The SoapBoxers

OK, OK.  These are my favorite movies of all time.  You’re not going to see the same old movies that pepper everyone else’s All Time Best list, and this list leans very heavily toward movies from the last 20-30 years (sorry, Charlie Chaplin).

Without further ado, my top 9 list.  (Hey, who says the list has to be 10?)

 
 Which movies are on your top 9 list?  Any obscure films among them?

Image via Wikipedia

With the Super Bowl now little more than a distant memory and spring training coming up quickly, it’s time to talk about baseball.

Tulo

Most of you know that Troy Tulowitzki is my favorite player.  I truly believe that Tulo will eventually win an MVP – could it be this year?  It’s true that Coors Field inflates a hitter’s numbers, but I think Matt Holliday has shown that the true value of a Rockies hitter is somewhere between his home and road splits.  Holliday didn’t turn into a mediocre player when he left, and Tulo likewise would adapt and thrive in a different environment.

Tulo provides something that no other shortstop in the game does – power.  He has 89 homers in the last few years.  Hanley Ramirez as the second most homers among shortstop in that period, with 55.  The position is so weak in terms of power hitters that Clint Barmes – whom Tulo shoved aside at SS for the Rockies – is 8th on the list with 43 homers.

Rockies

And what of the rest of the Rockies team?  The front office showed its recent willingness to spend money by signing OF Michael Cuddyer to a three year deal.  They also picked up Casey Blake to play third base (although prospect Nolan Arenado could make a push for the spot at some point in the season) and traded for Red Sox shortstop Marco Scutaro.  The Red Sox made the Scutaro deal mostly to free up money and keep them under the luxury tax threshold.  From a pure talent perspective, it was a great trade for the Rockies.  Scutaro will play second base for the Rockies and should provide good on base skills near the top of the lineup.

There will also be a change at catcher, with Chris Iannetta being traded.  Ramon Hernandez will hold the job as long as he can hold off top prospect Wilin Rosario.

Whereas the lineup for the Rockies will be more veteran-infused than last year, the same can not be said for the pitcher staff.  Ubaldo Jimenez will be gone and Jorge De La Rosa will not return until around Memorial Day.  I’d expect Jhoulys Chacin to be the staff leader early in the year.  His record in the past two year is 20-25, but with an ERA around 3.50.  That’s an outstanding ERA for someone who plays half their games in Coors, especially at a young ago.  I think Chacin is going to blossom into a consist 16-18 game winner very soon.

There are a lot of people competing for the other rotation spots.  I see Drew Pomeranz and new acquisitions Guillermo Moscoco and Josh Outman.  In De La Rosa’s absence, I can see Alex White or Jamie Moyer nabbing a spot.  Closer Huston Street was traded and the job will fall to Rafael Betancourt, who should to a fine job.

NL Central changes

The National League Central will see huge changes in 2012.

The most notable change was the Cardinals losing Albert Pujols to free agency.  They did sign Carlo Beltran and will also benefit from the return of co-ace Adam Wainwright, but  when you lose the best hitter in baseball, the impact will be felt.  Financially, it may have been wise for the Cardinals to pass on Pujols – especially when his skills begin to erode – but right now, he’s still an excellent hitter.  This is Matt Holliday’s time to step from behind the Pujolsian shadow and lead.

The rival Brewers also lost their first baseman, with Prince Fielder going to Detroit.  While the Cardinals had a fighting chance to retain Pujols, there was no chance the Brewers would be able to make a competitive offer.  To rub salt in the wound, Fielder’s partner in crime, reigning MVP Ryan Braun, will miss 50 games due to a PED suspension.  The Brewers did sign 3B Aramis Ramirez to add some pop to their lineup.

The Cubs finally rid themselves of Carlos Zambrano, who had become a major distraction.  This might actually be addition by subtraction – which is sad to say, considering that Zambrano has immense talent.  They also lost Aramis Ramirez to the Brewers.  Shortstop Starlin Catro was questioned by police regarding a sexual assault allegation, although there hasn’t been any news on this in several weeks.

With all this unrest at the top, is this the year the Pirates win the Central?  Perhaps?

Around the horn

The most under-rated player in the game is Rangers catcher Mike Napoli.  He had 30 homers in a mere 369 at bats last year – as a CATCHER.  Napoli never seems to get 500-600 at bats, but it he does, his numbers could go through the roof.  Last year was a fluke in the homers department for Napoli, either.  He’s emerged as a safe bet for 20+ homers, regardless of how much playing time he gets. Make sure you get Napoli in your fantasy league, as catcher is always a thin position.

Will Yu Darvish be a stud or a bust?  Although there have been comparisons to Daisuke Matsuzaka, the truth is that while Matsuzaka was very good in Japan, he wasn’t nearly as dominant as Darvish was.  Darvish also has the benefit of being in a smaller media market, rather than be thrust into the Red Sox – Yankees rivalry.

Brian Matusz is a far better pitcher than his 2011 numbers (1-9, 10.69 ERA) indicate.  Injuries likely contributed.  Don’t undervalue him as a fantasy player.

On the flip side, Ivan Nova isn’t nearly as good as his 16-4 record in 2011 would lead you to believe.  Expect worse numbers in 2012.

This story originally ran on December 10, 2010.  It was a very quick story to write – probably 45 minutes from when the idea struck me to when I finished.  I’ve always liked it, so I’m re-running it today.

He lay prone on the ridge above the canyon. He watched as the object of his attention came into view. Muriel was as beautiful as the day he had first seen her. That first day, too, he had watched her from afar. She had laughed melodiously as she chatted with friends. And then the inevitable had happened – the boyfriend had shown up.

The boy’s name was Chet, he had later found out. Chet and Muriel were high school sweethearts, and had remained close through college. They moved away from home, taking new jobs out of state. And this was how Philip had come to see them in the apartment building. After he caught his first glimpse of Muriel, he was in love. He would have to convince Muriel that he, Philip, was her true love – or else.

And, so, on this warm day in June, Philip found himself lying in dew kissed grass, waiting for Muriel to enter the clearing and give him a clear shot.

Philip had needed to go to a friend to get what he had needed for this outing. “This should definitely have the range you need,” his friend had assured him. “You could probably get a squirrel from a mile away with this.”

Philip hefted it as he waited for Muriel. As she closed the distance to the clearing, he picked her up in the scope. He trained the crosshairs on her as she moved between rock formations. The formations gave her ample cover, making a clean shot from this angle impossible.

His mind wandered as he waited for Muriel. In his mind’s eye, he could see himself waking up in the morning and gazing at her sleeping form next to him in a comfortable king size bed. He imagined exploring every curve of her body in the dim light of the rising sun.

Philip realized that he was daydreaming and returned his attention to the figure down in the canyon. Muriel had not only entered the clearing, but was nearly to the other side. If he was going to get off a good shot, he needed to take it now.

Philip focused on the figure of Muriel below. He waited for her to cease movement, and then took his shot.

He cursed as Muriel stooped to pick a wildflower, ducking below the spot where he had aimed. It was a momentary setback. When Muriel stood upright again, Philip took another shot. His aim was true, but Philip took three more shots in rapid succession, just in case the first shot had failed to do the job.

Philip stood upright and shook the dirt from his clothes. He removed the expensive lens from the camera and extracted the memory card. By the time Muriel had returned to the ridge, her husband had already uploaded the stunning morning photos to their web site.

Today we sit on the precipice of one of the most hallowed days of the year – Groundhog Day.  It’s your day, Phil.  The world will be watching.

And you better do the right thing.  I know where you live.  Once you come out of your hole, you aren’t going back in.

How can I be so certain?  One word.

Quikrete.

Lots of Quikrete in your hole as soon as you take two steps outside.  You might as well enjoy the sunshine, because you can’t go home again, you little rat.  Not unless bust out the concrete with a jackhammer.

I want my spring, Phil, and I want it now.  If you dare to sic more winter on me, we’ll be having groundhog-ka-bobs for dinner tonight.

Image via Wikipedia

Mitt Romney has released income tax information, any many people are shocked that he paid an effective rate of just 13.9% in 2010.  His opponent, Newt Gingrich, pays an effective rate of 30%!  Is Romney doing something illegal?

The reason for Romney’s rate

The reason why Romney pays a far lower rate than Gingrich isn’t due to some strange loophole that Romney pays his lawyers to exploit.  It’s simply due to the fact that capital gains are treated differently than ordinary income.  While tax rates on ordinary income (wages, interest, etc) range from 5% to 35%, capital gains are taxed at 15% (although taxpayers in the 5% and 10% brackets pay their ordinary rate on capital gains).

This means that if I have a $1000 capital gain and Mitt Romney has a $1000 capital gain, we will both pay taxes of $150 on that income.

Mitt’s income is nearly all derived from investments.  He doesn’t have a wage-earning job.  While he does make a few bucks from book royalties, it pales in comparison to his investment earnings.  Throw in some deductible charitable contributions, and Romney is able to chisel the 15% rate down to 13.9% without much work.

Why are capital gains taxed at a lower rate?

The basic idea behind a lower rate for capital gains is that this will encourage people to invest in capital assets (ownership of companies) instead of keeping their money in a mattress or a passbook savings account.  There’s more risk in doing this, of course, so one way to balance the risk/reward is to allow profits to be taxed at a lower rate.

Is the capital gains rate too low?

In my opinion, yes.  It seems absurd that a $500 capital gain and a $5 million capital gain would be taxed at the same rate, when $500 or ordinary income and $5 million of ordinary income would be taxed at different rates.

Do I think that capital gains should be taxed at the same rate as ordinary income?  No.  I do believe that there’s is value in encouraging investors to put their money into equities.  It clearly is a riskier proposition, and I’m OK with a lower capital gains rate being a reward for taking that risk.

My suggestion would be to make the capital gains rate 2/3 of the rate for ordinary income.  Under this plan, the capital gains rate would be 7% for those in the 10% tax bracket and would top out at 23.45% for those in the 35% tax bracket.  Mitt Romney would still pay a lower effective rate that Newt Gingrich or Alex Rodriguez, but would pay far more than he does today.

What’s an effective rate?

As a last bit of explanation, let’s look at the difference between a marginal rate and effective rate.  You might be in the 25% tax bracket.  This doesn’t mean that you pay a 25% tax rate on all your earnings.  Tax rates on ordinary income are marginal.  If you are single and make $50,000 (this would be in the 25% bracket), you would pay 10% on the first $8500 of taxable income , 15% for the amount between $8500 and $34500, and 25% on the amount that exceeds $33950.  That would be a total tax of $8625 on $50,000 of taxable income – or 17.25%.

The second point is that there is a big difference between your gross earnings and taxable income.  You’ll reduce gross income by the exemptions for yourself, spouse, and children, and well as a variety of deductions (mortgage interest, property taxes, charitable contributions, etc), and credits (earned income credit, child tax credit, etc).

effective rate is often calculated against gross income (AGI), his effective rate drops to $12.5%.

A married couple with two dependent children who have an AGI of $50,000 and take only the standard deduction and personal exemptions (no itemized deductions or credits) will pay $2690 in federal taxes … an effective rate of 5.4%.  This is achieved by excluding a total of $26400 via the $11,600 standard deduction for married filing jointly and $14,800 in personal exemptions (four exemptions @ $3700 each), dropping the couple’s taxable income down to $23,600.

Jamie Moyer has signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies.  The deal includes an invitation to Spring Training.  I’m assuming that the invitation includes an opportunity to try out for the team, and not just a meet-and-greet with Tulo and a tour of downtown Scottsdale.

I tracked down some people for their thoughts.  Without further ado, here’s the chatter about the signing.

We lost Moyer to an injury in 2011, and it cost us a shot at the World Series.  I figured we’d be able to re-sign Moyer for 2012, slot him into the top of the rotation, and let Halladay and Lee fight it out for the #2 spot.  I guess he got too expensive for us.

– Philly resident Evan Kline

When I heard that Moyer was going to be available, I had to go after him.  I can still remember when he broke in with the Cubs.  I didn’t actually SEE the game, since I was in my mother’s womb, but she could feel me kick every time he threw a pitch that day.

– Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd

Two words – AARP discount.  Yeah, I plan to hang out with Jamie a lot.  I’m sure he’s a cool guy and everything, but he can flash that card and get discounted food for everyone.  Hey, a penny saved is a penny earned.

– Rockies All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki

He can get us into R-rated movies, right?

– Rockies pitcher Drew Pomeranz

I’ve never heard of this guy. Does he have a temper? If he’s going to be bashing the water cooler with a bat every time he has a bad game, I need to know – because I’ll have to get Smitty to order some extra water coolers. We can’t be signing these guys without doing a better job of vetting them – too much risk of property damage.

– Rockies manager Jim Tracy

What does Jamie Moyer have in common with me? We’re both prehistoric.

– Dinger

All kidding aside, I do see that as a good signing by the Rockies. On the human side of things, Moyer is by all accounts a great guy, and has several humanitarian awards to back it up. The Rockies also have a ton of young pitcher, and Moyer could serve as a role model and mentor for them.

On the baseball side of things, there’s not much risk to the deal, since it’s a minor league deal. There’s a very real chance that he could nail down the #5 starter spot. If he can manage to stay in the rotation for a few years, he might even have a shot at getting win #300 as a Rockie. I don’t think that would get him into the Hall of Fame, but it’d still be pretty cool.

As millions of students have already realized, Wikipedia is down today (January 18, 2012).  Did Wikipedia forget to pay their electric bill?

Nope, nothing like that.  Wikipedia and other big (and small) sites are participating in a blackout to protest SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act).  When the calendar flips to Thursday, Wikipedia will once again be live.

The intent of SOPA, sponsored by Texas congressman Lamar Smith, is to aid law enforcement agencies in their fight against intellectual property violations.  That sounds like a great thing, right?

The problem is that the government could shut down sites that are allegedly violating intellectual property laws without significant due  process.  SOPA would make also make a rights holder who falsely accused a site liable for damages.  However, under SOPA, it’s quite likely that rights holders would try to press the issue and attempt to force law enforcement agencies to grant them protection that exceeds what they are actually legally entitled to.  I think this because there already a lot of example of rights holders trying to expand the reach of their protections (no, I’m not talking about illegal downloads).

What SOPA would essentially do is turn the internet into a “shoot first and ask questions later” landscape.  Sites that operate without the boundaries of the law could get shut down while an investigation take place.  Whole sites could be taken down even if there were only a single case of copyright infringement – even if the site’s owner did not approve of then infringing content.  If a visitor to this site were to leave a long comment that they stole, lock, stock, and barrel, from someone else, I wouldn’t necessarily know this.  I could honestly believe that they had themselves written the content.

I do believe that intellectual property rights should be protected.  However, I also believe that due process should be allowed to run its course and that law enforcement doesn’t rush to judgment simply because a rights holder says that a site violates intellectual property laws.  There should be a balance between intellectual property rights and the first amendment.

A lot of people are yammering about the BCS SEC National Conference Championship game, while others are talking about this weekend’s Tebowl.  Naturally, I’m focused on baseball.

The voting for the 2012 Baseball Hall of Fame has been announced.  Here are my thoughts on the voting:

Hall of Famers

• Barry Larkin was elected in his third year of eligibility, jumping from 62.1% of the vote last year to 86.4% this year.  Anyone who saw Larkin play during his prime realized that it was just a matter of time before he was elected.
• After toying with his emotion for year, the Veterans Committee posthumously elected Cubs great Ron Santo to the Hall of fame.

Future Hall of Famers

This is an unofficial category, as you never know when a player’s candidacy is going to run out of steam.  However there are several players who took big steps forward this year.

• Jack Morris was the winningest pitcher in the 1980s and the ultimate gamer.  However, his lack of eye-popping stats has kept him on the ballot for 13 years.  With a jump from 53.5% last year to 66.6% this year, Morris could slip in next year as the first big batch of steroid-tainted players hit the ballot.  If not 2013, then definitely in 2014, as players often get a bump from the voters during their last year on the ballot (you can be on the ballot for a maximum of 15 years).
• Jeff Bagwell is tainted by the fact that he played during the steroid era, despite the fact that he has never himself been accused of any wrongoing.  In his second year on the ballot, he jumped from 41.7% to 56%.  Likely member of the HOF class of 2015 as he gradually pushed his numbers up.
• The dynamic Tim Raines climbed from 37.5% to 48.7% in his 5th year on the ballot.  He still has a sizeable hill to climb, but I think he gets there eventually.  HOF class of 2019.
• Lee Smith was the all-time saves leader when he retired.  However, he has been passed since then (most notably by Mariano Rivera) and there’s less respect for the raw statistics of saves than there was in the past.  In his 10th year on the ballot, he jumped from 45.3% to 50.6%.  I’m not sure if he’ll make it or not.  I hope he does, because I remember his as a fierce warrior on the Cubs teams in the 80s.

Everyone else

There are a lot of other great names on the ballot, but I don’t see any of the others making it into the Hall of Fame.  Some thoughts on the rest of the group:

• I loved seeing Larry Walker play for my Rockies.  However, a relatively short career coupled with the advantages of playing at Coors Lite (pre-humidor) dooms his candidacy.  Very exciting player – too bad he couldn’t have put together a few more good years.
• Dale Murphy was a back to back MVP (1982 and 1983) but will fall off the ballot next year.  He received a mere 14.2% of the vote this year.
• Don Mattingly was the face of the game for a few years before a bad back sapped him of his power.  17.8% in his 12th year on the ballot.  Mattingly has been on the Hall of Fame ballot for 12 years?  That makes me feel old.  Maybe he’ll make it to the Hall as  manager.
• Without the stench of steroids attached to his name, Rafael Palmeiro would have been a first ballot Hall of Famer.  As the first big star to test positive, there’s no way he’ll make it.  The irony is that he already had HOF numbers at the time of his test.  Had he retired a year earlier, he’d be in the Hall.
• Mark McGwire actually lost votes, dropping from 19.8% to 19.5%.  This is fairly hard to do, as once a player crosses the Hall of Fame threshold in a writer’s mind, it’s unlikely the writer will demote him.  However, the actual group of voters has a bit of turnover from year to year.  Some McGwire backers may have retired and been replaced with those who aren’t likely to vote for him.  although he never tested positive for a banned substance, he admitted to being using Andro (which was not banned) and was the subject of other rumors.
• Edgar Martinez and Fred McGriff each made small jumps in their 3rd year on the ballot.  Martinez climbed from 32.9% to 36.5% while the Crime Dog went from 17.9% to 23.9%.  At this point, it seems unlikely that either will make it to the required 75%.  The fact that Martinez was a DH works against him, as it should.  He was still a great contributor as a hitter, but didn’t add as much value as a comparable hitter who also played the field.  McGriff was one of the most feared sluggers in the game during his prime, but his lack of a team identity could hurt him – he bounced around like a ping pong ball.
• Alan Trammell jumped from 24.3% to 36.8% in his 11th year on the ballot.  I alway thought of Trammell (and Lou Whitaker) as very good players, but not great ones.
• Bernie Williams debuted at 9.6%.  Another guy who was a good player, but not a Hall of Famer.
• Several players were dropped from future consideration after falling below 5%.  Who would have ever guess that Juan Gonzalez would spend only 2 years on the Hall of Fame ballot.
• Eric Young achieved his goal and received a vote.  Just one, but better than 4 time All-Star Ruben Sierra, Jeromy Burnitz, Terry Mulholland, Phil Nevin, Brian Jordan, and Tony Womack.

I’ve had an interest in writing since my elemenetary school days.  This is how my life as a writer has evolved throughout the years.

The Early Years

I was selected to attend a Young Writer’s Conference in sixth grade.  The conference was geared to 4th through 6th grades, and since I wasn’t selected in 4th or 5th grade, I assume that the writing bug must have hit me in sixth grade.

From day one, I wanted to be a fiction writer.  My earliest report cards contain comments about me drifting off into my own world at times.  The job of a fiction writer is simply to drift off in those dream worlds and write down what happens.  I’ve always been pretty proficient at non-fiction, but have never found it as interesting as fiction.

Most of my earliest stories were about sports.  This makes sense, since I was a huge sports fan (some things never change).  My teacher told me that she’d select me for the writer’s conference (a day away from school!) if I proved that I could write a decent non-sports story.  I wrote a story about Bigfoot.

I don’t remember there being much emphasis on creative writing in my junior high and high school years, so I didn’t write a lot, although I did read hundreds of books during these years.  The one story I do remember writing is “The Case of The State Vs. Santa Claus”, where the head elf goes on trial for vehicular manslaughter in the death of Grandma.

College

Reading textbooks during my college years tempered my enthusiasm for reading and writing.  Since I pursued a minor in English as well as degrees in business disiplines, I generally had quite a bit of reading on my plate.  When I wrote, it was usually discussing topics such as the mental state of Hamlet. 

When I did write, I made an effort to have some fun.  One of my freshman composition papers discussed basebal’sl anti-trust exemption.

I wrote a handful of stories during this time frame, but I don’t have copies of many of them any more.

Post-college

For several years after college, I basically stopped writing altogether.  Every couple of years, I’d get to itch to write, hammer out a couple of stories, and go into hiberation again.

Eventually, I fell into a group of friends who did dinner and a movie once per week.  At some point, I became the organizer of events, and began inject a bit of flair into them.  This is a dinner invitation from a few years back.  Bob Inferapels stars as “pudgy man with a limp”.

You reach tentatively toward the door.  It creeks as you open it.  Once inside, you are treated to the pungent aroma of the roasted, rotted, flesh of small mammals.  In the back, you see the milk maids turning cow and goat milk into fetid cheese.  A gardner whistles a drinking song while violently slicing vegetables into tiny chunks.  The serving wench balances eight mugs of ale on her tray.  An angry chef shouts orders above the fray, but nobody appears to be listening.
 
You look down at the parchment once more.  Could this den of inequity be the right place?  Have you been lured into this location by a highwayman with larceny in his heart?
 
You peer around the corner.  Ah, you see the tall man in spectacles.  And there, leaning against the wall, is the pudgy man with the limp.  They are listening intently to their feudal lord.  As you enter the room, the trio quickly looks up … they are aware that their plans are now in great danger.

Beginning Anew

In 2008, I received encouragement from a friend to launch a blog.  Blogs were completely foreign to me at this point.  I was aware of the concept, but hadn’t paid attention to how prevalent they had become.  It seemed like a great way to get immediate feedback on my writing.  One thing that I had always disliked about the writing process was inability to get quality feedback.

I jumped in head first and began writing as many as seven articles per week, on topics as diverse as politics, sports, and personal finance.  A few months later, I began featuring a short story every week.  Fiction Friday is on hiatus for a while so that I can focus on some other fiction projects, but it allow me to work on my writing technique.

Eventually, The Soap Boxers grew beyond a simple excercise to work on my writing technique and became the site you see today.

The Professional

In 2011, I was approached and asked if I would consider doing some freelance writing.  I had never really considered it, but decided to give it a shot.  I’d be doing the work for someone I considered to be a friend, so I was confident that it would be a good working relationship.

When the first payment hit my account, it was official – I was a professional.  I wasn’t getting rich from my writing yet, but I was getting paid – and that’s the first step. 

Helping Others

I’ve had a lot of help in recent years.  People that I have never met in person – but have come to know as friends – have donated thousands of dollars of expertise.

I’m trying to pay this forward.  In addition to trying to trying to launch a few of my own projects this year, I am assisting a few other writers in their efforts to launch eBooks.  At the moment, I’m volunteered to help at least four other writers get their books into print (well, ePrint, anyway).  For the writers, this will be a completely turnkey operation.  They had over a Word document and a cover image to me, and a few days later, their book will appear on Amazon.
 

Joran Van der Sloot is expected to plead guilty to charges of murder today.  He faces as much as 30 years in prison for the death of Stephany Flores.

This means that Van der Sloot, still just 24, will be released before he turns 55.  Depending on the leniency of the judge, perhaps long before then.  This disturbs me greatly.  If the allegations against Van der Sloot are true, he is a cold, calculating monster with no conscience.  Even his own mother is distancing herself from him.

Let’s do a run-down.  Note that these are all allegations – none of the charges have been proven in a court of law.

• Van der Sloot first popped up on the radar as a 17 year old in 2005 when he was arrested for involvement in the disappearance and presumed murder of American teenager Natalee Holloway.  Holloway’s body was never found, and eventually van der Sloot was released from custody.  In my opinion, it’s unlikely that Van der Sloot will ever go on trial for Holloway’s murder.
• In 2010, he extorted money from Beth Holloway (Natalee’s mother) in exchange for disclosing the location of Natalee’s body.  Beth and her representative participated in a sting operation, and van der Sloot got $25,000.  Before charges could be filed, van der Sloot traveled to Peru.  The information about the location of Natalee’s body was determined to be false.  Talk about rubbing salt in the wound.
• While in Peru, he strikes up a relationship with Flores.  After spending time in a casino, they go to his hotel room early in the morning of May 30, 2010.  Violence ensues – likely due to a discussion of his involvement in Holloway’s murder – and Flores ends on the floor with a broken neck and blunt force trauma to the head.  By the time her body is discovered on June 2, van der Sloot has fled to Chile.  He was arrested on June 3 and eventually extradited to Peru.
• And the one that nobody talks about much – his involvement in the sex trafficking trade.  An investigate report by Dutch journalist Peter R. de Vries shows that Van der Sloot, at the time an owner of a restaurant in Thailand, sold Thai girls to groups involved in the sex trafficking trade.  Van der Sloot posed as a representative of a modeling agency to lure the girls, who were shipped to the Netherlands to become sex slaves.  For his efforts, Van der Sloot received a heathy fee of $13,000 per girl.

That’s a pretty extensive resume for a 24 year old.  While Van der Sloot often seems portray a lone wolf psychopath working along, it seems unlikely that this is actually true.  It’s fairly obviously that he has cultivated some relationships with other criminals.  How else could he have possibly gotten involved in the Thai sex slave enterprise?

I’m hoping the judge decides to impose the maximum penalty of 30 years in prison – and fear the day that Van der Sloot is able to walk out of the doors a free man once again.  How many other women will he kill after his release from prison?