Alvarez

Payroll troll of the year candidate: Brandon League. Scott Van Slyke: Best mustache in the MLB?

Fantastic game.

I've also got the whole L.A. city skyline Parker. I support any team from LA... NOT THE FUCKING MINNEAPOLIS LAKERS they are Engle's problem. I admit I know pretty much fuckall about hockey compared to you die-hards. Look at how I drafted HAHAHA. Up until last year I would have watched regular season baseball before NHL playoffs. I don't even remember who lost to me in fantasy this year, but that's pretty Goddamn sad.

That's why they play the games, homie. I'm just enjoying a little success after lots of disappointment. Win or lose I've got "LA" inked on my skin it's not like I can hop on the nearest bandwagon. It's not like I'm from San Francisco TROLOLOL.

This is why I hate any fans from LA win one cup and they think they are the best Franchise in history lol Chupa mi verrrga, güey. I never said shit about being the best Franchise. One cup is just that: ONE. Not enough for the appetite of the L.A. fan but we're still gonna back the Kings. When it comes to North vs. South, though, I'mma talk shit. Fuck the Bay and everyone in it. Especially the Giants and Sharks.

TROLOLOL @ San Jose last night. 2 goals in 22 seconds FTW... Eat a bowl o' diiiicks NorCal.

Quick shut out the Sharks, you think they sat too long after the sweep of Vancouver? Or is he that damn good?

*UPDATE* A statement was released by rebels in Russia's North Caucasus region, who denied any link to the April 15 attack on the Boston Marathon [vdagestan.com]: "The Caucasian Mujahedeen are not fighting with the United States of America," according to the statement, which was attributed to unidentified Mujahedeen commanders in Dagestan. "We are at war with Russia, which is responsible not only for the occupation of the Caucasus, but also for heinous crimes against Muslims." Again, in my opinion it is important to make the distinction between Chechen separatists, who fight against Russia IN the Caucasus, and Chechen Jihadists, who fight foreign powers ABROAD [Ghaddafi in Libya, Al-Assad in Syria, Kharzai in Afghanistan].

In light of the knowledge that the two Boston Bombing suspects are ethnic Chechens, I saw it as my responsibility to educate some of you on Chechnya and its recent wars. I know this is too much to cover in a forum, and many of you have questions, so feel free also to ask. I just wanted to give a quick reference of these conflicts so that some of you may gain a basic knowledge of what has gone on / is going on over there. Chechnya lies in the heart of the North Caucasus. It is a predominantly Muslim autonomous region within the Russian Federation. You may have heard of "Chechnya" in the last week, as news continues to pour out regarding "The Brothers Tsarnaev" -- Boston's suspected terrorists. What you MAY NOT know is that, like the Irish Republican Army, Chechen "terrorists" were once seen in a MUCH different light by Americans and the American government. Once described as "rebels", "freedom fighters", and "revolutionaries", Chechen militants have always appealed to the American people's "GOOD side" for the way they acted as a thorn in Russia's paw. They were once seen as proxy allies in a new Cold War against the Russian Federation. This reputation began with their initial claim of independence from the Soviet Union in 1991... THE FIRST CHECHEN WAR On September 6, 1991, the military wing of the All-National Congress of the Chechen People stormed a Soviet government session. Their aim was to declare independence from the Soviet Union by force. During the assault, the the Chechen head of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was killed. The Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Republic of the Soviet Union became Chechnya and Ingushetia, respectively. Dzokhar Dudayev -- after whom one of the Tsarnaev brothers was named -- was made President of Chechnya, and he subsequently declared independence from the Soviet Union. Ingushetia eventually chose to remain a part of Russia. In November of 1991, Boris Yeltsin dispatched Internal Troops to Grozny, the capital of Chechnya. These men were eventually surrounded by Dudayev's forces, and withdrew from the area. By 1993, Chechnya had formed a government and declared FULL independence from Moscow as the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. After power struggles between Chechen President Dudayev and Chechen opposition, the opposition called upon Moscow for help. The Russians complied, and during the early 90's provided the opposition with money, weapons, training, and fighters. Once in October 1994, and again in late November, the Russian-supplied opposition tried and failed to wrest Grozny from Dudayev's control. On November 29th, 1994, Russian President Boris Yeltsin issued an ultimatum to the warring Chechen factions: Disarm and surrender, or face the Russian Army. The government in Grozny refused, and the First Chechen War was underway by December 1994. Yeltsin's mostly-conscripted army was neither trained nor prepared for the conflict that ensued. As Russian atrocities against the Chechen people mounted, the Chechen separatists slowly began to radicalize -- committing war crimes of their own. As they had in Bosnia and Afghanistan, Al-Qaeda began to take interest in the conflict in Chechnya. Seeing an opportunity to gain a foothold in the Caucasus, foreign Mujahideen began to flock to Chechnya "for jihad" against the Russians. Two years after the war began, the Khasav-Yurt Accord was signed by both sides, effectively ending the primary conflict. By December of 1996, the last of Yeltsin's troops had withdrawn from Chechnya, and much had been left to negotiate between the two: A stipulation within the Accord meant that an agreement on relations between Grozny and Moscow need not be signed until 2001... The "Moscow Peace Treaty", however, was eventually signed in 1997. THE SECOND CHECHEN WAR In 1999, two Islamist commanders from the First War -- Shamil Basayev [Chechen], and Amir al-Khattab [saudi] -- launched an invasion of Dagestan, a Republic neighboring Chechnya. Several Russian conscripts were killed in a shootout, and six survivors were promised POW status by the advancing Mujahideen. The conscripts were arrested, laid on the road, and partially beheaded on camera. This incident came to identify the slain Russians as "The Dagestan Six". On August 26, 1999, Vladimir Putin's Russia responded by invading Chechnya. The Second Chechen War was underway. Basayev and al-Khattab were eventually driven out of Dagestan and back into Chechnya. Putin's Army pursued, and the conflict extended for 10 years. During the war, Chechen Islamists operated INSIDE of the Russian Federation, committing bombings, hostage-takings, and assassinations. Meanwhile, Russian security forces retaliated inside of Chechnya. For an entire decade, the war devolved into a tit-for-tat terrorist campaign for both sides. With every passing year, the Chechens radicalized more, and the Russians retaliated with MORE brutality. In April of 2009, Putin's campaign in Chechnya was declared over. Now a part of the Russian Federation again, Chechnya and Dagestan still deal with an Islamist insurgency. MOST of the attacks against the Russian government, however, take place deeper within Russia. While Chechen Mujahideen have been recently reported fighting as far away as Libya, Syria, and Afghanistan, it is believed that those fighters are part of the "Global Jihad" movement, rather than Chechen Separatists. The average Chechen has NO quarrels with the United States, actually it has long been speculated that it was the U.S. who provided Chechen fighters and foreign "Muj" with weapons and money when others would not.

NOT happy the suspects are Chechens... Most of us went to the U.K. or Canada, but for the few who ARE in the U.S.A... This is a shit show. There is a REASON Chechen-Americans are IN America, and let me tell you: It's not to fucking kill people. It's to GET AWAY FROM THAT SHIT. Lucky for me I am also half Mexican with a Spanish last name. I don't even tell my neighbors I'm Muslim, they would have me evicted or harassed in some way. When shit like Boston happens, it creates inescapable paranoia among countrymen. Paranoia that I'm all too familiar with.

Greinke was believed to have SAID something that sparked Quentin's charge... Slow-mo footage reveals that he also made a face at Carlos prior to the melee: Ye ye ye ye ye, ye ye ye, ye ye yeh... HAHAHAHAHA!

Grienke shouldn't have dropped his shoulder, but it happened pretty quick. AJ Ellis didn't even have time to get between them. I can't second-guess what Zack did because I'm not Zack. If you watch the video again, Ellis sets up for the pitch on the OUTSIDE part of the plate. Grienke already had a wild pitch and a few walks... He missed his spot in a NON-PLUNKING situation, and Quentin still took in personally. The last time Grienke hit Quentin, it was a similar situation: He already had 2 strikes on the hitter, and missed his spot. I mean, if you're going to hit a guy, you're not going to waste 5 pitches before you do it. You hit him high and hard with the FIRST pitch!

WATCH THE VIDEO Last night, the Dodgers and Padres closed up their series in San Diego... But not before a benches-clearing melee ended in several ejections and a broken left collarbone for Grienke. Now, anyone who knows ANYTHING about baseball knows: A guy isn't trying to HIT THE BATTER on a 3-2 count in a 1-run game... It's not baseball "smart". But how does Carlos Quentin see it? Well, he sees red, apparently. What an EMBARRASSING display by the Padres' outfielder. Players ON the Padres came up to Dodger players after the game and apologized for Quentin's behavior!

TooL [AEnima Tour] <--- BEST. LIVE. SHOW. EVER. People Under the Stairs Matisyahu The Wailers Yonder Mountain String Band Tiesto Dilated Peoples Jurassic 5

...Parker has Kershaw taking the ball tonight. I gotta go with him, even with Davis' crazy numbers. When Kersh already has 77 points, one more start easily pushes him over 100 on the week.