EVAN LONGORIA, THE NEXT MIKE SCHMIDT?

Copyright. "The Thought Spigot"

http://thethoughtspigot.com/

Evan Longoria is the third baseman for the Tampa Bay Rays, and he is also one of the poster boys for major league baseball. He is a five tool player (hits for average & power, runs, fields, and has a sizzling arm across the diamond), and he is drawing major comparisons to a Hall of Fame third baseman, Mike Schmidt. Longoria is a Tampa Bay favorite, is active in charity work, plus he is a man among men, when he steps between those chalk lines.

Today, where the headlines bleed stories on HGH, steroids, "greenies" (speed pills, allowing players to be "fresh" everyday), players putting themselves over team ("Manny being Manny" & A-Rod articles looking like a soft porn shoot), Longoria is far away from the scrutiny and works to be the best player he can be (naturally, no less). One example, of Evan's dedication and differential from other ball players, is in his pre-game regiment. The T. B. third base coach and Evan have a routine, after all of the other drills are done. He hits Longoria 10 ground balls, as hard as he can. If Longoria fields all 10 of the balls without any mistakes, then the coach makes him a "smoothie." However, if Longoria bobbles, drops, or flat out misses any ball, then Longoria is the "smoothie maker." Quite a difference, from "Manny being Manny," riding a three wheel bike (when he has a pulled hamstring, at Dodgers spring training) for the cameras.

The whole Rays staff and coaches (some older players and announcers) are drawing a flattering comparison, "Evan Longoria looks like a young Mike Schmidt, but better." Mike Schmidt, the Hall of Fame third baseman (for the Philadelphia Phillies), was nothing short of an offensive monster and a perennial "Gold Glove" winner, so this is high praise for a player who has just one season under his belt.

Statistics do not lie:

Mike Schmidt's 1st Full Year (1973):G-132, AB-367, Hits-72, Runs-43, 2B-11, HR-15, RBI-52, SB-8, AVG-.182, SLG%-.373

Evan Longoria's 1st Full Year (2008)G-122, AB-448, Hits-122, Runs-67, Doubles-31, HR-27, RBI-85, Avg-.272, SLG%-.531

Looking at these eye popping numbers, in a rookie season (compared to Schmidt and other Hall of Fame players thru the years), the only thing possibly to side rail Longoria, is injury, or Longoria himself. Over the course of a 20 year career, there is going to be bumps, bruises, or some other act of God. However, Evan Longoria is the real deal, now.

It is very early to call him a Hall of Famer, but Longoria is on the fast track (with David Wright). On the Ray's roster, with the table setters of Carl Crawford, B. J. Upton, and the stability of power hitters around him (Carlos Pena, Matt Joyce, & Pat Burrell), he is in the best of situations. Only time will tell, on the injury front, but this smooth handed, laser armed, power hitting phenom has nothing except sunny days and big numbers ahead of him. In twenty years, he could be the best "true third baseman" (A-Rod came up and split his career at shortstop) to play the game. He is that good!

THE "G-20" & WORLD STAGE, WILL GUAGE OBAMA'S EXPERIENCE

Copyright. "The Thought Spigot"

http://thethoughtspigot.com/

The first 100 days, of Barack Obama's Presidency, was supposed to be a "transparent record" and "overall change from the past eight years" (as President Obama stated multiple times, on the stump, primaries, and in almost all stops to his victory over John McCain). Instead, the first 65+ days, of the Obama White House, has been shrouded in mystery, had a complete lack of spelling out of the trillions of tax dollars spent, and finally it seems the regular rules (of normal Americans) does not apply to the Obama Cabinet.The public is becoming more and more upset (to put it mildly), due to Obama's lack of honesty and campaign promises being broken, on the left, right, and with the center of American people. The left is up in arms over the troops being left in Iraq (not being pulled out on a specific time table), the up tick (21,000) in troops to go to Afghanistan, the "don't ask, don't tell" policy is still in place (but Mr. Obama seems to be stern and warning of its impending "outing", pun intended), and GITMO still being open (with no clear closing in sight).

The right is going insane, over the literal trillions of tax dollars being ear marked for Universal/Comprehensive Health Care (with no actual agenda, spelling out of where every dollar will go, and the fact Kathleen Sebelious is yet another, with tax problems, to head up the Health Care System), the huge treasury power grab (by Tim Geithner, where he has fired CEO's, rearranged boards of car companies and is taking over banks, by the government), and Obama's lack of transparency, line by line care of budgets, and a promise to make ear marks/vetting all cabinet members/no lobbyists in his cabinet. Yet, all of those things are now a reality, making the campaign promises lies, at least to the right).

As for the Independents, or the other Americans not pigeon holed into a category (like myself), all of these things are not acceptable, but the main problem is Barack Obama's lack of honesty, transparency, and what looks like his total lack of experience. Barack Obama is no fool, and to call him a liar, may be to harsh. It is more of a shell game, for the President of the United States. The DOW is back up over 7500, the housing market/home prices are dropping, but the people between the far left and far right, know things are just not right. Yet, they can't put a finger on what it quite is, and how it should be fixed. As a rule, most of the "middle" knows something is not right/the country is going in the wrong direction (68%). Although, 73% of these same people have not actually been touched by these problems. Therefore, the real question for the "middle" is how smart is Barack Obama and how do we gauge his intelligence, problem solving abilities, and the overall way he will be able to tackle problems around the world?The answers, for all of the American people are coming, in relationship to Barack Obama's promises, how smart he is and whether he can tackle the problems, both foreign and domestic.

The "G-20" was made to tackle the problem of the Asian Monetary Market, in 1999. It is formed by the 19 countries and the European Union (which make up two-thirds of the world's population, 80% of the world's fastest growing nations, and 90% of the world's GDP). Before Barack Obama touched down in London, there were already protests abound, Spain is trying to make laws to arrest and convict American Government Advisors (for war crimes, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc..etc..), and France's Prime Minister Sarkosy is threatening to walk away from the table, at the "G-20 Meetings", if America is not going to quit spending and using "stimulus" to fix the American economy. The "G-20" has not even started it's meetings, and Hillary Clinton says, "things are going good" in relation to speaking with the representative of Iran, NATO has spit in America's eyes (by saying they will send no more fighting forces to Afghanistan), and the general feelings in the world is Barack Obama and the Democrats in power, are creating a huge "Nanny State," with a failing economy.

When the meetings begin and leaders from around the world, with vast experience, knowledge of broad social, financial and defense knowledge, begin to speak for their own agendas, the world will see exactly how smart (or not so smart) Barack Obama actually is, and how he handles it all. Remember, "our President Obama" has only served two real years in the federal senate (as he spent his other two campaigning for the office he holds now), was a state senator (in the most corrupt political city system, Chicago, in the United States), and don't forget he was a community organizer. The whole world will watch, as leaders like Putin (who is really running Russia, as Prime Minister), China's President (Hu Jintau), the Iranians, and Pakistan all refuse to give an inch, to America and Obama. Why? Because the majority of the world blames the United States for the economic problems of the world, thinks the United States is a power hungry monster, and the Obama Cabinet thinks the way to win these people over is to be politically correct, change language (from a "terrorist act" to "a man made disaster"...etc...etc...), as if this will change complete paradigms of countries.

Everyone will see, during and after the "G-20" if Iran will disengage it's nuclear weapons, if Pakistan will allow the U. S. into it's territory to hunt down Al-Queada, if Russia will allow the defensive missile shield, or if any of the United States allies and those who are not so friendly will give anything at all. It is all at the behest of Barack Obama's negotiating skills, whether he can come across as a leader and someone to be taken seriously, or if the world will continue to thumb their noses (like North Korea), at Obama and the United States.

Obama's Prelude, To The "G 20" & America's Sacrifice

Copyright. "The Thought Spigot"

http://thethoughtspigot.com/

Once again, the time is now to look and see why the Obama White House, has been in a "hurry up offense" to ram thru his and the democrat liberal agenda. I have been saying for about five weeks now, people are not hearing what Obama is actually saying, there is nothing worth signing (unless you can read, debate, and go over bills first), and finally HEAR AND PAY ATTENTION to what is going on, underneath the words, of the White House.

The "G 20" is this coming Thursday and what is Barack Obama done to please them? The envoy to the Middle East has "shaken hands and come to some understanding," with his Iranian counterpart. The White House has officially taken "the war against terror" out of its lexicon of words, and replaced it with "The Overseas Contingency Operation" (for political correctness and what the Obama White House believes, "has harmed relations all over the world, with the "War against Terror"). President Obama has bailed out AIG, GM, and countless other banks and corporations, to maximize the "global and American economies." Barack Obama has also allowed the treasury department and Tim Geithner to "print $1 trillion, of paper money" for America to use (even though, the gold reserve and America doesn't have $1 trillion in reserve). Finally, the massive grab, of Nancy Pelosi and the Obama White House, of power, money and the ability to take over private companies, search financial's and fire employees (they deem necessary, for whatever reason).

There are other examples of the Barack Obama and the major democrats (Chris Dodd, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, etc...etc...), like the border problems, going on a major P. R. campaign (Leno, his live computer/Net appearance, and the television "press conference", and Hillary Clinton's trip to Mexico (blaming America for the violence in America, "do to the Americans high demand for drugs, sending weapons to Mexico"). The bottom line, on why there is so much going on (which is getting nothing done, or is taking more and more of the American way of life away), is simply to appease the world of the "G 20". Obama has taken the missile shield, all but off the table, in Europe, cut 60% of our missile defense systems (here at home), and is simply making America look more and more like the European Union. This being a complete and nonsense way of going about things, as America's economy, rights of Americans, and the overall state of America (as bad as it is now), is still light years better than anywhere in Europe.

Ask yourself this: Why is it so very important, almost the only goal of the Obama White House, to become the most "politically correct" and bend over backwards country, spending our grandchildren's futures, in order to be friends with the rest of the world? Will the rest of the world do this for us, and will it change anything at all, what is being done (besides running America into the ground and sending us into the "Nanny State," we are almost 40% into now)? Only you can do something about it, and answer the questions for yourselves.

FORGET THE NOW, POLITICALLY THINK NEXT STEP

Copyright. "The Thought Spigot"
http://thethoughtspigot.com/

Forget about the bonuses and downfalls of AIG, Barack Obama's flippant attitude on "The Jay Leno Show"/"60 Minutes" (with the condescending laughs and out of place jokes), and forget about the constant news stream of garbage, in which you can't do anything about. President Obama is the President of the United States, like it, or not. Where people's focus should be, is on the future, who is in charge and making decisions for us all, and how every single person can make some difference.

The next election, for some congress and senate positions, is in two years. The next Presidential election is a distant four years away. Therefore, the focus has to be on these things now, no matter how far away they may seem. There is a constant flow of "the privileged and rich" leading our country, down a very dangerous path. Of course, some of these people were attorneys, have massive amounts of schooling, and may have deserved to be elected to office, at one time. However, the majority of the congress and senators have served more than three terms. These three terms have allowed them to work, thru part of the Clinton, Bush, and now the Obama administration, and actually how much real work and betterment of our country has come from all of these "professional elected officials?"

Bottom line, there has to be a mass look into the future of how "we the people" want the country to look, how long we want people who have failed at their careers (would have been fired, if they were working at a real job) to stay in power (which is all they mostly care about, as a rule), and how much "change" does America wish to view (with the constant spending, failing at jobs/committees and other major mistakes)? Of course there are online petitions, web sites to get involved in your favorite candidates, and even on "MySpace"/"FaceBook" there are complete and fully funded causes. Therefore, there are plenty of outlets, ways to make a difference, and get started now, in order to take back and stop the raping of our country, by those who are full to the gills with power and money, completely oblivious to what the "common American" is needing and wants.

Here are some web sites to check out, or to get involved with:

http://aclj.org/ (The Center for Law & Justice)
http://the912coalition.org/ (The 912 Coalition, thru Glenn Beck)
http://americansolutions.com/ (The American Solutions Organizations, from Newt Gingrich) http://peta.com/ (Animal Rights Web Site)
http://independentnation.org/ (Web Site for a more Independent America)
http://theheritagefoundation.com/ (Web Site from a political think tank)
http://budget.house.gov/ (Government Web Site, non-partisan, showing dollars spent)

In One Hand I Have, But The Other Hand.....

Copyright. "The Thought Spigot"

( http://www.TheThoughtSpigot.com )

It doesn't matter who is going on Jay Leno (Barack Obama), who is jumping up and down/blue in the face (Dodd, Pelosi, Frank...etc....etc.), and who is blasting AIG and the others, who are taking miniscule amounts of moneys, by comparison to monies going out the back door and are is not being accounted. There is always something to distract, the general American public, from the real problems of today, or possibly in the near future. What are the generalities, constant drum beating from the Hill, and the complete circus from the main stream media (who have been in the tank, from Obama's actual first speech, in Springfield, Illinois)?

First, President Barack Obama has been on the other side of the country, touring California, doing a town hall meeting (or two), giving EPSN a special (on his tournament picks, one by one), playing some ball with the Tar Heels of North Carolina and yucking it up with Roy Williams, and finally he is to be on Jay Leno. For a two day trip, to the West Coast, it hardly seems like Barack is tackling the problem (letting rumors of Tim Geithner to be fired/resign) and staying completely away from congress (allowing the high power democrats thump on AIG and offer excuses to the American people and the Republicans just spewing their blame onto the Dems.).The buck stops with Barack Obama, period. He has even stated the exact quote, "Although, the country did not cause this, the congress is working to stop these things, ultimately the buck stops with me." Well, the distractions, from all forms of Congress, have actually been for a logical reason (not a good reason, but a logical one). "The Fed." decided to lend itself, $1 Trillion, from nothing. There was not massive gold, commodities, or anything (but paper/the dollar) to back the $1 Trillion, causing (in every other government, to date, to fail), with people having to bring wheel barrows of cash, to buy a loaf of bread, because the dollar is worth virtually nothing at all.

People, while you are all just living your lives, not getting involved and educating yourself, and those of you who have constant excuses "let's wait", "I don't have time to read, research, or learn," this recession/depression is for you. You did not "HEAR" Barack Obama, you just Listened to his rhetoric, promises, and trusted him to do the right thing. However, you did not plan on Barack Obama putting in people like Daschle, Geithner, Wrangle, and the other seven people who are not able to serve, or the congress has made exceptions (like with Geithner, "He is the only person to fix this problem, so he must be approved." --Barack Obama), for "the better of the country." Although, one of the first things we were all told, in the first 21 days of Barack's Presidency, he said, "We must act now, because if we wait on the stimulus, Omnibus Bill, and the Banking/Housing problems, we will fall into a depression, in which, we may never recover."Everything coming out of the Congress, Senate, and the White House anytime, is a rouse, to keep "non-learned" people in the dark. (Ex.--How many people are going to learn a lot from the President on Jay Leno?)

American's have to start taking care of themselves and not relying on the government to do things for you. The only way you can take care of yourselves, is to learn, read, and find out for yourself where your money, your rights, and the things guaranteed to you by OUR "Constitution." Obviously, the majority of people are to wrapped up in their own trivial, trite, and attitudes of "unless it touches me, I will deal with it whenever it gets here." Well, "when it gets here," is going to be to late. You will still be watching "Family Guy", buying time to watch Leno, the late night news, and are just relying on regular channels, which were the places to go, maybe 10 years ago. If you do not spend 10-30 hours a week, to make sure your representatives (local, state, & federal), then you may not know anything, until it is to late. Let's give the, "I have to much on my plate," or "I just do not have the time, with raising a family, working, and getting my stuff done." That attitude is what all government officials are banking on, you to stay "asleep at the wheel," while they are doing what they do.

Chris Dodd--Dem/Barney Frank--Dem., both Chairmen of the Banking Committee on the Hill, and Barack Obama are the three biggest money obtainers from "lobbyists", AIG, Fanny & Freddy, etc...etc... However, Dodd and Obama, both received over $120,000 (in 2008) from just AIG, alone. You probably didn't know any of the above, on the lobbyists and AIG, but if you did, it was just scratching the surface of what you should know and be studying, in order to take back the Unites States of America.