Philly Sports Score Big Nationally!

Philadelphia market to get soccer franchise

By Mike Jensen

Inquirer Staff Writer

It may not challenge the established Philadelphia sports teams for fans and media attention just yet. But the Major League Soccer franchise to be awarded to Philadelphia - and Chester - today is joining a league that seems to have gotten its act together.

Yes, MLS never will be the NFL, the English Premier League, or Italy's Serie A. Still, the league that got off to a rocky start in 1996 has diversified its ownership - previously, a couple of billionaire owners kept the league afloat - and network television partners in two languages now pay small rights fees to show their games. The MLS used to pay the networks to show them.

Things are so good that every MLS game was televised nationally or regionally last season.

In the old days, many teams played in NFL stadiums and did not share in stadium revenues. But by the time the Philadelphia franchise begins play in spring 2010, MLS hopes to have 10 to 12 of the 16 franchises playing in soccer-specific stadiums, like the 18,500-seat park planned in Chester.

That's money in the bank and a significant threshold for a league that had an average attendance of 16,770 in 2007, second highest in league history after its inaugural 1996 season.

"It provides a top-level, intimate atmosphere," MLS president Mark Abbott said this week of a soccer-specific stadium. "Secondly, the ancillary revenues you are able to generate are a key component."

Abbott was not willing to confirm the Chester announcement, but a 2 p.m. news conference has been scheduled for today at the future site of the new stadium.

While Philadelphia's ability to provide a suitable place to play and a deep-pocketed ownership group was vital to winning the franchise, real progress has been made on the field by the MLS, too. Signing the world's most famous player, David Beckham, was a powerful symbol even if Beckham showed up injured and has been covered more by The E! Network than ESPN.

That signing and several others represent a departure from the way the league had done business. Although MLS has little intention of reprising the old free-spending North American Soccer League, franchises are now allowed to exceed league-imposed salary limits for "designated players."

Just as important, the franchises identify those players themselves instead of having the league allocate its stars, the way it had when it first began play.


The TrekMedic thinks:

While the TrekMedic isn't a fan of soccer (20 guys running around, ruining a perfectly good field of grass, and people cheering a 0-0 tie isn't a sport), awarding the franchise to Philadelphia helps shine a positive national spotlight and bring some fresh air not only to a region beset by violent crime, but brings hope to a run-down, third-rate city like Chester.

And with a projected average of only 15,000 per game, it'll never surpass the Big Three in Philly (Phillies, Eagles and Flyers) in popularity, but, like the Wings, the Soul, and the Phantoms, it'll offer another affordable family sports venue.

And where else but Philly could have a fan club, the Sons of Ben, years before having an actually team to cheer about?

Oh,...No,......!

Starbucks Closing All Stores for 3 Hours Tuesday Afternoon for Barista Re-training

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

SEATTLE — Starbucks is closing the doors at its 7,100 stores across America for a brief barista re-education.

CEO Howard Schultz announced the 3-hour closure starting at 5:30 p.m. local time Tuesday to energize 135,000 employees.

He wants baristas to share their passion for making espresso, or as he says, "to pull the perfect shot, steam milk to order and customize their favorite beverage."

Schultz says it's part of his refocusing on the coffee customer experience.

Since the chairman returned as CEO in January he has been making changes to revive Starbucks' growth.





(blink)





(blink)




The TrekMedic looks out his office window. Yep,...still raining. Just everyday average rain. No plague of locusts,...no gallons of blood,...hell, no cats or dogs, either!


In other words,.....





Sorry,..a sinus infection, low-grade fever, dizziness and a recalcitrant computer make the TrekMedic snarkier than usual.

More Words Versus Deeds,...

A liberated Lane aiming at CBS3

By Michael Klein

Inquirer Staff Writer

NEW YORK - Former CBS3 anchor Alycia Lane wants to work again in Philadelphia - but for another station.

"She thinks she could beat her old station" in the ratings, her attorney, Paul R. Rosen, said yesterday, after a New York City court hearing put her a step closer to closure. No local stations, though, seem to be in hiring mode.

Lane, 35, no longer faces the felony assault charge filed Dec. 16 after a middle-of-the-night encounter with a plainclothes police officer on a Manhattan street. CBS3 fired her from her $700,000-a-year job two weeks later.

Lane, who has steadfastly maintained her innocence, now faces less serious counts of harassment and obstruction of governmental administration. Both will be dropped in six months if she stays out of trouble, Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Dina Douglas said. Lane did not plead guilty, and her record will not carry a conviction.

Prosecutor Mike Greenman said the felony charge was dropped because the scratches the plainclothes officer sustained were not serious enough to support the charge.

Lane agreed to one day's community service, which she already has performed. She volunteers with Project HOME, the Philadelphia advocacy group for the homeless.

After Douglas approved the deal, Lane's boyfriend, Chris Booker - seated next to her in the harshly lit courtroom - clasped her hand.

Lane's criminal attorney, David Smith, said he agreed to the deal to speed the judicial process and "avoid the public spectacle of further proceedings." He said he expected that Lane would have been cleared at trial; yesterday's agreement offered the same outcome.

"This matter has ended completely," Smith said.

Lane had ducked photographers by entering the courthouse through a side door with Booker; her parents, Marlin and Petrita Lane; her agent, Greg Willinger; and two longtime friends, former TV reporter Trish Bergin and publicist Matthew Hiltzik.

But after the hearing, she faced the throng, appearing in front of cameras for the first time in 10 weeks.

"I'm so glad it is over," said Lane, demure in a black Moschino suit and matching Louboutin stilettos. "I'm looking forward to moving on with my life."


The TrekMedic adds:

I really could care less about how she used her celebrity to beat a rap over beating an officer of the law. I just needed an excuse to publish this pic:

Is It Just Me,...?

So, last night at the Leftist "Pat on the Back" Show,...er, I mean "Oscars," many actors were thumping their chests over the new writers' contract and how the union got over "the man."

Is it any coincidence that many were wearing red??











The TrekMedic posts, you decide.

What Defines a Cult?

And more succinctly, should a cultist become the US president?

That, folks, has been the crux of an ongoing debate between Paul Couturier of Independently Correct Radio and myself over the status of one ex-Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

While Romney has since dropped out of the race, the possibility of that he may become McCain's running mate has kept this disagreement going.

What started this was my belief the Mr. Romney was the victim of the same 40-year old canard that JFK experienced as the first Catholic President of the United States. The fears that the Pope would relocate the Holy See under his administration to Washington were unfounded and Kennedy adhered to the separation of church and state.

Now, Mitt Romney is a Mormon. Mr. Couturier believes Mormons are a cult and placing a Mormon at the very seat of world political power is a mistake of Apocalyptic status.

Mr. Couturier also holds strong Christian beliefs, which appear to conflict with those of Mormons.

To that end, let's set up a few definitions:

• Christianity - in general, the belief that God, by way of the Virgin Birth of Mary, became man (Jesus Christ) in fulfillment of the Scriptures. Jesus, as a teacher and prophet, set about a change from the Judiac beliefs of sin, forgiveness and reconciliation. This is documented in the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, Luke and John.

• Mormonism - Also known as "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints." Mormons, while not a division of Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant faiths, also believe in Jesus Christ, but are also guided, in part, by the Book of Mormon, as translated by their founder, Joseph Smith, through the divine inspiration of the Angel Moroni.

Now, I'm going to throw another cult into the mix for contrast: Scientology.

Those who read this blog regularly know that I have a hard-on against this cult. I believe Scientology has been acquired by the movers and shakers in Hollywood who would seek the ablate the injection of morality into their works and specifically targets Catholic actors and performers, thus ostracizing non-members and rewarding ex-Catholic converts.

What's worse is Scientology has no basis in any Judeo-Christian creed, but instead is based upon a pulp science fiction book!

So, given our choices in the 21st Century, would you rather place Mitt Romney, a man who's beliefs are in the divine, or someone like Tom Cruise, who follows the rants of a deluded hack writer?

The choice is yours, folks. I've made mine!

**THAT'S MY OPINION AND YOU'RE ENTITLED TO IT!**

A Broken Nose is Less Than Words?

(More un-PC advertisements can be found here!)

4 students suspended after attack at Temple
The assault, in which a man’s nose was broken, is tentatively being labeled a hate crime.

By Carlin Romano

INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Four Temple University students have been suspended in what is being tentatively characterized as a hate-crime assault on the main campus.

Temple president Anne Weaver Hart announced the suspensions Friday, saying they resulted from a confrontation early Feb. 15 on North Broad Street.

"The assault included anti-Semitic language, and the student was seriously injured," Hart informed members of the Temple community in an e-mail.

The students were suspended pending a University Disciplinary Committee hearing, Hart stated. University police, in collaboration with the Philadelphia Police Department, are pursuing criminal charges.

"We are taking this situation very seriously," Hart wrote. ". . . Hate crimes will not be tolerated by Temple University."

According to an NBC10 report, two men, neither one a Temple student, were assaulted. The station reported that they had left a restaurant and were standing outside the former North Broad Street house of the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, which recently moved to a nearby location.

According to the television report, the Temple students asked the men if they belonged to the fraternity. When the men answered no, the report said, at least one of the students made an anti-Semitic remark and punched one of the victims, leaving him with a broken orbital bone in his face and a broken nose.

Temple's assistant director of news communications, Hillel Hoffmann, said last night that he could not confirm any details beyond Hart's statement.

"I know that one was physically assaulted, but I don't know how many victims there are if you include verbal assault," Hoffman said.

Hoffman said federal privacy laws prevented the university from releasing the names of the suspended students as long as they remained Temple students and had not been charged with a crime.

Joel Littman, president of Alpha Epsilon Pi, said he had been asked not to comment on details of the allegations. But after he was told about the NBC10 account, he said, "That's pretty much my understanding of the incident."

While the victims were not members of Alpha Epsilon Pi, he said, "as the Jewish fraternity on campus, we take the stance that anti-Semitic attacks or any sort of racism is unacceptable in 2008."

The national fraternity's Web page states that "Alpha Epsilon Pi was founded to provide opportunities for the Jewish college man seeking the best possible college and fraternity experience."


The TrekMedic seethes:

As someone who's given (and taken) a punch or two in his day, you're going to tell me the more serious matter here (and the one garnering more attention) is the anti-Semitic remarks and not the cold-cock to the face that resulted in some serious trauma???

Is Temple President Hart sending a message that words aren't tolerated, but busting heads is perfectly OK, so long as you don't bring race or ethnicity to the fight?

Whiskey,..Tango,..Foxtrot???

Another View of the NYT McCain Smear,...

Dumbed down for the liberals readers:

What Took Them So Long?

With Shrillary's campaign in shambles and a McCain/Obama election going in McCain's favor, is it any surprise that the NYT finally got around to slinging the mud to curry some "D" favor?


The Long Run
For McCain, Self-Confidence on Ethics Poses Its Own Risk

By JIM RUTENBERG, MARILYN W. THOMPSON, DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK and STEPHEN LABATON
Published: February 21, 2008
WASHINGTON — Early in Senator John McCain’s first run for the White House eight years ago, waves of anxiety swept through his small circle of advisers.

A female lobbyist had been turning up with him at fund-raisers, visiting his offices and accompanying him on a client’s corporate jet. Convinced the relationship had become romantic, some of his top advisers intervened to protect the candidate from himself — instructing staff members to block the woman’s access, privately warning her away and repeatedly confronting him, several people involved in the campaign said on the condition of anonymity.

When news organizations reported that Mr. McCain had written letters to government regulators on behalf of the lobbyist’s client, the former campaign associates said, some aides feared for a time that attention would fall on her involvement.

Mr. McCain, 71, and the lobbyist, Vicki Iseman, 40, both say they never had a romantic relationship. But to his advisers, even the appearance of a close bond with a lobbyist whose clients often had business before the Senate committee Mr. McCain led threatened the story of redemption and rectitude that defined his political identity.

It had been just a decade since an official favor for a friend with regulatory problems had nearly ended Mr. McCain’s political career by ensnaring him in the Keating Five scandal. In the years that followed, he reinvented himself as the scourge of special interests, a crusader for stricter ethics and campaign finance rules, a man of honor chastened by a brush with shame.

But the concerns about Mr. McCain’s relationship with Ms. Iseman underscored an enduring paradox of his post-Keating career. Even as he has vowed to hold himself to the highest ethical standards, his confidence in his own integrity has sometimes seemed to blind him to potentially embarrassing conflicts of interest.

Mr. McCain promised, for example, never to fly directly from Washington to Phoenix, his hometown, to avoid the impression of self-interest because he sponsored a law that opened the route nearly a decade ago. But like other lawmakers, he often flew on the corporate jets of business executives seeking his support, including the media moguls Rupert Murdoch, Michael R. Bloomberg and Lowell W. Paxson, Ms. Iseman’s client. (Last year he voted to end the practice.)

Mr. McCain helped found a nonprofit group to promote his personal battle for tighter campaign finance rules. But he later resigned as its chairman after news reports disclosed that the group was tapping the same kinds of unlimited corporate contributions he opposed, including those from companies seeking his favor. He has criticized the cozy ties between lawmakers and lobbyists, but is relying on corporate lobbyists to donate their time running his presidential race and recently hired a lobbyist to run his Senate office.

“He is essentially an honorable person,” said William P. Cheshire, a friend of Mr. McCain who as editorial page editor of The Arizona Republic defended him during the Keating Five scandal. “But he can be imprudent.”

Mr. Cheshire added, “That imprudence or recklessness may be part of why he was not more astute about the risks he was running with this shady operator,” Charles Keating, whose ties to Mr. McCain and four other lawmakers tainted their reputations in the savings and loan debacle.

During his current campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, Mr. McCain has played down his attacks on the corrupting power of money in politics, aware that the stricter regulations he championed are unpopular in his party. When the Senate overhauled lobbying and ethics rules last year, Mr. McCain stayed in the background.

With his nomination this year all but certain, though, he is reminding voters again of his record of reform. His campaign has already begun comparing his credentials with those of Senator Barack Obama, a Democratic contender who has made lobbying and ethics rules a centerpiece of his own pitch to voters.

“I would very much like to think that I have never been a man whose favor can be bought,” Mr. McCain wrote about his Keating experience in his 2002 memoir, “Worth the Fighting For.” “From my earliest youth, I would have considered such a reputation to be the most shameful ignominy imaginable. Yet that is exactly how millions of Americans viewed me for a time, a time that I will forever consider one of the worst experiences of my life.”

A drive to expunge the stain on his reputation in time turned into a zeal to cleanse Washington as well. The episode taught him that “questions of honor are raised as much by appearances as by reality in politics,” he wrote, “and because they incite public distrust they need to be addressed no less directly than we would address evidence of expressly illegal corruption.”

God, that's weak. Apply the same standards to the Democratic candidates and see what appears! It won't be pretty!

Sh-h-h-h! The MSM Doesn't Want You to Know This,...

Because it makes the "W" administration's terror vigilance look good:

HT to Hugh Hewitt for breaking this one:

TIA Passenger Had Box Cutter In Hollowed-Out Book

A security officer at Tampa International Airport found a box cutter hidden in a hollowed-out book on Sunday.

By Thomas W. Krause of The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 20, 2008

TAMPA - A 21-year-old Clearwater man was arrested at Tampa International Airport this weekend after security personnel found a box cutter in a hollowed-out book, authorities said.

Benjamin Baines Jr.

If convicted, Baines faces up to 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine for a federal charge of attempting to board an airplane with a concealed dangerous weapon. He is currently serving a 30 day
sentence after pleading guilty Monday to a state misdemeanor charge of carrying a concealed weapon.

About 7:30 a.m. Sunday, airport security ran Benjamin Baines Jr.'s backpack through an X-ray machine and saw the image of a box cutter, according to a report from the Transportation Security Administration.

When searching the backpack, a security officer found a book titled "Fear Itself." The book was hollowed out, and the box cutter was inside.

After Baines was read his rights, he said his cousin had cut away the pages to make the hollow section in the book. Later, reports state, he said he had hollowed it out himself to hide money and marijuana from his roommates.

Baines told officers he was moving to Las Vegas and forgot the cutter was in the book.
Officers found books in the backpack titled "Muhammad in the Bible," "The Prophet's Prayer" and "The Noble Qur'an." He also had a copy of the Quran and the Bible.

Several sheets of paper in the backpack included rap lyrics that referred to police, narcotics, weapons and killing. Baines told officers he is a rapper who writes his own lyrics and that rap music writers need to "play the part," the report states.

Officers performed a background check and found no record of crimes or active warrants.
He was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and booked into Orient Road Jail. At his first appearance in court Monday, Baines pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 days in jail, according to an employee with the Hillsborough County clerk of court. He remained in Orient Road Jail today.

The U.S. Attorney's Office also filed a federal charge of attempting to board an aircraft with a concealed dangerous weapon. The federal charge against Baines was filed Sunday but was not announced until today, said Steve Cole, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tampa.

Cole said Baines will be arrested by U.S. marshals upon his release from jail on the state charge.

Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813) 259-7698 or tkrause@tampatrib.com.

Sit UBU, Sit!

Good Dog,....



HT to Tony Phyrillas for this gem!


I have nothing to add to this,...just LMAO!

I Am An Angry White Man!

HT to Hannity for bringing this one up today:

In election 2008, don’t forget Angry White Man
Gary Hubbell
February 9, 2008

There is a great amount of interest in this year’s presidential elections, as everybody seems to recognize that our next president has to be a lot better than George Bush. The Democrats are riding high with two groundbreaking candidates — a woman and an African-American — while the conservative Republicans are in a quandary about their party’s nod to a quasi-liberal maverick, John McCain.

Each candidate is carefully pandering to a smörgåsbord of special-interest groups, ranging from gay, lesbian and transgender people to children of illegal immigrants to working mothers to evangelical Christians.

There is one group no one has recognized, and it is the group that will decide the election: the Angry White Man. The Angry White Man comes from all economic backgrounds, from dirt-poor to filthy rich. He represents all geographic areas in America, from urban sophisticate to rural redneck, deep South to mountain West, left Coast to Eastern Seaboard.

His common traits are that he isn’t looking for anything from anyone — just the promise to be able to make his own way on a level playing field. In many cases, he is an independent businessman and employs several people. He pays more than his share of taxes and works hard.

The victimhood syndrome buzzwords — “disenfranchised,” “marginalized” and “voiceless” — don’t resonate with him. “Press ‘one’ for English” is a curse-word to him. He’s used to picking up the tab, whether it’s the company Christmas party, three sets of braces, three college educations or a beautiful wedding.

He believes the Constitution is to be interpreted literally, not as a “living document” open to the whims and vagaries of a panel of judges who have never worked an honest day in their lives.

The Angry White Man owns firearms, and he’s willing to pick up a gun to defend his home and his country. He is willing to lay down his life to defend the freedom and safety of others, and the thought of killing someone who needs killing really doesn’t bother him.

The Angry White Man is not a metrosexual, a homosexual or a victim. Nobody like him drowned in Hurricane Katrina — he got his people together and got the hell out, then went back in to rescue those too helpless and stupid to help themselves, often as a police officer, a National Guard soldier or a volunteer firefighter.

His last name and religion don’t matter. His background might be Italian, English, Polish, German, Slavic, Irish, or Russian, and he might have Cherokee, Mexican, or Puerto Rican mixed in, but he considers himself a white American.

He’s a man’s man, the kind of guy who likes to play poker, watch football, hunt white-tailed deer, call turkeys, play golf, spend a few bucks at a strip club once in a blue moon, change his own oil and build things. He coaches baseball, soccer and football teams and doesn’t ask for a penny. He’s the kind of guy who can put an addition on his house with a couple of friends, drill an oil well, weld a new bumper for his truck, design a factory and publish books. He can fill a train with 100,000 tons of coal and get it to the power plant on time so that you keep the lights on and never know what it took to flip that light switch.

Women either love him or hate him, but they know he’s a man, not a dishrag. If they’re looking for someone to walk all over, they’ve got the wrong guy. He stands up straight, opens doors for women and says “Yes, sir” and “No, ma’am.”

He might be a Republican and he might be a Democrat; he might be a Libertarian or a Green. He knows that his wife is more emotional than rational, and he guides the family in a rational manner.

He’s not a racist, but he is annoyed and disappointed when people of certain backgrounds exhibit behavior that typifies the worst stereotypes of their race. He’s willing to give everybody a fair chance if they work hard, play by the rules and learn English.

Most important, the Angry White Man is pissed off. When his job site becomes flooded with illegal workers who don’t pay taxes and his wages drop like a stone, he gets righteously angry. When his job gets shipped overseas, and he has to speak to some incomprehensible idiot in India for tech support, he simmers. When Al Sharpton comes on TV, leading some rally for reparations for slavery or some such nonsense, he bites his tongue and he remembers. When a child gets charged with carrying a concealed weapon for mistakenly bringing a penknife to school, he takes note of who the local idiots are in education and law enforcement.

He also votes, and the Angry White Man loathes Hillary Clinton. Her voice reminds him of a shovel scraping a rock. He recoils at the mere sight of her on television. Her very image disgusts him, and he cannot fathom why anyone would want her as their leader. It’s not that she is a woman. It’s that she is who she is. It’s the liberal victim groups she panders to, the “poor me” attitude that she represents, her inability to give a straight answer to an honest question, his tax dollars that she wants to give to people who refuse to do anything for themselves.

There are many millions of Angry White Men. Four million Angry White Men are members of the National Rifle Association, and all of them will vote against Hillary Clinton, just as the great majority of them voted for George Bush.

He hopes that she will be the Democratic nominee for president in 2008, and he will make sure that she gets beaten like a drum.

Hope Springs Eternal!

Does this February weather have you down?



Upset that the Eagles couldn't make it to Glendale, Arizona with a head-case, one-legged QB and a head coach with more issues than the Spears' family?



Worry no more, Philadelphia sports fans!!

Phils 'relaxed' as they arrive at camp
Hamels, teammates know they have more to prove in '08
By Ken Mandel / MLB.com

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef easily won the distinction as the highlight of Cole Hamels' winter vacation, a 25-day excursion to Australia.

"I wanted to swim with the sharks, but my wife wouldn't let me," Hamels said, laughing. "She knew I'd probably get hurt."

An injury due to a shark attack would be frowned on by the Phillies, who need Hamels to instead devour National League hitters in 2008. He also held koala bears at an Australian zoo, a task that carried significantly less risk.

Either way, the lefty is refreshed after his excursion on the other side of the world and ready to play baseball again. Hamels was just one of 38 pitchers and catchers -- as well as a handful of position players that included Ryan Howard, Geoff Jenkins, Pedro Feliz and Greg Dobbs -- gathered in Clearwater for the start of another Spring Training.

This spring was slightly different, as each player's uniform contained a target on the back, a result that comes with winning the NL East in 2007. The Phillies, as shortstop and reigning NL MVP Jimmy Rollins proclaimed more than a year ago, are the team to beat.

"When I talked to them, they definitely were relaxed," said manager Charlie Manuel, who gave his team a welcome to Spring Training speech. "I like that as long we're having fun in the right way. The message I wanted to send is basically about competing and staying focused on what you're doing, and also getting better."

The Phillies have few unresolved roster issues. There is no competition for starting jobs among position players and the bench appears set. Hamels, Brett Myers, Kyle Kendrick and Jamie Moyer are assured spots in the rotation, and Adam Eaton has the inside track on a fifth-starter competition that includes Kris Benson, Travis Blackley, Chad Durbin and J.D. Durbin.

Brad Lidge is the closer and Tom Gordon, J.C. Romero and Ryan Madson will set up. Chad Durbin is assured a roster spot, so he'll relieve if he's not the fifth starter, leaving two jobs available from among Clay Condrey, aFabio Castro, Lincoln Holdzcom and Joe Bisenius.

Staying healthy, as always, is paramount. No one needs to be reminded of the slew of injuries that required the use of a franchise-record 28 pitchers last season and nearly sabotaged the playoff push.

Though the Phillies still speak of 2007's accomplishments, they strive to avoid the sweep against the Rockies in the NL Division Series that left them watching the remainder of the postseason.

"Having that in the back of our heads says that we still have so much more to prove," Hamels said. "We do need to defend something, but we want something more."

That first step arrived Thursday, as pitchers and catchers stretched, threw and performed drills in comfortable conditions. Some players, including Kendrick and Hamels, catcher Chris Coste, Pat Burrell and Chase Utley, had already been in Florida for a few days, but being around a larger group meant more.

"When the season ended, I was very disappointed for a while," Gordon said. "I felt that we had the best ballclub, the best team. I couldn't believe we [were no longer in the playoffs]. That was hard. I think we definitely have a team that can go further."

Ken Mandel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

The TrekMedic, for one, isn't soiling his shorts because the NY Mutts signed Johan Santana! True Phillies fans go through this BS every year with our rowdy neighbors to the north!

Just remember, not only did we win the NL East Championship, we have the last two National League MVPs!

Create free ringtones at Phonezoo



Take that, New York!

Oh, yeah,..and we won the division steroid-free!

And the Winner Is,....

Askmen.com's Top 99 Women Survey:

Number 1?



Katherine Heigl from Grey's Anatomy.

She's not bad, but the TrekMedic was lobbying hard for this piece of anatomy, instead:



Scarlett Johansson, 21st-Century Marilyn Monroe, IMN-SHO!

Opinions?

Hel-lo!

The only thing ruining this shot is now I can't get Bette Midler singing that &@&^!%@ "Heroes" song out of my head!

Should Rendell Have Received a Rosie Award?

When I first read PA Gov. Ed Rendell's remarks about the upcoming primary, that was my first reaction.

However, as much as it may pain me to support the Democrat in Harrisburg, he's probably right.

As many know, I directed the Red November 2006 campaign, supporting and blogging in favor of every local Republican candidate in the Philly metro area.

I also had to commute to work every day through some seriously RED communities.

During those 16-mile commutes, I passed a plethora of campaign posters supporting the Santorum campaign, the Republican campaigns of every federal and local race germane to the township, and every Republican school board slate running.

What was missing on those finely-manicured front lawns?

The "Swann for Governor" posters and placards!

It sickened me!

You can chalk it up to a resignation of the inevitable (an incumbent has never lost a gubernatorial race in PA). I chalk it up to something far more insidous and disgusting.

And Rendell is right to bring it up on the other side of the aisle.

Michael Smerconish also has a great take on this issue here.

In a Perfect World,...

In a perfect world, Obama's inexperience would trump his erudition and articulation,...

In a perfect world, Billary's Machiavellian politics would've landed both of them in Leavenworth a long time ago,....

In a perfect world, the Thompson/Romney ticket would've garnered 90% of the electoral college vote.

But we don't live in a perfect world, do we?

The TrekMedic started this Red November campaign supporting Fred Thompson; but, he was too slow and his momentum came too late.

Then the TrekMedic threw his support behind Mitt Romney; but, he was blind-sided by the two-pronged McCain/Huckabee attack.

And so now we are left with McCain and two extreme leftists as our choices.

We already know what the White House will be like if Shrillary or Obama win,..we've seen it under the aegis of Empress Nancy and her Senatorial lapdog, Harry Reid.

People fear that John McCain is too much of a RINO. Given his actions with Sen. Feingold and the Gang of Fourteen, those suspicions are quite valid.

But we don't know what the future holds, do we?

George W. Bush ran on a campaign of "compassionate conservativism" against cries from the left of religious zealotry. And "W's" compassion went by the wayside on September 11, 2001, courtesy of a few religious zealots we didn't see coming.

There are those who would defer to the Dems in the hopes that things will get so bad, the only choice in 2012 would be going back to the Republicans.

We cannot afford the blood of 3000 more innocents to occur before that happens!

And there are some who would rather sit this election out on principal. That's not only hypocritical, but a black eye to not only our Constitution, but to those who dabbed the fingers in pots of ink to exercise the same rights for the first time in generations.

Marie offers her Two Cents on this subject as well:


A Message To My Republican/Conservative Party

Do NOT Sit Out This Election Just Because McCain Is Going To Be Our Nominee!!

Sitting out this election just because McCain is going to be our nominee is sheer stupidity! We still have the House and Senate to think of among other things.

Besides if the word's "President Elect-Clinton" or "President Elect-Obama" dont scare the absolute hell out of you, YOU have something wrong with YOU!

Staying home will be a Vote for Hillary, or Obama and God know's who in the House and Senate.

I am and alway's will be a FredHead, but he left me, then Romney left me, but did I leave the Republican Reservation? Hell No!! A True Republican/Conservative does'nt leave the reservation just because they didnt get thier perfect candidate!

McCain has done alot of things we ALL didnt approve of and we flat out called him out on and when it came to Amnesty, we got it stopped! ALL OF US.

He said in his speech (See Post Below) that he has heard us. And he swears he will consult with his own Republicans and Conservatives that will be surrounding him that know what WE want and how pissed off WE will get if HE does'nt listen to us.

And then there's the SCOTUS. He will appoint Conservative Judges, if Obama and/or Hillary are elected, they wont.


And then there is the War on Terror. Do we want to go back to a police action? Do we want to be atttacked repeatedly? Instead of confronting those that want to kill us and keep them busy somewhere else than here at home? Well Clinton nor Obama will, they will withdraw and Al-Qaeda will be able to set up a safe haven in Iraq and our Soldiers will have died in vein.

Does anybody really want that?

I'm just saying, I would rather have some kind of Conservative then none!

DeMint Calls on Conservatives to Back McCain

McCain Sends Chill Down Spine, Reid Says

Anyone that send's chills down Harry Reid's spine has got to be doing something right lol

Conservatives Ready to Support McCain


And that, gentle readers, is it. We must put aside our differences and unite to save this country from the slippery slope of Socialism. We MUST vote in November and we MUST vote for John McCain!

A Valentine from Tony Phyrillas to the Dems

Because Tony is THE MAN!




Y'know,..there's a reason why Hearts, Valentines and all things related to this day are RED!!!!

(The answer for the typically oblivious lefties: Dems don't have hearts!)

Because "Whored Out" Would've Been Too Much Like the Truth,....

Clinton: MSNBC Chelsea Remarks ‘Incredibly Offensive’
by FOXNews.com

Hillary Clinton said Saturday that the remarks made Thursday on MSNBC about her daughter Chelsea being “pimped out” by the campaign were “incredibly offensive,” and she expects “appropriate action” taken.

Clinton reacted personally to the comments while campaigning in Maine, after correspondent David Shuster apologized twice Friday on air for making the comments.

“I am a mother first and a candidate second, and I found the remarks incredibly offensive,” Clinton said. “I can take whatever comes my way, that’s part of what I signed up for as a candidate, as an office holder. But I think that there’s been a troubling pattern of comments and behavior that has to be held accountable. So I have sent a letter to the head of NBC expressing the deep offense that I took and pointing out what has been a troubling pattern of demeaning treatment and I would expect appropriate action to be taken.”

Clinton’s campaign is already threatening to boycott future debates on MSNBC in the wake of the remarks, and Clinton said Saturday, “We’ve accepted a lot of debates from a lot of different sponsors. So we’re going to wait and see how this plays out.”

Shuster said on air Thursday, while talking about Chelsea Clinton placing phone calls to Democratic superdelegates on her mother’s behalf: “Doesn’t it seem as if Chelsea is sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?”

Shuster has since been temporarily suspended, and is not allowed on air except to make his apologies.

“I used a phrase that was inappropriate. I apologize to the Clinton family, the Clinton campaign and all of you who are justifiably offended,” he said Friday evening on “Tucker.”

“As I said this morning on MSNBC, all Americans should be proud of Chelsea Clinton, and I am particularly sorry that my language diminished the regard and the respect she has earned from all of us, and the respect her parents have earned in how they raised her,” he said.

“NBC News takes these matters seriously, and offers our sincere regrets to the Clintons for the remarks,” MSNBC spokesman Jeremy Gaines said, adding the network was hopeful the debate would take place as planned.

But in a letter to the network, Clinton said “no temporary suspension or half-hearted apology is sufficient.”

And in a conference call with reporters Friday, Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson excoriated Shuster for making the comment, which he called “beneath contempt” and disgusting.

“I, at this point, can’t envision a scenario where we would continue to engage in debates on that network given that comment,” he said.

Clinton and Barack Obama were scheduled to participate in an MSNBC debate Feb. 26 in Ohio, one of just two debates Obama has consented to before March 4, when Ohio and other states hold primaries.

The Clinton campaign has pushed hard for as many debates as possible with Obama, but Wolfson said the Feb. 26 debate could be jeopardized.

Wolfson pointed to what he called a pattern of tasteless comments by MSNBC anchors about the Clinton campaign. Weeks ago, “Hardball” host Chris Matthews apologized to the former first lady after suggesting her political career had been made possible her husband’s philandering.

Wolfson said neither Chelsea nor Sen. Clinton had received a phone call offering a personal apology, even though Shuster told The Associated Press he’s tried to reach Clinton to do so.

“I’m not familiar with any apology,” Wolfson said, during a call where the campaign also announced raising more than $8 million online since Super Tuesday. “It’s the kind of thing that should never be said on a national news network.”

Click here to hear Shuster’s comment about Chelsea Clinton.


The TrekMedic observes:

Hmmm,....we all know the Shrill One does nothing without first calculating the risk. Obama-bin-Laden is cleaning her clock,...her crocodile tears aren't gaining any more sympathy votes,...so why not send her daughter out to the wolves and see all the media attention draw back to her campaign.

Nice try Shrillary,..not going to work!

Right Back At Ya!

Posting this because:

1. Its that kind of a day in TrekVille,...
2. Advisor and "A-List" Blogger Wyatt said I should post more babes!

Carlin's New Rules,...

So,..its a Sunday, the TrekMedic was up all night at job #2, tending to a Mass Casualty Incident by drips and drabs (food poisonings from people who ate at the same restaurant),...and, in reviewing the squad's day shift MCI on the Turnpike, found this on a Fire-related forum:

New Rule: Stop giving me that pop-up ad for classmates.com! There's a reason you don't talk to people for 25 years. Because you don't particularly like them! Besides, I already know what the captain of the football team is doing these days: mowing my lawn.

New Rule: Don't eat anything that's served to you out a window unless you're a seagull. People are acting all shocked that a human finger was found in a bowl of Wendy's chili. Hey, it cost less than a dollar. What did you expect it to contain? Trout?

New Rule: Stop saying that teenage boys who have sex with their hot, blonde teachers are permanently damaged. I have a better description for these kids: lucky bastards.

New Rule: If you need to shave and you still collect baseball cards, you're a retard. When you're a kid, the cards are keepsakes of your idols. When you're a grown man, they're pictures of men.

New Rule: Ladies, leave your eyebrows alone. Here's how much men care about your eyebrows: do you have two of them? Okay, we're done.

New Rule: There's no such thing as flavored water. There's a whole aisle of this crap at the supermarket, water, but without that watery taste. Sorry, but flavored water is called a soft drink. You want flavored water? Pour some scotch over ice and let it melt. That's your flavored water.

New Rule: Stop fucking with old people. Target is introducing a redesigned pill bottle that's square, with a bigger label. And the top is now the bottom. And by the time grandpa figures out how to open it, his ass will be in the morgue. Congratulations, Target, you just solved the Social Security crisis.

New Rule: The more complicated the Starbucks order, the bigger the ass hole. If you walk into a Starbucks and order a "decaf Grande half-soy, half-low fat, iced vanilla, double-shot, gingerbread
cappuccino, extra dry, light ice, with one Sweet-n'-Low and one
NutraSweet," Ooh, you're a huge ass hole.

New Rule: I'm not the cashier! By the time I look up from sliding my card, selecting ' Debit,' entering my PIN, pressing 'Enter,' verifying the amount, deciding, no, I don't want cash back, and pressing 'Enter' again, the kid who is supposed to be ringing me up is standing there eating my Almond Joy.

New Rule: Girls, just because your tattoo has Chinese characters in it doesn't make you spiritual. It's right above the crack of your ass. And it translates to "beef with broccoli." The last time you did anything spiritual, you were praying to God you weren't pregnant. You're not spiritual. You're just high.

New Rule: Competitive eating isn't a sport. It's one of the seven deadly sins. ESPN recently televised the US Open of Competitive Eating, because watching those athletes at the poker table was just too damned exciting. What's next, competitive farting? Oh wait. They're already doing that. It's called "The Howard Stern Show."

New Rule: I don't need a bigger mega M&M. If I'm extra hungry for M&Ms, I'll go nuts and eat two.

New Rule: If you're going to insist on making movies based on crappy, old television shows, then you have to give everyone in the Cineplex a remote so we can see what's playing on the other screens. Let's remember the reason something was a television show in the first place is that the idea wasn't good enough to be a movie.

New Rule: No more gift registries. You know, it used to be just for weddings. Now it's for babies and new homes and graduations from rehab. Picking out the stuff you want and having other people buy it for you isn't gift giving, it's the white people version of looting.


Credit to whomever originally posted it!

Darwinism Strikes Again!

The TrekMedic is becoming the Fox News of the Blogosphere,...I report, you decide:

Cops: Mom Gave 11-Year-Old Daughter Beer, Marijuana as Birthday Gift

Friday, February 08, 2008

An Indiana woman was arrested Wednesday on charges she gave her 11-year-old daughter alcohol and marijuana as a birthday gift, according to reports.

Davita Fuller, 26, of Anderson, Ind., has been charged with one felonious count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor after cops alleged the woman offered beer and pot to her daughter and three of her friends during a birthday party on Feb. 1, according to reports by FOX59.com and TheIndyChannel.com.

Fuller's daughter accepted the invitation, according to eyewitnesses.

"They saw her tip the alcohol beverage up and they saw her inhale what they described as a blunt," Det. Joel Sandefur of the Anderson Police Department told FOX59.com.

Fuller told police that she was smoking pot and drinking beer with her adult friends at the party, but denied giving them to her daughter, police said.

"This is something we're not going to tolerate," Sandefur said.

Click here for more from FOX59.com.

Click here for more from TheIndyChannel.com.

Priorities,..Priorities,....

HT Wyatt at Support Your Local Gunfighter:





Congratulations ma'am, you have just been named an honorary Kennedy!


A Florida woman arrested on drunk-driving charges on Super Bowl Sunday, allegedly buckled up her case of beer in the front seat, but left a 1-year-old girl in the backseat without one, police told FirstCoastNews.com.

Tina Williams was stopped in St. Augustine, Fla., after she allegedly ran a red light and then swerved back and forth over a center lane on U.S. 1 South, police said.

Williams told police she didn't know why the baby was in the backseat without a seatbelt or a car seat, according to the report.

She was charged with driving under the influence, child endangerment, driving without a valid license, running a red light and not having a seatbelt or child restraint. (H/T - FOXNews)

I got nuthin'. Really, what can you say after reading this?


The TrekMedic adds:

If it were Yuengling, and this occurred in Pottsville, no charges would be filed!

The Fat Lady's SInging!

BREAKING NEWS - THIS IS AN EVOLVING STORY!


Romney to Quit Race During CPAC Speech

Developing Story …

Mitt Romney will drop out of the Republican presidential race during his speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference Thursday, FOX News has confirmed.

Romney is “suspending” his campaign and will say so “during his speech,” a top aide told FOX News.

Romney has steadily lost ground over the past few weeks to John McCain, whose victories on Super Tuesday made a comeback for Romney extremely difficult.

Time Magazine’s Mark Halperin, who reported that Romney would quit on his blog The Page, told FOX News, “The race was mathematically and politically mostly over before now.”
McCain is leading Romney by more than 3-1 in the delegate count, and Romney also was losing ground to Mike Huckabee, who picked up nearly as many victories as he did on Super Tuesday.

“One of the biggest barriers to Mitt Romney becoming the nominee was Mike Huckabee,” Halperin said. “I don’t think Huckabee stands much of a chance to overtake McCain either, but he certainly stood in Mitt Romney’s way.”

Click here to read The Page blog on Romney quitting the race.

The TrekMedic is at work right now,...I'll comment on this tonight!

The REAL Winner of Super Bowl XLII

OK,..the TrekMedic is a die-hard Eagles fan, so he didn't give a rat's ass who won the game. Last night was for strombolis, wings and beer (Yuengling, not this crap):





Lousy beer, LMAO commercials!

Shrillary's At It Again!

Are you S**ting Me???

Hillary Tells Audience She’s Misty-Eyed Again

Did Hillary Clinton get misty-eyed again?

At least she said she did.

It wasn’t clear from a reporter’s standpoint that she actually shed tears, but after the Democratic presidential candidate took the microphone Monday from one of her old law school professors at a New Haven, Conn., event, Clinton indicated the moment had gotten to her.

“I said I would not tear up. Already, we’re not exactly on that path,” Clinton told the audience.

Photos from the event also reveal what appear to be moist eyelids on the former first lady.

The comment comes just one day before the presidential candidates face voters in Super Tuesday polls, and Clinton is hoping to edge out a surging Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination.

This also comes less than a month after another public emotional moment for Clinton.

Clinton was facing criticism in early January for not being human enough, but a widely seen video recording showed Clinton shedding a tear at a New Hampshire event just before the primary there. That moment might have helped give her the boost she needed to win The Granite State.

The moment in Connecticut came as she revisited her law school days while hosting a campaign event at the Yale Child Study Center where she first pursued her interest in child advocacy.

Penn Rhodeen, a New Haven public interest lawyer who worked with Clinton as a student, recalled her showing up on his doorstep wearing purple bell-bottoms.

“It was so 1972,” he recalled, praising Clinton for her longtime interest in helping children.

“Here is the abiding truth we know — you have always been a champion for children. Welcome home, dear friend. We are so proud of you,” he said.

Clinton at one point wiped her eyes with her hand, but unlike her teary-eyed moment in Portsmouth, N.H., her voice never broke.

Clinton also was showing some of the stress of the campaign trail as she had coughing spell at the Monday event.

Clinton had insisted Sunday night on her plane that she’s feeling fine, but a string of long days on the campaign trail have led to a scratchy voice and a cough that comes and goes.

In the middle of Monday’s event, it came in a big way. Five aides rushed out of the room to fetch a lozenge as she struggled to control the cough, asking the participants o continue.

Through Monday, she had one more rally scheduled, an appearance on David Letterman’s show Monday night, and a 90-minute national town hall after that.

FOX News’ Aaron Bruns and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The TrekMedic weighs in:

Ok,..separated at birth,...

The Shrill One:












And Elaan of Troyius (Star Trek Original Series):












The link:

The Enterprise transports Elaan, the female ruler of the warrior Troyians, to the planet of her enemy so that her arranged marriage will halt their interplanetary war. Kirk must teach the arrogant, vicious ruler the ways of polite society but falls victim to the legendary weapon of Troyian women: their tears act as a love potion.

Yeah,..I'm a Sci-Fi geek,..that's why I'm called the "TrekMedic," right?

Professional Tribute

The TrekMedic will be away watching the Super Bowl commercials today and serving jury duty tomorrow.

To fill in the gap, he's cross-posting this EMS tribute from MaddMedic:





Enjoy!

What Military Aircraft Are You?

Time for a Mindless Meme on a Slow Saturday!

HT to the Ambulance Driver for this one:

What military aircraft are you? F-15 Eagle You are an F-15. Your record in combat is spotless; you've never been defeated. You possess good looks, but are not flashy about it. You prefer to let your reputation do the talking. You are fast, agile, and loud, but reaching the end of your stardom.

Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

After the Sopranos - Actors Whacked,..or Wacked?

What a shame he's down to this: