sundevil777

Obama said during the campaign that marriage should stay between a man and a woman. Doesn't that make him a homophobe? Of course he also said that he supports civil unions that would have all of the same legal implications as a marriage, just a different name. Why would he do that (didn't disagree at all with McCain on this issue)? Because he is just an ordinary politician! I don't care if gays want to marry, but then I don't see how laws against polygamy can be justified, or laws restricting marriage to blood relatives. The same arguments apply - how does it affect another person's marriage, what goes on in private... People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Well, there we have it - we aren't allowed per the Army Field Manual to do any of the things that even Billvon thinks should be allowed, such as speaking harshly, bright lights, sleep deprivation, good cop/bad cop, they're all off-limits. This debate is about MUCH more than who thinks waterboarding is torture, much more indeed. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

There are some on this forum that would not agree, specifically on the sleep deprivation issue. If it was just a question of whether to allow waterboarding, the debate would be much easier. It is my understanding (perhaps wrong of course), that the Army field manual (now to be the only source of what is allowed - right?) does not allow any of those things you consider to be OK. I would add the use of intimidation with dogs to the list of things that should be allowed but is likely now prohibited. There are likely a lot of other things that were removed from use, I think it much more interesting to debate those than to focus just on waterboarding. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Without identifying what "torture" method is being OK'd by those responding to the survey, the result is worthless. I know that many will jump on any opportunity to ridicule those that believe in God/go to church, but this survey is BULLSHIT, probably intended to promote such a prejudice. Of course, as we all know, bigotry toward those that believe in God is OK, right - except if they are Muslim, then it is not allowed. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

That is extortion, correct? The law firm should have had the guts to call a press conference to accuse Obama directly, to demand a special counsel to investigate the "enhanced arm-twisting methods". By the way, I believe that Bush was also guilty of the same thing, along with many members of congress in the past, such as when banks were threatened with extra scrutiny if they didn't accept TARP funds or make loans they normally would choose not to do. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Before criticizing those that don't understand the difference between fiction and reality, you should at least get the fiction correct! My memory is that nobody was killed, just realistically simulated/staged, so that the suspect was convinced it was real. Should speaking harshly to a suspect be considered torture? What about bright lights, sleep deprivation, good cop/bad cop? The survey is of course, pure JUNK, because it does not define the type of interrogation that is to be considered torture. Without a clear understanding of what is being considered/objectionable, there is no conclusion to be made. Completely worthless. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Please help me to understand if this is a realistic alternative for phone service. Sounds like some people just use it for out-of-country calling. Is the sound quality much worse than a land/VoIP line? How does one pay for the service? If anyone can steer me to a website that would answer such questions that would be great. Thanks! People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Do you think there is anything that prevents any of the existing mfgs from just using the Vector reserve pin/line attachment method? Perhaps no change at all would be required, or maybe just a different distance from the grommet to the end of the housing. Doesn't the military already buy the Vector with that configuration? I would think the design does meet the target I mentioned of not being able to be screwed up by leaning/hitting something, or extremely tight closing loops. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Oh yes, I remember cones. Of course it was MUCH more important that you not bend the pin, as I'm sure you know. Several years after the pin strength testing in the field crap and still only the Vector has an alternative. Really pathetic considering how the mfgs spend lots of resources on trivial design changes. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

This is a subject that gets me a little worked up. I think the std reserve pin design, and the strength standard is terribly inadequate. I make that conclusion because I think it should not be possible to bend a pin while packing it, or when leaning against the airplane on the way to altitude, or when getting shoved into the door frame during the door jam-up or when diving out late (yes, I realize racers aren't vulnerable to that). To pass this type of abuse I think it might mean that the pin should be about 3 to 5 times stronger/stiffer than is currently the case. The reserve pin of the Vector is a significant departure from the standard (larger diameter). I think they would do well to advertise the benefit of their reserve pin. If would push the other mfgs to step it up. I think it is very likely that the top grommet/bearing surface which the pin rides against might also be worthy of beefing up, or completely redesigning. I am not a rigger, but I am a mech engineer, done mechanical component design for Boeing and Honda for 18 years. More thoughts on this subject: http://www.dropzone.com/...i?post=575109#575109 People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

They didn't copy everything. The way the reserve top flap tucks into the lower flap is different than a Vector. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

The few times I've watched lately, when the reserve was packed on the ground (not an over the shoulder pro-pack), the end result was still what a pro-pack provides, but done very neatly and carefully while it is on the ground. Perhaps my observation was wrong, but it seemed that way to me. I realize that the work to separate to the L&R all the fabric isn't done by all riggers that pack it on the ground, but there are some/many that do, right? Isn't it better (but more work) to carefully do it on the ground than over the shoulder and tossed down? People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

That cheapo orange plastic knife has been known for a long time to be junk. However, there are plastic models that are very good. This plastic knife is great (I have one), unfortunately square one and paragear still sell the orange junk knife also: http://www.square1.com/manufacturers/square1/p1155.asp#4inchPlastichookknife People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

What? Seems to me that the models that are ultra skinny are the ones doing women's fashion/runway type stuff. The audience for that type of model is women! The female models for the male audience most definitely do not resemble a young boy - not at all. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

http://aero-news.net/ I'd like to hear the reasoning for that "directive". People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Yes, even some of the Japanese nameplates have 2 (or more) brands. As I said, I think these are a waste, only there to satisfy vanity. If they spent a fraction of the effort with marketing to inform their potential buyers that the ultra luxury vehicle is going to be there within the same brand for less cost, I think the buying public would respond (basically a "value" message). I have personally witnessed the effort that is expended to try and distinguish brands - what will an Acura have that a Honda won't. I can tell you it is a big effort to get that differentiation with just 2 brands, GM must have been making a monumental effort to decide how to distinguish all of theirs. That effort would have been much better spent on making a better product instead. Of course having many brands isn't new. Having differences that would satisfy the guy inclined to buy a firebird vs a camaro is possible within one brand. My memory is that in Japan, Honda actually has 3 different dealership "brands", all selling different types of Hondas, so it a bit different - same brand, but different cars for different dealers. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Any car mfg that has more than 2 nameplates has too many. I think there isn't even a reason for more than 1 nameplate, except to satisfy the unknowing elite/snob consumer's desire to have exclusivity. They think that it won't impress their friends if they don't have a luxury brand. The detroit makers go way overboard with the number of brands. The Japanese used to limit themselves to just 2 brands, but now Toyota has lexus and Scion. There is no reason why any of the sporty (pontiac) models, or luxury models (Buick, Cadillac, Lincoln, Lexus, Acura, Infiniti), or youth models (scion) can't be offered under the same nameplate. The is a tremendous amount of waste in marketing, mfg, development, dealers, and it is hard to recover by increased consumer interest in a nameplate. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

A more relevant question would be whether or not she supported the torture. I haven't heard anyone claim that the interrogations should stop. Of course I meant that the interrogations using waterboarding, not just interrogations. And you know she didn't how? It has been reported widely that she was fully in support of the interrogation methods. She has had the opportunity to claim that she did object, but has not made that claim. If she had in fact objected, internally or in public, I would expect her to now make that claim. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

If she was privy to classified information, it is most probable that she would be unable to divulge that she knew, let alone what she knew. The important point is that Pelosi supported the interrogations, and wanted more to be done. If she had wanted to object, she could have done so within official circles - within the chain of command, without divulging any secrets, but she didn't. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

It seems that you have been asserting that the claim of security interests was not valid. It is claimed that the methods used aren't effective, which of course isn't supported by many security officials including the CIA director appointed by Clinton (still there at the time under Bush). If the methods are known to not be effective, what is the security interest? It isn't like liberals to blindly believe claims of the need for secrecy, why would you claim that Pelosi and other liberal darling dems would do that? How did you get to "personal goals"? Isn't the oath of office a little beyond personal goals? I don't believe you would just blindly be muzzled by a claim of security interests. I believe you would be skeptical, and follow your conscience if it was really important. Please, stop pretending to not recognize the pursuit of shining light on hypocrisy. Conservatives largely agree with what Pelosi supported at the time. Pelosi did indeed support it. She didn't need to divulge any sensitive info in order to object, but she didn't object, at the time. We only want the darling dems on the intelligence committee to be in the same boat as the Bush admin people that libs want to prosecute. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Besides the two 747s that are specifically designed for presidential use, there are also two gulfstreams intended for his use. Environmental considerations aside, I would think the president would be a lot safer going to middle east war zones in the gulfstream than the 747s. Bad guys looking to kill the pres would be looking for the big one to shoot down, with a small jet going by almost without notice. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

It is definitely a possibility. I certainly wouldn't let a claim of security interest muzzle my duty to the country. I would do it if my conscience dictated, it would of course depend on the circumstances. Liberals divulge such information often, from newspapers to those in congress. But Pelosi is not claiming that she was muffled by a claim of security interest. She is claiming that she was never told what many others say she most definitely was told. She is claiming she never wanted even more to be done when others say she did exactly that. If you're going to defend the predicament of the liberal darling dems on the intelligence committee, then you got to get with what they're are actually claiming. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Well then schmooky lumps, perhaps you can show that Pelosi and the other darling dems in the know complained at the time. Bill thinks that there was no burden for them to voice their objection, because they were told it was a matter of nat'l security. Perhaps this free pass to not do your duty in terms of oversight or anything else only applies to liberal darling dems in congress that are in charge of intelligence committee oversight? Here ya go tutu schnookums...from 2005 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10480690/ Sounds like some people wwere against the policies of the Cult of Bush for quite a while on this issue... funny dat. That's 3 years later, well after it became fashionable to claim that the war in Iraq was a lost cause. Pelosi knew about it since early 2002, although just today she claims that they were never told that waterboarding would be used, just that they were told about it! What a laugh! Those that were present at the briefings said that Pelosi wanted more to be done. Pelosi is having a tough time keeping track of what she said and when, and having that even come close to what others say (including Obama officials). People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Well then schmooky lumps, perhaps you can show that Pelosi and the other darling dems in the know complained at the time. Bill thinks that there was no burden for them to voice their objection, because they were told it was a matter of nat'l security. Perhaps this free pass to not do your duty in terms of oversight or anything else only applies to liberal darling dems in congress that are in charge of intelligence committee oversight? People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

So, those with oversight authority are blameless just because they might have been told it would compromise national security? But they are now saying that national security was compromised by the interrogation methods because it was used as a recruiting tool, etc. Sounds like they want it both ways - they want to have no accountability for using their own judgment starting back in 2002. I say bullshit! Pelosi and the other darling dems were in favor of the interrogation techniques as was president, and it was specifically their duty to serve as oversight. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am