FlaSoxxJim

QUOTE(The Critic @ Mar 21, 2005 -> 05:15 PM) UbbI thubbink yubbou ubbare ubball crubbazubby. Ownay ustjay opstay isthay upidstay alktay!!! I thought Zoom immediately too when those sentences started being posted. Seriously though, for all you out of it, old fuddy duddies... Is that Tex or YAS? I can't tell... Jeepers! Here's a swell Parents Guide to 1337

QUOTE(Texsox @ Mar 21, 2005 -> 01:27 PM) Wouldn't that be consistent? Aren't they taking the decision away from her husband? Not the way I understood the Texas issue. Yes, they are taking the right to decide away from family (birth or narriage), but they are NOT doing it to preserve the 'sacred gift that is life' and all that other drek being spewed now. The Texas laws let hospitals/insurance companies make the decision to pull the tube and end life support if they deem there to be no hope in a case - EVEN IF THIS IS AGAINST THE WILL OF THE FAMILY. The family does have 10 days from the time the hospital makes it's decision before they pull life support to try to find another facility that will take their loved one in - sometimes they find one and sometimes they cannot. The point and the hypocrasy here is that, the express will of the family and the implied will of the vegetative patient mean very little in Texas as a result of Bush-sponsored measures. It comes down to $$ and the insurance companies being the ones to decide when it's time to pull the plug on a patient with no hope of recovery. And in truth, I don't think the Texas situation is entirely abhorrant. Even if family cannot let go, there comes a time when teh insurance companies and hospitals SHOULD have a say in when to call it day. What is much more sickening is the political/moral grandstanding and using Terry Schiavo as a pawn in all of this because it's a rallying point for the Right-To-Birthers etc.

QUOTE(winodj @ Mar 21, 2005 -> 12:31 PM) Yes she would. Just so you are aware, the Republicans passed this bill and was signed into law after midnight. I would like you to remember that the same people who are forcing this bill into law, supported and helped pass a Texas law in 1999 that allows insurance companies and hospitals to make PEG tube decisions over the wishes of family members. You're suggesting there is some inconsistency here? Get the f*** out!

QUOTE(Kid Gleason @ Mar 21, 2005 -> 12:16 PM) Well, aside from all the medical information we might be able to learn from sharks and the fact that they are possibly the greatest living creature on the face of this earth for so many reasons, and the fact that they were here first, I say yeah, what purpose do they serve? Hell, while were at it, lets kill off all of the bears, lions, tigers, oh my, all the nasty critters that will keep me from going to all of the places I should be allowed to go to because I am the MIGHTY HUMAN BEING, HOMOSAPIEN, LIVING INCARNATION OF THE SUPREME BEING GOD HIM(HER)SELF!!! You tryin' to steal my gig as resident Earthhugger around here or something, Kid? Whassup wit that?!? Seriously, the lack of sharks in the oceans these days has caused lots of top down ecological balance issues. From an exploitation standpoint, sharks are giving us pretty cool biomedical compounds like squalamine (Anti-tumor/anti-angiogenic agent in Phase I/II human clinical trials) and AE-941(Neovastat) that also has intriguing anti-tumor/anti-angiogenic properties. And not that it does much to calm deep-rooted fears in the human psyche, but if you think about the sheer number of recreational water users compared to the number of attacks you're safer in the ocean than driving down the highway. You are also more than 100 x more likely to drown than you are to get bitten by a shark.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Mar 21, 2005 -> 08:46 AM) St. Patrick's Day Grimace .... Did they use him to promote the green shakes? Yessirree!! That is none other than Uncle O'Grimacy. He used to show up once a year in the 1970s to push the Shamrock Shakes, after which time he would no doubt disappear to drink the rest of the year away like all good Irish uncles.

QUOTE(winodj @ Mar 18, 2005 -> 05:26 PM) It's a Count Floyd reference. So when we play poker I now fold in 3-D. Joe Flaharty was tits on SCTV. Count Floyd and Guy Cabellaro were classic characters.

McGame: In the lower left of that image I just posted, major cool points for anyone who can tell me what's up with the green Grimace.

Do you think my 5-year old will have nightmares if I wallpaper his room with this homage to Grimace?? PS: sorry about the image size, but a smaller res just wouldn't convey the awsome Grimacy grimasness that is the Evil Grimas.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Mar 19, 2005 -> 09:58 AM) I never had rat, so I couldn't compare. How was the rat prepared and how was the Nutria prepared? I've actually not had rat, as far as I know. I just know that all of the things I've had that are supposed to taste like chicken (gator, rattlesnaje, froglegs, etc.) don't.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Mar 19, 2005 -> 09:21 AM) Which are better tasting? I've only had nutria so I cannot make a comparison. The nutria wasn't bad. Tasted like rat, er.., chicken, yeah chicken.

Seems some people still aren't too sure what the definition of "is" is. They must all be Democrats

QUOTE(IlliniKrush @ Mar 19, 2005 -> 05:24 AM) I can't really comment on this, being a 21 year old in college that's only had one 'serious' gf for a few months in college, but i find the thought of this very interesting and though provoking. Krush has an important point that has bearing on these poll results. The relative youth of most posters here, the fact that many live or recently lived at home etc., means this question is not applicable to many here. For my part, I'll repeat my smartass response from the Schiavo thread, because cow many times do I get the chance to rattl off some biblical shuck and jive and suggest it clearly proves and vindicates a position on an issue?? From 2 Genesis: Therefore a man foresekes his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. The Bible verifies that marriage trumps blood. Isn't that good enough for you, or are you just a bunch of pagans? EDIT: 2 Genesis was a real early effort - back when Peter Gabriel was still in the lineup I'm sure, so that has to add some weight to the argument, no?

Nutria and capybara are different species. Nutria (Myocastor coypus) is more rat-like and capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) are more cute and cuddly and guinneapig-like. Note the long, rat tail on the nutria, and the near-lack of tail (vestigial) on Homer's Lenten snack. Nutrias actually use the tail for part of their swimming propulsion, much like mustellids (weasel family) Nutria Capybara

Capybara. No joke, in lots of Central and South America, capybara is a huge Lenten Friday dietary staple. Because it is aquatic, locals conveniently think of it as a fish (albeit a hairy, 4-legged, distinctly rodent-like fish), and figure that's good enough for a few fridays every year. Amazing God hasn't caught on to all these religious loopholes people keep coming up with.

OK, this is too f***ing much. Congress subpoenas Terri Schiavo to appear before them. The subpoena was delivered to the hospice. Since it is a crime (contempt of Congress) to interefere or harm anyone who has been subpoena'd to appear (apparently even someone in a persistent vegetative state), this will buy some time for the completely delusional and selfish parents of this poor woman to figure out what to do next. According to the prior court ruling. Michael Schiavo would have been allowed to pull the tube seven minutes ago, local time. The subpena scam has most likely put things on hold. Again.

QUOTE(winodj @ Mar 17, 2005 -> 02:13 PM) I have two nicknames at work. What are they? Wino and DJ? Fluffy and Zeke? Old Chap and The Fonze? El Tabla De Café Licker? Am I getting close?

QUOTE(Yossarian @ Mar 18, 2005 -> 12:15 PM) Still, he is a hero to many leftitsts here. Who on here? I was unaware.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Mar 18, 2005 -> 12:20 PM) My argument to the contrary consists of two words: Scott Peterson. My equally smarmy 2 word argument for spousal rights - especially as averse as I tend to be toward all the Bible claptrap: Genesis 2 Therefore a man foresekes his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. Marriage trumps blood. 'Cuz the Bible says so.

QUOTE(AnthraxFan93 @ Mar 17, 2005 -> 02:05 PM) Bugs Bunny I'll give 'em my SLOW S-L-O-W ball...

Ethanol from corn is actually more expensive to produce than petrol at the moment, but you're right on the other points. That would change with some investment in large-scale production, and it doesn't take into consideration the considerable cost of extracting crude from the earth. I have read that ethanol made from rice is cheaper and hopefully will make some inroads, as should biodiesel. No serious work has been done in this country on 'fuel from biomass' alternative energy research since the 80s. Hell, we can make cars that run on used cooking oil (the exhaust typically smells like french fries). It's not for lack of scientific expertise to get to the next level. It is a lack of vision on the part of the governments that need to throw in behind a necessarily colossal effort. But for now, sadly it looks like it is going to be fossil fuels for a fossil mindset. :headshake

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Mar 17, 2005 -> 07:57 AM) Its a million BPD, not a billion. All of OPEC itself is outputting 28.5 million BPD. And the entire world only puts out 75 million barrels a day.

Above and beyond the actual footprint of the drilling operations is the road and pipeline infrastructure that will completely fragment the migratory and breeding caribou habitats. The bigger issue is that we should be leading the world into an era of sustainable/renewable resource utilization and we are not. Instead we sell out the spirit of the National Parks Service in pursuit of another fossil fuel fix. We're going to rape ANWR for what may well be only enough recoverable oil to meet US needs for a few months. According to syndicated financial analyst Malcom Berko (column from 1/9/05), in January 2005 US daily oil consumption was 19 million barrels while US daily oil production was 8 million barrels. In a decade now, we can look forward to paying for a very expensive extra million barrels a day, still import more than half our total, and that is teh 'centerpiece' of our 21st century energy policy? Doing some quick, back-of-the-envelope math tells you how shortsighted this is. Let's say that there are 10 billion barrels in ANWR (current guesses put it somewhere between 5-15 billion). Let's also be really optimistic and say that the entire mount is recoverable. 10 billion barrels or oil consumed at the current rate of 19 million barrels a day only supplies 526 days worth of oil (of course the fields will produce much less for much longer, but you get the point). And this is a best case scenario. If the actual reserves are at the 5 billion barrel side of things, and if we use a more realistic 80% recovbery (still probably too optimistic), we're only talking aboit supporting America's dirty habit for 210 days. Less that a year's worth of total US oil needs. YAS is absolutely right when he says that we're not ready to move to a hydrogen fuel economy. But we'll never be ready if we don't make huge strides and therefore huge monetary investments toward that goal starting now. Solar, wind, and biodiesel need to be seriously supported or we're only a few decades from grinding to a halt. Fun Fact: Did you know that the US consumes 26% percent of the world's oil production? We represent 5% of the human population. yet we consume more than a quarter of the oil.

QUOTE(Steff @ Mar 16, 2005 -> 05:48 PM) Blake not guilty.. How the hell did that happen? Celebrities can get away with murder in LA - literally.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Mar 16, 2005 -> 04:34 PM) It's just a song, it's just a radio show, it's just a movie, it's just a speech, it's just a thought, it's just a newscast, it's just a picture, it's just what we feed our brains. If it's just fiction, then how would it challenge our beliefs? There are many parables in the Bible. Wouldn't it be illogical to assume a novel couldn't challenge a parable? The parables themselves were just stories - teaching tools Jesus used much like and Aesop's fable. What would be the big deal challenging a parable. Challenging the Gospel accounts of the life and acts of Jesus and Co. is another matter. Still, DaVinci Code is a work of fiction. Still, I maintain that faith is supposed to be challenged and critically examined at the personal level - otherwise you're just practicing the regurgitated faith of your parents, their parents, etc.

QUOTE(Wong & Owens @ Mar 16, 2005 -> 05:33 PM) So sad. Arrogant, shortsighted, and reason #765B why I refuse to procreate. That and lack of a willing partner, eh?