id
int64 5.11k
4.34M
| gender
stringclasses 2
values | age
int64 13
48
| topic
stringclasses 40
values | sign
stringclasses 12
values | date
stringlengths 2
18
| text
stringlengths 4
790k
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Now that some of you from the game have watched the Oscars...do you NOW believe me when I say Renee Zellweger is a twig? Pretty dress, though. Good color for her. And can I just say that I am SO happy that we can now say the phrase 'Academy Award winner Eminem'? Think of him what you will...it really is a damn fine song. And Adrian Brody is my new boyfriend. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Chris - Do you really need my answers? You should know them already. 1) FALSE. 2) FALSE. 3) FALSE As for the oil argument, I can think of three much easier targets militarily and one domestically than spending billions of dollars invading a relatively well defended country. Let's see, there is (in order of hardest to easiest) 3) Venezuela - Right in the middle of extreme labor unrest, very close to the US. Would not require as much in the way of a logistics train. (As a side note, Venezuela is the main reason we have had the price spikes in gas. They are still only operating at 20% of their normal petroleum output). 2) Saudi Arabia - We already have more troops in Saudi than they do and we have 250,000 in Kuwait. It would take like 2 days to 'conquer' them. And the easiest is 1)Kuwait - Our military is already there. We could just claim victory and take hold of some of the richest oil fileds in the world. Of course, the domestic option is drilling in ANWAR, but we know that won't happen. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | My head spins with the fast-moving dialogue on this here blog. Lookout. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Just got home from it an hour ago, still exhausted...went well...LONG day...more later. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | 1. I believe oil is one reason of several, and the coalition gives varying priorities to each. I would need more information and expertise to rank them on my own; however, I do doubt the validity of some of the reasons, only because they are not treated equally in all situations. 2. I cannot speak re: time and the recent inspections because they were not executed in a way I felt effective; their flawed methods rendered them inconsequential; thus, time was irrelevant. 3. I believe that in general, lasting self-governance cannot be forced; it can only be chosen. I say 'in general' because I don't believe in absolutes; there is always the possibility of an exception. I would be delighted for the outcome to show that Iraq is an exception. -- I respectfully decline Chris' offer of immunity; others are free to respond to my post. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | hey ang, how did your audition go? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Mir: Please tell me you don't really believe that oil is the reason we are at war. Please tell me that you are just writing the party line because you are in the grip of dispair and it is prevent you from thinking for yourself. For that matter, by a voice vote -- who here believes oil the the reason we are at war? I am very curious about the legs on this line of thinking. For that matter (again): Who here thinks that giving the inspectors more time would have brought this crisis to a peaceful conclusion? Who believes that leaving Saddam Hussein in power in Iraq is better for the Iraqi people than giving them a shot at self-governance? All you lurkers out there -- here's your chance to chime in. I won't lecture or post about your responses -- I'm just curious about how everyone is feeling about this adventure. So, to recap, three questions, true or false answers -- and if you'd like, email me ([email protected]): 1. Oil is the reason we are at war. 2. Allowing the inspectors more time to search Iraq would have lead to a peaceful conclusion. 3. Leaving Saddam Hussein in power is better for the Iraqi people than giving them a shot at self-governance (with the very real possibility of chaos and failure to create a viable government). P.S. 40?!?! Thanks, man. I wasn't feeling old until now! 8-p |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | The Independent Speaks: In this case, I would much prefer conservatives proved right than liberals proved right. The war is under way and it is beyond my control; the only healthy way to live is to release oneself from concern about things one cannot control, and instead reserve judgment until more information becomes available. Despair serves no one, least of all oneself. For today's events, I choose hope. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | so it would, harmony. but i, i feel powerless in this war situation. i don't agree with it; it sickens me to think of people dying for oil, but i do not know what i can do about it. bar angie, we come from a generation of those who are apathetic. we grew up believing that at any time our entire nation could be lost by nuclear warfare, our entire planet could be destroyed by uncontrolled hostilities. that must do something to a person to believe those things. and people will die - and the region will become even more fundamentalist and destablilized and my life will stay the same - going from one moment of happiness to a moment of sadness. people i love will please me and betray me - people i dislike will stay the same. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | The fog of war appears to have silenced the blog... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink useful advice |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Seen on a discussion board: 'Wow, this lag is terrible. It takes me three days to spawn....' - Jesus |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | is chris 40 now? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | irony. IRONY, damn you! happy belated birthday, chris. stay dry, everybody... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | The Dune and Raiders references re: a sandstorm and divine intervention, on the eve of a war with religious undertones, struck me as amusing. I assume you are joking in interpreting my post as implying that I want a sandstorm to wipe out the US Army. The irony of Paul's quote re: the sandstorm, on the eve of the current war, is that it could apply to both sides. That's as far as the implication, such as it is, goes. It seemed an appropriate attempt at humor, perhaps even commentary, given the title of our blog. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Got an email from my mom -- she says these points are from Dennis Miller (tho I doubt it), but the selected ones below elicited a chuckle: 1. Between president bush and Saddam Hussein ... Hussein is the bad guy. 2. If you have faith in the United Nations to do the right thing keep this in mind, they have Libya heading the committee on human rights and Iraq heading the global disarmament committee. Do your own math here 3. If you use google search and type in 'French military victories,' your reply will be 'did you mean French military defeats?' 4. If your only anti-war slogan is 'no war for oil,' sue your school district for allowing you to slip through the cracks and robbing you of the education you deserve. 5. Saddam and bin laden will not seek United Nations approval before they try to kill us. ... 7. Even if you are anti-war, you are still an 'infidel!' and bin laden wants you dead, too. ... 10. Whether you are for military action or against it, our young men and women overseas are fighting for us to defend our right to speak out. We all need to support them without reservation. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Anyone care to lay odds on whether the French embassy in Baghdad will be 'accidently' destroyed during the bombing campaign or during the street fighting? John -- SciFi is not the issue -- access to the VCR is. See, with the jury-rigged set up I have going so I can use the damned cable box and the picture-in-picture feature of my beloved TV, I had to set up the VCR so that you watch what you tape. And since I am outnumbered and surrounded in the scifi fan department up here, Saddam's got a better chance of scoring a town home on South Beach in Miami than I have in taping the durned thing. I'll replace the tape(s), if you would be so kind! Let's see Harmony -- are you trying to tell us that the US Army should be wiped out by a sandstorm? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I wonder how many Countdown parties are happening this evening. Everyone counts down to 8pm and shouts 'Huzzah!'....though you can't tell because everyone's drunk and wearing gas masks. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | False start The Army is reporting that 17 Iraqi soldiers have surrendered to US troops in Kuwait. They have been turned over to Kuwaiti authorities. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Jones: Tanis is one of the possible resting places of the Lost Ark. (Lost Ark?) The Ark of the Covenant, the chest the Hebrews used to carry around the Ten Commandments in...the original stone tablets that Moses brought down out of Mt. Heron and smashed, if you believe in that sort of thing...The Hebrews took the broken pieces and put them in the Ark. When they settled in Canaan, they put the Ark in a place called the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem, where it stayed for many years, until, all of a sudden, whoosh, it was gone. (Gone? Where?) Nobody knows where. Brody: However, an Egyptian pharaoh Shishak invaded the city of Jerusalem around about 980 BC and he may have taken the Ark back to the city of Tanis and hidden it in a secret chamber called the Well of Souls... However, about a year after the pharaoh had returned to Egypt, the city of Tanis was consumed by the desert in a sandstorm which lasted a whole year, wiped clean by the wrath of God.... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink Praying is fine, but Bush should make up his own mind I keep returning to thoughts of Bush's face and voice during that extraordinary press conference. He said he was convinced he was doing the right thing, but I sensed no enthusiasm for the task. He was not trying to persuade us, excite us, convert us or lead us. He was simply telling us what he had to do. The pope sent a cardinal from the Vatican to have an hour's discussion with Bush--not about politics, but about theology. The cardinal told the president that the pope disagrees that God supports an invasion of Iraq. ''God does not intervene in the affairs of man,'' the papal emissary said. - excerpt from an urlLink article by Roger Ebert |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink the breath of allah A storm is coming -- our storm... and when it comes it will shake the Universe. Emperor -- We come for you! - Paul Muaddib |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Chris - SciFi is replaying the entire Children of Dune miniseries from 5pm to 11pm on Sunday. If you don't get SciFi, let me know and I'll record it for you. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | To each his own, John! :) S'all good. My body hurts. Thanks for playing! |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Re: Those skinny frogs: They walk a lot, too. Know from personal experience that no matter which way you turn in Italy, it's )@$#^#$@! uphill!! Sweaty and not the least bit romantic for an August in Tuscany, but makes for some lovely eye-candy in Rome..... 8-) |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Angie - I took absolutely no offense at your post. It just made me realize what I did not know. Ah, jazz. I love big band. I'm not much into the recent (last 20 years) jazz. As a whole, American attempts at orchestral music (movie soundtracks not included) have been pathetic. Bernstein had some attempts at 'good' orchestral music (Candide Overture). Copland was the best American composer in my opinion. But, you can't beat 'the continent' for good classical music. From Bach through Beethoven to Tchaikovsky (yeah, Russian, but close enough), they had some incredible talent. I guess what it comes down to is I will admit that, as a whole, European culture, which is after all what all the things we are talking about make up, is better than American. Hell, we can't even make a decent beer. I still prefer living in the heathen US, wearing my holy blue jeans, ratty old t-shirt, eating my cheeseburger, deep fried potatoe strips, and watching American football on TV, or better yet, laughing at some of the ugly dresses the actresses wear to all the awards shows. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Ole! |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | you should see what happens when I dress like a matador |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | don't believe her john. angie is always going on about how you don't know who jean paul gaultier is (here's his urlLink website - his moto: slap me dieter, i've been so very bad- http://www.jeanpaulgaultier.com/vf/home/default.htm) how you don't know a croissant from a croissandwich, how you don't know the difference between 'the continent' from being 'incontinent' she pretends to be sweet and good but man, you turn your back and those claws come out! |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | In my opinion, America has given the world two unique things of lasting value: (1) jazz, and (2) jeans (though this could be expanded to 'The West' in general). Everything else is a synthesis of something else. But in terms of contributing beauty to the world, America alone can claim jazz. I personally find that a great honor. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Also John... I wasn't trying to attack your taste in food and/or clothing...just answering your questions. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Oh, I wouldn't consider myself all that high fashion or in-crowd either...I just know names and products, but I can't afford any of it. Loreal is a makeup company, but it's a parent company to other professional salon hair and make-up products as well...Laurent is a fashion designer, who might specialize in leather goods, and Gotier is actually spelled Gautier or something...he's also a designer. Does a lot of stuff for Madonna, I think. Anywho, leather goods, hair & makeup (and fragrance) AND clothes are all parts of 'fashion,' which is why I lumped them all together. For example, Calvin Klein also has a line of cosmetics and cologne, as well as shoes, underwear, clothing, etc. Croissants are extremely bad for you. But they're oh-so tasty. I hold that the reason why European nations like France and Italy aren't obese despite all of the foods they eat is this: lifestyle. They relax. Work is not what defines them like it is in the U.S. They take their time in preparing their food, eating their food, living their lives. They have siesta. They are not so focused on making money and working hard as they are living and enjoying life and each other. And I think that lowered stress level really does a lot in terms of how they look. I think we as Americans are always go go go...eating instant foods, full of preservatives, shoving them in our gullets as quickly as possible so we can go go go some more. We're all fat because we don't digest. And we don't sleep and rest as we should, so our bodies don't metabolize the same way. Our work ethic is very different from theirs. And this is not to say that one way is better than the other. We make LOTS more money here because of our Protestant work ethic. It's part of what makes us a capitalist nation. But it's also a big part of why we're a fat nation, too... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | without a doubt, i agree with angie regarding the kiss guys. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | The KISS boys look stupid without their makeup. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I bristle when it is suggested that in the whole spectrum of human thinking, there are only conservatives, liberals, and moderates. Rather cartoonish, isn't it? The notion that thinking is -- or should be -- so simplistic. Bristle, bristle |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Besides, it is an 'Army of One' afterall... LOL |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | i like to listen to this song when i begin to feel overwhelmed or highly stressed: i have listened to it 3 times today. Christina Aguilera Beautiful Don't look at me Every day is so wonderful And suddenly, it's hard to breathe Now and then, I get insecure From all the fame, I'm so ashamed I am beautiful no matter what they say Words can't bring me down I am beautiful in every single way Yes, words can't bring me down So don't you bring me down today To all your friends, you're delirious So consumed in all your doom Trying hard to fill the emptiness The piece is gone and the puzzle undone That's the way it is You are beautiful no matter what they say Words won't bring you down You are beautiful in every single way Yes, words won't bring you down Don't you bring me down today... No matter what we do (no matter what we do) No matter what they say (no matter what they say) When the sun is shining through Then the clouds won't stay And everywhere we go (everywhere we go) The sun won't always shine (sun won't always shine) But tomorrow will find a way All the other times We are beautiful no matter what they say Yes, words won't bring us down We are beautiful no matter what they say Yes, words can't bring us down Don't you bring me down today Don't you bring me down today Don't you bring me down today |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Okay, guys. I know it's been a while, but I have been trying to catch up here and I just ran across Mir's comments about the Iraqis' looting situation and 'we knew about the culture and history and all we protected was the Oil Ministry. What does that say about us?' It says we follow through on our word. President Bush warned the Iraqi soldiers to not attempt to sabotage the oil reserves because it belonged to the Iraqi people not Saddam and his regime. The revenues the oil can create would be neccessary for the Iraqis to rebuild their country. This said, there was a plan in place to protect the Oil Ministry and the oil fields for the benefit of the Iraqis. Alternately, there was not neccessarily a plan to protect other specific places, because who knew where the certain chaos that was to follow would erupt. What were they supposed to do anyway, shoot the unarmed civilians? That would have been all they could have done to stop it. The crowds were enormous that were taking part in the looting. The Liberals would have been screaming then that the innocent, unarmed looters had been shot! Unfortunately, the looting happened, but it was bound to happen. But, I'm sorry, protecting a museum was probably the last thing on the minds of the soldiers as they were watching there backs for remnants of the Republican Guard or the Fedayeen... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I AM GRAMMARIAN HULK!!!!!!!!!! FEAR ME!!!!!!!!! |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | skin turning bright green.... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | clothes starting to rip... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | frustration mounting..... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | How did they not notice before then? You'd think you'd feel something like that...like when people get tumors that are the size of grapefruits...did they get that big overnight, or are people just too stupid to notice a freakin' mass growing on their bodies??? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | 7 years old... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I don't know if that's disgusting or miraculous or just plain weird. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink Boy 'pregnant' with twin brother |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | ack....hate grammar site....must kill engineering students...yesssss.... much simpler than correcting stupid grammatical errors.... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | That's...just...I'm too incredulous to respond to that. All I can say is God speed, my love. And thank you , Tree! I like it here, too. Puppies and kitties and happiness everywhere! The medical bills are a bitch, but hey! It's a trade-off! :) |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | A glimpse of the Capital One intranet website: Featured Value of the week: Integrity How to put Integrity into practice every day April 29, 2003 Integrity is a Value that everyone has the ability to practice. The fact is that applying integrity to your work only means something when you always apply it. Consistency is key in business integrity. Click here to learn more about the other aspects of Integrity |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I *like* the angieverse. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Stay on target [munch, munch, slurp]. Stay on target [siiiip, 'ahhhh'] Stay on [urp!] target..... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Well, John, you didn't have to click on it, if you don't live in the angieverse. Silly. And there will never be enough distorted dogs! NEVER!! |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Star Wars VII: The Fate of Porkins |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | ENOUGH WITH THE DISTORTED DOGS! I was watching Star Wars for the 10,000th time the other night and I think I caught a little continuity gaff. During the approach to the Death Star, the squadron leader asks for a sound off. Wedge was Red 2, Luke was Red 5, and I think Porkins was Red 6. Later in the fight, someone asks Red 6 if they can spot (or cover) Red 5. If it was Porkins, that would be a little difficult seeing as he was already dead. Oops. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | this may 10th dinner party and music fest seems like it will the largest group ever! the list thus far: (of those confirmed) miriam richard ben jorelle johnathan angie tracy tracy's girlfriend (i don't believe that is her actual name) michaux greg grant mmm... that's only 11. am i missing someone? hmmmmmm..... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | ...and for those of us who live in the angieverse: urlLink this |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | ...and for those of us who live in the universe: urlLink Private Development Of Space Travel |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | for those of us who live in the buffyverse: urlLink http://www.slayage.com/articles/000058.html |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Man wears name tag: To make the world a friendlier place ST. LOUIS (AP) Hello, his name is Scott. Scott Ginsberg, that is. The names not hard to remember because Ginsberg has been wearing a name tag for more than 900 days with Scott scrawled boldly across a piece of adhesive paper in felt-tip marker. When people used to ask why, hed explain in depth. The Name Tag Dissertation, his friends called it. So, now he keeps the response simple: Name tags make people friendlier. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | And there's nothing wrong with PCs -- if I were a full-bore gamer with time to do such a thing, I'd certainly have a PC system for the wealth of available games. Though except for a few unique products, that huge wall of games at CompUSA starts getting repetetive after a while -- at first I'm envious, then I start noticing that it's really just a lot of different flavors of the same soda...first-person shooters, mystery games, strategy games, simulations. There are so many variations of Age of Empires it becomes comical. AOE -- with orcs! AOE -- with spaceships! AOE -- with fuzzy wombats! It's like the endless movie trailers that begin with the line: 'In a world...' |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Apple is working on a PC version of iTunes. Beyond that, the rumor mill includes a deal with AOL, which would make iTunes the cross-platform default for AOL music interaction. I'm not convinced this is a good thing -- if iTunes crashes because of Windows issues, then Apple looks bad, not MS -- but it should be interesting to find out if this is the corporate pale shadow phoenix that rises from Napster's ashes. By the by -- iPods have also been updated, and I think there will be Windows-compatible versions of those, as well. Re architecture: There are several websites dedicated to reconfiguring a Mac to run Linux. Wonder if Linux will always be an underground, back-door movement. Not sure what the benefit is of running Linux on a Mac vs. a PC -- maybe it's a cool factor, being in a different box. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | harmony trying to thumb his nose at us? pish-posh - couldn't happen. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Are you trying to thumb your nose at us Harmony? The fine print (ok, it's not so fine) at the bottom says you must have a Mac operating OS X. I think you are the only here that meets those requirements. Given that 1) I am a corporate slave using MS products or products that only seem to run on PCs (AutoCAD and it's associated engineering software) and 2) That an easier to use download system is not incentive enough for me to change my home systems, I guess I will make do with my rickety old PCs. Oh, if only Apple had not been so stubborn about closed architecture 20 years ago. Bill Gates would not be obscenely rich and computers would be more stable. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink 99 cent tunes |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I just dreamed that this guy I work with was antagonizing me and kept trying to steal my wig (???). He's like 6'4', but I jumped on his back and started beating him with my fists and legs. He finally got me off him and disappeared in his wife's car, 'cause in a fit of rage I'd smashed the hell out of his van. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Sounds like someone is finding healing in the arms of the Dream King. I am happy for you. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | hey, umm, ben, it's spring. put up another goddamn post!!! |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | yes, you are correct, the first part was definitely meant as a joke.a negative self-image can exist at any age. god knows it took me years of therapy to get rid of mine. i had d&d dreams last night. but about the actual sessions. we were all in johnathan's house except it was bigger and had a wall of windows on the bottom floor and his mother lived with him. angie slept on couch in the living room but right before we left she transformed it into a room that was the color of a sunset. it was beautiful. ben was the dungeon master and he seemed irritated that was no one was paying attention and everyone seemed more interested in eating. i just woke up so everything is still fresh in mine but i'm still too tired to be terrribly coherent. jimi was there and someone was challenging him about the rules. i think they were getting ready to have a big rules-off. it was fun and i needed to have fun dreams last night. i'm grateful to my mind. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I doubt that a negative self-image is limited only to children due for recess, nor that it can be easily dismissed as immaturity. I understand your opening comment was a joke, but it is still unfortunate that many think that way. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | i don't know harmony. would that be happening before, during, or after recess? what would matter would be the intent of the person saying it. if someone happens not to find someone attractive who i think may look like me, it generally doesn't bother me. however, if the person seems to be doing so in order to hurt my feelings then i would think less of the person who said it. i would definitely not think less of myself. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | For the record, the two 'tall ones' are around 5'7' or 5'8', according to my cursory online research. I agree that language is far too limited. I was told once by a girl in high school, 'You know, you're not, like, gorgeous, but you're not like butt-ugly either.' Eloquence. *gag* |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Mir -- So if I saw an entertainer who you think looks like you, and I described her in an insulting way, would that bother you? Just a hypothetical. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | please john don't pass out but i agree with you on this. they are entertainers - part of their job is to be judged on their appearance. they went into this profession voluntarily - knowing that there would insults but also great financial rewards. but i would still say that she has great hair. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Perhaps the problem lies in our language. In general, we have two words to describe a body type: thin/fat; tall/short/; etc. We are a culture of extremes and linguistically-enforced simplicity. Our language is so pitiful that we often resort to numbers to express ourselves ('Are you happier today?' 'In terms of happy I'm about a 6, maybe a 7.') For all the praise Indo-European languages receive, more often than not our choices are woefully limited. Unfortunately, being creatures of language, how we speak and communicate greatly shapes our reality. And so the wars begin -- often because our limited language limits our thinking, and thus our options. No poetry, no grace -- only simple, concrete linguistic containers into which we attempt to pour the whole of our experience. I love my car. I love my wife. I hate this pizza. I love my house. I love this carpet. I hate that tie. I hate war. I hate flying. I love my parents. I hate the quiet. For crying out loud. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Back to my male pigginess. Looking at the Entertainment Weekly picture, first let me say that the blonde on the right who looks to be about 6' 6' tall would be drop dead gorgeous if she lost some of the eye shadow. Second, compared to the other two women in the group, Natalie Maines *is* the fat one. She is not fat. But, she is heavier than the other two. When comparing a group of people, men are generally vague in their descriptions. For example, if I were trying to describe something about that pipcture to another friend who was familiar with it but not their names, I would use the following descriptions - the brunette, the skinny blonde, and the fat or chubby blonde. I will agree that she is not fat, but it is a comparitive tool. I could just as easily use short and tall I suppose, but that is not a sure thing since one appears to be standing and the other is kneeling on an elevated platform (I think). I could go with a description I heard from my boss today and describe where as one with the Porky Piggish face. I'll stick with the general fat/skinny adjectives. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | today sam is spending his last day looking out the window and wanting to be petted. i'm going to make sure his last day is the best one i can make for him. thanks for your support angie and john. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | As I posted a week or so ago, I am not a huge cat person. That being said, when Julie and I started dating, she had a cat named Shadow. It was very much a love me, love my cat situation. Well, it took about half an hour. Shadow was a very affectionate cat. She would generally come when called. She would even deign to play with us from time to time. When she was about 14, she became listless and uninterested in eating. I even tried tuna. Previously, whenever we would even pop open a can of tuna, eShadow came flying in and loudly meowed and rubbed agains you to let you know what she wanted. She was still uninterested. She to stopped using the litter box. We took her to the vet and she was diagnosed with renal failure. The vet told us that one of her kidneys had atrophied, and the other was giving out. We left her with him for 2 days to flush out her system with IV fluids. For about a week after the treatment, she was fine. We had switched her to a special kidney friendly food. But, she eventually started sliding again. I had the difficult task of coming home one afternoon to find her dead. It was one of the most upsetting things that has happened in my life, even though I knew it was coming. That one cat has made me open to the possibility of having cats in the future. We have opted to wait until the children a older to introduce a kitten. The bottom line is that I feel for you Mir. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Miriam...my cat Pookie was 14 years old when he was diagnosed with FIV, and he had a stroke which caused him to lose the use of his back legs. We had to put him to sleep. It was one of the hardest days of my life. I understand what you're going through, and I'll be thinking of you, 'cause I know how much you must be hurting right now. Love for you. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | my cat, sam, who i have had for 12 years, was diagnosed today with renal failure, and i will have to put him to sleep tomorrow. i cannot express how horrible this is and how painful it is to not only to see him suffer, but to be the one who has to decide that it is time for him to die. i could let him survive for a few more weeks, but he would just be in pain - it would not be the way he would want to live his life. he was always a very strong and intelligent cat. now he is basically unable to walk more than 5 steps, unable to use the litter box, (he was, before this, a very fastidious animal), covered in his own drool and urine. i have tried to brush him and to clean him, but he does not seem to know what it's going on. i don't know if he knows me but he still does respond to his name. i want to believe he knows me - i want him to know that i tried to save him. but i couldn't and i feel guilty but i know, logically, that i cannot save him. i have held him, rocked him, placed his almost limp body on the bed next to me, my head against his, and i don't know whether to pray for a quick death in his sleep so i don't have to euthanize him tomorrow - so he won't know what has happened. i have cried so much today and i know in the next few weeks that it will happen again and again. i love him - i love him as much as someone can love a cat. and it hurts, damnit. it hurts so much. btw, i just wanted to express this - don't feel it would be rude to post a political or satirical or silly comment after this. i know life goes on - i just wanted to get it out. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Mmm hmm. That's what I thought you said...airbrushed or not: if she's fat, then I'm a monkey's uncle. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink meanwhile... |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | whttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A35499-2003Apr24.htmlwe were talking about her earlier this week, so here's how she looks urlLink sans clothes.. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink fun vid |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Oooh, now *that's* a story. Shift the Jedi order so that a master can have two or three apprentices. Obi-Wan has one apprentice, Qui-Gon, a star pupil in the order. He then takes on the gifted but troubled Annakin. Annakin starts to surpass his fellow apprentice; resentment and jealousy brews; something goes wrong; Annakin makes a hotheaded choice that leaves Qui-Gon in a bad spot and he gets killed. A rift begins between Obi-Wan and Annakin. Follow through to final confrontation and betrayal. A whole family unit falls apart. Mythical, even Biblical. Wow. That's great stuff. I think I'll become famous so one day I'll be at a party where I can walk over and kick Lucas in the shins. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | They blew it all to shit anway, so what does it matter now? Who the fuck is Qui-Gon? I love Liam, but damn. Looking at the conceptual art books, etc., I see that Q-G was originally supposed to be Obi-wan's apprentice...that would have made a lot more sense, but here we are. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Now that I think of it, there's no continuity trouble with Chewbacca appearing in III and IV. In Mos Eisely, we see Obi-Wan discussing with Chewbacca (no dialogue heard, Chewie just nods); a few moments later, Obi-Wan introduces Chewbacca to Luke as 'Chewbacca here is first mate on a ship that might suit us.' They could certainly have met before, possibly as pilot and paying passenger. It would push the irony angle a bit much for me if Chewie had met Annakin before, and thus served as co-pilot for his son on the way to the Death Star. But then, Darth Vader made Threepio, so what the hell. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | urlLink no smut here |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | John - does your question about advance notice reference the Buddhist carvings? If so, yes - there was a long build-up; I remember following it. What interests me is if (a) the world community is responsible for the protection and preservation of specific nation's antiquities, and if so, then (b) how far does this responsibility go? To public pronouncements? To sanctions? To the nation's border? To physical intervention? It seems that if it is true that we should have physically prevented the looting of the museums (which would have required wounding and killing many civilians on the building steps), then we should have sent special forces in to stop the destruction in Afghanistan. What troubles me in a greater sense is that in all the debate about this situation and its implications, many of us are inspired to draw definite lines of principle without thinking just where those lines stop and start. For example: If we invaded Iraq to liberate the oppressed, why aren't we planning for the next operation elsewhere in the world? There are plenty of targets. If we should not have invaded Iraq because it was about oil, then would anyone have ever been able to stop daily rape, torture, and terror within its borders? I hear a lot of absolutes, but not a whole lot of thinking. We seem to prefer a world in bright, contrasting colors, drawn in broad, clear strokes, rather than the contradictory mess it actually is. We seem to fight for easy definitions rather than face up to the unruly reality. I'm beginning to wonder if our world is not in the clutches of conservatives, or liberals, or lobbyists, or lawyers; if it is trapped and pinned not by these, but by something completely different. I'm beginning to wonder if our world -- if humanity -- has finally been overrun by idealists. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | B5 Season 2 on DVD - 4/29/03 Chewbacca to be in Episode III. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Miriam (Congratulations, BTW), you are making some gross, as in large, assumptions concerning the looting. You assume that we were in the area of the museum(s) when they were looted. Keep in mind that we still have not fully secured Baghdad last I knew. But, assuming that we were standing right in front of the museum as looting was going on, how should we have stopped hundreds of people from looting/stealing/destroying these artifacts? Shoot them? Beat them with the butts of rifles? The US Army and Marines are not into crowd control. They are not permitted to operate in a police capacity in the US (posse comitatus). They don't carry a lot of tear gas, especially when in a war zone. Their primary job is to identify the enemy, not looter, and shoot him. Johnnathan - No. And, did we even have advanced notice of the destruction anyway? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Perhaps I am not being clear. I'll rephrase: 1) Should people be angry at us because the Iraqis chose to loot their own artifacts and heritage? 2) Should people be angry at us for not stopping the Taliban's destruction of the Buddhist carvings? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | short answer: yes. we should have stopped it. look at previous posts for justifications. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I appreciate your opinion re: the issue of liberating the Iraqi people from a ruthless dictator. But that is irrelevant to my question. Is it our fault that the Iraqi people looted their own artifacts? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Ok, you're right about the slippers. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | that's not entirely my point, harmony. one of the ways we are justifying this war is by saying we are freeing the iraqi people from a ruthless dictator. when did it become our responsibility to become the world's liberators? there are over 100 nations that currently are violating u.n. human rights mandates - are we going to invade all of them? my point being is that we were there, we knew the signifigance of the artifacts; we should have stopped it. and, once again, people are offended that the only place we protected was the ministry of oil. what message does that send to the iraqi people and the world about why we are there? and madonna you would snatch those slippers up in a second and you know it. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Do you think, if America were invaded and the government overthrown, that we would have looted the Smithsonian? 'Dammit, I just GOTTA have Dorothy's Ruby Slippers! Now's my chance!!!' |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | So it is our responsibility to protect people from looting or destroying their own nation's culture and history? |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | i would think that people are upset about the looting of the iraqi's muesums because the u.s. military did nothing to protect them. we (the u.s) understood the signifigance of those artifacts even if the iraqi people didn't. The most disturbing thing is that the only building protected during the looting was the ministry of oil. it does look poorly on us that we thought that was more important than a nation's culture and history. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | Clarificaton: I am specifically addressing the artifact/museum issue. I am not addressing the looting of government property or the looting of private businesses and homes. The former is understandable given the country's oppressive history; the latter, while unfortunate, is standard practice in any riot or period of lawlessness. |
589,736 | male | 35 | Technology | Aries | 05,August,2004 | I've been thinking about this...how, exactly, is it our fault if Iraqis loot their own historical artifacts? They're not our children. It seems to me that if they don't see a difference between stealing a Sony television from a Baath vacation home and stealing jewelery or pottery of their own heritage and history from 4,000 years ago, then that's really their problem, and they should receive the brunt of the outrage. The fact that looting was possible -- that is our fault, to some degree, for not planning for a more rapid law enforcement plan (assuming one was even possible). But *what* they loot -- that seems to me to be merely a reflection of either their own wisdom or ignorance. I share this thought (which may be changed without notice) because the whole affair has sparked in me an interesting question: Are the historical treasures of a culture the property and responsibility of that culture, or the world at large? I'm not talking about interest -- of course they're of great *interest* to the world. But does that interest translate seamlessly into the realm of property and responsbility? I'm reminded of the Taliban blasting those awesome Buddhist sculptures. Would there have been justification for external cultures to use force to protect those works on behalf of the world community? If not, then why all the anger directed at the world community for not stopping Iraqis from looting their own heritage? Granted, one can argue that the world community created a situation in which looting could flourish -- but does this argument truly address the issue? At some point, shouldn't a culture or a people show some restraint and control their more childish, primitive passions? If they are unable to do so -- is that truly our fault? |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.