Cheech Tremendous

My foray into Frank Zappa has been on hold for some time. I don't know why exactly, but it was. Anyways, I've acquired Zoot Allures, Freak Out! and We're Only In It For The Money. I gave Zoot Allures a quick run through last night while I was boarding hard and was intrigued by the title track, "Black Napkins" and "The Torture Never Stops." The latter, in particular, really resonated with me. I only gave a cursory listen to the first few tracks on Freak Out!. But I have a lot of driving to do in the next couple of days so I should have some time to fully dissect my new stock of Zappa.

The secret board... for jerks? Anyone?

We sort of touched on this in Graphics folder, but were the American Males supposed to be gay? Those outfits and music just screamed homo. Even if they weren't overtly gay on-screen, it had to be some kind of rib, right?

Poster Name Week 1 Week 2 Total Loss Loss % Cheech 195 195 0 0.00% KOAB 208 208 0 0.00% Mik 223 221 -2 -0.90% Still Fly 253 250 -3 -1.19% Fazzle 220 214 -6 -2.73% Pbone 160 160 0 0.00% Cuban Linx 240 240 0 0.00% DCH 93 93 0 0.00% Kinetic 140 140 0 0.00% CanadianChris 291 288 -3 -1.03% Cyber Mark 145 144 -1 -0.69% Hollywood Spike Jenkins 189 186 -3 -1.59% Twisted Intestine 170 166 -4 -2.35% King Cucarcha 180 180 0 0.00% Krankor 166 165 -1 -0.60% Brody 248 251 3 1.21% Haws bah gawd 270 268 -2 -0.74% Obi Chris Kenobi 196 196 0 0.00%

I scrolled through all of those damn pbone photos hoping he'd post some more kiddie porn. Color me disappointed.

I don't. Cheech did that poll a while back, and while he says he fucked it up, the bottom line is that posters decided they don't have a problem with mega-threads. You're right and you're wrong. I did fuck up the poll which sort of made the final results inconclusive. Nonetheless, it was going about 50-50 anyways. I'm man enough to admit that I took a stand and the board didn't see it my way. But, alas, that was not what this conversation was originally about. I was upset that a thread-worthy topic was closed because of what I perceived as pettiness caused by differing political views. I wanted to talk about the Inauguration and had no idea that the discussion was being held in a 20-page thread called "Barack Obama Circle Jerk." It bothered me and I aired out my grievance. 909 and I solved this off the board and we've solved it on the board. If you want to talk folder moderation and mega-threads (in sports or anywhere else) I'm game, but I don't know if this thread is the place to do it.

He may have earned it on the floor, but he still spent the last couple of seasons chasing a title, burning plenty of bridges along the way. First, he dumps Miami for Jersey after they pay his full contract during his kidney recovery. Then when Jersey falls off, he demands a trade. He gets a trade to Toronto, where he sits out and refuses to play until they release him (and give him his full salary). Then he bounces back to Miami to join up for the title run with Shaq. That was a fairly despicable turn of events. I don't care for players that turn their backs on organizations so quickly just for a shot at a title.

It wasn't just Jersey. He pulled shit in Miami (the first time) and then Toronto after the Jersey trade. He really showed a lack of class in the latter half of his career.

Well, there had been someone asking about having a new thread on the page before the discussion started and the one I started had 90+ page views in the ten minutes it was open. We could go around and around on this, but my impression is that momentum usually wins out on new thread creation. If convo starts in one thread, nobody wants to start a new one. I still think that mods should work on this because, well, mods are supposed to "moderate" discussion. I didn't see the harm in having an Inauguration Day thread, irrespective of any conversation about megathreads. Based on a private conversation I had with a mod outside the board I got the impression that the Inauguration didn't get its own thread simply because the mod didn't like Obama and thought it was funny to keep the conversation buried in a thread called "Barack Obama Circle Jerk." I thought that was wrong and I spoke up. It had nothing to do with my feelings about CE or megathreads in general, despite where this conversation has gone. But, anyways, I would like to drop the whole thing. I really don't intend for Site Feedback to become the "Cheech bitches about everything" folder. This was an isolated incident and I asked for feedback. Case closed.

Well we'd better...or else YOUKNOWWHO will start a new thread in Site Feedback. Fuck off.

Owen Hart at Over the Edge '99

I am so glad that they are closing Guantanamo Bay. It'll be interesting to see what the decide to do with those detainees though.

I think it's hypocritical for you to constantly complain about megathreads, yet start a megathread yourself. Okay, then I'm a hypocrite. This thread wasn't about mega-threads per se. I just wanted a reasonable explanation as to why Obama's inauguration, arguably the biggest news item in the past couple of months, couldn't have its own thread. The mods had said previously that CE was going to be watched more closely for this... and then one closed the thread! I just wanted to know why. I don't understand why we cram everything into a megathread. Look at all the coaching changes in the NFL- Tony Dungy, Gruden and Shanahan don't deserve their own thread? Really? It's a judgement call I guess, but I think if people are so anti-megathreads they should be willing to start their own threads. I agree with everything you just said.

Oh, you're right. I just wanted to do a little exercise to figure out what he might get versus what's he actually worth. And while projections aren't really admissible, they are based on past performance. So there is some correlation there with value. I have a hard time figuring out his case. On one had, he's got the HR, RBI and hardware (MVP, ROY) that carry a ton of weight in these negotiations. On the other, he's not a premier player. Well, check that, he is a top player but not at the level that he'd warrant one of the highest salaries in baseball during his second year of arbitration. Howard also has weird trends. He was great in 2006, but awful in 2008. Does he settle back at '07 levels, or is he already declining? It's hard to tell.

Thanks for pointing this out every single time I say something about mega-threads. You are absolutely right, but you don't have to point it out every chance you get. I started a mega-thread, but didn't want it to get that way. I tried to start something new for the Winter Meetings (and was hoping to do one for free agency), but it died. I did get a mod to split out the HOF discussion. That's something. I don't have any control over folder moderation. The presence of mega-threads is not solely my doing just because I started a thread. As for sports being all mega-threads, it kind of has to be. We have discussions going on several different sports at once. I don't know how you'd prevent confusion amongst basketball, baseball, football, college, hockey and any other sports that get discussed. It'd be great if you had some suggestions for how to get around that.

Yes. It was easily the funniest performance of the year, and probably the most daring. If you don't get an actor playing this as good as Downey, Tropic Thunder's pretty much fucked from all the controversy. The line about him staying in character until the DVD commentary is almost worthy of the nomination itself. It was also a way of applauding Downey for his comeback, and for his performance in Iron Man. Fair enough. I don't think he was even the funniest guy in that movie, but I guess I'm off base. Come to think of it, I didn't like Iron Man either, so maybe I'm not an RDJ guy.

Yep.

Robert Downey Jr.? Really? That playing an Australian playing a black guy was a cute gimmick, but Best Supporting Actor? Did I miss something?

I need Week 2 numbers from KOAB, Pbone, Cuban Linx, DCH, Kinetic, Hollywood Spike Jenkins, and Krankor. If you aren't able to get me a number this week, it's okay. I'll just assume that your weight has not fluctuated. From what I've seen thus far, Fazzle is in the lead.

I own the two items you just posted. Same brand and color although the shirt may have a finer pinstripe.

Blurb? Edit: Sorry, I don't have Insider. I'll be happy to go over some of these team's systems when my copy of Baseball America arrives. I've got the Astros in my bottom five organizations though, for what it's worth. But I'm no Keith Law. Sure thing. Looking at the projections out there, he looks like a .285/.340/.440 guy next year. That's worth about 16 runs above replacement, but we have to adjust upward 7 runs for playing shortstop. He was a little above average last year defensively (+5), but -6 runs the year before. Let's call him completely average. That puts him at 2.3 total wins above replacement. Using $4.4 million per win yields a FMV of $10 million. Hard to say since the market has been so unresponsive this year. I've projected him at $15 million+, with only marginal diminishing returns over the next three years. Let's say his value holds $15 million per year. Discount it 10% for the security of a long-term deal and a contract of 3 years, $40 million looks reasonable. That's a little more than Furcal got, which sounds about right.

That's a lowball offer. I have Roberts as being worth $15-$18 million a year. He also projects as a player that will age gracefully.

Maybe this news will bring the Fire Joe Morgan guys out of hiding. Things like this just boggle my mind. Steve Phillips is the worst analyst they have. The worst. There is nothing redeeming about him whatsoever as a television personality or as a baseball analyst.

Steve Phillips is joining Joe Morgan and Jon Miller in the booth for ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball telecasts. Good lord, kill me now.

Some analysts don't rank players until they have at least some professional experience under their belt. I haven't seen the rest of MLB.com or Keith Law's lists, but if he isn't ranked anywhere that's probably the case. Baseball America is also notorious for ranking upside over likelihood of reaching the majors. Whereas that doesn't really apply to Alvarez because of his collegiate experience, it explains why they might be so bullish on a guy with no track record of performance. I haven't really thought too hard about rankings, but #3 overall sounds about right for Alvarez. He's the best pure hitter out there after Wieters.