A.M. Links: Romney Declines Nickelodeon Invitation, Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded, Record-Breaking Skydive Set for Today

News from Nickelodeon to the Nobel

• Mitt Romney declined an invitation from Nick News to participate in a Nickelodeon special, citing time constraints, becoming the first candidate since John Kerry in 2004 to skip the event.  The Viacom-owned cable channel runs a poll after their special, the winner of whom has won every election since the special started in 1992, with the exception of 2004. Obama won the kid's vote by 2 percent in the 2008 poll.

• The NYPD Commissioner endorsed a grand jury investigation of a police shooting of an unarmed motorist in Queen, but the Queens DA is already investigating because a grand jury is routine in police shootings like these.
• Convicted child molester Jerry Sandusky will be sentenced today. The former Penn State assistant football coach claims he's an innocent victim of a vast conspiracy.
• The British Ministry of Justice will be revising the law on using force to defend your home; homeowners will now be able to use disproportionate force, and not just reasonable force, to repel intruders.
• The Nobel Prize in Physics will be shared by an American and a Frenchman for the study of the relationship between light and matter on a quantum level (it's turtles all the way down).
• The skydiver Felix Baumgartner is set to break the record for highest sky dive, at 23 miles, and is expected to break the sound barrier.

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Comments

[sarcasmic]

Turns out naked-boy never touched the cop that killed him.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....udent.html

[Ted S.]

It's not as if he had any weapons anyway.

(Are the cops trying to blame this on "bath salts"?)

[sloopyinca]

They are at PoliceOne. Either Bath Saltz or the fact that a sweaty wrestler (who has now become a "champion" wrestler in their eyes) can be tough to take down.

Anything to protect the shield.

[sarcasmic]

I don't know how you can read that site. The sheer contempt that those creatures have for the general public makes me sick.

[Ted S.]

Thank you for reading PigOne for me so that I don't have to.

[Heroic Mulatto]

Yes, let's forget that schizophrenia most often develops in one's early 20's...you know, the age many people go to college.

[SugarFree]

It's in their union contract that they can kill anyone who is naked, so you have no right to judge.

[invisible furry hand]

You on the other hand are living in fear, right?

[sarcasmic]

You got it backwards.

There's nothing in the contract that specifically forbids the killing of naked men. If you don't think that they should kill naked men, then get it into the contract. Otherwise, stfu.

[Pope Jimbo]

The problem is that when confronted by a naked man, the cop's own shortcomings are painfully brought to the forefront.

If only this good looking kid had kept his shorts on, maybe the cop wouldn't have had to pull out the old compensator...

[Fist of Etiquette]

The British Ministry of Justice will be revising the law on using force to defend your home...

It's now legal to use a brass stiff upper lip.

[sarcasmic]

Dude dies after eating 30 cockroaches. I'm sorry, but I can't find any pity for him.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....s-ill.html

[DJF]

I would feel like dying after eating one.

[Jordan]

I really want to know what he died from.

[Jerry on the road]

Darwinism?

[sarcasmic]

Me too. Over thirty other people participated and none of them got sick.

[Groovus Maximus]

Apparently, none of them had cockroaches bred in Massachusettes, and none of the participants had back pain.

My guess is he died of food poisoning of some type, or perhaps a food allergy of some type. Or he just keeled over from meningitis. -)))

Seriously, I don't know what would have caused his sudden demise, aside from sudden cardiac arrest or something like that.

[invisible furry hand]

related question: how can some people drink liquid nitrogen in cocktails with no ill effect, and others need to have their stomach removed, like this fair flower of English womenhood? Shouldn't everyone's stomachs explode on the same dose (or most people's?) Or does she just have a weak stomach?

[Groovus Maximus]

Weak stomach, and I suspect the poor lotus of nitrogenous rejection had gastric varices and they ruptured. The stomach doesn't explode per se, but the surrounding tissue, particularly at the fundal hiatus, is prone to rupture. I suspect this is not the first time this gal has drank something questionable, or in questionable amounts.

[invisible furry hand]

The fundal hiatus? Damn Doc, you use your mouth purtier than a two dollar whore. Thanks for the explanation 🙂

[Groovus Maximus]

Anytime, Your Spunkiness...-)))

[Zeb]

It really doesn't seem like that should kill a person.

[sarcasmic]

The current theory, pending autopsy, is an allergy.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Post hoc ergo propter hoc. You'll be hearing from the cockroach cuisine lobby's attorney.

[Groovus Maximus]

Only if they were chocolate covered, thus rendering them a legitimate, approved delicacy.

Speaking of exotic delicacies...

[$park?]

And your link is even SugarFree.

[Rich]

You SFed it, Doc. Please try again -- I *know* she'll be nice.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Fatties are a boon to medical practitioners, aren't they? Is that why you're pushing chocolate?

Your link is very exotic.

[Groovus Maximus]

I'm shocked, quite appalled actually, that not one of you shrieked "RACIST!" You people are simply slipping. We are so disappoint...

[Francisco d Anconia]

Where you been?

[Groovus Maximus]

Let's try this again...

DAMN YOU SACCHARIN MAN!!!!!

[sloopyinca]

Doc, where the hell have you been lately? We've got baby news and wanted your opinion.

[Groovus Maximus]

Preparing to for the big move; I will gone at the end of this month. Congrats and what is new on the newborn front? I trust the delivery went well?

[nicole]

Welcome back and congratulations yourself!

[Groovus Maximus]

MALE GAZE!

[invisible furry hand]

What does one take / leave / purchase if one is moving to Ukraine?

[Groovus Maximus]

A Spunky Antipodean. And lots of wall-socket adapters. -)))

[sloopyinca]

We're still 9 weeks away. But we went to Children's Hospital the other day to tour the NICU Unit and talk with the Pediatric Surgeon and his staff. Anyway, he said they'll let the omphalocele stay for close to a year before doing surgery unless they absolutely have to, and that she'll likely be there for a couple of months after she's born.

My question is: once she starts rolling over and crawling, won't that be exceptionally dangerous? Couldn't she risk scuffing or puncturing the "sac" they'll pout around it? After all, it won't have nerve endings as normal skin would.

Also, once she starts to squirm, won't her abdominal muscles begin to form under her liver, causing the surgery to be more difficult after a period of time?

I know this guy does this for a living, and I'm sure he knows better than I do, but I also know they used to repair an omphalocele right away and just keep close tabs on the child so she could develop normally post-surgery. Why did they stop with that for great omphaloceles but not for minor ones?

I'm probably just a worrier, but I think that's a normal reaction for an expecting parent. And by the way, she's perfectly healthy otherwise. She's just gonna have one hell of a tough first year and then she'll be a-ok and have a cool scar to boot.

[R C Dean]

Don't be shy about grilling the surgeon, getting a second opinion, all that. Big-time docs tend to forget that THEY work for YOU, so kick 'em in the shins as necessary.

How'd the name auction go?

[sloopyinca]

$120 on Rebecca. Still plenty of time to go. We're not closing it until Dec 1.

[R C Dean]

Dang. Since her first name will start with R, I was pulling for a second name starting with C.

[sloopyinca]

I believe you could make that happen to the tune of $130.

[R C Dean]

Too rich for this poor, hardworking scrivener's blood.

[Groovus Maximus]

My question is: once she starts rolling over and crawling, won't that be exceptionally dangerous? Couldn't she risk scuffing or puncturing the "sac" they'll pout around it? After all, it won't have nerve endings as normal skin would.

Nope, the peritoneum surrounding the vicerae is quite tough, and keep baby covered in jumpers and other clothing to limit friction burns.

Also, once she starts to squirm, won't her abdominal muscles begin to form under her liver, causing the surgery to be more difficult after a period of time?

No. With larger omphaloceles, there needs to be anchoring tissue surrounding the surrounding the organs so when the oomphalocele is repaired, there will be enough surrounding tissure for structural integrity and allows for room for growth at that time. Her muscles will still be plenty pliable and elastic at that time. Smaller oomphaloceles can be repaired immediately will less risk. Larger ones, not so much, and she needs some development to tolerate the surgery.

[sloopyinca]

OK. Well that makes sense, I guess. I just thought it would be easier to move it back inside before her ab muscles started to become more defined. But as to the rest, there are no other issues at all. We did the cardiac ultrasound as a last look at something that might be off, but her heart is just fine.

I guess our main concern now is somehow a tear in the sac around her liver (that's the omphalocele), which would cause them to need to operate immediately. The doc said the odds of that are around 2-3% as she's being delivered, and once she's out they drop from there.

Damn, I guess we're lucky. I know it's gonna be a tough road for her, but it could have been so much worse.

Hey, thanks to all of you for being so supportive. I know we're all thick-skinned malcontents on here, but you guys have all been just wonderful to the both of us through this. It literally brings a tear to my eye when I think of how supportive and caring all of you have been for us through this. It really has been a blessing to be able to come on here and spell out what has been going on, through the highs and lows of it all, and get the compassion we've gotten from you all. It has meant the world to me.

[nicole]

sloopy, just want to add a little supportiveness--I didn't know about any of this and I hope everything goes well with the little one. I hope banjos is doing okay too.

[Groovus Maximus]

I'm probably just a worrier, but I think that's a normal reaction for an expecting parent. And by the way, she's perfectly healthy otherwise. She's just gonna have one hell of a tough first year and then she'll be a-ok and have a cool scar to boot.

More proof that you are and will be a kick ass dad, and Banjos must be excited! Also, what RC said, as even I am sometimes susceptible to requiring a shin kicking at times. -)))

[SugarFree]

Ha-ha-ha! I shall destroy you all! ALL!

[Fist of Etiquette]

A deli in Raccoon City. Big deal.

[Translucent Chum]

He went out a champion!

[Rich]

Archbold, seen here in an undated mugshot, won a snake from the competition

Great article!

[Matrix]

Watch a Felix Baumgarner jump live

[DJF]

So besides falling, does he have any other accomplishments?

[Bee Tagger]

A valid excuse for not being able to hear what his wife is saying.

[sarcasmic]

Pron 4 John!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....geant.html

[Fist of Etiquette]

The skydiver Felix Baumgartner is set to break the record for highest sky dive, at 23 miles, and is expected to break the sound barrier.

He will hit the ground before his boasting does?

[sarcasmic]

Youth is wasted on the young.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvs.....thday.html

[Jordan]

That girl is only 15?! Jailbait extreme!

[sarcasmic]

Aye.

[Jerry on the road]

Then again, she'll probably peak out earlier as well. See Lindsay Lohan, Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears.

[sarcasmic]

Didn't the three that you mention also get their start on Disney?

[Jerry on the road]

Yup.

[Groovus Maximus]

Yep, along with Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, and a few other moppets and soon-to-be has-beens.

[Proprietist]

I think Justin Timberlake has found new life as an actor. And unlike the rest, he actually has talent, something I never would have said about him back in the 90s.

[Enough About Palin]

His comedic timing is teh awesome.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

Yep--and the foreshadowing will be a Rolling Stone cover that declares her "Hot, Legal, and Ready!!!"

[John]

You are not kidding. I would have guessed she is at least 20. She is beautiful. But I am not sure looking that old that young bodes well for the future.

[Lord Humungus]

my first girlfriend was 15 (as was I). Large breasted, great hips and curves everywhere.

The last time I saw her when I was in my early twenties, all that beauty had turned to pork.

[invisible furry hand]

Large breasted, great hips and curves everywhere.

But not as you were, presumably

[Lord Humungus]

heh - no, I'm was (still am) the skinny guy.

[R C Dean]

Sounds like my second girlfriend in every particular. Except she aged quite well, last I saw.

[sarcasmic]

Yeah. Sounds like this girl I dated in high school. Totally hot bod for her age. Last I knew she's a bloated 40yr old virgin still living with mom.

[Auric Demonocles]

If I ever end up in jail, there's about a 90% chance it will be because of a redheaded 15 year old girl.

[sarcasmic]

Charlie Brown?

[Auric Demonocles]

Not quite. I was already a teenager when my ginger fetish appeared.

[Bee Tagger]

Mitt Romney declined an invitation from Nick News to participate in a Nickelodeon special

Oh good, here I thought the Romney hates big bird meme was going to fizzle away. Instead, it's tired joke universe looks likely to expand.

[Ted S.]

I figure he just didn't want to get covered in slime.

[Groovus Maximus]

He insulted the Limeys, not the Canuckistanians (yet). Just wait for him to say, "I don't know!?"

[Ted S.]

Shouldn't that be, "I don't know, eh?"

[Groovus Maximus]

SPLASH! Sucker! And I get mistaken for Maple leafdom...heh.

[Randian]

Au contraire mon frere:

Obama Ad Mocks Romney's 'Big Bird Hate

[John]

Of course Sesame Street could buy and sell Romney out of petty cash.

[Dr. Frankenstein]

+1 Elmo DVD collection

[VG Zaytsev]

Just goes to show that proglodytes love subsidizing one percenters.

[Rich]

"I approved this message" is all you need to know. This is one sorry-ass campaign.

[Randian]

I thought it might be from an unrelated PAC or something, but no, the President of the United States looked at that and said "yeah, that's heavy"

I think it's mildly humorous, myself, but it's still ridiculous.

[nicole]

I happened to catch Newt on TV the day after the debate or thereabouts and he had quite the zinger on Big Bird?Mitt isn't trying to kill him, "he wants to liberate him from bureaucracy."

Sometimes I kinda love you, Newt.

[Rich]

Yep. Would that Newt could debate *himself*.

[LTC(ret) John]

Let him out of his government cage?

[Zombie Jimbo]

I would totally support Newt for press secretary in a Romney administration.

[wareagle]

Sesame St earns nine figures a year but Romney is the bad guy. On the other hand, it is so badly managed that it's a net loser, at least according to Slate:

http://www.slate.com/articles/.....oney_.html

[Tulpa Doom]

The production budget for Sesame Street domestically is about $16 or $17 million per year, which produces about 26 episodes. At less than a million dollars per episode that's a relative bargain. A cable show like The Walking Dead can cost $3 million per episode.

No difference in production quality there.

[T]

Ignore the idiot commentary from Slate. Go to the statements. They did all right in '10, but got hammered on investment losses on '09. Cash equivalents on hand went from 13 mil at the beginning of '09 to 50 mil at the end of '10. Sesame Workshop is doing just fine without the 4 million they get from PBS.

[bostonaod]

the operating expenses for the Sesame Workshop totaled about $133 million, including $37 million for production and development of TV shows at home and abroad; $41 million for production and distribution of non-TV content including apps, home video, and live entertainment; and a hair under $7 million for "Muppet acquisition." (The remainder goes towards education, outreach, fundraising expenses, and assorted smaller costs.)

Unless I am missing something obvious here, the "remainder" is $48M, or over a third of the total. As a category, it is the single most "expensive" on his list. Top notch analysis, Forrest, you've come up with the intellectual equivalent of cleaning your bedroom by stuffing the mess in a closet.

[Auric Demonocles]

Holy shit the Obama campaign is retarded. Their only hope is that the American populace is even more retarded than I thought.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Obama won the kid's vote by 2 percent in the 2008 poll.

Obama only won by two percent? What the hell kind of private schools is Ellerbee pulling these kids from?

[DJF]

Maybe the same ones that Obama sends his kids too.

[nicole]

I don't know much about Sidwell Friends, but their former school here in Chi would be lucky to have like...a single R parent, I'd say.

[John]

Sidwell is the land of rich liberals.

[JW]

Sidwell is the land of rich limousine liberals and marxist millionares.

[Randian]

And that was in 2008!

[Jordan]

Proof that racism is alive and well. /Tony

[Ted S.]

Perhaps children aren't as stupid as we think.

[Zeb]

Or, more likely, they just repeat what they hear their parents say.

[Tulpa Doom]

I was the only kid in my 1st grade class to vote for Mondale.

[Enough About Palin]

And people claim there is no voter fraud.

[Tulpa Doom]

They must have required photo ID.

[PapayaSF]

+1

[Translucent Chum]

World of Warcraft done in Minecraft.

[Jordan]

We need more gaming related posts. Anyone else picking up Dishonored today?

[Ted S.]

Am I the only person who thinks we need fewer gaming-related posts?

[Jordan]

I feel the same about football and beer related posts...

[Ted S.]

Definitely agree on the beer-related posts.

[Coeus]

See, now I like the beer and videogame posts. It's almost like varied topics are a good thing.

Go figure.

[Drax the Destroyer]

And what, pray tell, would you put in their place? Frankly, I'm pissed off all the time, partly due to 4 gallons of coffee constantly pumping through my veins and partly because I get to read post after fucking post about how we are fucked financially, morally, and anally. It's nice to escape that every once in awhile by talking about horribly violent video games where I can burn off my deep-seeded neanderthal instincts. But, to each his own.

And no...no Dishonored here.

[sloopyinca]

What the fuck is a "Dishonored"?

[Groovus Maximus]

What the fuck is a "Dishonored"?

How about, "Dishonoured"? Is that better? -))

[Ted S.]

And what, pray tell, would you put in their place?

I like generic, non-fap-related (ie. none of that, "OMG John and Sarcasmic would have a three way with that woman!") news of the weird.

[nicole]

New mission: find a woman both John and sarcasmic would fuck.

[invisible furry hand]

and then make it pay-per-view, naturally

[Coeus]

Who in god's name would pay money for that?

[invisible furry hand]

there's a whole sick world out there my friend.

[Zeb]

Am I the only person who thinks we need fewer gaming-related posts?

No. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only one. I am totally bored by video games. And the time commitment seems absurd. DO people just not sleep, or what?

[T]

You have an eternity to waste in the slumber of the grave. Caffeine up and play.

[Jordan]

The great think about not having children is you have shitloads of disposable income and free time.

[Ice Nine]

That's all you could come up with?

[Jordan]

Gaming isn't my only hobby. I swim laps a few times a week and SCUBA dive. But it's too cold to dive locally in the winter, and dive trips aren't cheap.

[Ice Nine]

I was referring to great things about not having children.

[Jordan]

????

You can do a lot with time and money.

[Charlotte Sometimes]

Sleep is for the weak.

[R C Dean]

Nah. I'm knee-deep in Borderlands 2. Downloaded the Mechromancer DLC this morning, and will probably give her a spin.

Just what I need: two independent playthroughs running at the same time.

[Restoras]

Posted downthread but gaming realted...

It's not like I added 20000000 gold to everyone's inventory, and broke the economy

World of Warcraft hacker knows more about economics than Tony and Shreek. No one is surprised.

[Lord Humungus]

Daily Kos/SEIU State of the Nation poll: Romney takes the lead in post-debate period
http://www.dailykos.com/story/.....ate-period

[KDN]

Related: professional pundit finally realizes polling is worthless.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The NYPD Commissioner endorsed a grand jury investigation of a police shooting of an unarmed motorist in Queen[s]...

It requires his approval?

[LTC(ret) John]

Must be in their contract.

[Drake]

Sounds like Chavez's vote-counters pulled out an "unexpected" come-from-behind victory.

[DJF]

Are you suggesting that he is following his hero Stalin, that its not important how the voters vote, but who counts the votes

[Drake]

The people have spoken!

[R C Dean]

Indeed. The ones "counting" the votes, at least.

[Bee Tagger]

In a few weeks the numbers will be revised downward.

[Drake]

Nah, Jimmy Carter will certify the election.

[VG Zaytsev]

The Viacom-owned cable channel runs a poll after their special, the winner of whom has won every election since the special started in 1992, with the exception of 2004. Obama won the kid's vote by 2 percent in the 2008 poll.

Evidence of the infantilization of Americans.

[$park?]

How come the hypocrites at reason have not been posting articles about this story everywhere?

Georgia Rep. Paul Broun said in videotaped remarks that evolution, embryology and the Big Bang theory are "lies straight from the pit of hell" meant to convince people that they do not need a savior.

...

Broun spokeswoman Meredith Griffanti told the Athens Banner-Herald that Broun was recorded speaking off-the-record to a church group about his religious beliefs. He sits on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology.

[tarran]

He sits on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology.

That's fucking awesome!

[Rich]

He sits on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology.

I believe the second word is missing an "h".

[Ted S.]

I thought 47% of their stories have been about this.

[Citizen Nothing]

'Cause the Kochtopus controls the Flat Earth Society. Where the hell you been?

[Zeb]

Well, obviously they are just Republicans who smoke pot.

[Tulpa Doom]

No more outrageous than Maxine Waters being the ranking Democrat on the House Commitee on Financial Services.

[Lord Humungus]

Hiatt: No escape from the Middle East
http://www.washingtonpost.com/.....story.html

That doesn't mean the United States needs to send troops into conflict, as Obama believed President George W. Bush did too readily. But when opportunities arise, the United States needs to be ready ? to support democrats in Egypt, Libya, Bahrain and Tunisia, for example, or to help the Syrian opposition organize and equip itself. If the stakes in Afghanistan are worth sending U.S. troops into battle, as Obama proclaimed, then those troops should be fighting toward a goal, not a timeline.

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney blames Obama for all the troubles in the region, just as Obama blamed Bush. In truth, every president will be at the mercy of events to some extent, no matter how prescient his foreign policy.

[wareagle]

That doesn't mean the United States needs to send troops into conflict, as Obama believed President George W. Bush did too readily.

Bush sent troops into two places and damn near everyone thought it necessary in the case of Afghanistan. This "too readily" bullshit makes it sound like W dispatched the military anywhere and everywhere. And that is from WaPo; it's not attributed to some staffer or even to Obama.

[Tulpa Doom]

Sending troops to AFG was almost universally approved. It's the keeping them there for 7 years of his admin that was the problem.

[Tulpa Doom]

Sending troops to AFG was almost universally approved. It's the keeping them there for 7 years of his admin that was the problem.

[R C Dean]

But when opportunities arise, the United States needs to be ready ? to support democrats

Isn't that exactly what brought the Muslim Brotherhood to power in Egypt? There seems to be an unjustified assumption that radical Muslims can't win an election, and that democracy in the Middle East will inevitably result in Western-style liberalism in office.

[Tulpa Doom]

Democracies don't tend to get it right the first time through. Our own democratic republic enforced slavery for nearly a century before getting it (partially) right.

[DRM]

That doesn't mean the United States needs to send troops into conflict, as Obama believed President George W. Bush did too readily.

Remind me again who did the surge into Afghanistan, the one that killed three times as many Americans in 44 months as had been killed in the previous 88 months of the war, and achieved absolutely nothing?

In truth, every president will be at the mercy of events to some extent, no matter how prescient his foreign policy.

And others will simply fuck up, spending billions of dollars to overthrow someone who the previous president actually convinced through diplomacy to give up his WMDs. With results like a neighboring democracy being overthrown and split between vandalizing religious fanatics and a military junta.

Obama Foreign Policy: Making George W. Bush look smart by comparison for four years.

[Translucent Chum]

Former Bengals cheerleader pleads guilty to sex with 17 year old. I'm sure he'll be scarred for life...

[Bee Tagger]

You'll pardon her if she hadn't seen someone score a lot in a while.

[Fist of Etiquette]

This is the most ridiculous waste of time in the history of prosecution. The "victim" not only refused to cooperate but actively sided with the teacher. I honestly wonder if this case advanced because of the prurient interest of authorities.

[Translucent Chum]

If you click through the pics you get to see them smiling and chatting with each other in the courtroom.

[Drax the Destroyer]

BECAUSE THEY FUCKED AND THEY LIKED IT.

Jesus...if they are trying 13 year olds for full-on murder, they should be disregarding cases where willing 17 year olds fuck adults.

[SugarFree]

The age of consent should be the lowest age they ever tried a minor as an adult. That should be the age of driving and voting and drinking as well.

If the responsibilities of adulthood attach at less than 18, so should the rights.

[invisible furry hand]

you missed gun ownership, my dear fellow

[Zeb]

Property ownership in general. As a minor you can't really own anything independently of your parents, I don't think.

[invisible furry hand]

Not quite right Zeb. It might depend upon the state you're in, but generally minors can certainly own personal property, choses in action etc, and can own real property. You might not want to give something to a minor outright if it's valuable (ie you'd give it on trust until majority), but there's usually no bar. Contracts with minors are voidable at the minor's election, unless it is for necessities. Again, this common law position might be modified by statute

[Tulpa Doom]

A minor does not hold anything like adult property rights. His or her parents can take any "property" away from him at any time, so it's really the parents' property in practice.

And a contract voidable at will by one party is not a real contract.

[SugarFree]

As someone who own his first gun at 8, I rarely think about that for minors. Good catch.

[Fist of Etiquette]

But you're talking about violent crimes. Here in America we place greater emphasis on protecting society from anything to do with sex than from anything to do with violence, for obvious reasons.

People who are victims of violence usually know it immediately, but people who are victims of sex sometimes need to be informed that they are victims of sex. That's where the state comes in.

[Coeus]

The age of consent should be the lowest age they ever tried a minor as an adult.

I've been saying that for years. Did I get that from you, you get that from me, or did we both hear that from another regular?

[SugarFree]

I first mentioned here years ago. But I doubt I was the first person to ever think of it. Maybe you thought it up independently as well.

Or maybe you turn into me when you are sleeping. Which means you are sleeping right now.

[Coeus]

Or maybe you turn into me when you are sleeping. Which means you are sleeping right now.

I'm at work now, so that's entirely possible.

[robc]

The age of consent in KY is 16 (she taught at Dixie Heights) as Im sure you know.

That he was only 17 isnt the issue.

[SugarFree]

"He's only seventeen--SE-VEN-TEEN"

[Groovus Maximus]

"He's only seventeen--SE-VEN-TEEN"

EARWORRRRRRMMMMM!

I. HATE. YOU.

[invisible furry hand]

My God, this is an emergency!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geHLdg_VNww

[Groovus Maximus]

Whew! Thanky kindly, my spunky lass. FTR, I missed you. -))

[invisible furry hand]

And I you (as indeed has the rest of the gang). You will try to stay friends once you're Kievus Maximus, right?

[Groovus Maximus]

I won't be in Kiev often, (Thank SOD), but I will be spending most of my time in both Odessa and Donetsk, and it appears the majority of my time will be in Odessa. It's poignant that link was mentioned downthread, as many similar stories are mentioned often by older UKR's and Russian folk living in UKR. I won't be changing my nom du blog anytime soon, though I did consider a change to Vrach Maximus.

And yes, I will contribute as much as possible. -)))

[Coeus]

That he was only 17 isnt the issue.

Texas has a state law for that as well. Though the age of consent is 17, while I was a registered sub (for the whole year, even though I didn't teach but one week that year), I could have gotten 2 years in jail for having sex with a 17, 18, or 19 year old that was still attending school

[Auric Demonocles]

You can also see a gallery of images of her in her cheerleader days. What a lucky kid.

[Translucent Chum]

Yeah, this kid is really going to need counseling...

[Auric Demonocles]

"B...b.....but Doctor! She wasn't the beach blonde one! Waaaaaaaaa!"

[Restoras]

Biggest problem he is going to have is topping her.

[$park?]

I'm sure he spent a lot of time topping her, if you know what I mean.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

Here's the money quote:

Court records indicate the investigation was launched after the student's ex-girlfriend, also a teen, contacted police.

Just watch, sometime in college this bitch is going to get in a three-way at a frat-house party and claim she was raped when the boys don't call her the next day.

[Restoras]

They will only call back if she promises bukkake the next time.

[sloopyinca]

A bigger issue is the prosecutor inability to understand the definition of "Age of Consent" or the fact that not only did the "victim" not want to cooperate, but neither did his parents.

This was hardly a case worthy of prosecution. Should she have been fired for it? Perhaps. But prosecuted for a consensual relationship with a 17 year old (past the age of consent in KY) that his parents even supported? Hell no.

[sarcasmic]

Consent laws aren't cut and dry when one of the people involved is in a position of authority, like a teacher.

[R C Dean]

Dunno why not. If you are old enough to be responsible for your actions, you're old enough to be responsible for your actions.

[Zeb]

I'm going to baselessly guess that the prosecution went forward because of the insane jealousy of the prosecutors.

[LTC(ret) John]

+1 green eyed monster

[Tulpa Doom]

It enables the DA to send out fliers claiming to be tough on sexual predators in the next election. So of course it's worthy of prosecution.

[wareagle]

is 17 past the age of consent there? It is in most places. I guess it's the teacher/student thing though this guy's buddies all think he's the man.

[Translucent Chum]

I know right. Not just a teacher, but a pro cheerleader. This kid has senator from Ohio written all over him.

[Restoras]

I'd vote for him if only because I am insanely jealous.

[Mike M.]

The fact that she is a teacher ought to be irrelevant, and these prosecutions are utter bullcrap. If people honestly feel that 17 is too young for a male to be able to give consent, then change the law.

[KDN]

Agreed, a teacher consentually sleeping with an adult student is a matter for the board of ed, not the courts.

[Tulpa Doom]

The age of consent is not the issue here. It's the authority relationship.

[Proprietist]

That's fine - it's a matter for the school and school board. Not the courts. Let her get fired, put a provision in her contract that she agrees in advance to certain fines for having such relationships with students, put a mark on her file, etc. If she is not his personal teacher and does not have any chance of eventually being his teacher, maybe they do nothing. Should depend on the circumstances, but should not be a crime if the student is past the age of consent.

[Emmerson Biggins]

Ya, And that is bullshit. Age of consent should be the only issue. So the law is bullshit. And if the law sucks the DA shouldn't use it. And if the DA uses it he shouldn't do that over-charge-in-order to-force-a-plea bullshit. And if there is a trial the jury should nullify. So whole thing is bullshit. Nobody is confused.

[Lord Humungus]

Podhoretz: The president has no clothes
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/o.....N2TaHRMlfN

There's a Looney Tunes cartoon in which Daffy is desperate for applause from an audience in a theater. Everything Daffy does is met with silence until he swallows dynamite and gasoline and blows himself up. The crowd goes wild. As Daffy's ghost ascends to the heavens, Bugs Bunny tells him the audience is screaming for more.

Says Daffy: "I can only do it once."

It's beginning to occur to liberals that Barack Obama also could only do it once ? and that, like the unfortunate Daffy, the way he won the presidency the first time may have made it impossible for him to do it a second time.

[sloopyinca]

"You're under arrest!"
"What for?"
"For resisting arrest!"

Another case where the union contract kept a dirty cop on the payroll to make up evidence and break the law on a regular basis. All hail the union contract!

[sarcasmic]

Miller, 55, quit her 20-year job with the Florida Department of Corrections' Probation and Parole Field Services. "She lost her trust and respect for law enforcement officers," Lawson said.

Better late than never.

[mr simple]

"None of those statements was true," Lawson wrote.

I hope they win and all, but how does someone become a lawyer and write statements like this in a lawsuit?

[Lord Humungus]

Ryan Gets Ready
Paul Ryan's debate mantra is "Prepare, prepare, prepare."
http://www.nationalreview.com/.....bert-costa

Paul Ryan may be the first vice-presidential nominee who once prepped a veep nominee.

In late 1996, Ryan, then 26 years old, worked as a policy adviser for Jack Kemp, a former New York congressman and Bob Dole's running mate. On the trail, Ryan guided Kemp as he prepared for his October debate with vice president Al Gore. The official prep sessions, however, were mostly a disaster. Kemp rarely practiced, and when he did, he lost his temper. At one mock debate, according to writer Robert Draper, Kemp "shot the bird" at Senator Judd Gregg, who was playing Gore, and stormed out of the room.

[Karl Hungus]

Andrew Sullivan's asshole, which to this point had been all wet and slobbery for Barack Obama, seems to be drying up. He muses:

Did Obama throw the election?
http://andrewsullivan.thedaily.....-away.html

Is presidenting too hard?
http://andrewsullivan.thedaily.....t-out.html

[Ed]

My favorite part is his attempt to differentiate the Obama Administration from the Bush Administration or a putative Romney one by calling it a "reality based government." These people are no longer in reality based media.

[Groovus Maximus]

Sullivan never, ever was, Ed. The man is the media equivalent of dopamine imbalance.

[Rich]

"Perception is reality."

[Mike M.]

"reality based government."

Yeah, what a joke. The people who delusionally like to think of themselves as "reality-based" are the same people who think you can accumulated infinite amounts of debt with no repercussions.

[John]

He is right about the Pew poll being devastating.

[Karl Hungus]

He is right about the Pew poll being devastating.

I think so too. And I think he's right in that this is now Romney's race to lose. Unless Obama simply crushes the next two debates, and barring some other October surprise, Obama is likely finished. The man has been the construct of a fawning media from day one, and a week ago on national TV, he was exposed as such.

[John]

The thing that is most devastating about the Pew Poll is how many fewer blacks plan to vote now compared to 08. That in itself is game over.

[R C Dean]

barring some other October surprise, Obama is likely finished.

That is the truly frightening part. If the only way Obama can win is to commit some Constitutiona/moral/legal atrocity, is there any doubt he would do it?

[T]

Obama is surrounded by people who honestly didn't think he could lose. They exist in the bubble. So in order to have something prepared, somebody would have had to break the groupthink and bring up the possibility of losing. Anything they prepare at this point would look like weak sauce, because it would be some cobbled together bullshit they came up with in the last week.

[John]

And it is not like they have proven themselves to be great planners or thinkers anyway. If the President were someone smart like Nixon or Clinton you might worry. But this crew?

[T]

Yeah, when your heavy hitters are David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett, you're not dealing with the brain trust, are you?

[Tulpa Doom]

This blog was full of people who thought Obama victory was inevitable. Looks like they all lost their internet connections or had their typing fingers broken last week.

I do miss shrike's Intrade updates.

[Groovus Maximus]

This blog was full of people who thought Obama victory was inevitable. Looks like they all lost their internet connections or had their typing fingers broken last week.

I still hold the view that Obummer is a lock for re-election, and have not wavered from that view, Tulpy Poo. And I don't want him to win, FWIW. Pardon me for being MIA as of late, Jonathan Tulpington Seagull.

I do miss shrike's Intrade updates.

Shriek is back on the Lithium, hence his occasional periods of brief lucidity.

[tarran]

I have been contemplating a conspiracy theory that I want people to jaw over.

Remember the big fuss about romney's tax returns? It fit with Obama's usual method for winning an election: kneecapping the opponent with a leak of private info that created a career ending scandal.

The returns Reid was claiming he had seen were supposedly provided to him by a sympathetic Romney business partner. There is no question in my mind that Reid believed Romney hadn't paid taxes in a long time.

I am curious if Romney perhaps leaked a set of fake returns via a go-between to Reid, and the Obama election team were giving each other high-fives thinking that they had it in the bag?

The beauty of such a move is that it gets the Obama reelection campaign to put eggs in a basket with a weak handle. Moreover, it would discredit subsequent attacks much as attacks by the birther movement were discredited.

Thoughts?

[T]

There's a twisted genius too it if it's true, but Romney's execution so far hasn't made me think his campaign staff is that competent.

[R C Dean]

If Romney's got the right kind of thinker on his staff, someone who can put himself in the opposition's shoes and think a few moves ahead, then I can see them doing exactly this with the tax returns.

Obama has gotten where he is by having operatives steal confidential information and leak it strategically, so his campaign would be vulnerable to this. Reid totally sold out on those tax returns; would he have done that if he had nothing? Maybe, but it seems unlikely.

[PapayaSF]

tarran: clever plan, but probably too clever for the Romney campaign.

[Emmerson Biggins]

I think it is more likely that Reid just thought Romney had something to hide, or he wouldn't have been holding back. So being the senior asshole from Nevada, he just figured Romney wouldn't call a huge bet before the flop out of position, even if he had a decently playable hand.

I don't find your scenario completely unbelievable though.

[R C Dean]

The fact that they are likely fuck up some overreaching October surprise isn't exactly comforting, you know.

[Karl Hungus]

If the only way Obama can win is to commit some Constitutiona/moral/legal atrocity, is there any doubt he would do it?

You mean like if we suddenly had proof that Iran had become a nuclear power overnight, and were to commence bombing tonight?

Okay, I'll say that's within the realm of possibility.

[John]

But how would that help him? Does anyone think Romney would just quit such a war?

[Emmerson Biggins]

Maybe he could start declaring American Citizens as official Terrirists and then summarily execute them with no trial. That would surely be attention grabbing and make him look tough, right?

[Mike M.]

Funny how Shrieking Idiot hasn't shown up around here lately.

[NeonCat]

My God, the christfags finally got to him?

[wareagle]

Sullivan is what happens when slobbering supporters raise a bar beyond anyone's reach. That, coupled with a candidate unwilling to temper his dogwashers' enthusiasm, sets impossible expectations.

There is a yumminess to it beyond the usual salty hamness. It's more visceral, like seeing a fraud unmasked publicly. Obama was the single least-prepared person in history to be POTUS and was overwhelmed from day one. Why would anyone expect different? It's not like he had a work history that included being held accountable. Or even included making decisions.

[Drake]

Or even showing up on a regular basis.

[Rasilio]

This is probably why his Policies have so strongly resembled Bush's, especially in Foreign Policy. He was simply unprepaired with little knowledge and few ideas of his own so he just did whatever the professional bureaucracy suggested.

[John]

^^THIS^^ He talked a bunch of shit about the war on terror. But the reality was he had no idea what he was talking about and no clue how to do things any differently. So he just did what the military and CIA told him.

[VG Zaytsev]

Which is most likely what Romney will do too.

[John]

True.

[LTC(ret) John]

Exactly - they will have impressive Powerpoint presentations in sombre breifing rooms - and very serious men with hard jawlines and nice suits or amazing uniforms will stand there and fill the POTUS with dread of our peril.

I'd make 'em all tell me what is what over a beer during a ball game. See if they can make the case then.

[Karl Hungus]

Sullivan is what happens when slobbering supporters raise a bar beyond anyone's reach.

THere's that, absolutely. But I think in Sullivan's case, even though we like to laugh and joke about man-crushes, it really all comes down to a case of celebrity worship. From day one, Sullivan has tossed aside any pretense of objectivity when discussing Obama.

[CampingInYourPark]

"The facility, which was opened in July 2010 with a groundbreaking attended by Obama, has yet to produce a single battery for the Chevrolet Volt, the troubled electric car from General Motors. The plant's batteries also were intended to be used in Ford's electric Focus."

"The factory was partly funded by a $150 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. LG also received sizeable tax breaks from the local government, saving nearly $50 million in property taxes over 15 years and another $2.5 million annually in business taxes. Landing the factory was hailed as a coup when shovels first hit the ground."

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012.....z28o7BNatx

[Ted S.]

LG also received sizeable tax breaks from the local government

Isn't LG Korean?

[CampingInYourPark]

"Isn't LG Korean?"

Sure, but the failing facility is unemploying workers in the U.S. so it's okay.

[wareagle]

Fox lies!!!

/typical lib

[Jerry on the road]

Pensioners' car boot buy is 'biggest ever' cannabis plant police have ever seen.

[Matrix]

If that was in the US, you bet the elderly couple would be spending the rest of their lives in prison. Gotta set an example. I'm sure the police would value that plant at half a million or more to trump up the charges.

[Ted S.]

If it happened in the US, the couple and their dog would have been shot.

[sarcasmic]

unaware that what they were growing was illegal.

"Ignorance of the law is no excuse. I recommend life in prison."

[sloopyinca]

But we've been told on here that ignorance of the law is a reasonable excuse for police officers who break laws they were not specifically trained to properly uphold. For instance, a police officer who arrests a person and destroys their camera/phone even after a law on filming cops has been changed should not be held responsible unless his department specifically trained him on the new law.

IOW, "civilians" are expected to know all changes in the law and follow them accordingly, but those sworn to uphold the laws aren't responsible for noting changes until their boss sits them down and explains it to them.

[sarcasmic]

You may have the law on your side, but they have a club and a gun. Might makes right.

[Tulpa Doom]

That's ignorance of the lack of a law. Not the same thing.

[LTC(ret) John]

So LEOs may club and gun and grab and smash as long as there is no statute specically prohibiting it?

[R C Dean]

That's a big pot plant. I'm sure every stoner in the neighborhood had their eye on it, and was massively disappointed that it got yanked before it was ready to harvest. From the picture, it was getting there.

[NeonCat]

Where there aren't reasons not to grow so large, e.g. you're in a country where you can grow hemp, the plants can, of course, grow much larger. It's only because of prohibition that most plants are kept small or have been bred to smallness for concealability's sake.

[T]

A friend of mine has a picture taken in Hawaii of a pot plant twice as tall as her.

[invisible furry hand]

true dat. In my hometown possession of up to five plants of any size was decriminalised. I kinda knew a guy who interpreted this to mean he could fill his entire backyard with pot 9-10 feet high. He lived next door to a cop who minded them for him when he was on holiday. So I guess his interpretation was spot on. Aah the early 90s in Canberra...

[Rich]

no action would be taken against the couple.

Those Brits really are pussies.

[Bee Tagger]

Ellerbee, who is also the special's host, put out a statement in 2008, saying: "It's important to take note of who won the 'Kids' Vote,' simply because so many kids vote the way their parents will."

Have the political parties tried using a McDonalds logo or cartoon characters in their ads? I've heard that's a guaranteed way to get kids to no longer listen to their parents.

[entropy]

Here's the thing about the kids vote.

They will believe you if you tell them an immortal fatass lives at the north pole with a bunch of elves cobbling billions of toys.

So... yeah.

[wareagle]

so what are you saying?

[Restoras]

It's not like I added 20000000 gold to everyone's inventory, and broke the economy

World of Warcraft hacker knows more about economics than Tony and Shreek. No one is surprised.

[John]

Sounds like a solid stimulus plan to me.

[Jordan]

Mass murder definitely qualifies as a stimulus under Keynesian logic. Think of the boon to funeral parlors!

[John]

And all of the inheritance.

[R C Dean]

Dunno exactly how they did it, but this isn't the first time hackers have unleashed a plague in WoW.

I was reading that an actual in-game communicable disease was created, and how it spread and so forth is actually a case study for weaponized diseases.

[KDN]

That wasn't hackers, it was a disease from a dungeon that failed to be cleared when people hearthed out. Same disease-vector principles apply, but no malicious intent.

[KDN]

More here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C.....d_incident

http://www.wowwiki.com/Corrupted_Blood

[CampingInYourPark]

"Tom Logan said he believes Obama did little more than sign his name to the document. He believes his son deserved more.

Local 2 Investigates examined two other letters sent by Obama to families of soldiers killed in action. The one-page typed condolence letters were identical other than names, ranks and service branches."

http://www.click2houston.com/n.....index.html

[tarran]

Yes, Obama should have written a personal note about how each soldier had touched him personally...

[Randian]

I doubt he even signed them.

[John]

That doesn't say anything about Obama as much as it does about what a sorry staff he has. The staff is who needs to make sure the letters are personalized to some degree. That is political staff 101. Even the the most yokel state legislator can manage to get the letters to constituents right.

[wareagle]

the staff is part of the bubble that believes he is infallible, that all criticism is motivated by racism, and that he is more Teflon than Reagan.

[CampingInYourPark]

"That doesn't say anything about Obama as much as it does about what a sorry staff he has."

Obama's sorry staff says a lot about Obama

[Lord Humungus]

What Were We Thinking? The Top 10 Most Dangerous Ads
http://www.collectorsweekly.co.....erous-ads/

10. DDT For You and Me
9. Shock Your Way to Physical Perfection
8. Dieting? Try Sugar
7. The Meat Mystery
6. Plastics, Plastics, Everywhere
5. Feminine Hygiene: The Original Home Wrecker
4. Cigarettes: Just What the Doctor Ordered
3. 7-Up is for Babies
2. Let Them Eat Lead
1. Junk Food, Now Fortified with Vitamins and Minerals

[Francisco d Anconia]

I LOVE IT!

[Night Elf Mohawk]

I think the subject of one of those ads saved millions of lives, though.

[Lord Humungus]

Happy pigs make better bacon sandwiches ... so give them toys
http://www.news.com.au/lifesty.....z28eSbZJlK

[Brian D]

Making animals happy is cruel!

~PETA

[Jerry on the road]

How fast can pigs produce adrenaline? Because I guess you wan't to reduce stress right before slaughter, not days ahead.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

why not both?

it may or may not be foo foo science, but a heck of a lot of people "in the know" believe that animals that are raised in low(er) stress environments on a daily basis, produce tastier meat. a certain famous japanese beef product takes this to extremes, but i think it's CW amongst farmers that happy animals = tastier.

certainly, a huge adrenaline dump right before slaughter can have deleterious effects on meat quality, but that doesn't mean that the longterm argument doesn't have merits as well.

i'm not stating definitively that the longterm low stress argument has scientific merit. i , frankly, don't know. but i do know that many successful meat producers believe so, and it may one day be proven to be the case scientifically... or not.

[wareagle]

"deleterious" someone's getting Word of the Day alerts

[Ice Nine]

Actually, they don't put fairly standard words on those.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

i didn't realize deleterious was a LOOK AT THE BIG BRAIN ON DUNPHY word. i consider myself warned.

ok, i looked up today's word. it is catechresis. now THAT is a WODay word.

cause i have no fucking idea what it means. deleterious otoh, is a word in common usage. at least for me. when i talk about the quality of my meat!

[wareagle]

dude...it's some good-natured ribbing. Calm down

[Dunphy (the real one)]

i know. i be cool

that's why i was all sarcastic and shit when i talked about the "quality of my meat"

but i DID look up the WOD, because i thought it would have been a cosmic coincidence if it WAS deleterious. no harm done, man.

[Coeus]

deleterious otoh, is a word in common usage. at least for me. when i talk about the quality of my meat!

hehe.

[aelhues]

Hard to know what it means when it doesn't exist. Try "catachresis".

[T]

Between Dunphy and John, spelling is dying a painful, protracted death around here.

[Eduard van Haalen]

At least there weren't any pig jokes.

[R C Dean]

certainly, a huge adrenaline dump right before slaughter can have deleterious effects on meat quality,

Common knowledge in the Hunter-American community.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

yup. that's why you want the clean shot. or so my hunter friends tell me. i do the cooking. they do the hunting.

[Ted S.]

"wan't"?? :-p

[Lord Humungus]

'Cocaine For Snowblindness': What Polar Explorers Packed For First Aid
http://www.npr.org/blogs/healt.....-first-aid

Psychoactive drugs were also on hand, Francis writes. Cocaine was "dripped in the eye to cure snowblindness." Diarrhea was treated with "chalk ground up with opium." Colic called for "tincture of cannabis" mixed with "tincture of chilli pepper." As our friends at the Two-Way have reported, they also had plenty of whisky on hand.

Dude, I'm feeling some snowblindness coming on... and a case of diarrhea and colic

[Jerry on the road]

Ah the good old days when you could just go to your pharmacist and buy cocaine.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

still used btw for certain surgical procedures

[Groovus Maximus]

Correct, mostly EENT procedures, and couple of peripheral vascular procedures.

[Ice Nine]

I figured you'd have hit that one before I got to it.
WB, Furrowus Utmostus. You in UA yet?

[Groovus Maximus]

Nope, a few weeks to go. Thank you for asking. -))

[LTC(ret) John]

So you will wander about, blindly crapping on everything whist crying?

But you won't feel anything but relaxed and detached?

Film please!

[Lord Humungus]

I already do this without the drugs.

[Rich]

Mr. President?

[Dunphy (the real one)]

after a few weeks post surgical on opioid drugs, lemme just say... yup, diarrhea definitely not a concern.

[Groovus Maximus]

Prunes, Dunphy. Prunes. Or prune juice. Try not to use other types of laxatives unless necessary or already ordered. -)

[Dunphy (the real one)]

hey, if our govt. ever runs out of depleted uranium, i have a substitute for them

[SugarFree]

Cocaine numbs the eyes, which is about all you can do for snowblindness. Opium and Laudanum are still prescribed for extreme causes of diarrhea. Not sure what they considered colic. If nausea and vomiting, cannabis is a good choice.

Almost all "drugs" were medicines first and effective at managing the symptoms of something. They aren't illegal because they were ineffective, they are illegal because [gasp] people enjoy using them.

The war on drugs is a war on pleasure and little else.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

correct. most "drugs" still ARE medicines. only a very few are across the board illegal (schedule I) fwiw.

that's what's so insane about the (federal) war on MJ.

cocaine, etc. are schedule II. iow, the feds recognize a valid medical use for cocaine, but not for MJ. in order to be schedule I, a drug must have no practical therapeutic use AND be "highly prone to abuse" NEITHER of which is the case for MJ

opioids remain legal, if highly regulated because there is no alternative. literally.

if and when science discovers a drug that has the analgesic properties of an opioid without the euphoric qualities, then the opioids will be made schedule I so fast it will make yer head spin.

the only ones that will be legal at that point will be ENDORPHIN (ENDogenous mORPHINe).

and imo, the high from endorphins is pretty fucking awesome

dilaudid aint bad either

[Coeus]

if and when science discovers a drug that has the analgesic properties of an opioid without the euphoric qualities, then the opioids will be made schedule I so fast it will make yer head spin.

They think they just did.

Super toxic snake venom could yield new painkillers.

[invisible furry hand]

Named "mambalgins,"

OK who cares if they work, I just want to take something with such a swinging name!

[John]

http://www.rollcall.com/issues.....os=htmbtxt

Democratic blue dogs set for another drubbing. Interesting how the Democrats can continually lose moderates and write off entire areas of the country yet are never called a regional party and never called to task for letting the radicals take over.

[Drake]

I never understood how Blue Dogs were ever elected in the first place. I would think their debates would have 2 questions:

1. Are you voting for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker?

2. If not, will you still caucus with her if she wins?

Yes to either would disqualify their fake conservatism / moderation.

[John]

The fact that she remained minority leader after the 2010 midterms is just mind boggling.

[Tulpa Doom]

I never understood how Blue Dogs were ever elected in the first place.

Outrage at Bush and the GOP congress got them in, and pork kept them there.

[wareagle]

who's gonna call them on that, john? The DC steno pool?

The power of the media is not based just on which stories are presented and how they are framed. It is also which ones are ignored. And in today's society, if there is no video, it did not happen.

[Drake]

Their Republican opponents?

[John]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/new.....world.html

How the welfare state destroyed Scotland.

[invisible furry hand]

They did make the modern world (or a large part of it), so it's right and proper that they should show the way on welfare dependency and fried Mars Bars too.

Seriously though, what a fucking tragedy

[MJGreen]

Eighteenth century Edinburgh would be high on my list of time and place I'd choose to see if I could. A tremendous collection of great, no-nonsense thinkers.

[Restoras]

Eventually all the welfare will come to an end, and the West can begin rebuilding itself from the ashes. It's going to be ugly.

[ant1sthenes]

If the survivors blame welfare for the fall of civilization, maybe Objectivism will be the new dominant religion.

[John]

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10.....share_r=0

The utter and complete lack of self awareness in this article is priceless. The NYT has finally figured out that affirmative action often benefits rich kids from the right group at the expense of poor kids from the wrong group. At least if it is practiced in India. No word on whether this amazing revelation has any applicability anywhere else.

[sarcasmic]

We have the right people in charge, so abuse would never happen here.

[nicole]

While affirmative action in the United States is now threatened, the program in India is a vast system of political patronage that increasingly works to reward the powerful rather than uplift those in need.

Lack of self-awareness indeed.

[Restoras]

Not applicable here. Why? Well, becasue we are different. You know, better. In other words, racist.

[R C Dean]

affirmative action often benefits rich kids from the right group

See, e.g., Elizabeth "Fauxcahontas" Warren.

[Dr. Frankenstein]

Why are you picking on Elizabeth Warren again? Oh, those Indians.

[Zeb]

At this point, if affirmative action is to exist, it should have nothing to do with race. A middle class black student has no disadvantage compared to a similarly situated white student at this point. And a poor white kid from appalachia or some other depressed area is no less disadvantaged than a poor black kid from the inner city or rural Mississippi. Basing it on race just makes things worse at this point.

[Enough About Palin]

Obama's kids get special AA consideration.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Cook County mulling violence tax on guns and ammunition"

http://www.suntimes.com/156447.....ition.html

[nicole]

I thought we already had that, what with the extremely onerous requirements to get one...oh fuck this place. If only my other realistic moving option weren't NYC, I'd consider it.

[LTC(ret) John]

Get thee to Kane or DuPage County.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

omfg

note also the same people that (correctly) see poll taxes etc. as unconstitutional infringements on the exercise of a constitutional right, are probably going to be strangely silent on THIS example of a tax infringing on a constitutional right.

[nicole]

The idea is to curb the number of guns in circulation, he said, citing a report issued last summer showing that nearly one-third of the guns recovered on Chicago's streets were purchased in suburban gun shops.

Could that be because, oh, I don't know, there isn't anyplace to buy a gun in the city?

[invisible furry hand]

shhhh, don't scare the nice man with facts!

[Matrix]

Dems showing their compassion and tolerance for people who have different opinions

ie, Stacey Dash being blasted by leftists because she is supporting Mittens.

[sarcasmic]

You don't understand.

Tolerance means not tolerating intolerance.

These people are showing tolerance of the highest order by showering contempt on this evil intolerant Mittens supporter.

[generic Brand]

Damn, she looks GOOD for 46.

[Lord Humungus]

OT: I'm in the middle of designed a new tube amplifier. This one will be a stereo unit, making 8-10Ws of power out of a single output tube. I'll be using nothing but 1930-1940s tubes: a 1625 output tube, 12J7GT input tube, and a 5Z3 rectifier. May also use VR tubes to regulate the screen of the output tube.

WWII build stock of the 1625 and the 12J7 means that these tubes are still dirt cheap, so retubing the whole amplifier will cost under $60.

[Restoras]

How difficult would it be to build a tube amp for a guitar?

[Dunphy (the real one)]

cause NOTHING sounds like a tube amp.

man, i miss my dean markley double stack 🙁

there's a time and place for a double stack turned to 11 - it's called college

i'll tell you that the current electronics for amps. all i've gotta say is that there is a LOT of solid state crap out there. i am not against solid state out of a "tube'r" elitism. i think there are a lot of insanely awesome solid state effects, and I cut my teeth on digital delay and chorus for pete' sake. but man, are they making some SHIT sounding amps these days. some of them are just awful.

sorry to rant, but i take this shit seriously.

[sarcasmic]

Peavey makes some good new tube amps.

Google "Peavey Classic Series" (link didn't copy well).

I've got the Classic 30. No complaints.

[PapayaSF]

Eh, tubes just have "warm" distortion that sounds good to people.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

well, yea. sounds... that's kind of what amps are supposed to make. sounds... that sound good.

[PapayaSF]

I think you can use digital means to add the sort of mid-range distortion that tubes provide.

[Dunphy (the real one)]

i think part of it is snobbery/ludditism (kind of like the LP vs. CD debate), and to what extent it isn't

lemme just say this... i've played through scores of amps, and god knows i have heard a lot (i was on the program board in college, so probably saw 2 concerts a week on average for years)... best sounding guitar i ever heard was the stereo setup the guy had from simple minds .... unbelievable.

and invariably the best sounding amps and the most responsive (from a player standpoint) have been tube amps

i am not convinced digital can provide the responsiveness, warmth and tone of a tube. it's not even about the distortion, ... which frankly we are probably talking more of an overdrive thang than a distortion, it's just about that warmth, tone, punch ,and responsiveness.

otoh, i will admit that "tube snobbery" may play a part in my bias, and i'd probably have to play amps on a blind basis (not knowing if they were tube or not) to make a definitive judgment.

[Lord Humungus]

samo-samo - mono, so that cuts down on costs. Only concern is the higher gain stages, so care has to be done to minimize hum.

I've never made an instrument amp simply because I don't play guitar. What sounds good to me stereo-wise may not carry over to the world of guitar.

[sarcasmic]

I wish I wasn't all thumbs when it comes to electronics. My Les Paul needs to be rewired and I'm too damn cheap to pay a professional. Any ideas?

[AuH2O]

Size does matter, which upsets Jezebel... for some reason:

http://jezebel.com/5949963/pen.....g-to-study

I mean, I thought dildos came in all shapes and sizes, but whatevs.

[invisible furry hand]

from the comments:

I would like to see a bell curve of penis size distribution. Granted, I am not working from a pretty small sample population, but I've only seen one that was on the large side, and the rest all seemed kind of the same. I therefore am left to conclude most penises are more or less the same size. For as much controversy as this subject seems to stir, there's really not that much to argue about, difference-wise. Am I out on limb here?

My head hurts from the stupid

[Groovus Maximus]

Am I out on limb here?

Apparently, she is not, and that is the,ahem,nub of her problem.

[SugarFree]

It's a culture war issue. If penis size matters, then the vaginal orgasm (which they sort of consider a myth) has more evidence. If the vagina orgasm is real, then they might have to accept that the clitoral orgasm may not be the only orgasm possible, and therefore, lesbian sex may not be as all "complete" as they'd like to believe.

It's not that they want to get rid of men, they just argue that they are irrelevant to women's sexuality.

[Restoras]

I think they just want to beleive that having an erect penis repeatedly thrust inside the vagina following vigorous foreplay doesn't feel good.

[John]

I wonder if gay men are this fucked up when talking about men? Do they debate about the need for a vagina?

[invisible furry hand]

funnily enough the speaker of the Australian House of Reps resigned today after text messages to a gay male staffer were revealed (the staffer is suing him for sexual harassment). The texts included a vajayjay discussion:

It wasn't just sex between men that occupied Mr Slipper's many texting moments.

Their chief political interest was former Liberal minister Mal Brough, who wanted to take the seat of Fisher from Mr Slipper.

"Brough is a c..t,'' Mr Slipper said in a text on October 10 last year. Soon after, he said: ''Funny how we say that a person is a c..t when many guys like c..ts.''

About five minutes later Mr Slipper began what the Opposition has called "'vile anatomical references''. Referring to women's private parts, he said: ''They look like mussell (sic) removed from its shell. Look at a bottle of mussel meat. Salty C..ts in brine.''

That day Mr Ashby attempted to get the SMS conversation back to politics, but Mr Slipper persisted.

"Been to thw (sic) fish shop yet to buy the bottle of shell less Mussells (sic)?''

[John]

No wonder lesbians and gay men hate each other.

[SugarFree]

Firstly, "Mr. Slipper" is the best gay guy name ever and secondly, he kind of has a point about shelled mussels. I happen to love mussels. Although orange ones are only found in New Jersey and should be avoided at all costs.

[Enough About Palin]

They do it down on camber sands
They do it at Waikiki
Lazing about the beach all day,
At night the crickets creepy
Squinting faces at the sky
A Harold Robbins paperback
Surfers drop their boards and dry
And everybody wants a hat
Look behind the Chalet
My holiday's complete
And I feel like William Tell
Maid Marian on her, tiptoed feet
Pulling mussels from a shell
Pulling mussels from a shell

[Loki]

Mr. Slipper? Really?

[invisible furry hand]

Yep, that's for realsies. He is a role model for closeted gay conservative Anglican ministers who rort their travel expenditures and sexually harass their employees everywhere. His staffer claims Slipper came on to him, inter alia, with the question "Twinks or bears?"

[Coeus]

He sounds like a flamboyant Bond villain.

[Coeus]

If the vagina orgasm is real, then they might have to accept that the clitoral orgasm may not be the only orgasm possible, and therefore, lesbian sex may not be as all "complete" as they'd like to believe.

So how would anally induced orgasms factor into that?

[SugarFree]

Anal sex between men is a consensual and loving act. Man-on-woman anal sex is only about power and pain and oppression. Any woman who enjoys anal sex is suffering from false consciousness.

[John]

You need to right a book The Sugar Free Guide to the Feminist Internet

[SugarFree]

My ability to know what they think on almost any given subject frightens me. What if I suffer a head injury and that's all I can think like from then on?

[John]

Euthanasia would be the only answer at that point. It would be that or end up living as one of their boyfriends.

[Groovus Maximus]

I believe that would be a textbook definition of "idiot savant"? -))))

Oh, and just sign here, Saccharin Man, in case of such a situation...just write the book first, or as John writes, "right."

[Groovus Maximus]

Those are different, and rely on stimulation of the vagus nerve, so it's not an orgasm in the clitoral or glans penis sense arising from erectile tissue stimulation. Those types of orgasms arise moreso from the pain associated with anal sexual intercourse and stimulation of those mucous membranes and the surrounding nerves.

[Coeus]

I always thought that clitoral and vaginal were the same. That you were just hitting the underside of the clit from the vagina. And due to the angle that I have to use to induce an anal one, I figured I was doing the same there, just through 2 membranes instead of one.

[Tulpa Doom]

The internal clitoral tissue can be much more extensive than the clitoris. In some women it wraps all the way around the vaginal wall and the rectum.

[Coeus]

The internal clitoral tissue can be much more extensive than the clitoris.

I knew that.

In some women it wraps all the way around the vaginal wall and the rectum.

That, however, is news to me.

[sloopyinca]

Tulpa explaining a clitoris is akin to ....

hell, my brain is fried.

[Groovus Maximus]

Not quite. The vaginal orgasm is dependent on how much nerve tissue is present and how "taught" the rugae (folds) of the vaginal canal are. There is a specific hoo-hah surgical procedure that tightens the vaginal canal in more mature women so they can again enjoy vaginal stimulation during sex, as those folds become relaxed and flaccid over time, irrespective of whether or not the woman has given birth, as even women who are nullipara can still experience this later in life.

[Coeus]

There is a specific hoo-hah surgical procedure that tightens the vaginal canal in more mature women so they can again enjoy vaginal stimulation during sex, as those folds become relaxed and flaccid over time,

Don't kegels perform the same function?

[Coeus]

I just realized we have an entire subthread with only guys talking about the clitoris and female orgasms. Anyone with the actual equipment want to weigh in here?

[SugarFree]

Most women experience only one vagina. I have knowledge of dozens. I'm not sure why I'm supposed to be a junior partner here.

[Coeus]

Most women experience only one vagina.

Only if they were born via c-section.

[Auric Demonocles]

Would you also say that straight women understand penises better than straight men?

Elaine: Being a woman, I only really have access to the equipment, what, 30-45 minutes a week, and that's on a good week. How can I be expected to have the same expertise as people who own this equipment and have access to it 24 hours a day their entire lives?

[SugarFree]

Would you also say that straight women understand penises better than straight men?

They don't have to work as hard as men do. Especially ugly men. I've spent enough time down there to qualify as a doula in most countries.

[Coeus]

They don't have to work as hard as men do. Especially ugly men. I've spent enough time down there to qualify as a doula in most countries.

YMMV, but I found that once I started refusing to go downtown, my repeat business more than doubled.

And the funny thing is, I don't even mind doing it. It was totally a strategic decision.

[nicole]

That's pretty interesting, and I wonder the reason. Were you actually refusing, or just not doing it? I know a lot of women who don't like it.

[Coeus]

Were you actually refusing, or just not doing it?

Very rarely was an outright refusal required. I just quit using it for prep. I'm fairly certain it has to do with the power dynamic, as many women I've asked later say they do enjoy it.

Then, after bringing it up in conversation myself, and not doing it the next time, they still usually come back for thirds a week or two later.

[nicole]

Now that really is interesting. If it were me, I would say you have taken some of the stress out of the experience. But who understands women?

[Coeus]

If it were me, I would say you have taken some of the stress out of the experience.

That's certainly possible. It makes them not worry as much about the freshness and hairstyle. But it doesn't explain why many of them say they enjoy it. You'd figure they would then say they don't really like it then, in order to keep it off the table.

But who understands women?

While I'm pretty sure you were being flippant there, the sad fact is that most women really don't understand women. Most women have no conception of their underlying sexuality, and they like it that way.

It allows them to say stuff like "he's everything I want, but I just don't know why I don't want to be with him", and "It just happened", without ever having to confront their darker desires head-on.

What a woman is attracted to, what she says she's attracted to and what she thinks she's attracted to are usually 3 completely different subjects. Often with little overlap.

Now I know that sounds a bit misogynist, but the only other way to explain all the horrible advice my female friends and relatives have given me over the years is that they actually hate me, and wanted me to live and die alone.

[nicole]

It allows them to say stuff like "he's everything I want, but I just don't know why I don't want to be with him", and "It just happened", without ever having to confront their darker desires head-on.

Yeah...this is the stuff I don't understand. But, I have also had a lot of time now to think about how unexpectedly these things do end up. I don't think it's misogynistic, but I don't think guys are exactly immune to the problem either.

But for me, this in particular is a real Goldilocks thing--I like it, potentially, but only if it's just right. And that's based on all kinds of factors. So mostly I'd rather just not deal with it. But then (and whence my flippant remark), I'm always hearing chicks say it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, so.

[Coeus]

but I don't think guys are exactly immune to the problem either.

When a guy says to you "It just happened" he saying it because he thinks you might buy it. "It just happened" because he just wanted it to. And I have never had a guy friend not have a very concrete reason for breaking up with a girl. He might not tell her (usually cause he's angling for FWB situation, just in case he dries up later), but he always gives his friends a definite reason. Are there exceptions? Probably, but this activity is not the norm for males.

But for me, this in particular is a real Goldilocks thing--I like it, potentially, but only if it's just right. And that's based on all kinds of factors. So mostly I'd rather just not deal with it.

That makes sense, but since you'd rather not deal with it, would it make sense to tell a new partner that you enjoy it? Shouldn't they still be denying it when I ask?
Given the fact pattern, I have no better explanation than it disrupts the power dynamics their sexual arousal depends upon.

But then (and whence my flippant remark), I'm always hearing chicks say it's the greatest thing since sliced bread, so.

Could be that they do like it, but it's not what they signed up for when they pick up the vibe I'm throwing out. Alternatively (and in my opinion more likely), they say it for the same reason guys are always saying macho bullshit. Cause it's expected of them.

[nicole]

Anyone with the actual equipment want to weigh in here?

Well, if you're Naomi Wolf (picture possibly NSFW, there's a Courbet of ladyparts)...no, I won't try to summarize it, you should all go read about the insanity she has written (it's being vilified across the intertubes, basically).

But, um, are we weighing in on size? I don't know, bigger is better...at least to a point. Honestly, at the risk of some horrible thread, I have to say that the biggest difference I have noted in actual vagina-feeling is circumcised vs. not. (Not is more awesome.)

[Groovus Maximus]

Don't kegels perform the same function?

Even with performing kegels, the flaccidity will still happen in many women; remember, every woman is different. -)) Kegels help, but not a cure all.

[Coeus]

Well, if i actually live a few more decades, that'll be good to know. Long-time-no-see there Groovus. What's this about Russia?

[Groovus Maximus]

Ditto, Coeus. I'm expating to UKR. The only places I would even consider (for all of five seconds) living in Russia would be Santk-Peterburg or Ninzhy Novgorod. -)) Moskva, not no, but HELL NO!

[Coeus]

I got a friend who's a GP. He's about to move to Canada. Works for a hospital and says he hasn't been paid in months. E tu?

[Groovus Maximus]

No, cash flow hasn't been a problem, but the regulatory climate keeps getting worse and worse every day. Under ObamneyCare, specialists like myself actually stand to make just as much, if not more money, D/T the HMO like restriction on referrals to specialists, and our prices will go up. It's a classic market distortion.

I can't work under the increased regulatory climate, and stories like your GP, (who I suspect has not been paid by CMS), are not uncommon these days, and slow pays by insurers is becoming more disturbingly common.

[Coeus]

I can't work under the increased regulatory climate, and stories like your GP, (who I suspect has not been paid by CMS), are not uncommon these days, and slow pays by insurers is becoming more disturbingly common.

This does not bode well for my sickly ass. I'm in my 20's and lower middle class. I can't afford concierge service. It's gonna be awesome when I have to wait in pain for 9 months next time I need a hernia surgery.

[0073735963]

"Those are different"

No they aren't.

"rely on stimulation of the vagus nerve, so it's not an orgasm in the clitoral or glans penis sense arising from erectile tissue stimulation. Those types of orgasms arise moreso from the pain associated with anal sexual intercourse and stimulation of those mucous membranes and the surrounding nerves."

Everything you posted there is wrong or conjecture that is currently thought to be wrong.

Why do people like you do that, post your opinion, which is based on conjecture that is currently thought to be wrong, as fact?

[Zeb]

Well, there's always fisting.

[nicole]

I still cannot figure out why they are upset.

Ultimately, though, who gives a shit? This is so stupid. Can you believe that people (men) are devoting their time to even researching this? Isn't there cancer to be cured? Who, exactly, does this research help? Women? Because those who have slept with more than one man probably know what they like. Men? Will this study lead to some kind of penis enlargement medication or device or operation? And if it does, will it really aim to make women come more often?

Oh, now I know--because men are researching it...or...something...

You'd think maybe they would be interested in learning more about how their bodies work. But obviously this research is just intended to justify penis enlargement that wouldn't aim to please women. Oh my god.

[Coeus]

That's fucking nuts. The goddamn bible makes more sense then most of those women.

[entropy]

Nobel prize in physics awarded, but NOT to Barack Obama? WTF was the nobel comittee comprised of racists this year?

[invisible furry hand]

no no, that's next year. This year he gets Literature

[Groovus Maximus]

Odd, I figured it would have been the Prize for Medicine, specifically discovering how much bullshit a person can tolerate before expiring, pre-death panel, that is.

[Warty]

Nicholas Cage Movie Generator

[John]

Egads

They put a target on my son's back and even on my back. But a little over 90 days later, my son was dead." Aaron Vaughn and 21 other Navy SEALs, "most of whom belonged to Team 6, the unit whose members were involved in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden," according to ABC, died in Afghanistan when a helicopter he was riding on was shot down.

The video, released by the conservative Veterans for a Strong America, shows Vice President Joe Biden talking about the raid during a public event and Defense Secretary Robert Gates complaining that an agreement to keep the raid details secret "fell apart" as the result of such comments.

"Aaron called me," Mrs. Vaughn says, referring to her son, Special Operations Chief Aaron Vaughn, who was killed on August 6, 2011. "He said, 'Mom, you need to wipe your social media clean. Get rid of everything, any reference to me or my buddies, because there is chatter and all of our lives are possibly in danger, including yours.'"

http://washingtonexaminer.com/.....HQu9KCX-YI

[Loki]

The video, released by the conservative Veterans for a Strong America, shows Vice President Joe Biden talking about the raid during a public event and Defense Secretary Robert Gates complaining that an agreement to keep the raid details secret "fell apart" as the result of such comments.

But how is Barack The Magnificent supposed to use the raid for political gain if they keep the details a secret? The family should be glad to sacrifice their son in such a noble cause as getting the Messiah re-elected.

[VG Zaytsev]

That's a sacrafice proglodytes are willing to make for Bama's reelection.

[Loki]

Mitt Romney declined an invitation from Nick News to participate in a Nickelodeon special, citing time constraints, becoming the first candidate since John Kerry in 2004 to skip the event. The Viacom-owned cable channel runs a poll after their special, the winner of whom has won every election since the special started in 1992, with the exception of 2004. Obama won the kid's vote by 2 percent in the 2008 poll.

I notice the one time a candidate skipped the event was the one time the kid's poll got it wrong. Correlation != causation, yadd yadda. I suspect that most of the kids just vote for whoever their parents are going to vote for anyway. Either that or children are just as savvy as voters as adults are.

[Tulpa Doom]

And ironically, the guy who skipped the event actually won the poll.

[tengfow]

Sometimes dude you jsut have to roll with it, even if it does not make any sense.

http://www.VPN-Network.tk

[invisible furry hand]

Sometimes dude you jsut have to roll with it, even if it does not make any sense.

My thoughts exactly while observing your struggles to full sentience, dear anonbot

[Coeus]

Whohainthewhatnow?

I talked to Karley from Slutever at Vice about virginity ? why the whole idea is harmful and when to "lose" it (although for the record, I don't even buy that virginity is a real thing).

[SugarFree]

Definitional war. What sexual experiences mean you cross the line of virginity? Is a lesbian still a virgin is she never slept with a man? Is it penetration or the act of being penetrated? Penetrating or penetrated by what or or with what?

More PC to deny that you cannot ever be a being without sexual experiences than possibly invalidate someone's experiences.

[invisible furry hand]

Is a lesbian still a virgin is she never slept with a man?

She is a "gold star lesbian"

[John]

You really have an almost savant level understanding of these people. It both awes me and scares me at the same time.

[Coeus]

I'll start giving a shit about their bitching on the "v-card" when they realize that a guy gets 100 times more shit from both sexes for having it than a girl gets from not.

[db]

Well hurr durr, whocoodanode?

Electric Car Lifecycle Emits More Toxic and Greenhouse Gases than Regular Automobiles'

The analysis, penned by academics at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and presented in the Journal of Industrial Ecology, expounds by saying that the toxic materials employed to build such cars exceeds traditional ones. Furthermore, they are adding that the fuels used to create the electricity are also important considerations, noting that if is coal then it may not be worth the environmental and economic costs.

[sloopyinca]

New York Appeals Court goes full fucking retard.

Seriously, what the fuck?

[Coeus]

Dammit. This is why we can't have nice things.

[mr simple]

I liked that movie until I realized it wasn't about anything. There was a lot of build up and then it turned into another liberal fantasy. Cusack i can understand, but Hackman? I've also never read any Grisham.

[John]

http://www.theatlantic.com/int.....tz/263083/

the man who volunteered for Auschwitz.

[invisible furry hand]

Thanks John, that is powerful stuff

[John]

Sometimes you need to remind yourself how lucky you are to wake up in a place like 21st Century America and not a place like 1940s Poland or the Soviet Union.

[invisible furry hand]

actually my old man grew up in Nazi Germany as a stateless Pole and then went to Poland after the war before fleeing the Commies. I am seriously glad the miserable old bastard made that one right decision

[Groovus Maximus]

I am seriously glad the miserable old bastard made that one right decision

Well, helping to bring you into this world was another, if I may be so bold as to point out the obvious. -)))

[LTC(ret) John]

Are you familiar with Arthur Chrenkoff, ifh?

[invisible furry hand]

not massively. His name rang a bell so I googled him - he was connected to a mini media flap here a few years ago. Did he cite something you did as good news from Iraq?

[LTC(ret) John]

Afghanistan, yes - but I keep in touch, a bit, with him years after he quit blogging - another Pole finding a better life sans Commies in Oz.

[LTC(ret) John]

Oh, the Iraq thing was when he was doing some stuff for the WSJ. I was only ever on his old blog, near the end of my time in AF.

[tarran]

Two years after Pilecki's execution, his son was approached by a former Mokotow prison guard. "I was in prison with your father. I want to help you because your father was a saint," he told Andrzej Pilecki. "I had different tasks, including bringing food to your father. Sometimes he wouldn't touch the food, I wasn't sure if he was praying or thinking. So I would take the food away. Under his influence, I changed my life. I do not harm anyone anymore."

Jesus! My eyes welled with tears reading that...

[LTC(ret) John]

No kidding - two things stand out to me; people are redeemable and, the best method of working for good is to be an example.

[Trespassers W]

We're not men. That's a man.

[Loki]

This guy's story would be a great movie. Quick, someone get Spielberg on the line.

Of course, the Hollywood version would most likely leave out the part about his death at the hands of the communists. Can't expect them to actually admit that communism killed people, afterall.

[invisible furry hand]

Jerry Sandusky gets 30 to 60

http://www.theglobeandmail.com.....le4597991/

[Zeb]

That's all? I'd heard that the faced a maximum of 300 something years.
In any case, I don't see him getting out ever.

[John]

He probably will get about 1/3rd of that time off for good time. That means he would be eligible for parole in 20 years or so. That would make him 88. I doubt he lives to be 88 in prison.

[Tulpa Doom]

Judge John Cleland sentenced him to 30 to 60 years in prison. Under Pennsylvania law, Sandusky cannot be released on parole before the minimum term is up.

[LTC(ret) John]

Truth in Sentencing laws have pretty much taken away "good behavior" for crimes like his.

[Mike M.]

Hopefully his new special friend, Mr. Ben Dover, will give him exactly what he deserves. Again and again and again.

[Groovus Maximus]

I don't think he will survive long in prison. I predict shiv in his person in the near future. No doubt he is already priced in the inside.

[LTC(ret) John]

Jeffrey Dahmer style execution?

[Loki]

The phrase "passed around like a piece pipe" comes to mind.

[The Late P Brooks]

saying that the toxic materials employed to build such cars exceeds traditional ones.

No shit.

People think batteries are "clean energy" because they come from neat little plastic packages.

[Restoras]

I love bringing this up to my smug, libtard in-laws. The blank look on their faces is priceless.

[Mike M.]

Scott Brown leading Lieawatha by three to five tomahawk chops in the latest polls.

[The Late P Brooks]

Anal sex between men is a consensual and loving act. Man-on-woman anal sex is only about power and pain and oppression. Any woman who enjoys anal sex is suffering from false consciousness.

Happy now, "Ted S"?

[Ted S.]

On the bright side, at least you guys don't talk about fapping to that.

[John]

http://townhall.com/columnists.....nniversary

It is a glorious anniversary week. "Don't shoot I am Che!" Real tough guy Che was.

[tarran]

That monster's death was too swift and painless.

A good scourging and staking out on an anthill would have been more appropriate.

Or, if one has the time, the boats.

[Enough About Palin]

Today I learned why the Hipsters are in Brooklyn and why they are hipsters. It's because they hate Manhattan. Here's the relevant part:

And the Barclays Center is the antithesis of all that's good about the Brooklyn renaissance ? the independent stores and restaurants, the diverse population, the locally oriented culture and food and music ? and represents an odious corporate onslaught that reeks of Manhattan.

Read more: http://forward.com/articles/16.....z28od4kG00

[Auric Demonocles]

the independent stores and restaurants, the diverse population, the locally oriented culture and food and music

I failed to see any of those things as necessarily good.

[invisible furry hand]

Artisanal mayonnaise on the other hand...

[LTC(ret) John]

There you go... you are just trying to set of a sloopy rant, aren't you?!

(I hope it works)

[Auric Demonocles]

This one time a cop beat me up because I refused to buy his artisanal mayonnaise.

[LTC(ret) John]

STOP RESISTING... the great flavor of artisnal mayo!

[Enough About Palin]

At least they are not a reeking, odious, corporate onslaught.

Who the fuck others Manhattan?

[Auric Demonocles]

You know what is corporate? Five Guys, and it's delicious as hell.

[SugarFree]

I've suggested this for years. The promotion of Brooklyn/Queens over Manhattan is little more than sour grapes.

If you really want to irritate them, point out that they are gentrifying Brooklyn and it will be just as expensive as Manhattan in a generation, maybe less.

[Michael]

Excellent article at The Verge on Mark Pauline and SRL...

http://www.theverge.com/2012/1.....ism-as-art

[The Late P Brooks]

an odious corporate onslaught that reeks of Manhattan.

Cast off the shackles of KKKorporate Oppression, my brothers!

Move to Alabama.

[Paul.]

law on using force to defend your home; homeowners will now be able to use disproportionate force, and not just reasonable force, to repel intruders.

Fuckin sweet. So if the perp comes at you with a knife, you no longer have to respond with a knife, and a knife only... you can use a gun?