The Frankish Reich

From Vivek’s lips to Rama’s ear.

Tourette girl is funny, whether voluntary or not. But I'm calling bs. The references to "Chris" specifically seem fake. As does flipping him off at the end.

FAILING PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE ENCOURAGES RELIGIOUS HATE CRIME

Personally, I will take my common sense from whatever unlikely source it emerges from. Go Lurch!

WR aging patterns: - traditional wisdom (which went on right up to about 5 years ago) was that WRs have much greater longevity than RBs - new analysis shows that 30 is kind of an inflection point. A lot of this has been done with respect to fantasy, which is not real life. But a lot of it is applicable to real life. I don't have time to provide links now, but maybe if I'm bored around Christmas I'll start a "WR Aging Patterns" thread that everyone can ignore ... Diggs just turned 30. Drops? I don't think that has anything to do with aging. As a long time receiver, that's statistical noise. His drop rate going forward will very likely be what his historic drop rate has been over the course of his career. That's a blip. But separation (earlier, page 8 somewhere, there was a comment showing Next Gen stats on separation by year) is probably a real effect, and one that is related to aging. Bottom line: he's likely into his decline phase, but I see no reason for worry for the rest of the season. But when the decline hits it often hits hard, which doesn't bode well for next season and beyond. Interesting point: big WRs, who tend to be possession receiver types, generally age better. That would apply to Gabe, except that Gabe has never really been used as a possession type receiver ...

Good one. But ... there's a lag time between an improving economy and the perception that the economy is, in fact, improving. Worrying for Biden supporters that we're now 11 months from the election and public opinion isn't showing any signs of shifting yet. But if we avoid recession (an the "soft landing" scenario is now the majority opinion of economists) there's a good chance that opinion does shift by summer. As with everything, we shall see.

Sometimes a player turns out to be exactly what he was projected to be. See Scouting Report, Davis, Gabriel. https://www.nfl.com/prospects/gabriel-davis/32004441-5632-9675-38f5-3e009da4e98e Big target with outstanding 2019 production in an offense that created favorable big play opportunities. Davis is a sideline threat with a good feel for creating space short and long through hand fighting. His build-up speed, ball-tracking and high-point talent can alter the success rate of deep throws for quarterbacks, but sluggish release quickness and predictable route usage are concerning. His size and downfield talent could push him up the board, but he won't get easy looks in the pros and may need more work and development than the 2019 production might indicate Strengths Had multiple touchdowns five times in 2019 Consistently catches with extended hands away from frame Expert hand fighter short and deep Creates space for outside press release with stiff jab Stacks cornerback and gives gentle push-offs for vertical separation Wins over the top with timing and high-point extension Catch radius to turn overthrows into catches underneath Size and strength for all blocking duties Smooth burst at stem to gain ground on post routes Skilled ball tracker deep Double moves feature fluid stop-start Weaknesses Excessive stutter-steps against soft press positioning Doesn't have threatening initial surge into routes Tight hips limit quickness into breaks Could struggle to find operating room as a pro Schemed into multiple one-on-one looks downfield Needs to get shoulders squared to throws to protect catch space Below-average talent after the catch Ran limited route tree Takes plays off when he's not primary target Projection: Average starter. Actual NFL history: Average starter.

I don't condemn hummus either. I like the spicy kind, smoky paprika. With pine nuts. And obviously the Up With People shite is always, well, shite. Jill wins!

Well, that'll be a Mitt Romney moment that is played over and over and over again in the general election run-up. Not really a fair comparison because everything Romney said (about roughly half of the US population not having skin in the game because they already don't pay federal income tax) was basically correct. Trump on the other hand is a mixture of fantasy and "vote for me and I'll make sure rich people do better." Not the best pitch to the working man or woman.

When did he make these remarks? By the way, there it is again: we're gonna cut taxes AND pay off the national debt. As I noted earlier in this thread, this is fantasyland.

And by the way I liked the blood red tree corridor by Melania. I mean, not a main blood red tree with presents under it. I think they had a regular old tree too. But that corridor was kind of cool.

Well, then you are proving my point. People hated on a nice Christmas display because it was associated with Trump. Just like you people are hating on a fun little performance because the group that put it on supports lefty causes.

You mean the one with blood-red trees?

Agreed. But reading down the thread, we see that new Republican Old Fogey-ism had to dig deep to find a reason to object. Is it an objection to having people who "don't look like regular Americans" tap dancing in the White House? Can't come right out and say that. Would be obviously racist, or homophobic, or both. Is it an objection to the desecration of that great gay Russian composer Tchaikovsky? After all Putin still loves him some Tchaikovsky as an example of the greatness of Russia, conveniently ignoring the gay thing. But no, that's not it either. Here's what it is: the dance group that put on the performance supports all manner of progressive causes! In other words, we can't just have fun and watch it; we have to fully investigate the political orientations of the performers before rendering our opinions. In other words, exactly what the other side does when they seek to ban some politically conservative artist from performing on their college campus.

Well played.

Kinda like Jeff Saturday on the Colts last year. Broadcaster to interim coach. Is Lee "Hacksaw" Hamilton available?

What I'm saying is that the House Republicans did some kind of focus group thing and realized that associating "Biden" with the term "Impeachment" helped. So a regular old fashioned congressional hearing is now officially an "Impeachment Inquiry." Go ahead and impeach him if you want. Then they can say both candidates have been impeached. I guess that's what they want, so just do it.

And right on cue: mortgage rates dip back under 7% All this election talk (impeachment inquiry! 91 indictments! abortion back on the stage! Ukraine! Israel!), and yet I have a strong feeling that it will come down to what the economy does. I was with the analysts saying a recession is a near certainty. Now the "soft landing" seems to be solidly back in play. If inflation remains in check going forward, growth stays steady, and everyone's 401k keeps on an upward trend, well, that will create a very different political picture come October when ballots start getting returned. EDIT: 10-year Treasury back under 4 percent too. The bond rally is on!

It was awesome! Fun reactions. But I don't like Josh saying "it was the first time in my life I felt my legs turning" with a little torsion type gesture ....

They were already having hearings. And that's what I thought was appropriate. Hunter was, of course, subpoenad to appear for those hearings, which are now, by the miracle of bs, transformed into an "impeachment inquiry," which is a new term as far as I can tell.

Poyer grew up in the Pacific NW. No snow there, unless you head way uphill. You want experience in a snowball fight. Go with the WNY kids. We can identify a dozen different types of snow and how to use each one.

That seems likely. He comes off as a guy working through some issues from his childhood, and I'm glad to see he's dealt with that (hey, the Ayahuasca is for people with a stronger gut than me, but whatever works) and matured as a man. His wife? She may need a little of that potion too.

Well, yes. By calling it an "impeachment inquiry" the political purpose is now front and center.

tl;dr Jordan struggled with alcoholism. His wife saw something about an Ayahuasca ceremony. He went; she didn't. It changed him. Profoundly. He doesn't drink and has a new understanding of himself and of life in general. He's gone off social media so he won't be getting unsolicited messages from hotties that his wife may see and that may get him in trouble. His wife is all about social media. She has an Only Fans.

Just as a point of interest: I know people who work with the recent arrivals, and they tell me that every single one comes with a cell phone. True. We're talking about net benefits vs. costs. And historically I think there's a good argument that over the long term immigrants have been a benefit. Notice the two qualifiers I put in there: "historically" and "over the long term." Meaning: (1) there may be a difference today as the numbers we're seeing enter now are truly unprecedented. Sure, as a percent of our population not as "large" as in the late 1800s. But that was in a developing USA, not in the mature or even post-industrial economy we have today; (2) there are huge short term costs before we start seeing any long term benefits, and right now states and cities (and their taxpayers!) are being forced to bear those costs. So again: immigration generally good, provided that it is controlled and we are able to plan for it. Right now? Neither.