TheShooter

So I come home from a job interview today and stop to get the mail. I live in a condo complex so all the mailboxes are in one common area. I pull into a handicap space because it literally takes me 5 seconds to jump out and get the mail, plus there is another empty handicap space next to this one, and I have never in the whole time I've lived here seen anyone park in these spaces. So as I pull up there's a woman in an adjacent space (normal space, not handicap) and she stares me down as I pull into the special space and she looks up at the handicap sign in an exaggerated fashion and then back at me. Jesus, just what I need..... I jump out of the car real quick and she says to me "Are you really that lazy that you need to park in a handicap space?" I don't even stop, I just say "Yeah it's terrible, I know" and keep walking to the mailboxes. I mean I thought she might even be kidding. But as I walk past she says something behind my back which I couldn't really make out but I know it was not complimentary. I get my mail (taking all of 4 seconds, by the way) and then walk quickly back to my car, which I didn't even turn off, I left it running. She is in her car at this point and has the window down and says "That's real nice buddy..." I just ignore her and get in my car to pull away. She then backs up in her big SUV and proceeds to BLOCK ME IN so I can't leave. I look back and she takes out a cell phone and takes a picture of my car. She then speeds off to another area of the complex. Seriously what the fuck? Whatever happened to people minding their own business? I was not harming her by what I did yet she chose to verbally attack me and then take my picture. I fully understand that it is wrong to park in handicap spaces and go into a store or something and I would never do it, but this is different. I was in that space for literally 10 seconds and there was nobody else around. Even if some poor handicap person happened to pull up in that time they could have taken the next space over, or waited 1 second for me to move my car. Then she takes a picture of my car like she's gonna turn me in or something. Don't people have lives? I was at Target a few months ago when I saw two people going at it over a handicap space. I don't know what the scenario was but it looked like one guy had parked in the space and actually went into Target and somebody else took exception to it. Clearly that is wrong, but at the same time, if he's not hurting me then it's not my position to call him out on it. Especially in this day and age where you never know if somebody is packing heat or what. Anyway, fuck her. She is probably just a miserable person who has nothing better to do w/ her life. Hopefully the police don't come knocking on my door tonight. Opinions please. Am I a scumbag or is she just a bitch.

So sorry to hear that. My sympathies to you both.

Screw the fact that he is black. I just don't want to vote for someone whose middle name is "Hussein" and last name is one letter removed the most infamous terrorist in history. But as far as the whole race thing goes, is he really black anyway? From what I understand his mother is white. Doesn't that make him just as white as he is black?

This guy used steroids??? No way!!!

Meh. It's just that there's been a few instances on this board where I've started a new thread and it has immediately been locked because it apparently should have been posted in one of the generic 100 page all-encompassing threads instead. I mean I would rather there be several different threads about baseball issues so I can pick the ones I want to read rather than reading through the whole "MLB offseason thread" to find something of interest.

Hell no. I'd rather have Bruce than Lincecum. Just curious why I post a new thread about the A-Rod news that just broke a few hours ago and within minutes some thread-Nazi locks it. Is it because I'm supposed to post in this thread?

Before Alex Rodriguez opted out of his contract with the Yankees earlier this week, the team was told that it would not be able to meet with the third baseman unless it presented an offer of at least $350 million, sources say. The Yankees had hoped to meet with Rodriguez this week, and would have presented him with an extension offer close to five years and $150 million, to begin at the conclusion of his 2008-2010 contract, through which he would have earned $81 million. Through the Yankees' proposal, then, Rodriguez would have made about $230 million over eight years, and during the last five years of the contract, sources say, he would have earned the highest annual salary in Major League Baseball history. Full article: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3091277 Seriously, this guy becomes more nauseating by the day. $350 million... why not just ask for another $150 million so it can be an even HALF BILLION. It just sounds better. I wish him and his scum bag agent luck in getting $350 mill out of the Marlins or Dodgers.

Yes, the original Halloween is an excellent horror movie, arguably one of the best. II was not as good but definitely had some scary parts. H20 was surprisingly decent. The new one they just came out with I liked, but I know other people who hated it. As for the others, they are either kinda lame or downright awful (part 3).

In that situation you never want to get out of your car and approach another car unless you are packing heat. That's a good way to get yourself killed. And if that happened I'd have one less blog to read when I get tired of looking at porn, so please don't go out just yet.

I see what you are saying, but I still think we as fans are in a better place now than we were prior to 2004. Even if we don't win next year at least we can look back at 04 and 07 and know that we are not complete failures like we were during the drought. That sense of dread and impending doom that we all carried with us into every game is gone now. Being a Sox fan used to involve the willingness to accept a lot of pain and misery along with the occasional celebrations. There will still be pain and misery in the future but it isn't going to be the defining characteristic of Sox fans anymore.... at least until the next drought.

How about that Josh Beckett.

Ok, so A-Rod would bring more offense to the table than Lowell. Have the Red Sox shown that they are lacking for offense at this point in time? As for defense, I'll take Lowell any time.

About a year ago I said if I were the Sox I'd rather have Lowell at third base than A-Rod. I was laughed at. I may still be laughed at, but I still feel the same way. Chemistry is very important in team sports and as soon as you bring A-Rod on you introduce a cancer to the locker room. Lowell produces in the post season, the regular season, and he's unselfish and not a distraction to the team. A-Rod produces in the regular season but shuts down come October. The Red Sox would be fools to pursue that money grubbing, self promoting piece of trash. I think the Red Sox office has made some stupid moves in recent years (Edgar Rentaria, that Japanese relief pitcher from Arizona, Jeff Suppan, JD Drew not withstanding what he did in the post season, etc) but injecting A-Rod into this team at this time would take the cake. I have faith that they're not stupid enough to do that.

I moved out of New England earlier this year and really didn't follow the Sox (or baseball in general) this season. It was only during the playoffs that I realized Gagne was on the team. Can somebody explain this one to me? Last I remember he was the lights out closer for LA, and now he's on the Sox and only being used in blowout situations. What happened?

I prey the Red Sox brass don't lose their minds and ruin a perfectly good thing by bringing A-Rod on board.

I think you should look into it.

So on her first show as new co-host of The View Whoppi Goldberg comes out defending Michael Vick, basically saying that dogfighting is part of the culture where Vick comes from. I guess electrocuting and drowning dogs is also part of the culture. And rape stands. Yeah. Great way to destroy your credibility right out of the gate, Whoopi. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20589662/

Maybe if you had no insurance and got sick you'd feel different about our fucked up health care system.

These guys are fucking disgusting and deserve to be shot. http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1770961

I'm surprised they didn't get their asses kicked by any boyfriends or have the cops called on them. Or maybe they did.

If some random dude came up and licked part of your body would you still say lighten up?

Good riddance to that piece of shit. You must be heartbroken.

From http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/ne...t_id=1003621797 --------------- NEW YORK (Commentary) Beyond his alleged steroid use, Barry Bonds is guilty of the use of something that confers extraordinarily unfair mechanical advantage: the “armor” that he wears on his right elbow. Amid the press frenzy over Bonds’ unnatural bulk, the true role of the object on his right arm has simply gone unnoticed. This is unfortunate, because by my estimate, Bonds’ front arm “armor” may have contributed no fewer than 75 to 100 home runs to his already steroid-questionable total. Bonds tied Henry Aaron’s home run record of 755 on Saturday night and will go for the new standard this week back at home in San Francisco. As a student of baseball – and currently a mechanics consultant to a major league baseball team -- I believe I have insight into the Bonds "achievement." I have studied his swing countless times on video and examined the mechanical gear closely through photographs. For years, sportswriters remarked that his massive "protective" gear – unequaled in all of baseball -- permits Bonds to lean over the plate without fear of being hit by a pitch. Thus situated, Bonds can handle the outside pitch (where most pitchers live) unusually well. This is unfair advantage enough, but no longer controversial. However, it is only one of at least seven (largely unexplored) advantages conferred by the apparatus. The other six: 1) The apparatus is hinged at the elbow. It is a literal "hitting machine" that allows Bonds to release his front arm on the same plane during every swing. It largely accounts for the seemingly magical consistency of every Bonds stroke. 2) The apparatus locks at the elbow when the lead arm is fully elongated because of a small flap at the top of the bottom section that fits into a groove in the bottom of the top section. The locked arm forms a rigid front arm fulcrum that allows extraordinary, maximally efficient explosion of the levers of Bonds' wrists. Bonds hands are quicker than those of average hitters because of his mechanical "assistant." 3) When Bonds swings, the weight of the apparatus helps to seal his inner upper arm to his torso at impact. Thus "connected," he automatically hits the ball with the weight of his entire body - not just his arms - as average hitters ("extending") tend to do. 4) Bonds has performed less well in Home Run Derbies than one might expect because he has no excuse to wear a "protector" facing a batting practice pitcher. As he tires, his front arm elbow tends to lift and he swings under the ball, producing towering pop flies or topspin liners that stay in the park. When the apparatus is worn, its weight keeps his elbow down and he drives the ball with backspin. 5) Bonds enjoys quicker access to the inside pitch than average hitters because his "assistant" - counter-intuitively - allows him to turn more rapidly. Everyone understands that skaters accelerate their spins by pulling their arms into their torsos, closer to their axes of rotation. When Bonds is confronted with an inside pitch, he spins like a skater because his upper front arm is "assistant"-sealed tightly against the side of his chest. 6) At impact, Bonds has additional mass (the weight of his "assistant") not available to the average hitter. The combined weight of "assistant" and bat is probably equal to the weight of the lumber wielded by Babe Ruth but with more manageable weight distribution. Bonds has worn some sort of front arm protection since 1992. In '94, a one-piece forearm guard was replaced by a jointed, two piece elbow model. In ‘95 it got bigger and a small "cap" on the elbow was replaced by a "flap" that overlapped the upper piece and locked the two pieces together when the arm was elongated. In '96, the "apparatus" grew even larger and so did the "flap." It seems to have remained relatively the same until -- interestingly— 2001, the year of his record 73 home runs, when an advanced model appeared made (apparently) of a new material. It had softer edges and a groove for the flap to slip into automatically at full arm elongation. More important, the upper half of the machine was sculpted to conform more comfortably to the contours of Bonds' upper arm. Since 2001, the apparatus seems to have remained relatively unchanged. Several years back, baseball was rightfully scandalized by the revelation that Sammy Sosa had "corked" his bat. The advantages conferred by the Bonds "hitting machine," however, far exceed anything supplied by cork. Ultimately, it appears the Bonds "achievement” must be regarded as partly the product of “double duplicity" -- steroidal and mechanical.

Classic.

I don't see anything wrong with guys wearing elbow pads and such for protection, but to let a guy wear full on body armor that's probably tougher than what our guys in Iraq are wearing just seems stupid to me.