Guard Dog

I've been binge watching Turn and The Americans all day. They are both pretty good. I gave the dogs and rabbits their Christmas gifts. The dogs got new toys and some new grain-free chew treats. The rabbits got a celery stick each and a new salt block.

Merry Christmas everyone

So GD realistically there is one question ....the next president of the USA....Trump or Clinton if you could chose ? I know you said Trump in the past but after all his antics lately do you feel the same way? I'd rather have Trump than Clinton but I'd rather have neither than either. If that ends up being the choice I'll vote for whoever the Libertarian party runs. But seriously? Another thread about this. Predicated on opinion pieces from a left wing Austrailian site and Rolling f-----g Stone? @KP Bernie does get points from me for being against the Big Brother state as far as watching everything we do goes but he is all for the Big Brother stuff in every other apsect so he loses me there.

This is what, the third of fourth thread on the US election and we are still two months away from the first caucus and three from the first primary. How many threads on this do we have to have? Oh and in a choice between Sanders and an all powerful government that takes away everyone's everything and a government run by Donald f-----g Trump, I'll take "none of the above".

I haven't left my house in over a week. A week! I hate going out to town during the Christmas insanity but unless I want PB&J for dinner on Friday I am going to have to go out tomorrow. Or go fishing or hunting tomorrow at least.

You don't think things are slightly more newsworthy when they come from the mouth of a person who is trying to become the leader of the free world than they are when they come from a cartoonist, an advocacy group, or a congressional staffer? If I actually took Trump seriously maybe. I keep thinking we'll wake up tomorrow and he's still on the Apprentice and this was all a silly dream. But if he fools around and actually get's elected.... well we'll all be screwed but at least it will be entertaining. Say, that might make a good campaign slogan for him. But that cartoon the Washington Post ran was pretty low, even for that rag. And the cartoonist doubled down on it. If I were on the Pulitzer committee I'd be on the phone asking her to return hers. It seems that it was WP's editor that doubled down not the cartoonist and journalist from post seem to think they both are idiots because they just helped Cruz's campaign instead of doing something useful. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/12/23/why-that-now-retracted-washington-post-cartoon-is-a-gift-to-ted-cruz/ Well I will agree with you on that point. If Cruz is still looking to cast the media as a villain the best thing they can do for him is BE a villain. But to be fair there is very little unbiased media in the US today and the Washington Post is well left of center line.

Why is that absurd? It's kind of hard to argue the PC thing is leaning a little to close to "thought police" for comfort. Besides, what if the food sucks? Now he's going to get traffic just for his sign. There really is no such thing as bad advertising.

I will, right after I swear I'll never post here again and then start the whole cycle over in a week.

You don't think things are slightly more newsworthy when they come from the mouth of a person who is trying to become the leader of the free world than they are when they come from a cartoonist, an advocacy group, or a congressional staffer? If I actually took Trump seriously maybe. I keep thinking we'll wake up tomorrow and he's still on the Apprentice and this was all a silly dream. But if he fools around and actually get's elected.... well we'll all be screwed but at least it will be entertaining. Say, that might make a good campaign slogan for him. But that cartoon the Washington Post ran was pretty low, even for that rag. And the cartoonist doubled down on it. If I were on the Pulitzer committee I'd be on the phone asking her to return hers.

A little OT but the Washington Post runs a cartoon that suggests Ted Cruz's 8 & 10 year old daughters are just trained monkeys. The head of the ACLU says Donald Trump supporters should be kiled. A staffer for Congressamn Andre Casron says Trump should be taken out with a headshot. All that is ok. Trump makes a comment about Hillary using a made up word and the (liberal) media goes bat s--t. Just another day in crazyland.

I think today I'll start a new thread where I post semi offensive videos that insinuate how terrible everone else is and make humorous but vaugely threatening comments about them. And then I'll keep doing it until about page six it's no longer funny and I'm raving about how you're all gonna die! Oh wait... someone already did that today. Doggone it!

"In 2008, ABC asked two actors to play the role of an unwelcoming shop keeper and a Muslim customer in a Waco, Texas, bakery. Over and over, the female actor would enter and attempt to order a pastry; over and over, the man posing as the sales clerk insulted her faith and refused to serve her." The media has to stage anti-Muslim incidents because they can't find any in real life. I get the feeling you are not taking WoD seriously anymore!

In the story of the grasshopper and the ants the ants work and the grasshopper doesn't. They survive and he dies. We are a bit more civilized that that. Some of the ants labor goes to support the grasshopper (no matter how deserving or undeserving of it he may be). That is always going to happen. The question is how much of the labor of the workers are the lazy entitled to?

There is always some trade off, and some people are willing to make some sacrifices in hopes of various other things that money might give them. Doesn't quite answer my question. Why should society as a whole incentivize people to ruin their physical and mental health in pursuit of the incentives said society offers for doing so? How about this; If people are not working harder to earn more who will pay the taxes that funds the welfare for those who don't work. So you agree paying the welfare of those who don't work is a desirable goal in and of itself? No, I do not. It has to be done, I don't have to like it. I was just trying to answer your question.

There is always some trade off, and some people are willing to make some sacrifices in hopes of various other things that money might give them. Doesn't quite answer my question. Why should society as a whole incentivize people to ruin their physical and mental health in pursuit of the incentives said society offers for doing so? How about this; If people are not working harder to earn more who will pay the taxes that funds the welfare for those who don't work.

Back to the points raised on the previous page. There is one thing I absolutely KNOW to be true when it comes to redistributive economics. And it is this: Every dollar someone receives without working for someone else worked for without receiving. The government is a not-for-profit organization. It does not earn money, it takes it. It does have a certain number of functions it must perform and it uses some of the money it takes to perform them. Then it gives the rest away in the form of welfare and social programs. The decision every voter must make before they touch that screen is simple. How much of your sweat, time, and labor are the recipients of that money entitled to? How much of the income you use to support your family can they demand of you and yours? The democrats including Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton would tell you "A lot". Bernie Sanders would tell you "Almost all of it". The Republicans are all over the map on that one. If you have a job, work hard to support yourselves and those you love voting really is all about choosing how much less your family gets and who is doing the taking and who ultimately benefits from the work you did.

When I was in the military I knew this grizzled old Gunnery Sergeant named Hess. Never knew his first name but everyone called him Skeeter. As long as you were a Corporal of better. Otherwise you called him Gunny Hess. He was this tough, seen-it-all-done-it-all, old school man of the world and he gave me the best advice I've ever heard about knife fighting. He fixed me with a steely eye and said in his gravelly voice "Don't get in one s--t head!" True story!

Sounds like something I might have said

Careful Woldan. Have you ever heard the story of the guy who brought a knife to a gunfight? It's a pretty short story.

He said he'd always call Obama, "Obola" and WoD isn't a liar. He's just Wrath of Doofus... The reason I ranted about the Republican party is because this is effectively the republican primary thread. And I have to deal with former friends who want the system to be designed to ensure the Republicans always have a chance electorally even if they never change their rhetoric or actions to match a changing landscape and population. Calax, I hope these former friends are not "former" because of their political inclinations. Are they? If so you need to seriously re-examine your priorities buddy. Politics is fun to talk about, even fight about, but that the end of the day a difference of opinion about political philosophy is no different than a difference of opinion of what beer tastes best, who makes the best pizza, or what sports team to cheer for. No they're former friend because they were ****ty friends. And because they're 2000 miles away. Oh, that's ok then. To hell with them.

The Buccaneers have been eliminated from playoff contention and while this season could hardly be called successful I am VERY happy with what we have in Jameis Winston. Hopefully he will keep his head screwed on straight and continue to progress. There is a lot to like in Tampa but the defense needs a lot of work this off season.

Somehow this reminds me of a book I read a long time ago, Flowers for Algernon. Don't remember who wrote it.

I'm going to try my hand at making furniture out of trees I harvest myself. I've never done anything quite like this so it should be interesting. Let's home the trees don't die in vain. Well, I always need firewood.

He said he'd always call Obama, "Obola" and WoD isn't a liar. He's just Wrath of Doofus... The reason I ranted about the Republican party is because this is effectively the republican primary thread. And I have to deal with former friends who want the system to be designed to ensure the Republicans always have a chance electorally even if they never change their rhetoric or actions to match a changing landscape and population. Calax, I hope these former friends are not "former" because of their political inclinations. Are they? If so you need to seriously re-examine your priorities buddy. Politics is fun to talk about, even fight about, but that the end of the day a difference of opinion about political philosophy is no different than a difference of opinion of what beer tastes best, who makes the best pizza, or what sports team to cheer for.