Everything posted by Gromnir
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Politics and world news
basil is not going og with the do-rag in the link. had cancer at the time. video is from july 22, 2006. basil poledouris dies on november 8, 2006.
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Politics and world news
robert e. howard woulda' been dismissive o' chainmail bikinis. howard's red sonya were a non fantasy character who wielded sword and pistols during a time when suleiman i were active... mid 16th century? one o' the many reasons to regret howard's suicide is acknowledgement the red sonya character were introduced in a side-story short before his death, and she were kinda fantastic. howard's death meant we only got a single sonya story, and she weren't even the main character in the tale. red sonja, the character who made the chainmail bikini popular, were a marvel comic book character. even red sonja didn't start out with a chainmail bikini, but a bit o' promotional artwork depicting her clad so were popular beyond expectations, resulting in a new default character design, and an enduring comic book and fantasy art trope. wheel o' pain sorta stuff, on the other hand, is the invention o movie conan, which is owing little to comic book conan and arguable a bit more to howard's pulp fiction and novel (singular) conan, though perhaps to a cartoony degree. howard did indeed makes his conan an übermensch prototype, and there were nihilist philosophy being advocated in conan stories, but movie conan eschewed any pretense o' subtlety and made the nietzsche elements focal. riddle o' steel is a movie invention. nowhere to be found in howard. all o' which ignores fact the only reason we went through this exercise is 'cause it gave us an excuse to use a link which included mako narration and the riddle o' steel intro from conan the barbarian (1982.) HA! Good Fun!
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Is it worth buying an Xbox One S at this stage?
you do realize you sound like the peloton commercial, yes? am gonna recycle from the food thread. 'bove is our goal for the first holiday season o' retirement. moderate success so far. best option for managing our tension has always been a nice nap, if we can manage such. as for the console, that's like $200? am too lazy to check current conversion rate, but second week o december were 1.35. *shrug* sounds like a decent deal. am recalling a few black friday and cyber monday deals which were better, but $200 is still pretty good. in the US, 'cause o' inventory and tax issues, after christmas is a great time to get special deals, particular on open-box tech items. not sure if is same for you folks. HA! Good Fun!
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Ye Great but Totally Subjective 'PoE' Comparison Table
Gromnir replied to Messier-31's topic in Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Stories (Spoiler Warning!)not hard to see/hear xoti inspiration. HA! Good Fun!
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Armchair theories on why POE2 didn't sell super well
Gromnir replied to BrokenMask's topic in Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire General Discussion (NO SPOILERS)thinking something similar and you may ask yourself, well how did i get here? same as it ever was same as it ever was same as it ever was ... HA! Good Fun!
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Music: Listening and Sharing
am not sure what happened, but for us the linked video channeled a bit o' charlie daniels. regardless, somebody needs get that guy in orange a ricola. HA! Good Fun!
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The Food Thread
had leftover duck carnitas so we made duck carnitas enchiladas and spicy baked black beans as a complete unnecessary side. nothing green involved save for cilantro and oregano as part o' the carnitas recipe. on extreme rare occasion we do enchiladas with duck carnitas (am o' the opinion the crispiness o' the duck is somewhat undercut by using in enchiladas,) we typical we go with a mole or adobo but went straight traditional enchilada sauce for this eve. am pleasantly torpid. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
admission: there is one religion we wouldn't shed tears over if it were sudden outlawed and disappeared from human memory. am talking the religion which inspires nothing but hate and tribalism to degrees irredeemable. pettiness and ignorance are promoted by their clergy and the saints of the church are increasingly those individuals who flaunt any societal norms, embracing illegal and immoral behavior with callous impunity. the faith is a stain which will only be washed away by oceans of tears and blood. *shudder* HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
earlier in the thread we mentioned the appeal of straightforward villains and simple answers. immigrants are the problem, so build a wall. religion is the problem, so outlaw faith. is childlike in simplicity, but am suspecting that is the appeal. if a solution cannot be summed up on a poster or hat, then it will fail to resonate with many people. is why education is so important. hurl, thanks to his history education, recognizes the abject failure previous attempts to outlaw religion has suffered. those nations which has outlawed religion to varying degrees didn't see a reduction in fear, hate, bigotry or any other evil often attributed to religion. and yeah, is easy to point to highly educated individuals who nevertheless deny history and facts, but educate society as a whole results in lessening o' ills even if pace o' change is glacial. argue that benefits o' religion is outweighed by evils? sure. however, outlaw religious practice and belief is a far different thing than debate social ills for which religion is blameworthy. 'course even education may be twisted by oppressive authoritarian regimes and their attempt at control. is only 1% o' the population and yet the chinese are going to extremes to control. is not gonna be a satisfying answer, but consider what is most important to people. love. family. justice. such things ain't real in any sense save that folks believe they is real. even family. child accidental switched at birth. child don't know he/she isn't real family, yes? parents with switched child don't know either. family bond exists 'cause you believe it does. could we exorcise family bond in a generation? sure. take all children from their birth parents and have 'em raised by the state ignorant o' their biological mother and father. do such for two or three generations so nobody recalls "family" save for The State. am guessing fruit o' such an experiment is you end up with a nation o' psychopaths, but family as we know it would be fundamental changed by such control, no? gd would die and even kill for a rusty chainsaw. is 'cause o' what he believes the chainsaw represents. such belief is not real and tangible, but gd's belief is genuine and earnest, yes? from our pov, "real" is the least important query. when we consider what we would die for, and what is worth living for, such stuff is almost never real save for 'cause we believe. liberty. faith. love. god? tell us family and love is more real than god? dunno. seems thin. power o' such stuff comes from belief, and belief can be the most real thing there is. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
it is difficult to imagine a more profound and despicable kind of control than than the criminalization o' sincere held beliefs and those otherwise innocuous practices o' prayer and congregation which is so often associated with religion. is gauche to quote self, but given the situation, am finding this a particular appropriate bit o' necromancy. am ambivalent 'bout faith. am clear and resolute that criminalization o' religion is wrong. is perhaps no more vile abuse o' authority and control than to criminalize faith, religious or otherwise. HA! Good Fun!
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Pathfinder CRPG with Avellone and without Obsidian announced
you: i have links, but i can't be bothered to read them. Gromnir: *gratuitous eye-roll* you are welcome for the rest. HA! Good Fun!
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TV and Streaming: The Thread
one big mistake with the article linked. scanning entire sky current takes four hours. it then takes months (and sometimes years) to actual analyze all that data. again, you gotta be looking right at an object to see it. am suspecting practical "stealth" will actual be opposite o' what folks expect. combat is gonna be happening at such vast distances, stealth, for all intents and purposes, will be making self look so big that practical targeting becomes near impossible. polar bear in a blizzard. we will say, every movie and tv space combat we has ever seen described looks wrong on so many levels. again, combat will be taking place at incredible distances, so no view screens or close ship-to-ship battles with broadsides o' torpedoes and lasers and railguns. HA! Good Fun!
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TV and Streaming: The Thread
radar (radio) works in space, but in a vacuum you need be aiming the radar signal direct at the object you is intending to illuminate. radar waves. is an electromagnetic wave issue. think o' it like trying to use a laser pointer to find an object in a dark room... relative small object in an extreme large room. HA! Good Fun!
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The Best Musical or Comedy Drama Action Film thread (THIS IS THE GENERAL MOVIE STUFF THREAD)
have not seen it, but am admitting we will likely be taking in a showing sooner rather than later in spite o' our relative lack o' enthusiasm. am knowing we will see eventual, regardless o' reviews and word of mouth, so is only a matter o' when and not if. unfortunate, as with past star wars films, is gonna become increasing difficult to avoid spoilers the longer we wait. if there is a surprise or gotcha moment, having been spoiled kinda ruins the intended experience and results in us not able to give the film a fair viewing or assessment. literal had force awakens spoilers revealed to us at an online cooking site. "______ dies and it was so sad." wtf. we were looking for alternatives to juniper berries for our cassoulet 'cause is not as if we keep a supply o juniper berries on hand. did not expect a thread on #$%@ing juniper berry alternatives would result in star wars spoilage. sure, we waited more than a month after release to finally see while we were on vacation at one o' the smallest theatres we had ever experienced... ever. waiting a month made spoilers almost a guarantee. however, to get spoiled by our juniper berry search online were kinda surreal. star wars, like it or not, is a cultural phenomenon. is near impossible to avoid being spoiled save by seeing immediate. am nevertheless gonna wait a bit, but am realizing every day we wait is increasing chance we accidental read or overhear star wars spoilers. onus is on Gromnir. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
had same reaction am suspecting he doesn't even realize the conflict inherent in last two sentences. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
His Twitter feed alone—with its habitual string of mischaracterizations, lies, and slanders—is a near perfect example of a human being who is morally lost and confused. well, that was unexpected. Gromnir has been giving evangelical christians a hard time 'bout their near universal support o' trump. have accused such folks o' undeniable hypocrisy and willful obtuseness. am knowing is only a single publication, but is a powerful reminder it is unfair to paint all trumpers with the same brush. change is possible, and for evidence o' such capacity to come as it does, unexpected and forceful from the religious right, is welcome and worthy o' an apology. am apologizing. we thought, save for a few individual outliers, the religious right were a lost cause for the foreseeable future. we were wrong. christian today has shown moral character and courage. they have put integrity ahead of politics. diogenes would weep with joy at finding an honest face in the crowd.
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Politics First Contact
100% agree. is worth noting how stoopid may not be fixable, but is not an individual's fault if they lack capacity. uneducated is a choice. sure, self-education is not easy even if there is many opportunities to self-educate. am having sympathy for those who is uneducated and earnest trying, but those who simple turn on tv or surf internet to find stuff which validates their current held opinions or just looking to be entertained... am recognizing how hard it is to self-educate, particular as a working adult. nevertheless, fall for obvious gaslighting and whataboutism is ultimately a choice. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
is perhaps a subtle but we believe an important distinction to be made is 'tween uneducated and genuine stoopid. isn't a solution for stoopid. that said, Gromnir worked more than a few blue-collar jobs over the years including roofing supply, painter, ranch hand and a few others. we worked with a whole lotta uneducated guys, and a handful o' women. only a few were stoopid. we could explain complex problems to co-workers and they could understand as long as we simplified and used vocabulary they understood. education were the problem... were more often than not Gromnir's problem as we were the one failing to communicate effective. is easy to mistake stoopid and uneducated 'cause both groups will say stoopid things. perhaps is a personal conceit, but we believe stoopid is a very small group. is some educated people who is inexplicable stoopid. regardless, uneducated is a problem which has a solution and am believing is a problem which may be reduced if not complete fixed. call us an optimist. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
is horrible to admit, but am ever grateful the uk is even more fubar than the US, 'cause is surreal how corporal bone spurs could make misogynist comments with impunity and nevertheless be the chosen one o' those die-hard christian and military honk conservatives who voted for him and continue to defend him. heck, Gromnir is, in spite o' crude nature o' the binary choice, a conservative even if am current not registered republican and we would prefer to gargle with soiled cat litter than vote for trump. root problem in US and uk is the same: education fail. thanks to internet and proliferation o' cable news sources, the alternative facts and conspiracy theory nonsense is being peddled as truth and too few know how to discern genuine fact from fiction. rare teach meaningful critical thinking in schools. in 2019, gaslighting and whataboutism is not just reddit fodder but is mainstream. too many search for "news" which makes 'em feel good and righteous rather than looking for hard truths. example: lack o' manufacturing jobs ain't bout a predictable and necessary shift to a service-based economy coupled with increasing automation 'cause real villains is immigrants. if you is a person in danger o' losing a manufacturing job, you want there to be clear villains and simple-to-understand solutions like a wall. *groan* lack o' genuine education, coupled with a proliferation o' disinformation options makes democratic populations particular vulnerable to the snake oil salesman and carnival barkers who appear to be the current facemen o' politics. education is the solution, which is why folks like trump tend to poll poor with better educated. 'course trump then makes betsy devos secretary of education, so... HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
well, if you listened to the floor debates yesterday, you will know a few o' trump's defenders likened the impeachment efforts to historical tragedies such as pearl harbor, we kid you not. also compared trump situation to the trial o' christ, and such is not first time house republicans has seen parallels 'tween the son of god and trump. surely hurl can see the tragedy in democrats attempts to crucify (politically 'course) the second coming, yes? is a warning necessary for profanity if such is the words o' the savior? tragic. trump's base has not grown since 2016, but it has solidified... or maybe calcified. notions o' some kinda sudden groundswell o' support for trump and republicans ignores fact he is not, and has never been popular. impeachment won't make trump the second coming, no matter how many times folks in Congress suggest such. the gop is desperate trying to keep trump's base, 'cause all it will take is a couple % points shift to doom trump and any o' his loyalists. is no tragedy looming for democrats from impeachment save for their perpetual disappointment o' being unable to get democrats to vote. sure, a couple house democrats in vulnerable districts may lose their seats, but is not a large number. converse, is a couple o' republican senators who is vulnerable this cycle, and to shift senate there need only be a couple seats change from red to blue. susan collins, for example, will need be campaigning against not only her democrat opponent, but a ghost. democrats likely will take a hit in the house this year, but shouldn't be tragic scale. meanwhile, is likely we see resolution o' Court cases regarding wh obstruction in june or thereabouts. if democrats howled 'bout comey's 11th hour clinton email announcements, we can only imagine what republicans will be saying as the House has witnesses such as bolton testify in august or september o' next year. have no idea what such folks will say, so is a gamble and complete outside our experience as in our business you never call a witness if you is unsure what their testimony will be. nevertheless, am anticipating unique DC fireworks for the 4th next year. @Raithe no. Constitution (22nd amendment) makes clear a person can be elected to office o' President no more than twice. unambiguous. is nothing 'bout nullification o' terms or similar nonsense. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
again, take too long for what? yeah, take too long for impeachment were a given. democrats couldn't count on public support to be maintained for +6 months while the Courts decided on witness and document situation. but guess what, impeachment is done. democrats saying? democrats is now clear saying they is willing to wait 'til they get assurances from the senate there will be a meaningful trial. so again, take too long for what? now that impeachment has occurred, what is the "take too long"? HA! Good Fun!
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Weirder, More random, More Interesting.
USDA tariff tracker removes Wakanda, fictional home of Black Panther, as free trade partner HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
"take too long" for what? is goal to get trump out of office before election? if such were goal, then send to senate now is a waste. tell us what is goal which waiting makes too remote to achieve. HA! Good Fun! ps from our pov, with impeachment already achieved, goal should be to have a meaningful trial where finder of fact active probes for relevant evidence to make truth certain. am not seeing a "take too long" situation if such is the goal.
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Politics First Contact
perspective those few democrats who claimed they could not vote for impeachment 'cause while they thought the President had done wrong, they were not necessarily in favor o' removing him from office, shoulda' listened to the aforementioned. within first couple minutes o' her famous impeachment speech, ms. Jordan points out the misreading o' the Constitution by those conflating impeachment with removal. as to not sending articles to Congress, we mentioned such a few days ago in this thread and other Constitutional scholars has been advocating such for awhile. may be political reasons for not doing such, but from our admitted naive pov, it appears to be the best option. President has been impeached, which is historical. to let senate acquit the President with a sham trial would not be justice and would necessarily fail to absolve trump o' responsibility for those infractions o' which he is accused. wait. wait for Court to resolve legal questions, which isn't real questions in our mind-- is well established the House has near complete authority and freedom to call witnesses, request documents and decided rules for impeachment. wait for Court to catch up and then force trump to acquiesce to House demands or flaunt the authority o' two coequal branches o' government. at such a point, particular with what is perceived to be a conservative Court with multiple trump appointees, notion the President is acting in a manner other than repugnant to the Constitution would be historical untenable and am suspecting more than a few moderate republicans would balk at justifiable being labeled enablers o' tyranny. impeachment is history. is done. now comes the hard part. am hopeful the House is prudent. wait is right choice... at least such is the opinion o' some rando retired guy posting on a game message board. HA! Good Fun!
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Politics First Contact
gavel'd out and adjourned for the day, gabbard votes "present" on both articles. well, ok then. HA! Good Fun!