theloniusfleabag

Dear Argus, I reported this post as 'partisan trolling', but I found one thing odd...jbg seems to have lumped the 'accusation' of 'Zionist' in with other disparaging names for Harper, yet jbg claims to be a Jew from New York. Weird. The again, if he is just trying to be sarcastic, the whole thing is at best a waste of bandwidth.

Dear Leafless, Possibly. There are lots of deposits still available for exploitation, but recovery costs are too high right now. The oil sands in Alberta are an example of rising prices making once unreasonable developments possible.From "The History of the Earth's Crust" Prentice-Hall, (1984) pg 168...

Dear KrustyKid, Not really. We are now seeing the fruition of the 'popcorn amongst the monkeys' tactic. It may be a 'tool', but certainly not one of the better ones.http://www.mapleleafweb.com/forums//index....ost&p=33882

Dear KrustyKid, Generally, the US likes to set up pro-american gov'ts, and the problem here is trying to to set one up that is acceptable to both the Iraqis and the US. That is what lies before everyone, and it lies next to impossible (impossible because the answers to problems of those involved are based on religion and fanatacism, and not on logic and pragmatism). The Sunnis and the Shiites each want control, and the Kurds want out. Saddam may have been brutal, but he was the temporary 'glue' that held the country together. With his removal, they became unglued (in more ways than one!), so what is the best way to stick them back together? Neither, but the first one may be closest. If one takes one's religious text as the literal word of God, then there is no need to think.

Dear August1991, I actually meant (primarily) fiscally conservative. Further, I would say that when it comes to expenditures, men (generally) are more inclined to make decisions based on the 'bottom line' of a ledger sheet than women, who I think would tend to add a bit of compassion/morality to a decision rather than the cold hard numbers. I usually dislike sweeping generalizations, but that is my opinion. Religious conservativism is also usually the bent of primarily men, with women and children often playing the role of 'sheep to the shepherd'.

Dear Drea, Elton John sung 'The Bitch is Back', and it was written by Bernie Taupin. Generally, conservativism is 'male', because it is a patriarchal notion. To the best of my recollection, Stronach left McKay to join the liberals (and get a cabinet post) without McKay's prior knowledge. He read about it in the papers like everybody else, and then had to deal with it. Some silly comment about it may have been foolish on his part (because he is in the public eye, but does anyone really believe that no one else has uttered disparaging words about an ex?), I see it as contemptable that the Liberals would try to smear all conservatives with the 'anti-women' brush over a personal comment about an ex. I also do not find it surprising, generally politics is a cesspool. Rather than trying to rise above it, today's politicians seem to have embraced that cesspool, and gain notoriety by being able to fling the biggest turd.

Dear Charles Anthony, You take it all with tremendously good humour and patience, and I commend you.geoffrey, I don't see this as a valid reason to support 'injustice', and further, you don't know that for certain. Back in Stalinist Russia, people lived in perpetual fear of being denounced as an enemy of the state. That's all it took, a discreet word from a neighbour or co-worker, and poof!, (or should I say blam!) one disappeared, with no 'due process' of law.

I would personally not pay anything (being the tightwad that I am) and simply move elsewhere/nowhere should MLW start charging. I think it is a fantastic forum, indeed one of the best, but in my mind, the perceived 'value' of the information I may get from it is not in the same league as other pay-sites such as Stratfor, or even 'NaughtyMidgets.com' As to the 'pay-per-post' idea, I should think that the posts would become huge and unreadable, with everybody trying to cover every topic and response in one gigantic, rambling rant. Not that mine aren't now.

Dear KrustyKid, My apologies, I was not trying to minimize the importance of truth and fact, and to be honest, I only skimmed through that thread to try to find where this problem lay. I certainly don't see you as dishonest, I have never seen you post something that you wouldn't back up with links or quotes. However, I thought that some of the issue regarding the accusation of 'misrepresentation' had been assuaged in the link to the post I quoted, and in my mind it seemed to be a retraction by myata of that specific accusation., though I could be wrong.

Dear KrustyKid, I believe myata clarified his/her position with... http://www.mapleleafweb.com/forums//index....st&p=142747 Actually, Kofi Annan, when pressed, said it was illegal.

Another interesting thing that tends to get overlooked is that evolutionary changes occur over 10s if not hundreds of thousands of years. Rapid changes, such as 'mutations', aren't the source of evolutionary advancements, for the 'mutants' are generally killed by their own if they are 'too different'.

Dear geoffrey, I was a bit tired last night, and did not fully expound on what I feel the implications may actually be, though it may not change your answer. A better question is: "Should private businesses expect the law to uphold their policies of discrimination?" In other words, "Should private property be exempt from the laws of society?

In reponse to Leafless' quote: While it is true the Civil Rights Movement dealt largely with gov't practices, it eventually touched on private business too. From Britannica's Book of the Year 1961, pg 175 So the question still apparently stands, "Does (or should) one have the power to discriminate (on race, etc) in private business?"

I suppose this is a rare instance where I can rightly quote this song, because it fits here and asks some questions. The Civil Rights 'Movement' spawned all sorts of lasting impressions, with songs such as 'We shall overcome', etc....but what of those opposed to integration? They had songs too... (to the best of my knowledge) the following is a bit from "No Niggers in our Schools", by Otis and the Three Bigots, circa 1960... (as to the last line, I can only assume they mean 'nigger-free' ) So, should private schools, Safeway, taxi-cabs, etc.(any or all) be able to physically ban certain races, (or religions if it were evident) at their own will? (Keep in mind the implications of what might occur if 'Negroes' weren't allowed to buy groceries...) Was the Civil Rights Movement wrong?

Dear August1991, Thanks for posting this very good bit. I understand you have been to Moscow, and are somewhat better able to understand it, rather than the majority of us judging on second-hand news. It has been said that the best education system of all is travel, and I tend to believe it.

Dear kimmy, August1991 did indeed. I totally agree, but if some consumers used that 'critical thinking' to believe the Dove ad, then it is almost worse, for they now may believe that some advertisers are actually telling the truth out of benevolence, rather than selfishness. Mind you, I look at everything with a 'cynical eye'.

Dear Argus, I feel the same way about the signage laws. However, there are cases where the law is likely to get involved. While August1991 opines... how does one enforce a 'discriminating policy' without the law? Could it be possible to call the police and say: "Ofiicer, I'd like to report a couple of (insert race or even some derogatory ethnic slur here) in my store!"

I have heard that there are many that would like to see Jon Stewart (from television) run for US presidency, but that much honesty and satire wouldn't be welcome by many, especially by those 'benefactors' of the party and the country. Sure would be a novel approach, though, having honesty and politics mixed like that.

Dear Charles Anthony, It will retard your ability for rational/logical thought.As to gc1765's query, When using the 'causes of causal causation' argument, it is thoguht that there must be an 'uncaused cause', which is then labeled 'God'. However, it seems as though it is simply a break in the chain of logic. People are willing to attribute 'god' with the aspect of 'always was and always shall be', but at the same time are unwilling to accept the same attribute may apply to existence itself. 'Creation' is simply a human way of thinking, so we apply human attributes to all things.

Dear August1991, It isn't the soap, it's the brand that is made to matter...(I don't think this was the gist of sharkman's point), It is the 'cosmetic accessories' that are sold (to mostly women) that are 'directing value assessments'. Women are encouraged to buy fake eyelashes, fake skin tone, and a fake blush. It is remotely possible, but it is more likely that the 'socially useful' part is just the gimmick of the day. Nonsense. The use of actors is done for various reasons, but mostly to have the consumer convert their idol-worship into sales. However, you won't see a big name actor (Joe Pesci, for example) doing a spot as one of those 'doctors' doing the rounds in a hospital only to prescribe some over-the-counter cough medicines. They use no-name actors for that, because people would immediately doubt that Joe Pesci was really a 'doctor', and that would throw the whole illusion off. Even the 'testimonial' ads are done by pros. I do too, but that is wikipedia for you. I usually only use it as a quick reference and often to show that I am not completely full of it. The spelling there is usually very good, though. That is up to Darwin and the individual, but anomalies exist. Not many people like big, fat, hairy chicks, but some are drawn to them. Same goes for the skinny supermodel waifs, though I expect having sex with one of them would be like 'f#*king a sack of antlers'. I thought I would just clarify why I use this for of address. (...again, for I remember this being discussed with you and 'I Miss Reagan' in the past, and he requested that I simply address him as IMR, while I believe you said that 'you found it endearing') I read a lot of books, and often dictionaries. Dictionaries all have the 'standard form of address' references, such as 'Dear Sir', 'Your Eminence', etc. depending on the circumstance. When I reply specifically to another poster, I usually use what I consider the proper form of address in casual correspondence, that being 'Dear So-and-So'. On a side note, I do not have anything other than a high-school diploma, though I did go to university for one year of 'general studies'.

Dear August1991, Generally, one covered in blemishes, warts and boils is considered unaatractive. Health, vigour and vitality are associated with 'good looks'. Therefore, wou are expected to want to mate with those ones.There was an interesting study done with young children where they were shown two pictures of adults, one good looking and one 'ugly', and the children were asked, "Which one is the 'bad person", and the children always chose the ugly one. from... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo_effect and the opposite... Advertising is more about telling a lie than a 'story'. A lot of this, August, can be directly related to the primal instinct of "How best to attract a mate?" In the animal kingdom (of which we are a part) the attractions run the gamut from symmetry to size. I believe that in Africa, the males of certain tribes (the Masai, I think) jump in the air, with those that jump the highest being deemed the most 'eligible bachelors'.

Dear August1991, You'll have to make clear the choices. You will also have to reject the notion that there are only two. As it stands, we are generally presented a choice (with us or agin' us) between a lying, backstabbing crackwhore and a deranged, violent, self-centred a*#hole. If they both disappeared, the world would likely be a better place. I'll pick neither side, thank you.

Canadians, by and large, don't vote in US elections.

Dear M. Dancer, You make a very good point in a very convoluted way. However, I think that there might be some confusion that has arisen from your misuse of the word 'deviant'. Unusual might be a better word, but one cannot deviate from a path that they have never set foot on. One might consider a 'return to celibacy' as deviant (or unusual, or against the norm), but to still be standing in the starting blocks is about as 'non-deviant' as one can get!Otherwise, a very good post, and I assume that this from Leafless is what you are trying to shed light upon. Good on ya.

Dear RB, It's all relative, I guess. I am 39, and I now view anyone under 30 as 'young', 30-50 as 'my age', and (most) over 50 as 'wise'.