livendive

Sorry, I gave at the San Francisco walk. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Flowers will absolutely get you to the turning point quicker and cheaper than dinners. You'll either get some or get the "friends" speech, in which case you know to cut your losses and move on to the next nibble. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

But you see...Life itself is a risk. I never said they were not both "risks" they are, but they are not by any stretch in the same category. Each year, approximately one out of every 1000 USPA members (0.1%) will die from skydiving. What percentage of smokers die each year from smoking? (I honestly don't know) Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

There is no comparison between smoking and general skydiving...sorry. You can continue to live in denial, and keep convincing yourself otherwise. Smoking and skydiving both include additional risks we take on for one reason or another. Smoking carries much higher risks, and death from smoking will generally be a lot more unpleasant than death from skydiving. However skydiving risks are quite visual and in your face, whereas smoking risks are more "way down the road, when life won't be enjoyable anyhow" for many folks. You, eeneR, are experiencing an in your face exposure to smoking risks, and that's got you worked up. Non-jumping loved ones of skydivers who bounce sometimes get similarly worked up, but not to the same extent because most can appreciate beauty in skydiving, whereas few, if any, people, think smoking has its redeeming qualities. Bottom line - smoking and skydiving are similar in that they are optional risks that some people expose themselves to, but they vary widely in the amount of risk. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Damn, some guys have all the luck! Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Valentine's Day, to my girlfriend and to my daughter. Wait...that's before Mother's Day, right? OK, the last ones were to my mom.

The Honda replaced the second Mazda which had replaced the first Mazda. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Car-shopping!!!

At least it's better than that "extreme or mainstream?" business. How about, "Skydive! (But only if you're cool with nudity, profanity, and intoxication)" Or, "Skydive! Now with 150% more California Mountain-Dew Motherfuckers!" Or, "Skydive! What the fuck were you watching your money and health for anyhow?" Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

How do you feel about liberal-bashing? Making fun of what someone is (gay, black, female, etc) is fundamentally different than making fun of what people believe in (liberalism, communism, capitalism, christianity, islam, etc). Blues, Dave Our anti-discrimination laws don't really make that distinction. Why is that? You're right. In a legal sense, there is no distinction. I thought you were talking about a dz.com sense, where criticizing someone for being black can get you banned, but liberal/conservative/muslim bashing is routine. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

How do you feel about liberal-bashing? Making fun of what someone is (gay, black, female, etc) is fundamentally different than making fun of what people believe in (liberalism, communism, capitalism, christianity, islam, etc). Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Cool, it appears the system is working. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I think the vast majority of people will agree with you that removing Saddam from power was a good thing. That's a basic yes or no question on whether there's value in deposing a despot, and most people will say yes. The subjective question is how much value was it worth. Considering the fact that he was pretty well contained, was it worth thousands of US lives, tens of thousands of Iraqi lives, half a trillion dollars (so far), and overwhelming international ill-will toward the US? To overthrow a guy whose hands were already tied by sanctions? Opinions will vary, but I don't think so. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Pretty much. It's the same reason that in the last Presidential election, I hoped that regardless of who won the Presidency, the opposing party won control of Congress. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

In the middle of all the Michael Vick crap are these two videos. http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/living/2007/08/21/vo.rottweiler.nurses.kitten.wgrz and http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/living/2007/08/21/wsaz.dog.dug.out.affl

We get the government we deserve. Agreed, and your sentiment is particularly apropos of this legislation. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

If a proper salute is a convention set aside for service members, past and present, a polite person would leave it to them. Portraying one's self as such a person without having done the time is disrespectful to the service members and the sacrifices they've made. Still, being disrespectful isn't illegal, and I agree with you that it's preferable to burning a flag. I have no problem with Congress tipping a hat to veterans. While they could certainly spend their time doing something more important, a bit of deference is more appreciated than the normal routine of lying to their constituency and lining their pockets. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

What he said. I occasionally checked in on the efforts by veteran's groups to get permission to render a proper salute. It isn't nearly as big a deal to me as it was to them, but I still think it's nice. Still, I rarely wear hats and I remove them when appropriate, and an uncovered salute would feel odd. Blues, Dave I would think that taking an oath to uphold the Constitution would involve knowing what the First Amendment means. Societies where an action is illegal unless explicity deemed to be legal are generally totalitarian dictatorships. "Illegal" was a poor choice of words. Letting a flag touch the ground isn't "illegal", but you'll still see many veterans offended by it. Color related conventions are generally regarded as compulsory by veterans, and formal permission to salute while not in uniform distinguishes those who have signed on the dotted line and offered up their lives in service to the concepts for which our standard flies. You do not have the right not to be offended. Where did I say I had any such right? The fact that tact and decorum aren't legally conferred rights of veterans doesn't lessen their importance in a polite society. You are completely free to think that the kid flipping burgers at your local McD's has earned just as much respect as your son. Some of us think your son has earned a bit more. If that kid at McD's wants to pretend he's walked the same path, I doubt he'll be arrested for saluting during the anthem at a Cubs game. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

What he said. I occasionally checked in on the efforts by veteran's groups to get permission to render a proper salute. It isn't nearly as big a deal to me as it was to them, but I still think it's nice. Still, I rarely wear hats and I remove them when appropriate, and an uncovered salute would feel odd. Blues, Dave I would think that taking an oath to uphold the Constitution would involve knowing what the First Amendment means. Societies where an action is illegal unless explicity deemed to be legal are generally totalitarian dictatorships. "Illegal" was a poor choice of words. Letting a flag touch the ground isn't "illegal", but you'll still see many veterans offended by it. Color related conventions are generally regarded as compulsory by veterans, and formal permission to salute while not in uniform distinguishes those who have signed on the dotted line and offered up their lives in service to the concepts for which our standard flies. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

What he said. I occasionally checked in on the efforts by veteran's groups to get permission to render a proper salute. It isn't nearly as big a deal to me as it was to them, but I still think it's nice. Still, I rarely wear hats and I remove them when appropriate, and an uncovered salute would feel odd. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

It's definitely odd at first. In both cases, there were some instances of awkwardness, and I suppose that there may be a few more regarding my dad when talking to his two biological children. We've referred to each other as brother/sister for many years now, and that's just routine, but when talking to them, calling their birth father "dad" still seems a little wierd, like I'm taking something from them. Last year at my grandmother's funeral, my birth mother cornered my daughter in the restroom and said, "Hi Jackie, do you know who I am?" My daughter replied, "Yes, you're Barbara." Her response was, "No, I'm your grandma!" and my daughter's retort was, "Umm, well kinda, I guess, but not really." Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Yes, though that did take some time. When talking about them to anyone else, I always referred to them as my mom and dad, but when talking to them, it was Aunt Liz and Uncle Jerry. When the rest of my family (mother and siblings of birth mother) started referring to her as my mom in front of her about 10 years ago, I gradually (and happily) followed suit. My dad didn't get that moniker until just a few years ago, when he started using the valediction, "I love you, son" at the end of our phone calls. As silly as it sounds, it's been a real relief to finally call them what they are rather than what they were (or dodge the issue by not addressing them by name at all). I'm happier calling them mom & dad and and would have started doing so long ago if I'd known that would be the case. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

The first mistake my birth mother made regarding me was producing me in the first place. I was very clearly an "oops!" On the other hand, my mom CHOSE to be that, despite clear knowledge of how tough that would be. What's a better demonstration of love, a drunken sportfuck without protection? Or assumption of parental responsibilities for a fucked up teenage boy? I feel the exact opposite of abandoned, as my mom demonstrated the kind of love that only a true parent has the capacity for. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

When I need to talk to parents, I call my mom and dad. Biologically, my mom is my maternal aunt and my dad is my uncle by marriage. They took in a seriously fucked up 13 year old kid and turned him into a productive (respectable would be a bit much ) member of society with passable social skills. When talking about the people who caused me to occur, I use the terms mother and father, generally preceeded with the qualifier "birth". My birth father married someone who was not my mother, while she was pregnant with me, visited me occasionally till 6 years old, paid child support to my mother till I was 18 (note I'd run away at 13...she failed to mention that to him), and took me out to lunch shortly after my 18th birthday. When my grandfather passed, I was interested in getting my daughter a new grampa, tracked him down, and told him he had a granddaughter. In half an hour, he didn't ask her birthday or her name. I never talked to him again. He died a few years later and I found out a couple years after that. My birth mother is still alive, and largely responsible for the mess I was when I left her house. I still see her on occasion at family funerals, etc (my mom and mother are sisters), but have no hole in my life that I need her to fill. I've offered to rebuild a relationship with her, but was also quite clear that while it could become a friendly, familial relationship, I already have a mom who I love dearly and I have zero interest in replacing her or even augmenting her role in my life. When she realized I wouldn't be her meal ticket or vindicate her mistakes, she lost interest. I love my mom & dad dearly, and am grateful for all they've done for me. I appreciate the contributions my birth mother and father made to my life, but those were pretty much binary at conception/birth and I consider them trivial with regard to who I am today. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Please keep the details of how you formed this opinion to yourself. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)