BigStewMan

i was a government employee for over 20 years...and i really was there to help []

when i was in the coast guard (on an ice breaking ship) we stopped in duluth a couple of times. it was cold and we got drunk--i hope it was a nice place. unfortunately, as most sailors can attest, we rarely saw much of a town beyond the insides of the nearest watering hole.

the police just shot and killed a person suspected of trying to start ANOTHER fire. when they approached the man, he got in his car and backed into the police car--they shot and killed the guy. the article didn't say what he was doing to made the police think he was getting ready to start of fire; but, he was doing something to arouse suspicion. since the wind died down, it is actually much more smokey--not helping my asthma any. but, i won't complain because that is nothing compared to what so many others are going through. my wife works for AAA and some guy, that lives in a house that is in the fire's path, calls the office and asks if it is too late to purchase fire insurance.

Klipshorns are the only thing that can save us now. Hurry!

NOT GOOD NEWS FOR THE FIREFIGHTERS...From the weather service STRONG SANTA ANA WINDS WILL CONTINUE TODAY AND INTO TUESDAY. AREAS OF NORTHEAST WINDS 25 TO 35 MPH WITH STRONGEST GUSTS TO AROUND 85 MPH WILL OCCUR NEAR AND BELOW PASSES AND CANYONS. THE STRONGEST WINDS AND WIND GUSTS WILL BE BELOW THE CAJON PASS AND NEAR THE COASTAL FOOTHILLS OF THE SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS. WINDS WILL REMAIN STRONG AND GUSTY BUT ARE EXPECTED TO BE SLIGHTLY WEAKER FOR TUESDAY...AND THEN WEAKEN RATHER SIGNIFICANTLY ON WEDNESDAY.

what about ryan leaf? he gave us the best locker room meltdowns, and was possibly one of the greatest disappointments--with honorable mentions to mr. mandarich and mr. bosworth.

i work in santa ana and the wind is really blowing hard here. the sky to the east is smokey. feels like we're surrounded--go one direction and malibu is on fire, go the other santa clarita, go another san diego county. there is one pleasant alternative--the remaining direction is the pacific ocean--anyone got a boat?

pretty cool their grandma. i can say that because i'm also a young grandfather (third one on the way). i'll tell you, there isn't much that makes me feel better than hearing my granddaughter (almost 2 yrs old) walk into the room and say "Hi Papa." Maybe i am getting old, but that really touches my heart. i'm sure you and dtel are proud grandparents as i am. congratulations and best wishes. just remember, grandparents don't let their grandchildren buy bose.

happy saturday--hopefully this post will make it--i just typed two replies and they disappeared before making it to the board. mdeneen--i wasn't presenting you a straw man or any other trick. no offense intended at all; but, that is not needed because you're logic commits suicide all over the place. i'd love to take up the challenge to discuss religion which is a topic that i feel very qualified to debate; however, i will respect amy's rules. i did mean that intent is not a definer of truth. i can't state it any more plainly--things are or they are not. things don't exist because i believe in them; nor do they not exist just because i choose not to believe. i believe in absolute truth. you are not the first person to accuse me over trying to simplify things (one of my friends keeps telling me not to make everything black or white). I do that intentionally because i want to get to the core of a matter--that is where lasting change can occur. for instance, in your example of the man shooting dope, using a dirty needle is not the core issue nor is it the man's biggest problem. yes, he is possibly compounding his problem because a dirty needle may bring on another serious issue. but, to make this issue black & white--the man's problem is that he is shooting dope in the first place, and getting him to stop is where the focus should be. some workers may try to sear their conscience by thinking they are being compassionate and saving this drug user from aids, etc...the user choosing to use a dirty needle stems from his drug use. if saving this person from one potential consequence is your goal, then you have succeeded, only in that instance. how can this worker pat themselves on the back and feel so wonderful when they have done absolutely nothing to solve this man's problem? he is still using drugs and now is one step further down that horrible road. you may hail them as great humanitarians, but i don't think they've helped this person a single bit--perhaps they merely delayed the likely tragic outcome to this person's life. please take my word for this, drug users will not start using drugs only during business hours. they will use it whenever the opportunity presents itself--if it is at a clinic fine, if it is at the park, that's fine too, from a stranger at a party--still fine. chances are that someday he'll OD; but hey at least he didn't die from aids right? they have not helped this person deal with the reality that his drug use is damaging to his body and even more painful to his loved ones. habitual drug users don't need help maintaing the status quo. i also think i'm qualified to speak on habitual drug use--that was my lifestyle for many years. by the grace of GOD i have been drug free since 1980 and i can tell you that i am exceedingly happy that their wasn't a bunch of compassionate people helping me go farther down that path of destruction than i already had. i will withdraw from further discussion on this topic--i hope the rest of you continue the discussion. i also hope that you will carefully consider that you may not be right. these people do need help; but, not the kind that is being offered. enjoy your weekend folks. i don't know about where you live, but it is a beautiful day in southern california. regards, steve

and just what did you mean by that remark? please follow proper decorum. (see what a night without alcohol does to a person)

the board says that i'm the only member online, so i guess i'll call it a night since i don't like replying to my own posts. everytime i do, i end up in an argument.

Great suggestions so far. And I think Colter has every YES CD ever pressed, [] so I'm not sure which one of the Starship Troopers performances you heard. mr. colter is obviously a very wise man then. chris squire is excellent, and starship trooper is one of my favorite yes songs. not as pronounced, but the bass line in styx's grand illusion is very good. i have a rick wakeman video where it is just him on keyboards and a bass player--very nice as well.

melancholy blues by Queen from the News of the World album

"Drug users who use second-hand needles get disease and infections and pass along STDs which have to be treated in public hospitals at very great expense because we haven't yet moved to a society which simply allows people to die on the streets. You might want that, but that's not where a Christian nation is going to go. So, what is cheaper - - a 99-cent clean needle or a $9,000 hospital visit for AIDS treatments? Which is better - - having a nurse be in charge of disposing of needles, or letting users toss them in the bushes? In so many ways this is simply a silly discussion at this level. Common sense will handle the money end of this argument, and just a tiny modicum of Christian compassion should handle the rest." yikes! helping drug users continue their destructive lifestyle is showing Christian compassion? Please provide a Scripture reference to support that statement. It really doesn't matter if educators and/or public health workers don't consider their actions as facilitating--it is and they are. neither their intent nor their perspective are the definers of truth--they either are facilitating or they are not; and their actions clearly show that they are. something does not cease to be true just because one doesn't believe it. lastly, how do you define violence?

(Years ago) - My son, (and the sons of my friends), had condoms since about age 14. They were also armed with a lot of plain, frank talk about sex, disease, HIV, responsibility, and the enormous downside of early parenthood. They got into their 20's before having children, and I am reasonably sure at least some sex was had before that! No disease was contracted by anyone I know of, and no "abandoned moms" were left in the dust. Questions came up, answers were forthrightly and honestly given. They seem to now have healthy happy families. No taxpayers were harmed in the process. So, I count that as a success for the value of education. Some of it was delivered in school, and some of it at home. I would have been delighted for the school to have a "health center" as described above, but all they had was Sex Ed. hold your views to the same standard that you held david's statement about homeschooling, and oldbuckster's statement about the way he raised his kids--how does what you wrote above help the masses of young people affected by condom failures? is this a case of what is good for you is good for everyone? i'm not sure what they claim the failure rate is these days; but, i know it's not 100% failsafe. for the sake of argument, lets say the failure rate of a condom is 5%--if that failure rate was applied to other areas of life, say airline travel--if your son was getting on a plane and the pilot said only 95% of you will be alive when we land--would you let your son board that plane? Not me.

not dutch; but, don't think i didn't notice that the "V" section is the largest part of the telephone book. i'm actually portuguese. my family is from the Azore Islands (although i'm a california native).

now i'm afraid to check that site out.

David--are you telling us that Dr. Who's reputation has spread to the great state of michigan? i fear he is becoming a legend. p.s. i spent four years living in Grand Haven, MI. Coming from Los Angeles to Grand Haven was total culture shock; but, the small town grew on me and it was hard to leave when the job sent me back to Los Angeles.

mdeneen--parents have to stop abdicating and actually do what parents are supposed to do. through discipline, training, and correction--they have a great deal of influence on their kids. i'm not against education--i just can't think of any problems that are being solved by educating people. unprotected sex puts one at a greater risk of STD--we've been educated up to our ears on that one, and the problem continues to grow. we've been educated relentlessly about everything from sex to nutrition--what has it solved? eduation isn't magic--you can teach a person most anything; but, you can't teach them to WANT to apply what they've learned.

"Certainly any informed parent simply has to inform the school that they don't want their kid to access the health center for any reason. I fail to see how that is so difficult for people." Let me shed a little light on the difficulty you mentioned above--Maybe it is because many of us have lost our trust in the people running the schools. when my daughter was in 8th grade, the school requested parental consent for the students to take a sex education class. i reviewed the proposed cirriculum that the school said would be taught. they claimed it would be as abstinence-based platform. that sounded good and so we stupidly agreed. after attending a few classes, she comes home and tells us where she could go in our local community to get an abortion without parental consent, where she could get free birth control, etc...seems like the only abstinence in that program was the school abstaining from telling the parents the truth. We personally witnessed that and I've heard many similar accounts from others in various parts of the country. you sound like you're getting upset? this is just a place for people to talk.

Well...50% of the available points is failing in most classes. No need to encourage mediocracy or anything... [][6] Bowling is a hard sport...my (bad) shoulder gets worn out after 2 games so then I gotta start bowling lefty - it's fun though because my bowling game is just as good on both sides (yea, that bad). My best game ever is only a shade above 200 (205) but I'm sure that I couldn't get over 100 bowling with my opposite hand. Bowling, like golf (I assume-because I've never golfed), is one of those sports where consistency is a key ingredient. The way you approach the lane, the way you hold your ball, the release, etc etc etc all come together and if one of them is just a tad bit off, your score drops precipitously. -David muscle memory! i love both bowling and golf--i find golf much harder.

perhaps they just want to give their opinion. this obviously isn't a problem-solving medium [for these type of issues].

My first post on this topic...mdeneen, if you are merely curious as to whether or not your fellow forum members are either employed or volunteer in the areas that you mention in your questions that is one thing. Are you suggesting that if they are not personally involved they are not entitled to an opinion or that their opinion is somehow invalidated? I happen to work for an organization that deals with many of these issues you spoke of; however, that does not automatically make my opinion right, nor those of the people that i work with. Facts, logic, and common sense are not exclusive to those that work with those issues--they are available to everyone. history is filled with examples of failures of people "directly" involved. i've personally seen a brand new person to an organization, with no prior experience, identify and offer a solution (that worked) when others that had been neck-deep dealing with the issue for years had failed to recognize it. i hope that i have misinterpreted your post and if i have, i offer my apology. Now, my personal opinion--we're living in a society that has a victim-based mindset. personal responsibilty and accountability are no longer the norm. i also think as mentioned in someone's earlier post, that it is foolish to surrender because "people are going to [insert irresponsible behavior] do it anyway." we can accept that as a reality; however, we must do what is right anyway--to do otherwise is irresponsible (and not actually helpful). Regards.

I'll take a 667 anytime. my personal best is 747. besides that choke job i mentioned earlier, i also 10-pin spare in the first, then 11-in-a-row. i haven't bowled since 2001; but, want to get back into it--it's fun.

a little nervous; but, not too bad. i just threw the ball out wide and didn't put enough on it to make it back to the pocket. still got a ring from the american bowling congress for it.