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Final 2013 recruiting class rankings | Looking ahead: 2014 class rankings
Sometimes the rich just continue getting richer.
That's precisely the case with the University of Florida, as head coach Kevin O'Sullivan and the Gators landed the nation's top recruiting class for the Class of 2013. That class includes players who are now freshmen at their respective programs.
As with many programs around the country, the Gators had some major draft risks to deal with in this class. However, they also snagged several elite prospects, including Iowa native and two-way star AJ Puk, righthanded pitcher Brett Morales and talented in-state infielder John Sternagel, among many others.
While the Gators lead the charge when it comes to the nation's top recruiting classes following the post-draft and post-fall rankings readjustments, in-state foe Miami is the closest program behind them with 99 points — Florida has 120 total points with an average of 7.06 points per player. By comparison, the Hurricanes have an average of 6.19 points per player.
South Carolina, North Carolina and Mississippi round out the top five, while LSU, Vanderbilt, Oregon State, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma State make up the rest of the top 10.
Oklahoma State second-year coach Josh Holliday and his coaching staff made the biggest statement with a top-10 finish in the rankings, while recruiting coordinator Frank Damas and Florida International put together an impressive class that finished at No. 17 nationally. Also worth mentioning, led by first baseman Bryce Harman, East Carolina finished at No. 24 in our recruiting rankings.
Some notable programs finishing just outside the top 25 include UCLA, which still signed a very good class despite losing several prospects to the draft, Georgia, which reeled in a strong class despite a coaching change, Tennessee, which improved its situation with another solid class, and Texas A&M, which had a 5.38 per player average and landed a trio of talented prospects in outfielder Nick Banks, shortstop Ryne Birk and righthanded pitcher Mark Ecker.
With the final 2013 recruiting rankings released, look for the early period team recruiting rankings for the 2014 class early next week.
1. FLORIDA | Total points: 120, Average player points: 7.06
Quick take: The Gators absolutely weren't immune to some draft headaches with righthanded pitcher Tyler Danish and others foregoing their collegiate careers to sign in the MLB draft this past summer. However, the Gators also struck gold with highly touted two-way star AJ Puk, righthanded pitcher Brett Morales and shortstop John Sternagel, among others, choosing to head to college this fall. The Gators have done a terrific job on the recruiting trail the past few years, and this class is yet another indication that Kevin O'Sullivan's club isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
At a glance:
— High school commits: 17
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 3 — UT AJ Puk (23), RHP Brett Morales (40), SS John Sternagel (64)
— Class jewel: UT AJ Puk — You hate to anoint a player at the next star in college baseball, but Puk has the ability to be this guy. Puk has an impressive build with room to grow at 6-foot-7, 220-pounds. The former PG All-American can get up to 92 with his fastball from the left side, while at the plate, he has a lot of upside with an aggressive lefthanded swing with lift.
2. MIAMI (FLA.) | Total points: 99, Average player points: 6.19
Quick take: For once Miami head coach Jim Morris didn't mind the MLB draft. The Hurricanes have a tendency to sweat out some high-profile draft picks every summer, but received somewhat of a reprieve from that this past summer. The 'Canes did lose outfielder Matthew McPhearson to the Arizona Diamondbacks as a fourth-round pick, but otherwise were rather unscathed. Miami has several immediate impact prospects with this class, including 6-foot-3, 220-pound, catcher Zack Collins, along with outfielder Willie Abreu and righthanded pitcher Derik Beauprez, among others. The Hurricanes also got a nice addition in 6-foot-6, 225-pound, first baseman Bradley Zunica, who graduated early to become a member of the 2013 recruiting class.
At a glance:
— High school commits: 16
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 2 — C Zack Collins (31), OF Willie Abreu (66)
— Class jewel: C Zack Collins — The physical catcher was deemed a difficult sign, thus slipped all the way to the 27th-round to the Cincinnati Reds this past summer. Collins, a former PG All-American, is an advance lefthanded bat who displayed big-time power at PG National and other events throughout his high school career. Collins has good bat speed and good strength on contact, along with the ability to turn on high-velocity pitches. It would be somewhat of a surprise if Collins isn't an immediate impact bat.
3. SOUTH CAROLINA | Total points: 86, Average player points: 4.78
Quick take: The Gamecocks put together a recruiting class to remember. Sure, they're without catcher Nick Ciuffo, third baseman Travis Demeritte and righthanded pitcher Cory Thompson, who all opted to sign in the MLB draft this past summer, but the positives far outweigh the negatives with this group. South Carolina has a strong freshman class, which includes several immediate impact players, such as hard-throwing righties Wil Crowe and Matthew Vogel in addition to rising lefthander John Parke, who had a strong fall for Chad Holbrook's club. The Gamecocks also snagged some legitimate junior college talent, including Spartanburg Methodist transfers, OF/INF Elliott Caldwell and pitcher Cody Mincey, who very well could serve as the closer in the spring.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 1 — RHP Wil Crowe
— Class jewel: RHP Wil Crowe — The Gamecocks are ultra excited about what their freshman arms can accomplish in the spring, but they're especially excited about Vogel, and particularly, Crowe. Crowe showed big-time stuff during fall workouts, flashing a fastball in the low-to-mid 90s with advanced overall stuff. Crowe is physical and durable at 6-foot-3, 225 pounds.
4. NORTH CAROLINA | Total points: 80, Average player points: 5.71
Quick take: Recruiting coordinator Scott Jackson and pitching coach Scott Forbes put in a lot of hours during the summer, and it once again showed with a strong freshman class. As completely expected, lefthanded pitcher Robert Kaminsky, ranked No. 2 overall out of high school by PG, was a draft casualty. However, the Tar Heels otherwise have a very good class with a lot of balance. Righthanded pitcher Chris Oakley leads the way for his freshman class, while first baseman Joe Dudek showed advanced skills during the fall and should be an immediate impact type of player. Overall, there's a lot to like about this recruiting class.
— High school commits: 14
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 1 — RHP Chris Oakley
— Class jewel: RHP Chris Oakley — Some other freshmen have received some rave reviews this fall, but there's no doubt the former PG All-American has major upside. Oakley has a mature 6-foot-7, 220-pound, frame with a fastball that sits anywhere from the low-90s with the ability to reach into the mid-90s. Oakley also possesses a two-seam fastball in the upper-80s, along with a mid-70s curveball with consistent spin and slurve-style break.
5. MISSISSIPPI | Total points: 76, Average player points: 5.85
Quick take: From the start of each summer until the very end, chances are good you'll see Ole Miss recruiting coordinator Cliff Godwin at tournaments all around the country. Godwin and pitching coach Carl Lafferty did a very good job in assembling this balanced class, which included few serious draft risks. The Rebels got their prized recruit on campus in outfielder J.B. Woodman, while shortstop Errol Robinson and others showed signs of greatness during fall workouts. The Rebels also dipped into the junior college ranks for some prospects, nabbing Delgado CC lefthanded pitcher Christian Trent and others.
— High school commits: 13
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 1 — J.B. Woodman (85)
— Class jewel: OF J.B. Woodman — I had an opportunity to see Woodman on a few occasions throughout his high school career, and there's little doubt Rebels fans will fall in love with this prospect at some point in his collegiate career. Woodman, a 6-foot-2, 190-pounder, is the ultimate scrapper. He's very athletic with some strength and projects well at not only this level, but the professional level as well.
6. LOUISIANA STATE | Total points: 74, Average player points: 5.29
Quick take: The Tigers got through the MLB draft without too much trouble, though, losing Boston Red Sox 30th-round pick Nick Longhi stung a little bit. Outfielder Justin Williams was expected to sign the entire way through the negotiation process, while the rest of the class pretty much stayed intact. Third baseman Danny Zardon impressed observers during the summer circuit, while lefthanded pitcher Jared Poche and others should provide quality depth from the get go. Particularly on the mound, the Tigers will need some of these young players to rise to the occasion come the spring.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: INF Kramer Robertson (98)
— Class jewel: INF Kramer Robertson — The Tigers had quite the impressive freshman last season in shortstop Alex Bregman. Could Kramer Robertson step in and be a big-time player, too? The talent to do so certainly is there. Robertson isn't a big guy at just 5-foot-11, 170 pounds, but has quick actions, good footwork and has improved tremendously from a defensive standpoint over the past year or so. Robertson has good bat speed with an aggressive offensive approach, too.
7. VANDERBILT | Total points: 71, Average player points: 5.46
Quick take: The Commodores had some real MLB draft risks in this recruiting class, but escaped in good shape this past summer. Righthanded pitcher Jordan Sheffield was the most high profile recruit for the Commodores, and chose to attend college despite getting drafted in the 13th-round by the Boston Red Sox. An injury certainly played a part in that, but still, a huge pickup for the 'Dores. Meanwhile, lefthanded pitcher John Kilichowski, with a fastball up to 90, catcher Karl Ellison and two-way player Aubrey McCarty are intriguing prospects to watch develop over the next few years. As usual, the 'Dores put together an impressive, balanced class.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: RHP Jordan Sheffield (38)
— Class jewel: RHP Jordan Sheffield — There's a very good chance the Commodores still would've gotten Sheffield on campus, but a forearm injury kept the talented righty from being too hot of a commodity in the draft. Even with those two strikes against his signability, the Boston Red Sox still took a chance on him in the 13th round, to no avail, showing just how valuable of an arm he projects to be. Sheffield has a fast, loose arm, and was up to 98 at times in Perfect Game events. Sheffield also possesses a good, hard slider/cutter, along with a downer curveball with tight spin.
8. OREGON STATE | Total points: 68, Average player points: 4.86
Quick take: The recruiting classes assembled by the Beavers and rival Oregon just goes to show just how much talent there is in the Pacific Northwest. Washington product and shortstop Trever Morrison could very well have an immediate impact, while on the mound, the Beavers expect immediate innings from righthanders Jake Thompson and Kevin Flemer, who each did some nice things during fall workouts. There's also Utah product and righty Tanner Draper, who was ranked No. 288 out of high school and has a fastball in the upper 80s, low 90s, along with good spin on a mid-70s curveball. This should be a very impactful recruiting class.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: RHP Chandler Eden (94)
— Class jewel: RHP Chandler Eden — Though the Beavers were disappointed to lose catcher Tyler O'Neill to the MLB draft this past summer, they struck gold by getting the talented righthanded pitcher on campus. Eden was deemed a tough sign, thus slipped to the 36th round. But don't let that fool you, he has a premium arm and could be one of the nation's elite freshman arms in 2014. Eden, a 6-foot-1, 165-pounder, showcased a big-time arm this fall, sitting anywhere from 90-94 with his fastball with good overall stuff.
9. GEORGIA TECH | Total points: 66, Average player points: 4.13
Quick take: The Yellow Jackets assembled a solid recruiting class with balance. Danny Hall's club had to deal with the departures of outfielders Josh Hart and Terry McClure from the recruiting class after the duo signed this past summer. However, shortstop Elliott Barzilli, Pabst, infielder Connor Justus and others showed enough this fall to be considered for significant playing time in the spring. With the Jackets replacing several key cogs from last year's club, this class couldn't come at a more important time.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 0
— Class jewel: C Arden Pabst — The Yellow Jackets had one of the nation's elite catchers last season in two-way star Zane Evans. However, he has since begun his professional career, thus leaving quite the vacancy for the Jackets. Tech could look to Pabst to replace Evans. Pabst, ranked No. 235 out of high school and hailing from California, showed maturity and a lot of potential during fall workouts.
10. OKLAHOMA STATE | Total points: 64, Average player points: 5.82
Quick take: Head coach Josh Holliday and his staff made a statement in their first campaign by reaching the NCAA postseason. Now, they have a class of newcomers with much balance and the ability to be an immediate impact. The Cowboys have a true bell cow in lefthanded pitcher Garrett Williams. Williams, a Louisiana product, was ranked No. 50 out of high school and had a strong fall, while righthanded pitchers Thomas Hatch and Tyler Buffett are top 500 high school recruits who appear to be advanced. Outfield Ryan Sluder (345) is a physical and athletic outfielder at 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, while the Cowboys also hit the junior college ranks very hard, landing second baseman Tim Arakawa, shortstop Hayden Cronenbold and third baseman Hunter Hagler. The Cowboys also landed former Clemson Tiger Kevin Bradley, though, he won't be eligible to play until 2015, per transfer rules.
— High school commits: 11
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 1 — LHP Garrett Williams (50)
— Class jewel: LHP Garrett Williams — The Cowboys couldn't be happier to have Williams in the mix, and for good reason. The advanced lefty has a chance to be a big-time arm from day one. The lefty would've been a very high draft pick, but his commitment to the Cowboys caused him to slide to the San Diego Padres in the 33rd round. Williams sits anywhere from 91-93 on the radar gun, touching 94, while also displaying future plus curveball potential.
11. LOUISVILLE | Total points: 62, Average player points: 3.88
Quick take: The Cardinals might've lost infielder Tucker Neuhaus to the MLB draft this past summer, but otherwise, it's impressive just how good of a job recruiting coordinator Chris Lemonis did in putting together another excellent recruiting class. Lemonis and the Cardinals have an impressive and athletic outfielder in Corey Ray (176), while righthanded pitcher Zach Burdi, the brother of current hard-throwing reliever Nick Burdi, is a talented arm who sits in the low-90s. Seven of Louisville's 16 high school commits are pitchers, with two of them being lefthanded. The Cards assembled another recruiting class that will help them stay in the mix for the ACC regular season title moving forward, along with more trips to Omaha.
— Class jewel: OF Corey Ray — The talented outfielder was considered a tough sign, thus went in the 33rd round to the Seattle Mariners. But make no mistake about it, his tools certainly play up better than a 33rd rounder. Ray, though only 5-foot-11, 170 pounds, is a good lefthanded bat with good present strength, quick hands and a good line-drive swing. He's also a good runner with a 6.76 60-yard-dash time at this past summer's PG National Showcase.
12. ARKANSAS | Total points: 61, Average player points: 3.81
Quick take: In what was his final recruiting class before taking the head coaching job at Wichita State, Todd Butler put together a solid recruiting class that minimized the draft risks. Right on point with the way Arkansas does business in recruiting these days, the Razorbacks snagged a high school class with 16 recruits, 11 of them pitchers. Catcher Jon Denney, as fully expected, was a draft casualty, but the Hogs are more than happy with the trade in getting righthanded pitcher Dominic Taccolini on campus. Taccolini is a physical 6-foot-3, 220-pounder, who has a chance to be an immediate impact guy. Meanwhile, outfielder Andrew Benintendi is the highest ranked position player to arrive on campus with a good overall skill set. Benintendi was a 31st-round pick of the Cincinnati Reds this past summer.
— Class jewel: RHP Dominic Taccolini — The versatile athlete could help the Razorbacks both as a pitcher and hitter. Taccolini had a power bat in high school that helped him earn a ranking as the No. 114 prospect in the country in his final season. On the mound, the physical Taccolini sits in the low-90s with his fastball, along with a curveball and slider.
13. STANFORD | Total points: 60, Average player points: 5.45
Quick take: To no surprise at all, the Cardinal put together yet another solid recruiting class. The Cardinal very seldom loses guys to the MLB draft, but talented infielder Ryder Jones, a second-round pick to the San Francisco Giants was an exception this past summer. Otherwise, the Cardinal is in very good shape with this recruiting class, with talents such as righthanded pitchers Cal Quantrill (119), Brett Hanewich (127) and Chris Viall (171) all making it to campus. Talented outfielder Jack Klein (169) is the highest rated position player to make it to campus, while catcher Alex Dunlap and righthanded pitcher Tyler Thorne are a pair of Texas products who could make an immediate impact. Of the 11 high school recruits on campus, eight of them are pitchers.
— Class jewel: RHP Cal Quantrill — At 6-foot-3, 170 pounds, Quantrill still has plenty of room to grow as he embarks on his collegiate career at Stanford. The son of former big leaguer Paul Quantrill, Cal went from an upper-80s pitcher to a guy sitting in the low-90s and even touching the mid-90s in the past year. Quantrill has potential for two above-average breaking balls with a slider and promising changeup.
14. AUBURN | Total points: 59, Average player points: 5.90
Quick take: New Auburn head coach Sunny Golloway inherited some very solid talent this fall. The Tigers got through the MLB draft this past summer relatively unscathed, landing a trio of highly touted prospects in OF Anfernee Grier (55), RHP Keegan Thompson (63) and RHP Kevin Davis (81). The Tigers also have a good one in shortstop Brett Binning, while righthanded pitcher Bailey Chesser is an arm with a lot of upside, including a fastball in the upper-80s. Golloway couldn't have been dealt a much better hand as he ushers in the AU tenure.
-- High school commits: 10
-- PG Top 100 commits on campus: 3 – OF Anfernee Grier, RHP Keegan Thompson, RHP Kevin Davis
-- Class jewel: RHP Keegan Thompson — The elite righthanded pitcher is another star player who made a very strong commitment to the college he inked with. Thompson is the type of guy who could be an immediate impact for the Tigers, as the 6-foot-3, 190-pounder, has a big-time arm with a fastball in the low-to-mid 90s. Thompson also could help the Tigers as a hitter, though, his power arm is the most coveted aspect of his game.
15. MISSISSIPPI STATE | Total points: 58, Average player points: 3.87
Quick take: What a year to remember it was for the Bulldogs. In addition to reaching the CWS Championship Series, the Bulldogs also landed one of the nation's elite recruiting classes last fall, and were able to get a vast majority of those guys on campus. Losing outfielder Cord Sandberg absolutely was expected, but otherwise, State entered the fall rather unscathed in that regard. Catcher Gavin Collins (225) is the highest rated prospect to make it to campus, while talented outfielder Joey Swinarski surprised some when he decided to enroll a year early. The 6-foot-3, 192-pounder, has a lot of upside and could be an immediate contributor for the Bulldogs. Nine of State's 15 signees are pitchers.
— High school commits: 15
— Class jewel: C Gavin Collins — The Bulldogs don't have a class loaded with extremely highly rated prospects, but it's a very solid class with good players and balance. Collins is the most heralded prospect in this class. Ranked No. 225 out of high school, Collins has a strong, athletic build with very good bat speed and the ability to hit the ball to all sides of the field.
16. FLORIDA STATE | Total points: 58, Average player points: 5.27
Quick take: It's another year and yet another solid recruiting class for the Seminoles. FSU recruited few major draft risks in this recruiting class, and that showed by a vasty majority of the class showing up to campus this fall. FSU lost shortstop Oscar Mercado (18) to the draft, but that was very much expected. Meanwhile, it got righthanded pitcher Taylor Blatch (132) and infielder Ben DeLuzio (237) , along with other highly rated players such as RHP MT Minacci (260), RHP Ed Voyles (290) and RHP Jim Voyles (RHP), among others. Only one prospect, shortstop Hank Truluck, was ranked outside the top 500, making this a very valuable class for Mike Martin Jr., and Inc.
— Class jewel: INF Ben DeLuzio — The Seminoles have a good one on their hands in the talented infielder the next couple of years. The 6-foot-2, 185-pounder, was a hot commodity in the draft, getting selected in the third round by the Miami Marlins. However, his commitment to FSU was too strong. DeLuzio had a very impressive fall for the Seminoles, showing impressive athleticism with a good, consistent bat. DeLuzio has a good speed, as evidenced by his 6.56 60-yard-dash at the PG National Showcase last summer. DeLuzio absolutely is an instant impact player for FSU.
17. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL | Total points: 57, Average player points: 4.83
Quick take: Panthers recruiting coordinator Frank Damas did a terrific job with this recruiting class. As a matter of fact, if FIU doesn't lose Joe Jimenez, Nestor Cortes and Brandon Diaz to the MLB draft this past summer, there's a great chance this is a top-10 recruiting class. FIU has high hopes for freshman third baseman Juan Escarra, who was ranked No. 210 out of high school, while righthanded pitcher Cody Crouse could be an immediate impact guy with a projectable frame at 6-foot-6, 186 pounds, along with a fastball sitting in the low-90s. Crouse turned down overtures from the Mets as a 19th-round selection this past summer. Last but not least, the Panthers also snagged some solid junior college recruits, including righthanded pitcher Robby Kalaf, who's expected to have an immediate impact in the spring.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 1
— Class jewel: 3B Juan Escarra — The Panthers are expecting immediate contributions from Cody Crouse and others, but keep an eye on Escarra. Escarra is physically mature at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, and has some pop in his bat to go with his lefthanded swing. In the field, Escarra has good footwork with a loose arm across the diamond.
18. TEXAS | Total points: 54, Average player points: 5.40
Quick take: The Longhorns didn't sign a massive class, but it's one with a lot of impactful players. UT obviously lost lefthanded pitcher Trey Ball to the MLB daft this past summer, but otherwise got through the MLB draft in very good shape. Shortstop/third baseman Andy McGuire (52) has a chance to start from day one for the Longhorns, while gritty infielder Zane Gurwitz put together an impressive fall and has a chance to make a statement in his first season. Also keep an eye on physical catcher Tres Barrera, while righthanded pitcher Blake Goins (299) has a chance to close for UT as a freshman, a position previously held by Tigers signee Corey Knebel. Last but certainly not least, the Longhorns have a good one in junior college righthanded pitcher Lukas Schiraldi. Schiraldi put together a solid summer at the Cape Cod League, and could very well be in the weekend rotation in the spring.
— High school commits: 10
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 2
— Class jewel: SS Andy McGuire — The Longhorns made a statement by snagging McGuire out of the State of Virginia. McGuire would've gotten drafted much higher than the 36th-round if not for his strong commitment to the 'Horns. McGuire, ranked No. 52 out of high school, is a 6-foot-1, 190-pounder, with an impressive overall skill set. He's a good athlete with the ability to turn on inside fastballs. In the field, McGuire possesses a strong arm and could play shortstop or third base during his collegiate career.
19. OREGON | Total points: 53, Average player points: 5.42
Quick take: The Ducks put together another solid recruiting class and received a couple of early Christmas presents when big-time lefthanded pitcher Matt Krook, a first-round supplemental pick of the Miami Marlins, opted to head to college. Krook, a 6-foot-2, 190-pounder, should be an immediate impact type of arm with a fastball up to 91. UO did receive a little bad news this past summer when outfielder Dane McFarland, first baseman Cody Bellinger and catchers Jacob Sweaney and Chance Sisco decided to sign professional contracts. The Ducks also received some bad news when highly touted catcher Francis Christy, ranked No. 85 nationally, opted to head to a junior college. With that said, keep an eye on stocky 6-foot-4, 220-pounder, pitcher Trent Paddon, who's a physical arm with the ability to get up to 92 with his fastball.
— PG Top 100 commits on campus: 1 -- LHP Matt Krook (16)
— Class Jewel: LHP Matt Krook — UO would love nothing more than to see Krook meet his high expectations by the end of fall and going into the 2014 campaign. In addition to having a fastball well into the 90s, the talented lefty often utilizes a curveball and changeup, the curveball sitting in the low-80s.
20. CLEMSON | Total points: 53, Average player points: 5.30
Quick take: The Tigers consistently put together solid recruiting classes, and this one was no different. Clemson didn't ink a lot of major draft risks outside of talented outfielder Austin Meadows. Meadows, of course, was a first-round pick and signed this past summer. Otherwise, the Tigers entered the fall in very good shape with catcher Chris Okey (20) and lefthanded pitcher Alexander Bostic (174), among others, choosing to attend college. The Tigers also got a good one in shortstop Weston Wilson, who was ranked No. 228 out of high school by PG.
— Class jewel: C Chris Okey — Clemson has high hopes for Okey and it's easy to see why. The former PG All-American is 6-foot, 180 pounds and has elite defensive skills. He has plus arm strength with a quick release. At the plate, he has good power for his size and impressive overall bat control.
21. VIRGINIA | Total points: 53, Average player points: 5.89
Quick take: The Cavaliers assembled yet another solid class, which was held back a little in terms of overall point total because of the smallish nature of it. With that said, this is an elite class that, of course, is led by RHP Connor Jones. Meanwhile, though the Cavaliers lost LHP Austin Nicely to the draft, they did reel in catcher Matthew Thaiss (105), RHP Jack Roberts (181) and SS Daniel Pinero (312), among others. UVa. already has a team chocked full of talent. Now, yet another impressive class has a chance to make a statement in the spring.
— High school commits: 9
— Class jewel: RHP Connor Jones — Out of all the teams on this list, Virginia was the easiest team when it came to choosing the crown jewel. The Cavaliers got a huge boost this past summer when the talented righthander decided to honor his college commitment. To say the least, Jones is an immediate impact type of arm. Jones, a 6-foot-3, 205-pounder, is a physical pitcher with the ability to sit 91-93 with his fastball, and up into the mid-90s at times. Jones had a strong fall for the Cavaliers and should have an important role in the spring.
22. TULANE | Total points: 52, Average player points: 3.47
Quick take: The Green Wave did a terrific job in assembling this class. Tulane limited its MLB draft risks and snagged one of the nation's elite players in infielder Stephen Alemais, who was ranked No. 71 nationally out of high school. Meanwhile, righthanded pitcher J.P. France could be the surprise of the class. France was ranked as one of the top 1,000 prospects to watch on the national stage, and surpassed expectations with a strong fall. SS Hunter Hope (205), C Jake Rogers (311) and OF Lex Kaplan (423) are other intriguing prospects to watch out of this recruiting class.
— Class jewel: INF Stephen Alemais — The versatile shortstop is destined to have a solid collegiate career. Alemais, a 6-foot, 180-pounder, is a very good defensive shortstop with good feel for the game. He has a strong arm, 91 mph across the diamond at a showcase this year, and has potential at the plate as a switch hitter.
23. NEBRASKA | Total points: 52, Average player points: 5.20
Quick take: Indiana seems to be in control of the Big Ten in the immediate future, but could the Huskers be looking at a resurgence over the next couple of seasons? It's certainly very possible, as Darin Erstad's club put together yet an other solid recruiting class. The Huskers have an outstanding jewel in this class in outfielder Ryan Boldt, while Iowa native and righthanded pitcher Derek Burkamper is a potential immediate impact arm after having a solid fall. Also keep an eye on lefthanded pitcher Max Knutson (321), while Colorado native, lefty Grant Gamble is another talented arm who could factor into the equation on the mound in 2014. The Big Red also hit the junior college ranks hard over the summer, snagging an impressive pitcher in Chance Sinclair, who certainly will be a relied upon arm come spring.
— Class jewel: OF Ryan Boldt — The former PG All-American is as good as it gets as an outfielder, but a knee injury kept him from being an incredibly high draft pick. Still, the Red Sox took him in the 22nd-round and made a very serious run at signing him. Boldt has very good speed, running a 6.46 60-yard-dash in the last year, while he's a lefthanded hitter with a loose, easy swing, along with quick hands and good extension.
24. EAST CAROLINA | Total points: 50, Average player points: 4.17
Quick take: The Pirates assembled a balanced class that should be filled with immediate impact type of players. First baseman Bryce Harman is a guy who can help from the start for the Pirates, while righthanded pitcher TJ McDonald (201) and lefthander Luke Bolka (244) both are guys with a lot of upside. Also keep an eye on lefty Evan Knuczynski. Knuczynski was rated as one of the top 500 prospects nationally out of high school, and has a projectable 6-foot-5, 185-pound, frame with a fastball already in the upper-80s. There's room for more in that arm. Overall, this is an impressive class for Billy Godwin's program.
— Class jewel: 1B Bryce Harman — Harman had a very strong commitment to East Carolina, thus he was drafted in the 27th round by the Washington Nationals. Harman is a physical 6-foot-6, 220-pounder, who also has potential as a pitcher for the Pirates. In addition to his offensive skill set, he has a fastball up to 91 on the mound. You'll be hearing a lot about Harman over the next few seasons.
25. TEXAS CHRISTIAN | Total points: 50, Average player points: 5.00
Quick take: We really like the class the Horned Frogs assembled over the past year. Though it was pretty much expected that outfielder Billy McKinney would sign this past summer, the rest of the class definitely was up for grabs. The Frogs snagged one of the best lefthanded pitchers in Texas in Tyler Alexander, while outfielder Walker Pennington (162) is a gritty player who projects well at the collegiate level. Also keep an eye on imposing 6-foot-9, 192-pound, righthanded pitcher Brian Howard, who was ranked No. 270 out of high school and has a chance to be an immediate contributor in the spring. TCU also hit the junior college ranks hard, landing catcher Dylan Delso, talented outfielder Jeremie Fagnan and third baseman Connor Castellano, who began his collegiate career at Vanderbilt.
— Class jewel: LHP Tyler Alexander — If the season began today, there's a very good chance Alexander would be in TCU's weekend rotation. At the very least, the talented lefty will eat up some very valuable innings in 2014. Alexander was ranked No. 89 out of high school and has a fastball in the upper-80s and into the 90s. Alexander is a mature pitcher who has a good feel for the strike zone with the ability to move the ball around.


text:
we are Americans not English...when u have the mix of heredity we have u are not going to have true kings English
Last edited by B_roche; 11-21-2009 at 08:51 PM.
Reason: wont let me delete
Guinness for strength
Originally Posted by B_roche
I was just coming back from a few beers, cut me some slack on punctuality. The point was the way people misuse words, and how it can be annoying.
I fixed my second sentience, and Hypothetically impossible was a joke.
daym....brutal. The punctuation Nazi's can kiss the fattest part of my ass
You are proving your own point.
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California Department of Transportation
Headquarters - Public Affairs Office
Tamie McGowen
(916) 654-5782
April 4, 2006
California strives to continue its downward trend of work zone fatalities
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) announces that National Work Zone Awareness Week began yesterday and will continue through Saturday, April 8. Caltrans is hoping that by bringing awareness to work zone safety, California will continue its downward trend of fatalities.
According to California Highway Patrol (CHP) crash data, the number of collisions, injuries and deaths involving motorists in highway work zones is falling. CHP records show a 35 percent decrease in motorists' deaths in California work zones since 1999. The number of work zone collisions dropped in California from about 6,400 to approximately 4,100 in 2004. Fatalities decreased from 54 to 35 in the same span. Unfortunately, deaths in work zones across the country – outside of California – is on the increase. A total of 1,068 Americans died in work zone accidents during 2004, according to the Federal Highway Administration, up from 1,028 the year before.
Caltrans credits its "Slow for the Cone Zone" public awareness campaign for helping to lower California's work zone fatalities. "Slow for the Cone Zone" is designed to make drivers cognizant of workers in work zones and encourages them to ease off the gas pedal as they pass through.
"It is reasonable to think that our message is getting through," said Caltrans Director Will Kempton. "This is good news for highway workers. However, it represents not an end, but a beginning to our efforts."
During this year's National Work Zone Awareness Week, the Federal Highway Administration is employing the theme, "Working at the Speed of Night" to emphasize both the benefits and the dangers of night construction and maintenance work. Caltrans often schedules night work as a way of decreasing the amount of traffic congestion that highway improvement work can cause. Traffic volumes are lower at night, but the danger to highway workers and motorists traveling in work zones remains high after the sun goes down.


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Today legendary underwater explorer and ocean ambassador Sylvia Earle teamed up with IUCN's World Commission on Protected Areas in a historic move to send individual letters to 106 world leaders inviting them to join Sylvia in her wish to better protect the world's oceans.
Watch exclusive coverage of this event online at The Underwater Channel.
Sylvia Earle is one of three recipients of the coveted 2009 TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) Award which grants awardees a 'wish to change the world'. Sylvia's one wish is to establish more 'hope spots' – Marine Protected Areas – to support ocean life, people and the natural unseen systems on which our day-to-day lives depend.
The idea of writing these letters is stimulated by the fact that some leaders have already stepped-up to champion ocean protection, making dramatic and significant announcements that have resulted in a measurable increase in the area of sea protected. These countries include the USA, France, South Africa, Australia, and the Coral Triangle Initiative nations (Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands).
"I am delighted to be directly connecting to these leaders who really can make a difference and who by their actions can quickly improve how we protect our ocean. In spring next year we will have a major celebration of my 'wish' and I very much hope we can show new progress by highlighting globally those leaders who have made the latest commitments, and show everyone what they as individuals are doing for the oceans," Sylvia Earle said. "Given the critical range of pressures on the seas there has never been a time like this when we have needed to act in such decisive ways and connect ocean issues to the broader public. By taking new actions as individuals, world leaders can achieve both those goals in one go and also leave a personal legacy from which we will all benefit in future years," she added.
Co-signing the letters is well known British biologist and ocean conservationist, and Marine Vice Chair of the World Commission on Protected Areas, Dan Laffoley. "Most nations of the world have already pledged through the Convention on Biological Diversity and the 2002 Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development to use networks of Marine Protected Areas to help safeguard the blue heart of our planet" he said. "I am delighted that we are working with Sylvia Earle in this way to provide that process with a significant positive boost in 2010".
Carl Gustaf Lundin, Head of IUCN's Global Marine Programme added that "The ocean is our life support system and we are seeing more and more evidence of the deterioration of habitats and species as a direct result of our daily activities. But there is cause for hope. In recent years we have witnessed impressive pledges from around the world to step up the protection of the ocean. These personal leadership commitments have been crucial in moving things and putting the plight of the ocean on the international agenda. "
Each of the individually written and signed letters was sent out today, and by April next year it is hoped that new commitments made by leaders will be highlighted and celebrated as part of a TED Ocean event. The seven-day TED conference will take place on a ship in the Galapagos Islands. Speakers, all focused on the oceans, will range from marine scientists and ocean explorers to musicians and artists to environmental activists. All talks will be streamed live to the world for free. The ultimate goal is to have policy makers and citizens alike understand the necessary action steps needed to create more marine protected areas and to engender the conviction to take them.
Watch Sylvia and Dan as they sign the letters and discuss their inspiration behind this initiative and what they hope they will achieve courtesy of The Underwater Channel:
For Video Embed: of the signing go to: http://uwcwidgets.blogspot.com/2009/10/sylvia-earles-letters-to-worlds-leaders.html
For Video Embed: about the oceans and UWC go to: http://babelgumilan.blogspot.com/2009/07/sylvia-earls.html


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I am happy that there are so many people that are excited to see this band.
I'm having a hard time understanding why they are relevant today and deserve to be on the main stage when there are other modern bands that could have taken the lead. Please don't misunderstand, I can appreciate that they are good, and I remember listening to them back in the '90s - but they really were not one of the bands that I could say defined the decade for me. (Tool, The Cure, The Smiths, Soundgarden, Peal Jam, Alice in Chains).
Why not bring a band like Jane's Addiction in....at least they have a newer album, and in my opinion, they had many more influential songs. Perhaps Coachella is afraid to have a show with both Jane's and the Chili Peppers?
Something in me thinks that this band was added to satisfy the promoters. I mean, they knew that this was going to sell out anyway.....so why not bring in somebody that they always wanted to hear 20 years ago but didn't have the chance to. Seems rather self gratifying to me.
I can appreciate that many people are excited....but I think that this band should be on one of the side stages or playing in the afternoon. Not headlining.
The good news......I don't have to worry about watching the headliner when the other bands that I want to see are booked at the same time (i.e. The Black Keys and M83 last year).
The Stone Roses as their full band (with the best members anyway) never played in the US. This is the first US of an extremely rare, extremely awesome band. END STORY. I hope this Coachella appearance brings them the $$$, and I hope I can catch them on their regular US tour that follows.
One has to wonder why Eric Avery passed up a HUGE payday when he left the lastest reunion.
There's a whole lot of ignorance and revisionist history floating around in this thread. Two points:
1) The Stone Roses are undeniably important – essential, even – in the history of British music. But the band was hardly an obscurity to people in the States who knew good music in the late 80's/early 90's. I grew up in the middle of nowhere Ohio, and I was 16 when the band released their debut album in 1989. This was obviously pre-Internet, so I didn't read about them on Pitchfork (which also didn't exist in 1989), and my family didn't have cable, so if the band were played on MTV, I didn't know about it. Our two radio stations played pop hits and classic rock, and the closest college station was just out of range and virtually unlistenable through the static, so I couldn't hear them on the radio. And it's not like the local drugstore carried Q or NME for me to read about them. All of this is to say that despite what amounted to a media blackout, I had somehow heard of the band and was looking forward to the release of their debut. They were getting press from someone big enough to reach me in Cow Country, which means it's fucking stupid to claim that the Stone Roses were somehow dredged out of the depths of an anglophile's wet dream by Coachella's promoters. They were (and are) a big deal to music fans of a certain age on both sides of the Atlantic – a reputation that's only growing with their reunion – and that cachet alone is reason enough to put them at the top of Friday's lineup.
2) One other whine that keeps coming up is that Coachella is "an American festival," and the Blur/Stone Roses bill is too British. This is an intellectually dishonest claim that's also fucking stupid. Coachella has always been Brit-heavy, both in headliners and the undercard. As a fan of British music – and as someone who's been attending the festival since 1999 – that's also been its biggest draw. I knew I could count on the festival's organizers to bring me a wide range of established and up-and-coming British acts that I might not be able to see elsewhere. That's been true every year, including this one. Hell, the festival itself was even conceived as an American version of English festivals like Glastonbury and Reading/Leeds. Coachella's indebtedness to England's music and festival culture has never been a secret, and the Blur/Stone Roses-headed lineup is just a natural extension of every single lineup that's come before.
No one's asking that the naysayers become overnight converts to the Stone Roses, but fuck off with all this nonsense about the band's supposed obscurity. If you haven't heard of them, that says more about you than it does about the festival. And fuck equally off with any claims that a festival that's brought us legions of British music – from Underworld and Spiritualized in 1999 through Alt-J and Palma Violets this year – should suddenly become primarily an outlet for American music. The fact that it doesn't traffic solely in American music is one of the reasons many of us love it.
It's probably the best album made in the UK not made by the Beatles. Playing a possibly exclusive and first ever show in the US. I'm sure this was a top 3 wishlist for goldenvoice in 2013 they had to chase down.
I am reminded of younger generations watching "groundbreaking" films from decades prior and wondering what the fuss is all about. Read up on the band some more and it will hit you more and more.
Easily one of my favorite bands ever -- and their first album is probably my favorite of all time. So you can how disappointed I am that I'll miss Coachella this year. So hoping that they schedule a few more shows in the states (what are the chances?).
Thanks for this thread, btw. I can understand how some younger folks who don't spend a lot of time listening to music before their time wouldn't know much about the Stone Roses, but given their rarity and their influence--and that they are sharing top-billing with Blur--they fully deserve the headlining slot. And for those of you who think otherwise, let's just compare the brilliance of the Stone Roses to a few former Coachella headliners: Jack Johnson or The Killers. Enuff said.
The Stone Roses sold out all three nights of their reunion concerts - making them the fastest selling rock concerts in UK history. An astonishing 225,000 tickets was sold for the three mega-concerts at Heaton Park, Manchester. The first 150,000 tickets for the first two nights sold out in just 14 minutes after going on sale, the remaining 80, 000 tickets sold out shortly after.
The Stone Roses first album was named by the NME as the best British album of all time!
Click here to see the top ten best British albums of all time.
We know the reason -- GV couldn't line up a normal first-tier band.
Listened to "I Wanna Be Adored" again on spotify....slowly growing on me.
just happy we get another great UK band where most the crowd(kids) are like "what the fuck"..pulp was awesome last year and this will be just as great!
I've really started listening to them again (it's been a while since I've gave them a listen) and I'm really excited about this set. I must admit I've seen some live footage where they look like they're struggling to get through a set, but I think they'll bring it. I truly don't feel Paul T would have booked them as a (co?) headline if not. I just imagine their set with the lights and colored palm trees like Pulp last year. Completely magical.
This is on a whole nother level, Lynn. I like Pulp, but see first sentence.
While I think the subject matter of the Roses lyrics to be quite universal, some of the Blur lyrics and subject matter are VERY British and are lost on even some of the most ardent north american anglophiles. Especially place names and class system references. Similar thing with a lot of the Kinks material.
And if I'm wrong? Well, I'll still be belting out Love Spreads at the top of my lungs. So Ian doesn't need to worry- I've been practicing. You lucky, lucky bitches.
Umm, excuse me Mr. Brown, I'm sorry to inform you and I'm sure you'll be absolutely gutted to hear this, but you will not be the next American Idol. This isn't opera, it's rock n roll. Mariah Carey can carry a tune, but she's still shit. I think it's even become part of the charm. Live, I don't think we'll notice as much or I'm just not going to give a fuck because we'll all be singing along anyway.
I never thought I'd get to see this band and to get to see them before/after Blur makes it that much more insane. Someone said Blur has kind of been lost in the shuffle, which I couldn't agree with more. They too are one of the all-time great bands, with several albums full of essential tracks, which leaves me much more conflicted because there's just that many more songs that I want to hear but probably won't. With The Roses I figure we'll get a much higher percentage of those must hear tracks!
Here's a set list from V Festival in August, in case any of you new or old fans are wondering what might be played.
I Wanna Be Adored
Mersey Paradise
(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister
Sally Cinnamon
Ten Storey Love Song
Where Angels Play
Shoot You Down
Fools Gold
Something's Burning
Don't Stop
This Is the One
Love Spreads
Made Of Stone
She Bangs The Drums
Elizabeth My Dear
I Am The Resurrection
Here's the one from Heaton Park in July
I Wanna Be Adored
Mersey Paradise
(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister
Sally Cinnamon
Where Angels Play
Shoot You Down
Bye Bye Badman
Ten Storey Love Song
Standing Here
Fools Gold
Something's Burning
Don't Stop
Love Spreads
Made Of Stone
This Is the One
She Bangs The Drums
Elizabeth My Dear
I Am The Resurrection
I can't believe Elephant Stone is missing. I looked through all the set lists of all their shows since the reunion, not one where they did Elephant Stone. Ouch. They are pretty consistent and never changed the list up, if at all. I would really love to see: Going Down, and The Hardest Thing in the World. We can't have it all can we?
To all the new and old fans, what do you think? Almost a wet dream for me, if they don't play Elephant Stone, what about this one????
Full Fathom Five, B-side to Elephant Stone
PS. It's Elephant Stone played in reverse.
Bye Bye Badman - The Stone Roses
Soak me to my skin
Will you drown me in your sea
Submission ends and i begin
Choke me smoke the air
In this citrus sucking sunshine
I dont care youre not all there
Every backbone and heart you break
Will still come back for more
Submission ends it all
Here he come
Got no question got no love
Im throwing stones at you man
I want you black and blue and
Im gonna make you bleed
Gonna bring you down to your knees
Bye bye badman
Ooh bye bye
Choke me smoke the air
In this citrus sucking sunshine
I dont care youre not all there
Youve been bought and paid
Youre a whore and a slave
Your dark star holy shrine
Come taste the end youre mine
Here he come
Got no question got no love
Im throwing stones at you man
I want you black and blue and
Im gonna make you bleed
Gonna bring you down to your knees
Bye bye badman
Ooh bye bye
Ive got bad intention
I intend to Knock you down
These stones i throw
Oh these French kisses
Are the only way Ive found
Ive got bad intention
I intend to knock you down
These stones i throw
Oh these French kisses
Are the only way Ive found
The Stone Roses - Shoot You Down
Sad to say this, but I had only heard of the Stone Roses till the lineup came out this year, and I gotta say, I'm sad I've been missing out all these years. I've been playing Shoot You Down on repeat for the past week. Real excited for this.
Can't stand this fucking band. Almost as bad as Blur and the Smiths.
(Not sure why I haven't seen these guys at Coachella yet. Sort of disappointed in the fact. Campout, y'all!)


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posted by Thom Holwerda on Fri 27th Jun 2014 17:42 UTC
Metal. If the name sounds hardcore, it's because it's a hardcore improvement to the way games will be able to perform on iOS 8. Metal represents a much more no-nonsense approach to getting the most out of the Apple A7's gaming performance, assuring users of the iPhone 5S, iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display that their devices will continue to be top-notch game systems come this fall.
Right now in iOS 7 software called OpenGL ES sits in between the game and the core hardware that runs it, translating function calls into graphics commands that are sent to the hardware. It's a lot of overhead. And iOS 8 is getting rid of a lot of it.
A nice overview of Apple's Metal.


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Since last year, the Mercury has been reporting on the situation of single mother Hollie Rizzotto and her toddler, who are living in appalling conditions in public housing at Todd Street, Warrawong.
For two years now, Ms Rizzotto and her daughter have been surrounded by drug dens, addicts, sex workers and violent antisocial behaviour.
Her block has been described as the worst in the precinct. After some of our previous articles, the government sent in cleaners to tidy the place up.
Yet as recently as Tuesday this week, 30 used syringes were found in the garden beds around the building.
Ms Rizzotto wants to raise her daughter in a safer place. It seems a reasonable request, one that any responsible parent would make.
After her previous requests for a transfer were rejected, Ms Rizzotto took her case to the Housing Appeals Committee.
All three members of the HAC panel interviewed Ms Rizzotto.
All three agreed that she should be allowed to move.
But the wheels of bureaucracy turn in bizarre and unpredictable ways: the Housing Department merely thumbed its nose at the appeals committee, once again rejecting Ms Rizzotto's request.
Apparently, it was something to do with paperwork. With bureaucrats, it always is.
In the machinery of government, paperwork is more important than a child's welfare.
More important than a human feel for what is right and what is wrong.
More important than the advice of every expert the Mercury has interviewed, who all agree the child should not be raised in such an environment.
More important than the unanimous recommendations of the Housing Appeals Committee, a body that is independent of Housing NSW but reports directly to the same minister.
Which brings us to the Honourable Pru Goward, minister for the Department of Family and Community Services.
It is here that the red tape gets truly tangled because, while Housing NSW is part of Family and Community Services, so too is the department tasked with looking after the welfare of children: Community Services.
Thus, Housing NSW, Community Services and the Housing Appeals Committee all report to the same minister.
You might think that was good thing - if the various departments couldn't see eye to eye, Goward could round them all up, bang some heads together and get it sorted.
That's what you might think - but you would be wrong. The Mercury has never been able to speak directly with Ms Goward.
She leaves that unpleasant task to - you guessed it - the bureaucrats.
And according to them, there is no conflict between housing and the protection of children's welfare - because they are entirely separate issues.
Even by bureaucratic standards, it is a response that is breathtaking in its disdain for plain old commonsense.
We therefore pose the following questions to Ms Goward:
1 Do you think it is acceptable for a child to be raised in an environment infested with filth and drug addiction?
2 Is it acceptable for children to look out the windows of their homes and see junkies shooting heroin into their necks?
3 When a child steps outside their front door, is it acceptable to see sex workers urinating in the stairwell?
4 Is it OK for a child to open a window and smell marijuana smoke drifting in?
5 Is it OK for the child to step across used needles on their way to school?
6 Is it OK for a child to lie awake at night crying their eyes out at the brawls, the deranged screaming of strung-out crack heads, the death threats and foul language? While her mother lies next to her, crying her eyes out too?
7 The experts we have consulted all say they are extremely concerned about these things. Why aren't you?
We await Ms Goward's response.
Finally, we must turn our attention to those other residents of Todd Street.
Here we refer not to the drug addicts and prostitutes but to those in the precinct who are decent and law-abiding.
The Mercury has been reporting on the situation at Todd Street since 2009 - almost five years now.
Our stories about Ms Rizzotto's plight are only the most recent in that long and unfortunate history.
Naturally, we are aware that in the course of our reporting, some of these decent folk feel they are being tarred with the same brush.
That is not our intention and it never will be.
Still, we can't hide the truth nor attempt to make it more palatable, just because it discomforts or upsets those who do THE RIGHT THING.
Many residents of Todd Street live normal, quiet lives.
We sincerely hope the new community garden will encourage them to venture outside their units, to make friends with their neighbours and volunteer their time.
And we wish them well.
Related reading
• Fears daughter will step on syringe
• Screaming for 20 hours straight
• Housing NSW knocks back transfer
• Drug deal: what our journalist saw


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Franck Robichon / EPA
Two women cry after laying flowers where a house once stood in the tsunami devastated Yuriage district, Natori city, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, March 11. Japan marks the first anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake that killed almost 20,000 people.
Today, some 325,000 people rendered homeless remain in temporary housing. While much of the debris has been gathered into massive piles, very little rebuilding has begun.
"I wish I could go back to my old house and get back our normal life again," said Hyakuaiko Konno, a 64-year-old woman from the Ishinomaki coast who has been living in temporary housing for the past seven months.
-- Reported by msnbc.com news services
Related content: Tsunami survivors in PhotoBlog
Slideshow: Then and now


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If you were lucky enough to be in Seattle over the weekend, you might have seen an extended gameplay demonstration for The Last of Us at PAX Prime. Originally shown behind closed doors at E3, this demo made its public debut at Penny Arcade Expo. Sony has now released the video online, so that all may see.
This demo features less emphasis on action-combat, and offers a greater look at the game's puzzles, stealth elements, and enemy AI. It lasts a whopping fifteen minutes in all, which should sate your fix for Naughty Dog's latest. Check it out below.
BOOM video 13774


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Daily Links, Feb. 2: More winter, humor, and questions
You've probably heard already, but in case not, I hate to be the bearer of bad/(good? [1]) news: (Only) six more weeks of winter left! [2]
Well, the big news today is obviously that ferry that sank off of Papua New Guinea. [3] At least 100 are missing, so all the top news outlets are covering it [4]as much as they covered the Italian cruise ship fiasco (maybe even more so).
Jim Martin thinks funny things are funny [5]. It's weird, because most people don't. I wonder if he also likes chocolate shakes. If so, then I can totally relate.
This thing is cool [6].
Morning's minion reminds us [7] that health care isn't the only area in which religious liberty is an issue. I'm just disappointed that the bishops couldn't (wouldn't?) rally as much outcry and fervor over the harsh immigration laws that are being enacted around the country.
NCR reports on the "questionable" nature of how the Knights of Columbus [8] spend their money.
And we've got two questions on the USCatholic blog today: What does the prayer really say? [9] and Should Catholic institutions employ non-Catholics? [10]


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"The Alphabet of Middle-earth" - Writing Cues for the 'Back to Middle-earth Month 2007'
March, 1 2007
It's "Back to Middle-earth Month" again!
Just like last year, the month of March is dedicated to Middle-earth. No matter if you have not been there in ages or if you have never left, ...
Just like last year, the month of March is dedicated to Middle-earth. No matter if you have not been there in ages or if you have never left, ...
... no matter if it is "The Silmarillion" that inspires you or "The Hobbit", this is *your* month. Your month to get excited about Middle-earth again, a month to watch the movies, to read books, essays, fanfic, paint fanart, create icons, make fanvids ... it doesn't matter what you do, as long as it's about Tolkien's Middle-earth.
And of course "There and Back Again" has prepared something to celebrate B2MeM again, as well. We proudly present a new series of writing cues for B2MeM:
The Alphabet of Middle-earth
"The Alphabet of Middle-earth" is a series of short cues to inspire you. We have included some very special "characters" so that there are exactly 31 cues to titillate your muses. One for each day of B2MeM. We invite you to pick up any cue, any time and to post your take as a comment for the relevant entry in the LiveJournal Community "There and Back Again" or over at the "Henneth Annun Yahoo Group".*
Write a drabble, a drouble, a tribble, a quabble or a quibble! Write 100, 200, 300, 400 or 500 words! No matter if it's serious or silly, anything goes.
• Anonymous posters are very welcome to post their takes as well, but please remember to include your pen-name so we know who you are!
• If you write something that is not suitable for the general audience (rating R/NC-17) please post only a link to the ficlet and provide suitable warnings.
And here's already the first cue for the first day of the "Back to Middle-earth Month 2007":
Have fun, have muses, have drabbles!
JunoMagic & Aranel Took
"There and Back Again (and how to get there in the first place)" -
a writers' workshop for Tolkien fan fiction in LJ style:


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William Lopez may have fled to Mexico after posting bail on a DUI manslaughter charge.
DELAND -- A judge revoked bail for a DeLand man charged with DUI manslaughter after he failed to appear for a hearing Wednesday.
Circuit Judge Randell Rowe III had already issued a nationwide arrest warrant on March 7 for William David Lopez after a bondsman said he had vanished about a month earlier. Attorney David Damore has said Lopez is an undocumented immigrant and may have fled to Mexico. Damore has criticized the decision to grant Lopez bail despite a warning he was a flight risk.
Lopez, 27, was arrested after a deadly crash about 5 a.m. Feb. 6. on U.S. 17 near Spring Garden Avenue, not far from DeLeon Springs, according to reports.
Lopez's vehicle crashed with a Hyundai driven by Connie Rae Rodriguez, 61, who was from North Carolina and had family in Port Orange. Rodriguez was pronounced dead at Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach.
On Monday, the State Attorney's Office filed formal charges against Lopez: DUI manslaughter, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison, and no valid driver's license causing death, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
A blood draw showed Lopez had a blood alcohol level of 0.15 or nearly twice the limit of 0.08 considered too drunk to drive, according to the charging document.
Lopez was granted $35,000 bail and then fled within 24 hours after his release from jail on Feb. 8, according to an emergency motion filed by Damore on behalf of the bondsman, 2nd 2None Bail Bonds.
The second page of a charging affidavit against Lopez warns in all capitals: "LOPEZ IS NOT A US CITIZEN AND IS A POTENTIAL FLIGHT RISK."
County Judge Dawn Fields granted bail to Lopez. She earlier declined to comment.
Judge Rowe estreated the bail, which means that he set in motion the legal process for the bondsman to forfeit the $35,000, Damore said. However, the bondsman can still recover at least part of the money if he captures Lopez.


text:
Marvel Universe
Base of Operations
New York City
First Appearance
Thor #395 (1988)
Current Members:
Earth Lord, Skyhawk, Wind Warrior
Earth Force returned and asked Thor for redemption because they realized that Seth was evil and merely using them to serve his foul plans. Thor agreed and together they fought the armies of Seth for the liberation of Asgard and the defense of all life everywhere. Earth Force confronted their manipulator, and even though they tried their best, Seth was just too powerful for them and he left the three individuals at death's door once more. After Seth's ultimate defeat, the Gods of Heliopolis restored the lives of Earth Force and returned them to their hospital beds mere moments after they were kidnapped by Seth. Earth Lord noticed that he still had the glowing sign of Aton in his hand and presumed that Wind Warrior and Skyhawk retained the mark as well.
Earth Force had not been seen until a confrontation between Bloodaxe and Doctor Strange was brought to the attention of police and special task force, Code: Blue. Kyle Brock was among the police officers at the scene, and when no one was looking, he transformed into Earth Lord once more. He sent a silent signal to the other members of Earth Force, and together with Code Blue, the two teams along with Doctor Strange were able to stop Bloodaxe before any serious damage was done.Following the registration-initiated "Civil War," Skyhawk was apparently assigned to work in Washington state as part of the 50 State initiative. Whether the other two members of Earth Force were assigned there with him is unrevealed.
Follow Marvel


text:
Hey y'all,
I've been running NGKs for a long time in all my soobs, but was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions/experience with Bosch or other plugs that they felt were better than the NGKs.
Welcome to Ultimate Subaru Message Board, my lurker friend!
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We offer all this information for free to everyone, even lurkers like you! All we ask in return is that you sign up and give back some of what you get out - without our awesome registered users none of this would be possible! Plus, you get way more great stuff as a member! Lurk to lose, participate to WIN*!
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Guest Message by DevFuse
97 2.2 Leggy. Best spark plugs?
Started by kenpdx , Sep 23 2012 12:27 PM
4 replies to this topic
Posted 23 September 2012 - 12:27 PM
Posted 23 September 2012 - 12:32 PM
NGK is it for Subarus
Posted 23 September 2012 - 02:23 PM
NGK the ones with the green printing on them that are like 2 bucks each. BKR5E-11 or BKR6E-11 - something like that. One is for 2.2's the other 2.5's.
Posted 23 September 2012 - 09:32 PM
Thanks, that's what I figured, just thought I'd throw it out to the big brains:D
Posted 24 September 2012 - 10:01 PM
NGK "V-Power" plugs in and she purrs like a kitten. Just like the last set of 'em.
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text:
Bickley, Carl E.
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Bickley, Carl E.
Categories: People
Dr. Bickley came to the university in 1960 as assistant director of the Purdue University Extension Center in Fort Wayne. In 1962 he left as a consultant to the Fort Wayne Community Schools and returned to IPFW in 1966 as assistant dean and director of the Division of General and Technical Studies (known as DGTS and pronounced as "Digits"). He served in a number of assignments until his death on December 18,1985. At that time he was director of development and assistant to the chancellor for athletics. He was born on September 19, 1924. He received degrees from Indiana State University (B.S., 1949) and Indiana University (M.S., 1955; Ed.D., 1958).
Photo and article: Intercom (January 1982), p.3.


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|New Syria Opposition Bloc Wins Gulf Recognition
|[An Nahar] The six Gulf states recognized a newly formed opposition bloc as the Syrian people's legitimate representative on Monday, as border violence stoked fears of a spillover of the country's 20-month conflict.
The Gulf Cooperation Council move came a year to the day after the Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
suspended Syria's membership, and as the National Coalition met Arab foreign ministers in Cairo buoyed by the hard-won unity deal.
Deadly fighting flared, meanwhile, on Syria's border with Turkey and Israel fired across the ceasefire line on the Golan Heights for a second day, scoring direct hits on the source of a mortar round that struck the Israeli-occupied half of the disputed territory.
The GCC members -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in their national face...
, and the United Arab Emirates -- became the first to recognize the opposition coalition.
"The states of the council announce recognizing the National Coalition... as the legitimate representative of the brotherly Syrian people," GCC chief Abdullatif al-Zayani said.
The oil-rich bloc would support the coalition "in order to achieve the aspirations of the Syrian people in hope that this will be a step towards a quick political transfer of power," Zayani said.
He hoped its formation would lead to ending the bloodshed and "a general national congress to pave the way to build a state ruled by law and open to all its citizens."
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani, whose government hosted the marathon four-day talks that culminated in Sunday's unity deal, said earlier that he would seek "full recognition" of the coalition.
His minister of state for foreign affairs, Khaled al-Attiya, said recognition would remove any obstacles to the opposition securing arms for rebel fighters.
The National Coalition's newly installed leader, Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib, told al-Jazeera television it already had promises of weapons, but did not say from whom.
Under Sunday's deal, the opposition agreed to establish a new supreme military council to take overall command of rebel groups on the ground and address U.S. concerns that weapons have been reaching jihadist groups that are threatening to hijack the uprising.
Washington swiftly declared its backing for the new structure.
"We look forward to supporting the National Coalition as it charts a course toward the end of Assad's bloody rule and the start of the peaceful, just, democratic future that all the people of Syria deserve," State Department front man Mark Toner said.
Traditional Damascus
...The place where Pencilneck hangs his brass hat...
ally Moscow gave a cooler response, saying "such alliances must act based on a platform of peaceful regulation of the conflict by Syrians themselves, without interference."
-- Israel scores 'direct hits' --
Fanning international concerns about the potential a conflict spillover, the Israeli army targeted the source of new mortar fire into the part of the Golan it occupies and reported "direct hits" on Monday.
On Sunday, an Israeli warning shot -- its first across the U.N.-monitored ceasefire line since the 1973 Middle East war -- left U.N. chief the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan...
"deeply concerned by the potential for escalation," his front man said.
Air strikes and shelling of rebel positions in the town of Ras al-Ain on the Turkish border killed at least 12 people, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
One bomb went
kaboom!less than 150 meters (yards) from the border, with the blast blowing out windows in houses in Ceylanpinar, where there were also injuries, the Turkish town's mayor told Anatolia news agency.
The same blast killed four Syrians and maimed scores of others, around 20 seriously, Anatolia said, later adding that six of the maimed died.
The Observatory said seven rebels and five non-combatants were killed.
Near the town, helicopters strafed rebels who for the past three days have besieged an army post, said the Observatory.
At the far eastern end of Syria's border with Turkey, Kurdish militia took Malikiya village after troops loyal to Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir
Supressor of the Damascenes...
On the Jordanian frontier, shelling and festivities left two Syrian border guards dead.
Warplanes also bombed rebel positions on the strategic highway between Damascus and second city Aleppo
...For centuries, Aleppo was Greater Syria's largest city and the Ottoman Empire's third, after Constantinople and Cairo. Although relatively close to Damascus in distance, Aleppans regard Damascenes as country cousins...
, while festivities on the southern outskirts of the capital near a Paleostinian refugee camp killed seven civilians.
At least 52 people were killed nationwide on Monday, said the Observatory, which has given an overall corpse count of more than 37,000 since March 2011.
|Posted by:Fred


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FRESNO, Calif. - Top-seeded and 13th-ranked New Mexico defeated No. 5 seed Nevada 7-3 Thursday night at Pete Beiden Field in the Lobos' opening game of the 2013 Mountain West Baseball Championship. New Mexico now advances in the winner's bracket of the double elimination tournament to face No. 2 seed UNLV at 7 p.m. Friday night.
The Lobos (36-18) had nine hits in the game, three of which were deep home runs to left field that provided more than enough offense for starting pitcher Josh Walker.
Walker went 8.2 innings Thursday night and improved his record to 11-0 on the season. He gave up three earned runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and two walks in his strong performance. Gabe Aguilar retired the final out of the game with two runners on base to record his third save of the season.
Nevada (25-31) was led by right fielder Brooks Klein, who went 3-for-4 and scored two of the Wolf Pack's three runs. Nevada will face Fresno State at 11 a.m. Friday in an elimination game.
Much like he did on the first day the tournament Wednesday night, Wolf Pack designated hitter Hugo Hernandez opened up the game with a first inning home run. His shot off the top of the scoreboard in left field gave Nevada an early 2-0 lead on Walker. Walker had only given up three home runs in 62.2 innings pitched entering the tournament.
New Mexico wasted no time answering Hernandez's shot. MW Co-Player of the Year Mitch Garver tied the game in the bottom of the first with a two-run double down the third-base line and then UNM launched two-run homers in both the second and third innings. Sam Haggerty tagged a two-run shot off the scoreboard in left field in the second, followed by Luke Campbell clearing the left-field fence in the third to give Walker and the Lobos a 6-2 lead.
Walker then took over from there, retiring 13 of the next 15 batters following the homer he surrendered in the first all the way through the end of the fifth inning.
Nevada's Brad Gerig cut the UNM lead down to 6-3 in the sixth with an RBI single up the middle that scored Klein, who doubled to lead off the inning.
DJ Peterson clobbered the longest of UNM's three homers in the seventh, a solo shot far beyond the left-field fence for the final Lobo run in the game.


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2010 Baseball
Bluffton takes two at Thomas More
Bluffton improves to 6-7 with sweep at Thomas More
March 20, 2010
Game one box score I Game two box score
CRESTVIEW HILLS, Kentucky - Bluffton University took advantage of outstanding pitching all day as the Beavers swept Thomas More by identical scores of 3-2 on Saturday, March 20, 2010. It took the Beavers nine innings to get the job done in game one before Bluffton completed the sweep with a seven-inning victory in the finale. Bluffton improved to 6-7 on the season while the Saints dipped to 3-6.
Bluffton 3, Thomas More 2
Bluffton took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when sophomore Tyler Stephenson (Springfield/Northeastern) laced an RBI single up the middle which plated Nick Broyles (Toledo/Whitmer) who was hit by a pitch to start the game.
Thomas More capitalized on two Bluffton errors in the home half of the fifth to knot the game at one. Stephenson doubled to start the sixth and he came around to score when the Saints mishandled a Brennan Bauman (Milford) grounder. The Beavers' lead was short lived as two more Bluffton miscues allowed the home team to tie the game at two with an unearned run.
A quick seventh sent the game into extra innings, something Bluffton has seen with regularity this season. Neither team was able to mount any offense in the eighth, but the Beavers took advantage of a hit batter with two outs in the top of the ninth as Nick Broyles drove in Ian Land (Troy, Mich./Athens) with the game-winning run on his two-bagger to left center.
Senior Cody McPherson (Northwood/Millbury Lake) worked around a one-out walk in the bottom of the ninth to secure Bluffton's fifth win of the season. He worked the final four innings, allowing just one hit and no runs with three strikeouts, and improved to 2-2 on the season. Kelly Barnes (Toledo/Christian) gave the Beavers a solid five-inning start. He gave up just two runs, both unearned, on six hits with four strikeouts.
Broyles and Stephenson both paced Bluffton with two safeties. Stephen Torres (Lima/Juan Diego) stole two bases while Land and Broyles both recorded one theft each.
Bluffton 3, Thomas More 2
Bluffton again jumped out to a first inning lead on the strength of three singles and a Thomas More error. Nick Broyles bunted for a hit and moved to second following an errant throw by the pitcher. He went to third on a Stephen Torres safety and then crossed the plate when Michael Knorr (Pickerington/North) singled to left field.
The Beavers made it 2-0 in the second when Josh Runda (Lima/Bath) picked up Cody McPherson with an RBI single to left field.
The home Saints rallied to tie it in the bottom of the third thanks to a base hit, a bunt single, a Bluffton error and two passed balls. The Beavers wasted no time reclaiming the lead in the top of the fourth when McPherson drew a leadoff walk. He moved up a base on a Miles Richardson (Granville/Newark Catholic) single. McPherson went to third following a fielder's choice and he crossed the plate on Broyles' grounder to second base.
Freshman Nick Rodesky (Bowling Green) tossed a complete game three-hitter, allowing two runs, just one earned in seven superb innings on the hill. He induced 13 groundouts and walked only one batter while improving to 1-1.
Michael Knorr and Cody McPherson both laced two hits for the victors with McPherson scoring two runs. Three Bluffton hurlers combined to hold Thomas More to four runs (just one earned) in two wins and 16 innings.
The Beavers will look to keep their winning streak intact when they welcome Albion College to Memorial Field on Tuesday, March 23, 2010. The contest is slated to start at 4 p.m.


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How the Definition of Transcendence Defines the Movie "Transcendence"
A movie name is chosen for a reason. William Shakespeare said, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet," but does that mean an uninspired movie name is okay? Generally, a movie title gives specifics about the movie or at least points the audience in the right direction with hints about the movie. This is no different with the 2014 movie "Transcendence." In order to understand the meaning behind the title of the movie, one must know the definition of the word in the title. Without knowing what "transcendence" means, it is difficult for audiences to understand the underlying meaning of the movie itself.
What Is the Meaning of "Transcendence"?
When investigating the meaning of the word "transcendence," which is a noun, the word "transcendent," an adjective, comes up. This is because the dictionary definition of "transcendence" is "to be transcendent." "Transcendent" means "surpassing others or being supreme." Further definitions include the idea that someone or something is being above and independent of the material universe.
The philosophy of transcendence deals with an experience with the divine or God. This experience is absolute, eternal and infinite. One version of transcendent thought says that God is completely outside or beyond the world instead of the world manifesting God.
The medieval use of the word refers to the existence of unity, truth and goodness. These fall within Aristotle's ideas used to organize reality.
Different philosophers view transcendence a bit differently from each other, and Kant used the concept to derive his theory of knowledge. His ideas focus on the conditions of the possibility of knowledge itself. The meaning of being "transcendent," according to Kant, hones in on the abilities of something that understands what lies beyond human knowledge.
What Is the Movie "Transcendence" About?
In the movie, Dr. Will Caster leads a project to devise a sentient machine designed to know everything humans know while still showing human emotions. His artificial intelligence research has been controversial but has also made him famous. Those who disagree with him, specifically anti-technology extremists, try everything to stop Dr. Caster from continuing with his machine. While they try to destroy him and all his research, they actually cause Dr. Caster to become the catalyst he needs to succeed as a participant in his own transcendence.
Both of Caster's research partners, friend Max Waters, and his wife, Evelyn, wonder if they are supposed to be involved in the transcendence. Through the quest, Caster's thirst for knowledge leads him to want more and more power as his mind is basically uploaded into a supercomputer in order to have a machine that is able to think for itself. When his quest for knowledge ends is unknown. How far Caster plans to go to learn more about his own transcendence is questionable. What the audience does know is that Caster never seems to want to stop his quest.
Why Is the Movie Titled "Transcendence"?
The idea of thought, particularly passed from a human being to a machine, is the main reason for the name of this film, and it is especially important after Caster is shot for saying that man has always tried to create its own god. As Dr. Caster passes his own mind and thoughts into a computer, he enables the machine to think and have human emotions. This allows the machine to move from physical vulnerability and mortality to a different form, one that offers endless durability and knowledge.
The title of the film transparently refers to Caster, who begins as a mortal then inhabits an online realm as a computer who has human feelings and personality. Caster, in his reincarnated state, exists only as a digital image on a screen, which begs a few questions. Is it okay for computers to become human beings? Is it acceptable for computers to become supreme to human beings, the beings who created the computers in the first place? Just like the protesters of Caster implied, is it moral for a computer to play God? The movies brings forth all of these questions.
"Transcendence" stars Johnny Depp as Dr. Will Caster, the mastermind behind the computer with human intelligence. Rebecca Hall plays his wife. Paul Bettany plays Caster's best friend, who is kidnapped by anti-technology extremists. Jack Paglen wrote the film, and Wally Pfister directed it.
With a tagline of "Yesterday Dr. Will Caster Was Only Human," the viewer must watch the film in order to see why transcendence means he is no longer human, at least not in the Homo sapiens form.


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The Supreme Court's 2010 Citizen's United ruling loosened campaign finance restrictions, enabling corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money on elections. As a result, super PACs — political action committees — can solicit large corporate contributions and produce a plethora of attack ad campaigns.
Super PACS Alter Nation's Campaign Landscape
By editor • Jan 16, 2012


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Congressman: Wright-Patt could lose 6,000 jobs
- Written by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — A congressman warns that federal spending cuts could cost Ohio's largest military base up to 6,000 military and civilian jobs by next year.
Rep. Mike Turner, a Dayton Republican, says thousands more jobs at and around Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton could be gone in the years ahead, with an economic impact of billions for southwest Ohio.
The Dayton Daily News (http://bit.ly/1cUmSu2 ) reports that Turner spoke at a forum Tuesday at Sinclair Community College about the impacts of the federal cuts, triggered this year when Congress was unable to reach a budget compromise to reduce deficits.
Turner says the job loss estimate comes from a House Armed Services Committee extrapolation of jobs and dollars the Air Force has said it would cut in the years ahead if nothing changes.


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The place where Michael Ruffin asks questions, raises issues, makes observations and seeks help in trying to figure it all out so that together we can maybe, just maybe, do something about it.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Questions About a Proposed Amendment to the GBC Constitution
The amendment is to the "Membership" article; the proposed addition is in boldface.
Article II. Membership.
Section 1. This body shall be composed of messengers from cooperating Baptist Churches. A cooperating church is one that gives evidence of its belief in Holy Scripture as its authority in matters of faith and practice and is in harmony and cooperation with the work and purpose of this Convention. A cooperating church does not include a church which knowingly takes, or has taken, any action to affirm, approve, or endorse homosexual behavior.
Because I have some questions about the amendment I wrote a letter to the editor of the Christian Index. I do not know if editor Gerald Harris will publish it--and let me be very, very clear that whether or not to do so is absolutely and totally his choice and I have no grounds for complaint if he chooses not to publish it.
The beauty of a blog, though, is that I have this forum through which to state my questions and that is what I want to do here. So, what follows is the text of my letter.
September 18, 2009
I noted with interest the proposed amendment to the "Membership" article of the GBC's Constitution, which would add to the definition of a "cooperating church" that such a church "gives evidence of its belief in Holy Scripture as its authority in matters of faith and practice."
While I am sure that no Georgia Baptist church would see itself as doing anything other than that and while I certainly affirm that the worship, preaching, teaching, discipleship, doctrine, and ministry of all Georgia Baptist churches should be formed through the prayerful and ongoing study of Holy Scripture, the proposed amendment nonetheless raises some obvious and, at least to me, troubling questions.
First, what is the nature of the "evidence" that is going to be required? Will it be good enough for a church to say, "Why yes, we believe in Holy Scripture as our authority in matters of faith and practice"?
Or will each local Georgia Baptist church that desires to continue as a cooperating GBC church be required by the GBC to adopt a confessional statement that affirms its commitment to biblical authority? If such an adoption is to be required, will a church be expected or allowed to compose its own statement or will it be permitted--or maybe even required--to adopt the Baptist Faith & Message Statement (rev. 2000) article on Scripture--or perhaps the entire statement--in order to be seen as providing sufficient "evidence"?
Second, if the forced adoption of a confession is not to be required, then who is going to determine what constitutes "evidence" of a local Georgia Baptist church's "belief in Holy Scripture as its authority in matters of faith and practice"? Is the GBC going to set up an "evidence of belief in Scripture" watchdog committee that will examine each GBC church?
Or perhaps the intention is only to deal with churches that present the GBC with some kind of "problem" in the kind of "evidence" it presents in its "faith and practice." The problem still remains--who is going to be "Big Brother"; who is going to decide which churches are and are not "in cooperation" with the GBC under the terms of this proposed amendment?
Third, if each local GBC church is not going to be required to adopt an acceptable statement regarding its fidelity to Scripture as its way of providing "evidence," then what are the standards going to be by which the adequacy of a church's "evidence" is evaluated? Is the GBC going to investigate each local church's "faith and practice" to see if it offers "evidence of its belief in Holy Scripture as its authority"? If so, how is that to be done? Will the Christian Index publish a list of standards to which each church must live up if it is to be welcomed as a "cooperating" church?
For what it's worth, I have my own suggestion as a beginning point for a standard: let's start with the Sermon on the Mount. Let's examine our churches to see if their members individually and if they corporately willingly and consistently express their "faith" and carry out their "practice" in ways that reflect the instructions of the Lord Jesus Christ in that Sermon. If we deem all the churches that fail to do that to be out of compliance with this proposed amendment, then the GBC will, as of the first annual meeting following its adoption, be no more, because no church will qualify.
I hope and trust that, before it is brought up at the November meeting in Woodstock, the rationale behind this proposed amendment and the plan for implementing it, should it be adopted, will be dealt with in great detail in these pages.
5 comments:
- Randy said...
It won't be published. Your voice of discontent and concern is valid, but unpublishable in the climate of the Convention. I hate to say it, because I said it years ago, but before I left the SBC it left me.
- September 24, 2009 at 3:48 PM
- BaptistPlanet said...
We asked @IndexEditor Gerald Harris via twitter ( http://twitter.com/baptistplanet/statuses/4362680268 ) whether he plans to publish the answers to your questions on the Georgia Christian Index Web site. If he answers we'll post his answer here --> http://wp.me/pn9bU-1ph |
- September 25, 2009 at 3:05 AM
- gwfrink3 said...
BaptistPlanet commented on your post and on Wade Burleson's post. Their blog also says they sent a twitter question to @IndexEditor but thus far -- no answer reported.
- September 25, 2009 at 3:13 PM
- Pastor Bob said...
Why do people still give these folks money?
- September 30, 2009 at 2:38 PM
- Michael Ruffin said...
I wanted to let everyone know that my letter has been published in the Christian Index. It can be read at http://www.christianindex.org/5874.article. I appreciate editor Dr. Gerald Harris for adding my words to the discussion.
- October 8, 2009 at 2:20 PM


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Fans remember the bursts into the open field and fighting for short yardage. But when Broncos coach John Fox mulls his options to replace injured starting running back Willis McGahee, blocking in pass protection becomes paramount.
That's especially the case this year with quarterback Peyton Manning being such a valuable commodity to protect. Regarding that responsibility, Broncos running backs must feel like guards at the Tower of London keeping watch over the Crown Jewels.
Pass protection is the "No. 1 priority," fourth-year running back Lance Ball said Monday. "That's the way we get things going here."
McGahee tore the medial collateral ligament in his right knee Sunday early in the second quarter when tackled low by Chargers cornerback Quentin Jammer. Surgery is not required, but McGahee could be out for the remainder of the regular season.
It's a big loss. McGahee ranks fifth among AFC rushers with 731 yards. And as a thickly built (6-foot, 235 pounds) veteran of 10 NFL seasons, he had the trust of Broncos coaches in pass protection.
Will the candidates to replace McGahee — Ball, rookie Ronnie Hillman and seldom-used Knowshon Moreno — be able to pick up a blitzing safety who comes crashing toward the pocket?
They had better be. Manning is stronger and a better athlete than some might realize, but this is a different offense from the run-oriented system employed last season with Tim Tebow at quarterback.
"Last year, I don't think guys blitzed us as much," Ball said. "We're different this year."
Hillman (5-10, 190) has been listed as the top backup to McGahee and likely will get the first call Sunday in the Broncos' 11 a.m. game at Kansas City. The rookie from San Diego State, a third-round pick in the 2012 draft, might be the Broncos' quickest and fastest running back. He ranks second on the team in rushing (188 yards on 49 carries) and has yet to lose a fumble as a pro.
But, of course, Fox was quick to mention Hillman's blocking.
"For a smaller guy, he's pretty feisty in protection," Fox said Monday. "That's the thing that's always hard to learn for a rookie."
Hillman did more running than blocking in two seasons at San Diego State, rushing for 3,234 yards and 36 touchdowns.
"I have to work on it," Hillman said of pass protection. "Coming from college, it's obviously a different feeling."
Fox said the Broncos likely will use several running backs to replace McGahee. Hillman might have the most big-play ability among the candidates. As a pro, Hillman has a long gain of 31 yards (vs. New Orleans) and broke free Sunday against the Chargers for a 21-yard scamper.
"(Hillman) has improved quite a bit," Fox said Monday. "He's got excellent vision. He's got excellent burst through the hole."
Ball (5-9, 215) got six carries Sunday against the Chargers and averaged 5.8 yards per attempt. But he lost a fumble early in the second quarter after catching a 6-yard pass from Manning in San Diego territory.
Moreno (5-11, 200) was a first-round pick in the 2009 NFL draft out of Georgia. But he has been designated inactive for the past eight games (coach's decision, not injury-related) and almost forgotten since tearing an ACL against Kansas City last November. Fox said Moreno has "looked good" in practice recently. Moreno says he feels great — and obviously fresh.
"It's been tough," Moreno said Monday when asked about his lack of playing time in 2012. "You want to go out there and help your team win. I took the approach that I was helping the team win in practice."
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280, email@example.com or twitter.com/tomkensler
Candidates to replace McGaheePlayer, carries, yds, avg, TDs
Ronnie Hillman, 49, 188, 3.8, 1
Lance Ball, 25, 94, 3.8, 0
Knowshon Moreno, 8, 15, 1.9, 1


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October 5, 2012
CIA venture wing In-Q-Tel inked a partnership with cloud-hosted database provider Cloudant, the third cloud-oriented company openly tapped in the past three months. The latest deal highlights In-Q-Tel's increasingly aggressive drive to create cloud tools for the intelligence community.
Cloudant, as part of the pact, will tailor cloud database technology for intelligence agencies, allowing them to store and analyze and distribute data in more customized and interactive ways, the company announced. The Boston-based firm develops a secure NoSQL-based cloud database service for Web and mobile app developers. NoSQL database systems -- which store data in a variety of schemas -- are designed to facilitate the storage and retrieval of large quantities of data flexibly.
The deal comes as after 10gen, developer of the open source document-oriented database system MongoDB, announced funding from In-Q-Tel in September.
At the same time, the Homeland Security Department and espionage satellite agency National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency are moving sensitive data to the cloud with the help of startup Huddle, a UK-based cloud collaboration service provider. In-Q-Tel announced a deal on Aug. 22 with cloud company Adaptive Computing to develop software for back-office data management for intel bodies.
Cloudant has received funding from In-Q-Tel, as well as venture capital firm Avalon Ventures and seed investor Y Combinator.
October 5, 2012


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I've yet to actually see the sonic fan-film...
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