ChasingBlueSky

Well, 1st, you've got them. 2nd you've used them before. No one else has. t And it seems our leaders or future leaders want to use them. I missed the days when the US tried to prevent Nukes from being used....instead of threatening ot use them so others can't. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

when you have been exposed to death, practicaltiy is easier. my brother, wife, and coach have passed away before thier "normal" time. and i agree, that people see me as insensitive regarding death. Even if you have been exposed to death by those close to you it doesn't always become easy. Each death I've been witness to has changed me and I find that I can't go back to the way I was before that....and each death is unique in the impact it has on me. And despite being a jumper I am not yet ready to face my own ending yet. Some of it comes from one or two of the fears above, but it is strongly founded in the belief that I have yet to do everything I have wanted to achieve. The biggest thing with death is that there can be no closure as there is no final resolution. No real understanding of what that life meant, where that life is and why it had to be their time. This is where faith fails me as I look for empirical evidence. I resign myself in defeat each time and just hope that time passes quickly so the immediate feelings of loss can pass but the desire to understand never fades. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Damn, just saw this thread now. I met Scott very early on as he sold me one of his canopies and was eventually one of my Rodriguez parents (we were the first initiation jump off the first C130 jump at the WFFC and it was great having someone that was comfortable at my freefall speed). Getting a chance to party with him each year at WFFC was always one of my hightlights and I have some great pictures stored on my laptop from some of those nights. He always pushed for me to come jump with him at his home DZ and now I'm kicking myself for passing up on that standing invite and for losing touch with him over the last year. Blue ones Scott, you will be missed brother. Hey up there, MAKE ROOM FOR GANJA RODRIGUEZ. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Abyss, Tron and Robocop need to go on the list as well. Not going off of what else was listed here you can make arguments for The Secret of N.I.M.H., Wrath of Kahn, Dark Crystal, Animal House, Blazing Sadles, Up In Smoke, Time Bandits, Superman 2, Halloween 2, Mad max 2, The Shining, The Thing, Conan, Last Starfighter, Porkys, Blade Runner, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Creepshow, The Accused, Poltergeist, 48 Hours, Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, Night Shift, Mr Mom, Always, Altered States, Arthur, Batman..... Damn, no way I could pick just one. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

A person who doesn't support a woman's right to manage her own body isn't really a libertarian in my book, but I still share your opinion of the two best candidates thus far, just reversed. Blues, Dave That was a tough one for me as well. But after all the reading I have done, my assumption (always dangerous) is that he wouldn't push for a chance in Roe v Wade. I also like his experience over Obama and I like that he has maintained a rather solid view on many political hot points over the years. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

From one of the above links. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

It depens where in the midwest you are. Big cities in this area are often democratic where the rural areas tend to be more red. Get on 55/57/80 heading out of Chicago during an election year and you will see a drastic change in campaign advertisments and lawn decorations the further away from the city you get. Honestly to me I don't care what party the winner is. What I do care about is someone returning this country to normal and back to what it should be. You know, simple stuff like following the laws, constitution, better local and foreign policy, etc. To me, right now, that best bet is Ron Paul. You wouldn't ever catch me voting for Hillary. My second choice would be Obama and from there it's a matter of chosing the best of the leftovers. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21000298/ Bin Laden may have just escaped U.S. forces August mission in Tora Bora almost snared 'high value target' By Justin Balding, Adam Ciralsky, Jim Miklaszewski and Robert Windrem NBC News Updated: 7:07 p.m. CT Sept 26, 2007 A little more than a month ago, with the anniversary of Sept. 11 approaching and fears of a new al Qaeda attack rising, some U.S. intelligence and military analysts thought they had found one of the world’s two most wanted men just where they last saw them six years ago. For three days and nights — between Aug. 14 and 16 — U.S. and Afghanistan forces pounded the mountain caves in Tora Bora, the same caves where Osama Bin Laden had hidden out and then fled in late 2001 after U.S. forces drove al Qaeda out of Afghanistan cities. Ultimately, however, U.S. forces failed to find Bin Laden or his deputy, Ayman al Zawahiri, even though their attacks left dozens of al Qaeda and Taliban dead. One of the officials interviewed by NBC News, a general officer, admitted Tuesday that it was “possible” Bin Laden was at Tora Bora, saying, in fact, "I still don’t know if he was there." Still, some in the special operations and intelligence community are telling NBC News that there was a lack of coordination particularly in the choice of support troops. But with intelligence limited on who was there, no one is willing to say that the lack of key units permitted Bin Laden or Zawahiri to escape. When the operation began in early August there was no expectation that Bin Laden or Zawahiri would be there, say U.S. military and intelligence officials. Instead, there was intelligence of a pre-Ramadan gathering of al Qaeda including "leadership" in Tora Bora. Senior officials in the U.S. and Pakistan tell NBC News that planning for the attacks intensified around Aug. 10 once analysts suggested that either Bin Laden or Zawahiri may have be drawn to the conference at Tora Bora. (When U.S. forces attacked al Qaeda camps in August 1998, following the East Africa embassy bombings, Bin Laden was attending a pre-Ramadan conference of al Qaeda in the same general area of eastern Afghanistan). While the intelligence did not provide “positively identification” that Bin Laden or Zawahiri were at the scene, there was enough other intelligence to suggest that one of the two men was there. Bin Laden and Zawahiri are not believed to have traveled together since mid-2003 for security reasons. Another official said that intelligence analysts believed strongly that there was a high probability that “either HVT-1 or HVT-2 was there,” using U.S. intelligence descriptions — high value targets — for Bin Laden and Zawahiri. He added that while opinion inside the agency was divided, many believed it was Bin Laden rather than Zawahiri who was present. The reason: “They thought they spotted his security detail,” said the official, a large al Qaeda security detail — the kind of protection that would normally surround only Bin Laden, or Zawahiri. Also, locals reported the presence of groups known to be part of Bin Laden’s security detail —Chechens, Uzbeks and other Arabs, men willing to die rather than surrender top al Qaeda officials. The military operation included "several hundred" U.S. and Afghan ground forces, say officials. Elements from the 82nd Airborne blocked off escape routes through the mountains on the Afghanistan side of the border, while helicopters inserted U.S. Navy Seals at night. The Seals pinpointed enemy positions and called in air strikes; the 82nd came in and "mopped up." On the other side of the border, a senior Pakistani official says the U.S. military helped thousands of Pakistani forces — including their elite commando units — set up a blockade to sweep up any al Qaeda fleeing Afghanistan. Any operation to take down Bin Laden or Zawahiri would have been formidable. “He's surrounded by the true believers,” reported Rick Francona, who worked with CIA and special ops teams in Iraq in the 1990s. “And they will fight to the death to protect him, they will probably even kill him before they allow him to be captured. So if you're going to go in that area, you have to go in there with enough force that you think you can accomplish this mission successfully and not lose all of your guys in the process.” One senior military official said Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Peter Pace personally briefed the president on the specifics of the ongoing operation. The operation closely parallels the killing of Abu Musab al Zarqawi last year. NBC News reported at the time that the U.S. military did not positively determine that Zarqawi was in the house that was bombed. Instead, they had surveillance on Zarqawi's spiritual adviser who led them to the house, and the decision was made to take the shot because they didn’t want to miss the chance to get Zarqawi. One general predicts, "That's the way we'll get Bin Laden." They may not have that positive ID, but there'll be enough intelligence to prompt an air strike and they'll find Bin Laden in the rubble. What happened this time? Military officials admit there were unidentified "planning and coordination problems" even before it got to execution, “primarily between the operators and the generals who give the go-orders” added an intelligence official. A company of the 82nd Airborne was brought in since a Ranger team trained in special operations was not available. But the combination of the “dark side” — the SEALs — and the conventional — the 82nd Airborne — didn't work. "They didn't gel," said the military official. There was "a lack of responsiveness to the intelligence and a lack of aggressiveness." Michael Sheehan, a former Army Special Operations colonel and counter terrorism ambassador, says he is not surprised. “Our response is normally too big, too slow, too cumbersome and too risk adverse and those factors normally come from Washington,” said Sheehan. “The operators normally want to go in much smaller, much more low profile in order to be able to get to the target without being identified and as those plans go up the chain of command they normally get much bigger and much more cumbersome.” But the bigger part of the picture is the question of allocation of resources from Afghanistan to Iraq. All Delta Force and “dark side” Rangers were moved to Iraq, said a special operations officer involved in the Afghanistan operation. Left behind in Afghanistan were SEAL Team Six and some Rangers. But apparently in this case, not enough “dark side” were available. The 82nd, said a second special operations officer, “is a poor substitute … [it is] a blunder to use them on an op with dark side operators.” Justin Balding is a Producer for Dateline NBC. Adam Ciralsky is a producer with the NBC News investigative unit. Robert Windrem is an investigative producer for NBC News special projects. © 2007 MSNBC Interactive _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Looking back at that $200/check sent to me many years ago for those "incredible tax breaks" confirms what I said then: bad idea. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

And just to add this: a gun isn't the only EP you need to survive IRL. To an above post to me: Yes, I've fired many different type of handguns and rifles. I also believe in gun ownership. And about an older person pulling a gun, esp if they were arthritic....I know that my grandparents (now passed) in their 70s could barely pour a cup of coffee without dropping the pot or spilling coffee all over the counter. I wouldn't want to be anywhere on the same block with them if they choose to pick up a gun. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

So a young, tall guy was able to defend himself. Now gain 20 more years and some arthritis, lose 5 inches of height and strength, and try again. So an out of shape person with failing body reflexes, aged speed, and arthritis impacting hands, fingers, etc would be able to quickly draw a gun, remove the safety and confront an accoster? _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Every unarmed person who is assaulted and beaten to within an inch of their life, used to believe that too. Do you also feel like you'll never need your car's air bag? Your fire extinguisher? Your hook knife? So is learning how to deal with the situation worse off than having a gun in an untrained hand of a scared, nervous person? It most likely a better idea to teach people how to disarm a person and self defense. Just because you have a gun on you doesn't mean you would have the time to pull the gun and shoot. Funny thing about a hook knife. You don't need it if you don't put yourself into a situation where it is warranted. Don't skydive, no hook knife needed. Live street smart and you don't need a gun. Oh ya, and from what I've been told, my Uncle would still be dead even if he had a gun. He was shot in the back. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

I never said he was in the wrong for resisting. As was said earlier, you get arrested then fight it afterwards thru the system. However, I'm not sure why the cops stopped 10 feet shy of that hallway when they could have pulled him out there and closed the door. If you see my post above, apparently he did have this planned and did disrupt earlier in the event. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Maybe it was justified after all. Had this passed on to me today by a friend: So this information is removed a couple times from its source at this point, but the clips being showed on the web could be showing only part of the story. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Why was he pulled from the mic? Was he given a warning? Were there rules established before hand? This is what I am trying to get at. He did reactly poorly after being yanked to the back of the room. But was there reason to even do that in the first place? _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

"How can you live in such terror all the time?" You call it terror, I don't. I've seen what desperate men will do to get money. Life puts people in odd situations and due to lack of experience or support they react poorly. There are other reasons as well that are fueled by drugs, gangs, peer pressure, etc. The reasons I lived in the worst areas of the city was to extend help to those individuals and to help teach their children to help break a cycle. Despite every situation I have ever been in, including a riot outside my doorstep, I've never needed a gun in this city. Was it luck, street smarts or the way I handled the situation? I know my opinion but I doubt that will sway those that feel they need a gun. I'm not an idiot, I know crime happens. From having my Uncle shot down in a bar to watching someone get their wallet stolen at 4pm on State State street last Friday. I still don't think I will ever need a gun on me. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

You may want to watch it again. I heard several questions: why did he pull out of the election while it was still contested, why doesn't he push for Bush to be impeached, is he in Skull and Bones and he was about to ask his last question when they pulled him off the mic. I for one would be very interested to hear the response to each of those questions. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

You think you hear them say that? That's a pretty big assumption considering the number of people in the room, I'm sure not all of whom wanted to listen to the kid rant and rave. Are you sure that's what you heard? Are you sure it was a cop? Wasn't pulling him off the mic done by an assumption? I didn't see him disrupting and Kerry said he was going to answer his questions. Disruption would have meant standing up screaming these things during the session. Instead he waited in line, was most likely checked out by security before hand and was presented a time to ask questions. Just because they were controversial questions doesn't mean they were wrong to ask or he was doing something worthy of being arrested. Also, the bolded part above answers your question. I didn't say "I did hear" and thus it leaves room for dicussion that they didn't say it. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1606277730046267759&q=UF+student+tasered&total=3&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0 After watching that view of it the student asks "what did I do" and I think I hear the cops say "you were acting like an ass" _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

I can see them being upset if he approached the mic in hysterics, but he was structuring a layered question and not trying to incite the crowd. Once he was being detained without provocation he flipped his lid. It was a public assembly and he wasn't doing anything wrong at the time other than putting the speaker on the spot, which is part of the risk of doing a Q/A session. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

You really think that they will speak up on a public forum on this? _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

Everything in my wallet can be replaced. I've made certain to only carry certain items in it at all times and I have a list of numbers to call to get replacements of the few things in it. I also never carry more than $10-20 on me. If I lived in that much fear of getting shot by walking out of my house I would never leave it. Almost 35 years living in Chicago and it's still not an issue to me and I've worked in the worst crime areas of the city a few times. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

I'm bitter about the weather too, but in the opposite way. We don't have an end to summer in Florida, it just goes from very hot to not-so-hot, with only a couple weeks of actual chilly weather thrown in there. I'm so tired of shorts and t-shirts, I long to wear a pair of jeans again! The next two months are very depressing for me because everyone else gets a relief from sweating, and all I can look forward to is the day the high temp. is below 85. Blech, I hate Florida! I guess it's all about your perspective, huh? Live one solid winter in Chicago, Detroit, NYC or Minnesota and tell me how much you enjoy it. I think as soon as I can work 100% mobile I will move to San Diego or somewhere in AZ. I've had enough of this cold stuff, and it doesn't help that nagging injuries tend to hurt more when its subzero here. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqAVvlyVbag Now, the kid was a bit over the top and grandstanding (no worse than what happens in this forum), the Skull and Bones part wasn't needed either as he had some solid questions before hand. I would have loved to hear the answer to his questions and Kerry said he was going to. But what happens after his questions is just.....was it warranted....was it legal? I wonder if that was campus security or Kerry's own security detail. edit to add: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1606277730046267759&q=UF+student+tasered&total=3&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0 I listed that video in a lower post, much easier to see what happens. _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....

All I can do is my part. Vote and spread the word of positive change. The man is brilliant and exactly what this country needs. If it turns out that our leaders are so corrupt that they will falsify another election, how far could revolution be behind? _________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again.....