whats today's rant?

[Twitchy]

I would rather be a citizen than a subject. I don't really like the idea of pledging allegiance to anything, but I'd rather it be my nation, a constitution, or an ideal, than a person.

I know little about life outside my own, but don't kids at school in the states swear allegiance to the flag every day? How would you feel if they swore allegiance to Obama or Bush who (it has to be said) were at least elected?

[keyboardlover]

That's a really good point. We pledge allegiance to a set of principles really more so than a singular person. Very interesting.

[Rajagra]

I would rather be a citizen than a subject. I don't really like the idea of pledging allegiance to anything, but I'd rather it be my nation, a constitution, or an ideal, than a person.

Here in the UK we don't have to pledge allegiance to anything. What's the deal with America making schoolkids pledge allegiance to their nation? Sounds like the kind of thing communists do.

Our Royal Family may be a vestigial remnant, like an appendix or the leftover bit of our monkey tails. But they are harmless and give us character.

[Twitchy]

Here in the UK we don't have to pledge allegiance to anything.

True, we don't have to, unless we join the armed forces, the police, the clergy, or all sorts of other public roles, and don't let me forget the scouts or girl guides (I kid you not). New British citizens/subjects have to as well I believe.

It may be a vestige, but a it's a remnant of something that was once about brutal subjugation. Something that I'd rather we cut all ties with.

[wellington1869]

But they are harmless and give us character.

thats what i'm sayin.

It may be a vestige, but a it's a remnant of something that was once about brutal subjugation. Something that I'd rather we cut all ties with.

but that was true all around the world before the advent of the modern democratic nation state. there's nothing special about the english monarchy in that regard. on the contrary, like the catholic church, they should be given some credit for coming to terms with modernity and scaling back their power. Look at all the institutions in the world (communism, islamism, to name two) that still refuse to do that.

[keyboardlover]

If the Queen of England tried to give me character, I think I'd politely refuse the offer. I like the fact that the English are polite.

[wellington1869]

i think the presence of a monarchy is also a guard against communism. everyone knows commies detest monarchies. for that reason alone we ought to keep a ceremonial monarch. just to piss off the commies.
you could write it in the constitution and say the monarch's official role is to piss off commies.

[EverythingIBM]

I hate PC architecture. Every time I boot, I wonder what's going to get ****ed up. It happens on every PC I've ever used. It might randomly miss the mouse on bootup - and I have to **** around finding a way to shut down and restart without mouse. It might boot with no sound card detected - or no graphics card - or no network card - or no USB. What a pile of crap!

On the Amiga, you never have these problems.

Never had any problem like that on my IBMs. My PC 300 6562 was actually the first IBM PC to sport USB.
And most of my IBM computers have ethernet lights, so, I can always see when a signal is being transferred.

In fact, in IBM BIOS you can allow the computer to run without a keyboard attached (or I think a mouse). Can't really do that with any other kind of computer with gutless BIOSes.

And it's very easy to "shut down/restart" a computer without a mouse.

[wellington1869]

That worked real well for Russia.

In Soviet Russia King puts sword on Comrade's shoulder, Comrade cuts King's head off.

but thats exactly what i mean. if you can maintain a monarchy, it means the commies havent yet taken over.

[keyboardlover]

but thats exactly what i mean. if you can maintain a monarchy, it means the commies havent yet taken over.

You seem to like monarchies a lot. I reccomend moving to one. I'm serious, go live in one of those countries for 1-3 years. See what you think and report back.

[wellington1869]

You seem to like monarchies a lot. I reccomend moving to one. I'm serious, go live in one of those countries for 1-3 years. See what you think and report back.

you mean like england? yea, i wouldnt mind that at all actually.

[keyboardlover]

It's very easy to say you like the concept of something, but you don't really know until you've experienced it. So, I say go for it; at least then you'll know.

[ch_123]

Say Welly, I think there are monarchies closer to home...



At least in England the simpleton children don't have any power.

[keyboardlover]

This is who has the power in Ireland:

[ch_123]

Clearly that man has collapsed from lack of monarchism!

[HaaTa]

You seem to like monarchies a lot. I reccomend moving to one. I'm serious, go live in one of those countries for 1-3 years. See what you think and report back.

Well, lived nearly all my life in a commonwealth country, and a year in Japan.

Technically, both monarchies. I still don't really care if they are there or not.
If anything, it provides an excuse to maintain the extravagant palaces they have (thus preserving historical buildings).

[wellington1869]

Say Welly, I think there are monarchies closer to home...

Show Image

At least in England the simpleton children don't have any power.

well, doesnt quite count since we've had regime change since then...

[Lanx]

i wish our regime change was actually this hardcore. I mean the way it's going, seems like the old guy whose gonna die and Milf woulda made better leaders, i mean hell she has been reported to be worth 2million, all in 2 years, that's a lot of growth@!!! i mean you can hate her all you want for sounding pretty stupid and spouting nonsense, but she's got the greenbacks, she knows her audience.

[wellington1869]

she does know her audience.

On another topic, gentlemen, I've once again rediscovered that its a crazy world and people in general are amazingly bat**** crazy. I don't know why this always surprises me as if I'm learning it for the first time. Probably because I'm an inveterate idealist and that will be my downfall, no doubt.

[ricercar]

the only place in California where I had real coffee was a community-run cafe called "Red Rock" (Mountain Dew, IIRC)

You mean Mountain View, California, I think? My band's played there. Lousy acoustics; great coffee.

[msiegel]

bat**** crazy

and paranoid <_<

[woody]

You mean Mountain View, California, I think? My band's played there. Lousy acoustics; great coffee.

My lousy attempt at word play == PHAIL.

Yes, great coffee. How could this place be community-run, and offer real coffee cheaply and free internet. Starbucks my rear end.

[maclover]

argh

[wellington1869]

today's rant: so someone explain this to me: airline passengers are REFUSING body pat downs and scans? What, DO THEY *WANT* TO DIE IN A HIJACKING?

what the **** is wrong with american citizens?  

If you ask me, all this 'rebelling agains tthe TSA" (which must be causing al queda to ROLL ON THE FLOOR, LAUGHING, and thanking their lucky stars that the ordinary american citizen wants to make the terrorists' job EASIER), all this rebelling against the TSA is just part of the MINDLESS, VACUOUS, rebelling against 'big guv'ment' that Fox news championed. Here its coming back to bite them in the ass.

[keyboardlover]

Have you seen the pat downs? They remind me WAY too much of my last physical.

I wonder if they ask you to turn your head and cough?

[RoboKrikit]

Have you seen the latest about airline passengers refusing the anal probe? Why do they hate America?

[Fwiffo]

today's rant: so someone explain this to me: airline passengers are REFUSING body pat downs and scans? What, DO THEY *WANT* TO DIE IN A HIJACKING?

You're more likely to be struck by lightning. Twice.

Seriously, it's about time people started to fight back against this bull****. Everyone was perfectly happy when their phones and Internet connections were being tapped without warrants or oversight, US citizens were being held without charges or access to council, wedding parties were being bombed in Pakistan, but when somebody grabs their junk, that's what crosses the line.

Of course when the TSA defends the policy, they bring up completely stupid examples that have nothing to do with my safety. How does it make ME safer to find drugs on some other passenger? How would it have endangered me if that passenger had completed the flight with dope in his pants?

As usual, anti-terrorism efforts are just an excuse to expand the pointless war on drugs.

If a terrorist wanted to kill a lot of people these days, why bother with an airplane? Why not blow up a shopping mall, or a crowd in Time's square? No metal detectors at either of those locations, you could bring a completely ordinary bomb, poison gas device, whatever, and wouldn't have to come up with a fancy toothpaste/underwear/shoebomb.

[wellington1869]

interesting. i see there are people on this very forum who WANT to be suicide bomb fodder.
be a sacrificial lamb on your own time, dont take me with you. if you refuse a pat down i'm not getting on a plane with you, sorry.  and nor should the tsa let you on.
morons.

[keyboardlover]

As usual, your post is highly relevant and intellectually thought-provoking.

...riveting, even.

[wellington1869]

Took the words out of my mouth...
Had a pseudo-argument in IRC last night about this exact topic.

srsly.

if they dont get patted, they dont fly. If the tsa backs down on this, i'll consider my guv'ment to have failed me.

[Fwiffo]

Seriously, it's all security theater. It's not making you safer, just keeping you afraid.

Being killed by a terrorist on an airplane is one of the least likely ways to die. 40,000+ people are killed every year in car accidents, but we don't have a collective crazed freak-out about that. We don't put breathalysers in every car. We don't have a panic attack and subject ourselves to cavity searches every time we get in a car. Compared to being killed by a terrorist, you're more likely to die from the seasonal flu, or falling off a bike, or being bit by a snake, or being struck by lightning, or accidentally shooting yourself. Yes, they're all things that we take completely reasonable precautions around, but we don't change the way we live.

The amount of fear surrounding terrorism and airplanes is unreasonable and irrational.

[keyboardlover]

IMO, it's one thing if they want to use some device to see if we have bombs in our underpants, but it's another to put us on a screen that shows us completely nude (I dare you to do it and say it doesn't remove some part of your dignity) or subject us to forced hernia checks.

Maybe it's just me, but that's not my definition of 'peace of mind'.

[RoboKrikit]

I've been patted down at the airport several times. It was not much different than being patted down at a club or bar, with the exception of going a little higher in the crotch.

These new procedures for people who opt to not pass through the backscatter machines are not the same as a routine pat down.

[Fwiffo]

I sure feel safer!

[wellington1869]

I sure feel safer!

um, how uninformed can you be? You do know, dont you, that they even stuffed a DOG with explosives?
If someone like you saw a dog going thru the TSA's scanner, you'd be "outraged", i'm sure. You'd mock it. Guess what, the plane would have blown up.
I'm ****ing grateful YOU are not in charge of our security.
The only reason they found out about the dog was because it died while sitting in its wire cage - cuz it was stuffed full of explosives by terrorists.

And guess what, if they DIDNT search everyone equally (whether children or old ladies), YOU'd be the FIRST to start SCREAMING about "profiling". You should be grateful they're searching everyone equally.

You're exactly the kind of person who is NOT helping in ANY way, with your contradictions and your fake 'outrages'.  At least try to be consistent for gods sake.

[keyboardlover]

Do you even discuss keyboards on this forum anymore?

[Lanx]

if i ever had family that required traveling on a holiday i'd say f that. Why? cuz of the TSA. i remember going through the airport scanner and it beeped and i said oh yea, i had a few more cents in my pocket. Had to strip down to my t-shirt cuz i was wearing a hoodie (i like to sleep on planes and when i do, i put the hoodie over me so my head doesn't go rubbing against the nasty airline headrest).
i mean TSA really is a bunch of ppl who only have GED's right? but we give them power, just like police. Now i'm not saying police become officers just to wave their badge around but i'm sure that's part of it. So why would you want to be TSA? well cuz you don't have a job, it pays well and a government job at that. Oh and they have a 100% failure rate too, cuz they've caught no one and are pedo's and make little kids with the same names as suspects wait to clear their name everytime they fly.
You know the story little kids who were born after 9-11 are on the terrorist watch list cuz they have the same name as someone else. So what do moms do, they put the ticket as a different name for i.e.
if the kid is named michael dugan. she'll just put on the ticket
mike dugan and that will 100% go through without trouble.
gee what a smart mom and dumb system, also why is she travelling so much with her kid? i think i flew for the first time when i was 12 then when i was 29... so like why do 5year olds have to travel so much anyway?

[Lanx]

um, how uninformed can you be? You do know, dont you, that they even stuffed a DOG with explosives?
If someone like you saw a dog going thru the TSA's scanner, you'd be "outraged", i'm sure. You'd mock it. Guess what, the plane would have blown up.
I'm ****ing grateful YOU are not in charge of our security.
The only reason they found out about the dog was because it died while sitting in its wire cage - cuz it was stuffed full of explosives by terrorists.

And guess what, if they DIDNT search everyone equally (whether children or old ladies), YOU'd be the FIRST to start SCREAMING about "profiling". You should be grateful they're searching everyone equally.

You're exactly the kind of person who is NOT helping in ANY way, with your contradictions and your fake 'outrages'.  At least try to be consistent for gods sake.

seriously? your arguing that these TSA fools aren't PEDO's? this is just TSA for dummies, they search every and all ppls. it's like zero tolerance at school, kids can't bring in a butter knife to school to cut their birthday cake.

We should instead have profiling. Not racial profiling but like trained govenment profiling.
"Oh look that white guy looks jittery, he fits the profile of tim mcvahe"
I'd agree to that.
"oh he's wearing full muslim garb, well if he's really a terrorist he'd actually try to blend in, instead duh! lemme go find the jihad mtherf'er wearing a yankee's jersey"

[keyboardlover]

For those unfamiliar with Welly, he's a big baby/whiner. Off Topic is pretty much his soapbox to complain about how rotten the world is. He hardly ever posts in other parts of the forum. You can feed the troll, ignore, or post funny pics for the lulz. Personally, I liked the Pedo bear one

[Fwiffo]

um, how uninformed can you be? You do know, dont you, that they even stuffed a DOG with explosives?

It happened in the middle of a war zone, half-way around the world. I think it would have been on the news if a plane had been taken down by an exploding dog. There are also bomb-sniffing dogs and explosive sniffing machines all over airports, so sexually assaulting passengers is not necessary, nor effective.

If the guy is a suicide bomber, and really wants to get explosives past security, why not stuff THEMSELVES full of explosives? Or stuff their kid full of explosives. Are we going to subject ourselves to body cavity searches to prevent butt-plug bombers?

[wellington1869]

It happened in the middle of a war zone, half-way around the world. I think it would have been on the news if a plane had been taken down by an exploding dog. There are also bomb-sniffing dogs and explosive sniffing machines all over airports, so sexually assaulting passengers is not necessary, nor effective.

dude, more uninformedness from you, if you are not aware of all the cells and plots that have already been discovered in the heart of western democracies, in the US (chicago, minneapolis, new york, florida, arizona) to european capitals as well (most recently berlin).  How bizarre that you'd approve of searches in middle eastern countries and not in the west, when terrorism today is a global phenomenon. It almost sounds like you're profiling middle eastern countries. And thats just sick.

If the guy is a suicide bomber, and really wants to get explosives past security, why not stuff THEMSELVES full of explosives? Or stuff their kid full of explosives. Are we going to subject ourselves to body cavity searches to prevent butt-plug bombers?

um, thats what the scans are for, Einstein.

[wellington1869]

For those unfamiliar with Welly, he's a big baby/whiner. Off Topic is pretty much his soapbox to complain about how rotten the world is. He hardly ever posts in other parts of the forum. You can feed the troll, ignore, or post funny pics for the lulz. Personally, I liked the Pedo bear one

haha! I love newbies (and trolls) coming on this site and trying to characterize me as evil. (and themselves as the voice of reason -lol. Good one.)

as usual, keyb, you're dying to make this about ME.  Cuz you dont like logic and reason much.

[RoboKrikit]

There is only one logical end to a Rant thread.

Show Image

Fingerbang your head with a heartagram tie on.

[RoboKrikit]

If the guy is a suicide bomber, and really wants to get explosives past security, why not stuff THEMSELVES full of explosives? Or stuff their kid full of explosives. Are we going to subject ourselves to body cavity searches to prevent butt-plug bombers?

um, thats what the scans are for, Einstein.

Solution:

1. Stuff butt full of explosives.
2. Opt out of backscatter scan.
3. Get balls touched.
4. Prophet.

[keyboardlover]

Welly, if you're not a troll and other people are, why is it that you only spam the Off Topic part of the forum and don't actually discuss anything useful about keyboards, ever?

****in' logic! How does it work?

[RoboKrikit]

[Fwiffo]

LOL, you don't even know what the new devices are for. The new scanners CAN'T detect things inside your body. They can only detect objects you're carrying near the surface of your body. And since you can opt out of the scan and go for a pat-down instead, you could avoid them even if they could see explosives hidden in a body cavity.

You won't be happy until we live in a police state. Would you submit to body cavity searches? Would you accept new rules that prevent you from carrying any electronic devices in your carry-on? Rules that prevent you from carrying prescription drugs? From having any carry-on at all? Would you submit to being shackled while you fly?

If not, then the only difference for you is where you draw the line.

[wellington1869]

Welly, if you're not a troll and other people are, why is it that you only spam the Off Topic part of the forum and don't actually discuss anything useful about keyboards, ever?

****in' logic! How does it work?

its called off-topic for a reason, genius.

[wellington1869]

LOL, you don't even know what the new devices are for. The new scanners CAN'T detect things inside your body. They can only detect objects you're carrying near the surface of your body. And since you can opt out of the scan and go for a pat-down instead, you could avoid them even if they could see explosives hidden in a body cavity.

You won't be happy until we live in a police state. Would you submit to body cavity searches? Would you accept new rules that prevent you from carrying any electronic devices in your carry-on? Rules that prevent you from carrying prescription drugs? From having any carry-on at all? Would you submit to being shackled while you fly?

If not, then the only difference for you is where you draw the line.

dude, have you even seen the new xray machines? They can tell how big your penis is.  Thats whats got people in a huff. And yea, it'll definitely tell whats hidden inside your body.  The thing that people are worried about is that their nekid pics are going to wind up on the internet. Thats a legitimate concern and should be addressed - and thats the solution, not getting rid of the scans altogether.

You wont be happy until we have another attack and then you'll figure out a way to blame US for it.  Typical.  And totally unhelpful.

[Fwiffo]

dude, have you even seen the new xray machines? They can tell how big your penis is. Thats whats got people in a huff. And yea, it'll definitely tell whats hidden inside your body.

No they cannot see inside of you. The whole point of backscatter x-rays and what makes them different from regular x-rays (and the part they're using to claim that they're safe) is that they pass through clothing but bounce off of skin. If they could see through your skin, they would show your internal bits, instead of your naked body. And again, even if they DID show objects inside your body, they'd still be useless because you can opt for a pat-down instead.

You didn't answer my question. If they told you it'd be safer if you had no carry-on, or you were body-cavity searched, or flew shackled, would you do it?

Can you feel the freedom?

Sawyer is a bladder cancer survivor who now wears a urostomy bag, which collects his urine from a stoma, or opening in his abdomen. An msnbc.com story on Saturday detailed Sawyer's Nov. 7 experience flying from Detroit Metropolitan Airport to Orlando, Fla., to attend a wedding. Sawyer said he was ‘humiliated’ after an enhanced pat-down procedure broke the seal on his urostomy bag and left him soaked in urine.

He said he tried to warn the security officer that “he would hit the bag and break the seal on my bag, but he ignored me. Sure enough, the seal was broken and urine started dribbling down my shirt and my leg and into my pants.”