winsor

The reason for the Four Seasons is Frankie Valli.

From the proponents of the law, the NRA, yes. As usual, speak not of what you know not. His actions were appalling.

For someone to espouse the Phlogiston or Caloric or Ether theories would be more easily defensible than "Creation Theory." The existence of people who adhere to such claptrap is certain proof of Taylor Caldwell's observation that "5% of the population think, 5% think they think and 90% would sooner die than think." If anything, I suspect she was optimistic. BSBD, Winsor

It is silly that there should be a debate between Science and Creationism. As everyone knows, Creationism IS Science. BSBD, Winsor

OK - I'll expand a bit: Aqua Team Thirst Force? Captain Planet Society? How about Piedmont Poison Patrol?

What difference does it make?

That's sounds interesting, but I'm having trouble wrapping my mind around it. Anyone have a few easy examples? "Begging the question" just means you start a discussion/argument/debate with some statement or question that assumes an answer to an unasked question. This assumed answer generally plays a key role in what you are eventually trying to prove. A classic example is the loaded question, "Are you still beating your wife?" This inquiry begs the question, "Have you beaten your wife?" If the answer to this skipped over or "begged" question is "no" then the question about whether you continue to do so isn't even valid. Often people use the term to just mean "brings up another question" when they want to sound accusatory or intellectual, but that's silly. There's nothing wrong with making a statement that invites further questions in the conversation, that's how conversations work. It's the original definition where you've skipped a question that is the logical fallacy. /edited to add: a plain example in this context would be a question like, "Aren't you worried God will be mad at you for not believing in Him?" The beating your wife example demonstrates the fallacy of Compound Question, as is the presumption that Zeus is touchy about those who doubt His existence. Begging the Question, or Petito Principi, is more of the form: People with good literary taste prefer Shakespeare to Harold Robbins. How can you identify people with good literary taste? Because they are reading Shakespeare instead of Harold Robbins. In the case of Petito Principi the premise defines the conclusion.

FORTRAN is still used extensively in heavy duty scientific number crunching like nuclear weapons simulation, weather forecasting, astrophysics, etc., for which is was originally developed. While of almost no use in GUIs or web based apps, or NSA snooping, it remains a viable language for scientists and engineers. I am not a chemist. Maybe winsor can help on your bonding question. The problem we have here is that there is a great deal of reference material available for the subjects mentioned, but its perusal is not likely to be of much use. One can have a very good handle on Chemistry at the K-12 level - which is great, in and of itself. Four or more years of dedicated Undergraduate study can then prepare someone for a rigorous Graduate program. If all goes well, one can expect to have a really good handle on the subject some four to six years thereafter. My point here is not that one's understanding of valence states and so forth as learned in High School is wrong or not useful, but that there is a hell of a lot more going on in the overall scheme of things than one can pick up by a simple literature review. Putting available data into useful perspective, given the way the questions were phrased, is unlikely at best. Wading through the agenda of various sources is an art unto itself. Given the issues you raise, I would caution you to curb your enthusiasm regarding 'activism' in the search for solution via regulation. There is a better than even chance that, when addressing very real problems, the cure will be well worse than the disease. If you have a couple of semesters free, I can put together a course of study that could get your head above water regarding your subjects of concern. If it is important to you, I strongly suggest it, since you are unlikely to make much headway without a basic level of understanding. Good luck, Winsor

Mock though he might the Art History curriculum, he would have been well served to have studied History of ANY persuasion while in academia. Perhaps History will be kind to him, but his ignorance of the subject is breathtaking. BSBD, Winsor

Would you believe he is my representative? He has my vote next election. I know you aren't, but you should be ashamed of the way you celebrate this kind of ignorance. Wearing ignorance on your sleeve is the new badge of honor for some. Please remind me why one side of the aisle is perceived as significantly more stupid than the other? Regardless of embracing Bronze Age superstition by one group, the level of intellectual incompetence achieved by the other side is every bit as impressive - and occasionally more so. I am reminded of the T-shirt somebody wore at the drop zone, which said simply 'Your Retarded.' Again, though Republican fuckwits are truly world-class, Democrat fuckwits do their best to make their GOP counterparts seem like rank amateurs at the stupidity game. Neither group has any basis upon which to crow about their mental horsepower.

"Why can't we all just get along?"

In the interview of some porn star ('Seka?'), she mentioned that guys were given to sending her pictures of their penes. Her take on the subject was that, at least at her level of experience, if you've seen one, you've seen them all. OTOH, I was present for an interchange in a Lab where a young Engineer said "it ain't the meat, it's the motion." Without missing a beat, a demure young female Engineer responded "anybody that says that has an itty bitty dick." Good thing I did not have a mouthful of coffee. BSBD, Winsor

I wholeheartedly disagree. I find undergoing a root canal preferable. Then how will you know when "the media" (whichever flavor you disagree with) is lying to you? Sit down, close your eyes, take a deep breath and just try to imagine how little I care. It will do you good.

I wholeheartedly disagree. I find undergoing a root canal preferable.

Every couple of years there is news of a drug that is so devastating and horrific that all previous addiction problems pale by comparison. Similarly, every couple of years there are reports of a firearm/ammunition combination that is infinitely more effective than anything heretofore seen. Yada, yada, yada. If you develop an addiction to opium, you're there. If you get hit by a blunderbuss, game over. All else is details. The tradeoffs regarding terminal ballistics are well established, and there really is nothing all that novel regarding this type of ammo. I would not touch this stuff even as a novelty. If you ever have the misfortune to have to shoot someone, you sure as hell do not want to use something touted as having an ultimate level of lethality. The ONLY reason one might have justifiable cause to shoot another is to STOP AN ATTACK, period. Exceed those criteria and you are way in the wrong; if you wish to be judge, jury and executioner, don't take it personally if you come to the attention of a further judge, jury and executioner - your call. BSBD, Winsor

Good advice for off-white tearorists, too.

Hollywood liberal and union boss. Best friend is a chimpanzee. Wife is into astrology. I dunno. Sounds too nutty to be President. Not too good at arithmetic, either.

Would not have happened if I lived in Colorado or Washington. BTW, here's another new profile pic, just for you sweetie, its my thanks to you for showing how nice most lesbians are to people who disagree with them, cautionary tale LOL. Jan I am unaware of any link between sexual preference and good manners. If you wish to demonstrate that your predilections are a guarantee of charm and grace, by all means set an example. You can start anytime.

The point, Oh Point-Misser, is that once Spain divested itself of its imperial occupation of the Falk...er, Malvinas, the logical nation to claim them (to the extent they were claimable in the first place) was the nation closest in proximity to them, and that was Argentina. And Argentina did claim them, immediately upon becoming an independent nation, and more than a decade before the imperialist English running dogs traveled 8,000 miles to infest them with a party of squatters. With bad teeth. Geologically the Falklands are Chilean, not Argentinean. And the Chileans acknowledge that the Falklands are British, to the point of providing assistance to the Brits in the 1981 war. Besides, the Argentines are just squatters on land stolen from the indigenous peoples. They should put their own house in order before claiming territory that had NO indigenous people and where Argentina never had a settlement. Free Tibet.

That rates right up there as one of the most ignorant things I've ever heard anyone say in SC about lesbians. You seem to think lesbians are some kind of genetically and emotionally identical clones As the Onion T shirt says, stereotypes are a great time saver. If the only lesbians I knew were those who appeared to harbor animus toward men, I could see how the conclusion would appear logical. However, the vast majority of lesbians I know are at peace with their sexuality and get along with men just fine. One problem a judge has is the endless parade of bugwits, cretins and losers with whom they must deal. One can spend a career on the bench without presiding over a case that is what it appears to be. In this case it would seem that the various parties did not have sufficient documentation to rule out the not-too-artificial variation of the insemination process. If there was a record of IVF or artificial insemination, he would be off the hook. Since she may have become pregnant the old fashioned way, he is now holding the bag. There may not have been sex involved before, but he's screwed now. BSBD, Winsor

I do not follow him, but he has struck me upon occasion as being a moderately bright guy. This appears to be a case in point of religion as a form of mental illness.

I think we're talking about the sun burning out, but I'm not sure. In the words of the philosopher R.E.M, "It's the end of the world as we know it." Hey, I feel fine.

Gays have been trying to get parental rights legally sorted out for a very long time. Take heart - breeders are not doing much better.

I am one of the last people you will meet with real smallpox scars. I have had Pertussis (Whooping Cough). I have had Coxsackievirus, referred to at the time as 'Mutation of Polio.' I'm no stranger to Autism. I do not want my kid to go through any of the illnesses preventable by appropriate inoculation, and he's still neurotypical. Go figure. BSBD, Winsor

Pot and alcohol are massively different. Ask any Forensic Pathologist. No frat boy worth his salt is going to try to get a young lady to fall in love with various brothers by plying her with marijuana. No sir, he is going to rely on the tried and true method - booze. There is no pot equivalent to a terminal alcoholic. Ask any cop that has been around who he'd rather arrest, someone who has been smoking pot all night ('I'm arrested? Bummer. You done with that donut?') or someone who has half a bottle of Jack Daniel's in him ('You wan'a 'rest me? I'm gon'a KILL you!'). I do not recommend the recreational use of much of anything, but, compared to alcohol, marijuana is a Gift From God (tm). The legal status of the two drugs fully justifies the assessment of the law as made by Charles Dickens in 'Oliver Twist.' BSBD, Winsor