FB: Liberty League

[Doid23]

Sure, he may be sleazy, but not more so than any other NY politician. But getting a divorce and not telling his wife? I've got to say, that goes right to the top of the charts. It's like NY politicians are trying to top each other.

Divorce a secret: Indicted City Council member Larry Seabrook didn't tell wife about split for years
Thursday, February 11th 2010, 4:00 AM


When accused City Council crook Larry Seabrook legally dumped his wife in 1993, he skipped one important detail - sharing the news with her.

The stealth split remained a secret for years as his duped spouse shared a bed and a Bronx home with Seabrook and even co-signed a $140,000 loan for him.

Despite the deception, ex-wife LaVerne Seabrook, 64, told the Daily News yesterday that her one-time spouse - now charged in a seven-year run of greed and corruption - was basically a nice guy.

"He's a politician," she said outside her modest Bronx home. "It happens. Do I believe it? No. When we were together, he was honest."

Not completely, though.

When her husband ran for the state Senate in 2000, it was revealed then that Seabrook had filed and won a divorce seven years earlier - and never told LaVerne.

Six weeks after the 1993 decree, Seabrook persuaded her to co-sign a bank loan to buy a residence near Albany for his use when the Legislature was in session.

The house where the couple lived was used as collateral. Bank documents listed the pair as married.

The 58-year-old pol - who also owns a Co-op City apartment and a home in South Carolina - continued filing a joint federal tax return and sleeping with his ex-wife.

He finally moved out in 1996, claiming he had stuck around until the couple's daughter finished high school.

"That's real family values," Seabrook insisted a decade ago.

Federal prosecutors described Seabrook's values differently this week, accusing him of running a "corrupt, City Council-funded friends and family plan."

Prosecutors said he collected $44,000 in bogus expenses, $50,000 in shakedown money from a new Yankee Stadium contractor and more than $100,000 in inflated rents.

He submitted bogus or inflated expenses - including a doctored receipt for a $177 bagel lunch - to the North East Bronx Community Democratic Club and kept the reimbursement cash, prosecutors charged.

He funneled about $1.2 million in City Council discretionary "slush" funds to nonprofits he controlled: the Northeast Bronx Redevelopment Corp., the Bronx African-American Chamber of Commerce, the New York African-American Legal & Civic Hall of Fame and the Mercy Foundation, the indictment says.

Seabrook's girlfriend, Gloria Jones-Grant, held positions at three of the nonprofits.
The 69-year-old Jones-Grant was holed up in her Edison, N.J., home yesterday.

The indictment says the three-term councilman placed his "wife" on the board of directors at two of the nonprofits. It's unclear if that was LaVerne Seabrook or his current wife, Mary, and if either collected a salary.

The former Mrs. Seabrook made it clear that she thought bygones were bygones.

"When it comes to stuff like this, nah, that's not Larry," she said. "I'm hoping he's found innocent."

[G-manWU]

So we are having a motorsport discussion here, and not one of you can think to talk about Formula 1? Sheesh........

When people ask me what I think about Danica, the first thing I tell them is she's lazy and complacient. Otherwise, she would have never made her biggest mistake...running away from the chance to run in the first season of GP2 in order to play the glamour card and run to the IRL. Sure she's a hit now, but if she ever made the F1 ranks and even managed a few points finishes, she would have been the most famous female sports star on the planet, without a doubt. Maybe she was just lazy, maybe she diden't think she could rub wheels with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, who knows. All I know is she skipped the chance of a lifeitme and was an idiot for doing so.

As for the current F1 crop, you guys should give the sport a look if you haven't already. I hate most of the viewing times, at at the moment there is not an F1 race held here in the USA....a fact that bothers me very much. Sadly, the business model used by the commercial rights holders of F1 puts profit above all else, meaning that private promoters who try to organise a race are not a viable option. The teams and sponsors involved in the sport are more than eager to bring their product here, so my hope is for an F1 growth spurt in the U.S. someday soon.

[Jonny Utah]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

[PBR...]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

[pg04]

I must bring in what I think is the most important point.  3/4 of the battle is not won on the racetrack.  It is what the crew and staff does to the car during the days leading up to the race... Fine tuning and finding every advantage possible.  The hours and days that these guys spend on the cars cannot be forgotten.  A driver can be great but you can also say that a lot of the drivers would have won Championships with Jimmie Johnson's Race team...

Making every car the same will make most of those who work in a NASCAR race team useless.  

[Lyco80]

Wow - between the power being off and having to shovel out the walk, driveway, back steps and dig out two cars I really got behind on my LLPP reading and posting.

The only good news - the hot tub was steaming at 105 today and I soaked until nearly al dente!

The stream about maintenance required on Indy cars and other performance racing automobiles reminds me of the wrench hours needed for flight hours in Marine helicopters.

One time, flying at 10,000 feet in the mountains, purple hydraulic fluid streaming down the inside of the fuselage, I asked the Marine aircrewman if we had a problem.  He nonchalantly said, "not as long as that fluid keeps leaking."

We landed, not for gas, but for more of the purple juice, topped off the tank and continued our mission back to base.

And people wonder why the Marines are so revered and admired - Semper Fidelis you Devil Dogs!

ATB

[Jonny Utah]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

You don't think the sponsors would go for that?  If the "car" hat was like the NBA lottery where an envelope were opened and the company logo came out to be paired with the driver?  I assume this "lottery" would be a heavily watched event no?

[Doid23]

So let me get this straight. A state government agency (SUNY) spent ~$1 million to investigate Binghamton basketball? Seems like money well spent.

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. -- Last year the Binghamton Bearcats celebrated their first trip to the NCAA tournament, a landmark achievement for a program that moved to Division I in 2001.

But at what price glory?

On Thursday the Chancellor's office of the State University of New York system released the findings of a 99-page report -- the results of a four-month, $913,381 investigation of Binghamton athletics led by retired New York chief judge Judith Kaye.

The report documents how Binghamton officials compromised academic standards in order to build a winning men's basketball team, details how coaches and athletic officials at Binghamton pressured admissions staffers to admit questionable recruits and chronicles previously-unreported allegations of criminal behavior on the part of several former basketball players.

The report recommends hiring an "athletic oversight officer" for the entire State University of New York system, reporting to the chancellor and Board of Trustees on admissions, the academic progress and behavior of student-athletes, and rules compliance.

[PBR...]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

You don't think the sponsors would go for that?  If the "car" hat was like the NBA lottery where an envelope were opened and the company logo came out to be paired with the driver?  I assume this "lottery" would be a heavily watched event no?

not at all...for example amp/national guard pay boat loads of money for dale earnhardt, jr by far the most popular driver in nascar. so how is amp/national guard going to feel when they get mike bliss or some other driver that no one has heard of and is always a back marker (due to driving abilities not car quality)

[Jonny Utah]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

You don't think the sponsors would go for that?  If the "car" hat was like the NBA lottery where an envelope were opened and the company logo came out to be paired with the driver?  I assume this "lottery" would be a heavily watched event no?

not at all...for example amp/national guard pay boat loads of money for dale earnhardt, jr by far the most popular driver in nascar. so how is amp/national guard going to feel when they get mike bliss or some other driver that no one has heard of and is always a back marker (due to driving abilities not car quality)

Well for one or two races they might go for it.  And dont forget, if you take the top 5 sponsors out of it (amp/ng), what about the other 40 that might have the chance to have a big driver win for them?  You might even have these two races separate so other companies can get in on the action?

[HSCTiger74]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

You don't think the sponsors would go for that?  If the "car" hat was like the NBA lottery where an envelope were opened and the company logo came out to be paired with the driver?  I assume this "lottery" would be a heavily watched event no?

not at all...for example amp/national guard pay boat loads of money for dale earnhardt, jr by far the most popular driver in nascar. so how is amp/national guard going to feel when they get mike bliss or some other driver that no one has heard of and is always a back marker (due to driving abilities not car quality)

Well for one or two races they might go for it.  And dont forget, if you take the top 5 sponsors out of it (amp/ng), what about the other 40 that might have the chance to have a big driver win for them?  You might even have these two races separate so other companies can get in on the action?

JU even if the sponsors did go for it the fans never would. NASCAR fans are possibly the most brand-loyal group one could find and would abandon the sport if changes such as these were adopted. (Many already feel that NASCAR is making too many changes geared to the sponsors and TV networks). And if the fans go, there won't be any need for sponsors.

[Jonny Utah]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

You don't think the sponsors would go for that?  If the "car" hat was like the NBA lottery where an envelope were opened and the company logo came out to be paired with the driver?  I assume this "lottery" would be a heavily watched event no?

not at all...for example amp/national guard pay boat loads of money for dale earnhardt, jr by far the most popular driver in nascar. so how is amp/national guard going to feel when they get mike bliss or some other driver that no one has heard of and is always a back marker (due to driving abilities not car quality)

Well for one or two races they might go for it.  And dont forget, if you take the top 5 sponsors out of it (amp/ng), what about the other 40 that might have the chance to have a big driver win for them?  You might even have these two races separate so other companies can get in on the action?

JU even if the sponsors did go for it the fans never would. NASCAR fans are possibly the most brand-loyal group one could find and would abandon the sport if changes such as these were adopted. (Many already feel that NASCAR is making too many changes geared to the sponsors and TV networks). And if the fans go, there won't be any need for sponsors.

Oh I know logistics is probably the one reason that this would never happen.  But if you had it for races that didn't count as points you don't think people would watch it?

[PBR...]

This may be a dumb question comming from a non-nascar guy, but why don't they just have all the drivers use new cars at the beginning of each race so that everyone is on the same playing field?  If NFL players and teams all use the same footballs, why can't drivers use the same cars?

actually the cars are torn down and rebuilt after each race. nascar does try and make the cars even as possible. each manufacturer in the series must give nascar 1 of their cars so nascar can check numerous things like aerodynamics/horsepower/suspension/etc. so no 1 manufacturer gets too much a leg up on the others.

I wonder what would happen if Nascar simply said one manufacturer is going to be able to use their cars and put it out for bid.

would lead to nascar folding...the draw and interest has always been the manufacturers competing against each other. people always have their favorite manufacturer and will root for them. This series is a huge r&d center for ford/chevy/toyota/dodge as a lot of things they learn here funnel their way down to the everyday passenger cars. Plus you paint yourself into a corner if that manufacturer you pick goes belly up then what? you leave yourself scrambling to keep the series alive

Ok then how about this one:  One or two races a year, before each race they pick drivers, cars, and pit crews out of 3 different hats.  Then they mix them up at random and make them race with random car and pit crew?

that would be cool!  unfortunately the sponsors wouldnt go for it and they are the ones paying the bills...

You don't think the sponsors would go for that?  If the "car" hat was like the NBA lottery where an envelope were opened and the company logo came out to be paired with the driver?  I assume this "lottery" would be a heavily watched event no?

not at all...for example amp/national guard pay boat loads of money for dale earnhardt, jr by far the most popular driver in nascar. so how is amp/national guard going to feel when they get mike bliss or some other driver that no one has heard of and is always a back marker (due to driving abilities not car quality)

Well for one or two races they might go for it.  And dont forget, if you take the top 5 sponsors out of it (amp/ng), what about the other 40 that might have the chance to have a big driver win for them?  You might even have these two races separate so other companies can get in on the action?

JU even if the sponsors did go for it the fans never would. NASCAR fans are possibly the most brand-loyal group one could find and would abandon the sport if changes such as these were adopted. (Many already feel that NASCAR is making too many changes geared to the sponsors and TV networks). And if the fans go, there won't be any need for sponsors.

Oh I know logistics is probably the one reason that this would never happen.  But if you had it for races that didn't count as points you don't think people would watch it?

people might watch it but again the sponsors will never go for it.

[Jonny Utah]

Not even if you added two of these races in addition to the regular schedule?  You don't think Aflac, Redbul or Quaker State would want to take the chance for a winning driver and some added publicity?

(again, I know the logistics can't make this work)

[PBR...]

Not even if you added two of these races in addition to the regular schedule?  You don't think Aflac, Redbul or Quaker State would want to take the chance for a winning driver and some added publicity?

(again, I know the logistics can't make this work)

nope because they have paid millions for ad campaigns built around drivers...so all the media tv/print/internet etc they had done w/ their original driver would be wasted