Main Exhibits

What's the best trade show booth? I am going to be exhibiting at a trade show in Chicago and I need to buy a new booth. Does anyone have any recommendations? thanks

I am looking for a trade show specializing in Wine accessories in the Middwest - KC Minneapolis or chicago? Date March - April - May

Chicago Bulls Trade (Spinoff of Laker/Bulls suggested trade recently)? So yeah ESPN.com has a trade machine.. this thread is for idea's for the bulls.. I recently done this one regarding a recent statement from an article i read in the paper about a Wallace for Kwame/Radmnovich, but added another team.. What do you think? We lose Wallace, Thomas, Hinrich, Krypwhatever.. We GAIN: Gasol, Conley (from memphis), Radmon and Kwame Brown (yes i know, but his contract expires this year and will free up 9 MIL for our salary cap.... Below is a link showing the trade works ;] http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=1981~2435~3032~885~981~1016~3195~996&teams=29~29~29~13~4~4~4~4&te=&cash=29:4 Lineup PG- Conley - Du SG- Sef - Gordon SF- Deng - Noc - Rad PF- Noah/Gasol - Smith - Rad C - Noah/Gasol - Gray - Brown Also if you have better trade suggestions (Realistic please) please post the trademachine link with it! (Reply to people) Grn - the lakers would be losing 2 mediocre players and getting wallace a natural PF. him with bynum (when hes healtyh and kobe) wow.. they would want him because if wallace wants to play he's a GREAT defensive player. Phil jackson woul dhave his jordan (in kobe) his rodman (in wallace) . chicago is getting rid of wallace who isnt working out getting someone who's contract expires and will free up 9mil . and a lebron trade that would be awesome, but i dont see cleveland doing that. + i think du would be better starting than seph. but thats just me.

What should I wear to a Fashion Trade Show? I am going to the Stylemax show at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago this weekend. It will be booths with all sorts of different fashion lines represented. I have never been before... what should I wear? Casual? Dressy? I'm not sure!

which is better; the auto show in detroit, philly or chicago? i wanna surprise hubby with tix, but i want to take him to the best one. or should i just try to find a video game conference/trade show to take him to?

When something is free, do you go out of your way to get it? At a manufacturing trade show in Chicago once, I was astounded at how people wearing suits waited in line for a key chain or some dang thing just because it was free.

Who agrees that the miami and chicago game on tv should be replaced with teletubbies tv show? man this gmae is gonna be so boring, but the game after this one is gonna be awesome! dallas vs phoenix, wish shaq and kidd owuld be playing but the return of shaq is unknown and george blocked that trade that wouldve sent kidd to dallas F*** DEVEAN GEORGE F*** YOU

Do the people of Chicago know something the rest of the country should? I just returned from a business trip in Chicago. Downtown, rush hour on the Jack Ryan/Chicago prkw, I saw one bumper sticker for Obama. I asked about this to quite a few very diverse group of people (medical convention trade show) and the consensus I got from all but one person is that Obama is not liked. The word hate was used quite a bit. One person told me that "the only car that would have one is Oprah's" and though I do not agree with the reason "his house has 24 hr guard to prevent vandals, not racist, I am told, but those who "know" him and "his commie friends". This is what I was told and as much as I do not want him elected I found this surprising. No yard signs, billboards, etc. What in your opinion does this say about Obama? Why has the media not reported this? (they found "dirt" on Palin pretty quick) Are you as surprised as I was by this information? No read the question and I asked this question all over resturants, gas stations etc. not to mention the hotel over 500 people just at the convention. And their were many dems that will not vote for him from Chicago. again my observations over 5 days. Planet: I understand that, Kalamazoo 2 weeks ago there are nothing but Obama signs up around the city, 5 to 10 miles out McCain. But this still does not give substance to your reasoning, what I saw and heard is beyond people "keeping mum". And doctors should be afraid of universal health care, many of the Canadian doctors and patients I speak with have nothing positive to say about it and they have had it long enough to know. Many Canadian Health personal practice in the US because of the flaws in the Canadian system, this from them. "the people I know who live here" Exactly, obviously you have only 3 conservative friends. I knew no one. And your poll is from the state I only can speak on the drive from Ann Arbor and the time I was in and around Chicago. I saw more Obama support in Mich. and Ind. than in Ill.

Who thinks this trade would happen? Chicago has shown tramendous intrest in Collison and there was talk about trading gordon for collison and someone, now since it is coming up on free agent signing seattle coul deal lewis http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=1978~469~99~2381&teams=4~4~25~25

CTA Blue line from O'Hare to McCormick Place - Safety?,Security?, Clean? Hi: I will be traveling to Chicago for a trade show (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday in April) and was wondering about the public tranportation there. I hate to rent a car for 3 days not ever having been there before. $12 for a 3 day pass sounds good, but how are the trains & buses on travel time, safety, security, cleanliness, etc.? Where should I go on my free (???) time for some great Chicago food at a budget (under $25) price? I will need to pick up a souvenier for my 12 year old son and something nice for my wife and daughter. Any suggestions? Thanks and I look forward to visiting!!!

Fed Funds Futures Rate on CBOT? When you see the the CBOT listing the Fed Funds Futures Rate pricing in a 50 bp increase. How do you figure this out from the CBOT data? "Futures on the Chicago Board of Trade showed a 58 percent chance yesterday the Fed will raise its 2 percent target rate for overnight lending between banks by at least a quarter point at its Aug. 5 meeting, compared with 32 percent the previous day. The contracts showed a 96 percent chance the Fed will increase the rate by December, up from 60 percent odds a week ago." Bloomberg

How about this trade? http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=356~2754~454&teams=22~4~4&te=&cash= The way I see it.... Chicago will get a young big man in Channing Frye. He is a good, young player (25 y/o) with good size. He is Bigger than Tyrus Thomas (Channing is 6'11'' 248 Tyrus is 6'9'' 215) It is just hard for Frye to find minutes in Portland because of Lamarcus Aldridge who ironically was drafted by Chicago and traded to Portland for Tyrus Thomas who to this point has yet to show any flashes of being a great player while Aldridge is playing like an All-Star. Chicago PG Rose 6-3 190 SG Thabo Stefalosha 6-5 215 SF Deng 6-8 220 PF Frye 6-11-248 C Aaron Gray 7-0 270 bench rotation G - Ben Gordon F - Andres Nocioni F/C Drew Gooden A Solid starting five with 3 main benc players who can come in for ether position (Gordon can play either guard possition, Nocioni can play either forward position and Gooden can play PF or C) Portland gets a good perimeter defender and another player who can create a shot for himself on the perimiter. PG Steve Blake SG Larry Hughes SF Brandon Roy PF Lamarcus Aldridge C Greg Oden I think this will help Portland become a better defensive team with Hughes being able to play the oposing teams best perimiter player, keeping Brandon Roy from having to expend as much energy chasing around players like Kobe and Wade, Ginobli... the list goes on. Larry Hughes can also play 3 positions on both offense and defense, he can guard PG's SG's and SF''s. Hughes adding perimiter defense will keep teams from easily penetrating to the lane and getting Greg Oden in early foul trouble and this will allow him to play more minutes. I would start Frye but because Gooden can really play all 3 front court positions I would bring him off the bench, he would get more minutes than Frye to the second response. I don't like ROY @ SF too much myself but I think that Frye could be a 15pt 8reb guy if he plays 30 minutes a night. Kaeey has a big contract and he can help Portland compete right now and the Bulls are about 3 years away from being a contender in the east...they way I see it but good response

What do you think of these three trades for Chicago? http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=1711~3028~3032~1727&teams=21~21~21~4&te=&cash= The Bulls also send their 09 first round pick to the suns in this trade. This has been rumored to be the frontrunning trade for Amare Stoudamire. It seems to make sense for both teams. Tyrus Thomas is really coming on strong now, and could thrive with a pg like Steve Nash. Sefalosha has shown flashes of being a great role player if given the minutes, and Gooden's contract expires this year. The Suns get everything they want, and for the Bulls it's a no brainer. Next Step: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=984~2381~3224~741~3030&teams=4~3~3~3~3&te=&cash= Tyson Chandler has also been rumored to be on the block. This trade would be accepted for sure by the Hornets. They get a very competent and young replacement for Chandler in Noah, and a huge upgrade at the shooting guard spot, as Gordon would be an excellent complement to Paul. Since Gordon would get a guarenteed starting spot, he would accept this trade as well (early bird option allows him to block a trade). Also, New Orleans gets rid of Chandler's big contract while gaining 2 expiring contracts. The Bulls give up a lot, but get a perfect complement at the center spot to Stoudamire. A defensive minded center and an offensive minded power forward would make a terrific frontcourt duo. The next and final step: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=356~3197~3452~808~851&teams=27~4~4~4~4&te=&cash= Washington has been interested in acquiring Hughes since before the season started, and apparently the talks have re-opened lately. In return for Hughes, the Wizards give up two overpaid, oft-injured players in Thomas and Stevenson, and two young players who don't get any playing time and aren't really in the teams future plans: McGee barely gets playing time now, with Blatche and Haywood out. So, when Blatche comes back, he and Pecherov will share the minutes until Haywood's return when even Pecherov will barely play. Crittenton will never see much playing time as when Arenus returns, it will be Arenus, James, and Dixon, leaving little to no time for Crittenton to play. The Bulls would be a completely made over team and a new starting lineup would look like this: Rose, Hinrich, Deng, Stoudamire, Chandler. Then they would have Crittenton, Stevenson, Nocioni, Mcgee, and Gray coming off the bench.... That would be a starting five aged 20, 27, 23, 26, and 26. That is a young and promising starting 5 with an even younger bench of (early 20's), 27, 29, 21, and 22ish. They would be contenders for years to come with that lineup, but do still have some cap space coming in 2010 when Thomas' and Stevenson's contracts come off the books. I know I wrote a lot, but what do you think of these trades? Which one is the weakest and how could they be improved? Johnny and Jeremy- The Bulls would want Tyson back because he's a perfect compliment to Stoudamire. You have to look at the whole picture.

Thank you Chicago Bulls? For, giving my Knicks Chris Duhon. He is the perfect fit for this system and has an all-around game and is one of the only defenders we have. We do need to get him help @ point though cause all those minutes took a toll on him down the stretch of the season and Nate Robinson is a moron in it's most simplest terms. Unlike, CD he is a terrible defender and he does not know how to orchestrate an offense,which is bad for a player of his stature being that hemakes too many mental mistakes to be a PG and is too short to be a SG. His inability to make smart and crisp plays and make boneheaded ones instead during the most crutial of times because he likes to force the action shows the lack of basketball IQin his game and the fact that he shoots at a low % taking 18 + attempts a game does not help his case. While, Hughes is a serviceable combo guard for nowhe is also inconsistent and his contract will not be in NY passed it's expiration cause of the 2010 FA aspirations, so CD needs help, but thanks again Chicago he is a blessing in disguise. I know you let him go cause he was an off-court menace partying up a lot and it freed up space for Rose todo his think,which he has done by the way quite impressive. However, the main reason you made that move was to keep Thabo Sefolosha cause he seemed to be a good player he was, but you let him go regardless - which makes letting go CD foolish after the year he had where he played D.Rose great this year mano 2 mano. Getting rid of Hughes was alright for both of us he is serviceable for now and his contract will do us wonders.While Thomas's contractcan help you out and it may keep Hinrich w.Rose. Hinrich is a great player who has posted D.Rose #'s for most of his career except for last year's poor showing and this year being regulated to the bench. If it was me I would let free agent Gordon walk this summer cause yes he is clutch and can score,but can not create his own offense and works under great passers, like Rose and Hinrich for most of his career. He reminds me of Nate in that he is a poor FG shooter shooting just above 40% for his career and is 1 dimensional. Salmons is much better and w. Rose gone Deng and Salmons can be inserted together w.Hinrich at SG he can give offense,passing ability, and tough d. To me Hinrich is the 2nd best PG in the NBA after Billups on the defensive end. PG. ROSE SG. HINRICH SF. SALMONS PF. DENG C. TYRUS THOMAS Also,what gives w.Knicks-Bulls franchise and trades over the years. You have killed us w. trades overthe years. 1999: Knicks failed to takeopportunity to draftRon Artest and then the next pick in the draft after NY, Chicago takes him and we are stuck w. Frederic Weis We exchanged the services of rugged,physical,and talented big Charles Oakley for years. You gave us the fat contract in equally fat merely offense no rebounding, d,and lack passion big in Eddy Curry for Antonio Davis, Tim Thomas,and Michael Sweetney.Putting us in salary cap woes. And finally now you decide to help us and give us CD and Hughes(for now).

How about this trade- Bulls/Clips? After the trade for Zack Randolph, the Clippers have one more really talented big man than the can use. Camby is a defensive beast and is averaging 9 and 9 with at least around 2 blocks a game in like 25 minutes. That's great in that amount of minutes. Randolph has been averaging 20 plus and 12 a game which is beastly, and Kaman is a solid double double guy. To me, it seems like Kaman is the logical answer to be traded as he and Randolph kind of duplicate eachother. It's been noted that the clippers really want to add a good wing player, I guess to back up Al Thornton. Here's a trade I would like to see that would help both teams: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=2456~3028~1982&teams=12~12~4&te=&cash= Bulls: Yes, they lose two good bench players who help their team a lot, but given their depth, this shouldn't do them in. On the other hand, the upside is too great. They finally get the true center they need who also has a low post game. With Kaman going to work in the middle, it would open up the inside outside game with Gordon, Deng, Hughes, Hinrich (when he comes back), and even Rose, who is showing increased jumpshooting. He would also creat quite a dynamic duo with Rose, and a potential big 3 with Deng added. Projected lineup: Rose, Gordon, Deng, Gooden, Kaman, with Hinrich (again, when he comes back), Hughes, Thomas, Noah, and Gray. That team would become immediate challengers in the east. Clippers: They clear up the space they need to have Camby and Randolph dominate on the inside, and get two very valuable pieces to help the team. Nocioni is a straight hustle guy, he's going to give you 110% when he's on the floor and would fit in great as a 6th man to come in for Thornton, Randolph, or even Camby (then Randolph can slide to the center spot). He is deadly from 3 point range, a good defender, and a guy who will immediately be a fan favorite. His numbers would also improve because he would definitely get more playing time than he is in the crowded Chicago frontcourt. Sefalosha is a player of the future. He is a lockdown defender, can play the 2 or 3 (even the 1 or the 4 in a pinch), and is still very young. He has also shown flashes of an offensive game and with time and consistant minutes could be very productive on that end of the floor as well. His stats really don't do him justice as he does a lot of the intangibles and doesn't get as many minutes as he deserves. Both Noch and Sefalosha fit the bill for the exact player the Clips are looking for: a good swing man. Noch has the offense and the intensity and Sefalosha has the defense and the potential (just look at his PER, it's well above what most guys his age with his playing time are rated.) All in all, I think this trade would really benefit both teams. What do you think?

How about this Bulls-Clippers trade? After the trade for Zack Randolph, the Clippers have one more really talented big man than the can use. Camby is a defensive beast and is averaging 9 and 9 with at least around 2 blocks a game in like 25 minutes. That's great in that amount of minutes. Randolph has been averaging 20 plus and 12 a game which is beastly, and Kaman is a solid double double guy. To me, it seems like Kaman is the logical answer to be traded as he and Randolph kind of duplicate eachother. It's been noted that the clippers really want to add a good wing player, I guess to back up Al Thornton. Here's a trade I would like to see that would help both teams: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/tr... Bulls: Yes, they lose two good bench players who help their team a lot, but given their depth, this shouldn't do them in. On the other hand, the upside is too great. They finally get the true center they need who also has a low post game. With Kaman going to work in the middle, it would open up the inside outside game with Gordon, Deng, Hughes, Hinrich (when he comes back), and even Rose, who is showing increased jumpshooting. He would also creat quite a dynamic duo with Rose, and a potential big 3 with Deng added. Projected lineup: Rose, Gordon, Deng, Gooden, Kaman, with Hinrich (again, when he comes back), Hughes, Thomas, Noah, and Gray. That team would become immediate challengers in the east. Clippers: They clear up the space they need to have Camby and Randolph dominate on the inside, and get two very valuable pieces to help the team. Nocioni is a straight hustle guy, he's going to give you 110% when he's on the floor and would fit in great as a 6th man to come in for Thornton, Randolph, or even Camby (then Randolph can slide to the center spot). He is deadly from 3 point range, a good defender, and a guy who will immediately be a fan favorite. His numbers would also improve because he would definitely get more playing time than he is in the crowded Chicago frontcourt. Sefalosha is a player of the future. He is a lockdown defender, can play the 2 or 3 (even the 1 or the 4 in a pinch), and is still very young. He has also shown flashes of an offensive game and with time and consistant minutes could be very productive on that end of the floor as well. His stats really don't do him justice as he does a lot of the intangibles and doesn't get as many minutes as he deserves. Both Noch and Sefalosha fit the bill for the exact player the Clips are looking for: a good swing man. Noch has the offense and the intensity and Sefalosha has the defense and the potential (just look at his PER, it's well above what most guys his age with his playing time are rated.) All in all, I think this trade would really benefit both teams. What do you think? Here, the link didn't seem to work for some reason- Hope this one does. http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=2456~3028~1982&teams=12~12~4&te=&cash=

How's this 3 team trade for this off season? http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=pk6gzr *THE BULLS ALSO SIGN AND TRADE BEN GORDON, SENDING HIM TO THE TORONTO RAPTORS- THIS WILL BALANCE THE CAP SPACE* Minnesota also may send a draft pick to the Bulls if necessary. Chicago: Get the big man to put next to Derrick Rose in Bosh. While they lose Hinrich and Thomas, gordon would likely leave in free agency anyways so that is no huge loss. Hinrich is expensive for a 6th man and somewhat replaceable, and Thomas is replaceable b/c he plays the same position as Bosh. Also add Mike Miller to give them a big guard or sf off the bench behind salmons and deng, while his contract still expires in a year. Lineup: Rose, Salmons, Deng, Bosh, Noah, with Miller, 2-3 draft picks, and Tim Thomas, and Brad miller off the bench. Thats a potential championship team. Minnesota: Gain a much needed veteran and floor leader in Hinrich while only losing 2 bench players in Brewer and Miller. Basically a no-brainer for them. Toronto: Gets youth and proven talent for their star to start over. Brewer is 23 and Thomas is 22. Gordon is a proven scorer at the 2 guard and is actually only 26 as well. Thomas has shown flashes of brilliance and with playing time could become an allstar. Brewer is a defensive ace and drew comparisons to Scottie Pippen coming into the league (that's a little optimistic but at 23 he could still be a very complete player.) They are the biggest question mark, but I think that with a proven 20ppg scorer and 2 very young high potential players, they are getting good value for a player that may leave in a year and lead the team to only 33 wins last season. I think it's a pretty fair all-around trade, what do you think?

How's this 3 team trade for this offseason? http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=pk6gzr *THE BULLS ALSO SIGN AND TRADE BEN GORDON, SENDING HIM TO THE TORONTO RAPTORS- THIS WILL BALANCE THE CAP SPACE* Minnesota also may send a draft pick to the Bulls if necessary. Chicago: Get the big man to put next to Derrick Rose in Bosh. While they lose Hinrich and Thomas, gordon would likely leave in free agency anyways so that is no huge loss. Hinrich is expensive for a 6th man and somewhat replaceable, and Thomas is replaceable b/c he plays the same position as Bosh. Also add Mike Miller to give them a big guard or sf off the bench behind salmons and deng, while his contract still expires in a year. Lineup: Rose, Salmons, Deng, Bosh, Noah, with Miller, 2-3 draft picks, and Tim Thomas, and Brad miller off the bench. Thats a potential championship team. Minnesota: Gain a much needed veteran and floor leader in Hinrich while only losing 2 bench players in Brewer and Miller. Basically a no-brainer for them. Toronto: Gets youth and proven talent for their star to start over. Brewer is 23 and Thomas is 22. Gordon is a proven scorer at the 2 guard and is actually only 26 as well. Thomas has shown flashes of brilliance and with playing time could become an allstar. Brewer is a defensive ace and drew comparisons to Scottie Pippen coming into the league (that's a little optimistic but at 23 he could still be a very complete player.) They are the biggest question mark, but I think that with a proven 20ppg scorer and 2 very young high potential players, they are getting good value for a player that may leave in a year and lead the team to only 33 wins last season. I think it's a pretty fair all-around trade, what do you think?

why does the white sox owner scream poverty? the white sox play in chicago. that alone should make them money, but he trys to trade his hig salary players, wants more revenue sharing and a salary cap. it's just plain dumb on why he owns a team. if he can get enough money out of chicago thats his problem he shouldn't be trying to take other peoples money. at forbes the white sox are valued well below the cubs it just shows how bad that owner is and how he is a cheapskate. would like to know how the white sox are valued so low,i'm not from chicago but maybe someone who is can tell me why the cubs are better. a source of jerry screaming about it. http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=jp-revenue120506&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

HELP ME PLEASE RIGHT NOW? Senator Bill Nelson of Florida has Proposed a FEDERAL BAN on ALL Pythons. S373 is a Very Simple Bill that calls for no Appropriations (funding). That makes it Dangerous because it would be so easy to pass without any real consideration. We must take Action NOW to try and STOP this Bill from passing as written. What it is: S373 is a Federal Ban that would effect ALL pythons in EVERY State. This Bill is an effort to bypass the established process of 'Rule Change' to the Injurious Wildlife List of the Lacey Act that was initiated by the South Florida Water Management District last year. This process is moving into it's second year and is ongoing. USARK warned last April at the 'Herp Summit' in Chicago that a political move was afoot to go around the normal 'Rule Change' process. Although ridiculed by some as "Not Possible", S373 proves that prediction true. This is an issue regarding Burmese Pythons living feral in South Florida. No other species. No where else. Other pythons have nothing to do with feral populations of Burmese Pythons in South Florida. S373 has been moved into the Water & Wildlife Sub- Committee. It will be heard there and if given a favorable rating move back to the full Environment & Public Works Committee. (see contact info below) What it isn't: This is NOT HR669 the other Federal Bill that we have been campaigning against. There is NO Scientific Evidence to support the premise that passing S373 will have any impact whatsoever on the Burmese Python situation that is confined to the Southern tip of Florida. There is absolutely NO Evidence of any kind to support that this is a problem anywhere outside of South Florida. What USARK is doing: USARK is working with Scientists on the ground in South Florida and throughout the SE to understand the real dynamics of what has occurred with the Burmese Python. Not the hype but the Hard Facts. During their annual conference South Eastern Partners in Amphibian & Reptile Conservation (SE PARC) established an Invasive Species Task Force to look into these questions. ALL of the Best Minds on the Subject from all the top universities and government agencies were on hand. Dr. Warren Booth, PhD Invasive Species Biologist & Andrew Wyatt, both of USARK, played a leadership role in the formation of the Task Force. Shawn Heflick is leading USARK's participation in a PBS Documentary arranged by Tom Crutchfield/ Shawn Heflick and Hosted by Nigel Marven to publicize the truth behind the Burmese Python & other potential Invasive Herps in South Florida. USARK is not only working chest deep in the Everglades, but we are actively working to influence key personnel in the US House and Senate, as well as the National Park Service and the US Fish & Wildlife Service. From the Everglades to Washington DC we are working hard on behalf of our community and industry to assure that if any legislation is passed, it will be fair and in the best interests of the Herp Community. We have No other conflicting allegiances. USARK has introduced State Legislation including Non- Release & Escape Prevention provisions providing safety measures at the State level. What Can You Do Today to STOP S373? Join USARK's Reptile Nation!There is Strength in Numbers... Protect Your Rights! Call, write, email & fax the Sponsor and the Sub-Committee for S373. (contact info & sample letter below) Be Polite & Professional. If you can't do this don't bother because it will damage our efforts. ***Forward this to everyone on your email list, post it on every forum/ social networking site. When you have finished with the steps above, send an email to senate373@yahoo.com with 'No on S373' in the Subject Line so that USARK can track the number of responses. Sample Letter (cut & paste): Subject: NO on S373 I oppose S373 as written. The Burmese Python issue is a South Florida issue not a National one. There is No credible evidence to show that these animals can exist north of Lake Okeechobee. Many different species of Pythons have been imported into the US over the last 50 years. The only pythons that have been established have been Burmese Pythons, but only in South Florida; no where else. No evidence exists anywhere to suggest that Banning all Pythons will have any positive impact on the effected area in the southern tip of Florida. Banning all pythons nationwide would have a devastating effect on an already troubled economy. It would destroy thousands of hardworking American families and small businesses. Not just the breeders and dealers but hobbyists, dry goods, equipment manufacturers, food providers, shippers, trade shows, hotels and restaurants. To overlook the crushing blow this would have to an entire segment of the economy is irresponsible. (add what S373 would mean to you and your family) Sincerely, (signature line) Contacts: Senator Bill Nelson 716 Senate Hart Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Phone: 202-224-5274 Fax: 202-228-2183 http://billnelson.senate

Is Brett Favre heading to the Ravens? I just heard somebody say this on NFL Live (the ESPN show). Obviously, the Ravens need a QB to join San Diego, Indy, and New England as AFC favorites. Of course, Favre is not going to Minnesota or Chicago, so where else is there that the Packers could trade Favre? Is he going to end up a Raven?

Question about transportation from Midway Airport to McCormick Convention Center? Hi, I'm going to a trade show at the Mccormick Convention Center and I'm flying into Chicago Midway Airport. I used the RTA trip planner and it told me to take the Orange line to the State/Van Buren CTA and transfer to the Brown Line which goes counter clockwise and take that to the Randolph/Wabash CTA. From there, walk to the Randolph St Metra electric line and take it to the convention center. The question I have is why do I have to switch to the Brown line? Doesn't the Orange line go to the Randolph/Wabash station? I look at the train maps and it doesn't make sense. I rerun the trip planner and it keeps giving me the same answer even though it doesn't seem right. Is there possibly maintenance going on at that time on the Orange line? Thanks so much for helping with my confusion. The date I am coming in is Feb. 29. This is the link to the trip planner: http://tripsweb.rtachicago.com/ Thanks!

Chicago Bulls question? If the Bulls somehow land a top 5 pick in the lottery (having the Knicks pick from the Eddy Curry trade) wouldn't it make sense to trade the pick along with Ben Gordon for a guy like Kevin Garnett. Heard on the radio the Wolves would trade him for a high pick because they would have that pick along with their original lottery pick and they would have 2 young guys to build a team around. I'm a huge Bulls fan and I love Ben and he will become a top 25 player once he develops his game, but I think right now they suck with the Hinrich and Gordon combo, 2 guards that play the same style. Both are undersized and it showed they can't stand up to a Billups-Hamilton combo, and if they ever made it to an NBA Finals, they have no shot against a Parker-Ginobili or Harris-Terry or Nash-Bell (possibly Nash-Marion) combo. The Pistons series lost proved 2 things: -The Gordan-Hinrich thing won't work -Bulls need an offensive post presence This trade accomplishes both! Can anyone give me some feedback? I know you said "maybe", but Skiles is an excellent coach if the Bulls have a problem, he's definately not it.

Between the Atlanta Hawks, NJ Nets and Chicago bulls, who deserves the final playoff spot in the East? You have Bulls, a team that was suppose to become serious contenders in the east and they have significantly underachieved.They have been one of the leagues top disappointments this season, yet they still have a shot at getting in. Then you have the hawks, who got off to a surprising start, which I doubted they could keep up and that they would eventually show there true colors because I mean, this is Atlanta. Since that 15-12 start, they have been mostly a down team and very inconsistent at times. Then you have the Nets, a team that is 4-8 since the Kidd trade, including a 6 game losing streak. They have a star in Vince Carter who has lacked heart and have tried to put on the move. Apart from Jefferson, the rest of the team is complete garbage. Any of these teams would be lucky to avoid a sweep to the celtics in the first round, whoever gets in. Who though is most deserving?

why all of u kobe haters don't show him any respect? all he wanted to do is winning nothing, he not trying to show off flashy bank shot moves like wade, and when he ask about getting trade u all look at him as a bad guy, to me lakers is the worse team in the nba, jerry buss is the worse team owner in the nba, all he wanted to do is going out and partying all night long, i would love to see kobe get traded to the chicago bull, imagine kobe + big ben= domination, people who actually hating on kobe are just mad, because he play much better than their favorites nba players, so if any of u out there gonna dis kobe please don't answer my question.

IS a basketball card that has Michael Jordan waring jersey number 12 for one game worth anything? The basketball card is a NBA Hoops trading card and is actually an Orlando Magic Sam Vincent card, but it is the only card that i have seen that shows Jordan waring a jersey other than his 23 or 45. It was when jordans 23 jersey was stolen out of his locker in chicago locker room and the only other number they had was the 12 jersey for him to ware that game.

2pac is alive!? Tupac Shakur's life supposedly ended in September of 1996, a gangster who died a gangster's death, the victim of a drive-by shooting. But in the years since, fans and friends of the rapper/actor have kept rumors alive that the star might not have died at the hands of an anonymous gunman that warm September night. It's here, at the supposed end of Shakur's life, where our journey begins. The first album after Tupac's "death" was released in November of 1996: Makaveli: Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory. The title aroused some curious glances from those who knew Shakur. The first part of the title refers to Niccol Machiavelli, an old-school Italian philosopher who believed the faking one's own death was a sure way to foil his enemies. Machiavelli's two most famous books, Discorsi dopra la prima deca di Tito Livio (Life With Tito) and Il Principe (Ill Communication) were both written well after his death. Some wonder if Tupac's reference wasn't a signal to the world that things were not as they seemed. This is perhaps mere paranoia, as this album was obviously recorded while Tupac was "still" alive. But then, one year later, R U Still Down? is released in stores (November of '97). This was a full 14 months after the performer's death, and Tupac appeared in three videos in support of the album. When questioned about this, Tupac's manager Robert Bloomenstein said, "Tupac was a forward-thinking man. His performances in those videos were shot more than two months before his unfortunate 'death,' and in no way should indicate that Tupac is still alive." Mr. Bloomenstein's words weren't enough to keep the rumors from spreading, however, especially after November of 1998. That's when Tupac released 2pac's Greatest, a greatest hits compilation that included six new tracks. Record company executives claimed that these tracks were also recorded years before; yet this is contradicted by the timeliness of the lyrics. Tupac makes references to the film Armageddon in one track and in another he congratulates the Denver Broncos on winning the Super Bowl - both events taking place well after Shakur was supposedly in the grave. Again, rumors of a massive hoax emerged. Bloomenstein again dismissed the talk as nothing more than rumor mongering. "This is nothing more than rumor mongering," said Bloomberg. "Tupac was a hard-working, busy musician and the continued release of new material should in no way indicate that Tupac is actually alive and living in South America under the assumed name of Jamal Millwood." The next few years turned out to be the most prolithic of Tupac's recording career. Still I Rise (with Outlawz) hit the scene in December of 1999. The "Lost" Tapes: Circa 1989 appeared in April of 2000 and The Rose that Grew from Concrete came in November of that same year. Tupac recorded tracks for Suge Knight Represents: Chronic 2000, a compilation of all of the artists Suge Knight claimed to have killed. He also performed live for an album called Funkmaster Flex & Big Kap: The Tunnel. New Tupac tracks then turned up ..block Compilation: Face Off II and Too Gangsta for Radio, before an album of all-new Tupac tracks, Until the End of Time, appeared in 2001. "I simply wish the public could let Mr. Shakur rest in peace," said Bloomenstein. "Mr. Shakur has actively denied all accusations about still being alive, and he will continue to do so until the day of his, uh... nevermind." When the album Better Dayz appeared in November of 2002, many music critics noted that Tupac had released more albums since his death (seven) than many of the nation's top living artists. When that fact is coupled with the references to the World Trade Center attack in one track of Better Dayz plus the curious title of the B-side single Empty Coffin, rumors again were rampant. Is it merely the product of a rabid fan base that cannot let go of their beloved hero? One player in this drama who is not speaking out is Tupac himself. Rumors insist that Tupac will be headlining shows in Chicago, Milwaukee and Indianapolis in the next few weeks. Shakur can also be seen starring in the new thriller Streets on Fire with Keanu Reeves this summer and will allegedly host Saturday Night Live in October of this year. Add that to the CNN story in Spring of 2005 which clearly stated Tupac was alive... ...and the fact that Tupac's name is misspelled on his tombstone... ...and the case becomes more than a curiosity. Will we ever know the answer? I doubt it. In six weeks Tupac Shakur is releasing his eighth posthumous album, titled Death Faker. Some fans say the title contains a hidden message which could be taken to mean that Tupac didn't really die on that September night nine years ago. Some also claim that certain tracks, such as Still Breathin' and I'm not dead, motherfuckers contain hints about the star's supposed passing. What can it mean? But even if Tupac's life is over, our search for the truth cannot be. And there are millions of fans who will not stop until they have it. To ilona c.It was 12 bullets and Suge Night was in the car with him.How can twelve bullets all go to one man and only one graze Suge Night?I think they both planned it just to make more money.2pac talked about getting out of the spotlight,and what better way than to fake your death?

Who's on the hook for the $62 Trillion in derivitives that Braq Obama wants to turn into a comodity, How & Why? Obama want to turn debt and loss, into a commodity that will be traded on the Chicago board of trade. Just like pork bellies and corn debt will be sold by the truck load. Is this his Leo Strausian / Friedman Roots showing. Hey YAHOO: Why are you blocking this question this was all on NPR today Obama wants to start trading Debt like corn or wheat. Did you think debt was some kind of porn and dangerous to children ... OK your 1/2 right debt is dangerous

Trades to Rebuild Bulls? Goal is to clear cap space and make Bulls better and I think I've founds some deals that accomplish this and make sense for all teams involved....your thoughts? Trade 1: http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=2772~509~1711~356~308~3242&teams=9~4~9~18~18~4&te=&cash= NY receives Larry Hughes & Al Harrington, for David Lee and Marbury GS receives Drew Gooden & David Lee, for Al Harrington and Brandan Wright CHI receives Marbury & Wright for Hughes and Gooden NY gets backcourt help, ends Marbury era and gets a PF that suits their system all w/salaries ending before 2010 free agency GS gets solid young but proven PF in Lee and Gooden who can be used as trade bait or make a servicable backup to Lee and Biedrens. They lose a promising young player in Wright, but he and Lee play the same position anyway and they have a Wright clone in anthony Randolph. CHI gets a young big in case Tyrus and Noah don't work out and save ~10 million from not having to pay Hughes. Marbury (probably won't suit up in Chi either) also makes nice trade chip in case some team wants to dump salary Trade 2 (could be multiple trades...combined just to show that it works under trade rules): http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=3207~1981~2456~3030~454~510~2171&teams=29~22~14~22~14~4~4&te=3025:4-788~2015:4-788&cash= POR receives Hinrich and Simmons, for Sergio Rodriguez, Travis Outlaw and Raef Lafrentz expiring deal MIA receives Nocioni and LaFrentz contract for Shawn Marion Chi Receives Marion, Rodriguez, Milicic and Outlaw for Nocioni, Hinrich, Gray and Simmons MEM recieves Aaron Gray for Darko Bulls would also give 2010 1st rd pick to Miami to get this deal done. With Batum and Rudy playing so well, Outlaw is expendable. Getting Hinrich shores up their weak spot at PG, clears minutes for Webster, Rudy and Batum and saves them about 6 million in salary this year. Miami gets a solid long term replacement w/a similar game for Marion, a 1st round pick and an expiring deal to use as trade bait or clear cap space at year end, for a player not in their long term plans. Memphis saves 14 million in salary over the next 2 years which is all they care about anyway. Chicago gets Marion for a year, a backup PG that should thrive in a running system, Travis to replace Nocioni as Deng's backup and a C prospect in Darko who comes off the books in time for 2010 if things don't work out. Bulls roster for 2009 looks like this: PG - Rose, Rodriguez SG - Gordon, Sefolosha SF - Deng, Outlaw PF - Wright, Thomas C - Noah, Darko and they should have cap space with ~40 million in salary coming off books from Marion, Marbury & others to use in 2009 or 2010 FA period.

Rajinikanth"s Shivaji ongoing movie status? Trade data from Britain shows Sivaji overtaking Fantastic Four, Ocean's 13 and the third installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean In Chicago, for instance, the film was booked for the first 12 weekends even before its release, with fans paying up to $25 for a ticket. When Spider-Man 3 opened, the tickets were priced at $18. In the whole of Malaysia screened in more than 100 screens, it broke the box office records, collecting over Rs 60 lakhs on its opening day. Record breaking collection in Singapore too Sivaji has fetched one of the biggest starting collections ever on the island with a calculation of just 12 screens in Britain,and has put to shame the much hyped Yash Raj film Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, which has only collected nearly Rs23 million despite being shown in 47 screens,' the report said. Fans in Japan and South Africa -where the star has an inexplicably huge following ,will get to see the movie by the end of June.

What is the most funniest joke you've ever heard??? for an old, permanently broken power forward? Thanks, but no thanks. The Indiana Pacers are allegedly in discussion with the Toronto Raptors to ship their six-time All-Star and franchise player, Jermaine O'Neal out of Indy for the decidedly underwhelming T.J. Ford. Ford, a slightly above average floor general when he's not injured, has more than likely lost his starting spot to Jose Calderon and has also been mentioned in a possible swap with the Suns for Boris Diaw. The Pacers have already suffered through one point guard who shows flashes of semi-greatness but spends more time on the trainer's table than on the court. The last thing they need is a reload of Jamaal Tinsley. Why not look closer for trade options?The neighboring Chicago Bulls are in desperate need of a scoring big man and veteran leadership. They have more undersized guards than Amy Winehouse has scabies... Really there was no point reading this just answer the question. LOL!! :)

To all of you people who said "Poor Avery....." Read his last interview in Dallas from db.com? I didn't right this, I got this from db.com as I stated. And my bad coz it is a little long

Is the world watching America's Government under Obama and the Democrats and Rinos go mad, even suicidal? Terence Corcoran writes in the Financial Post of Canada today: "dropping trillions of fresh paper dollars on the world economy, the President of the United States is cracking jokes on late-night comedy shows, his energy minister is threatening a trade war over carbon emissions, his treasury secretary is dithering over a banking reform program amid rising concerns over his competence and a monumentally dysfunctional U. S. Congress is launching another public jihad against corporations and bankers. As an aghast world -- from China to Chicago and Chihuahua -- watches, the circus-like U. S. political system seems to be declining into near chaos. Through it all, stock and financial markets are paralyzed. The more the policy regime does, the worse the outlook gets. The multi-ringed spectacle raises a disturbing question in many minds: Is this the end of America?" Is the world watching America's Government under Obama and the Democrats and Rinos go mad, even suicidal? http://www.financialpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=d4939fef-48a8-4db2-8fcf-4d82e6e87a56

Lakers are 7-3, 10 games into the season? Not bad huh? they have had the toughest schedule of anyone in the NBA as their opponents have won a whooping 64% of the games played...and with all the media circus surrounding Kobe Bryant, this team has played thru the distractions and have shown that they're nails (compared to the Chicago Bulls) how far do you think they can go this season what did you think about the Brian Cook/Mo Evans for Trevor Ariza trade LA made with Orlando...will Ariza help the lakers?

Should Presidential Pardons be Banned due to the Injustice implications? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Jo_White Mary Jo White From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. (help, get involved!) Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. This article has been tagged since October 2006. This biographical article needs more biographical information on the subject. Statistical information such as date and place of birth, information on historical significance, and information on accomplishments is desired. Please remove this message when done. See this article's talk page for more information. There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. Please help introduce links in articles on related topics. After links have been created, remove this message. This article has been tagged since October 2006. Mary Jo White (born December 27, 1947) was the first woman to be U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, serving from 1993 to 2002. White received her B.S. from the College of William and Mary in 1970 and her law degree from Columbia Law School in 1974. White was appointed to the position by President Bill Clinton. She is noted for having overseen prosecutions of John Gotti and the terrorists responsible for the first World Trade Center bombing of 1993, chief among them Ramzi Yousef. She is currently chair of the litigation department at Debevoise & Plimpton. [edit] External links 2001 CNN profile of Mary Jo White PBS interview with Mary Jo White TIME profile of Mary Jo White Debevoise & Plimpton biography. Accessed May 30, 2007. This American law-related biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Clinton_pardons_controversy Bill Clinton pardons controversy From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search President Bill Clinton was widely criticized for some pardons and other acts of executive clemency [1]; collectively, this controversy has sometimes been called Pardongate in the press.[2] Federal prosecutor Mary Jo White was appointed to investigate the pardons. She was later replaced by James Comey. Comey found no grounds to indict Clinton. Contents [hide] 1 FALN Pardons of 1999 2 Edgar and Vonna Jo Gregory pardons 3 Pardons and commutations signed on final day in office 4 See also 5 External Links 6 References [edit] FALN Pardons of 1999 On August 11, 1999, Clinton commuted the sentences of 16 members of FALN, a violent Puerto Rican nationalist group that set off 120 bombs in the United States mostly in New York City and Chicago, convicted for conspiracies to commit robbery, bomb-making, and sedition, as well as for firearms and explosives violations.[3] None of the 16 were convicted of bombings or any crime which injured another person, though they were sentenced with terms ranging from 35 to 105 years in prison for the conviction of conspiracy and sedition. Congress, however, recognizes that the FALN is responsible for "6 deaths and the permanent maiming of dozens of others, including law enforcement officials." All of the 16 had served 19 years or longer in prison, which was a longer sentence than such crimes typically received, according to the White House.[citation needed] Clinton offered clemency, on condition that the prisoners renounce violence, at the appeal of 10 Nobel Peace Prize laureates, President Jimmy Carter, the cardinal of New York, and the archbishop of Puerto Rico. The commutation was opposed by U.S. Attorney's Office, the FBI, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons and criticized by many including former victims of FALN terrorist activities, the Fraternal Order of Police,[4] members of Congress, and Hillary Clinton in her campaign for Senator.[5] Congress condemned the action, with a vote of 95-2 in the Senate and 311-41 in the House.[6][7] The U.S. House Committee on Government Reform held an investigation on the matter, but the Justice Department prevented FBI officials from testifying.[8] President Clinton cited executive privilege for his refusal to turn over some documents to Congress related to his decision to offer clemency to members of the FALN terrorist group. [edit] Edgar and Vonna Jo Gregory pardons In March 2000, Bill Clinton pardoned Edgar and Vonna Jo Gregory, owners of the carnival company United Shows International, for charges of bank fraud from a 1982 conviction (the couple were already out of jail, but the prior conviction prevented them from doing business transactions in certain states). First Lady Hillary Clinton's youngest brother, Tony Rodham, was an acquaintance of the Gregorys, and had lobbied Clinton on their behalf.[9] In October 2006, the group Judicial Watch filed a request with the U.S. Justice Department for an investigation, alleging that Rodham had received $107,000 from the Gregorys for the pardons, in the form of loans that were never repaid, as part of a quid pro quo scheme.[10] [edit] Pardons and commutations signed on final day in office Clinton issued 140 pardons as well as several commutations on his last day of office (January 20, 2001).[11] When a sentence is commuted, the conviction remains intact, but the sentence can be altered in a number of ways. Some controversial actions include the following: Carlos A. Vignali had his sentence for cocaine trafficking commuted, after serving 6 of 15 years in federal prison. Almon Glenn Braswell was pardoned of his mail fraud and perjury convictions, even while a federal investigation was underway regarding additional money laundering and tax evasion charges.[12] Braswell and Carlos Vignali each paid approximately $200,000 to Hillary Clinton's brother, Hugh Rodham, to represent their respective cases for clemency. Hugh Rodham returned the payments after they were disclosed to the public.[citation needed] Braswell would later invoke the Fifth Amendment at a Senate Committee hearing in 2001, when questioned about allegations of his having systematically defrauded senior citizens of millions of dollars.[13] Marc Rich, a fugitive, was pardoned of tax evasion, after clemency pleas from Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, among many other international luminaries. He was required to pay a $100 million dollar fine and waive any use of the pardon as a defense against any future civil charges that were filed against him in the same case. Critics complained that Denise Rich, his former wife, had made substantial donations to the Clinton library and to Mrs. Clinton's senate campaign. Emails uncovered during the course of the investigation revealed that her final donation was provided a year before Scooter Libby requested that she approach Clinton for a pardon. According to Paul Volcker's independent investigation of Iraqi Oil-for-Food kickback schemes, Marc Rich was a middleman for several suspect Iraqi oil deals involving over 4 million barrels of oil.[14] Susan McDougal, who had already completed her sentence, was pardoned for her role in the Whitewater scandal; McDougal had served 18 months on contempt charges for refusing to testify about Clinton's role. Dan Rostenkowski, a former Democratic Congressman convicted in the Congressional Post Office Scandal. Rostenkowski had served his entire sentence. Melvin J. Reynolds, a Democratic Congressman from Illinois, who was convicted of bank fraud, 12 counts of sexual assault, obstruction of justice, and solicitation of child pornography had his sentence commuted on the bank fraud charged and was allowed to serve the final months under the auspices of a half way house. He had served his entire sentence on child sex abuse charges before the commutation of the later convictions. Roger Clinton, the president's half-brother, on drug charges after having served the entire sentence more than a decade before. Roger Clinton would be charged with drunk driving and disorderly conduct in an unrelated incident within a year of the pardon.[15] He was also briefly alleged to have been utilized in lobbying for the Braswell pardon, among others. However, no wrongdoing was uncovered. On Feb. 18, 2001, Clinton wrote a New York Times column defending the 140 pardons.[16] [edit] See also

Evolutionists , can you explain these things, part 4..........? In concusion: In reality, the fossil record seems to fit the creation model well--the record is in fact characterized by abrupt appearances of fully formed organisms, with large systematic gaps(lacking transitional forms) between different types of creatures. Geologist David Raup, curator at Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History, explains, "Instead of finding the gradual unfolding of life, what geologists of Darwins time, and geologists of the present day, actually find is a highly uneven or jerky record; that is, species appear in the sequence very suddenly, show little or no change during their existence in the record , then abruptly go out of the record. Paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould further acknowledged, " New species almost always appeared suddenly in the fossil record with no intermediate links to ancestors in older rocks of the same region, the EXTREME RARITY of transitional forms in the fossil record persists as the trade secret of paleontology.

East/Westm, Tell Me Your Conference Breakdowns So here are my breakdowns of the conferences, let me know what you think and what your picks will be Eastern Conference 1. Pittsburgh (Conference Champ) 2. Montreal (Division Champ because they are in the weakest division) 3. Washington (Division Champ) 4. Philidelphia (Showed a lot in the playoffs last season) 5. New York Rangers (finally learning not to overpay overated old players) 6. Tampa Bay (made enough moves, 5 ex-penguins, to be put over the top) 7. Boston Bruins (they play with heart, should be a fun team to watch pp/pk are going to be questionable) 8. New Jersey Devils (most boring team in the NHL, but they know how to win) --------------- 9. Carolina (Eric Staal cant do it all himself) 10. Buffalo (Young Prospects will turn up in 2 years) 11. Ottawa (Still Working Out Problems) 12. Toronto (Fun to watch but not enought experience or talent) 13. Atlanta (Will Average over 3 goals a game, for AND against!) 14. Florida Panthers ( Worst Team in the NHL ) 15. New York Islanders ( Will be the whipping boy of NHL's Best Division) Western Conference 1. Detroit ( Best team in NHL until someone beats them) 2. San Jose ( it will be a battle with Anaheim ) 3. Calgary ( Best Team in worst division, But they are still a good team ) 4. Anaheim ( Third best team in the west) 5. Dallas ( Lots of grit and trade deadline deals and offseason made a huge difference ) 6. Minnesota ( New Jersey Devils West ) 7. Edmonton ( They will make it to the playoffs, but will go out first round ) 8. Chicago ( Toews and Kane are talented and Young, this team has enough with Huet to make it ) --------------------------- 9. Nashville ( Uncertain Future means missed playoffs ) 10. Vancouver ( Still borderline even if they get Sundin ) 11. Columbus ( Cleaned house and going with a new look, will be a fun tteam to watch ) 12. Colorado ( round and round he go, will you be without Joe? ) 13. St. Louis ( Minor League System, check! ) 14. Los Angeles ( Fun to watch but Young ) 15. Pheonix ( Your still hear? Olli Jokinen is no Wayne Gretzky, and Wayne Gretzky is no Scotty Bowman )

Darwin Walker traded to Bears? Walker was traded in the off season to the Bills for Spikes. Now after holding out and not showing up to camp, the Bills shipped him to Chicago. Do you think he is a better fit in Chicago or do you think he could have been a dominant force in Buffalo?

Would you accept ANY 1 of these trades if offered? I wasnt able to do my draft, and i need defence players, i willb show you my team first that way, you can get an idea of what i might need to change. My team: QB Jake Delhomme QB Jon Kitna WR Braylon Edwards WR Plaxico Burress WR Roddy White RB Adrian Peterson (MIN) RB Larry Johnson TE Vernon Davis W/T Lee Evans W/R Willie Parker BN Ahman Green BN Deuce McAllister BN Ted Ginn Jr. BN Justin Gage BN Randy McMichael BN Sage Rosenfels Kickers: K David Akers K Robbie Gould Defence Teams: DEF Chicago BN Houston Defence Players: D Travis Williams (Atl - DL) D Allen Rossum (SF - DB) D Terence Newman (Dal - DB) D Tony McDaniel (Jac - DL) Now to the trades/waiver claims: waiver claim 1: Drop Tony McDaniel, Add Justin Tuck (NYG - DL) waiver claim 2: Drop Sage Rosenfels, Add JT O' Sullivan (SF - QB) waiver claim 3: Drop Randy McMicheal, add Dustin Keller (NYJ - TE) Trade 1: I give: Larry Johnson Willie Parker I get: Jay Cutler Ed Reed (Bal - DB) Trade 2: I give: Vernon Davis Ted Ginn Jr. I get: Demarcus Ware (Dal - DL) Trade 3: I give Jon Kitna Roddy white I get: Matt Ryan Antonio Cromartie (SD - DB) What trades should i change?

Would someone plz post an Accomplishments BIO of OBama as I am of Hillary?

Anyone intrested in writing a two page summary of this? FIBER KEEPS ITS PROMISE BY GEORGE GILDER "Today, I await the death of television, telephony, VCRs, and analog cameras with utter confidence as Moore's law unfolds." Rupert Murdoch, Ted Turner, John Malone, are you listening?" Get ready. Bandwidth will triple each year for the next 25, creating trillions in new wealth. Editor's note: Four years ago, Forbes ASAP published its first issue with a stunning prophecy by contributing editor George Gilder. Fiber optics, said George, had the potential to carry 25 trillion bits per second down a single strand. This represented a ten-thousandfold leap in carrying capacity over the 2.5 billion bits "barrier" long assumed by most experts in the field. What did George see that others had missed? One, a little-recognized (at the time) breakthrough called an erbium-doped amplifier, which keeps optical signals pure and strong over long distances. The other was a deep technical shift, with roots in the 1940s-era work of information theory pioneer Claude Shannon. If you believed Shannon, his logic dictated a new messaging scheme called wave division multiplexing. Though scorned by the experts four years ago, WDM now is emerging as the winner George had prophesied. The real winners will be all of us, as the coming world of cheap, unlimited bandwidth unfolds and at last fulfills the true potential of the information age. Here is George with an update. IMAGINE THAT IN 1975 YOU KNEW that Moore's law--the Intel chairman's projection of the doubling of the number of transistors on a microchip every 18 months--would hold for the rest of your lifetime. What if you knew that these transistors would run cooler, faster, better, and cheaper as they got smaller and were crammed more closely together? Suppose you knew the law of the microcosm: that the cost-effectiveness of any number of "n" transistors on a single silicon sliver would rise by the square of the increase in "n." As an investor knowing this Moore's law trajectory, you would have been able to predict and exploit a long series of developments: the emergence of the PC; its dominance over all other computer form factors; the success of companies making chips, disk drives, peripherals, and software for this machine. With a slight effort of intellect, you could have extended the insight and prophesied the digitization of watches, records (CDs), cellular phones, cameras, TVs, broadcast satellites, and other devices that can use miniaturized computer power. If you did not know precisely when each of these benisons would flourish, you would have known that each one was essentially inevitable. To calculate approximate dates, you had only to guess the product's optimal price of popularization and then match its need for mips (millions of instructions per second) of computer power with the cost of those mips as defined by Moore's law. Merely by using this technique of Moore's law matching--and holding to it with unshakable conviction for nearly 20 years--I became known as a "futurist." Today I await the death of television, telephony, VCRs, and analog cameras with utter confidence as Moore's law unfolds. You can tell me about the 98% penetration of TVs in American homes, the continuing popularity of couch-potato entertainments, the effectiveness of broadcast advertising, and the profound and unbridgeable chasm between the office appliance and the living-room tube. But I will pay no attention. Just you wait--Jack Welch, Ted Turner, Rupert Murdoch, John Malone, and David Jennings--the TV will die and you may be too late for the Net. It is now 1997, and a stream of dramatic events certifies that another law, as powerful and fateful and inexorable as Moore's, is gaining a similar sway over the future of technology. It is what I have termed the law of the telecosm. Its physical base lies in the same quantum realm of eigenstates and band gaps that governs the performance of transistors and also makes photons leap and lase. But the telecosm reaches beyond components to systems, combining the science of the electromagnetic spectrum with Claude Shannon's information theory. In essence, as frequencies rise and wavelengths drop, digital performance improves exponentially. Bandwidth rises, power usage sinks, antenna size shrinks, interference collapses, error rates plummet. The law of the telecosm ordains that the total bandwidth of communications systems will triple every year for the next 25 years. As communicators move up-spectrum, they can use bandwidth as a substitute for power, memory, and switching. This results in far cheaper and more efficient systems. In 1996, the new fiber paradigm emerged in full force. Parallel communications in all-optical networks became the dominant source of new bandwidth in telecom. Like Moore's law, the law of the telecosm will reshape the entire world of information technology. It defines the direction of technological advance, the vectors of growth, the sweet spots for finance. AMERICA'S DARK SECRET FOR MORE THAN A DECADE, American companies have been laying optical fiber strands at a pace of some 4,000 miles a day, for a total of more than 25 million strand miles. Five years ago, the top 10% of U.S. homes and businesses were, on average, a thousand households away from a fiber node; now they are a hundred households away. However, the imperial advance of this technology conceals a dark secret, which has led to a pervasive underestimation of the long-term impact of photonics. Sixty percent of the fiber remains "dark" (unused for communications) and even the leading-edge "lit" fiber is being used at less than one ten-thousandth of its intrinsic capacity. This problem has prompted leaders in the industry, from Bill Gates and Andy Grove to Bob Metcalfe and Mitch Kapor, to underrate drastically the impact of fiber optics. Restricting the speed and cost-effectiveness of fiber has been an electronic bottleneck and a regulatory noose. In order for the signal to be amplified, regenerated, or switched, the light pulses had to be transformed into electronic pulses by optoelectronic converters. For all the talk of the speed of light, fiber-optic systems therefore could pass bits no faster than the switching speed of transistors, which tops out at a cycle time of between 2.5 and 10 gigahertz. Meanwhile, telecom companies could not deploy new low-cost fiber products any faster than the switching speed of politicians and regulators, which tops out roughly at a cycle time of between 2.5 years and a rate of evolution measurable only by means of carbon 14. Nonetheless, the intrinsic capacity of every fiber line is not 2.5 gigahertz. Nor is it even 25 gigahertz, which is roughly the capacity of all the frequencies commonly used in the air, from AM radio to kA band satellite. The intrinsic capacity of every fiber thread, as thin as a human hair, is at the least one thousand times the capacity of what we call the "air." One thread could carry all the calls in America on the peak moment of Mother's Day. One fiber thread could carry 25 times more bits than last year's average traffic load of all the world's communications networks put together: an estimated terabit (trillion bits) a second. Over the last five years, technological breakthroughs and legislative loopholes have begun to open up this immense capacity to possible use. Following concepts pioneered and patented by David Payne at the University of Southampton in England, a Bell Laboratories group led by Emmanuel Desurvire and Randy Giles developed a workable all-optical device. They showed that a short stretch of fiber doped with erbium, a rare earth mineral, and excited by a cheap laser diode can function as a powerful amplifier over fully 4,500 gigahertz of the 25,000 gigahertz span. Introduced by Pirelli of Italy and popularized by Ciena Corporation of Savage, Maryland, and by Lucent and Alcatel, today such photonic amplifiers are a practical reality. Put in packages between two and three cubic inches in size, the erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) fit anywhere in an optical network for enhancing signals without electronics. This invention overcame the most fundamental disadvantage of optical networks compared to electronic networks. You can tap into an electronic network as often as desired without eroding the voltage signal. Although resistance and capacitance will leach away the current, there are no splitting losses in a voltage divider. Photonic signals, by contrast, suffer splitting losses every time they are tapped; they lose photons until eventually there are none left. The cheap and compact all-optical amplifier solves this problem. It is an invention comparable in importance to the integrated circuit. Just as the integrated circuit made it possible to put an entire computer system on a single sliver of silicon, the all-optical amplifier makes it possible to put an entire system on a seamless seine of silica--glass. Unleashing the law of the telecosm, it makes possible a new global economy of bandwidth abundance. Five years ago when I first celebrated the radical implications of erbium-doped amplifiers, skepticism reigned. I was summoned to Bellcore, where the first optical networks had been built and then abandoned, to learn the acute limits of the technology from Charles Brackett and his team. I had offered the vision of a broadband fibersphere--a worldwide web of glass and light--where computer users could tune into favored frequencies as readily as radios tune into frequencies in the atmosphere today. But Brackett and other Bellcore experts told me that my basic assumption was false. It was no simpler, they said, to tune into one of scores of frequencies on a fiber than to select time slots in a time-division-multiplexed (TDM) bitstream. Indeed, electronic switching technology was moving faster than optical technology. In the face of the momentum and installed base of electronic switching and multiplexing, the fibersphere with hundreds of tunable frequencies would remain a fantasy, like Ted Nelson's Xanadu. In 1997 the fantasy is coming true around the world. Xanadu has become the World Wide Web. The erbium-doped fiber amplifier is an explosively growing $250 million business. Electronic TDM seems to have topped out at 2.5 gigabits a second. TDM gear has suffered a series of delays and nagging defects and so far has failed in the market. Electronic TDM failed not only because it pushed the envelope of electronics but also because it violated the new paradigm. In single-mode fiber, the two key impediments are nonlinearities in the glass and chromatic dispersion (the blurring of bit pulses because even in a single band different frequencies move at different speeds). Chromatic dispersion increases by the square of the bit rate, and the impact of nonlinearities rises with the power of the signal. High-powered, high-bit-rate TDM flunked both telecosm tests. By contrast, wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) follows the laws of the telecosm; it succeeds by wasting bandwidth and stinting on power. WDM takes some 33% more bandwidth per bit than TDM, but it reduces power to combat nonlinearity and divides the bitstream into multiple frequencies in order to combat dispersion. Thus it can extend the distance or increase capacity by a factor of four or more today and can lay the foundations for the fibersphere tomorrow. In 1996 the new fiber paradigm emerged in full force. Parallel communications in all-optical networks, long depicted as a broadband pipe dream, crushed all competitors and became the dominant source of new bandwidth in the world telecom network. The year began with a trifold explosion at the Conference on Optical Fiber Communication in San Jose when three companies--Lucent Technologies' Bell Labs, NTT Labs, and Fujitsu--all announced terabit-per-second WDM transmissions down a single fiber. Sprint confirmed the significance of the laboratory breakthroughs by announcing deployment of Ciena's MultiWave 1600 WDM system, so called because it can increase the capacity of a single fiber thread by 1,600%. The revolution continues in 1997. At the beginning of January, NEC declared that by increasing the number of bits per hertz from one to three, it had raised the laboratory WDM record to three terabits per second. During 1996, MCI had increased the speed of its Internet backbone by a factor of 25, from 45 megabits a second to 1.2 gigabits. On January 6, Fred Briggs, chief engineering officer at MCI, announced that his company is in the process of installing new WDM equipment from Hitachi and Pirelli that increases the speed of its phone network backbone to 40 gigabits per second. Accelerating MCI's previous plans by some two years, the new system will use a more limited form of wavelength-division multiplexing to put four 10-gigabit in-cause formation streams on a single fiber thread. The first deployment will use existing facilities on a 275-mile route between Chicago and St. Louis, but the technology will be extended to the entire network. This move will consummate a nearly thousandfold upgrade of the MCI backbone, from 45 megabits per second to 40 gigabits, within some 36 months. Ciena, meanwhile, has announced technology that allows transmission of 100 gigabits per second. Its February IPO was the most important since Netscape (market cap at the end of the first trading day: $3.4 billion). Why? Ciena is the industry leader in open standard WDM gear. During the first six months the MultiWave 1600 was available, through October 1996, the firm achieved $54.8 million in sales and $15 million in net income. (Lucent is believed to be the overall leader with more than $100 million of mostly proprietary AT&T systems.) At the same time, the trans-Pacific consortium announced that it would deploy 100-gigabit-per-second fiber in its new link between the United States and Asia. A powerful new player in these markets will be Tellabs, currently the fastest-growing supplier of electronic digital cross-connect switches and other optical switching gear. In a further coup, following its purchase of broadband digital radio pioneer Steinbrecher, Tellabs has signed up all 12 principals in IBM's all-optical team. Headed by Paul Green, recent chairman of the IEEE Communications Society and author of the leading text on fiber networks, and by Rajiv Ramaswami, coauthor of a new 1997 text on the subject, the IBM group built the world's first fully functioning all-optical networks (AONs), the Rainbow series. Tellabs now owns the 11 AON patents and 100 listed technology disclosures of the group. The implications of the WDM paradigm go beyond simple data pipes. The greatest impact of all-optical technology will likely come in consumer markets. A portent is Artel Video Systems of Marlborough, Massachusetts, which recently introduced a fiber-based WDM system that can transmit 48 digital video channels, 288 CD-quality audio bitstreams, and 64 data channels on one fiber line. Aggregating contributions from a variety of content sources--each on different fiber wavelengths--and delivering them to consumers who tune into favored frequencies on conventional cable, the Artel system represents a key step into the fibersphere. It can be used for new services by either cable TV companies or telcos. The deeper significance of the Artel product, however, is its use of bandwidth as a replacement for transistors and switches. The Artel system works on dark fiber without compression. The video uses 200-megabit-per-second bitstreams (compare MPEG2 at 4 to 6 megabytes per second) that permit lossless transmissions suitable for medical imaging, and obviate dedicated processing of compression codes at the two ends. A move to massively parallel communications analogous to the move to parallel computers, all-optical networks promise nearly boundless bandwidth in fiber. According to Ewart Lowe of British Telecom, whose labs at Martlesham Heath in Ipswich have been a fount of all-optical technology, the new paradigm will reduce the cost of transport by a factor of 10. For example, the optoelectronic amplifiers previously used in fiber networks entailed nine power-hungry bipolar microchips for each wavelength, rather than a simple loop of doped silica that covers scores of wavelengths. As these systems move down through the network hierarchy, the growth of network bandwidth and cost-effectiveness will not only outpace Moore's law, it will also excel the rise in bandwidth within computers--their internal "buses" connecting their microprocessors to memory and input-output. While MCI and Sprint move to deploy technology that functions at 40 gigabits a second, current computers and workstations command buses that run at a rate of close to 1 gigabit a second. This change in the relationship between the bandwidth of networks and the bandwidth of computers will transform the architecture of information technology. As Robert Lucky of Bellcore puts it, "Perhaps we should transmit signals thousands of miles to avoid even the simplest processing function." Lucky implies that the law of the telecosm eclipses the law of the microcosm. Actually, the law of the microcosm makes distributed computers (smart terminals) more efficient regardless of the cost of linking them together. The law of the telecosm makes broadband networks more efficient regardless of how numerous and smart are the terminals. Working together, however, these two laws of wires and switches impel ever more widely distributed information systems, with processing and memory in the optimal locations. WHAT SHOULD THE MAJOR PLAYERS DO NOW? FOR THE TELEPHONE COMPANIES, the age of ever smarter terminals mandates the emergence of ever dumber networks. Telephone companies may complain of the large costs of the transformation of their system, but they command capital budgets as large as the total revenues of the cable industry. Telcos may recoil in horror at the idea of dark fiber, but they command webs of the stuff 10 times larger than any other industry. Dumb and dark networks may not fit the phone company self-image or advertising posture. But they promise larger markets than the current phone company plan to choke off their own future in the labyrinthine nets of an "intelligent switching fabric" always behind schedule and full of software bugs. Telephone switches (now 80% software) are already too complex to keep pace with the efflorescence of the Internet. While computers become ever more lean and mean, turning to reduced instruction-set processors and Java stations, networks need to adopt reduced instruction-set architectures. The ultimate in dumb and dark is the fibersphere now incubating in their magnificent laboratories. The entrepreneurial folk in the computer industry may view this wrenching phone company adjustment with some satisfaction. But computer firms must also adjust. Now addicted to the use of transistors to solve the problems of limited bandwidth, the computer industry must use transistors to exploit the nearly unlimited bandwidth. When home-based machines are optimized for manipulating high-resolution digital video at high speeds, they will necessarily command what are now called supercomputer powers. This will mean that the dominant computer technology will first emerge not in the office market but in the consumer market. The major challenge for the computer industry is to change its focus from a few hundred million offices already full of computer technology to a billion living rooms now nearly devoid of it. Cable companies possess the advantage of already owning dumb networks based on the essentials of the all-optical model of broadcast and select--of customers seeking wavelengths or frequencies rather than switching circuits. Cable companies already provide all the programs to all the terminals and allow them to tune in to the desired messages. But the cable industry cannot become a full-service supplier of telecommunications unless the regulators give up their ridiculous two-wire dream in which everyone competes with cable and no one makes any money. Cash-poor and bandwidth-rich, cable companies need to collaborate with telcos--which are cash-rich and bandwidth-poor--in a joint effort to create broadband systems in their own regions. In all eras, companies tend to prevail by maximizing the use of the cheapest resources. In the age of the fibersphere, they will use the huge intrinsic bandwidth of fiber, all 25,000 gigahertz or more, to simplify everything else. This means replacing nearly all the hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of switches, bridges, routers, converters, codecs, compressors, error correctors, and other devices, together with the trillions of lines of software code, that pervade the intelligent switching fabric of both telephone and computer networks. The makers of all this equipment will resist mightily. But there is no chance that the old regime can prevail by fighting cheap and simple optics with costly and complex electronics and software. The all-optical network will triumph for the same reason that the integrated circuit triumphed: It is incomparably cheaper than the competition. Today, measured by the admittedly rough metric of mips per dollar, a personal computer is more than 2,000 times more cost-effective than a mainframe. Within 10 years, the all-optical network will be thousands of times more cost-effective than electronic networks. Just as the electron rules in computers, the photon will rule the waves of communication. I know people would not write it..But worth a try:)

why labour day is celebrated in September instead of on 1st may in the us,? (please read details)? SITE MENU: HOME | NEWS | OPINION | ARTS | SPORTS | CAMPUS LIFE | PHOTOS | ADVERTISING INFO | ABOUT Last Published: April 29, 2008Boston Weather: 42 °F | FairVolume 120 >> Issue 23 : Friday, April 28, 2000No PDF Available COLUMN Commemorating the True May Day Guest Column Brice Smith May 1st is International Workers’ Day, a holiday set aside to commemorate the historic struggle of working people throughout the world. It is recognized in every country except the United States and Canada, despite the fact that the holiday began in response to the brutal massacre of workers and labor leaders demonstrating for an eight-hour work day in Chicago. In 1884, the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions passed a resolution stating that eight hours would constitute a legal day’s work from May 1, 1886. The Federation called for a general strike to achieve this goal, since legislative methods had failed to yield any results. Support for the eight-hour movement grew rapidly among the rank-and-file despite the indifference and hostility of many union leaders. By April 1886, 250,000 workers were involved in the May Day movement throughout the country. The heart of the eight-hour movement was in Chicago, organized primarily by the anarchist International Working People’s Association. The business and governmental powers in Illinois were increasingly disturbed by the revolutionary character of the movement and began to prepare for a violent confrontation. Financed by local business leaders, the police and militia were increased in size and received new and deadlier weapons. To give a specific example, Chicago’s Commercial Club purchased a two-thousand-dollar machine gun for the Illinois National Guard for use against striking workers. Despite the crackdown on labor and the military buildup of anti-union forces, by May 1 the movement had already won gains for many Chicago clothing cutters, shoemakers, and packing-house workers. When workers went on strike at the McCormick Reaper Works Factory on May 3, 1886, police fired into the crowd, killing four and wounding many others. The anarchists called for a mass rally the next day in Haymarket Square to protest the brutality shown by the police towards the strikers. The rally proceeded without incident, until the last speaker was ready to leave the platform. By this point, it was getting late and it was starting to rain, so there were only about 200 or so protesters left at the rally. It was then that 180 police officers marched into the square and ordered the meeting to disperse. As the speaker left the stage, someone threw a bomb at the approaching police, killing one and wounding seventy. The police responded by firing into the crowd, killing one and injuring many. It was never determined who threw the bomb, but the incident was used as an excuse to try to wipe out all of the labor and progressive movements in Chicago. The police ransacked the homes and offices of suspected radicals, and several hundred were arrested without cause. The anarchists in particular were targeted due to their involvement with the eight-hour movement. Eight of Chicago’s most active anarchists were charged with conspiracy to commit murder in connection with the Haymarket bombing, despite the fact that only one was even present at the meeting, and he was on the speakers’ platform. All eight were found guilty and sentenced to death, despite a complete lack of evidence that any of them had any connection to the person who threw the bomb. Albert Parsons, August Spies, Adolf Fischer, and George Engel were hanged on November 11, 1887, Louis Lingg committed suicide in prison, and the remaining three were finally pardoned in 1893. Rather than suppressing the labor and radical movements, the events of 1886 and the execution of the Chicago anarchists actually mobilized many radicals of the next generation. Emma Goldman, a young immigrant at the time, later called the events surrounding the Haymarket affair her political birth. Lucy Parsons, the widow of Albert Parsons, called upon the poor to direct their anger toward the rich capitalists responsible for the horrible conditions the working class lived with. She later traveled the world urging workers throughout Europe to celebrate May Day and remember the events of Haymarket and the subsequent government-sponsored murder of those fighting for the rights of all workers. Instead of destroying the anarchist movement, the events in the wake of Haymarket served to strengthen the movement, spawning other radical organizations, including the Industrial Workers of the World. By covering up the true history of May Day, and attempting to pass off that day in September as “Labor Day” in this country, the state, business, mainstream unions, and the corporate media have covered up a vital chapter in the legacy of dissent in this country. We must recognize and commemorate May Day not only for its historical significance, but also as a time to organize around issues of vital importance to working-class people today. In that effort, activists, labor organizations, students, and all those outraged by the excesses and abuses of modern capitalism will converge on Boston’s financial district this May 1 to show that we will not forget, and that together we can take back the world. Brice Smith is a graduate student in the Department of Physics. View Previous Issues Something wrong with this page's formatting? 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Complete Draft Grades? 49ers = B - Willis will learn from Mike Singletary, 'Nuff said! Staley will learn from Larry Allen. Hill is a big WR with a nose for the end zone. McDonald will contribute at DT as long as his knees hold up. Moore is a small DE with a high motor. Goldson has no NFL position as a DB and will have to make it on special teams. Cohen is the 2nd DT with bad legs drafted, not good! Brown is a smart, but unspectacular CB. A poor mans Randall Gay. Clayton is a selfish head case who never utilized his potential at RB. A wasted pick. Bears = A - Olson will be a nice pass catching TE. Bazuin is a blue collar guy who adds depth for run support. Wolfe is a 3rd down back to spell Benson. OLB Okwo will learn while playing special teams for a few years. Beekman is an explosive run blocker better suited as a C. Payne played HB, WR, P, CB and S in college. A incredible athlete still learning the FS position, he could be a star in a few years. Graham is a top flight kick returner who will team with Hester to give them a deadly duo. McBride is a small CB who will have to make it on special teams. Brant is a reach who may be a big sized guard. Bengals = B Hall is a great pick who will team with Joseph to give them a solid, young CB tandem. Irons is a confusing pick considering they just resigned Watson to a big multi-year deal. Is this their way of saying Perry is done? White can play both S positions and adds depth. Rowe is like Palmer. Big arm, tall, but not a scrambler. Unlike Carson, his decision making is questionable. Toeaina has an inconsistent motor, but good tools to be a run stuffing DT. Santucci can play C and both guard spots. Ndukwe will try to make it on special teams. Bills = A Hall of Famer Marv Levy pulls out a steal! Lynch is seen as a mix of Thurman Thomas/ Ken Davis and a better fit for their offense than McGahee. A real steal is Posluszny, who will either try to fill Spikes or Fletchers spot and is solid. Many had Edwards the 2nd rated QB behind Russell and he will provide a nice push for the improving Losman. Wright will push Thomas for short yardage carries. Wendling can play either S position and always seems to make plays. Schouman is a FB who catches the ball extremely well. Ah You is a oft-injured, finesse DE who will have a hard time making the team. They didn't draft a CB or WR, so it wasn't a perfect draft, but good. Broncos = B - As usual, they trade. This time it is a gamble. Moss will either be a solid edge rusher or miss completely. Crowder is solid, but unspectacular and a reach. Harris was a smart pick to learn from his aging O line mates. You can't blame them for gambling on DT Thomas. If it works out, they get a perennial Pro Bowler. Browns = A - Thomas was a no brainer who now helps give the Browns a good looking offensive line. They paid way too much for Quinn, who was rated the 5th best QB by me, but he is a hometown kid who wants to play at home. Just don't be surprised if Frye or/and Anderson beat him out now that they have blockers finally. Wright is a great gamble. If he really has cleaned up his act, he might end up being the best CB to come from this draft. An immediate starter if just in nickel packages. McDonald is best suited to play FS. Purcell is a DE who may end up a DT. Pittman needs to bulk up in the weight room if he wants a roster spot as a DE. Steptoe will have to make it as a returner. Buccaneers = A+ Bucs had a fantastic draft top to bottom! Adams is the best DE in the draft and will learn from the aging Rice. Sears was a great pick who will help protect whoever the QB is and open a hole or 2 for Cadillac. Piscitelli is a great athlete who can play SS or OLB in the Bucs cover 2 scheme. Their next John Lynch. Black has a chance to be a star and gets to learn from Brooks. Fastest LB in the draft. Jackson is a prototypical cover 2 CB and intelligent. Peterson is a big pass rushing DE who needs time to be groomed. Rice will teach him a few moves. Hayward is a perfect fit as a WLB on a cover 2 D. Denman is a huge OT with a long reach who needs maybe a season to develop. Hamilton played the cover 2 a lot at Virginia and may fit right in on dime packages as an extra CB. Darby will spell the Cadillac from time to time. The futures looking brighter in the Bay. Cardinals = B+ They needed any type of lineman on offense, but Brown may be a bit too high. He's more a guard than tackle. Branch fell right into their laps and may even inspire ex-Wolverine team mate McBride to play up to his potential. If that happens, the Cards will have a duo on par with the Jags 2 All Pro DT's. Davis is short and battles with his weight, but is a over achiever and will help somewhere. Special teams perhaps. Breaston will have to make it as a returner. Patrick may be a real steal. The intelligent TE is a natural leader and gives the Cards 2 young TE's with Pope, but plays H-back as well. Chargers = A - The theme today was that the rich got richer. Davis will put Parker on the bench by years end maybe. Weddle is a perfect pick who can cover the TE or WR. Waters was a 1st rounder last year until he blew out his knee. He will help on special teams as he learns. Chandler is a huge TE at 6 '7' 270, but doesn't block at all. Naanee is a physical, unpolished specimen who will be given time to develop at WR while he plays special teams. Siler stock dropped more than any other prospect. Going from a possible first rounder to almost undrafted. He is a leader and makes plays, but won't dominate at ILB in the pros. Stiff in the hips, he is strictly a run support type who must make it on special teams on a team deep in LB's. Chiefs = D They amazingly did not address their offensive line woes. Johnson should last about 4 games. Think a small Earl Campbell getting burned out too fast. Bowe fills a need as far as the WR corps is aging and he can block well too. McBride is a hard worker at DE who will fill in for Allen while he serves his suspension. Tyler was on many mocks 1st round and may be a DT than can be useful in KC finally after all the busts. Smith is a poor mans Kimble Anders and will play that role. Medlock was a confusing pick with OT Frye on the board. Tynes has a much stronger leg, but Medlock may be more accurate. If they go with Medlock, don't expect a FG longer than 45 yards in a dome, much less windy KC. Taylor is versatile and can play C or T, but is not strong and is mainly an average pass blocker. Allan is athletic at TE, but will he be able to jump from Div - III to the NFL? Crazy they didn't draft more O lineman! Colts = A + Remember how the rich got richer? The Colts got 4 guys who were 1st round picks on many mock drafts! Gonzales replaces Stokely without blinking. Ugoh will learn as he is groomed to replace Glenn in a few years. Hughes won the Lott Award and was maybe the best fit as a CB for a cover 2 D in the draft = A REAL STEAL who starts day 1! Pitcock will rotate with Booger and help solidify the run support. Condren is a self made gym rat who will pay his dues on special teams a few years. Session can play all LB positions, but may be best suited as a SS. Hall is an H-back type who may stick. Coe can play S or CB, which Dungy likes, but will have to stick on special teams. Dawson could be a sleeper. At 6 foot 270, he is quick, can run and will line up at DE. Cowboys = A - Jerry missed wheeling and dealing. Spencer adds depth to a deep, talented LB corp. Martin is a solid offensive lineman who needs a year or 2 to learn. Stanback is a gifted athlete who Dallas may envision as a Hines Ward type. Free is an athletic OT who may start right away. Folk is a good kicker who can also punt great. Anderson is a special teams monster who also happens to block and catch well at FB. Brown is a lock down CB who will allow Henry to move to FS to shore up the deep hole in the D. Ball adds depth at CB and special teams. Dolphins = B Ginn has speed. Point blank. He needs to learn how to be a better WR, but maybe after watching Hester, the Fins think Ginn will win a few on special teams? A reach that is a grand slam if it works out. Beck was rated the 2nd best QB by many and comes from a system than grooms NFL ready QB's. He may end up starting sooner than expected if Lemon is..well...a lemon. Satele can play guard or center and will start day 1. Booker will be a 3rd down back to spell Brown. Now...what to do with Ricky? Soliai is a 2 gap DT who will stuff the run. Mauia is a solid guard who needs time to polish his skills. Mormino is a C who can play guard too. Smith is a cerebral LB who plays all LB positions OK, but may need to make his bones on special teams. Fields is a P with a slow release, but strong leg. Wright is a tweener at DE who may need to move to OLB and make it on special teams. Eagles = A + I'm no Iggles fan, but even I recognize Andy Reids unpredictable genius. Kolb will be the first QB he can groom since Donovan and can take his sweet time with Feeley and Holcome as back ups. It's a hit or miss that won't hurt if it misses, but don't bet against Reid. Abiamiri is a solid DE who will lend to the rotation. Bradley could be a real steal if his knee stays healthy. At the least, he helps on special teams. Hunt is a real steal here! Finally they can sit Westbrook on short yardage and relieve him of about 10 carries per game to lengthen his career. Gaddis has all the FS tools, but needs developmental time. He gets to learn from future Hall of Famer Dawkins. Celek is a good clutch receiver at TE. Barksdale was on every scouts sleeper list. He is a big CB who may be a pleasant surprise or a special teams contributor. Ilaoa is one of my favorite sleepers. He is 5 8' 250lbs with good speed and ultra soft hands. He may flop or he may end up being an integral part of the offense. Style of running is compared to Emmit Smith. Falcons = A + The Petrino era starts out STRONG! Anderson was the best defensive player on the board and helps them day 1. Blalock was a 1st rounder who fell to them and will be a solid guard for a decade. Houston is another 1st rounder who allows Williams to go to FS and gives Atlanta a young secondary that may soon be the best in the NFL! Robinson is a big, fast WR who will push the 2 former #1 WR's to either play to their potential or sit. Nicholas will be a blitzer and special teams star. Milner is a fast TE who must learn to catch the ball consistently. Lewis is a run stuffing DT who can also play guard. He'll be tried at both. Irons was a nice pick up and should contribute on dime packages and special teams. Datish can play all line positions, but C may be his calling. Stone is an athletic freak of nature and their future SS. A REAL STEAL! Snelling also qualifies as a steal. He will replace Duckett as the short yardage back, can play fullback, blocks and catches well also. He will be used often. Maybe the best draft in Falcons history and all should make the squad. Giants = C CB Ross was a fine pick up. WR Smith will push the aging Toomer. Alford is a pass rushing DT who fits right is with the pass rushing happy DE's. DeOssie is a LB who can line up anywhere, as well as long snap. Boss is a huge TE with great hands. Koets in now the ONLY LT on the roster! He is solid in technique, but needs to hit the weight room. Eli should be on his back often! Johnson is a possible prospect at FS who will need to stick on special teams. Bradshaw is a small RB who the G-men hope can catch some passes that were intended for Tiki this year. Best move still appears to be made by Tiki retiring. Amazing they didn't address their O line woes with more vigor! Jaguars = B + Nice, solid draft! Nelson gives them a top flight FS who can cover WR's easily. Durant is a perfect fit for their scheme and gets to learn from Del Rio. Versatile too. Walker came off a torn ACL to catch over 90 balls. A nice possession type of WR. Podlesh is a big, athletic P who some think is the next Ray Guy. Smith is a leader, but a tweener DE who will have to move to OLB and prove his hip is healthy. Nwaneri is a project still learning how to play guard, but could be a real find in a few years if he develops. Gattis is always around the ball and a special teams star. Landri is an undersized lunch pail type who may find a niche as a pass rushing DT. Broussard is a big WR lacking much speed. Nkang is a project who will either be a LB or SS, but will have to stick thru special teams. Carnahan is a big OT whose knee may not have healed yet and might need a year on the practice squad. Jets = B+ Mangini took a cue from his mentor and ran his draft room like a mad scientist. Revis was the top rated CB by many and starts now! Harris is very solid and starts day 1 as well at ILB. Bender is a huge T who will be given time to develop. Stuckey has all the tools to be a special WR, but is inconsistent. Coles will be a good mentor. Gave up a lot for 2 starters. Which may be just fine! Lions = A - Matt Millen was wheeling and dealing. Johnson was a no brainer. Furrey goes to the slot and Roy Williams may be the #2 WR for the first time in his life. Stanton may of been a reach. Time will tell, but Martz needs to groom a replacement for Kitna within 2 years. Alama- Francis is a awesome athlete who could help Detroit for a decade at DE. Alexander can play CB or FS. A solid pick. Davis should start at CB day 1. Ramirez should start right away and make several Pro Bowls at guard. Baldwin will be a solid WLB who can play MLB as well. Robinson started at CB for 3 years at 'Bama and is a leader. Packers = B - A gambling type of draft. Harrell should be solid for years, but Jackson came out too early and Jones was a huge reach. He's big, but not fast or consistent. A 4th WR type at best. Rouse can play LB or SS and is either going to be great or have a bum knee that will prevent him from going to the next level. Barbre is a unique talent who will take a few years to develop as a guard. Clowney is a speedy, undersized WR who works the underneath routes well, but has inconsistent hands. Hall will have to make it via special teams. Bishop is a run stuffing LB. Crosby was a curious pick, considering Rayner had an excellent rookie year. Crosby could be better than any Packer kicker ever though. Rayner won't be unemployed long. The Pack is gambling Wynn finally stays healthy and realizes his potential, which could be several thousand yard seasons. Harris is a big TE who isn't fast and needs to improve his blocking. Panthers = A Fox had a good draft. They had to settle for Beeson, but he will be fine at LB. Jarrett will learn from Keyshawn in his last year in the NFL. Kalil is a small C, but the best in the draft and expert at zone blocking. Johnson is a solid DE who will rotate in to spell the starters. Robinson is much in the mold of Steve Smith. The tiny WR should return kicks day 1 while learning his way into the offense. Rosario is a top notch athlete who is seen a Shannon Sharpe type and also loves playing special teams. Shaw is a consistent run stopper and may replace Morgan at MLB. Wilson was a top college CB who is best suited as a FS in the pros. Patriots = A + Evil Bill is at it again! Randy Moss for just! a 4th rounder is a joke and Moss returning to Pro Bowl form in his quest for a ring is practically a guarantee. Next year, 2 first rounders await! Merriweather is a proto typical Pat. He can play CB or either S position. He won't whack out up in NE either, the vets will keep him on a leash. Brown is a run stuffing DT who will spell Woolfolk. Oldenberg is the typical Pat pick. A huge OT they will take their time developing. Rogers is a big, speedy OLB Vrabel will groom to replace him. Richardson is smart and versatile, able to play CB or S. A Bellichek type of player. Hairston is big and fast at RB. A Patrick Pass clone who will play that role. Hilliard is a leader and is huge and versatile enough to play guard or OT. A cerebral type. Lua is a strong MLB with good pass rushing skills. Elgin is a hard worker and is versatile enough to play C or guard, but is small. Raiders = A+ Da Raiders might just win, baby! Russell will be throwing deep because he has the arm to. Miller will open up the middle because he is a huge TE with good hands. DE Moses was in the top 10 of most pre season mock drafts and will only help make an excellent D stronger. Henderson is a project at OT and will learn from the great Jackie Slater. Higgins is an enigma. The fastest WR in the draft, Al envisions him as the next Cliff Branch. He just may be right. Bush is a big back who has played small thus far. He may stick as a 3rd HB behind Jordan and Rhodes. Bowie will be forever known as the guy traded for Randy Moss. He is a speed merchant at CB and may be given time to develop while on special teams. Richardson is a tall DE with good upside and will need time to develop. Frampton is a hard working SS who will need to stick via special teams. O'Neal is a boom or bust type at FB whose stock has dropped the past few years. Holland is a 4.4 WR. Al loves speed. Great draft by the Maestro! Rams = B Carriker can play anywhere on the D line and excel. Leonards pick signifies a new wrinkle on the O. He may spell Jackson in the 1 back set on occasion, but the 2 set system will be there now with both backs excellent at catching passes. Wade will push for nickel back at the least day 1 and may soon start. Fry has a nasty streak in him at C or guard. Ryan was a DE at Michigan, but will probably move to DT in the NFL. Shackleford is big and can play either guard or T positions. Jackson is a solid DT that doesn't do anything particularly special. Stanley is a tiny WR with 4.4 speed who will have to make it by returning kicks. Ravens = A Ozzie Newsome is probably the best GM in the NFL. He just drafted 2 starting guards after watching his line get depleted a few weeks ago. Grubbs has All Pro potential, while Yanda plays with a nasty streak that will be embraced by McGahee and McNair. Figurs will return kicks and learn how to run routes from a former returner in Mason. Barnes is a pass rush specialist who will help on special teams. McClain starts a FB day 1. Smith will be given every opportunity to replace Boller as McNairs replacement. Burgess will have to make it via special teams. Redskins = A+ Credit them for not withering to Chicago's demands. They'll just get Briggs next year. They held pat and got the best safety since Ed Reed. Landry and Taylor will play off each other perfectly. This pick may insure Taylor staying in DC longer too. Count the trail of bodies they scrape off the turf the next decade as Taylor and Landry may form the best Safety duo in the history of the NFL. Imagine 2 Jack Tatums! Sartz is a tall, thin athlete who may work out as a WLB in time. He should be on the special teams a few years for now. Blades should do fine as a run stuffing SLB who comes out on passing downs. Palmer is another Joe Gibbs project (Jay Schroeder, Stan Humphries, Mark Rypien), a late draft pick given years to learn. Ecker is a huge TE drafted to block, much like a Don Warren. Saints = A - Meachum was rated the best WR in the draft by many. Alleman upgrades the O line and should be a solid guard a long time. Young should start day 1 at CB. Pittman adds depth at RB, a good move and value pick. Bushrod is a real sleeper at OT who may be blocking for Duce and Reggie for years. Jones is a play making ball hawk CB who upgrades the Saints poor secondary. Mitchell is a LB who needs to stick on special teams. Seahawks = A Did great with little to work with. Wilson is the fastest CB in the draft, cerebral and a dangerous returner. He should be a nickel back and return all their kicks day 1. Mebane plays with excellent leverage and will help out in the DT rotation. Atkins can play anywhere on the D line. Wrotto is the ultimate team player, who played DT as a junior due to injuries on the team. He is raw as a guard, but may be valuable in time. Has the tools. Herring is a WLB who may need to stick on special teams. Taylor is strictly a possession type of WR. Kent lettered in 3 varsity sports in one year! A rare achievement! He is raw, but a prospect worth grooming at WR. Vallos is a guard prospect. Steelers = B Tomlin seems to have a plan that we will have to wait and see what it is. Timmons is envisioned to replace Porter. Woodley is a tweener who is a decent pass rusher. Spaeth is tough, smart, big and has great hands for a TE. Sepulveda a huge punter with a huge leg. McBean is a huge DE who can rush the passer. Stephenson is a good guard who will help them in a few years. Gay is a CB who will have to make it on special teams. Baker has the bloodlines, but will need to bulk up to make it at WR. Texans = A I liked their draft! Okoye will team with Williams, Ryans, and a young and up and coming defense that will be respected league wide sooner than you think. Jones is a possible sleeper from little Lane college, who is huge and fast. He and Johnson may form a fantastic WR duo. Bennett is a big CB who will push for a starting job on a team deep in quality CB's. Harrison is a big, athletic SS who needs to get more aggressive. Frye will be a solid RT. Studdard is best suited to play C. Diles is an intelligent tackling machine who might have to play special teams a few years at first. Titans = C + Griffin was drafted ahead of Nelson, which was curious, considering Nelson can cover WR's and Pacman is gone. Still, a solid safety who should help on run support. Henry was a reach, but he is a big, athletic back. Williams will probably be a wasted pick. He plays with no heart and rarely showed his full speed on the field. He plays like he doesn't want to be there. I'd be surprised if he made the team and shocked if he lasted more than a season, but pray he gets into football because he has all the tools. Harris is a C who also can play anywhere on the O line. Davis is a small WR with the knack for the clutch catch. He will return punts in Pacmans absence. Johnson is a quick 2 gap DT. Filani is a big WR who runs the underneath routes with precision. Ford is a tall tweener who needs time to develop a position. Either OLB or a pass rushing DE. Special teams may be his way on to the roster. Smith is a small, but speedy CB who may stick as a nickel back because of Pacmans absence. Otto is an intelligent, mistake free LT did not give up a sack his last 2 years at pass happy Purdue,. Needs more weight room time. Vikings = A Peterson lengthens Taylors career and will give them a devastating 1-2 punch behind that huge O line. A VERY SMART PICK! Rice would've been a top 10 pick next year if he stayed one more year with the ol' ball coach. Lets hope he's not the bust fellow Gamecock Williamson is. McCauley has all the tools at CB and could be special, but has not played the same since suffering a major concussion. Robison is a blue collar type at DE. Allison could be a sleeper at WR. Alexanders stock dropped from a possible 1st rounder to the 6th. A small OLB but he is not short of desire. Thigpen is the 1st player ever drafted from Coastal Carolina. He started all 4 years at QB and might make the roster and given time to develop. Williams is a slight WR who will have to make it as a returner.

jay cutler to these teams...really? http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=09000d5d80f8d12e&template=without-video-with-comments&confirm=true really? off the bat these are teams im pretty sure wont trade their 1st draft pick for cutler -49ers:let shaun hill show the team what he can do. -Titains:a run 1st team, where johnson and white are the main offensive tools, the QB, kinda, not so much. -Chicago bears:kyle orton is still young, he has time to be better, he just needs more recievers to work with and yea, and i doubt that the browns would trade Shaun rogers to denver, he IS the Browns Defense. and a nost tackle is REALLY important for a 3-4 defense. i like him in detroit, trade cutler for the 20th overral pick and than draft jason smith, that way your offense has at least something to work with. for some reason, i see tampa bay being a run 1st offense with Ward and that other RB they have. lol but you never know. where do you think cutler would fit and why? BQ-where do you think he WOULDNT fit?

Obama-Farrakhan Ties Are Closer than obama says? Why are we finding all this out way to late? This is very disturbing. What do you think? A former top deputy to Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan tells Newsmax that Barack Obama’s ties to the black nationalist movement in Chicago run deep, and that for many years the two men have had “an open line between them” to discuss policy and strategy, either directly or through intermediaries. “Remember that for years, if you were a politician in Chicago, you had to have some type of relationship with Louis Farrakhan. You had to. If you didn’t, you would be ostracized out of black Chicago,” said Dr. Vibert White Jr., who spent most of his adult life as a member and ultimately top officer of the Nation of Islam. White broke with the group in 1995 and is now a professor of African-American history at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. White said Obama was “part of the Chicago scene” where Farrakhan, Jesse Jackson, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. and radicals would go to each other’s events and support each other’s causes. “Even though Chicago is the third-largest city in the country, within the black community, the political and militant nationalist community is very small. So it wouldn’t be uncommon for [Obama and Farrakhan] to show up at events together, or at least be there and communicate with each other,” White told Newsmax. The Anti-Defamation League has denounced Farrakhan and his Nation of Islam as a “hate group.” Farrakhan has called Jews “bloodsuckers,” “satanic” and accused them of running the slave trade. He has labeled gays as “degenerates.” In a 2006 speech, the ADL again condemned Farrakhan when he said: “These false Jews promote the filth of Hollywood that is seeding the American people and the people of the world and bringing you down in moral strength. … It's the wicked Jews the false Jews that are promoting lesbianism, homosexuality. It's wicked Jews, false Jews that make it a crime for you to preach the word of God, then they call you homophobic!" Obama was careful to “denounce” Farrakhan’s comments – but not the man -- during the Democratic primary season earlier this year, but only after Hillary Clinton called him out for benefiting from Farrakhan’s support. Farrakhan endorsed Obama in a videotaped speech to his followers at Mosque Miryam in Chicago in February. “You are the instruments that God is gonna use to bring about universal change, and that is why Barack has captured the youth,” Farrakhan said. He told the crowd that Obama was the new “messiah.” See Video: Farrakhan Endorses Obama, Calls Him Messiah. Once the news media and the Clinton campaign got hold of those comments from Farrakhan, demands mounted from all sides that Obama “renounce” Farrakhan. But as he has done repeatedly throughout this campaign, Obama was careful to parse his words. “You know, I have been very clear in my denunciation of Minister Farrakhan's anti-Semitic comments,” he said during one appearance on “Meet the Press.” “I think that they are unacceptable and reprehensible.” Obama hastened to point out that Farrakhan had been praising him as “an African-American who seems to be bringing the country together. I obviously can't censor him, but it is not support that I sought. And we’re not doing anything, I assure you, formally or informally with Minister Farrakhan.” But Obama, once again, was less than candid. In 1995, according to a profile of Obama that appeared in the Chicago Reader newspaper, Obama “took time off from attending campaign coffees to attend October’s Million Man March in Washington, D.C.” At the time, Obama was running for the Illinois Senate from Chicago’s South Side, a seat he won after getting surrogates to challenge the signatures on nominating petitions for his chief rival, the incumbent Alice Palmer. The march, which fell far short of attracting the million men it advertised, was organized by Farrakhan and by Obama’s then-pastor, the anti-white black nationalist Wright. Obama spoke at length with the Chicago Reader upon his return from the Million Man March. “What I saw was a powerful demonstration of an impulse and need for African-American men to come together to recognize each other and affirm our rightful place in the society," he said. “These are mean, cruel times, exemplified by a ‘lock ’em up, take no prisoners’ mentality that dominates the Republican-led Congress,” Obama said. “Historically, African-Americans have turned inward and towards black nationalism whenever they have a sense, as we do now, that the mainstream has rebuffed us, and that white Americans couldn't care less about the profound problems African-Americans are facing." “Black nationalism” is a current of thought and political action in the African-American community that has been championed by the likes of Farrakhan, Wright, Malcolm X, the Black Panthers and Khalid al-Mansour. Obama discussed his attraction to black nationalism at length in

Feeling Pinch, Stores Woo Lagging Shoppers. Evaluate Article? Lackluster sales in this holiday season have retailers scrambling to wring a few last dollars from procrastinators by slashing prices, extending hours and wooing customers more persistently than last year. The moves show that retailers' strategy during this final weekend before Christmas -- when about 10% of holiday sales are expected to take place -- has become increasingly reliant on the same promotions and marathon hours once unique to the "Black Friday" weekend following Thanksgiving. But the discounts also reveal the pinch stores are in this year as the credit crunch, rising gas prices and winter storms have taken a toll on companies dependent on end-of-year sales. The tough economy has left aisles more empty this year. Total foot traffic at U.S. retail outlets took an 8.9% dive during the second full week of December, compared with the same period last year, according to an estimate from ShopperTrak RCT Corp., which bases its numbers on a formula that involves an electronic count of shoppers in malls and other retail outlets nationwide. A bright spot, however, has been online, where aggressive discounting and cut-rate deals on fast shipping have contributed to a surge in spending. From Nov. 1 to Dec. 16, online shoppers spent $23.5 billion, 19% higher than the corresponding days last year, according to comScore Inc., a Reston, Va., market research firm that tracks Web spending and traffic. Videogames, consoles and accessories are the fastest-growing category, more than doubling from the comparable period last year. Furniture, appliances and equipment ranks second, up 63%, while event tickets and consumer electronics are up 29% and 24%, respectively. Now, a final push is on, both online and in stores. Web retailers continued to hunt for business by cutting shipping charges to seal deals before the pre-Christmas shipping window closes. Shoebuy.com, a Boston-based unit of IAC/InterActive Corp. offered free express shipping until today. Online handbag merchant eBags upgraded purchases made by Wednesday from standard shipping to two-day air-shipping through UPS for no extra cost. Brick-and-mortar stores, meanwhile, retooled their hours for the weekend, hoping to spark their own shopping flurry. J.C. Penney Co. stores are staying open until midnight tonight and Saturday. Select Macy's Inc. stores on the East Coast will stay open nonstop throughout the weekend -- 107 hours straight for one branch in Queens. And New York-based FAO Schwarz made discounts of 25% to 50% on certain toys. Ed Schmults, the chief executive officer at FAO Schwarz, said that while foot traffic was up, business had not been as booming throughout the season as he hoped. The National Retail Federation, a trade group, is predicting just 4% in sales growth for 2007, the smallest growth rate in five years. Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group, paints an even grimmer picture: He lowered his forecast of 2% retail sales growth to 1.8%, his lowest forecast in nearly 10 years. In the apparel category, men's clothing has showed modest single-digit growth through the first 20 days of the shopping season, according to MasterCard Spending Pulse, a unit of MasterCard Advisors, which tracks spending of all types. But women's apparel -- which last year constituted three times the sales of men's -- has been a major disappointment, as shoppers have avoided big purchases. Sales were down 5.7% from the same time last year. Retailers have responded with a flurry of price cuts, but large inventory remains in some stores. One of Gap Inc.'s Old Navy stores in downtown Chicago on Wednesday had piles of festive sweaters marked down to $20 from $36.50. Women's coats still stuffed the racks, despite being already marked down 50%, and its signature "performance fleece," also half off, was stacked eight shelves high. The bad tidings for apparel have left some retailers looking for other items to push. At Banana Republic, also owned by Gap, $64 gift sets of its perfumes, body creams and shower creams were marked down 30%. Gold-boxed gift sets of a new line of bath products at Ann Taylor Stores Corp. stores were discounted to $19.50 from $29. At Limited Brands Inc.'s Victoria's Secret, stores were piled with beauty gift sets, many 40% off. Meanwhile luxury goods are expected to have a good season this year, and retail consultant Frederick Crawford of AlixPartners predicts "pockets of good news" for high-end retail. For brands like Prada and Gucci, he expects to see 5% to 7% growth. According to retail surveys, electronics sales were down 0.5% in the three-week period between Nov. 18 and Dec. 9 compared to a year ago, according to Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis for market watcher NPD Group. He said consumers in recent years have been delaying purchases until closer to Christmas, which may account for the slowdown. Indeed, Angela Smith has waited until the last week to make her purchases. A 39-year-old bank employee in Dallas, Ms. Smith said she is waiting for prices to drop further as well as trying to spend less. For her three nephews, ages 12, 8 and 7, she plans to buy remote-controlled cars, which Wal-Mart Stores Inc. initially priced at $59 and has since dropped to $49. "I am going to swing by this weekend and see if they are going to take it down one more time," says Ms. Smith, who was shopping for a co-worker's present at her local Wal-Mart midweek. Home-furnishings retailers, fighting the weak housing market, are being particularly aggressive with their promotions this year. At Williams-Sonoma Inc.'s Pottery Barn store on Chicago's Michigan Avenue, Christmas-tree-shaped candles were discounted 50%, and holiday garlands of fake evergreen branches were 30% off. Wrapped gifts such as silver jewelry boxes, also marked down 30%, were stacked high Wednesday afternoon. Home-improvement outfits like Lowe's Cos. Inc. and Home Depot Inc. are destined to be hardest hit, says AlixPartners' Mr. Crawford. "Consumers are absolutely showing us that they will be delaying discretionary purchases" like gear to remodel a kitchen, he said. A boom-bust pattern is typical after Thanksgiving's Black Friday discounts, which encourages a flurry of purchases early but leads to a tapering off in early December, killing shopping momentum. This year the pattern was more pronounced: A double-digit sales surge on Black Friday exceeded retailers' expectations; but come December, throngs of shoppers didn't return. There was one exception, however: online retail. Web merchants have discounted and promoted heavily this season, say industry analysts. Shipping promotions have been particularly popular. Sixty-eight percent of surveyed Web retailers said they are offering express shipping promotions this year, up from 49% last year, according to Scott Silverman, executive director of Shop.org, an online retail trade group and unit of National Retail Federation. As the boom continues, these companies are becoming increasingly creative to draw customers. This year Ice.com, a Montreal-based Internet jeweler, has rolled out new videos to promote products and free overnight shipping. It has experimented with new marketing tricks such as buying front-page ads on Microsoft Corp.'s MSN and Yahoo Inc.'s Web sites this week. Ice.com even tried to tap influencers to drive word-of-mouth among blogs, magazine mentions and celebrities.

Is Obama a liar or does he just tell you whatever he needs to to get your vote? do you remember when Obama stated he was going to re-negotiate the free trade agreement with Canada. While campaigning in Ohio, Mr. Obama harshly criticized the North American Free Trade Agreement, which many Ohioans blame for an exodus of jobs. He agreed at a debate with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton that the United States should consider leaving the pact if it could not be renegotiated. Later a memorandum surfaced, obtained by The Associated Press, showing that Austan D. Goolsbee, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago who is Mr. Obama’s senior economic policy adviser, met officials in the previous month at the Canadian consulate in Chicago. According to the writer of the memorandum, Joseph De Mora, a political and economic affairs consular officer, Professor Goolsbee assured them that Mr. Obama’s protectionist stand on the trail was “more reflective of political maneuvering than policy.” It also said the professor had assured the Canadians that Mr. Obama’s language “should be viewed as more about political positioning than a clear articulation of policy plans.” So when Obama speaks how can we tell if it's just political posturing and not lying.

What do you think of this? Thoughts please!!? Biography for Mickie James Birth name Mickie Laree James Nickname Queen Alexis Princess Alexis Superball Vickie Adams Alexis Laree Height 5' 4" (1.63 m) Trade mark Finishing Move: Inverted DDT Finishing Move: Tornado DDT Trademark Move: Mick-a-Rana (Turnbuckle Headscissors) Trademark Move: Roundhouse Thrust Kick (usually hits the abdomen) Finishing Move: (Copied) Stratusfaction Finishing Move: Mick Kick Finishing Move: Mickie-D-T (Jumping Impact DDT) Trivia Currently holds a WWE developmental contract Was a member of The Gathering in NWA:TNA along with Raven, CM Punk and Julio Dinero She was cut from an Extreme Championship Wrestling tryout in 2000 in favor of another woman, Riptide. She was part of NWA Total Non-Stop Action's first pay-per-view show in the women's lingere battle royal. Notable Title Wins Include: SCW Diva title; UWF Women's title; PWF Woman's title; CSWF Women's title; ICW Junior Heavyweight title; DCW Women's title; Ultimate Championship Wrestling Women's title In July 2005, after training with the WWE for almost 2 years, she appeared at the side of wrestler C.M.Punk for WWE Dark Match prior to Monday Night RAW. She went by the name Vicki Adams. Alexis Laree is the only woman to ever participate in a "Clockwork Orange House of Fun" match, a particularly hardcore and brutal style of steel cage match that involves weapons hanging from the sides of the steel cage. She made her wrestling debut in 1999 Trained by: Dory Funk Jr. "Funkin' Conservatory" (1998), KYDA Pro/Dory Funk Jr. "Funkin' Dojo" (1999), KYDA Pro/ECW "Extreme Dojo" I & II (1999/2000), CW/Ricky Steamboat Training Camp (2001), MCW/Ricky Steamboat/Bobby Eaton Training Camp (2001) Death Valley Driver Top 100 Women (#81, 2001), PWI Top 100 Women in Wrestling History (2002), Wrestling Clothesline Top 50 Women(#2, 2003), PWI Women of Wrestling Special Edition (2004) At WrestleMania 22, she defeated Trish Stratus to become the new Women's Champion. Is engaged to Ken Doane. [2006] Is good friends with fellow WWE RAW Diva Trish Stratus in real life. Worked for the restaurant Olive Garden. Where are they now (October 2005) Working under her real name Mickie James on WWE's Raw brand. (October 2005) Made her debut as Mickie James on WWE RAW October 10, 2005. (October 2005) Debuts on WWE RAW as a WWE diva obsessed with Trish Stratus (October 2005) Alexis appeared on the October 10th edition of RAW under her real name, Mickie James. She's playing an obsessed fan that worships Trish Stratus. (November 2005) Helped Trish Stratus to defend the Women's Title against Melina at Survivor Series 2005. (December 2005) Defeated Victoria to become the #1 contender for the Women's Title. (December 2005) Defeated Victoria on 12/12/2005 episode of WWE RAW to win the #1 contender spot for the WWE Women's Championship at the upcoming RAW-brand pay-per-view "New Year's Revolution". (January 2006) Will face Ashley at the 2006 Royal Rumble with Trish Stratus as Special Guest Referee (April 2006) Won the WWE women's championship from former idol Trish Stratus at Wrestlemania 22 in Chicago. (April 2006) Defeated Trish Stratus at WrestleMania XXII to become the new WWE Women's Champion ending Stratus' one year reign as champion. (April 2006) Engaged to Ken Doane (aka Kenny of The Spirit Squad).

About NAFTA-gate, is Hillary exaggerating the severity of the 'Canadian' memo? Factcheck.org has investigated the case and this is their report:, stressing that what's in the Canadian memo is anybody's guess only. If Hillary should attempt to add more to it, then she's just being a pathological liar. The Checked Out Report: March 3, 2008 Updated: March 4, 2008 What the Obama camp said to Canada, and the voters. Summary Clinton’s spokesman says a newly surfaced memo proves that Obama's campaign issued false denials about sending a private message to Canadian officials to disregard his criticisms of NAFTA. The Obama camp says it’s all a misunderstanding, and the Canadian embassy in Washington says it regrets the whole thing. Is this “NAFTA-gate” as the Clinton campaign would like Ohio voters to believe when they vote in the March 4 primary? Or is it, as the Obama camp describes it, just a botched description by a low-level official in Canada’s Chicago office of a meeting with a senior Obama adviser? It's now clear that a Canadian news report that started this flap wasn't accurate. No evidence has surfaced to show that any Obama "staffer" telephoned the Canadian ambassador in Washington, and all concerned deny that any such conversation took place. But it is equally clear that Obama's senior economic adviser did visit Canada's consulate in Chicago on Feb. 8, and that NAFTA was one of the several topics discussed. Exactly what was said is not so clear, however. The memo says Obama's anti-NAFTA stance was described as just "political maneuvering," but the adviser says he said no such thing. The campaign says the adviser wasn't authorized to convey any message from the candidate anyway. No audio recording or verbatim transcript of the disputed conversation is available, and there’s no reason to expect that any exists. So the best we can do is to provide readers with the essential details as they have unfolded over the past several days, with links to original sources when available. On this one, you’ll have to be the judge. Analysis Here is a day-by-day account of the dispute about the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have for weeks been twisting each others words, each portraying the other as favoring free trade while criticizing the trade deal in Ohio where it is unpopular. Each have nearly identical public positions, however.

Are there any "holes" in the Theory of Evolution? I have gathered the following quotes from some "real" scientists who have a problem with the evolution theory as it is commonly taught: Fossils are a great embarrassment to Evolutionary theory and offer strong support for the concept of Creation" (Gary Parker, Ph.D., biologist/paleontologist and former evolutionist). "most people assume that fossils provide a very important part of the general argument in favor of Darwinian interpretations of the history of life. Unfortunately, this is not strictly true" (Dr. David Raup, curator of geology, Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago). "As is well known, most fossil species appear instantaneously in the fossil record" (Tom Kemp, Oxford University). "The fossil record pertaining to man is still so sparsely known that those who insist on positive declarations can do nothing more than jump from one hazardous surmise to another and hope that the next dramatic discovery does not make them utter fools.Clearly some refuse to learn from this. As we have seen, there are numerous scientists and popularizers today who have the temerity to tell us that there is 'no doubt' how man originated: if only they had the evidence..." (William R. Fix, The Bone Pedlars, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1984, p. 150). "The curious thing is that there is a consistency about the fossil gaps; the fossils are missing in all the important places" (Francis Hitching, archaeologist). "The intelligent layman has long suspected circular reasoning in the use of rocks to date fossils and fossils to date rocks. The geologist has never bothered to think of a good reply" (J. O'Rourke in the American Journal of Science). "In most people's minds, fossils and Evolution go hand in hand. In reality, fossils are a great embarrassment to Evolutionary theory and offer strong support for the concept of Creation. If Evolution were true, we should find literally millions of fossils that show how one kind of life slowly and gradually changed to another kind of life. But missing links are the trade secret, in a sense, of paleontology. The point is, the links are still missing. What we really find are gaps that sharpen up the boundaries between kinds. It's those gaps which provide us with the evidence of Creation of separate kinds. As a matter of fact, there are gaps between each of the major kinds of plants and animals. Transition forms are missing by the millions. What we do find are separate and complex kinds, pointing to Creation" (Dr. Gary Parker, biologist/paleontologist and former ardent evolutionist). "Evolution requires intermediate forms between species and paleontology does not provide them" (David Kitts, paleontologist and evolutionist). "I still think that, to the unprejudiced, the fossil record of plants is in favor of special creation. Can you imagine how an orchid, a duckweed and a palm tree have come from the same ancestry, and have we any evidence for this assumption? The evolutionist must be prepared with an answer, but I think that most would break down before an inquisition" (Dr. Eldred Corner, professor of botany at Cambridge University, England: Evolution in Contemporary Botanical Thought, Chicago: Quadrangle Books, 1961, p. 97). "So firmly does the modern geologist believe in evolution up from simple organisms to complex ones over huge time spans, that he is perfectly willing to use the theory of evolution to prove the theory of evolution [p.128]one is applying the theory of evolution to prove the correctness of evolution. For we are assuming that the oldest formations contain only the most primitive and least complex organisms, which is the base assumption of Darwinism [p.127]. If we now assume that only simple organisms will occur in old formations, we are assuming the basic premise of Darwinism to be correct. To use, therefore, for dating purposes, the assumption that only simple organisms will be present in old formations is to thoroughly beg the whole question. It is arguing in a circle [p.128]" Arthur E Wilder-Smith, Man's Origin, Man's Destiny, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1968, pp. 127,128). "It cannot be denied that from a strictly philosophical standpoint, geologists are here arguing in a circle. The succession of organisms has been determined by the study of their remains imbedded in the rocks, and the relative ages of the rocks are determined by the remains of the organisms they contain" (R. H. Rastall, lecturer in economic geology, Cambridge University: Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 10, Chicago: William Benton, Publisher, 1956, p. 168). "I admit that an awful lot of that [fantasy] has gotten into the textbooks as though it were true. For instance, the most famous example still on exhibit downstairs [in the American Museum of Natural History] is the exhibit on horse evolution prepared fifty years ago. That has been presented as literal truth in textbook after textbook. Now, I think that that is lamentable, particularly because the people who propose these kinds of stories themselves may be aware of the speculative nature of some of the stuff. But by the time it filters down to the textbooks, we've got science as truth and we have a problem" (Dr. Niles Eldredge, paleontologist and evolutionist). "But as by THIS THEORY innumerable transitional forms must have existed, why do we NOT find them embedded in countless numbers in the crust of the earth?" -Charles Darwin To the above fact, even the most world renown (evolutionary) biologists agree...." New species almost always appear suddenly in the fossil record with NO intermediate links to ancestors in older rocks in the same region. The fossil record with its abrupt transitions OFFERS NO SUPPORT for gradual change". - Stephen J. Gould (Natural History , June, 1977, p.22) "The extreme rarity (of transitional forms) in the fossil record persists as the 'trade secret' of palentology. The evolutionary tree (diagrams) that adorn our textbooks is.....NOT the evidence of fossils". - Stephen Gould (Natural History, 1977, vol.86, p.13) Sorry it's so long. My question is, are these guys telling us the truth...ARE so-called "evolutionists" so married to the theory that they simply can't see or admit that the theory COULD be wrong? To set the record straight...I am not a "Creationist", I am a Christian. In the arena of evolution/vs/creation, I am "agnostic"...that is, I am not sure, either way. I am curious. I've not seen any serious evidence to prove to me that evolution is, indeed, a fact...to me, it is an open question. Why, for instance, is this "common ancestor" so difficult to track down? Common sense tells me that it would have to have been some sort of ape-like creature...but what did it evolve from, and why? How can you be sure such a creature ever existed? Where did he go? These are questions that are very real, to me, and mean much more than whether or not I'm gonna need a new flu shot because the astute li'l critters that cause flu adapted to the vaccine I had last year.... REAL answers would be appreciated, but if you just HAVE to be rude, crude, and not to shrewd, all you prove to me is that you really don't have any answers, either, or you would give them. Thank you.

Jazz vs Rockets rivalery? where does this rivalry rank all time During the 1990s, the Houston Rockets, led by dominant center Hakeem Olajuwon, and the Utah Jazz, led by the pick and roll duo of Karl Malone and John Stockton, were playoff powers in the Midwest Division. The teams faced each other four times in the NBA Playoffs during the decade. In all four of those instances, the winner was the eventual Western Conference Champion and finalist in the NBA Finals. The Dream, Stock, and The Mailman arrive The major players of both squads, Olajuwon, Malone, and Stockton, were all drafted in the mid 1980s, an era in which many other great players were drafted, mostly in the same years as each other. Hakeem Olajuwon, who led the University of Houston's "Phi Slamma Jamma" squad to three Final Four appearances, was drafted first overall by Houston in 1984. John Stockton, on the other hand, was drafted sixteenth by Utah from Gonzaga in the same year and was relatively unknown at the time. The Jazz pulled off another draft steal when they selected Karl Malone thirteenth overall from Louisiana Tech the next year. The first meeting in the playoffs between the Rockets and the Jazz was in the 1985 NBA Playoffs. Houston, led by its "Twin Towers" of Ralph Sampson and Olajuwon, ammassed a 48-34 record in 1984-1985, earning a second-place finish in the Midwest Division and the third seed in the playoffs. Utah, tied for fourth in the Midwest with San Antonio, wound up as the sixth seed, reaching the postseason for only the second time in franchise history. Utah, with Stockton, Adrian Dantley, and shot-blocking center Mark Eaton (who won the shot-blocking title and set all-time league records for total blocks (456) and blocks per game (5.56)), defeated Houston and its Twin Towers in five games despite losing Eaton to an injured right knee. Nothing was made of this matchup at the time, but it proved to be a foreshadowing of years to come. [edit] 1994 NBA Playoffs, Western Conference Finals The two teams met in their first major clash with each other in the 1994 NBA Playoffs. Hakeem Olajuwon was widely considered not only the best post player in the league during an era of great centers but, ever since Michael Jordan's first retirement from the NBA, the best player in the league, winning both the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and his second consecutive NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award for the 1993-1994 season. Along with Otis Thorpe, Kenny Smith, Vernon Maxwell, Robert Horry, Mario Elie, and Sam Cassell, the Houston Rockets proved to be a formidable force in the Western Conference, winning the Midwest Division title with a record of 58-24. As the second seed in the Western Conference, the Rockets ousted the Clyde Drexler-led Portland Trail Blazers three games to one, but ran into trouble with Charles Barkley's Phoenix Suns, who won the first two games at Houston. The Rockets persisted to eventually win the series, four games to three. The Utah Jazz, with their established duo of Karl Malone (who finished fifth in the league with 25.2 points per game and topped 19,000 career points to move into 25th place on the all-time list) and John Stockton (who led the league in assists for the seventh straight season with 12.6 assists per game) and the pick and roll offense, also had Jeff Hornacek (acquired in a trade with Philadelphia for Jeff Malone), veteran forward Tom Chambers, and center Felton Spencer to complement the two leaders. The team posed a challenge to the Rockets for the Midwest Division title when it won ten straight games from late February to early March and then eight of nine games to finish the season at a record of 53-29. Utah defeated San Antonio in three games to one, but received a scare from the Denver Nuggets (the eighth seed that upset first-seeded Seattle in the first round) when a 3-0 series lead for the Jazz evaporated into a 3-3 series tie. The Jazz advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the second time in three years to face Houston. The Rockets swept the first two games at Houston, then the teams split the two games at the Delta Center at Salt Lake City with the Jazz winning the first of the two. The fifth game was held in Houston on May 31, 1994. The Rockets hit eight three-pointers in the first three quarters to build a 24-point lead, but the Utah Jazz mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to eight. Robert Horry and Hakeem Olajuwon made clutch shots down the stretch to win it for the Rockets, 94-83, claiming the Western Conference title and sending the Rockets to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1986. The Rockets continued on to win the championship against Olajuwon's old college rival, Patrick Ewing, and the New York Knicks in a grueling seven-game series. [edit] 1995 NBA Playoffs, First Round The next year, the two rivals faced off again, this time in the first round of the 1995 NBA Playoffs. Houston struggled throughout much of the 1994-1995 season, finishing with a record of 47-35 for the sixth seed in the West. On February 14, 1995, the Rockets unexpectedly traded forward Otis Thorpe to the Portland Trail Blazers for guard Clyde Drexler and forward Tracy Murray. An injury to Carl Herrera forced him to miss most of the second half of the season and the entire postseason and left the power forward position vulnerable. The addition of Drexler into the starting lineup made former starting shooting guard Vernon Maxwell frustrated enough to take a leave of absence. These issues provided fuel for critics of the Thorpe-Drexler deal. The Jazz, on the other hand, ended the season on a high note with a record of 60-22, then a franchise record thanks partly to a 15-game winning streak on the road in December and January, the second-longest such streak in NBA history. The starting five of Malone, Stockton, Hornacek, David Benoit, and Felton Spencer, was solid, and the bench possessed key contributors in Adam Keefe, Antoine Carr, James Donaldson, Tom Chambers, and Blue Edwards. The major setback came on January 13, when Spencer suffered a torn left Achilles tendon, which took him out for the rest of the season and the entire postseason. Spencer was not an all-star, but he was still crucial to the Jazz's championship chances because he was a big body who could hold his own against the great centers in the Western Conference, especially against Hakeem Olajuwon. With the second best record in the Midwest Division to the San Antonio Spurs, the Jazz ended up with the third seed in the West. The Jazz barely won the first game in the Delta Center 102-100, but the Rockets stunned the Jazz in Game 2 140-126 for a split in Utah. The series moved on to Houston, where the Jazz prevailed 95-82, going up in the series 2-1 over Houston. The Rockets regrouped to win Game 4 123-106 to force a Game 5 at the Delta Center. In a tightly fought contest, the Houston Rockets emerged victorious over the Utah Jazz 95-91, eliminating the Jazz for the second straight year. The Rockets went on to repeat as champions, becoming the lowest-seeded team to win the championship. [edit] 1997 NBA Playoffs, Western Conference Finals The two clubs met again in the 1997 NBA Playoffs, this time in the Western Conference Finals. For the first time in franchise history, Utah finished as the top Western Conference team with a 64-18 record (the best in franchise history) and stormed past both the Clippers and Lakers before meeting Houston. An off-season trade with Phoenix gave the Rockets Charles Barkley for Sam Cassell, Chucky Brown, Mark Bryant, and Robert Horry. Matt Maloney manned the point as the only first-year player to start in all 82 games. Other key acquisitions included veterans Kevin Willis, Sedale Threatt and Eddie Johnson to provide an already potent Rockets starting lineup a deep bench. The Rockets finished second in both the Midwest Division and the Western Conference with a 57-25 record and the third seed. The Rockets swept the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round and then survived a seven-game series with the Seattle SuperSonics in the Western Cenference Semifinals, avenging last year's sweep. The Rockets advanced to the Western Conference Finals, where the Utah Jazz was waiting. Utah won the first two games at home in the Delta Center, while the Rockets responded at home with wins in games 3 and 4, thanks to the heroics of Eddie Johnson, who scored 31 points off the bench in Game 3 and hit a buzzer-beating, game-winning three-pointer in Game 4 to even the series at 2-2. The Jazz won Game 5 at home, setting the stage for Game 6. John Stockton scored 15 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter to help the Jazz claw back from a 12-point deficit, including his most heroic effort at the final buzzer. After tying the game in the final minute, with time for one final offensive play, Bryon Russell made the inbounds pass to Stockton, Karl Malone set the pick, illegally grabbing Clyde Drexler and pulling him away from Stockton. This forced Malone's man, Charles Barkley, to try to guard Stockton. But Barkley was too late: though he managed to get a hand in Stockton's face, Stockton buried the three-point basket. This spectacular winning play was performed off of the Utah Jazz's signature play: the pick and roll. Stockton's game-winning three-pointer gave the Jazz a 103-100 victory over the Houston Rockets and sent them on their first-ever trip to the NBA Finals, where they bowed out to the Chicago Bulls in six games. [edit] 1998 NBA Playoffs, First Round The latest significant meeting between these two teams was in the first round of the 1998 NBA Playoffs. The Jazz finished tied with the best record with Chicago at 62-20, having swept the regular-season series against the Bulls, guaranteeing home court advantage throughout the entire playoffs. However, the eighth-seeded Houston Rockets, who finished with a record of 41-41 due to numerous injuries, nearly gave the Jazz a scare when the Rockets, led by Drexler's 22 points, won the first game in the Delta Center 103-90. After the Jazz won Game 2 105-90, the Rockets won a grinding Game 3 89-85, led by a team-high 28 points and 12 rebounds from Olajuwon. The Utah Jazz were now one loss away from becoming only the second first-seeded team to lose to an eighth seed. The Rockets looked poised to win the fourth game, but Charles Barkley received an elbow to his forearm, tearing a triceps muscle and ending his season. The Jazz won the last two games of the series over the shorthanded Rockets, ending the retiring Clyde Drexler's career. [edit] End of an era, but is it the end of the rivalry? After the retirements of Drexler, Barkley, and Olajuwon, the Rockets did not return to the playoffs until 2004, when a team of Yao Ming, Steve Francis, and Cuttino Mobley faced the Lakers (the team which Karl Malone joined the last off-season to win the elusive title). In that same year, the year after Stockton retired, the Jazz ended its twenty-year streak of postseason appearances. Yet in 2007, everything would change. [edit] 2007 NBA Playoffs, First Round: The Return of the Rivalry The rivalry was restored in the 2007 season. Near the end of the season, the Jazz were holding the fourth-best record in the Western Conference, but skidded and allowed the Rockets to have home court advantage during the playoffs. Pressure was on Rockets star Tracy McGrady with questions regarding if he could take the Rockets to the second round for the first time in his career. The pressure showed in Game 1 as he only scored 1 point in the first half with the Rockets down 9. He came out strong in the second half though as he scored 16 points in the third quarter and finished with 23 as the Rockets took the first game 84-75. Game 2 was a similar story as Houston won 98-90 behind McGrady's 31 points and Yao's 27 despite Carlos Boozer's career-high tying 41 points. The series shifted to Salt Lake City and the Jazz finally found their groove as they took Game 3 81-67 despite another impressive performance from Yao and T-Mac. The Jazz then tied the series with a 95-85 victory in Game 4. The series went back to Houston for Game 5. T-Mac had one of the best performances of the series as he tallied 26 points and a career-high 16 assists as they took Game 5 96-92. McGrady was one game shy of winning his first playoff series. He had to wait as the Jazz took Game 6 94-82. The series shifted back to Houston for the crucial Game 7. Up to this point, the home team had won every game of the series. This would not hold up as the Jazz emerged victorious, 103-99. Yao and McGrady each had 29, but it was not enough to overcome Boozer's 35 as the Jazz came back from an 0-2 deficit for the first time in franchise history. The Jazz went on to the Conference Finals, but succumbed to the champion Spurs in five games.

2009 NFL Power Rankings? I've come up with my estimated power rankings for the 2009 NFL season (top 15). I was just wondering what people thought of them, or what they think the power rankings will be like. 1. Baltimore Ravens - Coming off a strong year, now with an experienced Flacco at the helm. They have re-signed Lewis and Rolle, and they have brought in Foxworth and Carr to strengthen their secondary. There is also talk of a likely trade for Boldin from the Cardinals. I expect to see a second appearance from this team in the AFC Championship game. 2. New England Patriots - With more or less the same team as their undefeated season in 2007, a recovered Tom Brady, and talk of acquiring Julius Peppers look for the patriots to re-establish themselves as an NFL powerhouse. 3. Tennessee Titans - After being the top ranked team in the NFL last season and loosing their first playoff game the Titans will be out for revenge. Despite the Steelers winning the superbowl, I expect the Titans to upset the Steelers in the 2009 regular season opener. 4. Pittsburgh Steelers - There is no doubt that the Steelers are one of the top teams in the NFL as they proved by winning the superbowl. I have them ranked at 4th, not because I feel they will have gotten much worse, but because I feel that last season the Titans were a better team (not being able to keep a close game head to head) and that the Ravens and the Patriots will be stronger teams than last year. 5. New York Giants - The Giants clearly established themselves as a strong team over the past two years, but I feel that with the loss of Burress this team will become much more one dimensional. 6. San Diego Chargers - The Chargers proved they are still a strong team by knocking off the Colts in the first round of playoffs. With a recovered Tomlinson and Merriman this team will be stepping their level of play up for this season. 7. Indianapolis Colts - Throughout the past few years, the Colts have established themselves as on of the NFL's best teams. However, with the loss of Harrison and still a lack of a running game, I feel the Colts won't be quite as strong a team as they have been in past years. 8. Minnesota Vikings - With one of the top defenses in the league and a running back like Peterson this team, no doubt, has some serious potential. However, with the loss of pro bowl center Matt Birk and a certain lack of a passing game, this team doesn't quite make it in to my top 5 teams. 9. New Orleans Saints - In my opinion, Drew Brees is one of the best quarterbacks to play in the NFL and lead one of the most explosive offenses in the league. Despite his three best receivers being injured for most of last season (Colston, Shockey and Bush) he still managed to lead the league in passing yards, all three of which are fully recovered for the coming season. However, with the loss of McAllister it is hard to tell whether Bush will step up to be an every-down back or if the running game will suffer. 10. Atlanta Falcons - With a promising young quarterback, the 2nd best running game in the league last season, and a successful previous season look for this team to only get better. 11. Miami Dolphins - After an incredible turn around season, I expect them to still be a fairly good team, but not have quite the season they had last year. With a harder schedule and a recovered Patriots team in their division I expect this season to be much more challenging for the Dolphins. 12. Carolina Panthers - The Panthers proved themselves as a powerful team last season by earning themselves a first round bye in the playoffs. The team has potential with WR Smith and RB Williams, but still does not have a QB that has proven they can lead the team. That coupled with the probable loss of DE Peppers suggest this season will not be quite as successful. 13. Arizona Cardinals - Despite their playoff success last season, I don't see this team being equally successful this season. The likely loss of Boldin, leaving the team with only one star receiver, will make it easier for opposing defenses to focus on Fitzgerald. Also, for most of the season their defense was not able to step up and do their job well. Their success next season depends on whether the regular season or the playoff Cardinals show up. I don't see the playoff Cardinals coming back. 14. Chicago Bears - The Bears have generally had a good defense and running game, but had serious issues in the QB position. With a strong QB like Cutler now running the offense, I see this team improving greatly over their performance last season. 15. Dallas Cowboys - In recent history, Dallas has been packed with potential and put together winning seasons, but failed to really pull it together as a team. Despite the loss of Owens, I expect more of the same from the Cowboys.

Please help me with the correct trivia for US99 & other Radio Stations for November 20, 2008? Happy Birthday & Anniversary Month to: Josh (2nd), Linda (5th), Fred G & the Mrs. (11th 30 yrs), Jessica (11th Marty’s daughter), Chillyone (13th), Bevster (14th #45) DonnaBee (18th) 29 again! , Dakota Page (13th Jw grandbaby )JoanK (20th), Khandi (24th), Andrea (28th), JoanK & Hubster (30th 27 years!) Happy Birthday Joan!! 17152 http://ww12.1800flowers.com/template.do?id=template7&page=2 Need: HeeHaw, sasha, Sherri V, Sylvie, Tom P, Yars63 day and month of you birthday for the list. And anyone else who Stops regularly I would love to add you to the birthday or anniversary list. Who We Are and the stations we listen too! 92.5 JOE FM EDMONTON, AB 92.5 WWYZ HARTFORD, CT. 92.5 LONE STAR 92.5 XTU PHILADELPHIA 92.5 WBEE ROCHESTER, NY 92.5 THE WOLF, DENVER 92.9 DAVEFM ATLANTA, GA 93.7 THE BULL TRIVIA 93.9 MOVING CALIFORNIA 94.9 THE SOUND WSWD FM CINCINNATI OHIO 95.3 NEW COUNTRY, HAMILTON ONTARIO 95.5 WFMS INDIANAPOLIS 95.7 MYCLUB MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 96.5 WCMF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 96.7 THE TWISER ARLINGTON, TEXAS 98 WPXY ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 98.7 KUPL PORTLAND, OR 99.5 WUSN CHICAGO, IL. 99.5 THE RIVER ALBANY, NEW YORK 99.5 WGAR CLEVELAND, OHIO 99.5 THE WOLF TEXAS COUNTRY 99.5 WZPL Z99 INDIANAPOLIS, IN 100.1 KZST SANTA ROSE, CA 100.3 KILT FM HOUSTON, TX Y101 OTTAWA, ONTARIO 102.1 EDGE DALLAS 102.5 KSFM SACRAMENTO, CA 102.9 MIX 103.9 CISN EDMONTON, AB 105.1 GO COUNTRY LOS ANGELES, CA C105 CALGARY, ALBERTA 105.9 WHCN THE RIVER HARTFORD, CT 105.7 KYKX LONGVIEW, TEXAS 106.1 WMIL MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 106.1 KISS FM DALLAS, TX 106.1 KISS SEATTLE, WASHINGTON Q107 CLASSIC CALGARY, AB Z107.7 ST. LOUIS, MO 107.9 WNTR THETRACK INDIANAPOLIS, IN Good Morning all! Before They Were Famous: A) lifeguard Champions: A) hit the ball closer to the hole Country Music Trivia: C) Jesus, take the wheel This Day in U.S. History: B) Essex Video of the Day Trivia: beautiful women You Can Quote Me: C) Four score and seven years Newsletter: Flake Deans: banana Nascar: E Taylor Swift: Soldier Field All Access: #79 CMA Trade-in your points for a pair of passes to the US99.5 LIVE Country event featuring Lee Ann Womack on Tuesday, December 2, 2008 at 8 p.m. at Joe's Bar located at 940 W. Weed St. in Chicago. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. Limited seating is available, otherwise it is standing room only! Must be 21 with a valid photo ID. Passes are non-transferable as all guests will be on a will-call list. Please bring your confirmation email and photo ID with you to check in the night of the show What is a Top Contributor? A Top Contributor is a member of the Answers community who has shown that they are knowledgeable in a particular category. Each Answers user can be a top contributor in up to three categories. The top contributor badge is dynamic —you earn it or lose it depending on your recent participation in a particular category. The more actively you contribute, the more likely you will earn a badge. Just like featured users or category leaders, it's another way to feature community members who might otherwise be overlooked. Happy Belated anniversary to you CountryRn27 and the Mr. Hope your very special day was great! Thanks Pincio13 for the artist! also for help try: http://calgaryradio.blogspot.com/ http://edmontonradio.blogspot.com/ Have a good day all! crazyH hope your daughter is feeling better today.

Is YouTube an authoritative source/reference for current events and national and international news? Here is a list of their featured video's today! Kurt Vonnegut is The Resident's People 06:23 The Res reads passages that focus on her latest obsessive topic, global warming, from her favorite author's latest book. For mo The Res reads passages that focus on her latest obsessive topic, global warming, from her favorite author's latest book. For more info on the show, visit www.theresident.net. Thanks to the best rock band on Earth, The Sound of Urchin, for use of their song, "Don't Walk Me Down That Road." More info on them at www.soundofurchin.com ( more ) ( less ) More in People & Blogs From: theresident Views: 13,558 We Need Girlfriends - Episode 4 - Rod vs Henry 07:19 Rod's actions push Henry to the breaking point, and their friendship is tested in an epically pathetic and childish battle. www Rod's actions push Henry to the breaking point, and their friendship is tested in an epically pathetic and childish battle. www.weneedgirlfriends.tv www.myspace.com/we_need_girlfriends Produced by Angel Acevedo, Brian Amyot, Steven Tsapelas. Stars: Patrick Cohen, Seth Kirschner, Evan Bass Written and Directed by: Steven Tsapelas Shot by: Angel Acevedo ( more ) ( less ) More in Comedy From: StevenTsapelas Views: 2,322 Chocolate-Covered Stawberries 03:51 Ever been in a situation where you thought you had EVERYTHING planned out, but then forgot to make a dessert? No? Well, then wat Ever been in a situation where you thought you had EVERYTHING planned out, but then forgot to make a dessert? No? Well, then watch this to learn how to make homemade chocolate-covered strawberries anyway! ( more ) ( less ) More in People & Blogs From: ChefMelissaTV Views: 115,260 Ode To Zach Braff 03:43 Someone had to say how great Zach Braff is. We here at The Super Secret Project decided to take the liberty. And yes, we screwed u Someone had to say how great Zach Braff is. We here at The Super Secret Project decided to take the liberty. And yes, we screwed up his middle name. Nothing rhymes with Israel. ( more ) ( less ) More in Comedy From: SuperSecretProject Views: 180,172 America: Sweet Freedom 03:46 All this patriotism is gonna' give me cavities! More in News & Politics From: machelli Views: 130,287 Keepon Dancing to Spoon 03:37 The robot Keepon (developed by Hideki Kozima and programmed by Marek Michalowski) dancing to the song "I Turn My Camera On" by the The robot Keepon (developed by Hideki Kozima and programmed by Marek Michalowski) dancing to the song "I Turn My Camera On" by the band Spoon. See http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~marekm/projects/beatbots ( more ) ( less ) More in Entertainment From: mmichalowski Views: 593,638 The Chicago Day In Review - Hey There Delilah - Stop Motion 03:01 Ryan Bell + Kris Mansour + Chicago + Stop Motion = Excellence. Song: Hey There Delilah by Plain White T's More in Film & Animation From: ADayInReview Views: 114,061 The B-Team: Madonna's Guy 03:17 www.flycell.com/exclusives - Mr T, K-fed and b-list celebrity puppets help Hollywood's A-list solve mysteries. In episode 1, Guy R www.flycell.com/exclusives - Mr T, K-fed and b-list celebrity puppets help Hollywood's A-list solve mysteries. In episode 1, Guy Ritchie has been kidnapped by a head-shaving cult. "Quit your jibba-jabbin and get in the damn van, honkies!" There's more at ( more ) ( less ) More in Comedy From: flycellmobile Views: 12,824 Berimbau 04:03 Marylee, Janet & Mercedes have some fun while Swingbossa's gone. More in Music From: mercedezzz Views: 139,248 Thread Heads Quickie - How to Turn a T-shirt into a Camisole 01:07 Learn how to turn a plain boy's T-shirt into a girl's camisole using just scissors. No sewing necessary. You can watch the enti Learn how to turn a plain boy's T-shirt into a girl's camisole using just scissors. No sewing necessary. You can watch the entire episode here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=8Xrqg_4uXn4 And there's lots more where that came from - all you gotta do is subscribe. Thanks for checking out the show! ( more ) ( less ) More in Howto & DIY From: ThreadBanger Views: 228,312 Afterworld Episode 6 -- Hibakusha 03:11 99% of the population is missing. Technology is dead. 130 EPISODES TO COME, ROLLING OUT EVERY WEDNESDAY! And, starting in May, epi 99% of the population is missing. Technology is dead. 130 EPISODES TO COME, ROLLING OUT EVERY WEDNESDAY! And, starting in May, episodes will rollout daily (Monday - Friday). SUBSCRIBE to the AfterworldTV CHANNEL (www.youtube.com/afterworldtv) and we'll keep you posted as we roll out the 'World'. WHERE WILL YOU BE AFTER THE FALL? Episode 6 Summary: Accompanying Officer Delondre on her patrol, Russ is introduced to "Barterville" a new trading community in Central Park. Amongst the survivors there, Russ meets an elderly Japanese man who offers compelling evidence of his EMP theory. ( more ) ( less ) More in Entertainment From: AfterworldTV Views: 162,700 Get Well Cards For Josh 02:06 PLEASE WATCH PixelFaerie UPDATE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYg0JxHcpyE Take a minute and send a get well card so Josh can PLEASE WATCH PixelFaerie UPDATE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYg0JxHcpyE Take a minute and send a get well card so Josh can get in the Guiness Book of World Records. He's got leukemia and this is his last wish. Let's see if we can bring a little joy into his life: Josh Adkins 124 Edgewood Dr. Stanford KY 40484 See this video for more info: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cM4EKmrdfY ( more ) ( less ) More in People & Blogs From: tlg847 Views: 144,144

Please help me with the correct trivia for US99 & other Radio Stations for November 21, 2008? Good Morning all! Before They Were Famous: B) EMI music publishing Champions: C) Brooklyn Dodgers Country Music Trivia: C) Wilson This Day in U.S. History: C) Thomas A. Edison Video of the Day Trivia: yes we can You Can Quote Me: C) John Adams Newsletter: Flake Artist: Gretchen (thanks country) Deans: Mint ( thanks bevster again) Nascar: E Taylor Swift: Lake All Access: #79 CMA Fusion Cash Trivia: Grants Pass Happy Birthday & Anniversary Month to: Josh (2nd), Linda (5th), Fred G & the Mrs. (11th 30 yrs), Jessica (11th Marty’s daughter), Chillyone (13th), Bevster (14th #45) DonnaBee (18th) 29 again! , Dakota Page (13th Jw grandbaby )JoanK (20th), Khandi (24th), Andrea (28th), JoanK & Hubster (30th 27 years!) Who We Are and the stations we listen too! 92.5 JOE FM EDMONTON, AB 92.5 WWYZ HARTFORD, CT. 92.5 LONE STAR 92.5 XTU PHILADELPHIA 92.5 WBEE ROCHESTER, NY 92.5 THE WOLF, DENVER 92.9 DAVEFM ATLANTA, GA 93.7 THE BULL TRIVIA 93.9 MOVING CALIFORNIA 94.9 THE SOUND WSWD FM CINCINNATI OHIO 95.3 NEW COUNTRY, HAMILTON ONTARIO 95.5 WFMS INDIANAPOLIS 95.7 MYCLUB MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 96.5 WCMF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 96.7 THE TWISER ARLINGTON, TEXAS 98 WPXY ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 98.7 KUPL PORTLAND, OR 99.5 WUSN CHICAGO, IL. 99.5 THE RIVER ALBANY, NEW YORK 99.5 WGAR CLEVELAND, OHIO 99.5 THE WOLF TEXAS COUNTRY 99.5 WZPL Z99 INDIANAPOLIS, IN 100.1 KZST SANTA ROSE, CA 100.3 KILT FM HOUSTON, TX Y101 OTTAWA, ONTARIO 102.1 EDGE DALLAS 102.5 KSFM SACRAMENTO, CA 102.9 MIX 103.9 CISN EDMONTON, AB 105.1 GO COUNTRY LOS ANGELES, CA C105 CALGARY, ALBERTA 105.9 WHCN THE RIVER HARTFORD, CT 105.7 KYKX LONGVIEW, TEXAS 106.1 WMIL MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 106.1 KISS FM DALLAS, TX 106.1 KISS SEATTLE, WASHINGTON Q107 CLASSIC CALGARY, AB Z107.7 ST. LOUIS, MO 107.9 WNTR THETRACK INDIANAPOLIS, IN Trade-in your points for a pair of passes to the US99.5 LIVE Country event featuring Lee Ann Womack on Tuesday, December 2, 2008 at 8 p.m. at Joe's Bar located at 940 W. Weed St. in Chicago. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. Limited seating is available, otherwise it is standing room only! Must be 21 with a valid photo ID. Passes are non-transferable as all guests will be on a will-call list. Please bring your confirmation email and photo ID with you to check in the night of the show. from n7ybn if you have trouble: Yahoo! Answers will be unavailable Friday, November 21, starting at 12:30 a.m. PST and lasting for several hours due to maintenance. This is the second of the two planned outages and will conclude the scheduled maintenance for the immediate future. If there is any change to this schedule, we will update the information here. Thanks for your patience! Don't forget points for pick!! Have a good Weekend all! get more points yahoo messed up and I ended up asking the same question 3 times! I deleted one of them, but there is still a second one out there. go to my profile and asked question to see both!

Will the person who embraces these "values" truly represent ALL Americans? If you plan to vote for Obama, you need to be aware of his value system...the core of his being. Here is the Black Value System that, as a member for 20+ years of the Trinity Church, Obama upholds: Trinity United Church of Christ adopted the Black Value System, written by the Manford Byrd Recognition Committee, chaired by the late Vallmer Jordan in 1981. These Black Ethics must be taught and exemplified in homes, churches, nurseries and schools, wherever Blacks are gathered. They consist of the following concepts: Commitment to God. “The God of our weary years” will give us the strength to give up prayerful passivism and become Black Christian Activists, soldiers for Black freedom and the dignity of all humankind. Commitment to the Black Community. The highest level of achievement for any Black person must be a contribution of strength and continuity of the Black Community. Commitment to the Black Family. The Black family circle must generate strength, stability and love, despite the uncertainty of externals, because these characteristics are required if the developing person is to withstand warping by our racist competitive society. Those Blacks who are blessed with membership in a strong family unit must reach out and expand that blessing to the less fortunate. Dedication to the Pursuit of Education. We must forswear anti-intellectualism. Continued survival demands that each Black person be developed to the utmost of his/her mental potential despite the inadequacies of the formal education process. “Real education” fosters understanding of ourselves as well as every aspect of our environment. Also, it develops within us the ability to fashion concepts and tools for better utilization of our resources, and more effective solutions to our problems. Since the majority of Blacks have been denied such learning, Black Education must include elements that produce high school graduates with marketable skills, a trade or qualifications for apprenticeships, or proper preparation for college. Basic education for all Blacks should include Mathematics, Science, Logic, General Semantics, Participative Politics, Economics and Finance, and the Care and Nurture of Black minds. Dedication to the Pursuit of Excellence. To the extent that we individually reach for, even strain for excellence, we increase, geometrically, the value and resourcefulness of the Black Community. We must recognize the relativity of one’s best; this year’s best can be bettered next year. Such is the language of growth and development. We must seek to excel in every endeavor. Adherence to the Black Work Ethic. “It is becoming harder to find qualified people to work in Chicago.” Whether this is true or not, it represents one of the many reasons given by businesses and industries for deserting the Chicago area. We must realize that a location with good facilities, adequate transportation and a reputation for producing skilled workers will attract industry. We are in competition with other cities, states and nations for jobs. High productivity must be a goal of the Black workforce. Commitment to Self-Discipline and Self-Respect. To accomplish anything worthwhile requires self-discipline. We must be a community of self-disciplined persons if we are to actualize and utilize our own human resources, instead of perpetually submitting to exploitation by others. Self-discipline, coupled with a respect for self, will enable each of us to be an instrument of Black Progress and a model for Black Youth. Disavowal of the Pursuit of “Middleclassness.” Classic methodology on control of captives teaches that captors must be able to identify the “talented tenth” of those subjugated, especially those who show promise of providing the kind of leadership that might threaten the captor’s control. Those so identified are separated from the rest of the people by: Killing them off directly, and/or fostering a social system that encourages them to kill off one another. Placing them in concentration camps, and/or structuring an economic environment that induces captive youth to fill the jails and prisons. Seducing them into a socioeconomic class system which, while training them to earn more dollars, hypnotizes them into believing they are better than others and teaches them to think in terms of “we” and “they” instead of “us.” So, while it is permissible to chase “middleclassness” with all our might, we must avoid the third separation method – the psychological entrapment of Black “middleclassness.” If we avoid this snare, we will also diminish our “voluntary” contributions to methods A and B. And more importantly, Black people no longer will be deprived of their birthright: the leadership, resourcefulness and example of their own talented persons. Pledge to Make the Fruits of All Developing and Acquired Skills Available to the Black Community. Pledge to Allocate Regularly, a Portion of Person I can understand why Obamabots would report this...wouldn't want anybody to read the truth. And to the brainiack that believes I actually wrote this? lol lol http://www.theobamafile.com/_exhibits/BlackValueSystem.mht Ethel M - bless you dear. This entire excerpt came directly from the Trinity Church that Obama attends. Lydia - you're so right! It's like those people that are following their leader right to their end - literally!...zombies...no sense of self-preservation. Scary that they will take down the rest of America with them, huh? murphdog - thanks for the advice. I know you mean well, but I read a newspaper every single day. Even though it's full of left-wing propoganda, it gives me both sides of the picture and reminds me of the beautiful freedom we have in America - to have a difference of opinion and still be Americans. I wish we could get back to the mindset that we are all one people, however, reading the above black theology propoganda has made me realize that the black community that buys into these "values" is separating themselves from the rest of Americans. They can damm white America all they want to, that will not bring our country together. Obama has a 20+ year history with these people.

the office of the president elect is real i think not? Nice try josh but no cigar.... here's the facts..... Despite Bells and Whistles, 'Office of President-Elect' Holds No Authority The props that decorate the stage for the Office of the President-elect serve as just that, since Barack Obama will hold no actual authority in the Executive Branch until Jan. 20. President-elect Barack Obama is looking very presidential these days. When he makes an announcement, he is ringed by American flags and stands behind a lectern that has a very presidential-looking placard announcing "The Office of the President-Elect." But the props are merely that. Under the Constitution, there is no such thing as the Office of the President-elect. Technically, Obama will not even become the president-elect until the Electoral College convenes after the second Wednesday in December and elects him based on the results of the Nov. 4 general election, as stated in the Constitution. So what is Obama's executive authority in the weeks leading to Jan. 20? In the 11 weeks between Election Day and Inauguration Day, the next president must ensure a smooth transition by selecting political appointees to manage key agencies and offices within the Executive Branch, and by creating the policies that will define the new administration -- all while respecting the authority held by the current president. The Presidential Transition Act -- created in 1963 and amended in 2000 -- establishes formal provisions for the transition period by outlining training and other assistance that the president-elect and his team of advisers can receive as they prepare to assume office. The amended bill -- co-sponsored by lawmakers including former Sen. Fred Thompson, Sen. Joe Lieberman, and Sen. Dick Durbin -- calls for the "training and orientation of high-level presidential appointees," among other things, as well as more efficient background checks to ensure individuals are properly vetted and confirmed for office. "New administrations face a series of hurdles they must overcome to accomplish this essential task before they can begin to govern," Lieberman told Congress in 1999 while arguing in favor of the amended legislation. The original bill also allowed the president-elect and vice president-elect certain "services and facilities," like suitable office space to conduct transition operations, public funds to pay their staff's salaries and money to transport workers to and from Washington. Obama has employed over 500 staffers to assist in his transition operations -- working from a nondescript office building in downtown Washington and from locations in his hometown of Chicago. His transition team has received a budget of $12 million -- $5.2 million of which was allocated by Congress, and the rest from private donations of under $5,000. As president-elect, Obama is also given the same highly classified intelligence briefings that President Bush receives on a daily basis. And Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden get full Secret Service protection, which Obama also received during the Democratic primaries and general election campaign. But the "Office of the President-Elect," while critical in building the future government, has no official power -- which Obama himself acknowledged during his victory speech in Chicago on Election Night. "It is an office -- it's just a quasi-government office for planning the takeover of the government," said Stephen J. Wayne, a professor at Georgetown University's department of government. "Obama has no formal power as far as the existing government is concerned, but he has a lot of informal influence, which President Bush has encouraged," he added. Wayne compared the function of the "Office of the President-Elect" to spring training in baseball. "It doesn't count in the standings, but it does contribute to a team's ability to do well from day one," he said. The extensive operations and considerable funding for Obama's transition office are not unique. President Bush received $8.5 million to fund his transition team -- a sum that was "unprecedented at the time," according to Georgetown University government professor Chris Hull. "The Bush administration built their transition team a month before the election was over to make sure it would be a fully-functioning office on November 5," he said. Despite its lack of formal power, some argue that the "Office of the President-Elect" must maintain an official and authoritative front -- even if just for show. This transition comes at a particularly vulnerable time for the U.S. government in protecting against terrorism -- as evidenced in 1993 when terrorists bombed the World Trade Center as former President Bill Clinton prepared to take office. "President Bush and President-Elect Obama have stressed together that the times of transition are particularly perilous in terms of terrorist strikes," said Hull. "The President-Elect and his team must appear to maintain confidence."

What do you think of this trade? http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=bvqwnh The Bulls also send their first round pick to the Suns This has been rumored to be the leading Stoudamire Trade possibility (just between Chicago and Phoenix), and the Wizards have been inquiring about Hughes since before the season started. The Bulls would obviously benefit from the Suns trade, as they finally get what they need: a scoring threat in the post to complement D-Rose. The Suns don't get ripped off though, as Thomas has shown flashes of greatness and is becoming more consistant. He also is still only 22 years old. Sefalosha also shows potential with minutes and is only 24. Gooden's contract also expires to give the Suns the salary relief they want, and the Bulls' 1st round pick has potential to even be a lottery pick. The Chicago/Washington trade also seems like a good trade. Chicago loses the guy that hasn't even been playing lately and doesn't have to gain any years on the contracts it gets in return... They also get some competant backup players and even some youth. Stevenson can play some sf and sg off the bench, and Mcgee gives them a good backup pf/c to play behind Noah and Stoudamire after losing both Thomas and Gooden. For Washington, they lose guys who aren't in their future plans. Mcgee is only getting 15 minutes a game even with Haywood AND Blatche out. When Blatche comes back soon, he can start with Pecherov as backup until Haywood returns. Etan Thomas never plays because of injury, but the Bulls would have to take on his contract for Washington to agree. The Wizards also get an upgrade at the sg spot and a homecoming from Hughes. His contract is also up in 2 years for the big summer. I like it for everyone, what do you think?

Please help me with the correct trivia for US99 & other Radio Stations for February 10, 2009? Good Morning all! Before They Were Famous: C) 1590 Champions: A) Fritz Pollard Country Music Trivia: A) Jimmy Buffet This Day in U.S. History: B) New Delhi Video of the Day Trivia: Who lays on a pillow? James Caan You Can Quote Me: A) Orson Welles Newsletter: Drift Artist: Deans: sour cream Nascar: Leader Board Taylor Swift: Tear Drops (2/9) All Access: #86 Cozumel FreeFlys Trivia: What is the featured freebie? Quaker® new dark chocolate (last night is showed up) Feb: Chuck 8th (Mr. Marty) rxtech03 ann 2/8 23yrs!, JaneyD 2/9 , sandy 2/12,Christopher 14th (Marty’s son) , Caroline 19th (my daughter) Micheal 28th 8th bday (n7ybn grandson) Who We Are and the stations we listen too! 92.3 WXLK ROANOKE, VA 92.5 JOE FM EDMONTON, AB 92.5 WWYZ HARTFORD, CT. 92.5 LONESTAR DALLAS, TEXAS 92.5 WXTU PHILADELPHIA 92.5 WBEE ROCHESTER, NY 92.5 THE WOLF, DENVER 92.9 DAVEFM ATLANTA, GA 93.3 B93 DOT NET TEXAS 93.7 THE BULL TRIVIA 93.7 MIKEFM, BOSTON, MA 93.7 KISS SHREVEPORT, TEXAS 93.9 MOVING CALIFORNIA 94.5 KRUF SHREVEPORT, TEXAS 94.9 THE SOUND WSWD FM CINCINNATI OHIO 95.3 NEW COUNTRY, HAMILTON ONTARIO 95.5 WFMS INDIANAPOLIS 95.7 MYCLUB MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 95.7 WRIT MILWAUKEE, WI 96.5 WCMF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 96.5 KVKI SHREVEPORT, TEXAS 96.7 THE TWISER ARLINGTON, TEXAS 96.9 KSEG THE EAGLE SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA 97.3 ALICE SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA 97.9 98ROCK, BALTIMORE, MARYLAND 98 WPXY ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 98.7 KUPL PORTLAND, OR 98.9 THE BUZZ, ROCHESTER, NEW YORK 99.1 WAHR STAR HUNTSVILLE, ALA 99.5 WUSN CHICAGO, IL. 99.5 THE RIVER ALBANY, NEW YORK 99.5 WGAR CLEVELAND, OHIO 99.5 THE WOLF TEXAS COUNTRY 99.5 WZPL Z99 INDIANAPOLIS, IN 100.1 KZST SANTA ROSE, CA 100.3 KILT FM HOUSTON, TX 100.7 WMMS CLEVELAND, OHIO Y101 OTTAWA, ONTARIO 101.3 WGGY FM Northeastern PA 101.9 Q102 CINCINNATI’S OHIO 102.1 EDGE DALLAS 102.5 KSFM SACRAMENTO, CA 102.9 MIX 103.9 CISN EDMONTON, AB 104.1 KKUS TYLER, TEXAS 104.5 WAXX EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN 105.1 GO COUNTRY LOS ANGELES, CA C105 CALGARY, ALBERTA 105.7 KYKX LONGVIEW, TEXAS 105.9 WHCN THE RIVER HARTFORD, CT 106.1 WMIL MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN 106.1 KISS FM DALLAS, TX 106.1 KISS SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 106.5 KOOL TYLER, TEXAS Q107 CLASSIC CALGARY, AB 107.3 WAAF, BOSTON, MA Z107.7 ST. LOUIS, MO 107.9 WNTR THETRACK INDIANAPOLIS, IN KTAR SPORTS 620 AM PHOENIX, ARIZONA Prayers are still being said daily for all of our Trivia Friends and Family and hoping all will continue to get stronger as each day passes. Thumbs up one and all Remember to come back and give thumbs up to those who have answered after you. I pick from all over the answers! not just from the first few folks. Thank you one and all for your help it is greatly appreciated, so please no thumbs down, everyone's answers contribute. Everyone is welcome here, just no links to nothing or spam, other wise all help is welcomed. Monica M yes we have won some items, some more then others right country! Mostly it has been DVD’s and gift cards but some have won saws. A few of us trade points in to see the artists at Joes bar. Sheb12 and myself traded them in to see Faith Hill last Sept. that was her Christmas show. Memers1952 we wish your niece the best of luck today with her surgery! Please keep us updated. If I missed someone or something sorry. Our birthday girl from yesterday is post 61, right now she only has a few thumbs up! Have a good day all! Sasha you are forgiven! You are luck as I have not left the computer yet! http://ww12.1800flowers.com/template.do?id=template7&page=2 and in the search box on the upper right type 17475 Happy Birthday! Char ? did I forget what please? You are a big help to all who stop. So I'm confused by your comment.

newer horizon demanded in usa politicking. can non natural born + nonbinding resolution senate run pres U S ?

association of committee to elect the rev dr kamal karna roy v. homeland security dept us issue birth obama?

struggle of a disadvantaged tactical gop contender u s president 08 applies to usdc/HI place ballot us pres?

I am doing a political essay for my final: Could conservatives please help me identify these Republicans? 1. The Idiot who claimed to be the reincarnation of Christ 2. The Viagra guy who claimed to be the reincarnation of John the Baptist 3. The drunken Skin Head who shot a crook in the face while hunting 4. The congressman who love little pages 5. The doctor who didn't go to prison for inside trading but resign 6. The 2 students of a German born Nazi (Leo Strauss) who taught HItler's ideology at the University of Chicago 7. The robot in the White House 8. The real First Lady of the United State of American (she is black) 9. The sexual predator on Fox. 70% of his show is fake. 10. The illegal millionaire that bought his US Citizenship for $0.99 & own Fox News = Lover of H. Clinton Thank you for your supports. I am much ablided by your Christian values. The Uno

Cubs had Josh Hamilton for all of about 10 minutes? Josh Hamilton was the #1 overall pick in the 1999 draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. 18 Months later he gets in a bad automobile accident and starts to get hooked on drugs, crack, cocaine and heroin. Got himself clean in October of 2005 and has been clean since then. He was restored to good standing in June of 2006 played 15 minor league games in Tampa's system and then showed up as a player eligible for the Rule 5 draft. He was picked up by the Chicago Cubs in the winter of 2006 and shortly after traded to Cincinatti for I think $50,000. How much better would this guy have made the Cubs? Why didn't the Cubs give this kid a shot before trading him to Cincinatti right away?

What do you think about Saturday or Sunday being the Sabbath? The Sabbath is Saturday?

who agrees that the miami and chicago game on tv should be replaced with teletubbies tv show? man this gmae is gonna be so boring, but the game after this one is gonna be awesome! dallas vs phoenix, wish shaq and kidd owuld be playing but the return of shaq is unknown and george blocked that trade that wouldve sent kidd to dallas F*** DEVEAN GEORGE F*** YOU

Rajinikanth"s Shivaji ongoing movie status? Trade data from Britain shows Sivaji overtaking Fantastic Four, Ocean's 13 and the third installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean In Chicago, for instance, the film was booked for the first 12 weekends even before its release, with fans paying up to $25 for a ticket. When Spider-Man 3 opened, the tickets were priced at $18. In the whole of Malaysia, like everywhere else, it broke the box office records, collecting over Rs 60 lakhs on its opening day. Sivaji has fetched one of the biggest starting collections ever on the island with a calculation of just 12 screens in Britain,and has put to shame the much hyped Yash Raj film Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, which has only collected nearly Rs 23 million despite being shown in 47 screens,' the report said. And finally, fans in Japan -- where the star has an inexplicably huge following -- will get to see the movie by the end of June. The movie will also be released in South Africa sometime around the end of June

The Bulls NBA Draft Possible Scenario? The NBA Draft is coming up pretty soon, so I thought I would show a possible solution to not only the Bulls low-post scoring, but also the outside shot. The Bulls got the #1 pick after having a 1.7 chance of getting the pick; tell me this isn't meant to be the year they finally make a championship caliber team full of youth! Here is my thoughts on the best possible draft scenario: First, with the # 1 pick, draft Mr. Beasley which gives the Bulls the biggest need they've had for the past few years. Second, trade Deng, Kirk, and Gordon to Miami for their # 2 pick. Yes, there will be salary's to take on, but this works well for Miami, who will then have D-Wade, Kirk/Gordon, Deng, Davis. Only weak spot would be center, which is expendable at their pick in the draft. With that pick, the Bulls then take Rose. Rose and Beasley will be the future stars of Chicago for a very long time. But would this ever actually happen? Probability 1-10? Rose Sefolosha Beasley Thomas Noah Looks Sweet...