My 2008 Baseball Season: Part 4, The Hall Of Fame

It’s been a bloody fortnight since I’ve written here. And since the regular season is around the corner, it’s high time I tell the folks about the trip I took to ye ole Baseball Hall of Fame. Jump me.

Conducting an Economy

The Pennsylvania Intercollegiate Band was performing wonderfully.  I knew a handful in the band (some I liked, others I didn’t) and I wanted to listen critically.  Mostly though, I was watching the conductor.  His name was Colonel Thomas Foley.  He had conducted the “President’s Own” Marine Corps Band, and served as a Musical Adviser to the White House (a sweet gig, I’d imagine).  This guy was the tops.  I was curious to notice any ticks that made him a better conductor than the half a dozen I had worked under myself.

There are two things that put my mind at ease and allow me to do some good old-fashion thinking: showers and orchestral/symphonic music.  The latter kicked off my mind’s program this night.  I was watching Foley meticulously.  Then during a song by Frank Ticheli he did something  . . . he stopped conducting.  My mind was racing and soon I realized that this was the perfect metaphor for my current economic thinking.

BREAKING: Outrage over AIG boils over as Dodd admits role in legislation

After days of denying he had anything to do with legislation to regulate business executive compensation, Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., backtracked this evening, saying he not only drafted the legislation, but knowingly added a loophole that allowed AIG to pay out employee bonuses.

He said the Obama administration pressured him to make the change.

Dodd said in an interview on CNN that he wrote an amendment into the stimulus bill that would have prevented executive bonuses, but officials within the administration requested that it be altered out of fear that numerous lawsuits could potentially follow.

“The administration had expressed reservations about the amendment” said Dodd. “They came to us and asked for modifications.”

Seismic Fail Of The Week: Bud “Joke” Selig

To echo yesterday’s sentiments, we have Biz Of Baseball offering a great idea for Bud “Joke” Selig to save some face. Are we okay with making Selig the Seismic Fail of the Year until further notice?

Commissioner Bud “It’s Not My Fault” Selig, 1992 – ?

We’ve had a few weeks now to decompress after the A-Rod fiasco. Granted, these shenanigans won’t be ending anytime soon. Apparently, Rodriguez fibbed about some of the details about his steroid use. Surprised?

My advice to baseball fans: forget about it.

HUMOR: Manny Ramirez to Get Stimulus Money

In a wildly humorous and appropriate story for this blog, The Onion ran a blurb today about negotiations between Manny Ramirez and the federal government.

Check it out here.

‘Moneyball’ Comes Full Circle

I’m really excited at the prospects of this project. Obviously, there are many questions to answer as to how this movie will be portrayed. Such as, will the theories allayed in the book be put to use in the production of the movie? If Brad Pitt does sign on, will his OBP be enough to carry the movie to a box office success? But most importantly, who will this movie lose to in the ALDS? Keep these questions in mind.

Article for my Campus Newspaper: Rationale for Stimulus

Our campus newspaper ran a column from a guest writer who railed on Obama’s stimulus plan.  The logic was not consistent and the arguments lacking, but it caused myself and Sebastian Sobolev to write a response.  Readers of this blog already know my feelings on the stimulus package, but below is a concise retelling of my rationale.

BREAKING: Judd Gregg Withdraws Name as Commerce Secretary

Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., announced he would withdraw his name from consideration for Commerce Secretary this evening, saying there were irresolvable economic differences between he and President Barack Obama.

In a press conference at the Capitol, he said as he began to address questions to deal with the current economic crisis, he realized he and the President differed on several fundamental issues.

“I realized it really wasn’t a good fit,” said Gregg. “It was my mistake, not his [Obama's]“

Back of the Envelope Math on the Stimulus Deal

The Congressional conference committee tasked to reconcile the competing bills passed by both the House and the Senate apparently came to a deal today.  The deal was for a $789 billion package (lower than both bills offered).  Is it the package big enough?  A question we are often asking ourselves, is the touch of the government strong enough to stimulate us?

Here is some basic economic math to put this large dollar figure in perspective.  Note: the following arithmetic takes in account some assumptions, but, again, offers a basic breakdown of the figures presented for simplisity’s sake.