Thwomp!

Huge win for Mets!

Even cloudier. Mets down 7-1 now have an 8-7 lead heading to 9th against those pesky gNats!

My first year so hoping for the best. I've read mostly good things while researching my options and read as many bad reviews of Gamecenter as Hockeystreams so went with the better option as far as price, blackouts, etc.

Yeah as long as you have $99 to spare to go along with those 99 problems :P

Hockeystreams is $99 per calendar year and can be frozen so that it lasts even longer if you want. Mine is paid but frozen until 10/1. Gamecenter is $159 for regular season only (I think, they don't like to tell you very easily). Hockeystreams would also solve We've problem because there are no blackouts. Found a link that explains Gamecenter (even if it's Flyers-related, it breaks it down well). There are different options this year. http://www.broadstreethockey.com/2015/7/28/9058905/nhl-single-team-tv-package-gamecenter-live-center-ice

Looks legit to me after alot of research. Not sure about legality, but it's got a Roku app I plan to use. Cheaper, no blackouts, and longer subscription (calendar year vs. regular season and playoffs separate).

Mets had some drama surface yesterday. Matt Harvey and his agent (Scott Boras, of course) all the sudden say his innings limit for the season is 180. He now has 166 and is scheduled to pitch Tuesday against the Nationals. This after the Mets have done everything they could to limit his innings this year including skipping starts and using a 6 man rotation. Harvey complained about the 6 man rotation as well. He is coming off off Tommy John, but it seems ridiculous to bring this up now with the Mets in 1st place and hopefully headed to the playoffs. http://espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/story/_/id/13591191/matt-harvey-noncommittal-exceeding-180-innings-new-york-mets

Let's go Mets! Let's go Mets! (Don't choke!)

Good post. The Stand is next on my chronological list. It's a little daunting because I know it's going to take awhile since I don't have as much reading time as I used to have. Most of these books I read so long ago, that re-reading them now is like reconnecting with an old friend.

Must be. I'm an NL guy obviously, and hate the DH. Should have to play the field in order to hit. Besides, I've seen some of the 9th slot batters in the AL, and in some cases, I'd rather have the pitcher hitting. Plus it allowed some guys to stay around way too long.

Hope this happens. We need a veteran defenseman or two. The more competition and depth the better. He's also the best available d-man left on the market, relatively young, the contract looks like it will be short term, and we have plenty of cap space.

I know you're all scared and trying to pretend they don't exist :P but the Mets are still crushing it. 4-game road sweep of the Phillies and came back from 5 run deficits in two separate games.

That is awesome! Family camping trip this weekend with our new (to us) pop-up. Excited to get away for a couple days and relax. Did tent camping over the summer on Lake Ontario and my kids saw the Niagara River and Falls for the first time, but found out I'm too old for tent camping, thus the upgrade to the pop-up :P

I know what you mean about Mr. Mercedes and it's likeness to Koontz. In my opinion, Stephen King's books, when writing as Richard Bachman, were his Koontz-style books. Meaning more of an evil, no conscience, human adversary rather than a supernatural one. I have read "From the Corner of His Eye" and about 10 other Koontz books, so I get your comparison there. I think that if he were still writing alot as Richard Bachman, that the Mr. Mercedes books would have been released under that name. I did get a "The Walking Dead" type vibe with Mr. Mercedes at points in that nothing bad was going to happen to certain people, but I'm hoping that all goes out the window as he completes the trilogy. The 2nd book, Finder's Keepers, is a slightly different vibe as it doesn't concentrate on Hodges nearly as much, so you would probably like it better. The whole trilogy will have to be evaluated as a whole, but I think the 3rd book is set up to be an anything can happen scenario. Fun Fact: Misery was intended to be released as a Bachman book, which makes sense in the human adversary sense I discussed above, but Stephen King was discovered to be Richard Bachman before its release, so it was released under the King name.

I may have been unclear but I meant in my post that no one had the facts needed to challenge the intelligence community at that time, backed up by North Buffalo's post about how some in Congress "felt". The primary battle was taking place in the Senate anyway, while Bernie was an Independent in the House of Representatives. He doesn't mind ruffling feathers from what I've seen so I would like to think if he had the evidence he would have used it. Instead, he used the most persuasive arguments he had at the time.

Liked this post and the follow up posts since I'm a Stephen King junkie. I've read all of his books throughout my life and have recently gone back and started at the beginning. Read Carrie, Salem's Lot, The Shining, and Night Shift recently. Currently working through The Bachman Books (Rage, The Long Walk, Roadwork, and The Running Man), which are some very early work of his as well. He wrote Rage in high school, and The Long Walk in college, for example. The Dark Tower (Gunslinger) series is one of the best set of books I've ever read. It's also really interesting how almost all of his books tie into that series one way or another. Of recent note, he's 2/3 of the way through a trilogy, with the 3rd book coming out soon I hope. The first 2 were Mr. Mercedes and Finder's Keepers. Highly recommend these and love how he keeps putting out high quality books year after year.

Not surprised about Schilling. Espn shouldn't have been surprised either. Anyone a Mets fan around these parts? The lineup is now very deep and dangerous after the deadline moves and Wright coming back. The pitching is young but very promising. They're on a roll and they have the easiest remaining schedule. Could be dangerous the rest of the way and in the playoffs. Got some cheap tickets to see them in Cincinnati in late September. Can't wait. Reds fans are practically giving their tickets away. Hey penny pinching Mets ownership: sign Cespedes!

Saw Inside Out and Ant Man recently. The whole family enjoyed both. More of a tv guy, and I tend to watch series (they're like a really long movie!) from beginning to end. This summer it's been Treme. Would recommend and the whole series is on Amazon Prime. We "cut the cord" in 2008 and haven't looked back.

I agree. Great post. "They lied" is an oversimplification, but after you parse all the gray areas and fine lines that you described, there was certainly alot of deception, cherry-picking, and misdirection. "They lied" cuts to the chase and is not an inaccurate way to summarize what happened, even by your excellent synopsis.

Yeah, he and any other politician (especially at the time) was not going to call our intelligence agencies liars. It didn't come out until later that they "cooked the books". The fact that the war was unnecessary and that we were already in Afghanistan (which subsequently was largely ignored, causing even more problems for the U.S.) should have been enough to stop this madness. I agree with Eleven on this one, we're going to be paying for this for a very long time in many ways.

Regarding the "bipartisan" angle of this, yes there were some Democrats (especially in the Senate) that voted for this travesty. But one of the parties was certainly the major catalyst for this war occurring. According to wikipedia: 215-6 R support in House (96.4%) 82-126 D support in House (39.2%) 48-1 R support in Senate (only Chafee voted no as an R, interesting) 29-21 D support in Senate (58%) Edit: spelled Chafee correctly

It's more accurate to say "the Bush Administration lied" rather than Bush lied. Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, Powell, Wolfowitz, and the rest of the neocons and their henchmen were the real liars. Bush was trotted out for "mushroom cloud" speeches to scare the public along the way. Bush comes from a long line of war profiteers and he wanted to take his cowboy act and be a "war president". Remember his approval ratings were sky high post 9/11 and he used that capital to sell the Iraq war. The media, as swamp pointed out, was a willing accomplice. The full court press by the media and the administration was masterful. There were people who knew it was all BS, but their voices were not allowed to be heard or considered. France tried to object and warn us all, but who wants to side with France over the good ole US of A? Freedom fries anyone? Thanks for this. Any sabrespacers considering voting for Bernie? He's correct on all the issues including this one, especially as the middle class is concerned. Edit: fixed phone typo

One of the best shows on tv! I kept thinking he was going to run out of topics, but the U.S. and world are screwed up enough that John will always have material.

Thanks for posting that video. Was before my time. I started getting into the Bills in 87, when I was 9 or so. Seeing a classic like that increases my excitement for this year's season! I don't mind the down to the wire games as long as we win them.

Lifelong Mets fan here. It's been tough for a few years, but this year has been enjoyable so far, except for the fact they couldn't hit for a couple months. Penny pinching ownership will hopefully pay Cespedes and keep him around. He's exactly what they needed.