livendive

If one's problem is with the government, and one has decided that violence is their best option, a government facility housing government workers is the only logical target for exercising that option. There may come a time when suicide missions are effective, but in my opinion, he should have gone with a non-violent route. That said, reading between the lines, I suspect he knew this was the easiest way to get the biggest audience for his message. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Gardner beating Karelin in 2000. The magnitude of that upset was simply amazing. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Those two were both great! Others near the top of my fiction list include anything by Tom Robbins or Christopher Moore (especially Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal). Also Life of Pi, by Yann Martel. For non-fiction, my favorites have been Guns, Germs, and Steel, by Jared Diamond, and Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School, by John Medina. Blues, Dave P.S. I've been a member of audible.com for a couple years now, which is a good way to get audiobooks on the cheap. "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I'm convinced of exactly one thing in the global warming debate...that 99% of the people who argue for or against a theory of man-made climate change haven't the slightest clue what the fuck they're talking about. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Source: http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/2-electricians-bandit-shot-298597.html Two robberies, one of an unarmed victim, and one of an armed victim. If the armed victim had been the first one, then there wouldn't have been a second. And he may have stopped there from being any additional victims, or even possibly murders. What a difference a gun makes. You seem to have picked an odd story to support your (our) position on gun control. Three people were shot. Two of them were innocent of any wrongdoing. This is a poor measure of "success." Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

It's ok, McGruff is on the case. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Going back 20 years, it seems to me that the stupid camp has included Quayle, GWB, and Palin. GHWB, Dole, Kemp, Cheney, and McCain have not gotten the same treatment because, well, they're not stupid. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I'm cool with that, it was a stupid phrase anyhow. Next up, at what point do we abandon the "war on drugs"? It's been going on an awful long time and has consumed an amazing amount of money, and doesn't seem to be any more or less effective than any of the "non war" activities of our Department of Justice. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Disagree. I think we have seriously screwed up the ratio of authority to responsibility and accountability in our law enforcement organization, i.e. there is too much of the former and not enough of the latter. I understand that my opinion is likely too uncommon to even be considered part of a minority, but such is life. the police certainly are not required to put themselves in harms way to protect you. did you realize the SCOTUS said that the police have no obligation to protect you from harm? http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/28/politics/28scotus.html you can count on the police and emergency services to respond to your call (most of the time) but when is always the question. Be prepared to deal with whatever you have to deal with in the minutes before they get there (3-7min average response time to my neighborhood). Like I said, I think we've screwed up the ratio of authority to responsibility and accountability in law enforcement. I agree that the police are not responsible for my safety, and they are just barely accountable for their actions, with free passes for poor decisions being the standard rather than the exception. Personally, I think the authority they're granted is out of whack with these low expectations. Nobody should have the authority to make decisions for which they will not be held accountable. The dog is dead. The police officer shot it. The reason for this was "fear for her safety", i.e. the standard excuse to avoid accountability. If a shot had gone awry and hit a family member on the porch, it would have been a "tragic accident." The purported context was to protect whomever had called 911 from harm, which you just said was not her responsibility. I have no problem with the discrete exercise of authority in high-stress situations, provided one is fulfilling their responsibilities and accountable for their actions. If a person is unwilling to take on those responsibilities and/or be held accountable for their actions, they should not be given such a high level of authority. I don't expect you to agree with me, most people don't. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

oh, goodie, you saved me the need to reply there. Whether he knows it or not, there are a lot of Americans that support speech (1st), guns (2nd), abortion rights, and gay marriage. Concur. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

And, in protecting its territory, if those dogs appeared violent or dangerous with no owner in sight to restrain it, I hope the cops shot it each and every time. Cops are under no obligation to put themselves in unnecessary danger of life or even injury for a pet. Disagree. I think we have seriously screwed up the ratio of authority to responsibility and accountability in our law enforcement organization, i.e. there is too much of the former and not enough of the latter. I understand that my opinion is likely too uncommon to even be considered part of a minority, but such is life. Did you know that tandem instructors are widely expected to protect their students, even at the expense of their own bodies? How much authority comes with this level of responsibility? Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

While they may not demonstrate any actual belief in the concepts of freedom and smaller government, at least they say things about them often enough to keep them on the table. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Agreed. I'd consider those simple prerequisites for the position, along with some knowledge of the organization and issues associated with the job, and some reasonable commitment to choosing right over wrong. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Yes, there's an obvious difference...I find it much easier to remember 6 words than 20 pages. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I was going to cut and paste just a couple lines here that I agreed with and vote you for president again. But I found that each line I read I wanted to add to the post... N'Gale for President I believe I previously nominated you for the position, but Nightingale would suit me fine too. What they said. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Does this make the successful use of said weapon a "righteous kill"? Personally, I'm not a fan of the practice. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Yes. So when "science" creates its own religion and politics, the "science" may say "sorry" about its errors but the religion and politics based upon it remain. Thus, when scientists play the political card, matters become political and legal fact. Once that happens, science may reverse itself but the events it sets into motion are more difficult to stop. Political and legal fact, John. Political and legal fact. I don't get the distinction you're trying to make by putting quotation marks around the word "science". In any case, errors are almost guaranteed in any endeavor, be it scientific, political, legal, religous, athletic, intellectual, unique, or mundane. The more widely an erroneous concept is propogated, the more difficult it is to retract. However, this does not mean that we should withhold all findings, on the basis that they might be in error. You go with "this is what I think, based on the information at hand, and subject to change as the body of information grows." Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

John Stewart's take had me laughing very loudly. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

I reconnect them due to a scary experience early in my tandem career. Student was helping me land, and as we turned base, the cuff of his jumpsuit caught on the dangling hook and bent his wrist in such a way that he couldn’t let go of the toggle. I punched the snag hard enough to rip the cuff off his jumpsuit, clearing it with just enough time to grab brake lines and get most of a flare in before we landed on concrete. My two lessons learned were to always reconnect the lowers and to rarely let students help me land. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Thinks talking is just what sex dolls were missing? Especially when it looks like she's a a nag? "She'll chat with you endlessly about your interests." "She doesn't vacuum or cook" "She talks in her sleep. She even snores." "She even comes loaded with five distinct "personalities," from Frigid Farrah to Wild Wendy" "more than 4,000 men have placed pre-orders for Roxxxy robots, and another 20,000 or so have requested information about the product" What the hell is wrong with these guys? Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

Every single one of those union members, shareholders, and employees has the same freedom of speech. The question is whether the unions and corporations should have separate rights of speech above and beyond those granted to their members. In my opinion, that answer is no. Everyone should speak with an equal loudspeaker, no more, no less. And if donating money is defined as "speech", any limits applied to such donations should be equal across the board, not "Well, I can give $2,400 to my guy individually, and then another $500k thru my union/corporation". Note I'm saying how I think it should be, not how it is. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

True. There are probably at least a dozen people in the world who would protect Michael Vick from some random dog he was fighting with. I'm happy to not count myself among them. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

[homersimpson]Doh![/homersimpson] Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

The new paradigm seems to involve both Peter and Paul robbing their children. Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)

What would be the fun in that? Oh yeah... Amber Lynn, Scarlett Johannson, and Jewel. Does Kevin Garnett count? Blues, Dave "I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!" (drink Mountain Dew)