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staboner

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Posts posted by staboner

  1. nasty, articulate little bad motherfucker that he was. hope he is upside down in his grave. not sure how he would handle this release of the simulation

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  2. huh. just read on the last page of two the old car argument. Torbush. 

    So sad to see this paralysis on such incredibly basic issues like making sure a wacko doesn't get a semi-automatic weapon. no clue what the answer is, but certainly some honest talking points from leaders would be a start. Way to much fear base outrageous talking points from the GOP. Their rhetoric is far and away further away from the centrist meeting point than any democrat here. It would be nice if some of the regulars in these threads like @fattyflattie would speak to this point, because at the end of the day while we are failing to communicate in our own right, it is the responsibility of political leadership to create talking points that promote unity and progress. I see the both sides "I will vote for either party when/if they become closer to the center" is odd AF given this massive disparity in actual talking points from actual party leadership on very critical issues like keeping weapons out of the hands of the mentally ill. Kids are dying btw?! 

    Also, but mental health is definitely part of the problem. Honestly I think the US is more mentally unstable than most western countries. Doesn't take a world traveler to figure that out. I've never understand why you just don't agree mental health is also bad - then discuss action across there and gun control at the same. But hey America and its one big marketing slogan yelling at another one over and over again. The pressures of social media and shit like twitter so incredibly devolved our ability to hold an honest, nuanced conversation about anything controversial or meaningful. Captain obvious here. Sorry kids - we still haven't figured it out :(

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  3. 22 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

    Yet no one stands up to make the politicians do something.  I admit, myself included.  We should be marching on Washington DC in the millions if what you say is true.  But we don't.

    yeah man I feel you. I see 80% want this, and yet nothing. Certainly there are many failings top to bottom, left to right, but it does make you wonder what needs to happen to make anything change. America is just straight up in paralysis. You can certainly say the same for the west in general, with America in pole position in that regard. 

  4. 5 hours ago, Ghost of LL said:

    We didn't have that experience with the smog.  It was polluted, but it wasn't that bad.  We went in April; perhaps it's a seasonal thing?

    But this does bring up a good point, and maybe it's a rule of thumb that should be adopted: the shitter the country, the nicer your hotel needs to be.  I don't mind staying at a pretty cheap hotel in Berlin.  But if I'm going to Nigeria, you better believe I'm staying at the Ritz Carlton.

    I've shared on here previously that Russia was the only place I've traveled where I felt unsafe even in my hotel.  Fucking mobsters running prostitutes out of the lobby and meeting with cops in the hotel bar.  And this was in a nice Western hotel.

    Never again.

    But, I have to ask--Kamchatka?

    I do know that Alaska Airlines used to fly to Petropavlovsk from Anchorage years ago.  But that flight is long-since discontinued.  To get there now, I think you'd probably have to go through Moscow.

    Yeah, I think Kamchatka is just the end of the world. Kind of the same feeling with Patagonia, parts of Oz I guess too. Just no fucking people around, lots of nature, not a transit point of any sort. That kind of travel lust to be at the end of it all where no one goes. 

    Feeling unsafe in Russia is certainly a different feeling. Cops, hookers, mobsters in cahoots and you just kind of do what exactly? Don't make eye contact, don't look like a tourist, always carry your papers, and if you can befriend some locals that you can go out with. I took all this advice from a colleague/mentor that also specifically mentioned feeling very uncomfy in his hotel. And mind you he is extremely well traveled. Timeframe 2005 to 2010.

    I spent two weeks in Russia. I have like maybe 10 travel stories I tell to friends. At least 3 from these two weeks. Machine guns, unmarked cops, bribes, physically removed from a bank, I can go on. Any longer than 2 weeks I would be in jail, deported, or made king. Fuck if I know. That place is straight up batshit crazy. But I will say its a different world in Siberia and if you can ever go there (ever again?!) I would recommend it. The people are very nice, very welcoming, and love it when strangers come by. Thirsty AF, but hey I get it. Its a beautiful shithole. 

  5. 11 hours ago, Orale said:

    I'm at 48 countries, most solo, and typing from Australia at the moment. Half or so were Europe, the rest South America and Asia. I could easily retire in BA eventually. The top of my bucket list is parts of Africa, Beirut, Cairo, and India. 

    The wildest yet most rewarding place so far was Port-au-Prince after its earthquake in January 2010. I drove from the DR where I lived in a Uhaul type truck with medical supplies three days after the quake. It was eerily calm yet pure chaos at the same time. I also went six months before the quake to volunteer for a week and really enjoyed PAP. Watch Conan O'Brien's remotes from Haiti in 2018 and you'll see it was a really vibrant and fascinating place with wonderful people that has since tragically descended into the abyss.

    check ya DMs

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  6. On 3/28/2023 at 3:31 AM, Al_4_ISU said:

    Anyone ever been to Mongolia?  That place fascinates the hell out of me.

    I have. I was on the transiberian railroad and popped out at Ulaanbaatar for a week. On the train in I saw what I think were wild horse scattering in the mist. I was on cloud nine. Got mugged 1 hour later. Just 20 bucks, but was that a buzzkill. Its actually quite easy to get in and out via train or plane, can't with car I think. Airport is Chengis Khan Airport, no shit. But there you can hire a driver and translator/guide and they know various nomadic families and you can go on any length of trip - 3 days to 1 month if you wanted. You stay in the yurts with them. It was a great experience. Froze my balls off. Never felt unsafe at all, even after the getting "the mugging"

    I guess lots of comments on safety here. I've had varying levels of feeling safe in SE Asia, Central America, and South America. I would say maybe in South America I felt a little less safe in Ecuador (in big cities), and then in Central America in pars of Honduras and Nicaragua. I was held up at machete-point in Honduras once. But it wasn't that bad, just walked it off. Knifepoint in Spain once, and that was actually not good as the dude was on something. 

    The most unsafe I have ever felt was Russia in the cities (ST pete and Moscow). Bribes, unmarked cop cars, lots of fucking people openly carrying weapons, it was far and away to most unsafe I have ever felt. Not a problem now cuz ain't no one going there for a generation or two :( 

    If you are in Texas/US I highly recommend Central America if you are looking to expand into new travel. There are tourist/backpacker circuits that cater to all types of travel types, its close to you, and its wonderful. Speak a little Spanish, see beautiful nature, and the people are wonderful. Just mind your basics and its safe. 

    Or SE Asia. Very safe in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. 

    For me there are a few must dos left: South Africa, Kamchatka Peninsula, and more parts of South America (Patagonia, Colombia, and parts of Brazil)

     

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  7. 18 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

    Dems that run on it (look at Beto) get shouted down by Rs and the 2A psychos.  Booker, I think, was pretty vocal about it in 2016 also.  But because we have such a gun fetish in this country, in a general election, it's a nonstarter.  It's so fucked up.  BUT this is something where I think it can really start at the local level.  I don't have kids and am not going to, but this seems like such a no brainer for parents to take to their local elected officials.

    Then again, Uvalde went for Abbott overwhelmingly after their kids got fucking slaughtered.  

    I know we know this, but it is important to remember some people have a gun fetish and they are certainly the minority. There are other gun owners and non gun owners running at like 80+% of the pop that want reform. 

    so gun control enters the rooming hanging out with healthcare, abortion, the muslims, the gays, and the trans, creating cultural havoc and silly, always repeating arguments around hyperbolic views that are only shared by fractions on either side. the large middle is left asking why?

    only saving grace would be to somehow pull money outta the system. that ain't going to happen. instead you get this slow moving horror flick that will end in some horrible fashion. all along the way you are allowing your kids to be completely terrorized. 

    I was remembering back to the 90s when I was in school, like most of you. crime was much higher, but the people getting shot in schools were gang members 100% of the time. nothing was a terrorist act like today. Because if we really cared about "terrorism" would be understand and try to limit the sever trauma being inflicted on our kids (and their parents) and here we are. nothing but the record on repeat. fuck i am venting and sick of it. When I meet Americans here down under, and ones with kids, they mention school shootings in the first fucking sentence when introducing themselves. Hi, I'm Frank from Buffalo and I am happy to be here where my kids don't do shooting drills. And I am like hey man, nice to meet you :/

  8. 1 hour ago, The Royal We said:

    Premature = we are going to kick the can down the road, spin up some thoughts and some prayers until society sees something else shiny and we can stop talking about this for a few weeks (days?) until the next mass shooting event. Fucking cowards. Why is doing the right thing so hard?

    because doing the right thing makes the extremely wealthy scared of losing a fraction of their money. 

    but we know that. 

    and one element of the extremely wealthy politic soldiers do a good job playing to the fears of a large portion of the US - making change impossible on this level too as no true, honest conversation is ever allowed. The ground is laid with mines by them and everything is hyper anxious and threatening.

    its fucking awful man. 

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  9. 4 minutes ago, GreenspointTexas said:

    That overturned foul call is the play of the game

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    !

    i still can't get over what the rule is here that made this the right call? the announcers also agreed. its not brocks fault the other left his feet...its over the back or nothing on loose ball.

    we certainly were not great down the stretch and kudos to them for making all their foul shots, but the refs controlled the entirety of the second half.  our defense was fucking good, and was winning the game, but then we got penalized for it and that killed our MO. on top of that the travels, over the backs, and no charges on them on that side of the court was BS. 

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