BruceVC

Guys I am constantly surprised by this anti-Turkey rhetoric, the West considers Turkey of important strategic value and it is So when I have heard these "doom and gloom " assessments about how NATO views Turkey they are generally wrong. For example When the Russian jet was shot down by Turkey this was " definitely the end of the Turkey contribution towards anti-ISIS coalition " " Turkey is funding ISIS..why is the West so stoooopid " , also an exaggeration around how much support Turkey actually gives ISIS Everything the EU and NATO has done for Turkey is because Turkey is an important player in the region..this is an irrefutable fact. For example The new refugee swap program when migrants are sent back to Turkey The fact Turkey is one of the major places refugees can get into the EU ...so whether the EU funds Turkey or supports them politically its in the best interest of the EU to ensure that Turkey stays a friend to the West so that Turkey can address some of the hard and morally questionable work required to keep as many immigrants out of the EU as humanly possible Yes Erdogan has clamped down on basic human rights, many of his views are concerning but his positions around domestic policy are not enough to now make " Turkey an enemy of the West "

Don't think that's gonna happen. There's no reason for Sanders to drop out of the race before California unless his campaign runs out of money. Hillary didn't drop out in '08 until the Primaries were over, even though she had virtually no chance of winning. Sanders can still campaign on his core messages and keep Clinton "honest" by forcing her to acknowledge the base rather than veering center. She may have to more strongly consider Elizabeth Warren as her potential running mate, although the presumptive favorite --Julian Castro would be a strong choice. The question is...will she double down on a strategy to consolidate her base for the general election and go on the strength of a united Democratic front, or go center and try to take voting moderate Republicans and #NeverTrump stalwarts. Good points raised, I may not support all Sanders policies but I think he genuinely means well when he talks about a " more equatable and fair USA " It would be nice though if he did step down in the interests of Democratic unity but you right, people don't step down unless its really at a point where the numbers are against them Here is a good link that discusses the reality of the Sanders campaign http://www.refinery29.com/2016/04/108952/can-bernie-sanders-still-win-nomination-election-2016

Guys today is a public holiday in South Africa, its Freedom Day https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_Day_(South_Africa) Basically this is the day we had our first multiracial election and its significant and memorable....then on Monday its Workers Day https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Workers%27_Day Another public holiday, so I'm planning on taking tomorrow and Friday off to get a long weekend ..

Another series of wins for the Clinton campaign, very good news For all Sanders supporters I think Hilary summarized the Democratic view when she said "To all the people who supported Senator Sanders, I believe there is much more than unites us than divides us.” So once Sanders decides to step-down out of the race the majority of Democrats should support Clinton to ensure a Clinton presidency and a united Democrat force to defeat Trump

Latest season of Banshee is out, season 4 is brutal, enthralling and always dark......like I mean always dark This season has a real Satanic cult....human sacrifices and all that, its not for the fainthearted

Yes I agree...where is Oby anyway? So I think this thread was suppose to be some sort of surreptitious attack on me but its been very entertaining

Okay thanks GD ..monosyllable responses always clear things up I find Technically that's not monosllablic... Neither has two syllables. So... Went up to visit my friends back in ames. Ended up stopping at a rest stop between Des Moines and Ames... and spent 15 minutes talking to a guy about his Ferrari 458 that he was driving between Texas and Minnisota. Apparently those things don't have any form of cruise control. Did get me thinking about getting my credential and just working as a history teacher instead of busting my ass in customer service for another 30 years. But I don't know where to start to get the credential, or how to pay for that given I'd have to give up my current income to do it. https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/13000255_10204620626474186_5909196698572191045_n.jpg?oh=17ed2475a5ea73e203828f041c5278c4&oe=57A6497D https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/v/t1.0-9/13012791_10204620626634190_6311267196549398445_n.jpg?oh=7bf62528ed7984fa46bfefd9db1341e2&oe=57ADE64B The car in question. you right its not monosllablic.. But GD knows what I mean

I know you aren't trying to offend me and I appreciate the feedback. You not the first person to make these types of points so there is truth to it So i know my grammar is bad and I notice the spaces but it just seems like its unnecessary to go back and change it because to be honest this is a gaming forum...and of course I want to be understood which I generally am...so to go back and make changes would waste time? And at work I use spellcheck ...and I have become lazy on these forums

It's a position I'd hold for only a few moments. Just long enough to fire most of the moderators, not replace them, and then dissolve my position. *A bunch of nonsense requiring a complete misinterpretation of what is written above* You should smoke less weed. This is not the first post where you've entirely misunderstood me, and responded in a manner where you imagine I wrote things I didn't and ignore what I did. I've seen you do it with others quite often as well. Possibly more often than not. That said. You're 41? For your sake I had hoped you were in your early 20s for awhile now, as you act less mature and more petty than many teenagers and even a few pre-teens I've known. At 41 you're more than likely a hopeless case. 41 year old SJWs are quite rare in the U.S., perhaps they are common in SA, I do not know. Alas. Either way, weed or not, your reading comprehension skills are lacking. Do something to fix them please. Vals you constantly do this. You make a statement, like the Mods aren't doing there jobs, and you are incapable of supporting your own view Then you resort to personal attacks because you feel insecure ...first I was insane, then cognitive dissonance and now its my age and me being a 41 SJW , next it will be sexual orientation ...you remind me of LK and his antics, he also cant have a debate with me without insulting me, its this bizarre compulsion But you cant ask me to stop smoking weed because how else would I be able to debate with you....I dont think I could handle the level of inconsistency and ignorance if I wasn't stoned Bruce, you are insane. That's no joke, nor an insult. It's an observation made after too much time engaging you in discussion and reading your thoughts. And if that offends you, be thankful I don't spend the time Longknife did, and give you more of my observations regarding you. Note, nothing I've ever said to you was ever meant to offend. I do however prefer to call spades spades. I'm quite consistent. Any inconsistency you think is there, is either you not comprehending what I'm writing, or me not fully explaining my position to you. Far more often than not it's the former in my experience. In regards to my comments on the mods in this thread, I really don't feel like wasting my time expanding on something I largely (though not totally) meant as a joke to begin with what was a response to someone else's joke, especially with someone who is so consistently daft to not only see that it was in part jest, but who also has proven again and again to not understand what I do write when I do attempt to further explain things to you. Whether you're stoned or not half the time you come here, might have something to do with it, but it's besides the point other than I will say that if I wanted to discuss things with stoned people, I'd go smoke some refer myself and sit outside under the stars with some folks, not hop on the internet. End of story. I've been on the fence for awhile with this, however considering I spent a good hour of the last two days arguing with someone I have come to the conclusion is hopelessly insane, and who knows how many hours of my life in the last couple of years, the joke is on me if I don't do it. I'm putting you on ignore Mr. VC. I truly wish you the best, but you waste far too much of my time. You're thought process is thoroughly discombobulated and you're dishonest as a result, with yourself most of all. We don't have debates Bruce, you're incapable of debating with myself or just about anyone else as you don't know what you're talking about most of the time. Some folks, myself included, just make the mistake of having some respect for you and assuming you are sane, or we just find the whole thing amusing. Any illusion of your sanity I thought you might have had has been shattered this last month or so via a number of posts you have made, and while I do find most of this amusing to a degree, the cons far outweigh the pros of engaging with you. If you feel compelled to discuss something with me, PM me. I will not be responding to you on this forum again. I suppose some might even think you lucky for that. Again, I sincerely wish you the best, and my offer for some beers still stands if you ever come to NY. What do you mean " we dont debate "...we debate all the time? But I'm disappointed you are ignoring me because I enjoy our debates but remember you are the one who has the issue about making personal attacks so the solution is simple...you can make a post without personal attacks and I will work on my etiquette?

You know what Barti you may be right about me writing garbage but people do have debates with me and do seem to understand me even if they disagree....so my posts cant all be garbage but yes you may have a point because some people just dont respond to me ? But then I made that post about asking for constructive criticism and hardly had any negative feedback? in life a person cant be expected to put in more effort than that on a forum....well to be accurate I cant be expected to. I firmly believe in the view " I dont want to waste time making posts if people dont want to debate with me"

Good day, Bruce! What shall we debate? Yes, this is exactly what I would like...we can debate without you or Vals insulting me You may be joking but this is my preferred debating etiquette. But to be honest I have been debating all night....I just need a break for a few hours so lets catch-up later ?

It's a position I'd hold for only a few moments. Just long enough to fire most of the moderators, not replace them, and then dissolve my position. *A bunch of nonsense requiring a complete misinterpretation of what is written above* You should smoke less weed. This is not the first post where you've entirely misunderstood me, and responded in a manner where you imagine I wrote things I didn't and ignore what I did. I've seen you do it with others quite often as well. Possibly more often than not. That said. You're 41? For your sake I had hoped you were in your early 20s for awhile now, as you act less mature and more petty than many teenagers and even a few pre-teens I've known. At 41 you're more than likely a hopeless case. 41 year old SJWs are quite rare in the U.S., perhaps they are common in SA, I do not know. Alas. Either way, weed or not, your reading comprehension skills are lacking. Do something to fix them please. Vals you constantly do this. You make a statement, like the Mods aren't doing there jobs, and you are incapable of supporting your own view Then you resort to personal attacks because you feel insecure ...first I was insane, then cognitive dissonance and now its my age and me being a 41 SJW , next it will be sexual orientation ...you remind me of LK and his antics, he also cant have a debate with me without insulting me, its this bizarre compulsion But you cant ask me to stop smoking weed because how else would I be able to debate with you....I dont think I could handle the level of inconsistency and ignorance if I wasn't stoned

What if someone paid for you for everything..would you go then?

Yes but surly the goblin makes you at least think of racism...so you can play a game and think of racism in RL So its a win win for everyone? No. Goblin accuses my character of racism, not me. And if he is saying that, he is probably right. What happens in game has no relevancy to what is happening in RL. And if the setting is interesting, for me to enjoy the game, it is the same to play power mad racist piece of ****, or rainbow pissing carebear lover. It does seem a little strange and pointless to make a point about racism using a goblin....is that even a valid symbol that represents racism that people will recognize ? I would say that it actually makes the author to be racist: they are basically saying minorities are goblins. And since most goblins are evil, murderous, thieving bastards, well then I can see most people would be upset at being equated with them... Funny enough I was going to add this, in South Africa because of our past many black people would misunderstand the goblin symbolism and assume the goblin represents black people and say " why are black people being portrayed as an ugly goblin " But the author is just referring to general racism but in South Africa people generally see any issue of racism as white against black So you right...this goblin incident could be horribly misunderstood and backfire on the author where she was just trying to raise awareness

I am prepared to admit that, Kobolds are indeed cleverer than me but thats why I want to kill them as I want to be the cleverest person in the world

Okay thanks GD ..monosyllable responses always clear things up I find

Another insightful post and something I want to add to, I wouldn't have brought this up but since you did it is relevant In SA most of the strippers are indeed on drugs, they typically use a derivative of Meth called Cat..its basically an amphetamine like speed but they take lines over the course of there shift so they taking Cat for 8-12 hours every day 6 days a week The result being addiction within 3-5 months but its a psychological addiction meaning they lack confidence unless they have a line So when I go to strip clubs I treat the girls with respect and we get on well but you right, I dont have to deal with the eventual fallout Also I intentionally avoid asking them certain personal questions because the reality is I cant really help them with issues from there past...I have tried once or twice and it ended in disaster

I actually think the initial reason for this thread was a veiled attack on me because how come Oby hasnt commented? Surly if Oby wants to really talk to me he\she would have by now? And I must say you are also one of the forum members who I feel we have never had any real issues...we have disagreed on some topics but it never gets personal "?

Bruce may just be young at heart. To be honest, judging from his posts I would never have guessed he is 41. But you are quite right, at age 41 you should be doing things like playing golf with other near-pensioners while discussing what fine wines you've added to the collection, not smoking weed with teenage girls in car parks. That sort of thing is simply not done! /nod nod Yes you make some accurate observations and I just want to add to it This forum is a gamers forum and there is a WoT where we discuss topics that resonate with gamers that suits me fine as I enjoy our debates which are normally light hearted IMO People who meet me normally say I look 28-34 …sometimes older but women think I look younger for some reason. But why people get on with me in RL is because they feel comfortable and obviously for any women I chat to they feel I am non-threatening..and of course sometimes people just don’t want to talk to me in RL So generally most women I offer a drink to will say yes but sometimes they accept the drink and walk away and that’s fine…they are under no obligation to talk to me just because I offer them a drink Why this is important is most women wont accept a drink from a stranger unless they feel comfortable because in SA some men think if a women says yes to a drink then she must now be expected to like him and there is an expectation of possible sex So you find women in SA generally say no to a drinks offer from strangers unless you can break the ice and not come across as someone who just wants something physical So yes I’m young at heart but what that translates that to in my interaction with strangers is the way Im good at reading people and finding a common topic that they feel comfortable talking about But you notice I’m really bad at Internet forum interaction because people constantly misunderstand my motives or why I say something. But if you met me in RL I would make sense ...I promise

100 % and even though we have never met or chatted you actually know me better than most people on this forum who I interact wth all the time And I'm not malicious or have bad intentions

Gotta agree with that, the concept of having a drink with strangers of any legal age is also pretty prevalent here (as long as the atmosphere is non-sexual). But of course for every ten of your years you're supposed to do with added class and composure. Hitting on people half your age is no-no.. (says the guy with a girlfriend 9 years younger than him) I am really glad you commented because you have unique experiences around interaction with people, I would argue you probably have views on social interaction that is more progressive and realistic and reflects the Danish society than most people For example that documentary you made about kissing random strangers I thought it was very impressive and offered a unique insight into general Danish social interaction. For me what particularly impressed me about that video, and I dont think anyone raised this but I thought this, is it takes a lot of confidence to be able to ask strangers what you did ...most people would never do that as the thought of being rejected once is enough to not ever do it I see the whole notion of rejection as just part of the overall structure of general social interaction, you cant take it personally as it helps refine what works for you. I like socializing, I like interacting with strangers , I like those random discussions you have with people you may never see again, I like to hear peoples life stories and I enjoy talking to women I dont know Now I do all these things because I believe you can always benefit and learn from others about the journey of life Finally I want to try to align this whole incident with this 17 year old with your own experiences to see if you agree with my perspective. I have found with talking to any women of any age what matters in most cases is the initial first impression you create...its strange but the first few things you say that create the initial impression can influence the entire interaction and just to be clear I am talking about an impression where the women feels comfortable and safe talking to you as strange man..I dont mean in a sexual way I realize I left out a very key part of my story and that part is " why would a young women offer an older man a joint" (and this could be about her buying me a drink for example ) So the conversation went like this ( and remember this scenario is the same as you talking to any women at a bar that you dont know as I know you also interact with strangers ) So she was standing in front of me waiting to get served and I'm just summarizing me : hello her : hello me : what you buying her :cigarettes me: I'm buying lose because then I smoke less her : yeah I'm buying a box Now at this point in the conversation I wanted to make her laugh so I said something that can have mixed results me : but I thought you were trying to stop smoking Now of course I dont know her but I also know most smokers want to stop but I also know human beings generally react a certain way when a stranger says something they have said before...they suddenly think this person knows them so she responded exactly the way I was hoping her : how did you know I want to stop , ( now she was almost impressed by my insight ) me : I then told her it was just a normal smokers thing her: you look like smoked a joint , do you me: yes but I dont have now her : do you want to join us for a joint And then we started interacting and as you probably know when you meet strangers or any women you dont talk about things that that will probably be boring to them or they wouldn't have an interest in So we all chatted about music and politics and things we had in common...the age difference wasnt even a consideration because our interaction wasn't about that I dont expect many people on this forum to necessarily understand this whole event but I am hoping you do?

Yes and the word maturity is very subjective and will have different definitions depending where you live and the context of where that applies You are looking at this situation from the right perspective of someone who lives in a first world country and you correct But I live in a country that doesnt have your social structures that are part of why you have a different view to mine

Yes I'm 41 but I fail to see how now that now means I should so " no " when a stranger offers me a joint, what if she was 25, 28....maybe 32. Because I have also smoked weed with strangers that age Its not about her age as thats irrelevant and remember I'm giving them a lift, its a huge super club with 4 dance floors ..I will be around my own friends. They can hang with me or not, they like the one dance floor that I dont like so we probably wont see much of each other And yes I understand you thinking smoking a joint in a car park is wrong but to think its about her age is missing the point. Anyway we come from different countries and have different social structures ....also you are teacher and I respect the fact you take the responsibility around what that means to younger people seriously I have different moral values and smoking weed when offered to me by a stranger irrespective of age is not considered terrible

It's a position I'd hold for only a few moments. Just long enough to fire most of the moderators, not replace them, and then dissolve my position. Who would you fire and why and who would you appoint to replace them...so if you believe some Mods should be replaced you should also explain who is your ideal Mod forum member ....because if you cant give viable alternatives to the current Mods then your comment is just armchair rhetoric ..baseless and more annoying than constructive And also what I think you dont realize is people like you, me, volo and Oby have said at times many comments that if the Mods were more "active " like you imply they need to be we would have banned long time ago. I know this because I have been banned from forums before and you have made several comments that were direct personal attacks on people and these could be considered forum offenses So in summary the Obsidian Mods may appear to be not following your view of forum moderation but if they were harder you would have been banned ages ago and you wouldn't even have the platform to make this criticism. Finally there are some members who have been active for over 10 years on this forum ...so how can the Mods be so bad if people have been members for so long? This is a rhetorical question....the answer is " well the Mods are not bad at all and allow people to have engaged, heated but reasonable debate "

I completely understand this post and I'll respond as it summarizes a valid criticism but once again people didn't read my post or understand the context because I dont feel even the slightest bit of guilt or feel I'm doing something wrong Im not sure who started using the word " under-age ", this is not about sex and never was even though a discussion around this was started . Weed is illegal in SA so no matter what age you are it is illegal. But no one really cares about that law and many people smoke weed I smoke weed and its common to smoke a joint with other weed smokers, so the one girl (17 years ) I met in the garage 24 hour shop , 10 pm at night , and we started talking. She said to me " do you want to come to car park and have a joint with me and my friends" ...since i smoke weed and felt like a joint I said " yes, great idea " ...but at this stage I had no idea how old she was as it was irrelevant I then met her two friends and smoked a joint, we then chatted for about 15 minutes. We spoke about politics, white privilege, travelling overseas etc. Normal SA smoking topics. They also told me about how they go to a club called Truth that I also go to and they wanted to go next weekend which is when I'm going anyway so I said " you girls can come with me and then you dont need to drive " ..they all agreed this made sense ( at this point I still didnt know how old they were as it was still irrelevant ) Only just before I left did I ask them " what they did for a living " and the whole age incident was raised. The teacher is not there teacher but teaches at a private school and they are both home schooled ...I cant remember how they actually know each other Now once I found out the one girl was 16 and the other one was 17 I had already accepted a gift of free weed and had offered them a lift to Truth..so what exactly do people think I should have done and what would have been the reason for doing it? They are going to Truth anyway and just because I'm old enough to be there father why would anything I say mean anything to them..they dont know me so why should they care?