John Adams

What it means to me: Fewell and Fitz could lead this team to the playoffs this season if things go right.

He does just enough to show he's a good backup to me. I could handle him as backup again next year.

Lynch for 0 yards. Again. (I didn't realize he was setting up Fitz.)

Nice cheer from the home crowd on the TD. WTF?

No, you are both incorrect. His aggressiveness and desire were both a question, as was his intelligence. Both were the concerns of scouts and also discussed in the book. Competitiveness: Has a business-like approach to the game. Some would like to see much more aggression from a left tackle. For a player blessed with his strength, especially in his arms and hands, he should destroy defenders. He loves football, but more than a few scouts have concerns that he does not have the flashy intensity or burning desire in his play. GRADE: 6.2 Work Habits: Has long arms but needs a coach to teach proper technique to punch, grab and extend to neutralize and control defenders. He is very coachable and even though he plays with inconsistent aggression, he has good maturity from his life experiences and appreciates the opportunity afforded him at Mississippi. GRADE: 7.2

I had read the book and was desperately hoping the Bills picked him at 11 because he had such a cool high school story--don't get me wrong--but I also knew why he dropped in college. Oher will be at least a very good pro. He's not aggressive on the field (yet?) but he's insanely gifted.

Hitchhiking besides being illegal is dangerous. That is terrible advice.

How about reading the book instead of seeing the movie? The reason he dropped in the draft is that his college career was good but marked by inconsistent play and a thought that he dogged it sometimes.

Yeah. It's a deal but probably not a huge one. Dubai, while important, is not a worldwide-hub and this will stress but not be that widespread of an issue. Today's blip was caused by a solid punch of bad news and the low volumes. Losing 1.5% in a day after all the up days this year--and last year's free fall--feels like nothing. There are plenty of other "shoes to drop" on bad market news in the future but this isn't one I'm worried about.

We are rather curious for rejoicing in bad news. These posts never get made when the Dow goes up 150 points.

Bledsoe is the one who screwed Losman? That's a new excuse.

Why is America so fat?

Tide pooling at Cabrillo National Monument. By far the coolest thing we did there. Walking the trails and then beaches at Torrey Pines is also amazing. Those are my top 2 but SD is to me the greatest place in the continental US.

The Bills have at least 3-4 huge holes on the O-line (not sold on Levitre and who now knows about Wood...obviously bboth tackles are needed). They have nothing at QB. They have no TE. And they have no number 1 WR. Yes, they have RBs. So the offense is need in need of complete revamping. On defense, they have good safeties and corners but the D-line is OK (not great) and old so it needs a complete overhaul. They have one OK LB in Poz and no one else to speak of. So defense is need of just about complete overhaul. That's about 3 really good drafts worth of players and some FA pickups and a few years of maturity...sounds like a 5 year rebuilding. The only FAs the Bills will land are those like TO who no one wanted or Stroud who was a guy who'd worn out his welcome but turned out to be a great pickup. The top guys are going to the Pats, Cowboys, Chargers, etc. There is no GM in Buffalo, which means a new GM has to come in and set up his entire scouting system. That won't happen overnight. So the front office is a mess. The ownership won't be the the same in 5 years which means a head coach has no idea if an interim or future owner will be dedicated to rebuilding or moving the team. Not to mention that the current owner has an awful history. So the ownership is !@#$ed. So keep being funny in this thread thinking that some hot successful coach would want to come to Buffalo. Successful coaches want to win and Buffalo is not set up to do that. But you are right, the fans will keep coming.

Steely chokes again. (I can't make this joke enough.)

What I don't see is a true fiscal small government conservative of any influence, period. Someone in that flavor might spark a movement. But if the Republicans just put up another McCain or worse, a Huckabee, or even worse, Palin...they will lose because people like me won't vote for them. Projecting a crystal ball, I suspect that some strongish third party fiscal conservative candidate will emerge (someone like a Forbes or Bloomberg--not them but someone in that vein) but that person will fracture the right and Obama won't garner a ton of votes but he'll get enough to beat the split right. And I don't think anyone underestimates Obama's ability to campaign well. But he'll never get the Independent vote that he got last time. To think: I sit here wishing Hillary had won. She would be a MUCH better president than Obama.

Outspending the means incoming is not a good precedent except in national emergency/war. Here in the USA, there is far too much credit given to Reagan for ending the Cold War. It happened on his watch. He played his role--and he deserves credit for hard rhetoric. The truth is the Iron Curtain was dying from a thousands knife wounds when Reagan came on board. He was holding the knife that delivered the death blow. Note: I did not mean to turn this into a Reagan-bashing thread. What I am saying is that in order to create the coalition that got him elected, he formed the Big Tent. That gathered true Libertarian-style conservatives into the same party as many traditional Southern Democrats. For a brief window of his impressive leadership, that Big Tent enacted quite a few Libertarian-style initiatives. But in his wake, he left a Big Tent with warring factions. Many of the Christian Righters don't give a rat's ass about fiscal responsibility. And the Libertarians are discontent with the Christian Right's desire to subjugate personal freedoms. That's the current Republican crossroads--and why even though Obama is a cluster!@#$ mess of a president, he could win in 2012 if the Republicans continue to try to work from Reagan's Big Tent party idea.

Like I said, "Reagan didn't fall victim to the issues that now haunt the Party." Of course, he had his own version of fiscal irresponsibility driving up the deficit aggressively.

Gruden already did. Don't overestimate how much no one wants to coach and build this team. The Bills are a LOOOOOOOONG way from good and have an ownership situation that could get a lot worse (meaning the Bills could get a lot worse).

Disgusting. A war tax on people who may not even support the war. !@#$ you Carl.

You're welcome, I guess.

Whatever point you attempted to make was obfuscated by your ponderous post. Another choke for Steely Dan.

Reagan is credited with much but not blamed for enough for the death of conservatism. In creating the "big tent," he sold the future of the party into the hands of the religious right (the old Southern Democrats) who now run the party at the expense of the Republicans who want smaller government. That schism is what has fractured the Republican Party-alienating the minority of the right who want small government, personal freedoms, and fiscal responsibility. Reagan didn't fall victim to the issues that now haunt the Party but he's the one who created the monster.

Try my link again, second hit. See, it's not a joke.

The sabertooth remembered his kindness and returned it!