nigel99

By all means, please provide these stats you speak of. I have done a quick search and it is really difficult to wade through the crap out there, to find actual percentages, but there are stories littered through the first few pages - so I can't provide a link. The source of my information was a police officer from when I grew up in southern africa, and he warned me that it was not uncommon for people to wake-up in the night during a burglary only to find that the intruder already had found the persons weapon and had possession of it. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Drinking coffee or redbull? They are fasting don't forget Guess they gotta load up before the sunrise. Meth isn't food, right?

*Sounds* like a lot of leaded rifle/gun fire all over your country. Are you proud about this? You will never convince a person that their belief system is flawed or wrong. Part of the problem with the gun debate is there is no right or wrong to it. In reality both sides are partly right and it would be difficult to prove without doubt who is right. John makes a valid point that it is all about culture. My personal viewpoint is that guns for self-defence is a flawed concept in more than 90% of cases as most people are not sufficiently trained nor in a state of mind to be "safe and rational" in a time of crisis. I know that there are stats out there that show that quite a high percentage of shooting victims are shot with their own weapon, however as with most human rational most people believe that they are "above average". Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Yep, pure killin' machines they are. On the other hand, the Chinese invented gunpowder, and used it only to make pretty fireworks in the sky. Therefore, every gun, which uses gunpowder, is nothing more than just a celebratory fireworks launcher. So there's nothing to worry about from guns! That's the logic that these "original intent" folks want to use, to forever assign some attribute to an object, no matter how much they have changed from their original design in the meantime. So, if that's the argument they want to make, then guns are nothing but fireworks machines! Meanwhile, automobiles, which are NOT designed to kill, manage to kill 40,000 people per year. Many more than die from guns. So the whole argument about what they're "designed" to do, is ridiculous. Regarding the bow and arrow, at one time in history the law in England REQUIRED every man to own and be well-practiced with the longbow. They were considered essential to common defense against enemies. Just like America's 2nd Amendment. The english law still stands and was in fact used this year. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wiltshire/10300924.stm Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Drinking coffee or redbull? They are fasting don't forget Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/stoke_and_staffordshire/10596808.stm Is this right? Personally I think that if this advice is followed it is a step down the road towards the UK implementing Islamic law (long term of course - not in the next few years). Alternatively we will be hamstrung where nothing can happen because we are so busy "respecting" each and every religious quirk. I think that public funded schools should not be bound to religious considerations but that communities should be free to set up and fund their own schools if it is such a big thing. Lastly I realise that this is just guidance from a local council and not law. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

I have not jumped for many years - but following DZ.com's fatalities it appears that the majority of bad accidents are landing related and would typically involve jumpers with less than 1-2k jumps but greater than 100. I have not done any rigorous research to back this up and I know of at least 2 incidents involving jumpers with >4k jumps (Tonto) and the one in texas with 10k or so jumps, but I do see these as exceptions. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

I don't think there are that many dry counties and there are different types of dry counties. Type 1, the most common is where they don't allow beer stores or liquor stores, but they can server beer and liquor in restaurants and you usually don't have to drive very far to find an area that isn't dry. These are usually towns and not actual counties. Type 2, true dry counties. They are pretty few and far between. The only ones I know of are in Mississippi. They don't allow any alcohol at all and put up road blocks to search cars for any offending alcohol. People still smuggle beer into those areas for personal consumption. I think 10% is way too high of a number. It might be 2 or even 3%. 10% was Wikipedia and to be honest I only learn't about them recently on a business trip I was told that I was staying in a dry county and so couldn't buy alcohol - but that I was welcome to bring my own. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

I can't remember where you got to in your decision process, but this morning I was parked up next to an 09 reg CBR600RR. It looks like it would be a slightly better choice than the R6. Seating position is definately lower and the saddle is narrower by quite a bit - this would definately help with having your feet solidly on the ground. As much as it pains me to say it the bike also looked more "robust". Have a feel of the plastics, license plate holder etc on an R6 compared the RR. Still don't think it is an ideal choice for commuting though. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

I read that as "Dr Bonners" Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

I like boobs, can't argue you on that

You are not allowed to do that, unless YOUR freedoms overwrite the T&C of DZ.com. Go ahead, try it. What freedoms does the UK have that the States does not? Number 1 - go down to a newsagent and buy the Sun - open to Page 3. Go to the USA and search high and low for a mainstream newspaper where public displays of titties are allowed. Number 2 - go to a number of places in the USA and try and buy alcohol you will not be able to (dry counties - I realise are not everywhere but I believe it is about 10% of the USA). 2b) drinking between 18 and 21 (18 is an adult in most legal contexts) Number 3 - Data protection act, I am pretty certain that "we" have more protection of our personal data than the US do. Granted our government spies on us prolifically and probably more than any other nation on earth. Finally - I am in no doubt that the USA have freedoms that we don't have in the UK. I didn't realise that Boobies were forbidden in SC - is that specifically for our Iranian and US visitors? I really do question your statement though as there have been chicks with guns threads in SC before. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Sorry the sarcasm was lost in the forum. It fall under "firearm laws" and by extension it is a firearm. I am under no illusion that the US has a "gun culture" whereas the UK doesn't. At times the evangelical obsessing about UK gun crime/laws pisses me off, other times I simply find it funny. I am sorely tempted to post booby pictures to each and every gun thread in SC - to reinforce WE have freedoms that you are denied. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

That isn't considered a firearm here in the US and it doesn't require a background check. As far as I know it just requires that you be 18 to purchase? I am not even sure about that. It does not require a firearms certificate here, requires that you be over the age of 18/21 to purchase BUT it is subject to all of the 38 or so firearm regulations that exist and the police will treat any offence the same as if it were a "full blown" firearm. This is based on some basic research as I am buying the guys old air-rifle for our boys. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Read "Shop craft as Soulcraft" I believe it is a cultural thing the book is very interesting. Modern men and women have been stripped of responsibility to the point that I believe most people are simply incapable of comprehending that THEY are responsible for their own lives. They drive cars with ABS, traction control, automatic gear change, engine warning lights etc, if it goes wrong it is never "their fault". We are no longer exposed to the consequences of our actions and so lack the ability to make meaningful judgements. We are educated to believe that we can "buy" judgement and responsibility - so we buy skyhooks, and AAD's and Audible's so that we can swoop like a pro by having the right equipment. In modern life there is largely no "blame" or accountability it is becoming a shared and abstract concept. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

I struggled through static line until my jump master told me to relax and count how many fingers he was holding up as I left the plane (or very similar - it is a long time ago). I still have the vivid image of him in the door giving me the thumbs up and it really helped me to focus on something other than blind panic. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Yep, just look at the emotionalism of the anti-gun spokeswoman: "Lucy Cope, founder of Mothers Against Guns, called for the licence to be revoked. She said: 'There is no way a ten-year-old should have a shotgun - it is horrendous. Police should hang their heads in shame. The gun must be taken away and the licence revoked right now. 'I'd like to speak to that child's mother and father and the police officers who thought it was a good idea. What were they thinking? The days when young boys play Cowboys and Indians are over. Young people are dying on the street because of guns every day.' 'Police are recklessly handing gun licences out like Smarties and it is morally wrong.'"There's not a single objective fact there to support her view - just rabid unfounded emotionalism. She equates a 10-year old boy's recreational shooting under his father's supervision, to a criminal thug murdering people on the street. This is the face of a gun-o-phobe... In all reality "gun fanatics" are just as emotional. I mean just look at how excited some people get over the words "accidental discharge" I find the the US unique in its obsession with guns, and to be honest I find it very funny. I grew up in a culture where guns where prevailent but it wasn't the penis waving affair that it is in the US. Anyway horrors - an employee is taking delivery of a firearm on Monday in ENGLAND at work no less! Yes it is only a .22 calibre air rifle - but last week in the US at the clients there was a large sign about "No guns, knives or other weapons allowed" perhaps in the UK we are actual more liberal than the US Guns and boobies life can't be that bad here. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Chunks? Chunks is my dog! Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

It would only deploy if you "held it" in the Apple approved manner After 5 years you would be told that all bounces were not because of impact with the ground but that the "altitude algorithm" was wrong! Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Without video it didn't happen. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

in your case - can the people in the boats look up and say "look at that arse?" Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

that reminds me of the joke (not sexist) How many freefliers does it take to change a lightbulb? A, 5; one to screw the light bulb in and 4 to film it. I am a freeflier among other disciplines but that makes me laugh every time. thats ok all free fliers are girls - so it is still sexist Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

The difference being is that Snowman became an on-going problem and felt "entitled" to have free reign over the thread for awhile before he finally challenged me to ban him. I assume yesterday's issue with JerryThomas was an anomaly. He's never done it before, so I'm cutting him slack, as I usually do whenever somebody comes after me specifically. I figure most people go off the deep end occasionally and me getting the brunt of their anger comes with the territory. That said, there are limits to how much BS even I'm willing to put up with. Quade, In all seriousness and in fairness to the general spirit of History and Trivia, how far does this thread need to continue in its current form? Perhaps a new thread started at the point of Sluggo's word document would make things cleaner. Alternatively about 90% of the current posting material is more suitable for SC. I am not against the thread and the topic drifts through interesting phases where it has nothing to do with Cooper. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Hello All, I was in an aviation bookstore the other day and came across the book "The Killing Zone - How and Why Pilots Die" by Paul Craig. From the beginning of the book It addresses very many of the same issues seen in skydiving time and again. Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

Hi Everyone, I am in Charlotte NC for a couple of days on business - can anyone suggest any good places to eat and go to in the evenings? thanks Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.