Not a Big Truck

Noticed this gem on the Mariners website:

MINNEAPOLIS — Mariners right fielder Ichiro Suzuki was the leadoff hitter for both teams in a five-inning Rookie League intrasquad game on Thursday afternoon in Peoria, Ariz.

He went 7-for-10 with two triples and one double

This isn’t even close to fair. Even recovering from a minor injury, Ichiro still managers to go SEVEN FOR 10 WITH TWO TRIPLES. I’m not sure this even qualifies as rehab, sounds more like T-Ball.

At least they let him play for both teams in order to keep things competitive.

Mayor Bloomberg has a new plan out to turn Times Square (and nearby Herald Square) into pedestrian areas. Should be interesting to see what it looks like when built.

Israeli media is reporting that the centrist Kadima party has won today’s elections. Per an interview with the Turkish Foreign Minister in this week’s Newsweek this would seem to bode well for ongoing peace talks between Israel and Syria (facilitated by the Turks)

Few people know that Harry Reid had an acting career. In fact, he’s in the following video.

Can you spot him?

For almost a month now, the college bowl season has been taking up tv time that could be being used for Family Guy reruns.  The much-discussed problem with the current bowl system is that the BCS rankings are too arbitrary to determine a legitimate champion. 

This is only half the problem, the larger problem is that the football postseason is full of second-tier teams who should’ve hung up their cleats before Thanksgiving. Clearly, the powers that be care more about squeezing out the last bits of revenue from second tier teams, then providing a legitimate, un-disputable champion to the fans.

Thus, I would propose a postseason system where the eight conference champions of eight major conferences (Pac 10, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, SEC, ACC, plus 2 other conference champions such as the WAC or Mountain West) randomly seeded, play a single elimination tournament.  Other than potential disputes over which 2 “other”  conference champions should be included this system would produce a legitimate national champion.

This system would eliminate all other disputes over who is the true number one by minimizing the impact of conference strength and the impact of conference championship games on rankings because any team that has a legitimate claim to number 1 should be able to win their conference (and, on the flip side, if you don’t win your conference, how could you rightfully claim to be number 1 nationally?)

Thus, all of the conference champions, would have a playoff to find who the best team in the nation is, and all the losers (regardless of how good teams like Texas or Alabama may think they are) will have nothing to complain about.

Seattle paralyzed by chance of snow:

Schools throughout Greater Seattle closed Wednesday at the mere threat of snow late in the day, a symptom of the city’s deep phobia of snow and near-complete inability to deal with any significant snowstorm.

Just want to follow up on the electoral pool (which I most clearly didn’t win).

If we use electoral votes as the criteria: RedLine wins, unless Missouri goes for Obama (in which case Ying wins)

If we use state as the criteria: RedLine wins, unless Nebraska second district goes for Obama (in which case WashintonRocks wins) or if Missouri goes for Obama (in which case Ying wins)

It’s roughly 9:40pm Eastern Time…the election is basically over since Ohio and New Mexico (and Pennsylvania) have been called for Obama. But a quick visit to www.barackobama.com directs you to a page begging you to call voters in swing states. Someone tell these guys its over

(Well, at least they realize it’s election day, doesn’t look like McCain’s site has changed other than a small link to a find your polling place part of the site).

Starting after the election, we will be having a cabinet pool. More information will come out in the coming days but here’s an article on the subject to whet your appetite.

Jeffery Goldberg has a great article out in the Atlantic about the TSA.  Unlike some other critiques of the TSA, it’s not hysterical, and focuses mostly on the agencies most obvious flaws.

My favorite quote:

On another occasion, at LaGuardia, in New York, the transportation-security officer in charge of my secondary screening emptied my carry-on bag of nearly everything it contained, including a yellow, three-foot-by-four-foot Hezbollah flag, purchased at a Hezbollah gift shop in south Lebanon. The flag features, as its charming main image, an upraised fist clutching an AK-47 automatic rifle. Atop the rifle is a line of Arabic writing that reads Then surely the party of God are they who will be triumphant. The officer took the flag and spread it out on the inspection table. She finished her inspection, gave me back my flag, and told me I could go.