the phanantic takes new york

Courtesy my Dad. GO PHILS!!!

i hate new york

I don't just hate New York in passing. I hate everything about the place. I hate the people from New York, the ideas that those people stand for, and anything associated with that stupid city. I'm not sure I can put into words the amount of unbridled hatred I have for the most overrated place in America. Its overcrowded, smells horrible, is run poorly and the people are straight up jackasses. The people are snobby, think too way much of themselves, and are pricks. Bros don't live in New York.

For instance, last time I was in that stupid city, I was driving through Manhattan on the way to visit my girlfriend, and I was in terrible traffic. Traffic is terrible in New York, just another major drawback. Not to mention the drivers act like scumbags, cutting off anyone and everyone just to sit in traffic 10 feet ahead of where they started. Regardless, I was on 37th Street heading towards the Lincoln tunnel to get out of that crappy town just so I could reach an only slightly more bearable locale: North Jersey (*note* I have nothing against New Jersey. In fact I love the Jersey Shore unequivocally; however, North Jersey is nothing more than New York's slightly more tolerable little brother.) As I crossed Broadway the traffic at the next light was backed up all the way to the intersection I was crossing through. I was able get through the intersection but the traffic backup made it impossible for me to pull up enough to get out of the crosswalk. Now let me be clear, I was not blocking traffic and only my rear bumper was blocking the crosswalk. And it wasn't even blocking the full crosswalk, only about half of it. I was no way blocking traffic and was only slightly inconveniencing the pedestrians who were forced to walk about two feet to to the right or left. But guess what. I just so happen to pull into an intersection with two meter bitches writing tickets. They were there only because the situation I have just described is a very common occurrence, and they found a way to meet their ticket quotas. The dyke that wrote me the ticket didn't care that I wasn't blocking traffic or that I was able to move out of the intersection about ten seconds later. No, she was just a bitch who probably hates her life as a meter maid. That is a common attitude of New York inhabitants.

And that isn't even the number one reason I hate New York. That hatred is usually due to two factors: the Giants and the Mets. Well its October, so my hate for the Mets has obviously gone into hibernation because they never play at this time of year. However, I am in prime Giants hate mode and the Eagles are going to break Eli Manning's leg this weekend at the Linc. And the good news is that I will be there to watch it. But there is another force of evil that rarely gets me angry, but I bet will now be another permanent source of disdain for New York: the Yankees. I'm fucking tired of hearing about A Rod and this so called "team of destiny." These same fans who now claim that the NY Yankees are God's gift to baseball were nowhere to be found over the past nine years when they weren't winning the world series.

So you know what? FUCK THE YANKEES!!! They don't know what is in store for them. The Phillies are the real team of destiny and a soon-to-be DYNASTY. So I'm with you Jimmy, THE PHILLIES IN FIVE! FUCK THE YANKS AND FUCK NEW YORK! GO WORLD CHAMPION PHILLIES!!!!!

JIMMY!!!!

Props to my friend Cravitz for calling this as soon as he saw Jimmy's hit in game 4.

phillies

Damn. That's about all I can say about the Phillies right now. They are playing so well and with so much heart I can't remember a time in my life I have been so excited to see a team play. After their heroic 5-4 victory over the Dodgers in game 3 on Monday, this team looks poised for a match up with the infamous Yankees in the World Series. I'm still in a state of shock about Monday's game. With Jimmy Rollins up, two out, down by a run, tying run on second, winning run on first, Rollins hit the most important hit in his career, and arguably in Phillies history. When I saw that double smoked to right center I went from feeling crushed that the Phils were gonna blow a close game and allow the series to be tied, to super excited when I saw the ball was going to drop for a hit, then out of mind histarical when I realized that the ball was going to get to the wall and that Ruiz would score from first.

And do you know what's even better? It's not the first time they've done that in these playoffs. Against Colorado in game 4, Ryan Howard and Jason Werth each had huge hits in the ninth inning with two outs, netting 3 runs, and a 5-4 victory to close out Colorado. Howard also had a go-ahead RBI in the 9th inning of Game 3. This team is never out of a game. I am unbelievably excited for tonight's Game 5, and the Phils are sending Cole Hamels to the mound. I think this is gonna be a breakout game for Cole in the playoffs. He hasn't pitched great, but he looked much better in Game 1 against the Dodgers than he did in Game 2 of the Colorado series. I think he's going to continue to improve a pitch tough to the Dodgers tonight. I also think the Phils will be able to score a few more runs off Vicente Padilla. With the rowd behind the Phils, I see Padilla getting rattled and struggling to throw strikes at some point in the game. If the Phils can continue to capitalize on walks and other Dodgers mistakes, I think they can put up enough runs for Cole to get us a lead late in the game. But I guess we will see. I cannot wait.

GO PHILS!!!!!

FIRST EVER PHILLIES LIVE BLOG!!!

---Posted at 4:26 PM CT---

And that will do it. Cliff Lee had a complete game and the Phils won 5-1! They now lead the series 1-0. Overall it was a great performance. If they can that kind of starting pitching the bullpen won't be much of a problem. Now let's get it done again tomorrow! GO PHILS! WORLD PHUCKING CHAMPIONS!

---Posted at 4:23 PM CT---

Well with two outs in the 9th, Lee finally gave up a run. I hate Troy Tulowitzki. Hopefully, he can just get one more out, and the Phils can take a series lead.

---Posted at 3:47 PM CT---

So Cliff Lee just finished the 7th, and still hasn't allowed a run. Back in the dug out he walked towards Cole Hamels, who was sitting on the bench. Hamels looked up Lee with this dead stare that only a World Series MVP has, and then gave a little head nod and stuck out his hand for a fist pound. I can't describe the encounter well enough to do it justice. It was just plain bad ass. Man the Phillies are bad ass.

---Posted at 3:41 PM CT---

Terrible call at first! Jimmy definitely beat out that play at first base, but he was called out. That would have scored another run. I know we have had a couple of calls go our way earlier, but none of them were run scoring plays. Hopefully that what come back and play a role in the final outcome of the game. Still 5-0 Phils, top 7. Lee still cruising. He has now retired "more than I can count number" straight.

---Posted at 3:27 PM CT---

5-0! Ibanez gets another RBI, knocking in Werth. Man the offense is clicking. This team looks dangerous.

---Posted at 3:23 PM CT---

Now the offense is clicking! After a lead off hit by Utley, Howard nearly hit one out to left, but ended up doubling off the wall. Werth followed that up by nearly hitting an inside the park home run, but decided to hold up at third with nobody out. Things are looking good! 4-0 Phils, and they just knocked Jimenez out of the game. This is just the type of ball they need to play to win a second consecutive WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP!

---Posted at 3:13 PM CT---

Cliff Lee has a super important shut down inning after the long inning by the Phils. The importance of a pitcher coming in and getting a 1-2-3 inning after you get the lead can't be understated.

---Posted at 3:01 PM CT---

What a great at bat by Carlos Ruiz! 2-0 Phils! He battled throw eight pitches before hitting the ball hard, getting by the right fielder and cruising into second with a double! Let's get a big inning now!

---Posted at 2:55 PM CT---

AND RAUUUUUUUUL GETS THE PHILS ON THE BOARD FIRST. He pulled double down the line and Werth ran very well to score from first. Feliz then grounded out so Ibanez is on third with one out. We need another run!

---Posted at 2:45 PM CT---

Cliff Lee is rolling. After giving up a couple of hits in the early innings he has really settled in and is simply mowing down the Rockies hitters. Need to get some offense going though if we are gonna pull out a W in game one. Game is flying by as well.

---Posted at 2:23 PM CT---

Cliff Lee gets a hit then steals second? Damn. Too bad Jimmy couldn't knock him home. The Phils look a little lost vs. Jimenez right now. I'm not worried though. Somebody is gonna guess right on one of those fastballs sooner or later and hit it a mile.

---Posted at 2:00 PM CT---

GREAT THROW BY WERTH TO GET TORREALBA AT THIRD BASE! Who cares if he was actually safe. They called him out! Get's them out of the second inning.

---Posted at 1:45 PM CT---

A little bit of a shaky start for the Phils. Howard really needed to make that double play. The two hits were a blooper and an infield single with Utley playing back so I'm not worried about Lee. He was able to get out of the jam. Hopefully there were just a couple nerves and the Fightens will get through it. Need to get some runs early. Look for the big backs to be swinging away with the wind blowing out hard to right field.

---Posted at 11:23 AM CT---

Well if you so happen to be reading this right now, you are in luck! Today during the Phillies first NLDS game with the Rockies I will be blogging live! That's right, you will get to see the emotional roller coaster that is me during a Phillies playoff game. It should be very interesting. My bet is that I right them off as bums at least twice before the game is over. Cliff Lee will face Ubaldo Jimenez today, with the first pitch at 2:37 PM ET. I'm pumped the Phils will get to face a righty, so get ready for some baseball!

a quick look at the current state of philly sports

Right now is a very exciting time to be a Philly sports fan. The Phillies are solidly in first place and are the favorites in at least the NL, if not the outright favorites to win it all and repeat as World Champions. The Eagles have had an excellent off season, and have improved a team that came within a touchdown of the Super Bowl last season. If only the Sixers could turn it around then all of the Philly Sports teams would be absolutely dominant. That's right, those are the only three Philly sports teams.

Let's start with the Phils. The big news of course, is the trade for Cliff Lee. What a ridiculously awesome move. We didn't give up the Kyle Drabek and Michael Taylor, my two favorites in the Phils' minor league system. The big name they gave up was Carlos Carrasco, but he has struggled to say the least this season in Triple A, and I would much rather give him up than Drabek, who has much more upside. I think the biggest thing they gave up was Jason Knapp, but even then he still has a long road before he is ready to pitch in the majors.

Regardless, Lee is a tremendous upgrade. Actually scratch that. My roommate Randy put it best: since the phils didn't have to include Happ in the deal adding Cliff Lee was great addition rather than simply an upgrade. They didn't have to give up any players who would have any impact on this year's team, with the small exception of Marson. Lee was lights out in his first start with the phils, pitching a one run complete game while dominating the red hot Giants. Now our playoff rotation is Hamels, Lee, Blanton (having an outstanding season) and Happ. With our offense, who else could possibly be favored to win the National League?

Lastly, the Eagles look in prime position to win the toughest division in football. Unfortunately Jeremy Maclin remains unsigned, but I hear the two sides are getting close to inking a five year deal. A couple incentive bonuses seem to be the big sticking points. If Maclin can get into camp soon, he may be ready to come in for certain situations on offense even early in the season.

Unfortunately there was pretty devastating news fro Eagles camp today, as Stewart Bradley tore his ACL and will most likely miss the remainder of the season. This is a huge blow as Bradley has become a vocal leader and signal caller on defense, and without him and Brian Dawkins, there could be a leadership void. Not to mention Bradley played at a pro-bowl level last season. However, the coaching staff is big on Joe Mays, so hopefully he can step up to the plate.

All have more on the Eagles soon, but I can't go without mentioning Jim Johnson. He was a great football coach, an even better man, and an icon in the Eagles franchise. He will not be forgotten by the Eagles nation. RIP.

philadlephia tickets and merchandise

I just want to give a shout out to the following website:

http://www.nickdatic.com

If you are looking for Phillies, Eagles, Sixers, or Flyers tickets, jerseys or other merchandise Nick da Tic is your man. Prices can't be beat, and quality is guaranteed. Check it out.

the all star break and education in america

Well it's the halfway point of the baseball season, and the world champion Philadelphia Phillies are right where they belong: in first place. Thanks in large part to a 9-1 home stand to finish the first half, they have built a substantial, but in no way insurmountable four game lead over the second place Marlins in the NL East. This team has a legitimate shot at repeating. They have the best and most explosive offense in the National League. They are scrappy both individually and as a team.

The only big question mark is pitching, both the starters and bullpen. Although the relief pitchers have been hot and cold, especially Brad Lidge, I don't think there is much they can or will do to sure up the unit. I don't think this will be a problem though. They have shown that they can succeed both consistently and in key situations (see last season), and I think they are going to recover nicely in the second half. The bigger question mark is the starting rotation.

According to reports the phils are very close to signing Pedro Martinez. Although I am not against the move because it will probably cost us very little, I don't think it is a solution. If the Phils sign him I hope I'm wrong, but I think he's out of gas and all washed up. My biggest concern is that the Phils will sign him that the front office will think that they have done enough and won't make anymore moves. In other words, they won't trade for Roy Halladay.

I am all for signing Halladay, almost regardless of cost. In a perfect world I wouldn't want to give up Kyle Drabek, but the time to win is now. This Phils have only won two World Series titles in their 125+ years of playing the game. One of those titles was last year. This is their chance; they must win now. If that means mortgaging the future, then so be it. Let's go out and get arguably the best pitcher in the game for this season and next and try to make it a dynasty. The Phils would instantly become the favorites to go to the World Series in the NL, and we would probably have the best 1-2 pitching combo in the majors in Halladay/Hamels. Amaro needs to make this happen.

On a completely unrelated note, I just want to comment quickly on the ridiculousness of public education in America. First, Texas has proposed several changes to their curriculum that is outraging many liberals (See a shortened list of changes here). For example they want to de-emphasize the historical importance of liberl icons like Thurgood Marshall and Ceasar Chavez. The only change I really want to comment on is the proposal to focus more on original historical documents rather than on texts that interpret those documents. I think this is a fantastic idea. There is no better way to learn history than to read actual account of what occurred. This way no hindsight spin can be put on historical events. Anyone who writes an account has their own agenda and biases, and whether they mean to or not they will inevitably put some kind of spin on the facts. Focusing on primary accounts can help alleviate that problem and let students think critically and draw their own conclusions based on the facts.

However, focusing on historical facts will not make a difference when the teachers themselves are biased, and once again the teacher's unions are flexing their political muscle now that Obama and the democrats control the executive and legislative branches. Thanks in large part to the unions leaning on the democrats, Obama is letting the DC voucher program expire despite the fact the DC city counsel has voted overwhelmingly to ask for the program to be extended. The union hates the program because it weakens their monopoly hold on public education funds. In reality the union doesn't care that the program has been an unbridled success, they only care about their own power and clout. They know that if similar programs are enacted around the country, teachers everywhere would start facing, get this, COMPETITION. But no, competition doesn't make the quality of output better in education they claim. That is only true FOR EVERY OTHER INDUSTRY IN AMERICA. Until we stop bowing to the teachers unions on education choice and reform, we are never going to truly bring about the needed change, especially in the country's poorest neighborhoods like Washington, DC.

a couple of points

First of all, sorry to all my avid readers (if there are any) for the long break. I thought I would be able to write more often, but I am now working full time again, and I forgot how tiring that can be. I will try to do a couple of posts by the end of the weekend though. No promises.

I'm not sure if anyone besides me reads Matt Mosley's NFC East Blog on espn, but he recently asked his readers the following question: if you were starting a NFL franchise and were charged with winning a super bowl within three years, and you were allowed to draft 10 players from the NFC East, who would they be? I am not going to elaborate on why I would make these picks, but here they are in reverse order.

10. Brandon Jacobs, RB-NYG
9. Shawn Andrews, G-Phi
8. Brian Westbrook, RB-Phi
7. Jason Witten, TE-Dal
6. Asante Samuel, CB-Phi
5. Justin Tuck, DE-NYG
4. Jason Peters, T-Phi
3. Donovan McNabb, QB-Phi
2. Albert Haynesworth, DT-Was
1. Demarcus Ware, DE-Dal (He would be a DE for me)

Honorable mention to Santana Moss, Trent Cole, Marion Barber and Chris Cooley.

Apparently a bunch of people are making a big fuss because Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor apparently is a member of a club called Belizian Grove, which only accepts women as members. These people are claiming that if a male nominee were a member of an all-male club that did not allow women, then he would not be confirmed and labeled a sexist. What a bunch of cry babies. Although they are probably right that a male would have it held against him, they should stand up for their principles and say that this kind of thing doesn't matter. If they don't want that kind of thing used against a male nominee, don't complain now. What type of club you are in during your free time is nobody's business but your own. If Sotomayor wants to hang out in her girly club and talk about girly things, who gives two shits. So nobody should get pissed when I am nominated for the Supreme Court while I am a member of Augusta National.

President Obama is now trying to revive the "pay-as-you-go" rules for Congressional spending. In theory, this means that Congress cannot authorize new spending until it either finds a way to fund it through higher taxes or eliminating spending elsewhere. President Obama showing fiscal discipline? This is the biggest joke I have ever seen. It is so outrageous that he would propose this after all that he has spent in just 5 months, I cannot even comprehend how anyone would buy this shit. Does anyone really believe Obama has any, and I mean any, limits to how much he would be willing to spend? Sure, stupid people do. After a $787 billion stimulus bill that isn't stimulating anything other than the pockets of Washington special interests, hundreds of billions in bailouts for financial institutions through TARP, another hundred million of so for GM and Chrysler, and about $500 billion around the corner for socialized healthcare, sure I totally believe that Obama will now all of the sudden start being fiscally responsible. Not to mention that under the proposed pay-as-you-go rules, discretionary spending (which accounts for approximately 40% of the federal budget) and current entitlements are not included. So pet projects and programs like social security, medicare and medicaid would not have the rules apply to them. So basically all it would do would make it extremely hard to pass future tax cuts and limit increases in defense spending. Fuck that.

Inflation is on the horizon, and maybe even closer than the horizon. Unprecedented federal deficit spending, which has increased more this year (including adjustments for inflation, not just in terms of real money) than ever before in U.S. peacetime history. The fed has increased the monetary base at an extraordinary rate in an attempt to combat the recession. In fact, M1 (currency in circulation plus travelers checks plus demand deposits in banks) has increased more this year than at any time in the past 50 years. And its not even close. With a budget deficit that is 15% of GDP, and the total liabilities of our entitlement society after universal healthcare approaching an astronomical $100 trillion, there is no other answer. If the fed wants to keep tremendously high levels of inflation from occurring, the only thing they can do is to sell some of the trillions of dollars in U.S. treasuries it owns. However, does anyone think that is likely that the fed will do so, which would raise interest rates, especially since Obama will have to sell upwards of $2 trillion in newly issued treasuries over the next year or so to finance his enormous budget? Doubtful. In fact, the fed will probably end up buying some of treasuries that the Obama administration is issuing. At least this inflation will have the positive effect of making my school debt worth a lot less. But it is going to be tremendously harmful to the economy in general. My suggestion is to buy gold, silver, oil, wheat and other commodities. If you don't, then I told you so.

The Supreme Court decided not to hear Chrysler's bondholders appeal of Chrysler's bankruptcy. Although I knew that would happen, I think I have developed a good legal argument for why the should have taken the case. 11 U.S.C. 1126(c) states that

A class of claims has accepted a plan if such plan has been accepted by creditors, other than any entity designated under subsection (e) of this section, that hold at least two-thirds in amount and more than one-half in number of the allowed claims of such class held by creditors, other than any entity designated under subsection (e) of this section, that have accepted or rejected such plan.

In the case of Chrysler, the banks who were receiving TARP money and were also secured creditors (BoA, Citi, J.P. Morgan, etc.) held enough debt to easily meet these requirements. However, subsection (e) states that

On request of a party in interest, and after notice and a hearing, the court may designate any entity whose acceptance or rejection of such plan was not in good faith, or was not solicited or procured in good faith or in accordance with the provisions of this title.

Although "good faith" is not defined in the statute the case law has developed so that it seems to mean "whether those parties in interest with respect to whom a motion for disqualification is made, had some ulterior reason for their action which looked to some special advantage to be gained thereby." American Mutual Life Insurance Company v. City of Avon Park, 311 U.S. 138, 85 L. Ed. 91, 61 S. Ct. 157 (1940). Furthermore, at least one court as found bad faith where "a purchaser of claims in voting the assigned claims is pursuing an interest in addition to its interest as a creditor." In re Allegheny Int'l, Inc., 118 B.R. 282, 289 (Bankr. W.D. Pa. 1990). Even more on point, although "selfless disinterest" is not required where the creditor "was not acting to protect or maximize its rights as a creditor but, rather, was acting to preserve financial advantages it would receive if the Plan was confirmed," bad faith could be found. In re Holly Knoll Partnership, 167 B.R. 381, 389 (Bankr. E.D. Pa. 1994). Although the facts in the cited case were different than the conflict of interest experienced by the TARP banks, this is a novel issue and the law must be applied in a new way. The banks accepted the plan not because they were maximizing their interest as creditors, but because they wanted to continue to receive federal TARP funds (and the feds received a 20% share of Chrysler, so it amounts to a party receiving equity in the restructuring paying more proportionally to some bondholders outside of any bankruptcy agreement than to others who have equal shares and rights, so that the plan will be approved). There is no way that agreement is made in good faith. The problem is that it would be very hard to prove. But what do I know.

The Phillies just won their second extra innings game in a row against the mets, this time 6-3, giving them a series win in New York and a four game lead in the division. Raul Ibanez hit a game winning 3-run home run. Man I am pumped. Great come from behind win. GO WORLD CHAMPION PHILS!

one more year of school

I have finally finished my finals, so I am no officially done with my second year of law school.  Unlike many law students, I am in no hurry to get out of law school because attending school in Austin, Texas is pretty much the best thing ever.  But anyway, I should have plenty of time to blog over the Summer, so hopefully I keep this updated with a bunch of new posts.

First, my roommate Randy pointed out this Peter King article from his weekly Monday Morning Quarterback column.  The article does a good job of breaking down why the Eagles had one of the best drafts in the league in 2009 and is an interesting glimpse at how the Eagles front office approaches the draft.  Obviously I loved the Eagles draft this year: we got better at every offensive skill position, were able to get players with great value for the position they were taken, and added a couple of picks next year.  I am really pumped for the Eagles this season.  I think they have to be the favorites to not only win the NFC East, but the NFC as well.  

On a similar Philly sports note, the Raul Ibanez signing has worked out better than I could have ever imagined.  Nobody is happier about this than my Dad, since now he can constantly remind me how much better Ibanez is playing than former Phillies left-fielder Pat Burrell.  But I must say that Ibanez has been outstanding.  He hit his 14th homer of the year tonight and is hitting over 0.350.  I complained initially after the signing, mostly because of what we had to pay him, how old he was, and we lost our only slugging right-handed bat just to add another lefty.  But the results speak for themselves.  If Ibanez keeps up this pace, he would be the NL MVP.  If the Phils' starting pitchers ever get it together, they are gonna be a tough team to beat.

Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals just ended in a 107-106 upset win for Orlando.  Very good game.  In the final minutes both teams hit big shots, but the other kept answering.  When LeBron got a huge and one with 25 seconds left to put Cleveland up by two, I thought it was over for sure.  But Rashard Lewis hit a huge three with a hand in his face to give Orlando the eventual win.  I think this is gonna be a tough series for the Cavs, who haven't been challenged at all yet in the playoffs, but I think they still are going to win in six.  Obviously I love LeBron, but I think Moe Williams is the key for the Cavs.  If he can create for himself, that will really open things up for LeBron, and when he isn't forced to do everything himself, he is pretty much unstoppable.  

Lastly, I want to post a letter my dad sent into a bunch of newspapers after the Chrysler bankruptcy agreement was released.  I think he is absolutely right, and the moral of the story is that whenever the government becomes so deeply entrenched in private business, it will be able to unfairly flex its muscles in negotiations and get exactly what it wants.  In this case, they used the TARP bailouts as leverage against several of Chrysler's secured creditors, forcing them to accept the government offer.  Unfortunately, the banks receiving the bailouts may have been Chrysler's largest creditors, but not their only secured creditors.  The smaller bondholders were forced to accept whatever the large banks acquiesced to because the large banks held a large enough amount of the debt to force the smaller creditors to take a raw deal.  The smaller bondholders were ready to force the issue in bankruptcy court, but the big banks decided it was in their best interest to to take a loss in this transaction so that they could continue to receive billions more in bailouts over the coming months.  It is a perfect example of government intervention favoring certain companies over others.  And people wonder why so much is spent on lobbying and special interests seem to run Washington.  When the federal government routinely gets involved in private enterprise, of course the companies are going to lobby both elected officials and government bureaucrats.  They have a huge incentive.  Anyway, below is the text of my Dad's letter.

While the average taxpayer goes about their business the federal government is in the process of nationalizing the automobile industry. As part of their proposed reorganization plan, both Chrysler (which entered bankruptcy court on May 1, 2009) and General Motors have proposed a federal government/auto workers union partnership to “save” these two companies. As part of this plan, the taxpayer is expected to be the piggy bank that finances this partnership.

This is the second major industry (the banking industry was the first) the feds are in the process of nationalizing. The health care and energy industries are next in the sights of our Washington politicians.

If the Obama admistration has its way, the big winners in this arrangement will be the united auto workers. The UAW and their pension fund will own 55% of Chrysler while the bondholders (who are secured creditors in bankruptcy court) were offered less then 10% position. It is obvious that the Obama administration is partnering with the UAW to run the auto industry. The bond holders (lenders who have lent Chrysler billions of dollars) are being asked to take a bath for the benefit of the UAW.

For two centuries the free market economic system in the United States has been the economic engine that was the envy of the world. The free market economic system has allowed a relatively obscure collection of 13 colonies to develop into the most powerful and wealthy economy ever seen in this world. There have been ups and downs in the economy over the centuries but when left alone, capitalism has an amazing self correcting mechanism to deal with its excesses. Limited government, sound money, free markets allowed free people to prosper in a way that had not been seen in this world.

Markets were free and hard work was rewarded throughout American history. Since the new deal was enacted in the 1930’s the federal government has injected itself more and more in the free market economy. More and more taxes and regulations were enacted to draw valuable assets from the private sector into the hands of the government. Along the way, government spending increased to the point taxes were not enough to cover expenses. Massive borrowing, deficit spending and an unsustainable national debt resulted.

Up to now, capitalism has been able to survive excessive taxation and regulation and still return a portion of its wealth to the tax man to finance our welfare society. The banking and auto industry bailouts are the beginning of a movement to nationalize our major wealth producing industries. The government has proven that everything it touches it cannot manage properly and will typically require unlimited subsidies to survive. With the banking, auto, health care and energy industries under government control in the future, these wealth creating industries face a bleak future. And as we move further toward European style socialism, our freedom and our individual and national wealth will gradually erode. The standard of living for the average person will continue to decline as our national wealth erodes.

Once we as a society nationalize and regulate the major wealth producing industries, the wealth will be eliminated from the national equation and we will have effectively “destroyed the goose that laid the golden eggs”. This will have negative long lasting effects on our economic and political freedom (they go hand-in-hand). This will also affect our individual and national wealth and equally important our national security. Our national wealth allows us to have a military that has been the envy of the world and one that is rarely challenged.

What does all this have to do with the Chrysler bailout you say? We as a society have reached an inflection point. We have begun a journey toward socialism. Do we allow our economy to move from a capitalist system to a socialist system? Do we allow the unions along with the government to force out private investors with little or no compensation? Do we remove risk taking and reward from the business equation? Do we eliminate individual responsibility from society and replace it with collectivism? Do we say that society is responsible for the individual and not the individual responsible for themselves? All these broad questions are being answered in the context of the Chrysler bailout.

The Chrysler bailout if executed as proposed by the Obama administration will continue the pattern of opportunistic takeovers by the Obama administration. In a few years we will have our banking, automobile, health care and energy industries owned and/or operated by the US government. Is this the change you wanted? Is this what you were hoping for? Do we want our children some day to ask how did we allow this to happen?

$3.5 trillion and manny being manny

To most people $3.5 trillion is an un-immanginable amount of money.  Hell, to 99% of Americans, $3.5 million is more money than they will ever see.  That is what makes Obama's proposed FY2010 budget so ridiculous.  At at total bill of about $3.5 trillion, it will most likely be well over 25% of the U.S.'s GDP.  In other words, for every dollar created through private enterprise and entreprenuership the federal government will be shelling out a quarter (maybe even a quarter and an extra nickle and few pennies depending on how quickly the economy recovers).  This may not seem like a huge event, as over the past few decade Americans have become all too used to government spending trillions of dollars they don't have.  But unlike past extravagances for the first time in our history a full 50% of the federal budget or roughly $1.75 trillion will be financed through defecit spending and borrowing.  Even Mr. Obama admits that under the current plan the federal debt will be doubled within 10 years.  

What I just can't seem to understand is the lack of outrage over such a proposal.  Now I can understand why old farts like the members of the AARP are so enamoured by Obama; they will be long dead before we ever have to pay off any of our debt.  However, young people, most of whom are Obama's biggest supporters, don't seem to care at all that the debt that the government is currently building up will eventually have to be paid for.  Whether it is in the form of higher taxes or inflated money, the next generations will be poorer because of excesses of toady.  And I'm not even complaining about what the money is being spent on, just the fact that the federal government is so irresponsible that it will jeopordize the futures of millions of Americans so that it can pay for its political expenses and pet projects of the present. 

On an unrelated note Manny Ramirez was suppsended 50 games for violating the MLB's performance enhancing drug policy.  HAHA.  Let's see the Dodgers win all their home games without a cheating Manny.  I can't say I saw this coming, but it is a present suprise.  I bet if they did a hair follicle tesy on Manny it would come back positive for every drug known to man, considering his hairs have to date back to win he was 10 years old.  I'm all for a Manny suspension.  Anything that makes it easier for the WORLD CHAMPION PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES easier to repeat as world champions is fine with me.

more i love money, pirates, president obama and the new gop

First and foremost, there was a brand new I Love Money 2 last night, and it was a good one.  For the first time in weeks it looks like Taylor Made is not in charge anymore.  Prancer, Myamee and Ice made an agreement to work together until the end, leaving Taylor Made and It high and dry.  Although they should be safe until Frenchy and Saphari are gone, unless they start winning some challenges and become paymaster, it may be

over soon for the two guys left on the show.  After 20 Pack got bounced last night (Myamee decided not to honor his deal with Taylor Made) there are no dominant male competitors left, so it really is anyone's game.  I'm excited to see what happens.

In other TV news, MTV has started up the Duel 2, and its season premier was awesome.  CT punched out a dude and the challenege was a rugby hybrid.  Not to mention there are no teams, so no one will be throwing challeneges.  I really like I Love Money, but the Duel 2 has more athletic competitors, hotter girls, more intense challenges and a better house, so it may be my new favorite reality TV program.  I'll be sure to comment on Wednesday's new episode.

Also in the news, Somali pirates recently attempted to highjack a U.S. merchant ship in the Indian Ocean near the Gulf of Aden.  Although unsuccessful, they did manage to take the ship's captain hostage for a few days.  However, the U.S. Navy was quickly on the scene, sending the U.S.S. Bainbridge, a destroyer which leads the U.S.'s antipiracy battle group, to deal with the situation.  As I'm sure you heard, during the negotiations the pirates became "hostile" and so orders were given to do what was neccessary to protect the captain.  Navy snipers shot and killed three pirates and another was captured.  The captain was unharmed.  

First, I want to praise Obama's handling of the situation.  Reportedly he gave the order to "do whatever was necessary" to maintain the safety of the captain if the situation grew more intense.  He trusted the military officials to make a good judgment and do their job, and that's exactly what they did.  The SEALs that attacked the pirates along with the Navy commanders on the Bainbridge are the best trained warfighters in the world, and Obama was right to allow them to handle the situation and not to take any options off the table.  He sent a message that the U.S. does not negotiate with terrorists/pirates and projected American strength thousands of miles away from our border.

The next question is what will the pirates in Somalia do next, and how will the U.S. react.  In the aftermath of the rescue mission, officials from several European countries condemned the U.S. action, stating that it will only prompt an escalation in the piracy.  Fuck that.  These are the same officials who think it is great that shipping companies are paying tens of millions of dollars in ransom to have their ships and crews returned unharmed.  Let's see.  If you were a pirate and you could attack one of two ships, the first bears the flag of country with a powerful navy that has already killed three of your colleagues and taken a fourth captive, while the other bears the flag of a country that will assuredly pay a hefty ransom for the ship without any type of military conflict, which would you choose?  International law regarding piracy is clear.  It is perfectly legal to use force to defend against pirates attacking a ship, and a sovereign nation is in the right to defend its nationals on the high seas, whether that means destroying the pirate presence or capturing them bring back to the home country for trial.  As far as I am concerned, shoot them all.  Its the only way to send the message that unlike Somalia, the U.S. is a nation of laws and that piracy is an abrogation of those laws which we take very seriously.  That message will be much more resounding than paying a ransom.  

Now although I think Obama handled this foreign crisis well, his lack of a plan for his domestic agenda has been disturbing.  For some reason, the Obama "change" mantra was a pop culture phenomenon, and even after his election it seems as though people still think he is this great savior, without really asking any tough questions.  Obama is cut more slack in both the media and by the mainstream public (by mainstream public I mean people who have no idea what politicians in Washington are doing, or what they do ever) than any major political figure since FDR.  Doesn't it scare you that the president of the United States has not articulated his philosophical direction for the country as whole besides the fact that we need change?  

Obama has never stated what his ultimate goals for the country are.  If I could ask him one question it would be, what do you want the United States too look like in 50 years, and how do your policies put us on the path to getting there?   I have a feeling that many Americans would not like his answer to that question.  He will take us down a path of less freedom to run our own lives, massive debt, and government controls over almost all aspects of our lives.  The problem is the Republicans are not forcing his hand.  They are not articulating an opposing view point on the issues Obama has decided to push.  

The GOP needs to return to its classical liberal roots.  Republicans need to put their foot down, say government is not the answer to all life's problems, and start providing free market solutions to the problems that face us today.  We are going down the unsustainable path of a entitlement society that will bankrupt the country.  The Government Accountability Office estimated last year that the federal government's unpaid obligations for social security and medicare is over $43 trillion.  That's over three times the countries GDP.  That is unsustainable.  And we are only moving down an exponential curve.  As the baby boomers retire and try to start cashing in on social security, the federal deficit is going to go to unheard of levels: upwards of 10-20% of GDP.  And that's not federal spending, just the deficit.  At that point government spending will be well over 50% of GDP.  

Republicans need to stand up now and say that the American people won't stand for it.  We are turning into a society where 50% of the population pays no income tax and the top 10% pay over 75% of the tax burden.  And its going to get worse.  We need to go back to where Americans relied on themselves, and not the government to run their lives.  The american dream has always been that if you work hard you can move up in the world.  That's what relying on a market economy does.  It rewards hard work, which is what our society is all about.

This is the sickest picture ever:

another sad day

I have recently heard the sad news that Harry Kalas, THE voice of the Phillies since 1971, has died today.  I am in shock.  I have been following the Phils for as long as I can remember, and whether I was watching them on TV or listening to them on the radio, Harry was always there to bring me the play-by-play in his perfect baritone voice.  No one ever had a bad thing to say about Harry, and his easy going, down-to-earth personality and demeanor made me feel good just listening to him, without ever actually meeting the man.  I just want to wish his family the best, and Harry you won't be forgotten.  Although it is rather bittersweet, I do feel good that Harry got to see and broadcast a second world championship for the Phils in his final full season.  Harry, you will be missed.

ESPN STORY

Philadelphia Inquirer Coverage

bye bye buckwild and tax shelters. hello world champion philadelphia phillies

First of all, sorry for the delay in between my last post and this one. I have been golfing a lot (since I'm not going to be able to go as much as it gets closer to finals) and I have a draft of a 30 page term paper due next Monday, so I have been a little busy. I do want to comment on a couple of recent events though. First, there was last night's episode of I Love Money. Also, I want to discuss all that happened (or actually what didn't happen) at last week's meeting of the G-20 nations. Lastly, I want to welcome back the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies, and try to put together a quick preview of their season and try to preview the rest of baseball.

Well, I am very happy that Becky Buckwild got kicked off I Love Money last night. With Taylor Made's alliance in full control of the game at this point, it was inevitable that she would be going home at some point, but I'm glad it was sooner rather than later. Becky was thoroughly annoying all season, not to mention she is just plain gross to look at. I also hated her because she was the number one challenege thrower when there were still teams, which definitely made the game less interesting to watch. At this point I really think its anyones game, and I think 20 Pack's move to accept Taylor Made's deal and send home Buckwild was very smart on his part. He is by far the most athletic person left, and if he can win either next week's or the following week's challenge, I think he has a good shot at stealing a couple people from Taylor Made's alliance and making it to the end. We will see. If I had to handicap the race for the $250k at this point (I'm not doing odds, just picking favorites), I think Prancer is the favorite, Ice is second, Myamee is third, 20 Pack is fourth and Taylor Made is fifth. I really think Taylor Made, despite being the leader of the largest alliance, I too un-athletic to win, and eventually someone will turn on him.

Next, President Obama addressed the leaders of the other G-20 nations last week, and despite the tremendous pressure that is being put on him to help turn the global economy around, he really didn't do much (which I am very happy about). His main thesis in the speech is that the global community should attempt to crack down on tax havens, many of which are located in small islands, especially in the Caribbean. According to Obama, these countries cost governments all around the world billions of dollars a year. If the global community does not work together to stop them, then governments all around the world will have their efforts to fix their own economies undermined.

What bull shit. Do you know what I think tax havens real function is? To provide low tax competition to big tax, socialist governments all over the world. The only true effect of eliminating these tax havens would be for the average global tax rate to go up, lowering the incentive for investment, slowing growth even further, and lower the average standard of living in the world. No one wants a large percentage of their income to go to the government, especially when Obama's tax plan will have the top tax payers paying well over 50% of their income to federal and state taxes. Tax havens serve as a check on governments who raise taxes too high. If their rates grow out of control, those who wish to avoid the tax burden will simply move their assets to a tax haven. Rather than trying to compete with the very reason that the countries are attractive to investors and other entrepreneurs, the G-20 just demagogues these countries and try to make them illegal. Obviously, they think its a competition that they couldn't win. In times of economic downturn, rather than trying to eliminate the from competition countries that are still doing ok because of their belief in the free market, maybe the G-20 countries should try to emulate what makes them successful. However, that won't fit their socialist agenda.

Finally, the World Champion Phillies (yes I am going to write WORLD CHAMPIONS as many times as I possibly can) opened up play against the Braves on Sunday night. Although they lost 4-1, it is only one game, and there are 161 to go. They will be fine. Our lineup is potent, but we faced a tough sinkerballer in Derek Lowe. The Phils have always struggled against sinkerballers, and if you watched you saw that they started hitting as soon as Lowe got out of the game. But regardless of how they played the other night, I feel really good about this Phillies team. Obviously they lost their best right handed bat, and one of the team's leaders in Bat "The Bat" Burrell, but this is a resilient team, and they will be able to move on with Burrell in the clubhouse. What really struck me was how many Phillies lost weight in the off season. Both Ryan Howard and Brett Myers looked twenty pounds lighter. Right now it may not look like a good thing. Howard went 0-4, and Myers allowed four runs through six innings, all from three home runs. But I think it will be good for both of them. I'm always in favor of pro athletes getting in better shape in the off season, and that's what they both did. Howard will come around, and hopefully his off season conditioning will lead to a faster start. And despite the fact that I was screaming profanities at Brett Myers all night on Sunday, he really didn't pitch that bad. He had 3-4 mistake pitches, and the Braves made him pay on every one. Other than that, he didn't let a Braves' runner reach third base.

Looking at this team as a whole, I think the key to the offense is going to be two out fielders, Jayson Werth and Shane Victorino. These are going to be our only two bats who will be in the middle part of the lineup who can bat right handed (Victorino is a switch hitter). With Burrell's departure and the signing of Raul Ibanez, this team doesn't have a true power bat from the right size. I think Werth is very capable at filling that role, as he showed at times last season.

However, the key to the season, as it always is, is pitching. I think Cole Hamels will compete for a Cy Young this year after getting in the national spotlight when he won the World Series MVP. I think Myers will recover, and have a solid year because his stuff is just so nasty, and he just needs to get his head straight. Jaime Moyer is my hero, and he will be a very adequate number 3. The bullpen will be solid once we get back J.C. Romero, as we have everyone back from a great bullpen from last year. The real questions are the 4 and 5 starters. Joe Blanton and Chan Ho Park? Really? Not that impressive and we need at least one of them to win 12 games. If the both get to double digits, we win the division easy.

Well below are my predictions for the season. I will pick my MVPs, ROYs, Cy Young Winners, Division Winners, Wild Card Winners, and who will beat who in the playoffs (seed in parentheses). I would be very interested to read comments with other people predictions. Well here they are:

NL

MVP: Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals
ROY: Cameron Maybin, Florida Marlins
Cy Young: Cole Hamels, Philadelphia Phillies
East: Philadelphia Phillies (2)
Central: Chicago Cubs (1)
West: LA Dodgers (3)
Wild Card: NY Mets (4)

NL Championship: Phillies v. Mets

AL

MVP: Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers
ROY: David Price, Tampa Bay Rays
Cy Young: Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays
East: Tampa Bay Rays (1)
Central: Minnesota Twins (3)
West: LA Angels of Anaheim (2)
Wild Card: NY Yankees (4)

AL Championship: Angels v. Rays

WORLD SERIES: PHILLIES over Angels

Well, the current WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS have to be the favorites, right?

Ramblings

I don't really feel like putting together a coherent article right now, so I am just going to ramble for a little bit. This is basically my stream of consciousness during any given day.

How is it that A Rod can get away with admitting to using steroids from 2001-2003 (he had sick numbers all three years and won the A.L. MVP in 2003), and Phillies reliever J.C. Romero gets suspended for 50 games to start the 2009 season for taking a supplement he bought at GNC? Romero told Phillies trainers about it as soon as he bought it, they Ok'd it, and he was repeatedly told by player's association officials that anything bought OTC in the U.S. was fine. Does this make sense? I know that is the way it is, and I'm not even that pissed about A Rod. I'm just pissed the Phils are gonna to have to defend their title the first half of the season without a sick left-handed, set-up man.

George's Cafe sucks. It's over-priced, and although the hippies do provide good service, the selection of food other than the breakfast tacos blows. For a better lunch, I would recommend the Texas Expresso Cafe.

I had a frito pie for the first time ever on Sunday night. Why do they not have those things up North? One of the most delicious things I've ever eaten.

I'm pretty sure Keystone Light orange cans do not exist. I must have gone through 50 24-packs and never found one.

Leilene may have been the most manipulated person on any VH1 show, EVER. Throughout I Love Money 2, people would yell at her, and she would immediately cave and do what ever they wanted. It is fitting that she got kicked off by one of the people she thought was her best friend (Safari). She may be the biggest pushover in america.

Speaking of reality tv on VH1, I may be done with tool academy. Now that Tommy's gone, the rest of the contestants really suck. You have a little chump from jersey with a girlfriend whose got 50 lbs on him, a dude that goes by Matsuflex who hasn't ever had sex with his girlfriend, and a guy who originally came on the show with two girlfriends and finds it necessary to say dude and yell all the time. Weak.

I'm really hungry. I could go for a frito pie right now.

I recently had a small debate over which receiver would rather have on the Eagles: Anquan Boldin or T.J. Houshmandzadeh. I love T.J. but I had to go with Anquan. He is big, physical and 5 years younger. I just love the flexibility he gives your team. He is a threat on quick screens, crossing routes, and deep over the middle. He is exactly the type of physical receiver the Eagles need.

Old people are ruining/bankrupting the United States. Greatest generation my ass. So what did they do? They won WWII and elected the officials who have ballooned the size of the federal government. What's so great about that. Everyone hates Nazis, and they just left tremendous amounts of debt for their grandchildren to pay off. And now they want more and more money through social security and medicare. And they can't drive. And they walk slow. Ruining america.

I don't know what to do about my middle irons. My swing has been to armsy lately, causing a bit of a hook, so I have been trying to drop my hands a little bit. My friend Matt says I may need to rework my grip. Suggestions appreciated.

Dell computers are really cool. Look what you can do with the webcam. You should buy a dell. Call 1-800-761-3355 today!

If I could choose five athletes to spend one day with they would be Tiger Woods, Ocho Cinco, Pat Burrell, Brian Dawkins, and Shane Victorino.

I think the Texans red alternate jersey may be my new favorite NFL jersey. My least favorite is the Cowboys white.

That's about all I got.

A Couple of Things

Over the past few days there have been several noteworthy events that I want to quickly comment on. First and most importantly, the Phillies resigned Ryan Howard to a 3 year $54 million deal. This deal buys out the rest of Howard's arbitration years, keeping him a Phillie until the end of the 2011 season. I love this move. Howard is THE premier power hitter in the game today. He led the league in home runs and rbis last season and finished second in the MVP voting. After Howard won the largest arbitration contract in the history of league ($10 million for last season), there was all kind of talk about how bitter this year's round of arbitration would be. Well now we don't have to worry about those talks anymore. Personally I would have loved to see the Phils lock Howard up in an even longer deal, but I can live with three years. I don't care what all the haters say about Howard's strikeouts because the large number of them isn't all that important for a slugger like him. He is paid to hit the long ball and drive in runs with runners in scoring position. He does that better than anyone in the league, so what if he strikes out sometimes. You gotta swing hard to hit it far, and who cares if Howard doesn't move the runners with less than two outs. That's not his job. And hell, a strikeout is better than a double play.

This was one of the few bright spots in the current World Series champions off season. I hated the Raul Ibanez signing. We let one of my favorite Phils, Pat Burrell, go, and in exchange we signed a much older player, and he signed for more money and years than Burrell agreed to with the Rays. Not to mention we lost our most powerful right handed bat in a left heavy lineup and replaced him with a lefty. And worse of all, we didn't offer Burrell arbitration so even though we lose a pick in the 2009 draft for signing Ibanez (Type A free agent), we don't get one back for losing Burrell. Not a great start to the Amaro era.

Lastly, I would like to write a few paragraphs mourning the loss of the Blind Pig. For those who don't frequent the Austin bar scene, the Blind Pig is one of Austin's most popular bars on 6th Street and unfortunately it burned down early Friday morning. When I first moved to Austin, the Blind Pig was my first bar on sixth street, and it was most likely the bar I frequented most often when I was downtown. The only people I don't feel bad for are the bouncers. I hope this causes some of them to lose their jobs. They are assholes. Even my buddy Mark, who has only been to Austin once, remembered the Blind Pig fondly and was devastated (ok maybe not devastated) to hear the news. Now I'm sure this won't be the end of the Blind Pig, as it will surely be reopened within a month or two, perhaps even with a few renovations, but it is still a big loss for downtown Austin. That's all I got for now.