Saturday, May 10, 2008

They Shoot Horses, Don't They?

Mark Prior experienced discomfort in his surgically repaired right shoulder during a throwing session on Saturday and will be examined by team doctors. There aren't even any jokes left to make. The Padres knew they couldn't count on Prior when they took a chance on him. They'll hold out hope he'll contribute later on, but it's hardly likely to happen.

you guys better duck and cover

Shawn Estes will take over the fifth spot in the Padres' rotation and make his first start Tuesday in Chicago. Estes is going to have to fail at least once more in the regular season before convincing everyone that he doesn't belong. Perhaps Petco Park will help him retain a respectable ERA for a month or so, but the Padres should have stuck with Wilfredo Ledezma.

Friday, May 9, 2008

American Ingenuity (cont)

For $9,995, your car could run on sugar and tequila

Look for him in a 94 year old ballpark soon

Padres released outfielder Jim Edmonds.
That was quick. The Padres acquired Edmonds during the offseason and now cut him loose after 90 at-bats despite owing him $6 million. Edmonds has hit just .178/.265/.233 while showing decreased range in center field, but giving up on him this early is still plenty surprising. Jody Gerut has been called up to replace him on the roster and could see time in center field along with Scott Hairston. Chase Headley is still waiting in the wings at Triple-A.

dere is annudder sign dat it's over for billary right behind dis one

Just look over dere's at the souperdelegate count ----------->

Only in America (cont)

Once again, we're at the cutting edge. The forefront. The leaders. The innovators. The ones everyone else is jealous of. And fashionable colors too!

Taser parties a growing US trend

Sounds like a bunch of stats geeks and nerds

Fantasy's Dose of Reality

They knew the risks -- I say let 'em crash

The Wit and Wisdom of the Former RezzziDUNCE

"I don't understand how you can disenfranchise voters in two states you have to try to win... I don't think that is smart for the Democratic Party."
-- Hillary, April 11, 2008

"It's clear, this election they're having [the Michigan primary] is not going to count for anything."
-- Hillary, October 11, 2007

"On Aug. 25, when the DNC's rules panel declared Florida's primary date out of order, it agreed by a near-unanimous majority to exceed the 50 percent penalty called for under party rules. Instead, the group stripped Florida of all 210 delegates to underscore its displeasure with Florida's defiance and to discourage other states from following suit. In doing so, the DNC essentially committed itself, for fairness' sake, to strip the similarly defiant Michigan of all 156 of its delegates three months later. Clinton held tremendous potential leverage over this decision, and not only because she was then widely judged the likely nominee. Of the committee's 30 members, a near-majority of 12 were Clinton supporters. All of them—most notably strategist Harold Ickes—voted for Florida's full disenfranchisement. (The only dissenting vote was cast by a Tallahassee, Fla., city commissioner who supported Obama.)"

numbers schmumbers... why should we just count numbers, as if they were like votes or some s#i+?

Dis took balz...

"We don't think this is just going to be about some numerical metric," Clinton strategist Geoff Garin told Dan Balz in the April 23 Washington Post. "When we get to those days after June 3rd, we think the real choice is who's proven themselves to be the best candidate."

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Remember This One?

too late

News item: A group of U.S. evangelical leaders called on Wednesday for a pullback from party politics so that followers would not become "useful idiots" exploited for partisan gain.

Blasphemy?

Study of 'Daily Show': It's a lot like O'Reilly

Face of a President?

Surely, there must be a better picture than this one to use on a news web site? Especially if that newspaper is supposed to be partial to him?


Headline of the day

Great tits cope well with warming

McBush's free ride (cont'd)

New Chapter - How the media has covered McCain since Free Ride went to press

Many may have forgotten by now that the Iowa contest was actually won by Mike Huckabee, but the media proclaimed McCain -- who came in fourth place, with 13 percent of the vote -- the actual winner. "A fantastic night for John McCain," said the Politico's Mike Allen. Tim Russert immediately booked McCain, and not Huckabee (or second-place finisher Mitt Romney, or third-place finisher Fred Thompson), to be the guest on that Sunday's Meet the Press. Matthews seemed to sum up the media's thoughts about the senator in a January 28 interview: "Senator McCain, you know you're in my heart."

"I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are -- were recipients of the judgment of God for that. The newspaper carried the story in our local area that was not carried nationally that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina [sic] came. And the promise of that parade was that it was going to reach a level of sexuality never demonstrated before in any of the other Gay Pride parades. So I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing."
-- John Hagee, whose chickens never seem to come home to roost

Should Fungster be worried?

Someone at work thought it'd be funny to send this to me a week before I cross the pond...

Plane Flew to Paris With Missing Panel

"[It] sounded like an explosion, or very large landing gear being ripped," said a flight attendant on board.

And dat wasn't an indicator that, well, mebbe you should check things out? Oh no, because, as it turned out...Had the plane returned to Dallas, it would have had to dump a lot of expensive jet fuel in order to land.

Back when jet fuel was cheap it would have been a no brainer. But now that prices are through the roof...

s#i+ blowing up (soon)

If he pitches at home, i'm going to wear a hat that day...

Padres purchased the contract of LHP Shawn Estes from Triple-A Portland. Estes will take the roster spot of Kevin Cameron. He was 4-2 with a 3.67 ERA in six Triple-A starts, but won't be worth using in fantasy leagues.

offered without comment

Well, ok, one comment...

Sub teacher claims fired for 'wizardry'


LAND O' LAKES, Fla., May 6 (UPI) -- A former substitute teacher in Land O' Lakes, Fla., claims he was fired by the school district because he was "accused of wizardry."

Jim Piculas said Pat Sinclair, who is in charge of substitute teachers for the Pasco County School District, called him to say the district would no longer be using his services after he performed a disappearing-toothpick magic trick while teaching at Rushe Middle School, the Tampa (Fla.) Tribune reported Tuesday.

"She said, 'You've been accused of wizardry,'" Piculas said.

However, Assistant Superintendent Renalia DuBose denied the district ever used the word "wizardry" in its dealings with Piculas and said the magic trick was far down the list of reasons the sub is not being asked back.

The district said in a letter to Piculas that he was being let go because he did not follow lesson plans, allowed students to use computers despite being told not to by another teacher, and he left a student in charge during his fifth-period class. (Hey, maybe he gave the kid an internship... Ed.)

a shocking percentage of Lou Dobbs viewers agreed with Lou Dobbs last night (cont'd)

Do you believe Congress should create stricter guidelines to ensure American workers are hired before foreign workers, whenever possible?
Yes__97%__4218
No____3%___144
Total Votes__4362
This is not a scientific poll

clowns in the news

'Kooki The Clown' accused of fraud, theft

Kooki Clowns Off With $500K

Prescott, AZ - Kooki the Clown likes to work carnivals, state fairs, and little old ladies. She enjoys face painting, bereavement counseling, buying things, going on cruises, buying things, updating her Myspace page, and buying more things. Kooki, aka Carrie Williams-Thompson, 48, is accused of stealing over $500,000 of a 90-year-old widow’s money. That’s a lot of face paint.
~~~~~~~~
Dink: I've been busy
Stenchy: Busy?
Dink: Yeah, I've been juggling an' s#i+.

intercourse the penguins


Penguin tale tops list of 'challenged' books

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

You got it, K-Mad? He's concerned. So SHUT UP already.

"No doubt about it, we're deeply concerned about the high price of gasoline," Bush said.

Al who? Did you mean Al Sharpton? Cuz I think we might have loads of s#i+ on him around here somehwere...

Part Two of the report reveals the inadequacies of the FBI's recordkeeping system, which results in 60-70% of Freedom of Information Act requests being denied because the FBI cannot find the requested records. In particular, the National Security Archive provided an example of a request for records on "Al Qaeda" that was denied because the Bureau had "no records." According to the FBI's representative in the Fox News report, that response was a mistake because the FBI staff sent the wrong letter. The Archive's records show, however, that the denial was administratively appealed to the Department of Justice's Office of Information and Privacy, which ordered the FBI to conduct a new search. The second search also was denied because there still were "no records" found on Al Qaeda.

It's Dusty alright

Name IP H R ER BB K HR Season ERA Pitches
Volquez 7 4 0 0 6 10 0 1.06 118

I swear he's not a k-madder

HR - J Votto (5, 2nd inning off J Lieber 0 on, 0 Out), A Dunn (6, 2nd inning off J Lieber 0 on, 0 Out), P Bako (4, 2nd inning off J Lieber 0 on, 1 Out), J Hairston Jr (1, 2nd inning off J Lieber 1 on, 2 Out).

Dis explains a lot

Forget your shrink -- just blog

So what issues are the posters on this site trying to work out?

Smiffing it out

How did Smiff end up down under?


Chair-sniffing Aussie politician keeps his seat
Sydney, Australia
06 May 2008 10:03

An Australian politician who admitted to sniffing the chair of a female colleague has survived a challenge to his state leadership of his party, an official said on Monday.

Troy Buswell was endorsed as the head of the West Australian Liberal Party after a motion to depose him at a party meeting failed, spokesperson Ray Halligan said.

"It was put to a ballot and the motion was defeated," Halligan told reporters in Perth.

The challenge arose after Buswell last week broke down at a news conference and admitted he had sniffed the chair that a female colleague had been sitting on at his Parliament House office in December 2005.

The incident took place in front of other staff members and was done to get a laugh, the woman, who does not want to be named, told the West Australian newspaper.

Buswell, who is in line to become state premier if his party wins elections next year, has previously admitted to snapping the bra strap of an opposition party staffer. -- AFP

k-mad is on this (still) so you don't have to be

Pentagon's Propaganda Documents Go Online, but Will the TV Networks Ever Report this Scandal?
by John Stauber

Eight thousand pages of documents related to the Pentagon's illegal propaganda campaign, known as the Pentagon military analyst program, are now online for the world to see, although in a format that makes it impossible to easily search them and therefore difficult to read and dissect. This trove includes the documents pried out of the Pentagon by David Barstow and used as the basis for his stunning investigation that appeared in the New York Times on April 20, 2008.

The Pentagon program, which clearly violated US law against covert government propaganda, embedded more than 75 retired military officers -- most of them with financial ties to war contractors -- into the TV networks as "message surrogates" for the Bush Administration. To date, every major commercial TV network has failed to report this story, covering up their complicity and keeping the existence of this scandal from their audiences...

Deja Vu: NYT, US Propaganda and War with Iran
by John Stauber

Greg Mitchell of Editor and Publisher notes that New York Times military reporter Michael Gordon, "who contributed several false stories about Iraqi WMD in the run-up to the U.S. attack in Iraq," has been writing about Iran's alleged involvement in attacks against U.S. service members in Iraq. Gordon's latest article, "Hezbollah Trains Iraqis in Iran, Officials Say," is "based solely on unnamed sources," notes Mitchell.

An article from McClatchy's Baghdad bureau also contradicts Gordon's New York Times piece. McClatchy reports that the Iraqi government "seemed to distance itself from U.S. accusations towards Iran." Iraqi government spokesperson Ali al-Dabbagh said the government had formed a committee to find "tangible information" about Iranian activities in Iraq, instead of relying on "information based on speculation." Al-Dabbagh also told Agence France-Press that there is no "hard evidence" of Iranian support of insurgents in Iraq.

What the Pentagon Pundits Were Selling on the Side: Propaganda Meets Corporate Lobbying
by Diane Farsetta

The Pentagon launched its covert media analyst program in 2002, to sell the Iraq war. Later, it was used to sell an image of progress in Afghanistan, whitewash the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, and defend the Bush administration's warrantless wiretapping, as David Barstow reported in his New York Times expose.

But the pundits weren't just selling government talking points. As Robert Bevelacqua, William Cowan and Carlton Sherwood enjoyed high-level Pentagon access through the analyst program, their WVC3 Group sought "contracts worth tens of millions to supply body armor and counterintelligence services in Iraq," reported Barstow. Cowan admitted to "push[ing] hard" on a WVC3 contract, during a Pentagon-funded trip to Iraq.

Smiff is next

K-Mad accepted your invitation to join Facebook.

Aaron Gleeman has tapped my phone

Talking on the phone with Sarge last night I made the same point that Aaron Gleeman did in his Rotoworld column today:
Floyd is now 3-1 with a 2.50 ERA through six starts and the 25-year-old former top prospect has plenty of long-term potential, but there's never been a better time to sell high on him. Lost in the s! parkling ERA and near no-hitter is that Floyd sports an ugly 19-to-18 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 39.2 innings this season. Beyond that, the defense behind Floyd has converted over 85 percent of his balls in play into outs, which isn't close to even being in the realm of sustainable.

Reading Pictures

So I's lookin at da pickcha of Ozzie on the main page. It's from a book called "The Wit and Wisdom of Ozzie Guillen." Wit and Wisdom of Oz? Isn't that an ozziemoron?

who wins under this scenario?

I just did a little playing around with the Democratic delegate counter on CNN. Let's say:

Clinton wins West Va. 60/40
Clinton wins Kentucky 56/44
Clinton wins Puerto Rico 60/40
Montana is a draw 50/50
Obama wins Oregon 53/47
Obama wins S.Dakota 54/46
Clinton wins two-thirds of the 277 remaining superdelegates 67/33

That gets Obama to 2026, one more than he needs for the nomination.

Good Morning!

'Astonishing number' of bees lost

Election Night Special

See also: Kevin Phillips-Bong

7:27 PM me: you know who sucks?
Kevin: lanny davis
me: who?
7:28 PM Kevin: the hillary shill on cnn right now
me: oh.
Kevin: fullas#i+ of bushian proportions
7:29 PM me: i'm going straight to the source: Hillary. SUCK IT, LOSER.
Kevin: seriously, when dana perino's head caves in, there's a job waiting for this asshole
me: how is he spinning it?
Kevin: ok i give up -- besides hill, bill, and lanny, who sucks?
me: or she? get a real first name
7:30 PM like i said:
Hillary. SUCK IT, LOSER.
Kevin: somehow, florida and michigan are obama's fault
and they're cheating for taking them away from her
7:31 PM and somehow, losing by 130,000 votes overall tonight is not losing
and somehow, all that all of this proves is that hillary is the better candidate
7:32 PM hillary won all the big states!
me: er, didn't everyone agree months ago FL & MI wouldn't be counted?
Kevin: never mind the numbers -- she's doing WAAAY better than he is
7:33 PM me: but since Clinton & Co. thought they would win in a cakewalk, they didn't give a shit then
Kevin: she's winning by behind behind -- you can't get more bushian than that
me: maybe Lanny (french?) shoulda run a better campaign...
Kevin: maybe they shutna SUCKED
7:34 PM me: your boy, Evan Bayh, on da stage...
Kevin: anywayz lets get back to baseball
besides all my players (who suck), who sucks?
me: players you will pick up later?
Kevin: yes
7:35 PM me: i run rings round ya
7:36 PM Gavin Floyd was 2 outs away from a no-hitter...
7:37 PM the Twins must really SUCK
Kevin: REALLY suck
7:38 PM me: BRUNTLETT!
E. Bruntlett homered to deep left, A. Eaton scored
Randy Johnson SUCKS
7:39 PM Kevin: "letter carriers for hillary" - she's got the disgruntled postal worker vote
me: Hillary claims the tiebreaker!
Kevin: exactly
never mind the actual numbers
me: she came from behind even though she was expected to win there
even though all the votes aren't in
Kevin: she's winning by falling farther behind
7:40 PM me: tonight is YOUR victory!
Kevin: even though all the votes arent in
is that santa claus over her left shoulder?
me: no beard
Kevin: nah -- too skinny
me: she wants YOUR money
7:41 PM Kevin: this is MY victory :-)
our opponent outspends us massively
maybe because more people send him money?
she's touched
7:42 PM i hate her
her mother had a difficult childhood :-(
7:43 PM poor bill sees his third term slipping away...
7:44 PM sounds like a victory speech -- it would be hilarious if she lost
7:46 PM she's been saying this all along (even though this is the first time i've heard her say it) -- we should give consumers a break on the gas tax this summer and MAKE THE OIL COMPANIES PAY THE GAS TAX -- even though she isn't going to be the prezzzzzzident this summer and doesn't really have any say in the matter, so why is she sounding like she can make this happen?
7:47 PM me: it's a panderer reflex - she can't help it
Kevin: what can she do about my bunions?
7:48 PM me: nothing, but Bill feels your pain
Kevin: "we have been on this campaign a long time..." (nervous laughter)
7:49 PM me: no shit, Sherlock
Kevin: she's getting me verklempft with her stories of people who have heartbreaking stores
i bet she bowls like a phokking maniac
me: whatever...does she know about da Chix? i don't pfink so
that's heartbreak
Kevin: she dont know heartbreak
7:50 PM me: is she boning Evan Bayh now?
Kevin: he's wonderful, i hear
7:51 PM me: pandering to Burmese voters now...
Kevin: pandering for the burma vote
she said burma
me: sick phokks like us think alike
Kevin: why do you suppose she did that?
7:52 PM me: she likes saying "junta"
Kevin: what's chelsea running for?
me: i do like Chelsea, even though i loathe her parents
7:53 PM give her a couple years...she'll be running for something
Kevin: i would like to have a beer with her
me: is she gonna run as an independent in Nov?
7:54 PM Kevin: i wonder if she can knock back the shots with the lunch-pail crowd like her old lady can?
florida and michigan count!
me: i dunno but we got to count the votes!!
Kevin: hahaha -- she's here all week -- try the veal!
7:55 PM me: she got dat right...experiment in democracy
Kevin: have we blown up the lab yet?
speaking of SUCKING -- zito gets a start tomorrow
me: B O O M
7:57 PM Kevin: i would like to have a beer with him and watch him blow up
me: speaking o which - Eaton walked the pitcher with the bases loaded...
Kevin: i wonder if he marinates himself in rocket fuel overnight or waits until the morning?
me: boff
Kevin: that takes bawlz
7:58 PM me: shirazez?
Kevin: beer
7:59 PM me: woah - when did dat happen?
Kevin: yesterday
honkers ale
8:00 PM everyone at hill's rally has a blue aura - rapture time?
cnn still not calling indiana
8:01 PM me: update:
Adam Eaton still SUCKS
8:02 PM Kevin: is that subject to change?
me: MFA
8:03 PM Kevin: another lannyism -- classic rethuglican election night bullshit -- if you look at the colors on the map, nearly the whole map is her color (SHHHHH -- it's because she's winning in all the places where nobody lives)
8:04 PM me: why isn't she way ahead then?
Kevin: gosh, i can't explain it
8:05 PM me: run rings round ya
Kevin: he sure did!
chris young (SD) SUCKED tonight btw...
me: Bruntlett: DOUBLE, RBI
8:07 PM Kevin: dellucci - pinch-hitting - GUONE
lanny is back on! explaining to all of us why she's winning by losing
me: i saw dat - i put him in the Cherries line up for Buck (dead guy)
Kevin: what a sad phokking sack of shit
8:08 PM take a look at the map! a great victory!
2209! a new number! one we made up!
8:09 PM me: i switched to CNN - is he in the Yankee uniform?
Kevin: yeah well he's a new jersey phokk
8:10 PM me: da black guy sez two zero two five
Kevin: 2+2=4? figgers that a crazy black man would come up with that
8:11 PM me: who's dis douchebag?
Indiana isn't normal? where the phokk has dis guy been all his life?
8:12 PM some phokking expert he is........
Kevin: maybe lake county indiana is on pacific time? that would explain why the vote count isnt in yet
they are right by the water after all... they may think it's the ocean
8:13 PM me: not really big on brainz over deres
8:14 PM Kevin: brainzz are overrated
unless you're a pointy-headed intellectual
effete snob
me: howa about a HYOOGE bald head?
Kevin: same phing
8:15 PM me: crap, i guess i have a brain
8:16 PM Kevin: elitist phokk
me: yep
Paul Lo Duca's back: SUCKING
8:17 PM JR Towles: .171
your fault
Kevin: i blame society
8:18 PM me: White Sox WINNER!
Chris Matthews is singing "Gary, Indiana"
God help us all
Kevin: is he drunk?
8:19 PM me: no, he's Tweety
8:21 PM Werth: GUONE
8:23 PM Kevin: obama won NC by as many votes as she won PA
me: doesn't count: more darkies in NC
Kevin: but you know, north carolina doesn't count... for some reason...
there ya go!
8:24 PM i knew there was something disqualifying it
also more college towns (see also: pointy-headed america-hating elites)
8:25 PM sox POUNDED the twins -- the blow-up doll factor?
me: YES
8:26 PM Kevin: trabbis haffner got a hit!
me: no, really?
Kevin: silly trabbis...
me: scoring error?
Kevin: possibly
8:27 PM LUDWICK: 4-4, 2 HRs -- HORROR
oh - 2 rbis
me: scoring errors?
8:28 PM Kevin: my eyesight - not so good (like the bees)
me: speaking of wine, i gotsa tasty kolly malbec heres
8:29 PM Kevin: malbec - fancy merlot?
looks like conor j lost annudder ball in his eyebrow tonight
8:30 PM me: it's like having an angora cat on his forehead
Scott Olsen: dominates!
Kevin: in full SUCKS recovery
8:32 PM lanny davis -- we are delighted with the results tonight
8:33 PM everyone is against her for pointing out she's losing
8:34 PM "i never said what i just said" -- more classic bushianism
8:36 PM me: In 1976, Davis ran for Congress as a Democrat in Maryland's 8th congressional district. After winning the Democratic nomination, he was in a close contest with Republican Newton Steers before losing after a minor scandal broke out over Davis mischaracterizing his own academic record at Yale Law School.
In 2005, President Bush appointed Davis to serve as the only Democrat on the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
8:37 PM Kevin: shocking, and shocking
8:38 PM me: In 1999, Davis wrote a memoir of his work in the White House entitled Truth to Tell: Tell It Early, Tell It All, Tell It Yourself: Notes from My White House Education. His most recent book, which appeared in 2006, is entitled Scandal: How "Gotcha" Politics Is Destroying America. The book received praise from politicians and commentators across party lines, including Senators Evan Bayh and Lindsey Graham.
In 2006, through opinions expressed in the Wall Street Journal (August 8, 2006) and on Fox News, Davis strongly supported longtime friend Joseph Lieberman in his losing bid against Ned Lamont for the Democratic Party nomination for the post of U.S. senator from Connecticut. He then continued to support Lieberman when he ran and won the General Election as an Independent.
8:39 PM Kevin: yooooge shocker
7 minutes
8:46 PM Kevin: gary IN is cooking the vote
8:47 PM me: good - FRY it up
Kevin: it shouldn't count since there are lots of black people there
me: yes
8:48 PM Kevin: i'm sure jesse jackson did well there, for example
me: say, has Mary heard anything from ND?
Kevin: no and she is going kerrrrazzzzyyy... you will hear when i do
8:49 PM me: cath-O-licks - i don't trust 'em
Kevin: me neither -- though it appears the county where ND is went for barack
me: university elites
Kevin: obama STEALING the vote -- i dont trust him
8:50 PM there will be a federal investigation\
8:54 PM ledezzzzzzzzzzzma starts thursday
8:55 PM me: B O O M
8:56 PM Duchscherer dominates. You're welcome.
8:57 PM Kevin: yes!
8:58 PM me: Kuroda...not so much
Kevin: he sucked so much
27 minutes
9:26 PM me: http://static.crooksandliars.com/2008/05/carrot_for_president.jpg
9:28 PM Kevin: is the ficus running too?
9:29 PM me: Mitt-fer-brainz has 5% of the vote in Indiana...
9:30 PM Kevin: sounds iike some mcbush-hating out there
9:33 PM me: Santiago Casilla: 18 1/3 shutout innings and counting (Monk! Wyvern! FANT!)
Kevin: never heard of him
9:34 PM me: dats why i win "on the margins"
9:36 PM Balentien: 2 hits, 2B. you're welcome.
9:37 PM Kuo: 8 outs, 7 Ks, still sucks
9:39 PM Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
Kevin: kuo is a mainstay in the smelts bullpen
9:40 PM me: only one left?
9:41 PM Kevin: yes
22 minutes
10:03 PM me: Ryan Ludwick went 4-for-4 with two doubles and a walk Tuesday against the Rockies. Ludwick is still hitting .349/.426/.675 on the season, but he hasn't found himself in the starting lineup against right-handers at all lately. That's the case even though his career OPS is 100 points better against righties. In Tony La Russa's defense, the rest of the Cardinals' outfield has been quite productive as well. However, Ludwick has to be rather frustrated.
10:05 PM Kevin: if he doesnt have the internets tony might not have that info
me: are they still cooking the votes in Gary?
Kevin: still cooking
10:06 PM me: i always knew dat godforsaken hellhole was good for sumpfing
10:07 PM Kevin: gary mayor is on now denying it all
they're being "methodical"
me: i love da machine
10:08 PM Kevin: mayor of hammond is giving it to mayor of gary
me: methodical=cookin'
what channel is dis on?
Kevin: cnn
10:09 PM me: i'm boycotting dem since they hired your boy, Tony Snowjob
Kevin: just went from 56 to 98 % in and he didnt catch up
looks like he wont catch her
10:10 PM me: 56 to 98 %?
Kevin: yeah all at once, from lake county
10:13 PM me: MSNBC sez Hill-Rod is the "apparent" winner
Kevin: cnn just called it too
10:16 PM me: Indiana proves once again: they SUCK
Kevin: shocking
6 minutes
10:23 PM Kevin: cnn blaming hillarys win on old people
obama won under 65 vote
10:24 PM me: why don't they croak already?
Kevin: they will
10:25 PM me: soon?
10:26 PM Kevin: i had alls i can stands
me: zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz?
Kevin: yes
10:28 PM i look forward to hearing how hillary wrapped up the nomination in the morning
10:29 PM me: well, she won the big states

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Only in America (cont)

1,581 days in a Favre jersey

David Witthoft finally shunned his Brett Favre jersey for a red shirt for the first time in 1,581 days. The 12-year-old Ridgefield, Conn., boy wore the No. 4 jersey every day since receiving it as a Christmas gift in 2003. David's father, Chuck Witthoft, said that his son's last day wearing the jersey was April 23 on his 12th birthday. Witthoft conceded his son started to become concerned about his appearance after the jersey barely came down to his belt line.

was Fung surveyed?

Exploring Consumer Reactions to Tipping Guidelines: Implications for Service Quality

It’s clear that offering suggestions influenced tip amounts, but not always in the expected way. Offering educational guidelines tended to raise tips when service was adequate, but it reduced the highest tips when service was excellent. When service was poor, however, mentioning tip norms encouraged patrons to take revenge on the hapless server.

The disappearing bees won't matter when this happens

Will drought erode the competitiveness of Australia’s wine industry?

Australia’s 2007 vintage was smaller than the previous few vintages as a consequence of drought and frost in 2006. Then the worst happened in the following year with an unprecedented second year of drought that resulted in severe cuts to water allocations for irrigators in the southern Murray-Darling Basin.

"That's real news."

Are you offended by blow-up dolls in the Sox clubhouse?
No, this stuff happens in sports
47%
572 votes
Yes, it's a professional workplace
19%
235 votes
I care more about the team's six-game skid
33%
402 votes
Total Votes: 1209


White Sox blew it by allowing sexist shrine
White Sox doll blow up



Much like K-Mad's assertion that The Simpsons has the answers to all of life's queries, i'm more of A Christmas Story man...

"A man in Indiana swallowed a yo-yo," said Ralphy's father.
"Newspapers have such silly things," said Ralphy's mother.
"That's not silly," said Ralphy's father. "That's real news, not the political slop."

finally, some good news

With the help of the Defense Department, the Los Angeles-based company C3 is "developing the Baghdad Zoo and Entertainment Experience, a massive American-style amusement park that will feature a skateboard park, rides, a concert theatre and a museum" and "is being designed by the firm that developed Disneyland." More than that though, the Pentagon is also backing a $5 billion plan to create a "zone of influence" around the new $700 million U.S. embassy that will include luxury hotels, a shopping center, and condos in an effort to "transform" the Green Zone into a "centerpiece for Baghdad's future."

This passed in the Senate 95-0 and the House 414-1 -- guess who voted against it?

The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) is pending legislation in the United States designed to prohibit the improper use of genetic information in health insurance and employment. Supported by the President of the United States, the legislation would prohibit group health plans and health insurers from denying coverage to a healthy individual or charging that person higher premiums based solely on a genetic predisposition to developing a disease in the future. The legislation also would bar employers from using individuals’ genetic information when making hiring, firing, job placement, or promotion decisions.

it's time to engineer a super-bee

Air Pollution Impedes Bees' Ability to Find Flowers

By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 5, 2008; A03

Air pollution interferes with the ability of bees and other insects to follow the scent of flowers to their source, undermining the essential process of pollination, a study by three University of Virginia researchers suggests.

Their findings may help unlock part of the mystery surrounding the current pollination crisis that is affecting a wide variety of crops. Scientists are seeking to determine why honeybees and bumblebees are dying off in the United States and in other countries, and the new study indicates that emissions from power plants and automobiles may play a part in the insects' demise.

Scientists already knew that scent-bearing hydrocarbon molecules released by flowers can be destroyed when they come into contact with ozone and other pollutants. Environmental sciences professor Jose D. Fuentes at the University of Virginia -- working with graduate students Quinn S. McFrederick and James C. Kathilankal -- used a mathematical model to determine how flowers' scents travel with the wind and how quickly they come into contact with pollutants that can destroy them. They described their results in the March issue of the journal Atmospheric Environment.

In the prevailing conditions before the 1800s, the researchers calculated that a flower's scent could travel between 3,280 feet and 4,000 feet, Fuentes said in an interview, but today, that scent might travel 650 feet to 1,000 feet in highly polluted areas such as the District of Columbia, Los Angeles or Houston.
<...>
Fuentes said scientists now have a more sophisticated understanding of the signals for which insects are searching, and that air pollution rapidly eliminates as much as 90 percent of flowers' aroma.
<...>
Most bees have poor eyesight, which makes scent particularly important, the researchers wrote.

Since 2006, honeybee colonies in the United States have been suffering from a widespread phenomenon known as colony collapse disorder (CCD) (that sounds SO k-mad...ed.), in which adult worker bees abandon an otherwise-healthy hive.

John P. Burand, an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst who is studying bee colony collapses, said the effects of air pollution described in the new study are probably not directly related to that phenomenon. But, he added in an e-mail: "There is no doubt that air pollution and air quality is having an effect on bees and other pollinators. It appears there is more than one factor that is contributing to the CCD phenomenon we are seeing with bees, and certainly air pollution in some fashion may be playing a role."
<...>

because we're the world's authority on human rights

Death toll from Myanmar cyclone soars to 22,500

The United States, which has led a drive for economic sanctions against Myanmar's repressive regime, said it would also provide aid, but only if an American disaster team was invited into the country.

The policy was presented by Laura Bush, along with a lecture to the junta about human rights and disaster relief.

"This is a cheap shot," said Aung Nain Oo, a Burmese political analyst who is based in Thailand. "The people are dying. This is no time for a political message to be aired. This is a time for relief. No one is asking for anything like this except the United States."

offered without comment

Well, ok, one comment...

News item: Governor Charlie Crist of Florida has been fighting to cut 10 cents from the state's gasoline tax for two weeks in July...

If experience with such gas-tax "holidays" is any guide, drivers would save less than politicians suggest. But that is not necessarily the point.

"It's about trying to serve the people and trying to understand and have caring, compassionate hearts for what they're dealing with at the kitchen table," said Crist, a Republican.

how to suck at holding a lead

Your Chukar Cherries this week:

Game 1: led 4-0 after 2, lost 8-4
Game 2: led 5-0 after 2, won 6-5 in 10 innings
Game 3: led 5-1 after 2 1/2, lost 7-6

your Scum-Slimes for Tuesday

Blow-up doll in Sox clubhouse: page 1 (two-thirds of page), page 5 (full page), page 61 (two columns)

10,000+ dead in Burma: page 20 (one paragraph) (figure is off by more than half)

Monday, May 5, 2008

A History of Pandering

This doesn't include the last 3 weeks, so add at least another half dozen...

The master of his flip-flopping domain

Here’s the updated list:
* McCain pledged in February 2008 that he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Specifically, McCain was asked if he is a “‘read my lips’ candidate, no new taxes, no matter what?” referring to George H.W. Bush’s 1988 pledge. “No new taxes,” McCain responded. Two weeks later,
McCain said, “I’m not making a ‘read my lips’ statement, in that I will not raise taxes.”
* McCain claims to have
considered and not considered joining John Kerry’s Democratic ticket in 2004.
* In 1998, he championed raising cigarette taxes to fund programs to cut underage smoking, insisting that it would prevent illnesses and provide resources for public health programs. Now,
McCain opposes a $0.61-per-pack tax increase, won’t commit to supporting a regulation bill he’s co-sponsoring, and has hired Philip Morris’ former lobbyist as his senior campaign adviser.
* McCain’s first mortgage plan was premised on the notion that homeowners facing foreclosure shouldn’t be “rewarded” for acting “irresponsibly.” His second mortgage plan took largely the
opposite position.
* McCain vowed, if elected, to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term. Soon after, he decided he would
no longer even try to reach that goal.
* McCain’s campaign unveiled a Social Security policy that the senator would implement if elected, which did not include a Bush-like privatization scheme. In March 2008, McCain
denounced his own campaign’s policy.
* In February 2008, McCain
reversed course on prohibiting waterboarding.
* In November 2007, McCain reversed his previous position on a
long-term presence for U.S. troops in Iraq, arguing that the “nature of the society in Iraq” and the “religious aspects” of the country make it inevitable that the United States “eventually withdraws.” Two months later, McCain reversed back, saying he’s prepared to leave U.S. troops in Iraq for 100 years.
* McCain used to champion the
Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.
* McCain was a co-sponsor of
the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. Now he’s against it.
* On immigration policy in general, McCain announced in February 2008 that he would
vote against his own legislation.
* In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he
opposes his own measure.
* McCain said before the war in Iraq, “We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” Four years later, McCain said he
knew all along that the war in Iraq war was “probably going to be long and hard and tough.”
* McCain said he was the “greatest critic” of Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as “a mission accomplished.” In March 2004, he said, “I’m confident
we’re on the right course.” In December 2005, he said, “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course.”
* McCain went from saying he
would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade to saying the exact opposite.
* McCain went from saying gay marriage should be
allowed, to saying gay marriage shouldn’t be allowed.
* McCain criticized TV preacher Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance” in 2002, but then decided to
cozy up to the man who said Americans “deserved” the 9/11 attacks.
* McCain used to oppose Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy, but he
reversed course in February.
* On a related note, he said 2005 that he opposed the tax cuts because they were “
too tilted to the wealthy.” By 2007, he denied ever having said this, and insisted he opposed the cuts because of increased government spending.
* In 2000, McCain accused Texas businessmen Sam and Charles Wyly of being corrupt, spending “dirty money” to help finance Bush’s presidential campaign. McCain not only filed a complaint against the Wylys for allegedly violating campaign finance law, he also lashed out at them publicly. In April, McCain
reached out to the Wylys for support.
* McCain supported a major campaign-finance reform measure that bore his name. In June 2007, he
abandoned his own legislation.
* McCain opposed a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr.,
before he supported it.
* McCain was against presidential candidates campaigning at Bob Jones University
before he was for it.
* McCain was anti-ethanol. Now he’s
pro-ethanol.
* McCain was both for and against state promotion of the
Confederate flag.
* McCain
decided in 2000 that he didn’t want anything to do with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, believing he “would taint the image of the ‘Straight Talk Express.’” Kissinger is now the Honorary Co-Chair for his presidential campaign in New York.

And:

McCain in DNC Ad: I think we’re better off overall.
Viera: So, Senator, you do not believe we’re better off by any means than we were eight years ago?
McCain: Oh, no. No.

THIS explains the beer-drinking

In the United States, Cinco de Mayo has taken on a significance beyond that in Mexico. The date is perhaps best recognized in the United States as a date to celebrate the culture and experiences of Americans of Mexican ancestry, much as St. Patrick's Day, Oktoberfest, and the Chinese New Year are used to celebrate those of Irish, German, and Chinese ancestry, respectively.

nitpicking...

"Behold the double standard: John McCain sought out the endorsement of John Hagee, the war-mongering, Catholic- bashing Texas preacher, who said the people of New Orleans got what they deserved for their sins.

But no one suggests McCain shares Hagee's delusions or thinks AIDS is God's punishment for homosexuality. Pat Robertson called for the assassination of a foreign head of state and asked God to remove Supreme Court justices, yet he remains a force in the Republican religious right.

After 9/11, Jerry Falwell said the attack was God's judgment on America for having been driven out of our schools and the public square, but when McCain goes after the endorsement of the preacher he once condemned as an agent of intolerance, the press gives him a pass.

Jon Stewart recently played tape from the Nixon White House in which Billy Graham talks in the Oval Office about how he has friends who are Jewish, but he knows in his heart that they are undermining America."

finally, the media acknowledges the Pentagon propaganda story, beginning with...

TV Week?

"A Pentagon spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment."

Shocking.

So easy even a caveman could do it...

"Well, there's big money in that, in the expansion of cable TV, the opportunities to branch off into other areas of media are certainly there. When you consider what meteorology has done to a few guys in our society--like David Letterman--it was probably an opportunity I didn't take advantage of."--Tigers coach Andy Van Slyke, on passing up the chance to be a television weatherman.

Don't Come Around Here No More

Tigers designated outfielder Jacque Jones for assignment.
Jones was hitting just .165/.244/.253 in 79 at-bats, so it's hard to blame the Tigers from being frustrated with him. Still, there's a good chance he'll bounce back and be an adequate platoon outfielder for another team, perhaps the Padres or the Marlins. Mike Joyce seems poised to replace him versus right-handers for now, but the Tigers also have Marcus Thames, Brandon Inge and Ryan Raburn as alternatives in left field. Plus, Barry Bonds is still out there awaiting a phone call. May. 5 - 4:16 pm et

I think if there were knots and strings above my head, I could see them...and how does this fit with hating on the gays?

"The last two years in particular, I've really seen Todd's faith mature. I think it's greatly due to his increased desire to read and study the Word of God. Not that he didn't do that before, but he's had a greater passion for that in recent years."--Jeff Totten, Baseball Chapel leader to the Tigers, on closer Todd Jones.

"I had fallen from grace. I wasn't worthy. The ninth inning is pretty important to teams. I wasn't doing my job. I had to earn my way back into that."--Tigers closer Todd Jones

"I think humans are underneath a crochet piece of cloth. We're underneath and we see all the knots and the strings hanging loose, but God is looking from the top of it and sees the picture being knitted around you. We can't see it because we're underneath. God is making this big masterpiece in your life."--Jones

History Lesson

Most people don't know that back in 1912 Hellmann's mayonnaise was manufactured in England. In fact, the Titanic was carrying 12,000 jars of the condiment scheduled for delivery in Vera Cruz, Mexico, which was to be the next port of call for the great ship after its stop in New York.

This would have been the largest single shipment of mayonnaise ever delivered to Mexico. But as we know, the great ship did not make it to New York. The ship hit an iceberg and sank, and the cargo was forever lost.

The people of Mexico, who were crazy about mayonnaise, and were eagerly awaiting its delivery, were disconsolate at the loss. Their anguish was so great, that they declared a National Day of Mourning, which they still observe to this day.

The National Day of Mourning occurs each year on May 5th and is known, of course, as Sinko de Mayo.

He is not a perfect man, he has made mistakes in his life. Also, he's a lying cheat and a HYOOOGE, GIGANTIC @$$HOLE.

Roger Clemens issued a statement Sunday night apologizing for mistakes in his personal life.
Clemens took the opportunity to once again deny his use of performance enhancing drugs, and also claimed that reports he dated a 15-year-old Mindy McCready were untrue. "I know that many people want to know what I have to say about the recent articles in the media. Even though these articles contain many false accusations and mistakes, I need to say that I have made mistakes in my personal life for which I am sorry. I have apologized to my family and apologize to my fans. Like everyone, I have flaws. I have sometimes made choices which have not been right," Clemens said.


''I believe my personal life has nothing to do with the accusations of steroid and HGH use,'' he said in the statement. ''I have already made clear that I did not use them.''

That settles it for me...

Also, on da plus side, none of mistresses are dead or missing (that we know of).

The System Works (cont'd)

The gap between rich and poor in the United States has widened exponentially over the past three decades. The Congressional Budget Office reports that since 1979, the average income for the bottom half of American households has grown by 6 percent. In contrast, the top 1 percent of earners have seen their incomes shoot up by a 229 percent during that same period. Under the Bush administration, the average income of most Americans has fallen, but the average income of top wage earners (those above the 95 percentile range) has increased from $324,427 in 2001 to $385,805 in 2006. Only one other year has seen a comparable income gap: 1928, the year before the Great Depression.

what about clowns?

Who should MDs let die in a pandemic? Report offers answers

By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer
Monday, May 5, 2008
(05-05) 06:47 PDT Chicago (AP)

Doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won't get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster. The gut-wrenching dilemma will be deciding who to let die.

Now, an influential group of physicians has drafted a grimly specific list of recommendations for which patients wouldn't be treated. They include the very elderly, seriously hurt trauma victims, severely burned patients and those with severe dementia.

Wouldn't somebody who doesn't believe in the First Amendment be an enemy of the Constitution?

Cal State Instructor Fired for Refusing to Sign Loyalty Oath

A lecturer at California State University at Fullerton has been fired because she refused to sign a loyalty oath to “defend” the U.S. and California Constitutions “against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” the Los Angeles Times reported today.

Wendy Gonaver, a Quaker and a lifelong pacifist, was set to teach American studies at the institution this academic year. She told the newspaper that she had offered to sign the oath if she could attach a short statement expressing her views, but Fullerton wouldn’t allow that.

In February another instructor at Cal State was fired because she altered the oath by inserting the word “nonviolently” before signing it. However, the news-media attention surrounding her dismissal resulted in her being rehired.

Voters added the oath to the state Constitution in 1952 to keep Communists from getting public jobs.

...cuz if those are the real Sox fans, they can kiss Ozzie's phokking @ss right downtown, and PRINT IT!

Tired of "all the managers in the press box and at home, watching the game on TV and spilling food on themselves," Guillen became the story after a 4-3 loss Sunday to the Toronto Blue Jays, making his feelings known about the perceived treatment he and his organization get in the Windy City.

"Right now, everyone in Chicago is making lineups, 'Call up this guy, call up that guy,'" Guillen said. "If we had 50 people allowed on the roster, we could do that. That's what ticks me off about Chicago fans and Chicago media -- they forget pretty quick. A couple of days ago, we were the [bleep]ing best [bleep] in town, now we're [bleep]."

Asked why that is, Guillen pulled no punches.

"Because maybe the manager is an ass[bleep]," he replied.

Guillen said that the only way the perception of the Sox ever would change is by winning, but even after they did in 2005, it hasn't taken long for it to wear off.

"We won it a couple years ago, and we're horse[bleep]," Guillen said. "The Cubs haven't won in 120 years, and they're the [bleep]ing best. [Bleep] it, we're good. [Bleep] everybody. We're horse[bleep], and we're going to be horse[bleep] the rest of our lives, no matter how many World Series we win. We are the bitch of Chicago. We're the Chicago bitch. We have the worst owner -- the guy's got seven [bleep]ing rings, and he's the [bleep]ing horse[bleep] owner..."

Even ex-Cubs manager Lee Elia wasn't safe from Guillen's wrath Sunday.

"How about the Cubs celebrating that Lee Elia bull[crap]?" Guillen said of the 25th anniversary of Elia's famous 1983 tirade. "How many times I curse people out, I will make a lot of money with my [crap]. I have to keep going because in the future Ozzie [Jr.] will need money and I can say, 'Here, give me money, here's the 10-year anniversary of the time I called [Sun-Times columnist Jay] Mariotti stuff and the time I went on the radio and cursed out Mike North last year.'

"Yeah, we have to celebrate all that [crap], too. But I won't be around for 10 years, believe me."

How is K-Mad to blame?

He owns all 180 of these players...

Major League Baseball in the Midst of an Injury Epidemic


Major League Baseball is on pace to set a another record for the number of players who spend time on the disabled list. The previous record was set last year with 404 players. As of April 30, there are 180 players who have spent time on the disabled list this season, a 6.6% increase over the same time last season. From 2002-2006, an average of 141 players landed on the DL from spring training through April 30 each year. This year's pace is 21.7% greater than the average during that period. This alarming statistic could increase even further in the coming days with retroactive disabled list moves.

Three teams, the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers and Atlanta Braves lead the Majors in injured players, having each already placed 11 players on the disabled list as of April 30.

Last year's record 404 players was a 12.2 % increase over the five-year average between 2002-2006. The current pace is for 416 players to spend time on the disabled list in 2008.

2008 Injury Facts

* Pitchers account for 66.7% of the players placed on the disabled list so far.
* 22.7 % of the injuries are elbow related (10.7% Tommy John surgery)
* 22.7% are shoulder related (3.4 % are labrum related)
* Pitchers account for 91.3% of elbow and shoulder injuries
* 100% are K-Mad related

Sunday, May 4, 2008

Without comment:

Cedric Benson arrested, pepper sprayed

Cedric Benson was arrested early Sunday in Texas for boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest. He is currently free on $14,500 bail.

Where logic "doesn't have no relevance"...

How is she pandering and slobbering today?

a) going on about elites
b) pretending she understands long commutes and pain of gas prices
c) not putting in her lot with so-called "experts"
d) talking about the little people she's meeting
e) all of the above

If you've guessed (e) then you've really got the measure of perhaps the most depressing and dispiriting descent into political opportunism since, oh, 2004.

From the Times:

This morning, George Stephanopoulos began his televised interview with Senator Hillary Clinton by asking if she could name a single economist who supports her plan for a gas tax suspension.

She did not. “I’m not going to put in my lot with economists,” she said on ABC’s “This Week” program. A few moments later, she added, “Elite opinion is always on the side of doing things that really disadvantages the vast majority of Americans.”

Throughout the exchange, Mrs. Clinton argued that she trusted her own eyes and ears instead. “This gas tax issue to me is very real because I have been meeting people across Indiana and North Carolina who drive for a living, who commute long distances, who would save money,” she said.

Senator Barack Obama has derided the gas-tax suspension as a gimmick that would save consumers little and cost thousands of jobs, and Kara Glennon, a member of the audience at a town-hall meeting, seemed to agree. Gas prices are “not academic” for her, she told Mrs. Clinton, because she makes less than $25,000 a year—and then she accused Mrs. Clinton of pandering. “Call me crazy, but I listen to economists because I think I know what they studied,” she said.

However, in an interview afterward, Mark Moorman, another audience member and a firefighter, said he shared Mrs. Clinton’s mistrust of experts. Political candidates cite economists but they “never say anybody’s name, or where the study came from,” he said. “So as far as me, it doesn’t have no relevance.”


Hillary Clinton, caring about the little people, because you know, the Clintons have always cared about the little people. I mean she was on the board at Wal-Mart, and everybody knows how well Wal-Mart has cared for its employees and in what high esteem they hold them. Hell, Sam Walton, that little person of little people, went so far as to call her "a great friend of ours." And by "ours" of course he meant little people everywhere, not those big nasty elites. And by elites, of course I'm not talking about somebody worth $109 million dollars or the dozens of billions of dollars the Waltons are worth. I'm talking about you and me, so Hillary, I believe you, and I invite you to come to my school and tell my students to their faces why as Senator you have put absolutely no pressure on the state of New York to make sure that our school gets just as much money per student as the schools in Great Neck and Chautauqua and then you can tell them about how you had no problem authorizing the insane president of the United States to use these same little people to go to Iraq seven or eight times each, some of them, to fight a war for the other little people like Haliburton and the various fellows of the Carlyle Fund. Maybe we can talk about what you did on your time at Wal-Mart to help the workers unionize or get higher pay or greater access to health care - after all, health care is so important to you and the little people are so important to you, I'm sure you have all kinds of things you can say. Or you can prattle on about the elites some more and we can all wonder at the inanity of this campaign being run in the middle of a moment when the only important things are the things we are not talking anything about.

K-Mad Special: He's Fiery!

John Bale broke his hand Friday night after punching a door at the Royals' team hotel in Cleveland. Bale didn't tell the team until late Saturday. "I’m not pleased, obviously," manager Trey Hillman said Sunday. "Players have to think before they do things. "They’ve got to think about how it’s going to affect the rest of their team, how it’s going to affect their ability to perform and how it’s going to affect the whole group. I’m hopeful that there’s something salvageable for him." No word on why he punched the door, but the Kansas City Star speculates he was frustrated with his slow recovery from a fatigued shoulder. He'll likely be out a couple months now.

when did 'humanely destroyed' become 'euthanized,' and when can we have 'humanely destroyed' back?