Aa
Anything (almost!) Goes Thread
I keeping with the spirit of not being totally bored out of my mind today, I figured I'd try out an thread where we can talk about something other than cats. :)
Here's my two bits;
Astronomers have recently discovered three earth-type planets orbiting a star slightly smaller than our sun. They're slightly larger than earth, but in the right size class. they now beleive that earth-type planets are actually fairly common and have been impossible to detect until recent advances in radioscopetry.
Lets get those "Welcome to our planet!" banners out and climb on up to our rooftops!!! :)
Here's my two bits;
Astronomers have recently discovered three earth-type planets orbiting a star slightly smaller than our sun. They're slightly larger than earth, but in the right size class. they now beleive that earth-type planets are actually fairly common and have been impossible to detect until recent advances in radioscopetry.
Lets get those "Welcome to our planet!" banners out and climb on up to our rooftops!!! :)
Ayuh... that'll teach them thar aliens. This is America! If you don't like it, giiiit out!!!
Heh heh... oh, I finally got around to a welcome message. Let me know if it meets approval. :)
Heh heh... oh, I finally got around to a welcome message. Let me know if it meets approval. :)
"Heh heh...well, I'M going to toss my stuff in the back of my RV Motor home, grab muh huntin' dog and drive muhself over to them there new shiney planets! Sheeeoot! We'll just nuke them thar natives if they don't like it! "
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Ah gots my Browning 12 gauge side-by-side cleaned and loaded, and even an extry tin-foil hat. Just let me know when yer ready to roll! ;-)
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Ah gots my Browning 12 gauge side-by-side cleaned and loaded, and even an extry tin-foil hat. Just let me know when yer ready to roll! ;-)
Oh, maybe not. Reading helps develop your inner voice, which puts you at an advantage in communications. Any reading is useful, if you ask me.
I remember my favorite childhood books where mysteries (Hardy Boy's, Three Investigators, Doc Savage...even Nancy Drew. :) ) I took more than one spill downs the stairs before I got used to walking and reading at the same time. Unfortunately, our streets were way to curvy and hilly to read while riding. That's the advantage to NYC, everything's laid out in the exact same rectangular grid. :)
I do miss small town living, and it's been decades for me. What I actually miss most is country living. I grew up in part on Long Island back when it was going from farm country to residential/ vacation homes. You used to be able to wander freely about the area, through the forests and the marshes, the beaches and the cliffs, it was an incredible area to live in. The one thing my brothers and I agreed on is we'd all move back there some day.
Sadly, the area has become "Sub-urbanized" and lost most of it's charms. It was a shock to see they paved all the roads that used to be dirt. I doubt I'll ever go back there now, as the home of my memory exists only there now.
I remember my favorite childhood books where mysteries (Hardy Boy's, Three Investigators, Doc Savage...even Nancy Drew. :) ) I took more than one spill downs the stairs before I got used to walking and reading at the same time. Unfortunately, our streets were way to curvy and hilly to read while riding. That's the advantage to NYC, everything's laid out in the exact same rectangular grid. :)
I do miss small town living, and it's been decades for me. What I actually miss most is country living. I grew up in part on Long Island back when it was going from farm country to residential/ vacation homes. You used to be able to wander freely about the area, through the forests and the marshes, the beaches and the cliffs, it was an incredible area to live in. The one thing my brothers and I agreed on is we'd all move back there some day.
Sadly, the area has become "Sub-urbanized" and lost most of it's charms. It was a shock to see they paved all the roads that used to be dirt. I doubt I'll ever go back there now, as the home of my memory exists only there now.
"I've actually become, unawares, something of a neighborhood character around here. I walk down the streets of NYC with a book open in my hand, reading as I go along."
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I used to ride my bike home from school no-hands, reading a book. (Going TO school was uphill, not so easy.) It became quite natural over the years and not particularly risky and, as you point out, I did have peripheral vision.
One of the joys of growing up in small town middle-America is that everyone knows you. Instead of being "that crazy kid that's gonna be killed someday," they called my mother with that opinion. She didn't care that I was doing it, but hated that I annoyed near-strangers (strangers were her favorite people), and ordered me to quit.
I kept doing it, eventually people stopped calling her, and things returned to normal. My only regret is that most of the thousands of book I read as a kid were of no lasting value, and when I started college, only one or two were on the list of "100 books every incoming freshman should have read." Precursor to a wasted life?
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I used to ride my bike home from school no-hands, reading a book. (Going TO school was uphill, not so easy.) It became quite natural over the years and not particularly risky and, as you point out, I did have peripheral vision.
One of the joys of growing up in small town middle-America is that everyone knows you. Instead of being "that crazy kid that's gonna be killed someday," they called my mother with that opinion. She didn't care that I was doing it, but hated that I annoyed near-strangers (strangers were her favorite people), and ordered me to quit.
I kept doing it, eventually people stopped calling her, and things returned to normal. My only regret is that most of the thousands of book I read as a kid were of no lasting value, and when I started college, only one or two were on the list of "100 books every incoming freshman should have read." Precursor to a wasted life?
Heh heh... hey, Oprah's one tough, smart chick. (I can call her "chick" because I am safely anonymous behind this screen. She cannot find me and work me over.) :)
I'll admit as irritating as it is she is promoting the concept of reading, which is rare in this day. Other programs should do it; it should be a requirement of any talk show/news show. It seems like the only thing that can "make" a person read nowadays s a prison sentence.
I've actually become, unawares, something of a neighborhood character around here. I walk down the streets of NYC with a book open in my hand, reading as I go along. Occasionally I get compliments; sometimes I'm yelled at for being a fool who'll be hit by a truck one day (never happen because of reading; a little trick called "peripheral vision")
One day I heard a passerby refer to me as "the guy who's always reading"...behold! i've become a neighborhood kook and eccentric without realizing it was happening.
You're right about your ideas on why those who speak out against global warming. It's likely also a result of people not wanting to accept blame; no body likes to admit they've partaken in a great wrong.
I'll admit as irritating as it is she is promoting the concept of reading, which is rare in this day. Other programs should do it; it should be a requirement of any talk show/news show. It seems like the only thing that can "make" a person read nowadays s a prison sentence.
I've actually become, unawares, something of a neighborhood character around here. I walk down the streets of NYC with a book open in my hand, reading as I go along. Occasionally I get compliments; sometimes I'm yelled at for being a fool who'll be hit by a truck one day (never happen because of reading; a little trick called "peripheral vision")
One day I heard a passerby refer to me as "the guy who's always reading"...behold! i've become a neighborhood kook and eccentric without realizing it was happening.
You're right about your ideas on why those who speak out against global warming. It's likely also a result of people not wanting to accept blame; no body likes to admit they've partaken in a great wrong.
"I have often wondered who gave Oprah the monoply on being "the authority" on rating books."
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Not a monopoly. Anyone can have an opinion--I've had one or two, myself.
It is true that my opinions haven't yet warranted tables in bookstores, but I refuse to think that's because her opinions are better than mine. I'm thinking that if I had a tv show with millions of watchers, and told them to go out and buy a book, and some of them did, I'd get tables in bookstores, too.
And I wouldn't recommend books by people who made up lies and forgot to call it fiction, either. But my table might be a little skewed in the direction of regime change, right here in the U.S.A., now that the Administration's former minions have started hemorraging truth.
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Not a monopoly. Anyone can have an opinion--I've had one or two, myself.
It is true that my opinions haven't yet warranted tables in bookstores, but I refuse to think that's because her opinions are better than mine. I'm thinking that if I had a tv show with millions of watchers, and told them to go out and buy a book, and some of them did, I'd get tables in bookstores, too.
And I wouldn't recommend books by people who made up lies and forgot to call it fiction, either. But my table might be a little skewed in the direction of regime change, right here in the U.S.A., now that the Administration's former minions have started hemorraging truth.
"Apparently, they object to the idea of global warming, but claim to have no problem with environmental responsibility. So why are we fighting over it???"
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Oh; I know! Me! Me! Call on me!
Oh, uh, what? Oh, I forgot...
Ah. Because they have no trouble with environmental responsibility IN THEORY, as something that would be nice to do when we're not so busy. However, if they admit to global warming, then it becomes an imperative.
btw, I attended a party tonight including members of two different book clubs. You would have enjoyed the explanations of how their group HAS read some of Oprah's books-of-the-month, but that was BEFORE they were chosen by Oprah.
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Oh; I know! Me! Me! Call on me!
Oh, uh, what? Oh, I forgot...
Ah. Because they have no trouble with environmental responsibility IN THEORY, as something that would be nice to do when we're not so busy. However, if they admit to global warming, then it becomes an imperative.
btw, I attended a party tonight including members of two different book clubs. You would have enjoyed the explanations of how their group HAS read some of Oprah's books-of-the-month, but that was BEFORE they were chosen by Oprah.
Heh heh...well, I'M going to toss my stuff in the back of my RV Motor home, grab muh huntin' dog and drive muhself over to them there new shiney planets! Sheeeoot! We'll just nuke them thar natives if they don't like it!
I always ask people who don't beleive in global warming "Well...lets say your right and it's a crock. Is it really such a bad idea to be environmentally responsible?"
They always say "Why...sure we should!" Apparently, they object to the idea of global warming, but claim to have no problem with environmental responsibility. So why are we fighting over it???
Oh, and I know what you mean about Oprah. Although I'll admit, she does pick good books. I've read some (ripped off that sticker!) of them before and after they were oprah books.
I don't know...when did we become a society that literally has to be told what to think? I could take a book, sing it's praises, and few would read it. But put an oprah sticker on it, and everyone will read it.
Or NOT read it. I think half of these people are buying the books just to put on the coffee table, as a conversation piece.
I always ask people who don't beleive in global warming "Well...lets say your right and it's a crock. Is it really such a bad idea to be environmentally responsible?"
They always say "Why...sure we should!" Apparently, they object to the idea of global warming, but claim to have no problem with environmental responsibility. So why are we fighting over it???
Oh, and I know what you mean about Oprah. Although I'll admit, she does pick good books. I've read some (ripped off that sticker!) of them before and after they were oprah books.
I don't know...when did we become a society that literally has to be told what to think? I could take a book, sing it's praises, and few would read it. But put an oprah sticker on it, and everyone will read it.
Or NOT read it. I think half of these people are buying the books just to put on the coffee table, as a conversation piece.
In 1962, while I was graduating high school, Rachel Carson published “Silent Spring” and thoughtful people realized our planet was not impervious to our intrusions. Before long, idiots [no, no, I mean people with other valid viewpoints] began to say, “No problem; we’ll just move to another planet.” I was young, so it took It took a while and some wasted argument to realize they never intended this as rational discourse, but merely as noise to derail the possibility of the ugly reality’s sinking in.
The human propensity to deny something so catastrophic was sustained by our federal government’s refusing to define, much less address, the problem of global habitat destruction as each political party and administration refused, in turn, to be the bearer of such cataclysmic bad tidings.
Denial is resilient. When astronomers announced in 2007 that they had discovered a planet they believed might be amenable to human habitation, our practice of using up and spitting out this planet seemed vindicated, and there was a small groundswell of triumph. Never mind that it is 20.5 light years away, or that at 1,000,000 mph, it would take over 15,000 years to get there. Never mind that the handful of people who may actually travel in space will not include you, or me, or our children. Let the engineers figure that stuff out; all we care is that we don’t have to bother recycling any more.
This week, further vindication: astronomers now tell us that planets possibly amenable to some kind of life are “scattered all over the place.” Of course, “the place” is the universe, “all over” means many light years apart, “possibly amenable to life” means (1) maybe, and (2) not necessarily human or any kind of earth life. So toss them old batteries into the landfill and let your shower run until your bathroom floats away—this old planet is pretty well used up anyway, and we have lots of places to run!
The human propensity to deny something so catastrophic was sustained by our federal government’s refusing to define, much less address, the problem of global habitat destruction as each political party and administration refused, in turn, to be the bearer of such cataclysmic bad tidings.
Denial is resilient. When astronomers announced in 2007 that they had discovered a planet they believed might be amenable to human habitation, our practice of using up and spitting out this planet seemed vindicated, and there was a small groundswell of triumph. Never mind that it is 20.5 light years away, or that at 1,000,000 mph, it would take over 15,000 years to get there. Never mind that the handful of people who may actually travel in space will not include you, or me, or our children. Let the engineers figure that stuff out; all we care is that we don’t have to bother recycling any more.
This week, further vindication: astronomers now tell us that planets possibly amenable to some kind of life are “scattered all over the place.” Of course, “the place” is the universe, “all over” means many light years apart, “possibly amenable to life” means (1) maybe, and (2) not necessarily human or any kind of earth life. So toss them old batteries into the landfill and let your shower run until your bathroom floats away—this old planet is pretty well used up anyway, and we have lots of places to run!
I have often wondered who gave Oprah the monoply on being "the authority" on rating books. I was in the bookstore the other day and there was a huge table with all these books with a large sticker on the cover "Oprah's Bookclub Book" on them. I was intrigued and sort of watched as people walked by many tables and then paused and looked at the table with the Oprah stikered books, generally passing up the other tables.
Now, is the O sticker thing a new marketing ploy to unload books that aren't selling well? Are we so unsure of our own ability to know a good book when we read it that we have to rely on the opinion of someone we have never met or spoken with; someone we most likely will never even know beyond the TV screen in our living rooms?
It really scares me to know there is someone out there that 99.9999999% of the population will never even remotely have the slightest chance of getting to know on a personal level; that level where you know someone for their sound judgement or zaney quirkey likes and dislikes, and this unknown person has so much power over what people choose to put into their minds which ultimately has the ability to influence the way they think and behave. Who chose Oprah as the book Goddess??????????????
Oprah scares the pants off of me... but then so does GW and many other "unknowns" that have ended up on our ballots. Pretty strange system if you ask me. I guess when all is said and done, being sheep or worker bees is much easier than thinking for yourself.
Now, is the O sticker thing a new marketing ploy to unload books that aren't selling well? Are we so unsure of our own ability to know a good book when we read it that we have to rely on the opinion of someone we have never met or spoken with; someone we most likely will never even know beyond the TV screen in our living rooms?
It really scares me to know there is someone out there that 99.9999999% of the population will never even remotely have the slightest chance of getting to know on a personal level; that level where you know someone for their sound judgement or zaney quirkey likes and dislikes, and this unknown person has so much power over what people choose to put into their minds which ultimately has the ability to influence the way they think and behave. Who chose Oprah as the book Goddess??????????????
Oprah scares the pants off of me... but then so does GW and many other "unknowns" that have ended up on our ballots. Pretty strange system if you ask me. I guess when all is said and done, being sheep or worker bees is much easier than thinking for yourself.
stuff like that is funny. especially when they ask what the UN stand for..get some very intelligent answers
Have you ever watched Jay Leno as he goes around the city asking people questions they should know? Like who the vice president is or what are the words to the Star Spangled Banner. You should hear the answers people give him! It's scary!
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