text:
I think Im Big Meech, Larry Hoover
Getting work, hallelujah
One Nation, under God
Real n***s getting money from the f***** start
– B.M.F. by Rick Ross featuring Styles P.
When listening to the hot new Rick Ross album, Teflon Don, and in particular, the chorus to B.M.F. something very important came to mind which I have attempted for years to make known through writings at BlackElectorate.com, radio interviews and in my appearance in the QD III produced, Letter To The President DVD.
It is this: for at least two decades a group of scholars, police chiefs, and military analysts and historians have been meeting – in private and public settings to study, discuss, and make plans regarding what they have seen as the next big military problem the United States faces: the relationship between Hip-Hop and street gangs and the potential for street gangs to evolve into paramilitary organizations capable of threatening national security.
Their thoughts have been published in professional U.S. military journals and affiliated ones, including Police Chief, the official publication of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, Inc. and Parameters the US Army War College quarterly.
Over the last ten years the relationship between police departments, the Armed forces, intelligence agencies and those who perform covert operations has become closer than ever in this regard. In some respects this relationship becomes visible in what are called joint task force groups.
The view these task force groups hold of the relationship between Hip-Hop and street organizations (gangs) is very similar to the view these groups hold of groups identified as terrorist organizations.
In the past I have compared this point of intersection between police chiefs, law enforcement and members of the national security community to the neoconservatives (neocons) who led us into the war in Iraq.
Many find this hard to believe or even a conspiracy theory, but this reality although not reported on the news is easy to verify through researching the writings and documents of police and military organizations, congressional testimony, and materials released under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Again, one of the main fears of those studying and planning in this area is that the gang member potentially represents a new kind of military threat, most similar to the terrorist and insurgent.
In an article, Street Gangs Future Paramilitary Groups? by Robert J. Bunker, Ph.D., Adjunct Professor, National Securities Studies Program, California State University, San Berardino, published in the June 1996 edition of the Police Chief we read:
Military scholars recognize that a new form of soldier, with no allegiance to the nation-state, is developing in much of the non-Western world. Major Ralph Peters, U.S. Army, who is responsible for evaluating emerging threats for the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, terms this threat, The New Warrior Class. It is being taken seriously enough by the U.S. Army to be included in its perceptions of early 21st-century Army operations.
This type of soldier, which has developed as an outcome of a breakdown in social organization in many failed nation-states, operates in subnational groups such as armed bands, private armies, crime networks and terrorist organizations. Debate in professional U.S. military and affiliated journals over the past two years has dealt with concerns that this new form of soldier may be developing within the United States.
Street gangs would be one logical source from which this new form of soldier could emerge in this country. These gangs have developed in failed inner cities, where poverty and crime run rampant and family social structures have been severely eroded.
Drawing parallels between a city such as Beirut and some U.S. inner-city cores, where many gang members grew up, is not overly difficult. The threat of death or physical harm is significant for a young male growing up in both surroundings, and both fail to provide educational opportunities that can allow for the transformation of this segment of the population into productive and responsible citizens. Todays pre-teenage inner-city children termed the super-predators by Dr. John J. Dilulio, Jr. of Princeton University bear a striking resemblance to the child soldiers found in numerous private armies throughout the non-Western world.
Where does Hip-Hop fit into all of this?
Well, while were dancing, partying, and beefing, this group of scholars, officers, analysts, historians, governmental departments and intelligence agencies are studying and planning ways to place under surveillance, manage and define the relationship between Hip-Hop and street organizations.
One example is the testimony of Sergeant Ron Stallworth, Gang Intelligence Coordinator of the Utah Department of Public Safety Division of Investigations before the U.S. House of Representatives, Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime dated February 23, 1994 and June 17, 1997. In detailed fashion Mr. Stallworth dissects rap lyrics and explains how Hip-Hop spreads and popularizes gang culture.
But individuals like Sergeant Stallworth arent just analysts and observers. At times they actively suggest that Hip-Hop and its relationship to the gang, makes it an enemy of the state.
In a civil lawsuit filed by the estate of slain Texas police officer Bill Davidson against Time Warner Inc., Tupac Amaru Shakur, and Interscope Records Officer Stallworth gave an affidavit, in March of 1994 wherein he states, I have listened to the recording and reviewed the lyrics of 2Pacalypse Now by Tupac Amaru Shakur. Based upon the themes, the language, the metaphors, and the profanity employed in that recording, it is my opinion that 2Pacalypse Now is clearly directed to members of the inner-city environment which produces a substantial number of gang members, and that Shakur himself is firmly entrenched within that same environment. This conclusion is further supported by the shout-outs of recognition that Shakur addresses to fellow gangsters and gangster rappers in such songs as I Dont Give a F*** and Words of Wisdom on the recording. The lyrics of 2Pacalypse Now convey the message that the legal establishment in America exists to oppress black men, and that the solution to this problem is to eliminate the means employed by the establishment to keep the black men down, i.e., to eliminate the law enforcement establishment and law enforcement officers. These lyrics describe and promote the killing of law enforcement officers by members of the gangster subculture. I have reviewed the basic facts surrounding the shooting of Officer William Davidson by Ronald Howard on April 11, 1992. I have also reviewed the basic factual information regarding Ronald Howard, his background and circumstances, as reflected in the transcript of his criminal trial and hearing on punishment. Based upon these facts, it is my opinion that the album 2Pacalypse Now may have served as a causal factor in the shooting of Officer Davidson by Ronald Howard.
What do individuals like Professor Bunker and Officer Stallworth think of Rick Ross shout outs of recognition on B.M.F.?
Get somebody from BMF to talk on this
Get this to a Blood, let a Crip walk on it
– D.O.A. [Death of Auto-Tune] by Jay-Z
In an article written years ago by Sergeant R.K. Miller we read a quote that he attributes to a leader of the White Power movement: Music is one of the greatest propaganda tools around. You can influence more people with music than you can with a speech.
Under the FBIs Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO), in an August 25, 1967 memo it is written that no political activist or individual with an ideology that was perceived as a threat to the establishment should have access to a mass communication media.
What is Hip-Hop, if not mass communication media?
One of the highest concerns of todays national security apparatus is the role the rapper serves, in their view, as the spokesperson for the gang.
Why else has intelligence been gathered and compiled on rappers by agencies like the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and even the White House through the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)? The letterhead on many of the documents of the infamous, rap binder maintained by the New York Police Department (NYPD) and shared with others like the Miami and Miami Beach Police departments, including the portion pertaining to Jay-Z, is that of The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Program (http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/hidta/).
If you look at the surveillance of rap artists from the perspective of COINTELPRO and the current thinking in gang intelligence and military think tanks the words of Miami police Sgt. Rafael Tapanes, in a March 9, 2004 Miami Herald article that A lot if not most rappers belong to some sort of gang, is more significant than one might initially think.
The amount of resources the federal government and some outside of it are devoting to depict Hip-Hop artists and their relationship to crime and street organizations as a threat to the establishment national security is staggering.
The best example I could give is the joint task force effort against Scarface, James Prince, and Rap-A-Lot Records last decade.
Had I not personally attended the Congressional hearings regarding them, I would not have believed the extent of the effort myself. One of the most striking things revealed in the hearings was the extent to which the federal government had placed federal informants in not just Rap-A-Lot Records but throughout Houstons 5th Ward section.
To this day, I am the only member of the Hip-Hop community willing to openly share what I witnessed that day.
Please read my BlackElectorate piece, Rap COINTELPRO Part IV: Congress Holds Hearings On DEA Rap-A-Lot Investigation from 2000, at: http://www.blackelectorate.com/articles.asp?ID=263
B.M.F. is more than a song in the minds of our worst enemies.
My white lines go along way
Either up your nose, or through your vein
With nothing to gain except killing your brain
-White Lines by Grandmaster Flash
Last Friday, July 23, the popular music service Rhapsody, jointly owned by Real Networks and Viacom (even with an announced spinoff of Rhapsody in February of this year) in its Album Guide section, dated July 20, 2010, featured a prominent playlist categorization called, Cocaine Rap. It was still the main headline feature on the morning of Tuesday, July 27th (The As, Bs and Kilos of Coke Rap, http://blog.rhapsody.com/2010/07/cokerap.html). It is a compilation of what it calls ten of the greatest albums revolving around the sale of drugs, gang culture, and violence from an inner city perspective. Under a picture with three Hip-Hop icons: Raekwon on the left, Rick Ross in the middle, and Young Jeezy on the right, an introduction from Mosi Reeves reads:
Mafioso rap, crack rap, even gangsta rap: the coke rap subgenre has answered to many names in its infamously profitable history. It not only plays to our lowest common denominator namely, our stereotyped notions of how urban black men live but also our appetite for violent action movies and our empathy for the antiheroes that usually meet a bloody end in those flicks. In this world, the bad guy, not Tom Cruise, gets all the girls and the cash, and lives to tell the tale.
Anyone who pays close attention to hip-hop is familiar with coke rap. Artists like Raekwon and Scarface fuel intense yet favorable debates over their impressive rhyme styles and the moral quandaries their songs represent. Meanwhile, reformed drug dealers like 50 Cent, T.I. and Jay-Z dominate the charts. With the arrival of Teflon Don by Rick Ross, the Miami rapper that has earned increasing critical acclaim, its time to revisit 10 albums that exemplify how, to paraphrase the late dealer-turned-rap-kingpin Notorious B.I.G., the rap game is just like the crack game.
Here are the ten albums featured by Rhapsody as best representing the coke rap subgenre:
Andre Nickatina: Conversation With a Devil
Camron: Purple Haze
Clipse: Hell Hath No Fury
Ice Cube: Death Certificate
Jay-Z: Reasonable Doubt
Killer Mike: I Pledge Allegiance To The Grind II
Raekwon: Only Built 4 Cuban Linx
Rick Ross: Port of Miami
Scarface: Greatest Hits
T.I. : Trap Muzik
Honestly, the list made me feel uncomfortable. In a sense it was a wake-up call to me. Imagine, after all of these years, and with so many tracks made along those lines, coke rap is actually a subgenre of rap music, that corporate America uses to classify and promote music downloads. To me, it shows what happens when the organic energy is stripped out of something by the commercial influence, and what happens when something that has its place in reality, is taken to an extreme or out of context.
From an artistic and social commentary point of view I actually do appreciate this kind of rap. I enjoy much of it and I think it does authentically represent a lifestyle. And you cant front, tracks like Dope Money by Styles P. and Jadakiss are simply hot as hell (smile).
But there is also something about the coke rap subgenre that is not authentic. It is the commercialization of the worst part of our experience for the sake of profit and artistic expression and not the benefit of those who live that struggle and the community that produced the rap artist, and the subject matter which they rap about.
As my friend Obi Egbuna, US Correspondent for The Herald newspaper of Zimbabwe told me last week, Kwame Ture (formerly known as Stokely Carmichael) would tell artists that music did not belong to them, it belonged to the people.
Sure, we all get a kind of psychic income from seeing one of our own do well while telling our story a story that no one else wants to tell. But when a rap artist styles themselves as a gangster and yet does not even do the minimum good that real gangsters (or the one they claim to be inspired by) have done in terms of giving back to the hood and building institutions and power in the community, then in the words of Just Blaze, we need something realer.
In this case, whos the loser?
Ran through enough coke for Castro to build schools in Cuba.
– We Gonna Make It by Jadakiss featuring Styles P.
Will coke rap forever only be about rhetoric and romanticizing about drug dealing and gangster lifestyle without actually applying the lessons of that history, for the benefit of the people?
I dont speak this as someone who doesnt understand how hard it is for an artist to push consciousness to the masses when the marketplace appears to prefer only sex and violence. I have been in high-level discussions with artists and seen the real life tug-of-war between artists who are willing to leave coke rap behind and those who want to but are afraid that they will not just be seen as corny, but also that they will be abandoning a real segment of their loyal base. Artists really are like political leaders with constituents who trust them to represent their reality and perspective.
In that sense I actually think the greatest coke rap album ever is Immobilarity by Raekwon. Unfortunately, the rap fan base didnt appreciate what Rae was saying and the transition he was attempting to represent. All we wanted from Rae, it seems is Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, over and over again. Some of us have reduced Raekwon in our minds to a coke rap artist. We dont want him to grow, it appears. But hes much more than that – not only does he have the most unique flow possibly in rap history from an artistic perspective (see what I wrote in Supply Births Demand: Ask Raekwon and E-40? :https://allhiphop.com/stories/editorial/archive/2010/04/06/22160847.aspx) but he has tremendous leadership potential, on a community and global level.
The first person to enlighten me to this influence that Raekwon has, as a natural leader of men, was Method Man. I write about it humorously in Volume II of my book, The Entrepreneurial Secret (http://theEsecret.com/).
There were just some things I could not persuade others to do, unless I asked Raekwon to do them first. Thats leadership.
And if this power is applied right it counteracts the problem of the 85% that they believe in the 10% on face value and are easily led in the wrong direction, but hard to lead into the right direction.
Now, lets circle back to B.M.F. by Rick Ross.
The song – produced by Lex Luger – is an anthem. And the video: http://www.vevo.com/watch/rick-ross/bmf/USUV71001277 captures the energy of the cut very well. And what makes the song are two things the chorus and the 16-note marching/banging sound at the beginning of the song that is sprinkled a couple more times on the track. The marching sound causes everyone to move in unison and gives the song a movement feel to it. My friends from Africa immediately recognize this about B.M.F. And of course you gotta love it when a cat shouts out broke n****s and rich n***s in the same breath. Rick Ross is the first rapper to be both capitalist and socialist in the same verse. Although the preferred dress code is all Black with white ice, Rick Ross tries to make everyone feel welcome. A nice change from artists who take the elite materialistic point of view and disrespect and exclude the poor masses that buy their music.
But because of how I know the highest levels of government look at the relationship between Hip-Hop and street organizations and because my Hip-Hoppreneur concept is based upon the merging of political, business and cultural power I take the shout outs on the song of Big Meech of the Black Mafia Family and Larry Hoover of the Gangster Disciples seriously. Because of my relationships with real live Bloods, Crips and Latin Kings who really dont respect or appreciate flag-waving rappers who have no real connection to the lifestyle and the struggle, I take seriously the very real potential that this song has to do so much good. These members of street organizations who I work with arent interested in glorifying the negative and violent aspect of the culture and are working on things like cease-fires, peace treaties and building the communities they once destroyed.
Every real gangster that we have known of significance never ruled by violence and illegal activity alone. They were master organizers, understood how to develop trust, and respected the need to teach and train the very young and poor. They did not do what they did by being flashy.
Black drug dealer you have to wise up
And organize your business so that we can rise up
If youre going to sell crack then dont be a fool
Organize your money and open up a school
Drug dealer, understand historical fact
Every race got ahead from selling drugs except Black
We are under attack heres another cold fact
In the 30s and 40s the drug dealer wasnt Black
They were Jewish, Italian, Irish, Polish etc., etcetera
Now in the 90s their lives are a lot better
They will sell you a sweater
A pair of pants cold-hearted
But first selling drugs and killing peoples how they started.
– Drug Dealer, by Boogie Down Productions
So, Im glad to hear Rick Ross shout out these two figures and I hope it will create a discussion over how and why Black and Latino (both original people) gangs have never been able to make the same transition from legal to illegal activity (or manage both) that Polish, Jewish, Italian, and Irish gangsters, for instance have. I hope this song will lead us to appreciate why the Honorable Elijah Muhammad said and wrote in Message To The Blackman (http://store.finalcall.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=BK-MTBM)that Black people should take a page out of the beautiful example of the Japanese and Chinese people and how they provided welfare and employment opportunities to their own. I hope this song will inspire a dialogue deep enough for us to appreciate why Minister Farrakhan is currently asking Black people to study both sides of the history of Jewish economic power – the exploitative element and the mastery of economic cooperation and networking. See his open letter to Black leadership and entertainment figures: http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/Minister_Louis_Farrakhan_9/article_7152.shtml)
And I hope that whatever people think of Rick Ross and his image that we wont lose sight of the fact that the greatest fear of those in power is that the gang will evolve its narrow and local militant character into a national movement and that the rapper will serve as the spokesperson of that movement. If he and other rappers are more interested in building power and communities than glorifying a flashy lifestyle, then a song like B.M.F. and the coke rap sub genre can be revolutionary and would have done more good than harm.
The key is to keep the discussion honest, rooted in history, relevant to the streets and the youth and about building more than destroying. And we cant ever forget that a hidden hand is involved.
The thoughts of Samson from BET are an example of the tone and insight that can make these conversations productive.
Here is how Larry Hoovers evolution was seen by the powers that be. In an article written by Lieutenant Michael C. McCort, Phoenix Police Department, Arizona published in the June 1996 edition of Police Chief entitled, The Evolution of Street Gangs: A Shift Toward Organized Crime we read:
In 1994, Larry Hoover, the recognized founder of the BGDN and a convicted, imprisoned murderer, sought to change the gangs image. From prison, he attempted to change the BGDN charter and rename the gang, Better Growth and Development. Confiscated excerpts from BGDN bylaws have proposed to advance the GD Nation through political, social and economic means. In these documents, members have been urged to use drug monies to purchase new businesses as a means to launder illegal profits.
Although Hoover was in prison for the execution-style murders of three individuals, there were attempts to portray him as a reformed community leader and social visionary. In 1993 the Chicago mayor, three city alderman (one of them an ex-police officer) and a state representative actively supported Hoovers early release from prison. In 1994, two BGDN gang members ran for local office and came close to being elected. This activity is reminiscent of 1920s Chicago, when Al Capone sought an image of legitimacy by helping followers work their way into the political process through corruption of local politicians and judges.
I hope that Rick Ross efforts to increase awareness of Larry Hoover will result in not only discussions of the above but a review of the history of such noted Chicago Black gangsters Daniel McKee Jackson of the early 20th century.
What rapper is capable and willing to represent the righteous evolution that so many drug dealers, and those banging want to see? What Hip-Hop artist is going to have the courage to decide that while coke rap may be a subgenre that has artistic qualities and moves some units that what our people really need is not only an artist who tells stories and makes shout outs, but a leader who uses art, to build the community?
What would happen if the ten artists who Rhapsody lists as having made the greatest albums in coke rap history: Ice Cube, Jay-Z, Killer Mike, Rick Ross, T.I., Raekwon, Andre Nickatina, Scarface, The Clipse, and Camron settled any differences they had and came together in a private summit to plan community development (or at least an album that would use drug-dealing and gang lifestyle and culture to teach powerful lessons of economic development – lessons and principles of unity that other ethnic groups have mastered)?
Can the music generate movement before the police, military, intelligence agencies and covert ops execute the urban warfare that they have planned for the new warrior class that Robert J. Bunker describes and the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army fears?
Will this subgenre build up and protect the community or just ultimately serve as part of the justification for its invasion by task forces, the National Guard, and entire Army units?
Dont get me wrong – I really do like Maybach music, but I love Movement music even more.
Only time will tell what the real legacy of coke rap will be
Cedric Muhammad is a business consultant, political strategist, and monetary economist. Hes a former GM of Wu-Tang Management and currently a Member of the African Unions First Congress of African Economists. Cedrics the Founder of the economic information service Africa PreBrief (http://africaprebrief.com/) and author of The Entrepreneurial Secret (http://theEsecret.com/). He can be contacted via e-mail at: cedric(at)cmcap.com


text:
Berkeley resident Andrew Goodwin was transported from the scene of the fire to Alta Bates Summit Medical Center for treatment, where he later succumbed to his injuries, according to the coroner's bureau.
The fire, located at 2431 Oregon St., near Telegraph Avenue, was reported at 1:38 a.m., said Berkeley fire Acting Deputy Chief Avery Webb.
Firefighters arrived at the scene of the fire as residents were evacuating the building. Seven of the building's eight residents were accounted for and had evacuated unharmed, Webb said.
A report from citizens that one resident might still be inside the building, led firefighters to force entry into the third floor unit, which was heavily engulfed in the fire, Webb said.
Firefighters found Goodwin inside his third floor apartment and transported him to the hospital, where he was pronounced deceased, according to Webb.
Firefighters brought the blaze under control at 2:08 a.m., Webb said.
According to Webb, the fire caused heavy damage to the third floor as well as significant water damage to the second and first floors.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation this morning.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
National Parliament
Dáil Éireann (32nd)
Seanad Éireann (25th)
Seán Ó Fearghaíl (FF)
Since 10 March 2016
Denis O'Donovan (FF)
Since 8 June 2016
218 members
Government (58)
Other Opposition (56)
Government (19)
Opposition (41)
|Single transferable vote
|Indirect election
|26 February 2016
|26 April 2016
|Meeting place
|Leinster House, Dublin
|This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
the Republic of Ireland
Administrative geography
The Oireachtas (/ˈɛrəktəs/; aerak-tahs),[1] sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the legislature of Ireland.[2] The Oireachtas consists of:
- The President of Ireland
- The two houses of the Oireachtas (Irish: Tithe an Oireachtais):[3]
The houses of the Oireachtas sit in Leinster House in Dublin, an eighteenth-century ducal palace. The directly elected Dáil is by far the more powerful branch of the Oireachtas.
The term oireachtas (Irish pronunciation: [ˈiːɾʲəxt̪ˠasˠ]) derives from the Old Irish word airech ("nobleman"). Its first recorded use as the name of a legislative body was within the Irish Free State.
Dáil Éireann, the lower house, is directly elected under universal suffrage of all Irish and United Kingdom citizens who are resident and at least eighteen years of age. An election is held at least once in every five years as required by law. However the house can usually be dissolved at any time at the request of the Taoiseach (head of government). Dáil elections occur under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote. The Dáil has had 166 members since 1981.[4] The Seanad is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members selected in a number of ways. 43 senators are elected by councillors and parliamentarians, 11 are appointed by the Taoiseach, and six are elected by two university constituencies, giving a total of 60 members. The President of Ireland is directly elected once in every seven years, for a maximum of two terms. However, if, as has occurred on a number of occasions, a consensus among the larger political parties can result in only a single candidate being nominated, then no actual ballot occurs.
To become law, a bill must first be approved by both the Dáil and in most circumstances the Seanad (although the Dáil can override a Seanad refusal to pass a Bill), and then signed into law by the President. Bills to amend the Constitution must also be approved by the People in a referendum prior to being presented to the President. In most circumstances, the President is in effect obliged to sign all laws approved by the Houses of the Oireachtas, although he or she has the power to refer most bills to the Supreme Court for a ruling on constitutionality. The powers of the Seanad are in effect limited to delay rather than veto. It is the Dáil, therefore, that is the supreme tier of the Irish legislature. The general enacting formula for Acts of the Oireachtas is: "Be it enacted by the Oireachtas as follows:-", for an act with a preamble this enacting formula is, instead, "Be it therefore enacted by the Oireachtas as follows:—".
The Oireachtas has exclusive power to:
- Legislate, including a power vested in the Dáil of approving the financial resolutions relevant to the budget. However, the courts[5] have allowed the Oireachtas to delegate limited legislative powers to other entities, such as Government Ministers.
- Create subordinate legislatures.
- Propose changes to the constitution (must be initiated in the Dáil), which must then be submitted to a referendum.
- Raise military or armed forces.
- Allow international agreements to become part of the domestic law of the state.
- Pass certain laws having extraterritorial effect (in accordance with the similar practices of other states).
- Enact, when it considers a state of emergency to exist, almost any law it deems necessary, with imposition of capital punishment being the only absolutely excluded act in all circumstances.
- Laws are invalid if, and to the extent that, they contradict the constitution.
- In the event of a conflict, EU law also takes precedence over acts of the Oireachtas, as is common throughout the European Union.
- It may not retrospectively criminalise acts that were not illegal at the time they were committed.
- It may not enact any law providing for the imposition of the death penalty, even during a state of emergency.
The Oireachtas has a number of joint committees that include members of both houses. There are currently thirteen of these (the first ten below are based on the ten select committees of the Dáil):
- Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine
- Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection
- Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht
- Joint Committee on European Union Affairs
- Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform
- Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade
- Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement
- Joint Committee on Health and Children
- Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation
- Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality
- Joint Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions
- Joint Committee on Transport and Communications
- Joint Committee on Administration
- Standing Joint Committee on Consolidation Bills
- Working Group of Committee Chairmen
The word oireachtas comes from the Irish language name MacOireachtaigh (Geraghty), believed to have been advisors to ancient kings and has been the title of two parliaments in Irish history: the current Oireachtas of the Republic of Ireland, since 1937, and, immediately before that, the Oireachtas of the Irish Free State of 1922–1937.
The earliest parliament in Ireland was the Parliament of Ireland, which was founded in the thirteenth century as the supreme legislative body of the lordship of Ireland and was in existence until 1801. This parliament governed the English-dominated part of Ireland, which at first was limited to Dublin and surrounding cities, but later grew to include the entire island. But the Irish Parliament was, from the passage of Poynings' Law in 1494 until its repeal in 1782, subordinate to the English, and later British, Parliament. This Parliament consisted of the King of Ireland, who was the same person as the King of England, a House of the Lords and a House of Commons. In 1800 the Irish Parliament abolished itself when, after widespread bribery of members, it adopted the Act of Union, which came into effect from 1 January 1801.
The next legislature to exist in Ireland only came into being in 1919. This was a unicameral parliament established by Irish republicans, known simply as Dáil Éireann. This revolutionary Dáil was notionally a legislature for the whole island of Ireland. In 1920, in parallel to the Dáil, the British government created a home rule legislature called the Parliament of Southern Ireland. However this parliament was boycotted by most Irish politicians. It was made up of the King, the House of Commons of Southern Ireland and the Senate of Southern Ireland. The Parliament of Southern Ireland was formally abolished in 1922, with the establishment of the Oireachtas under the Constitution of the Irish Free State.
The Oireachtas of the Irish Free State consisted officially of the King and two houses, named, as their successors would be, Dáil Éireann (described, in this case, as a 'Chamber of Deputies') and Seanad Éireann. However the Free State Senate was abolished in 1935. The modern Oireachtas came into being in 1937, with the adoption by referendum of the Constitution of Ireland.
Televising of the Oireachtas
The televising of Oireachtas debates commenced in 1990, while those of committees commenced in 1993.[6] Since 2005 the proceedings of both houses have been made available over the internet by HEAnet and the eDemocracy Unit of the Office of the Houses of the Oireachtas.[7]
Houses of the Oireachtas Channel (publicly known as Oireachtas TV) is a digital television channel in Ireland.[8] It broadcasts Committee and Houses and other parliament proceedings following its establishment under a Broadcasting Act 2009.[9][10] On 15 November 2011, it began broadcasting a pilot service on UPC Ireland. On 22 September 2014, the Houses launched the dedicated television channel Oireachtas TV, bringing unfiltered access to the parliamentary process to over one million households nationwide. The service is available free of charge on UPC Channel 207 and Sky Channel 574.[11]
In 2012, the Oireachtas launched the first e-consultation.[12]
Houses of the Oireachtas family day
On 28 June 2008 the first Houses of the Oireachtas family day was held.[13] This initiative by the then Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann, John O'Donoghue and the Cathaoirleach of Seanad Éireann, Pat Moylan aimed to increase public awareness in the work of the Houses of The Oireachtas. It included tours of both chambers of the Oireachtas, lectures on the history of Oireachtas, historic political speeches recited by actors and a hot air balloon – commemorating the balloon flight which took place in 1785 from Leinster Lawn. The Oireachtas family day took place again in 2009,[14] but it has not been held since then.[15]
Northern Ireland representation
Although, as adopted in 1937, Article 3 of the constitution asserted the "right of the parliament and government established by this constitution to exercise jurisdiction" over the whole of Ireland, it also provided that pending the "re-integration of the national territory"[16] Acts of the Oireachtas would not apply to Northern Ireland. Therefore, no serious attempts have been made for the representation of Northern Ireland in the Dáil. As Taoiseach, Éamon de Valera, while a staunch opponent of partition, who had been elected to represent a Northern constituency in the First Dáil, did not pursue the idea of seats in the Dáil for Northern Ireland, on the grounds that this would amount to representation 'without taxation or responsibility'.[17] Beginning with Seamus Mallon in 1982, one or more from Northern Ireland have been included among the eleven Senators nominated by the Taoiseach after most elections.
Sinn Féin has advocated that Northern Ireland MLAs, MPs, and MEPs should have the right to participate in Dáil debates, if not vote. In 2005 the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, proposed that Northern Ireland MPs should be able to address a committee of the whole Dáil. However, Fine Gael, the Labour Party, the Green Party, the Socialist Party and Ahern's coalition partners, the Progressive Democrats, all opposed the idea, as did some Oireachtas members from Fianna Fáil. Only Sinn Féin, the party that stood to gain most from the proposal, supported it, while the more moderate Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) described it as a step forward. The proposal was also criticised widely in the media, with editorials and columns published criticising the proposal in The Irish Times, the Irish Independent, the Irish Examiner, the Sunday Independent and other publications. Only the republican-leaning Daily Ireland supported the proposal fully. Since 2011, Northern Ireland MEPs have the same automatic right as MEPs from the Republic to participate in meetings of the Seanad's European committee, whereas other MEPs require an invitation.[18]
Houses of the Oireachtas Commission
While each house is empowered to organise its own business, they have always co-operated in practical matters arising from the fact that they share Leinster House as a common building complex. The Houses of the Oireachtas Commission was established by statute in 2003 to provide a formal structure for this, which was previously done by a joint committee. Non-political support staff, such as ushers and the English–Irish translation staff, are employed by this Commission and treated as part of the Civil Service of the State. The Commission's chairperson and chief executive are the Ceann Comhairle and clerk of the Dáil respectively; other members are the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, one appointed by the Minister for Finance, four by the Dáil, and three by the Seanad.[19][20] The Commission, through the translation department, is responsible for periodic updates to An Caighdeán Oifigiúil, the official standard form of the Irish language.[21]
See also
- ↑ "Oireachtas: definition of Oireachtas in Oxford dictionary (British & World English). Meaning, pronunciation and origin of the word". Oxford Language Dictionaries. Oxford University Press. 2013. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
- ↑ The Oireachtas is described as the "National Parliament" in Article 15 of the Constitution of Ireland, though this term is not an alternative official title.
- ↑ IPA: [ˈtʲɪhə ən̪ˠ ˈiːɾʲəxt̪ˠəʃ]
- ↑ "Members Database 1919 – 2011 – Houses of the Oireachtas – Tithe an Oireachtais". Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 November 2011.
- ↑ "Bederev -v- Ireland & ors : Judgments & Determinations : Courts Service of Ireland". www.courts.ie. Retrieved 2015-10-04.
- ↑ Oireachtas website: Parliamentary Televising
- ↑ "live broadcasts". Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ↑ Kehoe, Ian (11 May 2008). "Dáil TV station to be unveiled this week: ThePost.ie". Archives.tcm.ie. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ↑ "(Number 29 of 2008) – Tithe an Oireachtais" (PDF). Oireachtas. 13 November 2009. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ↑ "Parliamentary Televising". Irlgov.ie. 21 October 2010. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ↑ "New TV channel to bring Oireachtas proceedings to over one million homes". Houses of the Oireachtas. 22 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
- ↑ Murray, Michael. n.d. "Politics at the Touch of a Button: An Evaluation of the First Ever Oireachtas (Irish Houses of Parliament) E-consultation." , Parliamentary Affairs, vol. 66, no. 3 (Jul 2013), p. 597
- ↑ "Thousands visit Leinster House of fun". RTÉ News. 28 June 2008. Retrieved 28 June 2008.
- ↑ "Family Day at Leinster House". RTÉ News. 27 June 2009. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
- ↑ "Open the Dáil and Seanad chambers to the public, says TD". The Journal.ie. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
- ↑ https://www.constitution.ie/Documents/Bhunreacht_na_hEireann_web.pdf
- ↑ Coogan, Tim Pat (2015-12-16). De Valera: Long Fellow, Long Shadow. Head of Zeus. p. 644. ISBN 9781784975371. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ↑ "Standing Orders: Motion". Seanad Éireann debates. 16 June 2011. pp. Standing Order 70A(6). Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ↑ "The Houses of the Oireachtas Commission". Oireachtas. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
- ↑ "Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Act 2003". Irish Statute Book. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
- ↑ "Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) Act 2013, Section 3". Irish Statute Book. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
External links
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Oireachtas.
Coordinates: 53°20′30″N 6°15′17″W / 53.34167°N 6.25472°W


text:
Map of London in GTA London 1969.
Grand Theft Auto: London 1969
Grand Theft Auto: London 1961
|United Kingdom
London is the real-life capital of England and the United Kingdom. It was the city used in both Grand Theft Auto: London 1969 and Grand Theft Auto: London 1961, the two expansion packs for Grand Theft Auto 1.
To date, London is the only real-life city to be used in a GTA game, as all others have been fictional cities based on real American cities (besides Anywhere City, the setting of Grand Theft Auto 2, which is entirely fictional); however, other real cities have been mentioned. London is also the only city used in any GTA game that is not part of the United States.
The temporal setting has been exploited through a number of cultural and historical references, including the appearance of a James Bond-like character and the use of more or less authentic slang. In addition, the cars drive on the left side of the road, as is the case in Britain, and authentic London place names were used.
In GTA London 1969 and GTA London 1961 we can see various landmarks from London, such as:
- Picadilly Circus
- Trafalgar Square
- Tower of London
- Jehad's Department Store
- Battersea Power Station
- Hyde Park
- Buckingham Palace
- Big Ben
See also


text:
Persimmon, Goat cheese, Walnut and Duck prosciutto Salad is a great fall appetizer, just in time for the Persimmon season. Those fruits are quite similar to tomato in looks, although firmer and drier, you can eat then raw, with or without the skin, dried or cooked. They are both, tomato and persimmon, considered a "berry" because of their morphology. Some type of Persimmons are sweeter, other more astringent, but their inside is always composed with a beautiful star form, when cut horizontally, making them perfect for a good looking salad bed. The persimmons should be still firm when you buy them, Hachiyas variety is a little longer then the Fuyu type which is more of a flat pumpkin shape. The Fuyu persimmon is the sweet one and you can easily eat it firm, while the Hachiyas (the long one) is best if you let it ripe a few days on the counter before consuming, to get rid off its astringency.
The other elements of this salad are a cured duck breast / duck prosciutto , walnuts, goat cheese and a spicy touch of red onion. In the center, I've added some juicy tomato and finish it up with a one of a kind balsamic vinegar and a touch of olive oil. I believe the flavours were spot on, although I do not usually add a protein (meat) to my salads, although in this case the duck prosciutto really helped to lift the sometimes too soft/sweet taste of the persimmons and also the goat cheese helped contrasting the persimmon.
For the dressing, I've used a really special old balsamic vinegar I found in Italy last summer. An aged in 3 differents types of wood essences vinegar which is sweet, thick and aromatic. So if you do not own an old balsamic vinegar you can also use a simple balsamic cream. The last but not the least touch is a freshly pressed, unfiltered olive oil, since it's season in Spain (where I'm currently living). Simple and sweet dressing for a great mix of flavours underneath.
So let's make this fall salad!
Persimmon, Goat cheese, Walnut and Duck Prosciutto Salad
Makes 2-4 portions | Preparation: 10 minutes | Difficulty: low
- Salad mix of your choice
- 1 persimmon (ripe but still firm)
- 1 tomato
- 1/4 red onion
- goat cheese
- walnuts
- Duck prosciutto (cured duck breast)
- Old balsamic vinegar, or balsamic cream
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Peel and cut the persimmon with a mandoline or knife, the thinnest cut, horizontally
- Add the slices in circle in the bottom of a big plate
- Add the tomato in the center, then the salad and finish it up with the rest of the ingredients
- Drizzle with a good balsamic vinegar or cream, olive oil, salt and pepper


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A company in jeopardy of violating an existing SEC injunction, a leading supplier of communication devices to the federal government in the midst of an FCPA inquiry, an FCPA enforcement action nearing the finish line, Attorney General Eric Holder's announcement of the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, more on multilateral development banks, and the U.K. Serious Fraud Office's annual report … it's all here in the Friday roundup.
Diebold's Disclosure
Last month, Diebold, Inc., a Ohio based security services company, settled an SEC accounting fraud enforcement action by paying a $25 million civil penalty (see here). The SEC charged Diebold with, among other charges, violations of the FCPA's books and records and internal control provisions (i.e. Sections 13(b)(2)(A) and 13(b)(2)(B) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934). However, you likely never heard about this because the enforcement action was what I call "a non-FCPA, FCPA enforcement action." In other words, the FCPA's books and records and internal control provisions are generic and are not just implicated by overseas business conduct. As part of the settlement, Diebold, as in common, consented to a final judgment permanently enjoining the company from future violations.
Diebold appears to be in jeopardy of violating that injunction.
Yesterday in an 8-K filing (see here) Diebold disclosed as follows:
Voluntary disclosure related to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
"While conducting due diligence in connection with a potential acquisition in Russia, Diebold identified certain transactions and payments by its subsidiary in Russia (primarily during 2005 to 2008) that potentially implicate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), particularly the books and records provisions of the FCPA. While the company's current assessment indicates that the transactions and payments in question do not materially impact or alter the company's financial statements, the company continues to collect information and is conducting an internal review of its global FCPA compliance. At this time, Diebold cannot predict the outcome or impact of this global review. In addition, the company has voluntarily self-reported its findings to the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission and intends to fully cooperate with these agencies in their review."
The day of the disclosure, the company's shares lost approximately 5%.
Here is what Diebold had to say about the FCPA in its most recent 10-Q filing in May:
"We are subject to compliance with various laws and regulations, including the FCPA and similar worldwide anti-bribery laws, which generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to non-U.S. officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. While our employees and agents are required to comply with these laws, we operate in many parts of the world that have experienced governmental corruption to some degree and, in certain circumstances, strict compliance with anti-bribery laws may conflict with local customs and practices. Despite our commitment to legal compliance and corporate ethics, we cannot assure you that our internal control policies and procedures always will protect us from reckless or negligent acts committed by our employees or agents. Violations of these laws, or allegations of such violations, could disrupt our business and result in a material adverse effect on our business and operations." (emphasis added).
The Latest on Digi International
According to its website (here), Digi International Inc. is "the leading supplier of multifunction communication devices to the U.S. Federal Government."
It is also in the midst of an FCPA investigation, one which implicates its Chief Financial Officer who is no longer with the company.
Here is what the company disclosed in a recent 8-K filing (see here):
"As previously reported, after receiving allegations regarding possible violations of our gifts, travel and entertainment policy for activities in the Asia Pacific region by a few employees, we initiated an investigation of these policy and corresponding internal control issues, and any possible related violations of applicable law, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). We voluntarily disclosed the allegations to the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The investigation has been under the direction of the Audit Committee, comprised solely of independent directors, utilizing outside counsel, and focused on the APAC region. For completeness purposes, the investigation reviewed certain other foreign regions where no allegations have been made. We believe the investigation is substantially complete, pending the input from the DOJ and SEC. We have been providing the DOJ and SEC with updates and our proposed remediation plan. We will continue to cooperate fully with the SEC and DOJ process, which could include additional investigative procedures. This investigation found violations of company policy and internal controls that primarily involved three individuals in Hong Kong and our Chief Financial Officer. All four individuals have either been terminated or resigned from the company. The investigation also identified certain books and records and related internal controls issues under the FCPA. The ultimate impact and outcome of the DOJ and SEC process is unknown at this time. The Company is unable to estimate the potential costs relating to this matter, including any penalties that might be assessed for any FCPA violations, and accordingly, no provision has been made in our consolidated financial statements other than with respect to expenses incurred prior to June 30, 2010. In the Digi International Reports Third Fiscal Quarter 2010 Results quarter and nine months ended June 30, 2010, we incurred additional general and administrative expense of $1.0 million related to the cost of the investigation. Based upon what we have learned from the investigation, we are strengthening our monitoring controls over foreign locations and other operational and regulatory compliance procedures, including third party assistance in implementation of our remediation plan. Based on the results of our investigation to date, we are not aware of any material impacts to our reported consolidated financial statements that would require restatement, and no issues were detected outside of the Asia Pacific region. We are also evaluating any impact of this matter on our Internal Controls over Financial Reporting. The timing and final outcome of the DOJ and SEC process cannot be predicted, and it may have a materially adverse impact on our business prospects and our consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flow."
I've noted in a prior post (see here) that one factor companies need to be mindful of when analyzing the important voluntary disclosure decision is the high likelihood of the enforcement agencies asking the "where else" question (i.e. if conduct occurred in country x, convince us that the conduct also did not occur in countries y and z). Digi's disclosure highlights this issue when it states: "[f]or completeness purposes, the investigation reviewed certain other foreign regions where no allegations have been made."
Maxwell Technologies Inc. Nears Settlement
In a 8-K filing yesterday, Maxwell Technologies (here), a manufacturer of energy storage and power delivery products, stated as follows:
"As previously disclosed in its public filings, the company has engaged in settlement discussions with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) with regard to the ongoing FCPA investigations involving Maxwell's Swiss subsidiary, Maxwell S.A. The company has negotiated an agreement in principle with the SEC to resolve the ongoing FCPA investigation for a payment of approximately $6.35 million, with half to be paid upon signing and the remaining half on the one year anniversary of signing, as well as certain other non-financial settlement terms. The settlement with the SEC remains subject to final approval of the Commission. Settlement discussions with the DOJ are ongoing, and the company is awaiting a response to its offer to the DOJ to settle the ongoing investigation for $6.35 million. Prior discussions with the DOJ have indicated that they would accept a settlement offer of $8.0 million, but as indicated earlier, we are continuing our discussions with the DOJ and are awaiting a response to our most recent offer. The DOJ has also previously indicated that settlement terms could include a payment plan over a period of up to three years. The company anticipates that it will have to pay interest on any deferred amounts due in both the SEC and DOJ settlement agreements. In Q409, the company accrued $9.3 million for a potential settlement, and has accrued an additional $3.4 million in Q210 to reflect the full amount of its pending settlement offers to the SEC and DOJ. However, there can be no assurance that the settlement with the SEC will be approved or that the company will be able to settle with the DOJ for $6.35 million."
The day of the disclosure, the company's shares lost approximately 4%.
Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative
In a recent speech (see here) before the African Union Summit in Uganda, Attorney General Eric Holder announced a new Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative.
In the speech Holder said that "the United States will act in partnership and in common cause to help the African Union achieve its goals and fulfill its mission."
Among other things, Holder said that the U.S. "will strengthen current efforts to promote good governance and to combat and prevent the costs and consequences of public corruption."
He stated as follows:
"Today, when the World Bank estimates that more than one trillion dollars in bribes are paid each year out of a world economy of 30 trillion dollars, this problem cannot be ignored. And this practice must never be condoned. As many here have learned – often in painful and devastating ways – corruption imperils development, stability, competition, and economic investment. It also undermines the promise of democracy.
As my nation's Attorney General, I have made combating corruption, generally and in the United States, a top priority. And, today, I'm pleased to announce that the U.S. Department of Justice is launching a new Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative aimed at combating large-scale foreign official corruption and recovering public funds for their intended – and proper – use: for the people of our nations. We're assembling a team of prosecutors who will focus exclusively on this work and build upon efforts already underway to deter corruption, hold offenders accountable, and protect public resources.
And although I look forward to everything this new initiative will accomplish, I also know that prosecution is not the only effective way to curb global corruption. We will continue to work with your governments to strengthen the entire judicial sector, a powerful institution in our democracy which depends on the integrity of our laws, our courts, and our judges. We must also work with business leaders to encourage, ensure, and enforce sound corporate governance. We should not, and must not settle for anything less."
For other speeches by Holder on this subject, see here.
More On Multilateral Development Banks
A prior post (see here) discussed how five multilateral development banks (MDB's) – the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the Inter-American Development Bank Group – signed an agreement to cross-debar firms and individuals found to have engaged in wrongdoing in MDB-financed development projects.
To learn more about sanctions investigations by the World Bank and other MDB's see this piece from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.
The SFO Annual Report
The U.K. Serious Fraud Office recently issued its annual report (see here).
Among the highlights noted by SFO Director Richard Alderman:
"In the first prosecution brought in the UK against a company for breaching UN sanctions, Mabey and Johnson Ltd admitted offences of overseas corruption and breaching UN sanctions. The company was ordered to pay a fine of £3.5 million and restitution of £3.1 million.
Currently one third of our work concerns overseas corruption. This will continue to be an important part of our work, with the introduction of the new law on bribery which we believe will place a greater emphasis on UK companies to maintain high levels of business ethics and integrity. It is also notable that the Act allows me as Director of the SFO to prosecute non-UK companies that carry on business in the UK if they use bribes in any country as a way of doing business."


text:
Hackers have duped supporters of the Anonymous group into installing the Zeus botnet, which steals confidential information from PCs, including banking usernames and passwords, security researchers said last week.
According to Symantec, someone modified a link to a popular distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack tool to direct users to a Zeus bot Trojan instead.
The replacement of a Zeus client for the "Slowloris" DDoS tool took place on the day after Anonymous launched strikes against websites operated by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and others in retaliation for the arrest of four men associated with the popular Megaupload "cyberlocker" site on charges of copyright infringement, money laundering and racketeering.
In a post last Friday to the Symantec security response team's blog, the firm described how unknown hackers modified a message on PasteBin, changing the link to a Trojanized version of Slowloris.
Anonymous supporters have, unwittingly or not, pointed others to altered PasteBin message that includes the link to the Zeus bot. The Twitter account "YourAnonNews," which has almost 550,000 followers, was just one of many that tweeted a link to the altered PasteBin message, said Symantec.
Through mid-February, Symantec had counted over 26,000 views of the PasteBin message and over 400 individual tweets referencing its URL.
While the Trojanized Slowloris does conduct DDoS attacks -- at times under the behest of the hackers who control the botnet -- it also steals website cookies, login information for financial institutions and other user account credentials from infected PCs, then transmits the information to a command-and-control (C&C) server.
"Not only will supporters be breaking the law by participating in attacks on Anonymous hacktivism targets, but [they] may also be at risk of having their online banking and email credentials stolen," said Symantec.
The Zeus ploy wasn't the first time that Anonymous supporters have been tricked.
In January, hard on the heels of the retaliatory attacks against the Department of Justice website, U.K.-based security company Sophos said members of Anonymous distributed links via Twitter and elsewhere that when clicked automatically launched a Web version of LOIC, or Low Orbit Ion Cannon, another DDoS tool.
Many of those messages said nothing about LOIC or that clicking the link shanghaied the user into the then-ongoing DDoS attack, said Sophos.
Authorities have staged numerous arrests of Anonymous members and supporters on charges that they participated in DDoS attacks against targets in the U.S. and other countries.
Last week, an Interpol-organized sweep netted 25 suspected members of the hacking group in Argentina, Chile, Columbia and Spain.
Gregg Keizer covers Microsoft, security issues, Apple, Web browsers and general technology breaking news for Computerworld. Follow Gregg on Twitter at @gkeizer , or subscribe to Gregg's RSS feed . His e-mail address is firstname.lastname@example.com .
Read more about security in Computerworld's Security Topic Center.


text:
On June 27th, 2006, Dustin and Kristen Yoder, along with a friend and fellow climber, Brennan Larson, were killed in a tragic mountain climbing accident on Artesonraju, a 6015 meter peak in the Cordillera Blanca Mountains in the Andes of Peru. As brother and sister, Dustin and Kristen shared a passion for outdoor adventure. They grew up hiking and backpacking in the Southwest and spent much of their spare time rock and ice climbing together. Over the years they scaled multiple peaks together in Arizona, Colorado, Alaska, Washington State, Mexico, and South America.
Both Dustin and Kristen were very involved with the Parks and Recreation Management Program at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona. Dustin graduated in 2005 and minored in Recreation Management, and Kristen, a senior majoring in Recreation Management, was a trip leader for the NAU Outdoors Program. They enthusiastically shared their experiences and outdoor adventures with people of all ages, leading wilderness trips, teaching outdoor skills, and educating about the environment.
The Dustin and Kristen Yoder Memorial Foundation, Inc. is an Arizona non-profit corporation tax exempt under Internal Revenue Code §501(c)(3). The Yoder children's family and friends established the Foundation in their memory and honor to provide financial assistance to children and young adults for outdoor leadership education courses which focus on developing life skills and leadership ability through outdoor activities. Contributions to the Foundation are tax deductible.


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Camp Lejeune honors Marine training blast victims
CAMP LEJEUNE, NC (AP) — Camp Lejeune has honored seven of its Marines killed in an explosion during a training exercise last month in Nevada.
Members of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force and family of the people killed and wounded were invited to the private memorial service Tuesday.
Brig. Gen. Jim Lukeman commanded the division. He promised to provide the families of the Marines any help or support they need.
A battle cross made of the Marines' boots, rifle and helmet were left near photos of each person killed in the March 18 blast.
Seven Marines and a sailor also were injured when the 60-millimeter mortar tube exploded during a field exercise at Hawthorne Army Depot in Nevada.
(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


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Music Festivals 2014: Rock and metal
2014 is set to be a vintage year for axe-wielders from across the spectrum, all prepared to deliver high-volume intensityin a blizzard of pyrotechnics.
Among the heavyweights returning this year are Nine Inch Nails, Metallica, Kings of Leon, Iron Maiden, Guns 'N' Roses and Pixies. But where are you gonna see them? Step this way to find out!
Reading and Leeds
Headliners: Blink 182, Queens of the Stone Age, Paramore, Arctic Monkeys
Location: Richfield Avenue (Reading) Bramham Park (Leeds), UK
Best reason to go: As demonstrated at the Brit Awards, at which they won pretty much every gong available, 2014 is the year of the Arctic Monkeys.
Other line-up highlights: Vampire Weekend, Disclosure, Bombay Bicycle Club
Tickets: £213 for Reading weekend tickets or Leeds weekend tickets
FM4 Frequency
Headliners: Queens of the Stone Age, Biffy Clyro, Blink 182
Location: Green Park, St. Pölten, Austria
Best reason to go: Nothing will beat rocking out with Josh Homme and his Queens of the Stone Age at this legendary event.
Other line-up highlights: Placebo, Skrillex, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis
Tickets: Complete festival pass is €158.90
Alt Fest
Headliners: Marilyn Manson, Gary Numan, Cradle of Filth
Location: Boughton Estate, Northamptonshire, UK
Best reason to go: A rare chance to see the demonic one himself, Marilyn Manson, in action.
Other line-up highlights: Killing Joke, The Cult, Peter Hook and the Light
Tickets: Weekend tickets from £115
Headliners: Nine Inch Nails, Pixies, Arcade Fire, Queens of the Stone Age
Location: Parc del Fòrum, Barcelona, Spain
Best reason to go: A blockbuster line-up of radical music heroes. In the sun!
Other line-up highlights: The National, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Haim
Tickets: Weekend tickets from €204.75
Rock Werchter
Headliners: Arctic Monkeys, Metallica, Pearl Jam, Pixies, Kings of Leon, The Black Keys
Location: Festival Park, Werchter, Belgium
Best reason to go: It's neck and next between Metallica and Pixies for us - but either way the bill is incredible.
Other line-up highlights: Interpol, Damon Albarn, Skrillex, Placebo, Franz Ferdinand
Tickets: Sold out, but there is a waiting list for one day tickets at €83
Rock AM Ring
Headliners: Linkin Park, Soundgarden, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Kings of Leon
Location: Nürburg, Nuremberg, Germany
Best reason to go: Just look at the bands playing! This is the German equivalent of Reading and Leeds, held simultaneously in South and West Germany.
Other line-up highlights: Nine Inch Nails, The Offspring, Queens of the Stone Age, Avenged Sevenfold
Tickets: Four day passes from €213,50
Headliners: Aerosmith, Linkin Park, Avenged Sevenfold, Rob Zombie, Fall Out Boy
Location: Donington Park, Leicestershire, UK
Best reason for going: In Britain at least, this is the heaviest of the heavy.
Other line-up highlights: Status Quo, The Offspring, Trivium
Tickets: Weekend camping tickets £205
Rock On The Range
Headliners: Guns 'n' Roses, Avenged Sevenfold, Kid Rock
Location: Crew Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
Best reason for going: To see if Axl Rose turns up on time.
Other line-up highlights: Slayer, Staind, Living Colour
Tickets: Weekend stadium pass $119.50 plus booking fee


text:
Charles Ray Stane, the suspect in a 1988 cold case homicide in Pagosa Springs, entered a plea of not guilty to first-degree murder in District Court Tuesday morning.
At the same hearing, Stane's trial date was set for March 25, 2013, a five-day trial, and motions and pretrial hearings were set for Feb. 5 and March 19.
Stane, 56, was officially charged in April for the 1988 murder of Vickie Dexter.
That charge, according to Archuleta County Court Judge Jim Denvir, who read the complaint, comes with a presumptive sentence of life imprisonment or the death penalty, though the District Attorney's office made it known it will not seek the death penalty in the case.
The charges stem from a discovery made on Saturday, Oct. 15, 1988, when a group of tourists from Georgia discovered a body floating in a shallow hot springs pool located next to what is now Hot Springs Boulevard, across the street from where the U.S. Post Office is now located, said Det. Scott Maxwell of the Pagosa Springs Police Department.
The body was that of Dexter, 40, who had moved to Pagosa Springs earlier that year.
Maxwell reported that Dexter died from multiple injuries, but, according to a SUN report from 1988, an autopsy done in the days following the discovery revealed Dexter died of asphyxiation, with the probable cause being strangulation.
The pool Dexter's body was found in is no longer in existence, and the case remains without a conviction.
The 1988 investigation into the incident quickly centered on a person of interest following completion of more than 80 interviews in the first week after the incident, Don Volger, former police chief, said at the time, but no arrest was made.
That person of interest was Stane, a truck driver at the time who, according to Maxwell, was identified as being in the company of Dexter the night before her body was found.
The case has been looked at several times in the almost 24 years that have passed since the incident by investigators and evidence technicians from the PSPD, Archuleta County and the District Attorney's Office, including Mike Owens, Carl Smith and George Barter.
It wasn't until the PSPD received grant funding from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, to help with technical assistance, evidence testing, overtime wages, and travel reimbursement to more vigorously investigate the case, that additional movement occurred.
During that investigation, Maxwell said new information was presented and connections with witnesses were reestablished.
"We were able to reach a point where we believe we have a strong, prosecutable case," Maxwell said.
That information was enough to obtain an arrest warrant on March 22. Stane was subsequently arrested on March 23 by the Lamar Police Department.
There is no statute of limitations on a murder.
Maxwell said the PSPD was informed last August by an LPD sergeant that Stane had been released from prison and was living in Lamar.
Maxwell said the LPD likely knew of Stane's status as a suspect in the cold case because the two agencies had worked together after the homicide, when Stane was a suspect in other incidents in the Lamar area, and later communicated about Stane in 1992 concerning another incident in the Lamar area.
Stane was released from the Colorado Department of Corrections in August after completing a sentence for felony second-degree sexual assault, for which he was convicted in March of 1992. Stane is a registered sex offender.
After the reading of the complaint against Stane in April, a series of routine motions was dealt with.
One motion granted was a "gag order," which limits pretrial publicity about the case.
Stane is being held in the Archuleta County Detention Center on a $1 million bond — an amount set at his first advisement hearing on April 5.
At that hearing, Denvir set Stane's bond at $1 million with cash surety, with Lowe suggesting that Stane is a flight risk.
Because of that, should Stane bond out, GPS monitoring will be required and Stane will be barred from leaving Colorado.


text:
GPU Caps Viewer 1.9.5 and SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6970
I just received a nice Radeon HD 6970 from SAPPHIRE (the review is coming) which gave me the opportunity to update a bit GPU Caps Viewer and GPU Shark.
1 – GPU Caps Viewer 1.9.5
GPU Caps Viewer 1.9.5 comes with the support of AMD Radeon HD 6970 and Radeon HD 6950. I also fixed a small bug in the reading of Radeon memory size.
You can download GPU Caps Viewer 1.9.5 here (Win32 installer):
Webmasters: hotlinking is not allowed, please use the post url as download link.
Portable version of GPU Caps Viewer 1.9.5 (ZIP file) can be downloaded here:
What is GPU Caps Viewer?
GPU Caps Viewer is a graphics card information utility focused on the OpenGL, OpenCL and CUDA API level support of the main graphics card. Even if you have several graphics cards in your system, only one is considered as the main OpenGL or Direct3D device. For OpenCL and CUDA, GPU Caps Viewer details the API support of each capable device. More information about GPU Caps Viewer can be found HERE.
GPU Caps Viewer 1.9.5 changelog
- New: added support of AMD Radeon HD 6970 and HD 6950.
- Bugfix: in memory size for Radeon cards.


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J.P. Morgan Under Regulatory Fire Over Power Trading
J.P. Morgan Chase's (NYSE:JPM) regulatory headaches appear to be turning into a very painful migraine.
In addition to ongoing probes into credit cards and its relationship with Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff, J.P. Morgan reportedly faces a potential investigation by the top U.S. energy market regulator.
Investigators determined that the nation's largest U.S. bank devised "manipulative schemes" that turned "money-losing power plants into powerful profit centers" and one senior exec gave "false and misleading statements" under oath, The New York Times reported, citing a confidential government document sent to J.P. Morgan in March.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, plans to recommend that the agency pursue an action against J.P. Morgan over the bank's trading in California and Michigan electrical markets, the Times reported.
In particular, FERC investigators have found that top J.P. Morgan exec Blythe Masters "falsely" denied under oath her awareness of schemes carried out by a group of energy traders in Houston, the paper said.
J.P. Morgan, which has until at least the middle of May to answer FERC's accusations, could face fines if a majority of the agency's five-member commission decides to endorse the case, the Times reported.
"We strongly dispute that Blythe Masters or any employee lied or acted inappropriately in this matter," the bank said. "We intend to vigorously defend the firm and the employees in this matter."
The energy probe highlights the mounting legal and regulatory troubles at J.P. Morgan, which prior to the London Whale trading debacle last year had been portrayed by Washington as model citizen on Wall Street.
It remains to be seen how these headaches may impact influence investor enthusiasm for J.P. Morgan given the bank's continued profit growth.
Shares of J.P. Morgan have rallied 10% so far this year, underperforming the S&P 500's 13.3% advance. Likewise, the bank gained 0.46% on Friday, compared with the broader index's 1.09% rally to all-time highs.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is considering new enforcement actions against J.P. Morgan over how it collected credit card debt and a potential failure to flag suspicions about Madoff's scheme, the Times reported.
The OCC discovered J.P. Morgan had been using faulty documents when pursuing lawsuits against delinquent customers, the paper said.


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Let's say your assignment is to research an environmental issue. This is a broad starting point, which is a normal first step.
One way to customize your topic is to consider how different disciplines approach the same topic in different ways. For example, here's how your broad topic of "environmental issues" might be approached from different perspectives.
Roll your mouse over each image to see an example.
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This course introduces students to the legal principles that underlie mergers and acquisitions, including those relating to the fiduciary duties and other obligations of company boards of directors, the role of shareholder voting, externalities arising from some merger/acquisition transactions, state anti-takeover statutes, disclosure requirements arising from the securities laws, and the effects of mergers and acquisitions on other constituencies (beyond shareholders and management). Pre-requisite: A515 Business Organizations.
Not offered this academic year.
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Welcome to Baseball Prospectus' Friday February 22, 2013 1:00 PM ET chat session with Sam Miller.
Sam reports to spring chatting.
Sam Miller: Let's chat! Hang on I'mma tell Twitter and be right back
Shawnykid23 (CT): I've inherited a last place team in a H2H dynasty league. I have 1st pick in supplemental propsect draft(initial 5 rd prospect draft was last year so most of the usual suspects are already gone). Thoughts on Buxton and Addison Russell? Is thier ceiling worth the wait, or should I take someone closer such as Tyler Skaggs?
Sam Miller: I'm super happy to answer all fantasy questions, because they're quick and fun and specific, but a caveat that if I were *actaully* making this decision for your team a) I'd want to look at a thousand variables that I am not currently privy to and b) my decision would ultimately not probably matter cause mostly this is coin flipping between comparable options.
The thing is that you really have to ask yourself how confident you are in the other league owners. If this is a league that is likely to hold on for 10 years, yes, patience is an undervalued commodity. If there's any chance at all that it's going to dissolve in three years, don't put yourself through the potential agony of watching it fold just when you're on the cusp of cashing in. (I'd probably take Russell though)
justarobert (Santa Clara): A holdover from Ben's chat earlier this week: Could you give a brief summary of how your two-person fantasy league rules worked? I am curious about esoteric league structures.
Sam Miller: So the idea was to create a league that was much more about predicting than about managing -- basically reward the person who did a better job predicting instead of the person who spent more time picking up a billion free agents and platooning right fielders and proposing trades. And also doing a league that was just two of us, so there wasn't all that noise that other owners introduce. So we draft 40 players each, 30 of them go in the lineup, and the bench can't be used unless you want to burn the player you're replacing for the rest of the year. To get around the obvious -- 80 players is too shallow -- we eliminate seven players between each round of drafting. So A picks, then B picks, then A eliminates, then B eliminates, A-E, B-E, A-E, B-E, A-E and then B picks again. So we end up going 360 deep. But it gets even deeper than that in a way, because you're very aggressively eliminating all the players at a position that your opponent hasn't drafted. So sometimes we're 50 or 60 deep at a position. We do each outfield position individually and no utility spots so there's a lot of strain on position filling. H2H, 6x6 or 7x7. The draft takes about six or seven hours. We come equipped with binders. This'll be our 11th season. It's my favorite night of the year, and the only fantasy league I've cared about in the past five or so years.
19braves77 (Pensacola, FL): Is 3rd base the weakest position in baseball now ?
Sam Miller: I was just looking at this and I think I might do a somewhat related piece for next week, but the short answer is that, in 2012, MLB teams got more value (by WARP) out of third base than any position besides CF and RF. Here's the breakdown:
First base was arguably suppressed by some down seasons from very good players. Shortstop *seems* the weakest to me, but I think second base is a pretty good answer.
Joe C. Wales (Lewisville): Jon Daniels said in a chat session today that local media members targeted Ian Kinsler for criticism more than they do other players because he's not "media-friendly." How much do you think playing nice with the media impacts the extent that they are portrayed as "leaders," "selfish," having "intangibles," etc.?
Sam Miller: It's certainly hard for a reporter to distinguish between "nice to me" and "good person." I think "target" is a loaded word, though. With maybe a very few exceptions, I don't think reporters target anybody, even players who are aloof or hostile. The default in local sports coverage is to be rah-rah, and the default in any access journalism is to be positive. Guys who are nice to reporters probably get more benefit of the doubt.
Bret (Toronto): We're having an Oscar pool at the office. Nate Silver predicts Argo to win Best Picture. I should check the box beside Argo, right?
Sam Miller: If I'm not mistaken, one of Nate's most famous misses was when he tried to predict Oscars a couple years ago. I might be mistaken. He might have fixed it. I'd bet on Lincoln.
Alex (Anaheim): Do you think Pineda will return to form when he is fully healthy?
Sam Miller: The thing about pitchers is that, on aggregate, they are *all* getting worse right now, as we speak. Even if they're young and healthy, they're bad bets to replicate what they did last year, on aggregate. Throw in a labrum injury and two lost years and maybe some questions about his makeup and some pre-existing questions about his secs and I think it's fair to bet the under, no matter where the line is set.
Kris (Santa Barbara): Who is your favorite baseball player ever?
Sam Miller: William Van Landingham, with nods to J.R. Phillips and Bill Mueller. Favorite active is Peter Bourjos.
nictaclacta (Phoenix): Help, Sam
I am in a ten team dynasty league (5x5)using 4 OF. Long term: from Jose Bautista, Upton brothers, Desmond Jennings and Starling Marte----which one can be dropped? Thank you
Sam Miller: Marte
Rich (San Francisco): What round should I take Kazmir in?
Sam Miller: Quote of the year so far was from Terry Francona this morning: Kazmir "has looked so good it's scary." So it's a good question how much weight to put on that statement. Before that quote, Kazmir would be maybe the 600th pitcher you'd take. Now 350th? I mean, a really really deep league. The benefit he has is that he'll get a shot at it. But it was only a few months ago that he was a sub-average indy leaguer, and it was a *long* time ago that he was fantasy viable even in a 20-team Angels-only league.
Dan Rozenson (Washington, DC): What was the reception from "traditional" baseball circles to your ESPN piece on WAR? Is the clash between the traditionalists and sabermetricians overplayed by bored journalists?
Sam Miller: I haven't seen much reception from traditional baseball circles. I've heard nice things from some team guys, and from hard-core bloggers and casual fans who liked it, and some (very, very fair) critical things from some smart bloggers. Not much from stereotypical mainstream guys.
The clash is overplayed if you're talking about where it matters. It's probably not overplayed if you're talking about where it doesn't matter, which is between fans and writers. Basically, as far as I can tell, a lot of fans hate sports journalists, and vice versa. There is a really stark divide, emotionally and intellectually, between the two groups. Really stark, and really unimportant, but it's real.
Rich (San Francisco): Gimme a factoid
Sam Miller: Oooh, I will try to come up with something original if I can this hour, but my favorite factoid that I came up with in the past month was this: Craig Kimbrel had more three-pitch strikeouts in 2012 than Justin Verlander.
email@example.com (Stroudsburg,Pa.): I'm new to fbb and I was wondering in a 12 man h2h keeper league my keepers are 3 batters and 1 pitcher,I have the first 2 picks and don'tpick again for a long while.Is there a basic formula to use so I can make sure I balance myself out?example;5.SP 6.BATTER
Sam Miller: The simplest roster advice is draft hitters first because star pitchers are unpredictable and overvalued. Unless you're in a league where you suspect everybody is following that philosophy, it's a good place to start. I've never regretted waiting as long as possible to take pitchers, or trading pitchers when they're perceived to be good.
Daniel (DC): What is the role of nature vs. nurture in determining a ball player's defensive position? Is it 90% range / arm / size / quickness, or can a kid who logs hundreds of travel games in HS learn to be "a natural" at a different position?
Sam Miller: I think it's 90 percent range/arm/size/quickness. It's a good question, a really good question that the players themselves might have some insight on. But remember, almost all these guys were shortstops logging hundreds of travel games in HS, and only a select few stick at the position on their way up. Prince Fielder probably logged hundreds of travel games in HS as a shortstop.
Chesty (New Bern,NC): Sam,how would you rate for this year in home runs,RBI,ave,sb,xbh,runs from Cano,Kemp,Pujols.Thanks first time using BP.
Sam Miller: Position irrelevant I'd go Pujols then Cano then Kemp. Position relevant then Cano first.
buffum (Austin TX): Reportedly, BP is calling for a double-digit-win improvement for the Astros. Is my giddy anticipation for an historic run to 110+ losses misguided, or did Houston break the model? I mean ... amongst the Division, the rotation, the Replacement Level No-Stars ... this team rivals the Maroth/Bonderman Tigers, doesn't it?
Sam Miller: I like their pitching slightly more than the typical 100-loss team, but I can't for the life of me figure out how PECOTA (even being conservative) sees them avoiding 100 losses this year. The only way they don't lose 100 is if I write something like THERE IS NO WAY POSSIBLE WHATSOEVER THAT THEY WIN EVEN 50 GAMES! that would look hysterically misguided in retrospect.
John (Kansas City): What are your thoughts on Luis Heredia? Am I crazy to think this guy could become an ace someday? Thanks for the chats
Sam Miller: I sure like him, and he is one of the few who *could* become an ace someday. Also, he's the same age I was when Sublime was, without question, my favorite band. A lot can change in just two years at that age, is what I'm saying.
Cris E (St Paul, MN): SO you just bought the A's and are moving to San Jose, and now you need to design a stadium. Is it a hitter's park, a pitcher's park, or neutral? Or maybe big alleys for triples? What other elements need to be included for you to be giddy?
Sam Miller: I would want to design it in the way that gives me the best competitive advantage, which seems like it should be a pitcher's park. A pitcher's park seems to have advantages for collective particular types of defenders and for winning the war of attrition regarding pitchers. And yet, based on the looks I've taken at it over the years, there doesn't really seem to be a correlation. It's weird. So I guess I'd just want there to be vending machines with $1 Coke.
Cris E (St Paul, MN): It seems like every year some poor slob gets hung up on the same rocks Kyle Lohse is on this spring. Until the CBA changes the rules again, what can a player or agent do to avoid this?
Sam Miller: Sign early. My guess is that research would support a hypothesis that players signing in November have been overpaid over the past five years.
TobyL (New York): Rank these players on the basis of rankability:
Yu Darvish
Jesus Montero
Brian Roberts
Tom Junod
Mark Lemke
Sam Miller: 4. Jesus Montero
3. Brian Roberts
2. Mark Lemke
1. Yu Darvish
Tom Junod is not a player.
Jim (Timbuktoo): 5x5 roto dyanasty league. Recent trade was Fielder/Cashner/Jose Castillo for Cano and Brandon McCarthy. Which side wins?
Sam Miller: Jose Castillo the former Pirate? Last played in the big leagues in 2008, now in the Mexican League? The Cano side wins. If Castillo is actually somebody I'm not thinking of who is valuable, then I'd reconsider. Maybe.
Free_AEC (New Jersey): Baseball writers seem endlessly interested in writing about things like WAR, but there is no salary cap in MLB. It's the team ownership group that determines more than anything else whether a team will succeed and for how long. Have you ever come across an article that deeply analyzed the curious more than four decades long non-competition between the Phillies and Mets? They even completed a major trade with one another in 1989 swapping Lenny Dykstra and Juan Samuel. By some amazing coincidence the Mets and Phillies always pass one another in the standings, one on the way up, the other on the way down. Before the new caps on draft spending, for any ten year period both teams were at the bottom of the game in spending. It sure helps keep salaries in MLB from rising when two of the largest market teams in MLB refuse to compete with one another. Oh I know, the Wilpons claim they have some financial problems that have prevented them from competing with the Phillies. John Gotti claimed he sold plumbing parts for a living. Where are the financial statements to prove the claim? The Mets revenues have to dwarf the Brewers and Reds, but look at the payrolls.
Sam Miller: And now the chat interface wants me to type and submit an answer.
Jim (Timbuktoo): Jose Castillo the international signing of the rays last year... Venezuelan LHP, sits mid 90s...
Sam Miller: Thank you! Still like the Cano side.
Cole (St. Louis): Who's the better prospect: Avisail Garcia or Marcell Ozuna? Which one has a better chance at becoming an all-star in the big leagues? Thanks!
Sam Miller: They're the same. Obviously they're not really, but there is no known data to suggest we know one way or the other. (Those are the worst kind of answers but they're my favorite.) If I had to pick I'd pick Ozuna because I was tweeting jokes at Garcia's expense during the postseason last year and so I'd like those tweets not to look hysterically misguided ever.
R.A. Wagman (Toronto): Sam - who'd you rather have? Anibal Sanchez or Trevor Bauer? For next year? For next three years? For next six years? Thanks.
Sam Miller: Sanchez for all. The weird paradox is that Bauer *should* have the better long-term outlook because he's young and has upside and he might actually win three Cy Youngs. But the further out you go the more makeup matters, and the more disappointing Bauer starts to look.
Fred (LA): % chance Brandon League stays closer all year?
Sam Miller: I wonder what the minimum is for this question. Incumbency is so important, after all; if Clay Hensley were the declared closer going into Opening Day, how often would HE be the closer all year? That's the floor. I'd guess 12 percent is the floor. Maybe 6 percent, maybe 18 percent. Somewhere between 6 and 18 percent.
League: 24 percent. Not a pitcher I like much.
Cris E (St Paul, MN): If we're going all "Hyde Park No Questions Just Answers" I'd like to offer If the NFL had guaranteed contracts they'd be treating head injuries quite a bit differently.
Sam Miller: I think they'd be treating leg/knee/back/etc injuries differently. I'm not totally sure they'd treat head injuries differently.
briangilespopsup (San Jose): Let's say the Giants win the World Series again. Three championships in four years means they will get a paragraph in the book of baseball, probably in the chapter on the post-steroid era. We know what the 30-second elevator story is on other teams who've won multiple championships in a small period of time, but how will that paragraph describe a Giants team that really wasn't dominant at anything?
Sam Miller: They might go down as a Chemistry Narrative, but they're really a story of converting first-round picks into stars and being extremely nimble with small-dollar moves. Lincecum/Posey/Bummer might be the best three-year run of top picks by one team in history.
Alex (Chicago): Does Tony Campana have any upside? He is terrible, right?
Sam Miller: At baseball, yes
(though not useless)
Rajeev (NYC): How would you rank these four guys as SP-depth (and upside value) in an AL Scoresheet league: Ubaldo, Buchholz, Porcello, Masterson?
Sam Miller: Masterson, Buchholz, Porcello, Ubaldo
doog7642 (Blaine, MN): Dynasty points league in its 14th year. I'm regularly competitive. I was likely to lose Greinke in free agency at the end of the year, and moved him for a prospect package of Trevor Rosenthal, Fried, Vogelbach, Quinn, and A. Mondesi. Would you have done it or kept Greinke and gambled that the flag would fly forever?
Sam Miller: You did well
Jon (Arlington): Who is your favorite ball player that you will never own on a fantasy team? I personally love Brendan Ryan because of his humor and how under appreciated he is.
Sam Miller: Ryan Hanigan might actually be my favorite active player after Bourjos, and I'd never own him on a fantasy team, so
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Sam Miller: Good stuff. /favorite
johnpatrickbail (Washington, DC): With the Mariners trading Mike Carp, what are your thoughts on Justin Smoak? Any indication from what you're seeing/reading that he could break out any time soon?
Sam Miller: Smoak seems like a guy who really knows *how* to play baseball well but can't actually do it. If that makes sense. I just don't think he is capable of hitting the ball hard regularly, and this'll be the last ST we'll pay attention to him.
Cris E (St Paul, MN): So who wins a World Series first: the Dodgers or the Yankees? They both have money and big names, but there's work to be done both places.
Sam Miller: I was surprised by how much PECOTA loved the Dodgers. I wasn't totally sure whether all their new stuff was all that great, but PECOTA thinks so. I think the Dodgers are more likely to win the World Series this year, perhaps much more likely to win in the next three years, and much less likely to win in the next 10 or 20 years. So it just depends how good you think any team's chances can be in any three-year window.
Dave (Toronto): What are your expectations for Brett Lawrie this year?
Sam Miller: .770 OPS, lots of swear words
Nathan (Thailand): Do you think FRAA has a good handle on fielding runs, and are is it weighted well in WARP?
Sam Miller: Honestly have no idea, but I think Colin is smarter than I am so I take them seriously.
mattymatty2000 (Portland, OR): I'm curious, if you were going to put something on a baseball diamond besides a large pit, what might it be? I was doing some thinking and a goat farm, an all-you-can-eat ice cream bar, or a climbing tree all spring to mind.
Sam Miller: Let's not turn this into a farce. Just a giant deep pit, in the middle of the field, is enough.
Dan (Brooklyn): I started in fantasy sports in a two-man, weekly redraft NFL league in about 1991, with my best friend at the time. The only thing that has approached being that much fun since then was a four-team, AL-Central-only league a few years ago. (No question here.)
Sam Miller: Like those guys who have been playing tag for 25 years or whatever. Tradition becomes very rewarding when you reach a certain age.
John Carter (Dual: U.S.-Canadian): Shouldn't we be looking more at salary as a major insight into comparing how good two players are going to be? There are probably better examples, but lots of fancy peripheral stats show that Joe Blanton is better than Ryan Dempster. Yet Dempter signed for $26.5 mil./2 yrs. while Blanton only signed for $15 mil./2 yrs. Well, that's all the stats I need, right?
Sam Miller: Huh. That's ... actually ... very intriguing. Tango has pointed out a few times how Vegas is the best projection system. Might be some aspect of that with player salaries, if we could isolate the numbers from some of the distorting effects of timing, team need, etc.
Schackmj (Hoboken): Quick estimate. Robinson Cano new contract could be? 7/120?
Sam Miller: Pft, that's nuts. 8/200 at least.
Sam (Yosemite): How about one of those Bugs Bunny holes that are movable, where things disapear and reapear?
Sam Miller: Be reasonable, people. That would be so dangerous!
Hoot Stromboli (Toronto by way of Connecticut): Melky Cabrera - Sam, what are your insights into how much he was helped last year and in 2011 by PEDs? What are the risks he will be suspended again this year?
Sam Miller: My default assumption is that the PEDs didn't help. That's not very satisfying, even for me, but I think the risk is far greater that you'll overweight the PEDs than underweight them.
Joe (Kansas City): Did you read Posnanski's first article at NBC about Alex Rodriguez?
Sam Miller: I liked it (on.msnbc.com/YhJ8SS) a lot. I wrote before last year's playoffs about why you should root for A-Rod as a feel-good story (bit.ly/PHgtCS) and Posnanski fleshed that idea out really, really well.
There is one part at the end, when he suggests that A-Rod didn't age fast so much as -- well, here it is:
"He got old very fast," one scout says, but I don't think that's true. Rodriguez has been in the big regularly since he was 20 years old. He has more than 11,000 plate appearances more plate appearances than Ernie Banks or Babe Ruth or Tony Gwynn. He has played more than 10,000 innings at shortstop, stolen more than 300 bases, scored almost 1,900 runs. The body only has so many games.
That's a fascinating idea that I doubt holds up. Rodriguez has more MLB plate appearances than most people because he started at 18, of course, but every player is playing every day during those four or five years, and often in more physically demanding circumstances. That's not to say Joe's point isn't right, but I'm not sure I accept it. If it were, it would be a cool sports-themed variation on the One Billion Heartbeats phenomenon: bit.ly/TUQttk
Clint (PA): Travis Sniders hits __ home runs in 2013?
Sam Miller: 18
xxxxx (yyyyy): If you were the Texas Rangers, how much would you offer Elvis Andrus right now to extend him for the 2015-22 seasons?
Sam Miller: $80 million.
skelton (Sacramento): Any predictions concerning the mortality rate of A's fans in relation to their playoff odds?
Sam Miller: Some of them will be dead before the A's are in a pennant race again, but a very, very, very small percentage. Maybe 1 or 2 percent.
The Andrus estimate sorta seems low, but that's the point with extensions, right?
boatman44 (Liverpool ): Sam, will Gerrit Cole win a Cy Young award ? check the crystal ball,mate. thanks
Sam Miller: Yes. He will win it in 2018 but he'll really have deserved it more in 2015.
Actually, you know, for the 1990s and 2000s so many CYs were won by Pedro, Clemens, Maddux and Johnson that not that many pitchers ever got to win it. There really isn't that guy right now, unless it's Strasburg coming along or maybe in retrospect we'll say Verlander. But the Cy Young might end up being something that everybody gets to win over the next 15 years.
Sam Miller: Thanks for your questions, sorry to end so abruptly, but I want other things in my life now. See ya.
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