ssgman's Comments (50)

“Sure. And also simplistic and unrealistic in the broad view of history. I wish with all my heart it were that simple. If it were, we wouldn't be on this road right now.”

“One cigarette of pot does as much damage to one's lungs as a pack of cigarette. Do you think that a pack of cigarettes a day doesn't contribute to being unhealthy or disease? It does. Besides, I saw quite a few people seriously injured in automobile accidents caused by someone who was stoned.

I am saying it is a problem, no doubt about it, but Bill just pathologically dislikes heavy people for some reason and he shouldn't be the first one to throw stones with some of the behavor he readily admits to doing.

The problem is that many people who have terribly destructive, and unhealthy, behavior are not ridiculted because they are thin. Most meth heads are terribly thin.”

“I think the EFF would have issues with "smart" routers sniffing public communications and deciding, based on whatever heuristics, algorithms or rulesets are in place, that it should defer the communication stream and then ask the receiving server if these communications are warranted or safe. Ultimately its up to the admin of the DMZ of the receiving server to set those safeguards in place or watch.

Its almost like having a roadblock at every intersection asking every driver if they intend to commit a crime against any person or business between there and the next intersection and roadblock where the challenge is once again issued.”

“Thanks to Google, the Internet is now just one big NSA database.”

“Didn't you ever wonder why performance enhancement is a problem in professional sports? It's because employment, continued or otherwise, is based solely on performance, no matter what Rush Limbaugh thinks of Donovan McNabb. A Major League Baseball team is 25 players--how many of those slots are already filled by guys under contract when they hold open tryouts each year? Further, National Football League contracts are not guaranteed, so how much harder do you have to perform to keep your job? And all this is before the simple fact that a professional athlete is essentially unemployable at the age of 40.”

“But shouldn't somebody point out when he was lying?

What about the host of the show?

Does CNN just put people out there with no responsibility to make sure that what they say is factual?

They could have a whole other show just doing factual corrections. In fact, I bet it's ratings would soar.”

“Okay, I agree with most of the points here, but I don't know how much thinner anyone would be, especially consuming a whole box of ding dongs after getting a major case of the munchies....

On that note, if I were an executive at 7-11, I would be POURING as much cash as possible into the pot legalization effort.”

“Over a forty-year period I may have met only a few pot dealers who sold other drugs and if they did it was an hallucinogen like mushrooms.

This is a corollary to the "gateway" crap we've been shoveled for years and it still doesn't stick, sorry.”

“[The biggest reason that pot can "lead to other drugs" is because it's illegal and the same people who sell pot also sell pills, meth, LSD, heroin, etc.]

____________

I respect your opinion but for years my brother did nothing but pot. He is my younger brother and we had always been very close and spent hours talking about life, society etc. His head was in the right place.

He was one of the first in our small town to have long hair. Needless to society judged him harshly to the point where he was being threatened on a daily basis and called names you wouldn't believe. That's when he started smoking pot, to zone out the hate.

Over time he stopped caring about his personal hygiene, his thought process was altered by all the pot and societies treatment of him. He failed at marriage, he failed at life. He left the state. The rest is anyone's guess.”

“Follow the money. You'll be surprised where the trillions ended up - in the hands of local home builders, local developers, local mortgage originators, local realtors, etc.

When Wall Street bought the mortgage and securitized, all those local folks got paid off in full. When the new homeowner stopped paying the mortgage, Wall Street stopped getting their money back. When they stopped getting their money back, investors stopped buying the MBSs. When the investors stopped buying the MBSs, Wall Street was screwed.”

“no solutions - just complain, complain and complain - just like the repubs and their invisible/nonsensible budget proposal -”

“I disagree with you. I am a French canadian and I love her music. I have both her CDs but prefer the first one which is in French. She writes beautiful lyrics and french singers very often have this type of voice like a whisper. Vanessa Paradis, Jane Birkin are others like her. That is typical of french music.”

“It is tough when people have never travelled. Have you heard any of the indigenous French music played on American radio? No, because its ghastly based on our standards for pop music. You do hear work from people of color living in France, including Africans, etc which is much different than traditional French pop? French pop could never survive in America...that is why you never hear of a French singer making a career in America. I guess the best way to describe French music industry...is that these people adore the comedy of Jerry Lewis...who in small doses is brilliant, but they adore his crazy zany behavior and it says much about how they think of music.

Carla can sing in the way that Europeans like their music. They also love American music...but in the 80's when I was living there, they put a ban on allowing American music to be selected as part of their top ten list. AT one point nearly the whole list was made up of American hits.”

“What's wrong are clowns with no personality and huge voices, songs are supposed to convey emotions, composer like her don't have to push notes they transmit their universe”

“ssgman,

defining art is an idiot's bid. Her voice is actually beautiful to many people - who gives a rat's ass if she doesn't include obligatory grace notes everywhere.

Her albums are decent and make for good reading music (for me at least). Can't care less about her looks - i just enjoy her music. Oh, and criticizing GCD is inane. Your notion that one can measure 'talent' or musical worthiness based on chord sequences or vocal style is absurd.

FWIW, there doesn't need to be "a lot more to music". I enjoy prokofiev or keith jarrett now and then - but there is simply nothing wrong w/ an original sounding GCD song - like Mrs Bruni's song. Good Day.”

“I think she's wonderful, and the three million albums she has sold attest to that !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74Q_7NgTaq8”

“No, nationalizing them is not quite the same as bankruptcy. If the banks are nationalized they will be owned and operated by the state. If they file for bankruptcy they will either be liquidated or protected from their debtors for a period but they will not be owned by the state.

The banks that are nationalized will be operating in direct comptetition with private banks and may be far more willing to lend money ( a competitive advantage).”