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Hellraiser97

Certifiably Surly
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Posts posted by Hellraiser97

  1. Austin Neighborhood Council represents the actual people that live in Austin neighborhoods.   Zoning changes typically have to get the approval of the local Neighborhood Association.  
    Developers control the sock puppets FRIENDS OF AUSTIN NEIGHBORHOODS:
    https://forum.atxfriends.org/
    FAN represents developers efforts to maximize density and help cram condos on 60’ wide home lots which were previously single family houses.  
    FAN pushes the density agenda for financial gain while opposing actual residents that back ANC.  
    What a load of shit. ANC sets it's open times for gets to be on board. They intentionally exclude anyone that is pro density, development, whatever. Plenty of stories of people on the east side wanting a voice but not being allowed to participate even though they've loved there for years.

    FAN shares a lot of common ground with developers but is hardly run by them. The only reason FAN even exists is because of the bullshit rules of ANC

    I do not like OU

    • Like 1
  2. 1 hour ago, RoundRobin said:

    That  fucking link awkwardly asked me to pay to read the article!

    Protip:  Google the title of the article, the returned link will take you to a page that doesn't make you sign in to read it.

     

    I find the way they usually ask far more annoying than the tip:
    "It's just going to ask you a couple questions...."

  3. Since I’m too lazy to look it up (and will likely run into a bunch of propaganda anyway) can anyone here in the know summarize the ANC power structure’s major beef with Code Next? Were high rises and condos going up in Tarrytown? Too many Section 8 housing units were gonna be allowed in Brykerwoods? Was the old race track gonna be re-built in Hyde Park? Curious minds want to now. 
    Everyone agrees traffic sucks and we need to do something. Old money Austin freaked out that duplexes or triplexes might be built in their neighborhoods where you currently can't. You know, gotta keep the poors out. Otherwise neighborhood character might suffer.

    East Austin freaked out because a bunch of shitty 'community advocates' told them they'd all be forced to sell to developers who would build mixed use building filled with nothing but liquor stores.

    These are the same types of people that proposed and implemwnted the garage placement ordinance so in half the neighborhoods it's damn near impossible to build a two car garage now. They're insane.

    I do not like OU

  4. In Austin under the 10-1 system, you vote for only 2 of the 11 city council members, your district rep and the mayor.  Any six council members, voting the same way, can pass something.  It is possible for the city council to vote for something that both your rep and your mayor voted against, and you have no way to counter that at the ballot box.  They can and do make decisions in the middle of the night at the end of all-day city council meetings.
    If you are a special interest group or stand to benefit financially from something the city council passes, you can lobby or donate to six of the council members, get them on your side, and get something passed that benefits you or your group.  This benefit to you may be at odds with what the majority of voters would choose, if given a vote.
    Prop J was created as a response to CodeNEXT.  Citizens petitioned the city council to require a review period and a city-wide vote prior to adopting CodeNEXT, as a check on the power of city council. The city council had two choices: adopt the ordinance proposed by the petition, or put the proposed ordinance up to a vote.  Instead, a majority of the city council, mostly those in favor of CodeNEXT, decided to ignore the petition.  The petitioners sued the city and won the right to put the ordinance on the ballot.
    If you vote in favor of Prop J, you are voting to have the protection of the ordinance.  You are giving power to the voters by giving them a waiting period to review any major changes to the land development code proposed by the city staff and the city council, and the power to vote for or against the changes.  You are helping to ensure that the majority of the voters in the city are aligned with the decisions created by staff and council.
    If you vote against Prop J, you are voting to not have the ordinance.  You are giving power to city council and city staff by not requiring that their plans align with the wishes of the majority of the voters and not requiring periods for citizen review proposed by the ordinance.  You are OK with the decisions of city council and staff possibly being at odds with the wishes of the majority of the voters.  If you are aligned with a special interest group or business that may benefit from the majority decision, you can lobby behind the scenes knowing that plans created will not have to face the voters.
    I support Prop J because I want the people proposing major land use changes to know that they do eventually answer to the voters.  I think it is important for the city council, the city staff and the citizens to be aligned on major revisions to our land development code.  After meeting with CodeNEXT city staff members, I do not trust them to learn about neighborhoods or listen to city residents without the Prop J protections.
    Changing the land use code is a big decision, affecting almost everyone.  I want the city council and staff to know that they can plan and propose, but ultimately they need voter support to pass.
     
     
    That's a lot of text to be completely wrong. prop J won't protect you or anyone else at all. State law trumps it and state law says that while you can vote to have or not have zoning, you can't out the actual code to a vote.

    I do not like OU

  5. I doubt it's going to be an issue. Memphis is terrible and UCF barely got past them.  They'll stumble somewhere along the way.  And if they don't make it?  Too bad.  I don't see it as bad for the sport.  In fact, it would be a hell of a lot better if we DID split FBS into two divisions IMO.  There's no need for 120 'major' college teams.  We have plenty of upsets and excitement when the 'also rans' in the P5 step up once in a while.  Hell, maybe we'd see it more often if you didn't have teams from the G5 taking talent away from those teams.

    And if it comes down to us or them?  Fuck 'em!  We're Texas.

     

    And anyone wringing their hands over how this 'delegitimizes' the CFP or college football in general, take a look at your history.  There were plenty of years where some non-power conference team went undefeated and never got a shot at #1.  The only difference now is that you can see those teams on TV and SportsCenter.  

  6. If you’re taking advice, you need to read to the Lord of Chaos, I think it’s book 5 and take a break.  It’s a better stopping point if you decide to not continue with the series and imo is the best of the early books.
     
    but yes, it’s highly formulaic, they do a better job toward then end of the series but I almost quit after book 8 iirc, but I’m glad I slogged through to the end (Sanderson’s final books made it all worth it).
     
    from this link I found about the show, lines up with what I remember...
    http://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/wheels-of-time/276731/the-wheel-of-time-tv-series-what-can-we-expect
    The first two books are eventful and propulsive, the third is a drag that barely features Rand Al Thor at all, the fourth, fifth and sixth boast some of the best storytelling of the series then after that things slow to a crawl until the tenth book is quite literally made up of characters reacting to the climax of the ninth while having three-page baths. After that the final four books are essentially all payoff to a very, very long set up.
    Yeah the last few books by Jordon drag, but it's worth getting through them for the ones Sanderson wrote. I only finished them last year and I'm already considering rereading them again. I haven't read New Spring, but since the two books after it never happened, not sure it's worth it

    I do not like OU

  7. On 10/2/2018 at 10:19 PM, Chewbacca said:
    On 10/2/2018 at 10:04 PM, atomheartbevo said:
    Now would be a good time for Amazon to work out a deal for the Wheel of Time books to be on Kindle Unlimited, or at least cheaper than $10 a pop.  If they were readily available (and I know, I can go out and pirate them) for my Kindle as a part of KU, or at leas something cheaper than $10 apiece, I. might be tempted to read the rest.  I go to my Kindle more and more.

    No shit. I was going to but all of them, but they wanted something like $120. So I'm paying 10 each.

    I listened to them on audio.  On Audible it was something like $400 for the whole series.  Umm.  No.  Not going to happen.  You couldn't even use your credits to get them each month because they were about $35 a piece.  Fuck that ARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGG

     

    Just started the 3rd book in the academy series.  Ended up really liking the second book, liking the third too, but I can see it getting a bit formulaic.  Probably take a break after this for a while.

  8. If the neighborhood associations are for Prop J, then I’m probably gonna vote against it.
    This is such a fucking waste too. They KNOW that the law is clear that while you can vote for or against HAVING zoning, you can't out the actually zoning regulations a vote. Passing Prop J guarantees exactly one that thing: There will be a lawsuit that will cost the city millions of dollars and drag on for years.

    It will be a lawsuit from the NIMBY crowd when they don't put the new code on the ballot or it will be a lawsuit from someone else for putting it on , but it will be a lawsuit that will waste a shit ton of time and money to learn something that is already established law.

    I do not like OU

  9. Finished Engines of God a couple weeks ago. Really enjoyed it. Thanks to the others that recommended it. Onto the second book, Deep Six. Liking it a lot now but wasn't sure at first. Part of that is that I'm listening to the books and they switched narrators!

    I do not like OU

  10. 9 hours ago, GabrielsHorn said:

    How in the world are Michigan State or TAMU ranked? 

    Early rankings are an integral part of the recipe of aggy misery.  Don't fuck this up.  You could kill someone.

  11. 9 hours ago, swraith said:

    Have you thought about having your daughter skip an elementary grade if she needs the academic acceleration?

    I don’t see gifted and talented as being all that important until middle school.

    For reference I went through a magnet school program 25 years ago starting with 6th grade. With AP courses I started my freshman year at UT with like 3 credit hours short of being a sophomore. Still took me longer than normal to graduate.

    Skipping a grade seems not to be really an option at our school.  Hell, we tried to have her in 1st last year since she'd done Kindergarten already, but they just weren't having it.

    I've been told there is a lot of research surrounding GT and early (pre-middle) education and that, sort of like with languages, the earlier you start the better.  That's not me, just many of the 'experts' we've consulted.

     

    8 hours ago, Helobious said:

    Tell her to not worry about school or grades and to just focus on being hot when she's older. It'll get her much further in life. 

    She's got my genes.  Obviously looks won't be a problem.  I just need to make sure she's smart enough to keep her men inline.

  12. So we spent more time meeting with my daughter's kindergarten teacher last year than my daughter probably spent in class.  She was constantly getting in trouble for not paying attention, being disruptive, etc.  I figured it was mostly due to her having done kindergarten already once at Primrose but being forced to do it again since her birthday is 5 days after the cutoff and AISD bends rules for NO ONE!!!!

    Turns out that while that was definitely a problem, she's apparently really fucking smart.  We had her do one of those all day assessments where they test everything from ADHD and Anxiety to whether your kid is a complete retard or Einstein junior.  Well, she's borderline ADHD (no surprise, her mom has a pretty serious ADHD), but it wouldn't be much of a problem except that she tested above 92nd percentile on every intelligence test, including one that was 99.9th percentile.  On the academic stuff, she scored as performing in line with late 1st grade in most things, 2nd grade in several and 3rd in one.  

    So she's in 1st grade now.  When we got the results from the doctor, frankly, we were a bit overwhelmed but I managed to ask the doctor if these results meant she just needed to be challenged a bit more or where we talking look at private gifted and talent programs.  His response was that she would definitely qualify as gifted and we should explore what AISD has to offer as well as private options.

    We've shared the results with the school counselor and her teacher and had one meeting.  Nominations for the AISD gifted program don't happen until January, but her teacher is GT certified so that's good.  We're at Clayton and we've met with the asst principal that runs their gifted program.  We went to an info session today.  At least from what we heard there and from other people, we're in the right place if we're going to keep her in regular public school.  So it then begs the question, should she stay in regular public school? 

    I've hear there are AISD magnet schools at middle and high school, but I didn't see anything on  AISD's site for elementary school.  We have friends that have a 'legitimately gifted' 3rd grader and he goes to Regents, though his dad told me while he likes the school, at the elementary school stage, he didn't think they were doing anything special for the gifted students.  He recommended St. Francis and said if he didn't live and work in South Austin, that's where he'd send his kids.  He was not impressed with AISD's options and said the general education was better than the gifted program in AISD (can't remember which elementary school though he's zoned for).  

    So, any of you deal with this before and have any advice?  I'm kind of all over the board.  On one hand, I want to do whatever I can so that she reaches her full potential, on the other, I've never been a huge fan of private schools and while she may end up doing better academically, in the long run is it really going to make her life any better?  Any advice is welcomed.

    Thanks

     

  13. 25 minutes ago, scottsins said:

    I definitely agree that a truly informed assessment can not be made at this point. However, this is nothing like the NCST thing, for many reasons.

    Every clusterfuck is unique for its own reasons, but they have in common that both were loses to teams we should have soundly beat due to multiple coaching failures and poor player execution.  Certain different coaching failures and player execution.

  14. 13 minutes ago, CBHorn said:

    This is surly. Keep that rationalism and cautious thinking out of here.

    Also, username doesn't check out.

    I've become mellow in my old age.  Well, except when I yell at clouds.

    • Like 1
  15.  

    3 hours ago, Texasrocks said:

    In case anyone forgot, here's the roster when Strong took over. There were some really talented seniors, but not much after that. Take out the seniors and I don't see many guys who would start on this year's team.

     

    Name    Pos    Ht    Wt    Class
    Dominic Espinosa    C    6'3    308    Sr.
    Quandre Diggs    CB    5'10    195    Sr.
    Ryan Roberts    CB    5'8    170    Sr.
    Sheroid Evans    CB    6'0    190    Sr.
    Brandon Allen    DB    6'2    200    Sr.
    Cody Boswell    DB    5'11    180    Sr.
    Devin Huffines    DB    6'0    195    Sr.
    Cedric Reed    DE    6'5    272    Sr.
    Nate Boyer    DS    5'10    195    Sr.
    Desmond Jackson    DT    6'0    298    Sr.
    Demarco Cobbs    LB    6'0    221    Sr.
    Steve Edmond    LB    6'2    258    Sr.
    Tevin Jackson    LB    6'2    245    Sr.
    Jordan Hicks    LB    6'1    234    Sr
    Desmond Harrison    OT    6'8    313    Sr.
    William Russ    P/PK    6'3    206    Sr.
    Michael Davidson    PK/Pv    6'4    200    Sr.
    Miles Onyegbule    QB    6'4    230    Sr.
    Eddie Aboussie    RB    5'9    221    Sr.
    Malcolm Brown    RB    5'11    222    Sr.
    Josh Turner    S    5'11    175    Sr.
    Mykkele Thompson    S    6'2    191    Sr.
    Chris Terry    TE    6'3    243    Sr.
    Geoff Swaim    TE    6'4    250    Sr.
    Greg Daniels    TE    6'4    246    Sr.
    Chris Giron    WR    5'8    160    Sr.
    Dakota Haines    WR    6'1    195    Sr.
    David Thomann    WR    6'0    184    Sr.
    Jaxon Shipley    WR    6'0    190    Sr.
    John Harris    WR    6'2    218    Sr.
    Duke Thomas    CB    5'11    178    Jr.
    Dillon Boldt    DB    5'10    167    Jr.
    Logan Mills    DE    6'3    223    Jr.
    Shiro Davis    DE    6'3    253    Jr.
    Malcom Brown    DT    6'2    320    Jr.
    Alex De La Torre    FB    6'1    241    Jr.
    Dominic Cruciani    FB    5'11    225    Jr.
    Dalton Santos    LB    6'3    252    Jr.
    Peter Jinkens    LB    6'1    237    Jr.
    Trey Gonzales    LB    6'0    219    Jr.
    Sedrick Flowers    OG    6'3    320    Jr.
    Taylor Doyle    OG    6'4    298    Jr.
    Marcus Hutchins    OL    6'5    278    Jr.
    Ben Pruitt    PK    6'1    215    Jr.
    Nick Rose    PK    6'2    203    Jr.
    David Ash    QB    6'3    230    Jr.
    Gaston Davis    RB    5'11    193    Jr.
    Johnathan Gray    RB    5'11    215    Jr.
    M.J. McFarland    TE    6'4    249    Jr.
    Marcus Johnson    WR    6'1    193    Jr.
    Daje Johnson    WR/RB    5'10    178    Jr.
    Bryson Echols    CB    5'10    184    So.
    Dylan Haines    DB    6'1    194    So.
    Tyler Lee    DB    5'10    185    So.
    Tyler Marriott    DB    6'1    192    So.
    Bryce Cottrell    DE    6'2    247    So.
    Caleb Bluiett    DE    6'3    261    So.
    Johnny Tseng    DE    6'1    220    So.
    Kyle Ashby    DS    6'1    227    So.
    Alex Norman    DT    6'4    288    So.
    Hassan Ridgeway    DT    6'4    307    So.
    Paul Boyette Jr.    DT    6'2    302    So.
    Timothy Cole    LB    6'1    236    So.
    Curtis Riser    OG    6'4    324    So.
    Clark Orren    OL    6'0    260    So.
    Daniel Rodriguez    OL    6'2    299    So.
    Camrhon Hughes    OT    6'7    324    So.
    Kent Perkins    OT    6'5    330    So.
    Nick Jordan    PK    6'1    175    So.
    Logan Vinklarek    QB    6'1    217    So.
    Trey Holtz    QB    6'0    190    So.
    Tyrone Swoopes    QB    6'4    243    So.
    Adrian Colbert    S    6'1    206    So.
    Kevin Vaccaro    S    5'11    188    So.
    Blake Whiteley    TE    6'5    250    So.
    Jacorey Warrick    WR    5'11    172    So.
    Ty Templin    WR    6'0    195    So.
    Jake Raulerson    C    6'5    281    Fr.
    Antwuan Davis    CB    5'11    193    Fr.
    Jason Hall    DB    6'2    207    Fr.
    Jermaine Roberts Jr.    DB    5'9    171    Fr.
    John Bonney    DB    5'10    181    Fr.
    Derick Roberson    DE    6'3    219    Fr.
    Chris Nelson    DT    6'1    307    Fr.
    Jake McMillon    DT    6'3    290    Fr.
    Poona Ford    DT    5'11    280    Fr.
    Cameron Hampton    LB    6'1    202    Fr.
    Naashon Hughes    LB    6'4    232    Fr.
    Darius James    OG    6'5    304    Fr.
    Alex Anderson    OL    6'4    320    Fr.
    Elijah Rodriguez    OL    6'3    292    Fr.
    Frank Lopez    OL    6'2    300    Fr.
    Terrell Cuney    OL    6'1    278    Fr.
    Mitchell Becker    P    6'2    190    Fr.
    Jerrod Heard    QB    6'2    199    Fr.
    D’Onta Foreman    RB    6'2    215    Fr.
    Donald Catalon    RB    5'10    195    Fr.
    Edwin Freeman    S    6'1    220    Fr.
    Erik Huhn    S    6'3    209    Fr.
    Andrew Beck    TE    6'3    242    Fr.
    Matt Center    TE/DS    6'2    218    Fr.
    Armanti Foreman    WR    6'0    189    Fr.
    Connor Huffman    WR    5'9    170    Fr.
    Dorian Leonard    WR    6'3    201    Fr.
    Garrett Gray    WR    6'4    211    Fr.
    Hunter DeGroot    WR    6'1    207    Fr.
    Jake Oliver    WR    6'3    214    Fr.
    Lorenzo Joe    WR    6'2    201    Fr.
    Roderick Bernard    WR    5'9    170    Fr.
     

    The problem with that comparison is that you're looking at how those guys played under Strong for the most part and saying "Hey they turned out to suck!"  Well, their coaching sucked.  Who knows how they would have performed with even moderately capable coaching.

  16. 2 hours ago, UTDD said:

    I think an important difference this time is that Texas has now suffered for a longer period of ineptitude and just went through the culmination of the Kansas loss with Strong so I would think patience wears more thin the longer it lasts.

    And this is what concerns me.  Herman may not be the guy to get us back where we belong, but there's no way you can tell that 1 game into the second season.  Anyone want to remember NCST?  Based on that game, I wouldn't have thought Mack would have managed a winning season that year, much less become our second all time winningest coach.  When we are immediately ready to toss someone under the bus one game into their second season, we start becoming like aggies.  

    • Like 1
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