White Bread

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Lions

The Lions time of possession average of 24:42 is the lowest in team HISTORY! The Lions were started in 1934.

Kyle Orton recorded the first rushing touchdown of his career.

Posted in Random Thoughts November 2nd, 2008 by | No comments

Some

Last in the league
When the Lions are facing a third-and-3 or less, they have converted 9-of-15. When the Lions are facing third-and-4 or more, they have converted 12-of-69.

Overall, Detroit’s third-down conversion rate of 25 percent is the worst in the league, but it’s the only stat in which the Lions’ offense is ranked last.

Categories where Detroit’s defense is rated last in the league: Total yards per game, yards per play, passing net yards per play, passing-percent had intercepted, points per game, average yards per first down play and net yards per game differential (the offense gets some credit for that last one).

Thirty-seven players in the NFL have more interceptions than the Lions’ entire team (one).

Time not on their side
On average this season, the Lions have had the ball 10 minutes less than their opponent in every game (35:18 to Detroit’s 24:42). Detroit’s possession time is the worst in the league.

*Also note…6 of 7 quarterbacks that faced the Lions this year set career highs in passer rating* –>

Posted in Random Thoughts November 1st, 2008 by | No comments

Alex

More Alex pics have been loaded to our web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/jeffpoest –>

Posted in Random Thoughts October 31st, 2008 by | No comments

Lions

Our weekly look into career-highs, unbelievable stats, and other successes had against the Detroit Lions.

The Texans scored touchdowns on their first three possessions for the first time in team history.

The Lions had no yards passing until a 25-yard reception by Mike Furrey with about 9 minutes left in the first half.

Houston took an early lead on a 2-yard catch by Daniels, the first touchdown in the opening quarter for the Texans all season.

Green made it 14-0 with a 1-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter. It was the oft-injured back’s first touchdown since last November.

Detroit has been outscored 54-0 in the opening quarter.

Texans TE Owen Daniels scored his first and second touchdowns of the season.

Houston held its opponent under 28 points for the first time this season.

–>

Posted in Random Thoughts October 19th, 2008 by | 1 comment

Lions

Our weekly look into career-highs, unbelievable stats, and other successes had against the Detroit Lions.

Kyle Orton sets a career-high 334 passing yards

Orton set career highs in passing yards, completions and quarterback rating while throwing two touchdowns to lead the Chicago Bears to a 34-7 win over Detroit on Sunday.

Chicago had its most lopsided win on the road against the Lions since winning 42-14 in 1948.

The Lions (0-4), who have been outscored 147-66 this season, allowed over 30 points for the fourth consecutive game to start the season.

Orton completed 24-of-34 passes and totalled over 300 yards for the first time in his career.

Detroit has given up 82 points in its first two games at Ford Field, matching a franchise record set in 1958 for points allowed in its first two home games.

–>

Posted in Random Thoughts October 5th, 2008 by | No comments

Governor

I know very little about the republican veep candidate. And I’m still not sure who I’ll vote for.

But I’m certain that I’m tired of hearing about her child with down syndrome. Republicans praise her for her pro-life stance, and use it as a testament to her conservative nature.

But maybe one should question her decision making. Having a child at 44 years old significantly increases the chances of a child being born with down syndrome:

At maternal age 20 to 24, the probability of delivering a child with down syndrome is one in 1562; at age 35 to 39 the probability is one in 214, and above age 45 the probability is one in 19.

I wish no ill will on her or anyone in her family, but maybe we’re not focusing on the right thing here. Lots of women have lots of healthy babies when they’re in their 40’s; some know the risks, take their chances, and unfortunately have sick kids.

And for everyone else in the world, they can do whatever they’d like. But for someone who will be a heartbeat away from the oval office, I reserve the right to pass judgment.

–>

Posted in Random Thoughts September 1st, 2008 by | No comments

Dancing…30

Erica was keen enough to point out a peculiar recurrence….

According to television commercials during my recent hiatus from work, the following items make women dance:

Aquafresh teeth whitening trays

Jell-O pudding

Dr. Scholl’s high heel gel inserts

Edge Energy Shave Gel

McDonald’s Big Macs

Maranda’s Park Parties

Activia, which is some sort of yogurt that makes you poop, or in other words, yogurt

Chex Mix

Aleve Liquid Gels

Target

Covergirl Eye Liner

The Amazing Cotton Stretch Collection from Fruit of the Loom

Bacardi Mohito

All new episodes of Saving Grace

Note that dance music, night clubs, and dollar bills from men with questionable morals did not make the list.
–>

Posted in Random Thoughts August 3rd, 2008 by | No comments

Welcome

Alexander Jefferson Poest joined the world on July 18th at 2:03am. He measured in at 19 inches long and weighed 7lbs 14oz.

After a bit of a rocky start, everyone seems to be doing fine now!

Here are some pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/jeffpoest/alex –>

Posted in Random Thoughts July 21st, 2008 by | 5 comments

Gas

Gas prices are all the rage these days, as well they should be. Here, regular unleaded is going for $4.15 per gallon. Everyone has their opinion, including politicians, on how to fix the “problem”. And being this is a political year, everyone says everyone else is wrong more than usual. But no one seems to see the entire picture. Oil prices are a function of several issues:

— valuation of the dollar
— supply
— demand
— speculation of investors

What republicans say
1. Republicans are running around chanting “dig here, dig now!”, claiming that increasing domestic production of crude oil would lower gas prices. “Hey, there might be oil in Mt. Rushmore! Let’s drill in Abe’s temple to check it out!”

2. Republicans also roll into the same argument our need for additional nuclear power facilities.

3. Eliminate the federal gas tax to alleviate prices at the pump.

Why they’re right
A change in US policy regarding oil exploration would no doubt convince investors that oil prices will go down. Investors will get out of oil, and into other areas; whether it’s the stock market, currencies, or other commodities. In the long run, this will also increase demand, holding all else constant.

Why they’re wrong
Removing restrictions on drilling offshore and in Alaska might pop the speculation bubble, but it will do nothing to increase supply. The fruits of drilling would be years away. Refining capacity is near 100%, so it might reduce oil prices, but not gas prices. Republicans claim free market economics will reduce equilibrium price of oil. But they conveniently ignore a major assumption of free market economics; that there are many buyers and suppliers, and no one entity is significant enough to dictate supply or demand. (Maybe Rush Limbaugh overslept that day.)

When there is one supplier or group of suppliers that have significant impact on supply, it creates a situation with price makers and price takers. With oil, it’s OPEC. If the US begins producing more oil, which would force prices down, who’s to say that OPEC wouldn’t scale back production to raise the equilibrium price. It is in their best interest to manage the supply side.

Some will argue that countries like Saudi Arabia are increasing supply already. Why would they do that if it’s in their best interest to manage supply? The answer is because they’re managing supply, not restricting it. The economists of Saudi Arabia understand that extremely high gas and oil prices will spur alternative solutions, which they don’t want to happen. They are trying to manage the demand for oil as much as the supply.

Eliminating the federal gas tax will only transfer the situation into another realm. One of three things would happen. 1) Government would run larger deficits than current, which would weaken the dollar further. 2) Government would recoup those lost revenues in other places. 3) Those things paid for by the gas tax would be neglected (roads and bridges). Not to mention, lower taxes mean lower prices, which would increase demand for oil and gas, speeding up the problem.

What democrats say
Increase fuel efficiency. Increase investment in alternative energies like ethanol, biofuels, hydrogen, wind, and solar. Drilling won’t increase supply for years. Implement a windfall profits tax on oil companies. Cancel “giveaways” to oil companies that were created in the 2005 energy bill. It’s the oil companies fault you’re paying so much.

Why they’re right
Increasing fuel efficiency and investing in alternative energies will reduce demand. Like the republican example, however, OPEC will realize the reduction in demand and counter-intuitively hold supply the same. This will drive the price lower, which will reduce viable alternative energy types. Drilling now won’t effect any supply/demand issues, however would probably effect speculation.

Why they’re wrong
Government shouldn’t dictate fuel efficiency standards. The “free” market will set them. If fuel efficiency becomes a larger portion of consumer decision making, the manufacturers will adjust production to higher efficiency vehicles.

Ethanol will go down as the single worst mistake of your lifetime. Trying to offset oil is a nice idea. But they can’t produce enough ethanol to make a dent in the price of oil, and they’re transferring corn from one purpose to another. That creates a completely separate set of issues in global corn demand. So it’s not fixing anything, it’s making it worse. Ethanol, for example might reduce oil prices by 2%. But moving corn from feed and food to energy raises costs of corn, beef, and everything else 10%. The only way ethanol will work is if they can produce it from a non-food crop, and that crop can be grown in places crops aren’t grown now. So why is E85 ethanol cheaper than gasoline? Because it is being subsidized by the government.

Taxing corporations will do absolutely nothing. Pop quiz: how much tax do corporations pay? Answer: none. Why? Because corporations pass on taxes to the end user. If a companies taxes go up by 5%, they’ll raise their prices by 5%. Oil companies have an obligation to provide shareholder value, otherwise the value of their organization will fall. They will not sit idly by while government makes them pay more. They’ll either raise prices, or reduce expenses; and those expenses would most likely be from oil exploration and alternative energy research.

What no one is talking about
Oil is traded on the world market in US dollars. A weak dollar means it costs more to buy things. The same investors that are speculating on oil futures are the ones speculating that dollar will remain weak. Huge budget deficits and a weak American economy are convincing investors to buy things other than the dollar. Fiscal responsibility has a huge impact on gas prices.

So what’s the right answer?
All of the above. We need to have access to oil. We need to explore alternative energies that don’t effect other areas of our lives. We need to improve our fiscal policy to give investors more confidence in the dollar. But that doesn’t get you elected. Our antiquated two party system makes everyone take one side or the other. But 15% of the population is on the right, 15% is on the left. The other 70% of us are in the middle, and understand that decisions have trade offs.

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