Watermonkey

Wow! I don't know where this topic has been all this time! I was thrust in front of a piano at an early age and resented the hell out of it. But the evil adults kept making me take lessons and the teachers kept teaching me even though they knew I wasn't interested. In middle school I took up violin. That wasn't nearly as bad as piano until the nice good teacher was replaced by the evil mean teacher who yelled at the class a lot. I quit. Not a year later, I took up choir. Yes, voice is an instrument and takes just as much work to get good at as anything else. I sang in choirs from then to my second year in college. During my high school years and Jr. too, I picked up the clarinet. I didn't really like it much, but it beat study hall and kept me from having to spend any more time then necessary with the evil at home, so I went with it for a couple years. Funny thing is, as much as I hated piano and music theory and all that, I decided the thing to do was to torture myself in college. I decided to major in the most difficult thing possible, the one thing I hated and loved the most. I majored in Music in college and thank the gods I had a PhD professor. I don't know how I'd have survived if I didn't have Mrs. Gloria Swisher as my music professor for the majority of those music theory classes. Before going to the school over in Seattle, I decided to pick up guitar back home in MT and even took a couple classes at the local college. Now I've got a 12-string Ovation that I really love to play, though I confess I haven't played it in a while. I married into music too. My wife used to be a performing musician with a four year music degree (she still has the degree). She hung it all up a few years back too. We've still got a bunch of her old music gear, heck one of her keyboards (she sold the other on eBay a couple months ago) is on a stand right next to my desk here plugged in and ready to go. Go where, I've no idea since I can't even play keyboard anymore. I tried a couple weeks ago. Couldn't remember a thing! All that school, just to go into debt and prove to myself I could carry something difficult like that through to completion... gone. Wasted. I don't sing anymore. I rarely play the guitar any more. Now, I just listen to MP3s on the professional studio monitors that hover above my laptop on my desk...

I can't believe someone is actually complaining that the Trap has too many topics to post on. I think you should take this dire issue up with OpaQue so he knows he's been moving in the wrong direction all this time! I mean, it's completely pointless to have too many choices.

Avoid more than a glass of wine a day. Alcohol, in any greater quantity, leaches your body of minerals and vitamins. Learn to swim. I don't know if it's the neutralizing effect of gravity while you're in the water or what, but I've noticed people who swim often grow taller. Eat whole food. If you don't know what whole food is, look it up. It's important for your body to get calcium and other minerals from plants, not cow's. Avoid Sodium Fluoride, it causes osteo-florosis which is a brittling of the bones and can lead to serious bone problems down the road. Juice isn't good for you unless fresh squeezed from a live fruit. Otherwise it's just sugarwater. Avoid all sugarwater at all cost! Drink (unfluoridated) water when you're thirsty. If you're really dehydrated an occasional Gatoraid isn't going to hurt. It's got High Fructose Corn Syrup in it, though, and your body doesn't know how to process it. Since it's not natural, it's therefor bad for you. Stay away from things that are bad for you and you'll maximize your growth potential and you'll end up as nature (or God) intended. Good luck.

Of course it's wrong of you to laugh. This is America! It's wrong of you to do anything that might offend someone... Sit down and take another toke while I attempt to unravel this mystery for you...He's identified the two women by their pigment content and various facial features for a couple reasons: First, if you are asked by two black women with strong Ethiopian accents to hand them $4000 for their check in the amount of $4100, you should run away fast, or knock them to the ground immediately and make a citizen's arrest. A third option I bet he's considered since this all happened, is take their check, go into the bank, call the police and have them meet him there, and let them make the arrest. Obviously, white European-American women would never commit such a blatant felonious crime against another cracker, so it's important to identify these two scam artists as black. Furthermore, since America continues to be obsessed with pigment and other superficial features, there's really no other way to identify them is there? And really, who's the real "racists" here? I mean, these two hooligans went after a white male for their scam, not another brother! He's got every right to identify them by their skin color! It's not his fault they're bringing their entire sub-culture down with their nefarious deeds...

Need to know what hardware you're running to really recommend the correct OS version. I'm running OS 10.4.9, but you can't run that version on many macs... You're obviously running a PPC chip, but which one? G3, G4??? I'm guessing it's a G3 in which case you'll want to load up on RAM to max and increase your HD capacity to at least 40GB, I'd recommend 80. Once you've gotten those two things out of the way, you should be able to find a cheap used OS 10.2 or so on eBay or even look at garage sales or Craig's list (post a wanted: OSX 10.2.x ad and see what responses you get). Get a lawnmowing job or something that pays pretty well and save up your money. You'll be able to upgrade that computer in no time!

What the hell is "emo"? When someone is a danger to themselves or to society, there is usually somewhere you can take them like a mental hospital or psychologist to get them the help in counseling they need. But, sadly (sometimes), there really is no way to help someone who doesn't first recognize their is a problem, and second, they need to actually want help to solve the problem. Mermaid brings up the point that pain releases chemicals from the brain that gives the feeling of euphoria and that feeling is addictive. It's possible that there's an addiction there that could lead to other more destructive tendencies and ultimately could lead to real injury or death. If you can't bring them to see that what they're doing is a problem, I'd get as far away from them as possible, unless you have a morbid fascination with seeing people kill themselves. In that case, bring a camera with you every time you visit because one of those times, you'll be visiting a dead body and you'll definitely want to take some pictures to share with all your morbid friends.You might also suggest to them that sometimes playing hard like bicycling or running, swimming, whatever releases the same endorphines without the scarring... That's an addiction that might actually be a good thing!

describe the hardware typomage. I hope you bought a Mac that can be upgraded in to the OSX world because no one, not even Apple, supports anything older then that! My old Mac finally died so that wasn't an issue for me, but had it lived I still would've been forced to replace either it or at least the small HD and OS. And that was a couple years ago. It was (still is) a G3 Powerbook 400 (Lombard).

You're in middle school and you've got a classmate who's had a baby? Wow! Make sure you stand by your guns as it were and tell that governor Perry where to stick it when they come trying to stick needles in you! I'm glad you're already aware of the charade. Stay WAY away from fluoride too. It's in many (most?) food products that contain water and it's in many dental hygiene products as well. I've been meaning to type up a thread on those dangers too. Keep an eye out in the "What is" forum in the coming days.

I haven't read it yet, but I might have to now that I know it exists... All I want to know, though, is is it written to be made into a screenplay sequel the first two movies? I'm really hoping they can continue on a seriously high quality franchise on the big screen...

Do you have something to say about this? Does it gross you out, shock you? What was the context of the event, was it staged or planned or did it happen spontaneously? We'd like a little more involvement from you when you start a topic. There must be something more informative for you to write about it. How about editing your post and adding what you know about the event and how you feel about it.I don't really know the context so I can't really say I felt anything. Some dude falls from a high building and it looks as though he might have some cuts and bruises from the fall, but I doubt it was lethal. There are worse things. Why did this happen during the Iranian president's appearance? It almost looks like a failed attempt on his life or something...

I'm afraid I'm listening to The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg by Iron Maiden. I know, it's SO 80's! It's kinda new to me though. I never really listened to Maiden much if at all growing up in the 80's so I'm discovering them now. I've got something like 14.17 GB of music on my hard drive and none of it is Green Day!

Ebay has anti-firearms restrictions already, and I wish they didn't. You're insinuating that just since the merchandise was bought and sold on eBay, they're somehow liable? That's absurd! If I sell someone a magazine, I'm not assisting that person in their commission of a crime!

You forgot one important date: Source here (Especially referring to the weapons the colonists owned for defense.) Thus began the Revolutionary War. So, you'll just have to understand that many of us still know the history of this once-great country and we understand that when "they" come for our guns, it can only mean "they" intend to enslave us. Not paranoia, simple history.

First of all, the rules you listed are not federal (with the exception of the age restriction for purchase), they're given to individual municipalities and states so there is a lot of variation. Second, you do not have to have a license to own a gun in all but a few places in the United States. You need a license in most states (Alaska, except for Anchorage, and Vermont are exceptions where no license is needed) to carry a concealed firearm, but since these "kids" were all over the age of 18, they were all eligible to obtain a conceal carry permit. The process is different for different states, but mostly, you need to prove by being former military or by taking a class you know how to handle and operate the firearm in a safe and proficient manner while being mindful of the law in the case you actually have to use it for protection of life or the life of another. Second, your identity is checked against NICS (FBI) data base for several things that change with the mood of congress but it's pretty thorough and it's intended to deny several classes of people from legally carrying their firearms concealed. Not entirely true either. At the University I used to attend concealed carry was allowed for students who could show a compelling need. Also it's allowed in the states of Utah and Oregon. Of course all the other requirements I made mention of above would need to be met as well. Finally, on your last point, criminals don't give a crap about rules and laws when they carry out their crimes. That's because they're criminals!

An informational point, not listed in my points above: This whole mess at V. Tech is an example that victim disarmament zones created by gun-ban laws create fertile ground for murderers and violent criminals to carry out their "work" with little chance of resistance. I'd bet nothing like this would ever happen at a University in Utah or Oregon where students and faculty/staff are given the ability to defend themselves from such things. There was a shooting at the Virginia Appalachian School of Law too, a few years ago but that school doesn't forbid students from carrying concealed and the killer managed to kill three people before being taken down by regular people who happened to have their guns with them that day. link to this story It's plain common sense: When a group of people (sheeple) are defenseless, some wolf will go into the herd and pick a few off once in a while. That's just the nature of the beast. And I hate to break it to you, it's human nature. Just because guns are illegal doesn't mean people won't commit murder. I'm not hearing any calls for banning baseball bats though they're used in an extraordinary amount of violent crimes. Nor am I hearing calls for banning Prozac and other SSRI psychotropic drugs: (From this article.)

I'd take a cue from Bill Gates: Go for a while, get smart in the liberal arts, then drop out, start your own company and, unlike Billybob, actually retire in a few years. I don't know anything about the University, but I've spent some time in Pennsylvania. It reeks! They generate their electricity from coal-fired plants and the noxious fumes anywhere near one of them will make your eyes water and your lungs bleed. I'd never go to school out there. Have you considered the U. of Washington? They've got really good compsci program and their proximity to MS and the rest surely could be seen as an advantage to geeks... Oh, never mind... You'll probably have nothing to worry about since they'll be re-enacting the draft anyway, you'll be learning how to survive an urban assault and shoot around corners fighting for "our freedom" or whatever nonsense they sell you on...

Amazing lack of self control from the anti-smoking lobby...I personally have no problem with this topic and I'll respond, correctly, that both the first and last cigarette is my favorite most days due to the fact it's usually the only one I smoke. I end the day standing outside (never ever smoke inside) and listening to the sounds of the River Styx as it winds and twists in the valley below, the night calm broken by the tortured screams of the damned under the night sky as I silently stand upon a large round of western larch that has been used for several years now as a chopping block for splitting wood. Some times, after a long day of screaming or burning, the poor tired souls lay still and I can enjoy the sounds of nature, like the frogs and crickets, the occasional family of coyotes sing for my amusement sounding a lot like hyenas on the Serengeti (I presume). On the very rare occasion my fifteen minute smoke (Santa Fe Natural American Spirit, Medium) will be broken by screams of evil laughter from a crazed woman. Those mountain lions, when they call in the night, will positively stand the hair up on your neck. Most nights though, I smoke the day's smoke to the accompaniment of Hell Hounds barking at each other, barking at nothing, barking in packs, and barking alone. The torment in my own little purgatory continues...

I'll explain myself more clearly. Thanks for asking! First point: According to eye witnesses, the following night at a local bar, apparently, police who were first responders at the scene were tying one on and expressing their complete outrage and fury at being told to stand down to wait for the feds. That's right. They were told to stand there behind trees and do nothing and two hours passed between the dorm shootings and the rest. They could've gone in and taken that dude no sweat and saved many lives. Instead they were forced to stand there and listen to the screams as this maniac killed one victim at a time, apparently by putting three or four slugs in each body before moving on. Second point: I'm sure it's just a coincidence that the boys who shot up Columbine H.S. were on anti-depressants and according to the Chicago Tribune: There are other points, anyone else who can think of strange, unusual, and seemingly random parts of this shocking tragedy as the story comes more clear, especially paying close attention to things said by those who were there, and not so much the media since they weren't there, let's hear them!

The serial numbers were filed off the guns. He didn't obtain them legally. No law would've prevented him from acquiring the firearms he used. Restrictions on guns only restrict those of us non-criminals from access. Criminals have much easier methods of obtaining them. Regarding your first statement: It's almost as though someone was watching and hoping he'd take out his vengeance. I wonder who would have the most to benifit from such a act... Look at the media... Do you hear the voices calling for everyone to register their firearms? Kinda reminds me of Jolly old England, Australia, Canada, the list is long... In every case, same M.O. Almost looks like the work of one blueprint... I wonder who gains from these events...

Just out of curiosity, since when is "Mexican" a race? Last time I looked, Vincente Fox looks just like a tall german. Many of the "beautiful people" portrayed on Mexican soap operas are whiter than me if that's possible. How exactly is "Mexican" a race? The race card is played too much. Most people in the US are sick and tired of the invasion from the south that our government and the Mexican government has enabled by not enforcing laws already on the books. I hope you can understand that you may be targeted if you look like a Mexican aboriginal. I would rather you were asked some questions then see the police not do anything to protect our borders. Sorry, but sometimes that's the way things have to work. I know that sounds lame, but what alternative is there? It's not like illegals go around wearing tags that mark them for easy identification. That would be handy...

I'm afraid I can't comment on this... I don't have the "intelligence" to comprehend the humor in the iRack policy and the lack of an "exit strategy" or the next big thing... The iRan...

Just to add to what folkrockfan has already articulated, I heard a couple days ago (haven't heard anything today because I was gone most of the day) that he was threatening to come out of the 911 Truth movement closet that many celebs have been hiding in. Charley Sheen came out of that closet a while back and suffered a lot of backlash because of it and several others have since. When Rosie O'Donnell came out with the hard questions recently many "conservatives" in the talk radio circuit were calling for her to be immediately fired, one even called for her death! I don't have confirmation, but it's possible this is the real reason this hateful bigoted celeb got sacked. It's not like this is the worst thing he's ever said...I guess Mel Gibson is staying in the closet for now because he doesn't think (rightly) that his saying "911 was an inside job) will do the truth movement any good.

Those are magazines, not clips. Anal, I know, but you know the difference, no point in perpetuating the myth. Also, I was going on the best information I had at the time. As far as I knew when I wrote that, they just stood there and waited their turn to die. I still know that a crowd acting with one determined purpose could've stopped him. It's typically a heated debate, gun control, and sometimes things are said that aren't meant personally. I know I insulted TR and I believe I apologized. I'm sure the others didn't mean anything personal either, but generalizations will draw fire. A Texan who owns a firearm(s) should fear what England and AU has become, though... I wonder if you know, Smack, that in England you can spend many years behind bars just for defending your property and life from armed burglars... I hope you don't want to see that happen here in America.

I never mentioned owning a gun. I'm talking about an attitude here, a philosophy. I'm talking about a population of people who, apparently, would sooner just stand there and get shot then actually rush the bad guy with the gun. You don't even need a gun to win that fight, all you need is sheer numbers. Did you know that many of the genocidal crimes committed in Germany during WWII were done by soldiers holding rifles that had no rounds? It's true. All the ammo was needed on the fronts of the war so many of the soldiers weren't actually armed! If the victims had only made up their collective minds they weren't going to be "victims" any more, it would've been over for the German occupation of places like Poland, or the Warsaw Ghetto(?) (can't think of the exact name right now) or any of a number of other places. It's all about having the "Superior" mentality it takes to survive oppressors or having the "Inferior" mentality of someone who'll just stand there waiting for the bullet with their name on it to strike them down. Superiority denotes a Darwineon(sp?) attitude of survival of the fittest and smartest. That's what superior means. It means only those with the "Superior" attitude of survival will make it and the others who've already given up will not. So which are you?