Jenksismyhero

QUOTE (shipps @ Aug 19, 2015 -> 01:38 PM) I was surprised to hear that he was married with children. I always thought of him as a creepy and lonely single guy. who is/was worth $15 million...

I finished Killing Patton the other night. Far from an in-depth research biography but interesting nonetheless. I knew he died shortly after the war in a pretty unlucky accident. I did not know that a lot of people seem to think it was an assassination, and there's some compelling facts supporting that claim.

QUOTE (bmags @ Aug 19, 2015 -> 12:41 PM) I believe, don't have it in front of me, that the highest number of victims happens in juvenile prisons, and guards are a big perpetrator. So the haha funny joke is as depressing as Balta makes out. It's a terrible issue that gets no standing because people feel like they deserve it, which is disgusting. Something so incredible to me, is this is something so on the margins of society, where if I heard anyone discuss anything hinting on this i'd at the very least tell people what I heard, but likely call the cops. That these people could have been doing this for years is not that surprising, it's that they can find partners in crime. I assume this is internet anonymity helping this? Certainly Jared and his president didn't just find out together. Come on, you don't see the difference between a rape between a guard and a juvi inmate (a minor) and a child molester in gen pop?

Pssh, screw rape in prison, Fogle and his kind should have their dicks cut off. There is no punishment big enough or severe enough for what they do to the most innocent and helpless people out there.

QUOTE (gatnom @ Aug 18, 2015 -> 04:41 PM) PG is still a black hole and front court depth is lacking, but they have good talent at the wings with Nunn, Hill, and Coleman-Lands. If Thorne can be a solid starter and they can get Black to stop playing dirty, they should definitely be good enough to get into the tournament IMO. Should be interesting to see what they can do with front court players who can do something offensively at least. They're a bubble team, outside looking in. Same as the last 2 seasons. Look at the teams above them: Maryland, Indiana, MSU, Purdue, Michigan, Wisconsin, OSU. Maybe even Iowa. Then Illinois/NW/Minn. Not having Abrams sucks. Not having Paul sucks. You're asking a team to be better without Rice and Egwu. Hill has to make an impressive jump and put the team on his back. Nunn can't take 10 games off at a time like he did last year. Tate has to be able to shoot at least a little. Thorne has to be better than average. Black has to make a sophmore leap. And yeah, you gotta hope JCL isn't out for a long time and that he can contribute. Too many ifs. They'll win 20 games, go .500 in the Big Ten and be in the NIT. That's my guess.

So those with kids.....how have you handled the airport situation? We're flying to Orlando (I found super cheap flights...$288 total for 3 of us). And we're renting a car. Doesn't look like a need to use the car seat on the plane (my son's just over 40lbs), but he will need his car seat for the rental car. Do you guys check the car seat? Carry it on? Gate check it? Or just rent one and not deal with the hassle? I see online a lot of people don't check the car seat at the front desk because of the risk of damage or the risk of it not showing up. I'm thinking I'll gate check it, but I've never gate checked anything before. Do you pick it up right after you get off the plane? Or does it show up at the baggage carousel? I'm entering into a new world here...

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Aug 18, 2015 -> 01:25 PM) How is he a heel on the basketball court? He's f***ing amazing. Is this a joke? The constant whining, b****ing, moaning, flopping, etc. He gives up a lot on plays (and games) too. He's one of the least likable stars when it comes to his style of play. Doesn't take away from him being awesome at basketball, but it does make it harder to root for him or enjoy what he does.

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Aug 18, 2015 -> 10:22 AM) The bag of cells is an independent life that is developing as well. Why is the heartbeat a moral milestone? If at week X, the heart is developing, but not yet beating, but at week X+1, it starts beating, why is that such an important change that you'd go from being supportive of abortion to opposing it? Not until there's that hearbeat, IMO. Once the heart beats on its own, that to me is the point of no return. You've got a functional, working cardiovascular system. I acknowledge it's a bit arbitrary, but to me that differentiates an embryo/pre-human from some other internal growth. I dunno that at 18-20 weeks a fetus has consciousness or sentience. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/...iousness-arise/ They don't develop the appropriate brain system until 24-26 weeks for that. And we know that babies have been born premature as early as 21-22 weeks.

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Aug 18, 2015 -> 09:57 AM) I didn't say it wasn't. I said it's a life the entire time. A fertilized egg is a life. It just isn't one I value the same as I'd value other human lives. If there was a IVF Clinic on fire and I had time to drag out one adult or a freezer containing 100 embryos, I'd take the adult every time (and I think virtually everyone would make the same decision). I'm confused at how your scale works. You indicated there was a big change at the heartbeat, then it's just a gradual slide up after that? I just think it's a big milestone that differentiates a bag of developing cells from an independent life that is developing. Yes it's all on a gradual scale, but that's a pretty big moment. We're arguing degrees here. My point was that it's still not some conscious ability to experience things. It's all sensory development that is building towards something bigger later. Unborn babies "see," feel, hear, touch too. The degree to which they can retain that information and process it is obviously getting bigger and better as they grow older. But it's still building blocks of experiences. What's the dividing line for you? If they don't have any significant experiences until birth, why have any cut off on abortions?

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 01:21 PM) Yes, that was my question. BTW, my questions aren't an attempt at a 'gotcha', I'm just trying to understand your position. You've said that there's a point in development (heartbeat) where your weights between prioritizing the unborn's life and the woman's feelings/desires shifts from being strongly towards the woman (let's say 90/10 woman), to slightly favoring the unborn (let's say 60/40 child). That slight favoring can be offset by rape/incest cases. Now, I presume there is some point in development where you'd be damn near 100/0 child. If a woman is at 40 weeks in labor, you're not going to support an abortion even if she was raped. Heck, maybe even a newborn works for this example. If this is correct, what are the factors involved that moves you from 60/40 child to 100/0 child? How far along in development certainly. I mean, by the end of the embryonic stage, you basically have all the major structures and organs formed and developing. You have a heartbeat, brain activity, etc. How is that not a life even if it's still forming into shape? Other than memory (although that's arguable), an unborn baby has those same experiences in utero. Obviously it doesn't happen until it has the body parts to do that, but it happens. For example they "find" their hands/feet, they start sucking motions, etc. Those are all experiences that serve them later. I don't disagree, and I think medically death is considered the lack of heart/lung function or lack of brain activity. But I guess I view it like a car - if the engine dies you may still have some battery power running the radio, but it's not going to last long. If there's no heartbeat, you're not living for very long, so you are irretrievably gone (absent outside assistance). By aesthetics i'm meaning even more than just whether something is pretty or not. Think about what goes along with that - personal feelings (embarrassment, resentment from neighbors), financial considerations (a weed infested yard won't sell for as much), etc. I'm just saying while we can all have a baseline of what's morally wrong, there are other factors involved that will make certain actions more or less morally wrong. I'm not sure attractiveness would be on my list of factors, but it might. Others like age or potential in life are going to weigh more heavily in comparing the deaths of two people. It doesn't from the sense that I find both acts wrong. Pain is a factor that is going to significantly increase how wrong I think X action is, though.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 07:13 AM) Were now on year 3 of this experiment alongside wasted scholarship and other missed chances recruiting, and he's presumably never going to play a game for Illinois. That's on Groce. What scholarship wasn't available and who was taking it? And you're saying Groce's decision to bring him back is the problem here? Why? Didn't he wait until all of the big guys signed elsewhere? Wasn't this a "yeah whatever, sure, I guess" situation?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 12:59 PM) Except when there's a gun involved... I'll let myself out now. People argue that all deaths involving guns are justified? News to me.

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 12:26 PM) Murder is illegal by definition. Killing someone in self defense is not. I don't think it's accurate to say self-defense is an exception as much as it is a nuance. But we start from a basic premise that taking the life of another human is morally wrong EXCEPT in situations a, b and c. I'm saying abortions are wrong except in situations a, b and c. Context can excuse the underlying moral wrong. I mean, I dunno about close. I've always thought it was a terrible practice that really should be avoided, especially when it's done just because you don't want to deal with it. But yeah, i'm closer to 50/50 on it than 90/10 if that's what you're asking. What do you mean by "ability to experience things?" When does that occur? Can you give a specific week or stage of development? Really if you want to nitpick i'd argue a 3 month old doesn't "experience things." I have no scientific basis here. Obviously this is just my opinion. But heart function is the general go to when deciding whether a human is alive or not. Brain function is too, but that's way more complex to analyze and we really don't have the capability to do that yet. Sure, albeit on an incredibly small scale. With weeds there's a factor (aesthetics) that overrides the moral wrong. Actions can't be more wrong than other wrongs?

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 11:23 AM) Killing in self defense isn't murder. And this isn't the topic. Your rape and incest exceptions don't make much sense. If your concern is protecting the unborn, then why would the method of conception matter? Technically it is, but we've provided an exception under are laws for self defense. Hence the analogy I was making. We make exceptions to moral questions all the time and it's still acceptable. Correct. See those are too arbitrary for me. Heart function, for humans, is the life or death ingredient, right? Why not just start there? If you stomped on a beautiful flower I would say it was wrong and it has nothing to do with pain or signs of life. There's something I consider to be a living being that is being ruined or harmed in some way. There are multiple definitions of miracle. I'm not saying it's based on some unexampled, unknowable divine act. It's a wonder. A marvel. An outstanding, extraordinary event. And it's not just the child, it's the whole process.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 11:23 AM) Abortions already represent a small fraction of the services that PP provides, and abortions when the pregnancy is far enough along to result in usable fetal tissues even less so. And exactly how much money do you think PP would be making on $75 or even the $100 the activists tried to push her to take? How many fetal tissue samples do they even process? If it's a dollar it's a dollar too much. And as Alpha said earlier, also illegal. She said that while nervously laughing or smiling though, which made it all the more suspicious to me when I watched it. I'm not discounting that the whole video was edited on purpose. But I saw enough of a string of conversation that wasn't edited to see that.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 08:48 AM) If Hillary wasn't there, there would be a much more open field. But really, this is the SuperPAC era. There aren't going to be many billionaires willing to turn against Hillary Clinton if she's the most obvious party standard bearer by funding an alternative candidate and if you don't have a billionaire to fund your campaign, you're facing such a huge headwind that you're outgunned. Both sides are dominated by the billionaire setup right now. 17 Republicans because there's no obvious standard bearer and 14 or so have billionaires who can keep their candidacy afloat, very few Democrats because there is an obvious standard bearer and the billionaires won't ignore that. You've forgotten Jim Webb and Jim Jeffords as officially declared candidates, for whatever that's worth (less than LaRoche against a lefty). Is this really true though? I mean, I know there's a lot of money spent out there, but if I'm a billionaire, wtf would I waste hundreds of millions on a candidate that (1) has no good shot at winning and (2) even if he/she does, there's no guarantee any meaningful legislation that benefits me would get enacted? I see very little benefit for doing so.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 10:59 AM) What does it even mean for PP to "push for more abortions?" How many abortions that they perform do you think end up with donated fetal tissue? Sort of like how doctors like to push for more serious surgeries/procedures because they get paid more for them than for conservative care. We know that happens, a lot. Again, hypothetically, if PP is making it a for-profit system, which I acknowledge you deny and there seems to be little evidence of (I have not really followed the story closely), then I would have an issue with that. I could see an overzealous PP manager pushing for abortions to get more money. Not saying it happens, just saying I can see an issue there. She could have easily stopped talking about it. Why are you even discussing that outside of an official meeting in a conference room when you have all the facts/figures in hand? And again, she never once said covering costs or recouping costs, at least that I can remember. The whole thing seemed off to me. She was playing along with him.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 10:59 AM) What is your basis for assuming that most people don't understand fetal development? I'm basing it on prior arguments I've had on the topic with a wide variety of people, many of whom have strong pro-choice opinions but know little to nothing about pregnancy and fetal development. Especially "younger" people.

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Aug 17, 2015 -> 10:48 AM) Rape/incest exceptions are the most baffling thing to me. If you oppose abortion because it kills a valuable life, then the method by which that life was formed (rape/invest vs consensual sex) is irrelevant. The position boils down to enforcing personal responsibility via pregnancy as a punishment. You got raped? Okay, that's not your fault, you can have an abortion. You had sex? Well, you should be stuck with that baby because you screwed up! So murder in pure self defense is still inexcusable? Morals don't have to be 100% consistent. There can be exceptions. I still don't LIKE it, but I think it's worse to force the mother to go through with the pregnancy given that situation, or you know, die because of it. A universal sign of life? Are you one of those people who don't think life exists until they're out of the womb? Go through the process, have some friends/family spend fortunes on it, read/watch some horror stories. Then report back.

1) Regarding PP, while they might not be harvesting/farming fetuses like a factory, the problem I have, if it's true they're selling this stuff for profit, is that in every sense that gives them motivation to push for more abortions. More abortions = more money = continued funding. Those videos might be all lies and bulls***, but it's still just bad PR for reps of PP to discuss sales like that, as if they're a commodity. Also, even if the videos are all spliced up, the manner in which the one lady is talking (I only watched the one video) doesn't make it seem like she's just wanting to recoup the costs of the procedure. She was negotiating. If she wanted to recoup costs she would have said "well, it costs us X, so that's what we'd be willing to sell them for. After all, we don't want to make a profit!" 2) Regarding abortion, I am against it in all forms except for cases of rape, incest and health and it has nothing to do with religion. To me it's just the right/wrong of it. The morning after pill i'm fine with. Even up to a few weeks later i'm ok with it. But early on, much earlier than most people think, actual organs are formed. Life is formed. I don't care about survivability outside of the womb. I don't care about not being conscious. When you start to have a heartbeat and electrical impulses, it's not just a random mass of cells. That, to me, is life. In high school and college I took the utilitarian approach: Hey, keep these babies around and think of the cost! But as I grew older, as I experienced my wife being pregnant and giving birth to our son, as I experienced friends of mine suffer for years to have children, as I experienced friends who just didn't want to have a kid yet go through with an abortion because it wasn't convenient for them to do so ("I haven't traveled much yet!"), the more and more I grew to really hate the practice. Having a kid is, quite literally, a miracle. So much has to go right. So much can go wrong. Seems like such a terrible practice if that miracle can actually happen.

QUOTE (juddling @ Aug 16, 2015 -> 06:23 AM) Watched The Kingsmen last night. It was a good Saturday night movie...though I wasn't so fond of Samuel L Jackson's character as much as I would have liked. His sidekick however....very nice I also watched it last night. I liked it. I enjoyed the little digs at other spy movies. The anal joke at the end was kinda weird but there were a few of those throughout.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Aug 15, 2015 -> 05:21 PM) I honestly think I, of all people, have more faith in Beckman than Grice at this point. Why? You can't fix/coach stupidity. And when you know the family and parents, and have the need, you can't really fault him for giving him another chance.

Seems a bit harsh when "policy proposals" are usually pie in the sky dreams that they have no hope or actual desire to see implemented. Demeanor is often a key characteristic. Does he/she look/act/sound "presidential" or not. Sure, basing it on that ALONE would be silly, but I don't see why that can't be factor or even a significant factor.

QUOTE (Brian @ Aug 14, 2015 -> 10:46 AM) I can die happy now. oh?

Maybe she was stuck on LSD during that blizzard?