Rex Kickass

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jun 17, 2016 -> 10:01 AM) The same day as the Orlando massacre, a 20 year old non-Muslim white kid from Indiana was arrested by the LAPD with a bunch of weapons and ammunition who was heading to the pride parade to do basically the same thing as Orlando. That may not actually be true. He had a ton of firearms in his car, but police have backed off the claim he was going to shoot up the Santa Monica pride parade since then.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jun 17, 2016 -> 08:29 AM) I'd just like to point out that I agree with a lot of what you have to say when it comes to intolerance inherent in a lot of religions, specifically this one, especially against LGBT, etc...but when you finish off every post with "Get real", it makes you come across like a condescending prick, and there is no reason for it. Rex is simply trying convey his feelings about why this hit so close to him while having a conversation about it, which you had, only you signed off with a backhanded comment in both of your last two posts. Thanks for that. Islam does not hold a monopoly on anti-gay bigotry. Remember, the folks that pushed Uganda to institute capital punishment for homosexuality were spurred on by "Christian" members of the clergy. There are all sorts of pastors who preached last Sunday about how they should be happy that there were "50 fewer sodomites" in this world that day. Violence against LGBT communities happens on a daily basis, and that violence isn't limited by religion.

QUOTE (Big Hurtin @ Jun 17, 2016 -> 09:16 AM) I think what a lot of people are getting wrong is that they are looking for that ONE thing. It's a combination of things. Just like a literal explosive, you have the ingredients, put them together and BOOM. That's exactly my point. There are plenty of muslims who are anti-gay. There are plenty of christians who are anti-gay as well. There are plenty of people who are anti-gay, period. I'm not, nor was I ever discounting that. I just think its way more complicated than "ISIS" because he clearly wasn't a member of ISIS. He seems to have had other motivations, and the more I read about this, the more this feels like something more similar to a workplace shooting than a traditional terror attack. This event CAN be more than one thing at one time. I will say this about the AR-15. If he'd walked in with normal handguns, a lot fewer people would have been killed. I don't understand why this weapon is allowed to be purchased for civilian purposes, and I don't know why buying a gun is easier to do than getting a driver's license or in some states, buying Sudafed, but it seems like this is something we can fix in our government that would at least take a step to limiting the loss of life in mass shootings and I don't know why we wouldn't take some common sense steps to make our gun distribution networks a bit more responsible for what they do.

QUOTE (Joshua Strong @ Jun 13, 2016 -> 02:17 PM) It was amazing and hilarious beginning to end, I even bought the soundtrack but it should not have been a summer movie. I'm in love with the song about Mona Lisa. It's funny but its about 30% This is Spinal Tap recycled.

QUOTE (CB2.0 @ Jun 17, 2016 -> 12:45 AM) Appreciate you posting your take. Since your are a homosexual - I wonder if you're familiar with this guys upbringing (father, specifically), sharia, etc. I mean - I can't understand how anyone can't see the Islamic extremism/sharia/self-loathing in this.... He's a muslim "body builder" with a Taliban sympathizing father "extremist/Sharia proponent" with a history of 2 s***ty marriages to women (surprise - slapped them both around) because he's obviously a self-loathing gay. This was not about SOCIETY and AR-15s. It's about Islamic religious doctrine that is intolerant, stupid, and quite frankly - poisonous. There is no reason any of us should be around it, subject to it, and/or import it to our country. Get real. He was also a regular at the bar. For years. He also went on dates with class mates of his when he was studying Criminal Justice. He was also flirting with guys on gay apps. He clearly had a lot of confusion over his own identity and couldn't handle it, nor, most likely, could he turn to his family for support - and hadn't been lucky enough to develop a chosen family where he could turn for support. People talk about how he pled allegiance to ISIS on the phone, neglecting that he pledged allegiance to Nusra and Hezbollah and the Boston Marathon bombers. None of those people are connected, and Nusra, Hezbollah and ISIS are all enemies of each other. That's not someone with a clear sense of ideology.

Hey there, So... this hit home for me. I've spent four years of the last six working at a gay bar in Philadelphia on the weekends. I still fill in there on occasions. I often work at special events for the LGBT community as well. I've felt a metaphorical target on my back in places before for being gay, and although its faded quite a bit over recent years - it feels freshly taped on my back this week. And the more I've read about this, waited for friends to message me that they weren't at that bar, the more I've learned about the person who killed all these people - the less I feel that this is about terror from abroad and more about terror from within. I feel that this is the result of a toxic brew of mental instability, being unable to accept your own identity, and feeling marginalized (in multiple communities), and influence from extremists who are quicker to demand blood and hate than acceptance and love. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that terrorism has no place in this discussion... but this is a lot more complicated than just terrorism. There are so many nasty things that slammed together behind an AR-15 on Saturday night... and a lot of people are just ignoring that part of it.

Did anyone else hit Record Store Day sales today? If so, what did you get?

QUOTE (bmags @ Apr 15, 2016 -> 12:25 AM) I think debates are growing tired. This national $15 an hour though, I worry about. Bernies backtracking on the "qualified to be president" thing: it does remind me about how much backtracking Bernie may have had to do had he been under the same scrutiny for 30 years. It may be...Shock...clinton-like! He's a politician just like every other Presidential candidate running... he's just been better at most at letting people believe he isn't one.

I love that people keep talking about Dodd-Frank lately. It reminds me of the time I thought Barney Frank died in the backseat of my car.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Apr 9, 2016 -> 11:37 PM) Ho hum. Bernie wins again. Wyoming to Bernie. I think it's despicable that thanks to political media coverage, this is turning into a racial thing and that's ultimately going to bury Bernie in upcoming east coast primaries/caucuses. Why in the hell is Hillary considered so great by African Americans compared to Bernie?? For gosh sakes, Bill just took on the entire Black Lives Matter movement forcibly. If that had been one of Bernie's relatives ... boom, he'd have been buried more by the media. You tell me why the media like Geraldo laugh at Bernie's chances in New York and other Eastern states because allegedly he is so bad for African American voters?? With this turning into a racial thing ... Bernie truly has no chance. (As proof, the CNN article I read on Wyoming said "it follows Bernie's pattern of winning only rural WHITE states." WTF. I wish Bernie would present his case better to African Americans because it's not like Hillary will be that much better for African Americans than Bernie!! Chisoxfan? Weigh in on this? What's surprising about this state is how well Hillary did in Wyoming, a state that she ceded to Bernie and didn't really spend any money in. She still got 45% and 7 of the 14 delegates.

Kasich would be the candidate I'd be the most afraid of as a Democrat. He'd make Ohio much more difficult to win for Democrats, and he could appeal to a lot of people in the middle. That being said, with 50 years of a more transparent election process, coming out of a contested convention a sudden nominee would really damage his chances of turning out the base.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Apr 5, 2016 -> 04:52 PM) Bernie has all the money in the world for his campaign; he's about to win Wisconsin big; he is vibrant and has all the kids on his side. He's different in an age where we desperately need somebody different in power. Why? Not? Bernie? GET RID OF SUPERDELEGATE SYSTEM! The Superdelegate system really affects nothing in this race. Before today, Hillary Clinton earned 2.5 Million Votes more than Bernie Sanders. After tonight, it will be only 2.4 Million more votes. Before today, Hillary Clinton had a lead of 224 pledged delegates (not superdelegates), after tonight it will still be 210+. If the convention was tomorrow, Hillary Clinton would still be the nominee, and she's likely to win the primaries in the three largest contests left to go - New York, Pennsylvania and California. The superdelegate system has nothing to do with any of that. In fact, Bernie Sanders only path to the nomination would involve taking advantage of the superdelegate system - because the likelihood that he'll lead in pledged delegates at the end of the primary calendar is actually pretty low.

New York just did.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Mar 4, 2016 -> 07:12 AM) Kasich would get completely exposed if anyone actually cared about him. He also needs to realize nobody thinks well of Ohio. This. He's not the nice guy he seems right now. However, of who is left standing - he's probably the only of the four that Democrats could live with for a few years.

I love Bad Lip Reading.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Mar 2, 2016 -> 11:38 PM) Good post Caulfield. I may be having the counter effect, but it angers me to see her berate that African American woman today who asked her a couple questions. "Why don't you run for something?" And then she had a wicked laugh. I mean, again, that is WAY WORSE than anything Adam Eaton did in his tweet. She was condescending and mean and wouldn't answer the person's question. Then I read Meghan Kelly is gushing about how Hillary is destined to make history in November over and over. I don't understand why somebody like this guy I know, who WORKS FOR the government says he'd be in jail and fired long ago if he breached security like Hillary did with her emails. And Hillary doesn't get in trouble at all. Caulfield you are a political mastermind, please answer that question for me. To be fair, nobody who is reading articles from Washington Post, NY Times or anywhere else knows if what Hillary did was illegal. It was not law at the time she was Secretary of State to use a state.gov email address, and in terms of classified material out - there is nobody out there who can say if something illegal happened that would say it in terms of Hillary willfully distributing classified material in a nonclassified manner. Chances are, any such transmission would not have been willful or knowledgeable, based on what we know right now - and a criminal trial would be very difficult to pursue, because intent and gross negligence would be a big reason why something is being mishandled. If Petraeus only got charged with a misdemeanor for giving actual code names and intelligence target information to his biographer and lying about it - and if Richard Armitage didn't get charged for leaking the identity of a spy in an effort to politically embarrass her husband - this is probably a big old nothingburger. That being said, the guy who built the server was offered immunity to speak with the FBI today. He previously refused to testify before Congress on the issue - so that's something - but if its not a criminal probe, and there's no evidence to suggest it is, it could just be an assurance to get the interview in and wrap up the investigation by May.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Mar 2, 2016 -> 07:38 PM) All is well on my end. Are you working any campaigns or still in the travel industry? I now work for a cruise line in business development. At this time, I am an informed voter and occasional small time campaign donor only. I think the city council campaign I managed in 2014 was probably my last campaign in any professional capacity.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Mar 2, 2016 -> 07:19 PM) Holy hell....blast from the past. How's everything going good sir? Things are things. I'm working endlessly, chilling out east, missing regular White Sox baseball. Hope things are good your way!

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Mar 2, 2016 -> 07:22 PM) On your actual points, I definitely agree, if both Ohio and Florida don't go to Trump, than it means we are pretty much assured a brokered convention. If he wins at least one, I think he's still probably the guy, although that could change. It would appear Trump is more susceptible in the non south states (with exception to states closest to Cruz where Cruz has shown he can get Trump). The question I have is whether Kasich or Rubio is actually the better candidate for that play. I personally think it is Kasich because he seems to have a tougher road to climb to win his state vs. Florida, that said, if Rubio goes out in Florida, it would seem Trump would win in a landslide (as he already has a wide margin and I don't think the other candidates have spent much any time there so would have a really hard time pushing Florida so maybe the view truly is to allow this super pac to hit Trump hard and than back door let kasich focus on select states, Rubio on select states and Cruz will kind of do his thing and potentially win a few states as well)? Remember Florida is more like the Northeast then Alabama or Mississippi electorally. Rubio has a good shot, but who knows what will happen. If Trump ends up with the nomination, I would not be surprised if a retread Republican runs a third party challenge to allow the GOP to lose the Presidency but save the house and Senate. Because if establishment gets behind Trump in the end, it will be only halfheartedly - and the machine won't work for Trump to win. It's actually the same way that Chris Christie became governor in 2009 believe it or not.

I think Florida really is the key here for whether Trump will get to a convention with a majority. Trump won 7 states, but he did underperform in a few interesting places according to the polls - Virginia, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Alaska, Vermont. If Rubio can surge into a win in his home state, I think the chance of a brokered convention is very very strong - especially if Kasich can close in Ohio. In fact in the aggregate vote totals across the board over all states that have voted, Trump is at about 34% of votes cast. He has some states where he's performed very well - but the argument of a ceiling is still plausible. I think Trump is definitely the favorite, but unlike the Democratic fight - its not over yet. It could be in a couple weeks though.

Rubio did win a state!

The new Iggy Pop single "Gardenia" is something that I have fallen completely and irreversibly in love with. Even though David Bowie wasn't involved at all in this song, it feels like he's all over the darn thing.

This was a great result from a supreme court decision that was eventually going to happen. Unfortunately, in over half the states in the United States, I can still be fired, not hired, or not be allowed to buy or rent a house or apartment because I'm gay. Frankly, I wasn't as worried about being married as I was about having my ability to remain employed protected for being the person that I am.

Someone called in a bomb threat to the vigil for the murder victims at a neighboring town's AME Church. http://www.wspa.com/story/29353916/bomb-th...rleston-victims

Assuming the reports are correct that he's a white extremist, these deaths mean that 41 murders have been committed by white supremacists since the beginning of the Obama administration. http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/201...since_1995.html