Monday Blues Open Thread


With some cheering up, graphjam style:

Drop us something!
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You Knew This Was Coming, Right? (#98698)
by M Scott Eiland
Wow. Ever heard a gallery cheer (#98742)
by aireachail

like that one did today?

Me neither.

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Excess on occasion is exhilarating. It prevents moderation from acquiring the deadening effect of a habit. - W. Somerset Maugham

Along With Everything Else. . . (#98744)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .I think Tiger single-handedly settled the argument over what is scarier: fast zombies or slow zombies:

"Hello--my name is Tiger Woods. I'm walking an 18 hole golf course with a limp, and I'm still going to kick your ass."

Slow zombies for the win.

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Your Tax Dollars At Work (#98616)
by M Scott Eiland

Every official, teacher, and cop who participated in this fraud needs to be fired and sued for intentional infliction of emotional distress. Right now. And all of those kids should get a 24 hour window of time where egging the cars and toilet papering the homes of those responsible will be consequence-free.

That is all.

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I've found a theme song for The Forvm! (#98596)
by Jordan

Speaking of graphing software and exciting stuff like that:

http://www.last.fm/music/Coco+Love+Alcorn/_/Intellectual+Boys

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Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes. -JH

Like the charts! (#98550)
by Brooks and B Ra...

Like the charts!

This Is My Fault (#98541)
by M Scott Eiland

I was just thinking that it had been a really long time since Quadaffy. . .um, Kaddafi. . .er, that prissy little freak who runs Libya had said something insane in public, and he goes and says this:

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said on Wednesday that U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's expressed support for Israel stems from his fear that the Mossad would assassinate him, just as it did President John F. Kennedy.

By the way, note that the winning spelling for today is "Gaddafi." Note it well--you'll never see it again.

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What is your fault? (#98543)
by Pranky

Not sure which part is your fault.

I Was Thinking About. . . (#98544)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .[fill in the bizarre random spelling of that dude in Libya's name], and he popped up in the news. Could have been worse, I suppose--I could have been thinking about--

Gah, caught myself. Stupid "pink elephant" effect.

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Pink elephant effect (#98545)
by Pranky

usually refers to the DTs... delirium tremens... severe alcohol withdrawal.

I hope this is not the case for you. Nonetheless, I still don't understand what you're going on about. Good night.

It's A Simple Concept (#98547)
by M Scott Eiland

Take a deep breath, count to three. . .

. . .and don't think about pink elephants.

If you succeeded in not thinking about pink elephants at all when you read that last sentence, it's very impressive.

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My God! They've Burned All The Hashish!!!! 260 Tons of it....!!! (#98504)
by Traveller

The largest drug bust ever in physical size. A half a billion dollars!

Actually, I don't do drugs of any kind (at least not for the past couple of decades), but still, seeing all that Hash go up in smoke causes distress....and me not even standing down wind!!!!

Of course this is in Afghanistan, so I'm not sure I want to be standing down wind anyhow....but still, when I did do drugs, on infrequent occasion, Hash was the drug of choice...except for opium laced hash, that was super...as were Q's (Qulauudes).

As I grow older, but more handsome....lol...I feel that I really deserve the drugs now...I mean who really needs them in their teens?

Now the 60's...you need your drugs.

The world is upside down!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25101074/

Best Wishes, Traveller

Perhaps the hash helped you grow more handsome with age (#98512)
by tomsyl

Just a thought, but there's really no way to disprove it so that makes it irrefutably true IMO.

I take it you inhaled, BTW.

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Rust never sleeps.

Yes, I Do Inhale to Acheive My Gorgeous-osity, but Chief Judge (#98568)
by Traveller

...Alex Kozinski, chief judge of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals...the Frickin` Chief Judge of the whole 9th Circuit...has porn on his personal web-site, (allegedly)...but really!!!!!

**********

In an interview Tuesday with The Times, Kozinski acknowledged posting sexual content on his website. Among the images on the site were a photo of naked women on all fours painted to look like cows and a video of a half-dressed man cavorting with a sexually aroused farm animal. He defended some of the adult content as "funny" but conceded that other postings were inappropriate.

Kozinski, 57, said that he thought the site was for his private storage and that he was not aware the images could be seen by the public, although he also said he had shared some material on the site with friends. After the interview Tuesday evening, he blocked public access to the site.

Kozinski is one of the nation's highest-ranking judges and has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court. He was named chief judge of the 9th Circuit last year and is considered a judicial conservative on most issues. He was appointed to the federal bench by President Reagan in 1985.

After publication of an latimes.com article about his website Wednesday morning, the judge offered another explanation for how the material might have been posted to the site. Tuesday evening he had told The Times that he had a clear recollection of some of the most objectionable material and that he was responsible for placing it on the Web. By Wednesday afternoon, as controversy about the website spread, Kozinski was seeking to shift responsibility, at least in part, to his adult son, Yale.

"Yale called and said he's pretty sure he uploaded a bunch of it," Kozinski wrote in an e-mail to Abovethelaw.com, a legal news website. "I had no idea, but that sounds right because I sure don't remember putting some of that stuff there."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, expressed concern about Kozinski's website.

"If this is true, this is unacceptable behavior for a federal court judge," she said in a statement.

Stephen Gillers, a New York University law professor who specializes in legal ethics and has known Kozinski for years, called him "a treasure of the federal judiciary." Gillers said he took the judge at his word that he did not know the site was publicly available. But he said Kozinski was "seriously negligent" in allowing it to be discovered.

"The phrase 'sober as a judge' resonates with the American public," Gillers said. "We don't want them to reveal their private selves publicly. This is going to upset a lot of people."

Gillers said the disclosure would be humiliating for Kozinski and would "harm his reputation in many quarters" but that the controversy should die there.

He added, however, that if the public concludes the website was intended for the sharing of pornographic material, "that's a transgression of another order.

"It would be very hard for him to come back from that," he said.

Kozinski has a reputation as a brilliant legal mind and is seen as a champion of the 1st Amendment right to freedom of speech and expression. Several years ago, for example, after learning that appeals court administrators had placed filters on computers that denied access to pornography and other materials, Kozinski led a successful effort to have the filters removed.

************

Just Un-frickin`-believable.

I am working too hard, I must be hallucinating, I thought I just saw Judge K's name linked to porn.

Nah, not possible.

Best Wishes, Traveller

The worst part (#98600)
by Username

is that some people actually claim to care, at least publicly, that a man is into porn (or whatever you'd call the stuff he had).

Judge Kozinski Calls for an Investigation of Himself.... (#98625)
by Traveller

This afternoon:

I have asked the Judicial Council of the Ninth Circuit to take steps pursuant to Rule 26, of the Rules Governing Judicial Conduct and Disability, and to initiate proceedings concerning the article that appeared in yesterday's Los Angeles Times. I will cooperate fully in any investigation.

*****

I am big on damage control and Judge K is being praised all over for his forthrighness on this difficulty....

I'm not so sure having looked through his folder...reclusal in the current obscenity trial is mandatory.

The mp3's actually worry me the most. Copyright etc.

The pictures weren't too cool either...the self oral gratification as well as women as cows and BJ's to priests by boys are troublesome...not because he saw them or has them....

But rather the lack of discretion is actually what is bothersome....yes, he should have hidden it....I've seen all of that and worse, but if you were a priest or little boy appearing in his courtroom...you'd question if you got a fair shake.

Just my opinion.

Best Wishes, Traveller

Precisely which part of himself does he want investigated? (#98631)
by tomsyl

He should consider himself fortunate he doesn't live in Sudan, where they have laws about these things.

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Rust never sleeps.

Bobby Jindal - amateur Exorcist? (#98498)
by Pranky
Didn't realize liberals were so afraid of the guy (#98507)
by tomsyl

and he hasn't even really been short-listed yet. An interesting data point, though not in the way you or the DNC Talking Points Memo intended.

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Rust never sleeps.

He may (#98517)
by Pranky

actually have power over demons. Truly to be feared.

Oh, come on - this is an entertaining story regardless of how 'afraid' of him I may or may not be. Possibly the silliest thing I've ever read about any politician, ever. Probably one of the silliest things you've read from a pol as well.

And he wrote the story himself!

It's not a complete story unless the exorcised (#98576)
by tomsyl

spun his head three times and then vomited all over Jihdal, all while floating a foot above the matress.

Personally, I prefer Santaria stories from that part of the country.

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Rust never sleeps.

A Dark-Skinned Republican. . . (#98509)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .making life better for people in a state that's been run by corrupt Democrats since the end of Reconstruction would pretty much screw over a lot of their favorite memes. They'll be going after him for the next few years even if the VP talk goes nowhere.

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Most of those corrupt Democrats (#98570)
by sparks

Would be Republicans today. Most Democrats today have divorced from the typical white, Southern Democrat of 50 years ago plus and vice-versa.

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"I don't know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don't care. It's not that important. It's not our priority."
- G.W. Bush, 3/13/02

Not In Louisiana (#98572)
by M Scott Eiland

To point out some obvious evidence of this, Louisiana did not send a single Republican to the Senate between 1883 and 2004--David Vitter broke that streak by being elected to John Breaux's old seat in 2004. Jindal is only the third Republican governor to serve in Louisiana since Reconstruction. Sorry, but your "Southern Strategy" kung fu is no good here. It's time to scour out the encrusted scum of one hundred and thirty years, and Jindal is the designated Brillo pad.

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that's right (#98601)
by Username

some states, like Louisiana and West Virginia, have one dominant party that's so entrenched that affiliation really doesn't mean anything. You could be running to the right of Tom Delay in West Virginia but you'd still list yourself as a Democrat.

He wrote the story (#98518)
by Pranky

himself! About taking part in an exorcism! Does 'making life better for people' include banishing fallen angels?

Holding a woman down with a bible against her face until she was cleansed of unholy spirits! And possibly her cancer, as well... How is this 'going after' someone?

This isn't some whisper smear campaign.

By the way: Is capitalizing and hyphenating 'Dark-Skinned' when referring to a human part of the 2008 Republican Manual of Style?

Actually. . . (#98530)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .obsessing over the melanin of political candidates is a Democratic enclave these days (well, it was one back in the old days too--just for different reasons)--I just wanted to speak in a language liberals would understand.*

*--I suppose I could have used "brown people," but I decided it would be impolite to infringe on the copyrighted obsessive phrasing of another Forvm regular.

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Protesting too much, etc. -nt- (#98727)
by Punditus Maximus

.

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It's impossible to debate if people simply hold beliefs that have no grounding in reality.

So it was (#98531)
by Pranky

a rhetorical flourish of your own design. OK.

By the way, I thought you - more than anyone on this board - would get a kick out of reading a harrowing true life account of battle with supernatural forces. With a republican protagonist, no less!

AND - By the way, way to go lashing out at someone not even involved in this conversation! Well played, M. Scott Eiland!

By the way (again), those spots on McCain's cadaverous pate are the only melanin related issues that trouble me.

More Of A Translation (#98532)
by M Scott Eiland

Since the words that liberals use to describe minorities who happen to be Republican--Uncle Tom, Oreo, banana, and so on--are distasteful and insulting, I had to use phrasing that was neither and got my point across. From the volume of the whining that resulted, I clearly succeeded.

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Whining? (#98533)
by Pranky

I'm laughing out loud (LOL in internet speak) on this side of the internet over all of this. I would have thought you'd find the Jindal story pretty funny as well.

Never heard of a person referred to as a 'banana' before. Sure you don't mean 'macaca'?

And I think you might have picked up 'Uncle Tom' and 'Oreo' from an episode of The Jeffersons. Been watching Nick at Night?

And again (focus, now), how is pointing out an hallucinatory essay that someone wrote 'going after' them? You see this as a smear?

Or do you want to stick with the racial word play?

Yes, Whining (#98534)
by M Scott Eiland

"Waaah! He capitalized 'dark-skinned'--it must be evil Republican code!" Since a quick glance down the list of my recent comments makes it obvious to any observer that I capitalize *all* words in the subject line of my comments, I have to assume that you either:

--were so busy attempting to assemble a slur that you failed to notice this, or;

--you were intentionally dishonest in referring to the capitalization.

Which one was it? I'll let you choose one without assuming one or the other to be the correct one in advance--it's only fair.

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No Not Whining (#98535)
by Pranky

(I'm trying out the all caps header thing)

So. Will it be as easy to explain away... the HYPHENIZATION?

Nothing evil about republican code. Just grubby and familiar. Okay, I'm jesting about the Style Guide. And wow, sorry you seem to have misplaced you sense of humor this evening, my man.

Still... Is it 'going after' someone by just pointing out and laughing at a published essay that a grown adult politician wrote with his own hand? Or do you wanna go 'round the racial language thing AGAIN?

Given Obama's History. . . (#98536)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .during *his* twenties (hint: drug use, hanging out with unapologetic domestic terrorists), you might want to consider not spending too much time dwelling on what politicians did while college age for a while.

Or, on the other hand--please do.

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So it comes 'round to Obama (#98539)
by Pranky

I'm pretty sure he wrote a book describing in detail his drug use back in the days of his youth. Check Amazon.com. The scary terrorist angle thing never really played out for you guys, though. I'm sure you'll keep trying.

I'll go ahead and say that a couple toots of yayo is favorable to being a proud player in the banishment of a schoolmate's supernatural possessor. Your milage may vary, as the kids say on the 'net.

And check by your wallet and keys. Not always easy to find the old sense of humor.

If He Manages To Clean Up. . . (#98506)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .the corruption in Louisiana left by generations of Democratic politicians, I'd say he'd have proven himself a *professional* exorcist.

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Amusing new message from one of my e-mail accounts (#98464)
by Bill White

Maybe it isn't really "new" but I just saw it for the first time after I mistyped an address and the message bounced back.

Hi. This is the qmail-send program at yahoo.com.

I'm afraid I wasn't able to deliver your message to the following addresses.

This is a permanent error; I've given up. Sorry it didn't work out.

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

I see that a lot (#98469)
by Chuchundra

But I manage a couple dozen web sites.

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Guard, protect and cherish your land, for there is no afterlife for a place that started out as Heaven.

The NBA is rigged (#98463)
by brendanm98

Discuss.

(My opinion: the officiating is of such low quality that the league is certainly open to manipulation, and I suspect that certain refs with a tendency to call things towards the home team are assigned to particular games.)

Further assertion: professional basketball, football, and baseball will all lose massive market share over the coming decade as a direct consequence of their owners and commissioners ignoring problems. Once people don't trust that the outcome is determined by the players competing fairly on the field, they have little reason to watch.

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Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson

The Solution Is Obvious (#98511)
by M Scott Eiland

Time to start playing by Kenesaw Mountain Landis rules--on steroids. Every official in the NBA needs to be sat down and told the following:

If you are good at your job and honest, we'll understand if you make an occasional mistake--and we'll support you if one of the ill-tempered millionaires on the court starts taking cheap shots at you.

If you aren't up to the job, but are honest, we'll have to part company--but there won't be any hard feelings.

If you are crooked--whether in the service of a vendetta against a particular team or particular players, or as a means of supplementing your income by influencing games for gamblers--we will devote the assets of this multi-billion dollar league to destroying your life--just like we did to Tim Donaghy.

This writer is wrong. The NBA should use every legal and plausibly legal means at their disposal to destroy Tim Donaghy's life. He should be sued under any plausible theory, and punitive damages should be sought. When he gets out of prison, his house and his employers (if any) should be picketed. If he goes into Witness Protection. . .well, leaks have been known to happen. By the time it is all done, an NBA referee from the early 22nd century who is even remotely considering being dishonest should wake up screaming at the knowledge of what was done to Tim Donaghy--and to any referee who crosses that line in the future. Major league baseball has had a lot of problems since 1920, but *no one* remotely credible has hinted that it isn't on the level, after what Judge Landis did to the Black Sox. The formula works.

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Let me introduce you to professional wrestling nt (#98467)
by HankP

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I blame it all on the Internet

Who would watch it if it was legit? (#98513)
by tomsyl

No smashing people over the head with folding chairs when the ref's head is conveniently turned = no entertainment value. Every kid knows that.

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Rust never sleeps.

Hypertrophically muscular, easily offended men (#98527)
by Jordan

wearing leotards? Well, I actually work on Broadway so I get to see the entertainment value every day.

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Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes. -JH

Wrestling is just a niche entertainment product (#98470)
by brendanm98

WWE's revenue in 2007 was approximately US $486 million, with a net profit of approximately $52 million.

NBA revenue is over $3 billion. Just the TV contracts alone are over $750 million/year.

There's a lot at stake for the league in maintaining an image untainted by allegations that games are manipulated.

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Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson

I was being (#98475)
by HankP

tongue in cheek, but I'm still not sure if it's the manipulation that's the cause of the three fold difference in revenues or just the different nature of the sports being compared.

As an NFL fan, I agree that officiating can be a problem, I'm just not sure what can be done about it given human nature.

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I blame it all on the Internet

Well, the NFL has the occasional game-changing bad call (#98514)
by tomsyl

but IMO they are very rare. And I don't recall a player or coach claiming the officials fixed a game. Well, I should have said credible players: I'm betting Tyrrell Owens blamed a ref conspiracy for his Eagles teammates' total disgust with him.

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Rust never sleeps.

At least the NFL has replay (#98476)
by brendanm98

and baseball typically has very high quality officiating (IMHO) and will have replay eventually.

The NBA has to impose $50,000 fines to even minimize the griping about their abysmal refereeing.

As to what to do about it, they could pay the refs more to attract better talent, do a more thorough job of evaluating their performance, and make the process through which refs are assigned to playoff games both completely transparent and semi-random (within a group of the best available). But I don't expect anything to change -- if Stern wanted things to be different then stuff like this should have triggered red flags and consequences:

Donaghy also worked a game involving the Miami Heat and New York Knicks in February. The Knicks, who were favored by 4 1/2 points, won 99-93 after attempting 39 free throws to Miami's eight. Also, Heat Coach Pat Riley and assistant Ron Rothstein were assessed technical fouls.

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Come, my friends. 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world -- Tennyson

Agree 100% (#98654)
by Sulla

Replay in the NFL helps correct some mistakes, and MLB is pretty well officiated generally (although the strike zone remains rather mysterious to me the batter gets plenty of chances), but what is and isn't called in both hockey and basketball is woefully inconsistent. It seems to me home field advantage in both sports consists of the refs giving the road team a hard time.

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"I can no more disown him [Reverend Jeremiah Wright] than I can disown the black community"- Senator Barack Obama, March 18, 2008

Yeah (#98657)
by HankP

I have to admit that basketball became a lot less interesting to me when it became apparent that Michael Jordan could run laps around the court without getting called for traveling. I mean, he was great enough already, why the extra bonus?

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I blame it all on the Internet

A Game To Keep An Eye On Today (#98414)
by M Scott Eiland

The owner of Public Enemy #1 faces The Evil Mastermind at Petco Field in San Diego tonight.

If Kershaw can keep his pitches in the strike zone, he has a shot--Petco is a great pitcher's park. His best hope is to keep the game close until Maddux leaves, then hope the Padres' middle relievers or Hoffman get torched. Maddux is 1-0 with a 1.73 ERA in six starts this year at Petco.

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Yep (#98510)
by M Scott Eiland

The kid didn't stick around long enough to win, but I called this one pretty much dead solid perfect. Kershaw was good, but wild, and Maddux was basically awesome after a shaky first inning. Both were gone after the sixth inning, and the Padres middle relief corps coughed up the game to the Dodgers. Nice, though as always I feel a bit sad for Maddux being stuck with this weak supporting cast.

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Maddux (#98575)
by Zelig

I've always had a soft spot for that guy ever since I spent some time with him during spring training of his rookie year. Central Arizona. He is not an imposing guy in person, kind of small, actually, and soft-spoken and polite, but he's deadly accurate like few who have ever played the game. The way I learned it is there's two kinds of overpowering styles of pitching; the Bob Gibson, knock your block off style, and the Greg Maddux technical magic.

How do I find out if I can catch the guy this summer at either Dodger Stadium or Pac Bell Park? I'd sure like to see him pitch again in person before he retires.

--

Me: We! -- Ali

ESPN.com. . . (#98598)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .shows likely matchups about a week in advance on its schedule link, and the schedules of each team for the whole season are available on the same link. Maddux usually doesn't miss scheduled starts, so if there are still tickets left about a week beforehand you should be able to score some without having sell your left nut to a ticket broker, and be reasonably certain that he'll actually pitch that day.

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Lake Delton (Wisconsin Dells) is gone (#98403)
by Bill White

Literally, gone.

LAKE DELTON, Wis. (AP/WBBM) -- It was a man-made lake. Now, nature has unmade it.

Torrential rain and widespread flooding caused a 245-acre lake in the popular resort town of Lake Delton to flow over its banks Monday, emptying the lake and washing away four homes.

The area is well-known to generations of Chicagoans as the home of the Wisconsin Dells.

A smaller version of the theorized breach of the land bridge between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea that caused a stupendous flood.

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

Barsanti! Kudos to France who appears (#98264)
by Bill White

to have a forced win after

Tri -> Bud + Vie S

Gre S Ser

Aeg -> Bul/sc + Con S

Serbia can offer a redundant support possibly leading to 19 dots.

Or maybe Big Blue shall "Care Bear" the draw. ;-)

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

It's his if he wants it. (#98266)
by hobbesist

But that's been true before.

--

Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

Had England attacked France this season (#98268)
by Bill White

Dark Blue could have won easily enough

With a fleet in English Channel, Eng -> Bre bounces Par-> Bre meaning France only gets to use two builds and then the deluge with English armies in Ruhr, Berlin and Silesia and multiple new fleets to take Mid Atlantic.

As it stands, England could be playing to both Burgundy and Brest in Fall forcing Paris to choose with Silesia & Berlin taking Munich.

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

Yeah, I guess that's right. (#98271)
by hobbesist

But I think the reasons are pretty clear why neither of us would want to take that step at this point--whether you want to call it "carebearing" or "demonstrating trustworthiness."

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

"Meta-gaming" works also as the relevant term (#98283)
by Bill White

This is like playing iterated Prisoner's Dilemma.

Play single isolated games and "always defect" is the only rational move. Play multiple games with the same people and "cooperate" becomes the more rational move, under select circumstances.

For the rest of us, trying to "psych out" Blue & Blue also is a form of meta-gaming. ;-)

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

Absurdity thy name is Camel Toads (#98259)
by catchy

Kids and antipsychotic medicine (#98225)
by Sulla

A while ago Frontline did an episode on kids being prescribed antipsychotics to mollify their behavior and after the program I was not sure what to think. First off, I always try to catch Frontline on Tuesdays because I think it’s a great show, but they normally do try to push an agenda. While they report both sides of a story they very often weight the reporting so you know who the producers find more credible. In this case the message of the episode was that prescribing kids these medications was getting out of control and as a society we need to pull back and run some more tests. I’m sympathetic to this, from my layman perspective many of the kids who had behavioral problems while I was growing up would be medicated these days, but back then a paddle with holes in it did the trick without the medical side effects. However, there are kids who are actually helped by these medicines, and as such we should defer to the judgment of their doctors. But then again, people do doctor shop once they have their mind set on a particular diagnosis or treatment. So I wasn’t sure which way to go. Well it has been revealed that 3 influential Harvard psychiatrists hid their conflicts of interest with the pharmaceutical industry and whether or not this tainted their research I’m back to thinking we need more testing.

--

"I can no more disown him [Reverend Jeremiah Wright] than I can disown the black community"- Senator Barack Obama, March 18, 2008

To my mind anti-psychs are systematically over-prescribed (#98242)
by catchy

and I wouldn't give my 11 yr. old them except under extreme circumstances.

ADD + ADHD are a grab-bag of symptoms where the causal mechanisms responsible + the long-term effects of anti-psychs are poorly understood.

Plus I've taken a lot of your run of the mill anti-psychs and many are essentially prescription speed. Further in my experience only a small % has the target calming/focus enhancing effects.

You have (#98244)
by Elagabalus

an 11 yr. old!

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

twins actually (#98245)
by catchy

Anti-psychotics for kids? (#98239)
by hobbesist

I try to take these "Won't someone think of the children?" outbreaks with a grain of salt, but giving anti-psychotics to any but the most severely disturbed children seems like just a monumentally bad idea--for reasons of prudence, if no others.

Also, I'd like to think parents wouldn't quite as inclined to doctor-shop for a diagnosis of such severity that it would result in anti-psychotics being prescribed ... but I don't put much stock in what I'd like to think, either.

--

Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

Difficult issue (#98230)
by HankP

when I was a kid I hung out with several of the kids in the "Special Ed" class. A couple of them appeared to have serious issues, to the point that they were a danger to themselves and others, and I can see where some sort of drug would have made sense for them. Most of the others were just too high spirited and bored or uninterested in schoolwork, I'm not sure how appropriate drugs would have been for them. I think the "doctor shopping" that you mention is a real problem, but I'm not sure how that could be fixed, for this or other treatment related issues. I know the state medical associations won't do anything about it, most of their efforts are aimed at lobbying, not quality assurance.

--

I blame it all on the Internet

Obama-cons -- Is Barack the true conservative? (#98210)
by Bill White

Between McCain and Obama? I been starting to thinking that myself, just a little.

The New Republic:

The New Yorker is hardly the optimal vehicle for reaching the conservative intelligentsia. But, last year, Barack Obama cooperated with a profile for that magazine where he seemed to be speaking directly to the right. Because he paid obeisance to the virtues of stability and continuity, his interlocutor, Larissa MacFarquhar, came away with the impression that the Illinois senator was an adherent of Edmund Burke: "In his view of history, in his respect for tradition, in his skepticism that the world can be changed any way but very, very slowly, Obama is deeply conservative."

As The New Yorker's assessment shot across blogs, many conservatives listened eagerly. A broad swath of the movement has been in open revolt against George W. Bush--and the Republican Party establishment--for some time. They don't much care for the Iraq war or the federal government's vast expansion over the last seven-and-a-half years. And, in the eyes of these discontents, the nomination of John McCain only confirmed the continuation of the worst of the Bush-era deviations from first principles.

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

No, he's not. (#98214)
by hobbesist

But there's no shortage of reasons (or rationales) available to those conservatives and right-leaning libertarians for whom McCain's nomination is a slap in the face to put their support behind Obama.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

(a) I agree, however (#98228)
by Bill White

(b) I betcha Barack Obama understands Edmund Burke better than any other top tier Democrat.

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. . . and it looks as though they’ll punish the monkey and let the organ grinder go . . .

Well, given the man's smarts & education (#98234)
by hobbesist

... I imagine he'd understand Georges Sorel better than any other top-tier Democrat--but that doesn't make him the true syndicalist candidate.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

I'm willing to run with that.... (#98236)
by Bernard Guerrero
I knew someone would bite. (#98241)
by hobbesist

Thanks, BG ;^D

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

I think Mark Morford needs his crystal retuned (#98207)
by Sulla

He thinks Obama is a lightworker, which are not the dudes you find on movie sets, but sort of an angel for people who don’t like Christianity-

”Many spiritually advanced people I know (not coweringly religious, mind you, but deeply spiritual) identify Obama as a Lightworker, that rare kind of attuned being who has the ability to lead us not merely to new foreign policies or health care plans or whatnot, but who can actually help usher in a new way of being on the planet, of relating and connecting and engaging with this bizarre earthly experiment. These kinds of people actually help us evolve. They are philosophers and peacemakers of a very high order, and they speak not just to reason or emotion, but to the soul.”

Wow. Hey, I’ll admit the guy can speak well, but it isn’t like he invented combos or anything. I think Mr. Morford needs a little less MSNBC and a little more Yanni.

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"I can no more disown him [Reverend Jeremiah Wright] than I can disown the black community"- Senator Barack Obama, March 18, 2008

Every Time I Actually Read something by Morford (#98212)
by AndrewSshi

I can't help but thinking that he is a parody persona of a left-wing well to do white urbanite.

I thought this was a joke when I read it (#98217)
by Sulla

but I looked up a couple of his other things and began to doubt it was a parody, but I'm still not 100% convinced he isn't kidding, at least a little bit.

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"I can no more disown him [Reverend Jeremiah Wright] than I can disown the black community"- Senator Barack Obama, March 18, 2008

Maybe Morford was created (#98215)
by hobbesist

here.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

I love that site (#98237)
by catchy

My favorite (dedicated to Miss NPB) (#98243)
by hobbesist

here

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

I think this one has been played out.... (#98246)
by Bernard Guerrero

...a number of times on our very own Forvm!

But BE WARNED, talking about Indie Music with white people is perhaps the most dangerous subject you touch upon. One false move and you will lose their respect and admiration forever. Here are some general rules

-Bands that have had their songs in an Apple ad are still marginally acceptable

-Bands that have had their songs in ads for other companies are not acceptable

-If you mention a band you like and the other person has heard of them, you lose. They own you. It is essential that you like the most obscure music possible.

I won't name names, but.....

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The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule.
- H.L. Mencken

I'm sure that's not the only one (#98251)
by hobbesist

... that's been evinced around here. (But honestly, BG, I just have no idea who you're talking about. Just no idea.)

We could start running down the full list ...

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

Just a little reminder ... (#98991)
by Elagabalus

"Be Kind Rewind" is being released today on DVD and Blu-ray. This movie stars Jack Black and Mos Def (Mos def! People!!!) and is directed (and written) by Michel Gondry-talk about the Holy Triumvirate!!! "Whitey" nirvana is upon us!!!

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

I'll never watch Black again after that idiotic wrestling pic (#98995)
by tomsyl

the name of which I've purposely forgotten. The true definition of a complete bomb. Per Roger Ebert, "It takes some doing to make a Jack Black comedy that doesn't work. But "Nacho Libre" does it."

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Rust never sleeps.

The "purposely forgotten" bit (#99002)
by hobbesist

... would be a little more compelling if you didn't mention the movie's title in the very same post. And I'm with Elagaboolubus: what exactly does Ebert see in Mr. Black to begin with? I mean, I think Ebert's a really top notch film critic, but that's just a little ... weird.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

For What It's Worth. . . (#99000)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .I thought he did a great job as Carl Denham* in the latest "King Kong" remake.

*--A recent D&D sourcebook used Denham as an example of Chaotic Evil behavior in a fictional character, and Black's portrayal of the character certainly was consistent with that, though it was a rather restrained version of the alignment.

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What examples do they give (#99001)
by hobbesist

... for Chaotic Neutral?

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

Funny You Should Ask (#99003)
by M Scott Eiland

"Chaotic Neutral: Captain Jack Sparrow from the Pirates of the Caribbean films, Al Swearengen from the Deadwood television show, and Snake Plissken from Escape from New York."

Haven't gotten around to watching Deadwood yet, but I agree with the other two names on the list.

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Swearengen? (#99007)
by hobbesist

Huh. Not how I think of CN--but the alignment never made a lot of sense to me, so what do I know. I'd have thought him more in the NE bracket.

(FWIW, you should really check out Deadwood. I'm not one of its more ardent fans - it could be a little 'writerly' for my tastes - but it's still eminently worth seeing.)

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

I Will, Eventually (#99015)
by M Scott Eiland

Maybe this summer--I also am pondering finally catching up on "24" and "Lost."

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I've been tough on "Lost" (#99024)
by hobbesist

... but this last season was, as it turned out, actually pretty damn good, IMHO. Though the same sorts of frustrations exist (the characters only ask, and so the show only answers, "how" questions--never "why" questions), the 'flash forward' device does wonders to stave off the (otherwise quite strong) sense that the show just isn't going anywhere.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

Now, that IS funny (#98997)
by Elagabalus

Is Mr. Ebert implying that ALL previous Black comedies (heh!) have worked? Becuz if I see his name on the credits I will usually steer clear.

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

I've never seen a Gondry movie. (#98993)
by hobbesist

That's a pretty serious failing in my whiteness, I realize.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

uh ... (#98996)
by Elagabalus

me neither *hangs head in shame*. I have seen "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" at the DVD store and indeed, even at the library, but somehow I've never been in the mood to take a chance ...

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

Ooops. (#98999)
by hobbesist

I didn't realize he directed that one.

Uhh ... nevermind.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

dam you, hobbesist (#98477)
by Elagabalus

dam you and your infernal site! All my illusions have crumbled to dust! However, in defense of my cobalt blue (not white!) "Kitchen Aid", I just want to say-I DO use it a lot ... and ... it's the 6 quart, 475 watt "Epicurean" model, B!tch!!! The '36 Wedgewood Stove has been in my family since it was first purchased in the year of its manufacture. What was I supposed to do? Decline the offer to keep a family heirloom?! The 1940's General Electric fan was given to me by my sister. She bought it at a garage sale and the purchase was not prompted by me in any way. I neither asked for, nor inferred in any way that said fan would make my life complete even though, with the absolutely insane amount of air that can be driven through what is an essentially non existent grill, I dare say I will be unable to part with it ...

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

I don't know ... (#98254)
by Elagabalus

I absolutely hate Sarah Silverman*

*Isn't she Jewish? So ... is that technically considered white?

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

Do you now, or have you ever, love(d) Sarah Silverman? (#98261)
by hobbesist

It's easy to hate her now--the backlash was swift and effective--but how long have you hated her?

(Another thing white people like: doing things before they become popular.)

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.

She Looks And Sounds. . . (#98293)
by M Scott Eiland

. . .like a fifteen year old (including the potty mouth--I went to school with some salty young ladies). If she really was f***ing Matt Damon, I'd be expecting some R. Kelly issues in his future when he moved on.

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You got me there ... (#98267)
by Elagabalus

I've been so not into Sarah Silverman that I wasn't aware of any backlash! Was it becuz of the Matt Damon thing?

They are totally spot on wrt Dane Cook though. Does anybody over the age of 13 think he's funny?

Edit: I probably wasn't aware of Sarah Silverman because I don't own a TV ... :)

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

No TV! How iron....no....scratch that. (#98276)
by Bernard Guerrero
**Sigh** (#98280)
by Elagabalus

I have a TV!! As an interesting aside, I believe what they really mean-is that they don't have "cable". How else are they going to show all the films they rented from netflix!!!

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

Um, yeah...me too! - nt (#98255)
by Bernard Guerrero
Come to think of it ... (#98258)
by Elagabalus

I'm not too wild about ANY chick doing comedy ... :)

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I had discovered a great secret. That everyone loves themselves more than they love anybody else. And if I wanted them to love me, I better be like THEM!... Ken Nordine

Whoa! (#98253)
by Bernard Guerrero

#16 hit a little too close to home.

I believe you've managed to pull a #15 and a number #81 on this post, already! Me personally, I won't so much as admit to knowing what a syndicalist is, not even the anarcho- version. I just know they're bad 'cause I used to know a Usenet Marxist who liked 'em. :^)

Bernard "Homage to Northern New Jersey" Guerrero

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The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule.
- H.L. Mencken

Those two are only the beginning. (#98260)
by hobbesist

Thankfully, there are enough on there that miss the mark by a mile that I can feel like I'm not merely a walking stereotype. (I like my parents a great deal, the whole vintage clothes/etc. thing always escaped me, natural medicine is presumed hogwash until proven otherwise, and ... musical comedy? Really? I'm hanging out with the wrong [read: right] white people. &c.)

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio.