Jenksismyhero

Wow, the two Gravity trailers are crazy intense. That movie is going to be awesome at the IMAX.

The shoulder pads one is great.

QUOTE (farmteam @ Jul 24, 2013 -> 11:24 PM) The Bridge is moving along. Still liking it. I gave it two episodes and I think i'm out. Not a story I can get engaged in, even though it is well written and acted.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jul 25, 2013 -> 09:41 AM) Nerd - time. I downloaded a post-draft roster from 2kshare, and then made every deal/signing since then, for NBA 2k13. Welcome to NBA 2k14 - with less Pelicans. I played the first game last night, and it made me realize that the Bulls do have a fair amount of shooters surrounding D-Rose. If they sign Camby, they could be legitimately ridiculous. Oh yeah, and D-Rose went for 31 points, 19 dimes, and 9 boards, which was fun. So, basically a white guy hitting a lot of three pointers in practice?

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 25, 2013 -> 08:42 AM) Google Chromecast. Looks sweet. http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-media-rece...7-35823617.html They have the same technology built into Samsung TV's and the PS3, at least for Youtube. It's really cool and works flawlessly. For $35 bucks, this probably kills a lot of the "smart TV" mark-up.

Congrats to all! My little guy just turned one a month ago, so to all you new dads, have fun! The first year both sucks and is awesome at the same time.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 23, 2013 -> 08:11 PM) My point had nothing to do with race Sorry, just playing the role of Balta/SS. Here's a good article on upward mobility: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/...2136877,00.html The main factor? Early childhood education. I buy that.

QUOTE (Y2HH @ Jul 23, 2013 -> 07:49 PM) I don't agree. I progressed "class wise", so did you, did you not? How did WE manage to do it if it's so impossible? White upward mobility doesn't count.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Jul 23, 2013 -> 03:49 PM) I dont think its about what is a "bigger" issue. I think its about "What issues can I conceivably make an impact on at this current time." Right now the tide is going towards allowing more guns on the street (Illinois just passed CC), what am I supposed to do, bang my head against the wall and hope that I can somehow break it down? There are battles and there are wars. Today what I believe in is losing the battle, so sometimes you take a step back and wait for the consequences. Maybe CC will drop the crime rate, maybe it will do everything the supporters promise. Maybe Ill be right and it will be worse. Who knows, but right now there isnt really a huge amount of support for the position, so instead of fighting about things that are seemingly losers, Id rather focus my time on something that maybe possible to change. Its not like I care anymore or less, its just simply allocating resources to accomplish goals. With CC laws on the books in every state, fire-arm deaths have been declining over the last ten years. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/FIREARM_...DEATH_RATES.pdf Not sure why you'd think it'll make things worse.

It still makes zero sense when you consider the medical community says you're fine to play and you're not at a greater risk for re-injury.

QUOTE (illinilaw08 @ Jul 23, 2013 -> 11:29 AM) http://www.forbes.com/sites/janetnovack/20...mps-and-reality Forbes discusses the McDonalds budget. Basically, the column says that the minimum wage brings less purchasing power than it did when first instituted. Goes on to say that the gap is actually covered by federal programs (food stamps, welfare, etc.) which programs, in a way, actually are subsidies to low wage employers like McDonalds and Wal-Mart (they pay less for the same labor). Interesting column. As to your other point, I do a lot of bankruptcy work, both on the creditor side and on the debtor side. People who go "broke" making $45k or $100k per year are at least able to pay for neccessities (rent, food, heat) while making their poor decisions that push them into bankruptcy. Then, there are a class of people who literally cannot afford to file a bankruptcy because their income is so meager. The point here is twofold: First, is there a societal obligation to help those at the bottom attain the basic necessities (food, clothing, shelter). I argue that there is because, if people can afford the necessities, in theory, crime goes down, property values go up (panhandlers and the homeless are... not great for property values). What mechanism you use to get there, I'm open to suggestion. Second, do businesses have a moral obligation to their employees? There have been articles recently discussing how Costco is destroying Sam's Club because, by actually paying their employees well, their employees are loyal, happy and productive. Finally, I hate the attitude that "because I went through something crappy, other people should go through it as well." Partners at law firms who were treated like crap as associates are more likely to treat associates like crap themselves. It's admirable that Y2HH worked extremely hard to achieve his success. And there are plenty of others like that on this board. But would you have achieved success if Osco or Dunkin paid you better? Yeah, you still would have. And that success would have ultimately been easier to achieve (based on your description above of working two jobs while in school) if you only had to work one job to make ends meet, or working two jobs allowed you to afford something more reliable than public trans. The goal should be to make that success, to make the ability to improve your circumstances, easier and not harder. Hang on, I need a second to get off my soapbox... The "in theory" is important there. The more money you give people, the longer they hold their hand out waiting for more.

What happened this time?

Anyone else catch Lawless? Beautifully shot movie with great acting, but a s*** script. There was a good story there, but they couldn't find it. Reminded me a lot of the recent Assassination of Jesse James movie in that it was so awesome to watch even though the plot was a bit slow. TAOJJBTCRF was much, much better though.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 03:50 PM) That is nice but it's just a fig leaf very often. (Someone criticizing the Patriot Act would say the same thing) Except that, again, you can prove the lack of reasonable suspicion. When your s*** is being taped without your knowledge, you don't really have a say in the matter.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 03:45 PM) I read this and thought "I can't tell which one is supposed to have the reasonable suspicion and which one is supposed to have nothing at all". Is that defending the patriot act or stop and frisk? I literally cannot tell. Not really defending either, but S-A-F requires some kind of reasonable suspicion. Patriot Act requires some national security threat. IMO it's easier to prove there was no reasonable suspicion, so I don't think they're really the same.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 03:35 PM) I'm sure there's a pretty substantial cross-section of people in this country support stuff like stop-and-frisk but they will freak the f*** out about electronic surveillance and the Patriot Act (which actually have far less direct impact on your life individually). Kinda sucks when that shoe is on your foot right? (I didn't name anyone's name on purpose, but a dog tends to holler when it's hit and so on.) The difference is that with one you're required to have a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity or possible criminal activity, and in the other you have nothing at all.

OMG EVERYONE! Kate delivered her baby vaginally! I was so worried!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, wtf. That information was a breaking news headline on CNN.com.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 03:24 PM) Crime up after Stop and Frisks Decline Give me a link to Slate or The Atlantic or the study didn't happen.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 03:16 PM) Some sort of study that comes to that conclusion. Every one that I know of comes to the opposite conclusion. In the meantime, we stop enacting racist policies like S-A-F. That's it. I don't need an alternative beyond that in order to criticize S-A-F. We aren't facing some crime epidemic (we're at 50-year lows), but when you increasingly target a certain community for policing, it means more marginalization, more incarceration and that means more poverty. S-A-F makes things worse now and in the future. There are volumes of writings on this out there and I won't pretend that I, personally, know the sure-path forward. But that doesn't mean I can't tell when we're heading in the wrong direction. tl;dr we stop smashing our hands with the hammer and then we worry about fixing the broken bones. I'd consider a murder a day plus in the City of Chicago a "crime epidemic. The 50 year low stuff is just nonsense. Crime is still a problem. A big problem.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/george-zimmerman-...new?id=19735432

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 02:24 PM) Because YOU sir are not a member of the aggrieved class, not have you admitted your white guilt and renounced your white privilege, so your opinion means nothing unless you can back it up with facts that answer questions not even originally asked due to constantly moving goal posts and race card playing. (make all that text half green) Yeah I agree. Shack, just admit you're a member of the privileged white majority (i.e., a filthy racist). Then we can have a REAL discussion about race in America and how it's all the GOP's fault.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 12:10 PM) Ok, even if we buy into your Randian logic, you're still sort of missing why this was so ridiculous. $0/month for heating. To be slightly more fair to the moronic list they put out, I read over the weekend that those numbers were based on actual figures provided by McDonalds workers. It's not like they just made them up. And some of the categories/numbers do not represent what people are saying the represent. The incomes, for example, were after-tax and after-benefit deductions. The 2nd income was meant to be either a 2nd job or a spouses income from their job. Health costs were co-pays, not insurance. I don't remember if they explained the $0 for heat, since that's obviously dumb, but maybe it was directed to a McDonald's franchise group located in a place where you don't need heat. IMO the problem wasn't the list but of the purpose behind the list - trying to argue that a McDonald's job is a career job. Duke, despite being a bit over the top, is 100% correct that burger flippers at McDonald's shouldn't expect to get a large salary and benefits for doing a menial job. McDonald's jobs are meant for high schoolers, not 50 year olds. Unless you're on the management track you really don't have any business complaining about your pay. Go find a better job if you have a mortgage, 2 kids and a car to pay for.

QUOTE (farmteam @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 12:45 PM) Yeah, thrown together is a good way to put it. I'm still enjoying it though, so I'll stick with it. First two episodes of this season of the Newsroom have been great. And how about that ending to True Blood? That show has gotten so bad. Just kill everyone (Sookie included) except for Eric and his clan and write the show around that.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 22, 2013 -> 10:36 AM) I don't think objection to "stop and frisk" is really limited to the far left - you can't tell me there's not an easy-to-see line between "common sense" which is knowing the suspect of a crime is probably black and the police responding accordingly, and treating every black person you see like they're a potential criminal. The latter is an invitation to all sorts of court-sanctioned f***ery. Yeah the stop and frisk rules go too far.

Interestingly the news media refuses to include race descriptions in stories for fear of exactly what he's talking about. From this weekend: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/b...,0,770857.story