, under Equiserve, I could easily find my complete transaction history (good for finding my cost basis) and make changes to my account preferences (such as how much to deduct my my checking and changing my mailing address). After all, that's what the internet is for, right?
A few years ago Equiserve was purchased by another company that (apparently) does the same kind of shareholder services. It's called Computershare. It's an Australian company, and since I liked Young Einstein and Crocodile Dundee and Andrew Gaze, I figured it would be just fine. I have never been more wrong.
(By the way, go ahead and try to get on to their web site above. I'll still be here. If it actually comes up, you aren't too unlucky.)
At first, it was very slow and I couldn't do everything I wanted (such as changing deductions or my mailing address). The site wasn't good, but I figured they were new or integrating the Equiserve stuff or something. The options weren't there, but maybe they would be integrating them in when they saw how awesome Equiserve's ideas worked. So I gave it some time.
That time has passed. I am officially ticked off at these guys. This morning, I tried to get my transaction history for purposes of calculating my cost basis. The site just dies when I do AS IT ALWAYS HAS. How is this possible? Their name is COMPUTERSHARE! It's not 1993 with dial-up internet access! What more does an individual investor want? I am afraid to sell any stock because I'd never be able to calculate my cost basis for capital gains tax purposes.
It's unfathomable that this can occur in 2008 absent a huge temporary server migration or something. So Computershare, you are now on my Enemies List as the worst company I have ever dealt with. You win due to the tremendous longevity of your incompetence and indifference to customer service. I am now going to punch the next Australian guy I meet and tell him it's for you, and I will not drink a Foster's again until you fix your problems.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Ozzie vs. Kenny
No matter how busy or uninspired by the day's news I am, I am going to try to satiate the masses' thirst for my writing and opinions by posting at least once every day from now on. Racking my brain this afternoon, I thought this story would work.
After the Sox lost 4-3 on a 10th inning walk-off home run by Gabe Gross (which led to them losing 3 of 4 to the surging Tampa Bay Rays), manager Ozzie Guillen got a little worked up and said this:
"I expect [general manager] Kenny [Williams] to do something Tuesday. Because if we don't do anything Tuesday, there's [going to be] a lot of change in the lineup. That's all I'm going to say about the offense," said Guillen, whose comments were spiced with an occasional expletive.
My first thought was that this is just stupid. They have a veteran team, and the main guys who are no performing were also their projected best hitters: Jim Thome, Nick Swisher, and Paul Konerko. What else would change? Who would replace these three?
The rest of the mine-up is at least acceptable, and the whole pitching staff is doing a good job, so they aren't going anywhere, either.
What I didn't think about was that Williams would be mad at Ozzie for this tirade, but it makes sense since Ozzie just crapped all over the team he built:
"It's just not a good idea to throw your boss under the bus, especially when that boss has had your back as much as I have had his," Williams wrote. "I expect this team, if the leadership remains positive and the players stick together and continue to play hard, it will be a fun summer.
"The offense will begin to produce when collectively they say the hell with all the theories, stay loose, pick the pitch you want to hit and hit it hard. It will be nice to see them lighten up and have some fun."
That's basically right. This team is set to win now, and there is no organizational depth to replace the thumpers in the lineup.What exactly would Ozzie propose he do? I am sure he's just trying to motivate them, but since these guys have all been around a while, I wonder if even that would work.
Another common Ozzie move, though, is to blow up in the media to take the attention off his team and put it on him. The problem with that here is that the media is focusing on both his team and him.
After the Sox lost 4-3 on a 10th inning walk-off home run by Gabe Gross (which led to them losing 3 of 4 to the surging Tampa Bay Rays), manager Ozzie Guillen got a little worked up and said this:
"I expect [general manager] Kenny [Williams] to do something Tuesday. Because if we don't do anything Tuesday, there's [going to be] a lot of change in the lineup. That's all I'm going to say about the offense," said Guillen, whose comments were spiced with an occasional expletive.
My first thought was that this is just stupid. They have a veteran team, and the main guys who are no performing were also their projected best hitters: Jim Thome, Nick Swisher, and Paul Konerko. What else would change? Who would replace these three?
The rest of the mine-up is at least acceptable, and the whole pitching staff is doing a good job, so they aren't going anywhere, either.
What I didn't think about was that Williams would be mad at Ozzie for this tirade, but it makes sense since Ozzie just crapped all over the team he built:
"It's just not a good idea to throw your boss under the bus, especially when that boss has had your back as much as I have had his," Williams wrote. "I expect this team, if the leadership remains positive and the players stick together and continue to play hard, it will be a fun summer.
"The offense will begin to produce when collectively they say the hell with all the theories, stay loose, pick the pitch you want to hit and hit it hard. It will be nice to see them lighten up and have some fun."
That's basically right. This team is set to win now, and there is no organizational depth to replace the thumpers in the lineup.What exactly would Ozzie propose he do? I am sure he's just trying to motivate them, but since these guys have all been around a while, I wonder if even that would work.
Another common Ozzie move, though, is to blow up in the media to take the attention off his team and put it on him. The problem with that here is that the media is focusing on both his team and him.
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