Tom Adams
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Posts posted by Tom Adams
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Hi Mark -
I wasn't able to see the connection you are trying to make.
That’s because I’m not that gifted with the art of getting my thoughts on paper plus I tend to write as if I’m talking to myself. At times I feel like Paula Abdul.
"We" - the people, I guess, are using energy resources at a rate faster than the Earth produces them, and that cause the price to rise.
That’s a well crafted statement in that the earth is essentially producing NO additional energy resources. So, yes, your statement is true. However, your statement begs that this question be asked: “At what rate of consumption is our consumption too fast and what all-knowing, all-seeing person decides or sets that “rate”? That’s probably as debatable as which came first the chicken or the egg or the meaning of life or worse yet…..women!
The question is, why are we using that much energy?
Why not?? And I don’t mean that in a smart-as* way. I mean, who decides what is too much? Are you proposing that we live in a society where some “entity” unilaterally decides what is too much? Scares me.
What does the Federal Government have to do with the explosion of people buying Hummers and SUVs getting 12MPG?
Essentially – nothing. Those vehicles were created because the market demanded them. Now I will admit that advertising probably played a role, but you could market the you-know-what out of a dog t*rd, but I don’t think folks would buy them. Besides, in our country, for every 4x4 SUV that never sees a dirt road, there’s probably hundreds that are purchased for exactly what they were designed for. So what’s the solution? Some all-knowing, all seeing entitity deciding who can drive what?? A special license for contractors to buy an F-350 to haul stuff? What if that contractor decides to take his wife & 4 kids to the movies in the F-350? Is he in violation of some inappropriate usage law? I mean, where do you stop with this sort of thing?
Tangent => IMHO, these comments about the Europeans paying 8 bucks or whatever for gas is irrelevant to what’s happening here. Why do I feel that way? Because in Europe & the U.K., the entire transportation system scheme is different from here in the US. Driving distances are shorter, streets are not the same widths, population densities are greater in any given geographic locale. So taken as whole, I think you’ll find that the cost/mile/year is about the same. In the US, due to its physical size, we are forced to have to drive great distances (granted sometimes by choice). Let’s face it, in one day you can drive from one coast of the U.K. to the other – which you would be hard pressed to get across the state of Texas in the same drive time.
What does it have to do with people buying 4,000 sq.ft. homes that need to be heated and cooled?
Again…it’s a freedom of choice thing that I really don’t think any one has died and left someone in charge of deciding how big is too big. Do I think some folk’s homes are grossly oversized – sure. But that’s just me and my humble opinion. However, I would fight to the death against any attempt to dictate that Tom & Donna and their two dogs don’t need a 1900 square foot home with 3 bedrooms when there’s only two people inside. Oh the horror – we have three bedrooms but only need one. I’m not trying to be a jerk. Again….where do you draw the line and who will be the one drawing it??
What does it have to do with people paying Coca-Cola to bottle water 500 miles from my house and then ship it to me when I have perfectly good water in my tap?
Can’t answer that in that I don’t drink bottled water.
What does it have to do with people wanting fresh tomatoes in January in Maine?
Really?? They get fresh tomatoes in January?? Sheesh…..
Seriously though….Like I said, I was mostly venting and not really trying to make a point – my bad. Well – there was one point I tried to make and I hope it was obvious. That you can throw around that gross profit stuff all day long, but until you balance the equation with the “Loss” side of the P&L, it’s only half the story. But hey….it gets the sheeple all riled up and that’s what we want, right? God forbid we actually educate folks with the truth.
Oh well – I’m gonna shut the hell up now. I’m starting to pis* myself off. [
]Tom
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Paid $3.48 for regular yesterday.
When Congress created ANWAR, the measure passed with the provision that a certain small region be set aside for oil exploration drilling. That region was surveyed and all parties agreed that there would be NO negative environmental impact to drilling there. The oil deposit is very large. That was over 15 years ago. To date, Congress has not allowed drilling.
Food prices are rising around the world. Much of this is caused by the heavy subsidies the federal government pays to farmers who grow corn and maize for ethanol production. It has been several years since any new acreage has been planted in corn for food in this country. Back in 1998 the Senate voted on an EPA mandate for ethanol. Louisiana Democrat Senator Bennett Johnson tried to prevent that mandate from becoming law. He said that American consumers would need a few extra bucks to pay for their corn flakes every morning if the mandate made it through. The Senate was tied 50-50 on the bill to prevent the EPA from going forward with the ethanol mandate. The tie had to be broken, and it was, by the President of the Senate (Al Gore if you must know). The bill was defeated and the EPA was allowed to proceed with the mandate. That was 14 years ago. Now we have these increasing food prices.
Then there is the large oil deposit offshore from the Gulf Coast of Florida. The Florida Governor says no way you’re drilling off my coast; it’ll ruin our tourist economy with those ugly drilling rigs. Never mind that the rigs would be over 25 miles off the coast and could only be seen with the naked eye from the top floor of a 25 story building.
Oil is traded on speculation. That needs to STOP. Not sure how. But it darn sure doesn’t need to be on the futures market.
Exxon’s profit margin during the past three record profit years is hovering around 11.5%. Many sectors of our economy like furniture, financial institutions, cosmetics, etc. have had substantially higher margins. The reason the oil companies profits have been increasing is because the price of crude oil has gone up thus bringing gas prices up thus increasing the dollar amount of sales. That’s the “P” side of the P&L. Factor in all those things that go on the “L” side of the P&L and you get around an 11.5% profit margin.
All oil refineries in this country are at max capacity with no new refineries on the drawing boards because of the NIMBY – not in my back yard – position of many locales. It’s well known that part of the issue is that demand for gas is out-stripping supply therefore the laws of supply & demand take hold. Folks want cheaper prices but say no to refineries being in “their back yard”.
When folks in this country realize that what we have is not a political issue, but an issue with the Imperial Federal Government (IFG) that is no longer “…of the people and by the people…” then change will happen. But until we as a nation continue to stick our collective heads in the sand; cry “oh help me IFG. It’s never my responsibility/fault for my actions”; never hold our elected officials accountable for their screw-ups; continue down the slippery-slope road of political correctness; then I think we got coming what we deserve.
Hopefully this post was neutral enough to not warrant the big ka-bosh from Amy for it’s not my intent. I’m just venting and frustrated fed up.
Tom
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We haven't had one of these in a while, so I'll start...........
Two Swedish, Two Irish and Two Scottish couples began to play a game of golf.
The Swede's wife steps up to the tee and, as she bends over to place her ball, a gust of wind blows her skirt up and reveals her lack of underwear.
'Good God, woman! Why aren't you wearing any skivvies?', Ole demanded.
'Well, you don't give me enough housekeeping money to afford any.'
The Swede immediately reaches into his pocket and says, 'For the sake of decency, here's a 50. Go and buy yourself some underwear.'
Next, the Irishman's wife bends over to set her ball on the tee. Her skirt also blows up to show that she, too, is wearing no undies.
'Blessed Virgin Mary, woman! You've no knickers. Why not?'
She replies, 'I can't afford any on the money you give me.'
Patrick reaches into his pocket and says , 'For the sake of decency, here's a 20.
Go and buy yourself some underwear!'
Lastly, the Scotsman's wife bends over. The wind also takes her skirt over her head to reveal that she, too, is naked under it.
'Sweet mudder of Jaysus, Aggie! Where the frig are yer drawers?'
She too explains, 'You dinna give me enough money ta be able ta afford any.'
The Scotsman reaches into his pocket and says, 'Well, fer the love 'o decency, here's a comb.....Tidy yerself up a bit.'
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Been a while since we had a bacon thread. So check out this dish from Beau's Burgers in Orange Grove, Texas. It's chicken fried bacon with white gravy! YUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tom
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I don't think Lowe's is carrying the Duo. Oddly enough, the only place I've seen it was in a new Kroger grocery store that just opened. The price they listed was $248. And in person it's bigger than what it looks like in the photo. The smoker side probably has enough room for 4 slabs of baby back. And for 2 people, that's plenty. The gas side is bigger than the cheap POS I have now plus there's a side burner I can use for frying which I'd much rather do outside to lessen the risk of an oil fire (not to mention keeping from stinkin' up the house when I fry fish).
Yep - seen a BGE. And it's price made me choke. Sorry - but I'm a cheap sumb*tch. Yeah, yeah, yeah....in the long run it's......whatever. Long run matters not when ya ain't got the moola today.
You kill me InnerTuber. You've never used the CharGriller product (assumption on my part) yet you can already vote no. Wow - that's quite a gift you have there.
Oh.....and then you offer up some solutions that total over $650 to do what the CharGriller Duo might be able to do. Sheesh....your math is almost as bad as mine. LOL I'm gonna buy one....what the hell.
Tom
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She must be reeeeeeeal fun to be around if both husbands shot themselves.
Tom
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Hmmmmm.......been needing to replace my gas grill and would love to have a charcoal/wood smoker, but can't justify buying two. Maybe this is the solution???
http://www.chargriller.com/duogrill.html
Tom
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srobak -
Man.....did those pictures of your ZX9R bring back some memories. I owned a '94 for over 10 years before it handed duty over to my FJR1300. Honestly, that's one bike I wished I'd kept. It came into my life at a point that I needed a serious diversion. Road that thing all over the eastern U.S. and west a few miles. You know...even though my FJR is more comfy on the other side of a 500 mile day and can carry more than I need, I could ride the "9" just as much in any given day. 'Course - at the end of two 500 mile days I no longer have to lube a chain in a hotel parking lot. LOL......
And for those of you who aren't as observant.....srobak not only doesn't have any chicken strips on that back tire, but methinks I see a bit of blueing on that rubber. Translation - the man's been tugging on the loud handle of that thing in the twisties!! Nice.........
Oh - and while you got the motor out....get out that air grinder and polish that frame ya lazy git!! LOL.......
Back to the thread......sure wish I could make the pilgrimage. I'd definitely stay over and do the ride.
Tom
ps: That evolution of man is partially correct in that a Concours IS a cave man motorcycle. The part that's missing is the transition from a Concours to a "proper" sport touring motorcycle like a FJR or ST or..... LMAO
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I tried them out based on Coytee's suggestion for a pair of right-angle XLR cables and was able to get them with the right angle plugs with each connection at the clock hand position to line up with intended position when connected. Great custom work IMO for fair price.
I too used Blue Jeans when I needed a set of (7) XLR cables in a specific length to connect my pre/pro and 2 amplifiers. In hindsight, I wish I'd also used them for my pre/pro to projector cabling for I'm sure they would've been cheaper than the stuff I bought from my audio dealer.
Tom
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I too have a 880 and I love the thing. Back when I had a dedicated HT room, it not only controlled the A/V equipment, but also the three light zones with independant dimmers. Push one button and everything turns on and the lights would dim down to their preset levels. I still use it today but not in a fancy elaborate system. Actually it's kinda overkill for a simple TV and two channel system. But since the wife is severely remote/technology challenged, it greatly simplifies my life that she just presses the "Watch A Movie" button so I no longer hafta hear, "TOM!!!!! I CAN'T GET THE (blankety-blank) DVD TO PLAY!!!!!!!!!! WHICH ONE OF THESE (blankety-blank) REMOTES DOES WHAT!!!???" LOL.............
Tom
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I’ll just echo the advice that many have said here and just add some commentary based solely on nothing more than having been there – done that (see the pic below).
Projectors….read and educate yourself at the various websites mentioned but heed this warning. HT projector technology is progressing so fast that they’re almost like PC’s. What you think is awesome today is surpassed in performance, and at a lower cost, by another projector in as little as 6 months – sometimes even by the same manufacturer!!! So if your HT project is on a 1 or 2 year horizon, don’t get too attached to any projector today. My advice would be to not spend big bucks on a projector because in 2 years it’ll be old hat. Just resign yourself to buying a new projector every 3 years just like folks do with PC’s. LOL Oh – and my vote goes to the Panasonic 1080P LCD’s.
I’m prejudiced when it comes to screens. After having done a dedicated HT room and seeing other rooms, if I had to do another one I would again buy a Carada screen (see Falcon’s post above for link). The folks at Carada are great to deal with and will gladly spend time answering your questions. Their prices are excellent and I’ve had more than one HT professional see my screen and comment that it was as nice or nicer than the big names like Draper, Stewart, etc. I’ve long been a skeptic about perforated screens, but today’s latest crop of projectors are bright enough that any loss through the screen is irrelevant. If I were doing a HT today, I’d design my “front stage” to not only have my front R&L mains hidden (sorry my beautiful Cornwalls), but I’d opt for a perf screen and put my center channel behind just like scooter did.
Screen gain….that’s something to consider too. There are various materials that screens are made from and they each have their own gain spec. In simple terms, gain is the amount of light reflected or not reflected. For instance – a 1.0 gain screen means that 100% of the light that hits the screen is reflected back. A 1.2 gain means that the light that hits the screen will be “boosted” (for lack of a better word) upon being reflected back at you. And a 0.8 gain screen means that some of the light that hits the screen will be absorbed. I’ve greatly simplified this, but I think you get the jest. And why would gain be important?? Well, because depending on how much light control you have in your room and the projector you’re gonna use, the screen material & gain needs to be considered. BTW – keep in mind that the bigger you go in screen size the more light output your projector will need to have in order to fill that sucker. Image resolution can possibly suffer too. The point being that bigger ain’t always better. Oh….and then there’s optimum viewing distance from the screen to your front row of seats to figure as well as the correct screen height and....sheesh…..I could go on & on…..
And speaking of light control….you need to noodle through that as well for the last thing you need are for those cool looking fixtures that you & your wife picked out washing out your screen image. Give some thought to having two or three “zones” for lights. That way you can dim each “zone” independently. And don’t get scared here. Having 2 or 3 or 4 “zones” of lighting is not that expensive or complicated. But now is the time to establish it since you have a blank canvas for wiring. Oh – and don’t forget wiring for automation. Nothing will make you grin bigger or have your friends call you “Da Man” when you’re able to control lights, projector, audio/video from the comfort of your chair. And achieving this is cheaper than you think.
And speaking of wiring….your dilemma of where to place the power outlet for you projector is not gonna be solved until you settle on the projector AND the screen size. Because as others have said - together, they both determine the projector’s placement. Can you place multiple outlets in the ceiling as someone suggested? Yep. But ask yourself this – will you be happy having blank cover plates over unused outlets in the ceiling? If so, knock yourself out. Me being a perfectionist, it would bother the crap outta me and looked like I'd goofed. If you can get above the ceiling, my advice would be to tell your electrician to pull a dedicated 14/2 run to a central location on the rafters, cap the wires, and leave a loop enough that you could take the wire 10’ in either direction. Then, later, when you settle on a projector and screen you can pop a hole in the ceiling, install an electrical box designed for renovation and call it a day. Besides, you’re also gonna have to run your HDMI or component cables to your projector too. So there goes another hole (box) in the ceiling.
Are you starting to see a pattern here with what all of us are saying?? For a truly good HT room, it needs to be synergistic IMHO. I simply cannot stress enough that one should plan, plan, plan, and then plan some more. And I’m not talking about fancy & expensive. If you have the money to make a really WOW theater – cool. But with enough planning you can have a very nice HT without a lot of expense.
Tom
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I wouldn't mind seeing the backside.
You know.........
To see how big the magnet is on that thing. [6]
Tom
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(tom dusts the sand off his head and says.......)
Thanks for the info and the commentary. I too like both of them (especially Alison) and will keep an eye out for their CD. And like someone else here said, I didn't notice the previous thread about them. What triggered me was an alert from Ticketmaster about them being in Atlanta.
Tom
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My current ride and the trip I took to Canada that this thread reminded me of (sigh......) what great memories. The lake in the background is Lake Ontario from the Canadian side. This was in 2004. Man - I need to take another trip like that.
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My first motorcycle. 1970 Honda Mini-Trail Z50A. Oh - and I also owned a CT-70 just like the one pictured above.
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Has anyone else noticed (or maybe even seen them) that Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are touring together??? Maybe it's me, but that seems like the most unlikely pairing that I can think of. Is she going rock or is he going blue grass???
Tom
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Welcome to the dark side. All your questions can be answered here: http://www.ibsubwoofers.proboards51.com/
Be sure to read the FAQ before you ask a question. Every one of your questions should be answered in the FAQ. To find the FAQ page, go to the IB Subwoofer general topic section and click on the first section titled Infinite Baffle Subwoofer FAQ Page.
Thanks for the link. Looks like I now have plenty of bathroom reading material. [
]Tom
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OK…..so I’ve decided to flip-flop on considering an IB sub for my garage/man-cave. Just shoot me.
Anyhow….I’m a bit foggy about IB subs. I understand the basics of what an IB is, however, it’s the actual implementation/installation that I would like some help with. I mean, it can’t be as simple as cutting a hole in the ceiling, mounting a driver, attaching a power amp and then outputting a sub signal to the amp can it?? I mean…
- My ceiling will be 5/8” OSB. Does the ceiling material need to be beefed up in the area where the driver is attached?
- My ceiling has an access door for the attic, does that door have to be sealed tightly?
- I plan on having just plain blown insulation in the attic, is that sufficient? Do I even need insulation?
- Is there an optimum location in the ceiling?
- What would be a decent driver?
I know I’ve joked around a bit with this and my last thread, but I’m serious about this project. So any and all help would be appreciated.
Thanks!
Tom
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Thanks TheEar. Those options look promising. And no offense to you, but I really thought that DrWho or Jay or the other bass heads here would've been jumping in on this thread helping me with my first DIY sub project. Guess nobody loves me anymore.............
Oh well - I guess I can buy one of those Dayton Titanic sub kits or a Klipsch Sub-12.
Tom
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Jay => I'm not sure I'd totally agree with these being bad economic times. We're producing 6 planes per month and there's a 4 year wait for a G550. We had a 17% increase in sales in 2007 and the predictions are for more in 2008. Bottom line - we can't build 'em fast enough. And knowing how conservative Gulfstream tends to be, I can guarantee you that there's at least 100+ folks already lined up to plunk down $58.5 million for the G650.
Tom
Aren't those the preordered planes that are being manufactured now, the guys that brought in 1-3 years ago in the good old days of the housing boom?
That's partially true. When they buy a plane they are given a so-called tail number like 4130 (G450 designation with the model line starting with aircraft 4001). At the time they get a tail number, they pay us 25%. Once the fuselage sections start being built they send us another 25%. The next 25% installment is when the fuselage is mated to the wing. And the balance is due upon flight acceptance by the customer (usually the owners' pilot).
Tom
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Hey Rob - long time no chat. We need to get together off-line and get caught up.
I was showing your room to a co-worker and a though hit me. Have you ever done any testing of your IB sub system to see what kinda "numbers" you get??
Tom
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More interesting news (wonder when Klipsch is gonna make the jump to fiber optics??)
FLY-BY-LIGHT AIRCRAFT-CONTROL SYSTEM DEMONSTRATED:
Gulfstream announced today that it has successfully demonstrated
aircraft control using fiber-optic "Fly-By-Light" (FBL) technology. This
is the first time FBL has been tested on a primary flight-control surface
of a Gulfstream business aircraft. During a nearly 75-minute flight
originating out of Savannah in the GV test aircraft, a fiber-optic harness
transferred pilot-control input from a Flight Control Computer (FCC) to
spoilers on the wing. The harness, which carries flight-control signals
on optical fiber, performs an electrical-optical conversion at each
avionics system endpoint, combining multiple signals onto a common
optical backbone that spans the aircraft. The electrical-optical
conversion uses in-line signal concentrators, each of which can
condense thousands of dual-path electrical signals into a single
optical bus. FBL technology provides significant weight savings and
increased safety over fly-by-wire systems. The system streamlines a
bulky wire bundle into just four fiber-optic wires. The fiber-optic harness
transmits a redundant signal for enhanced integrity and system safety.
The redundancy is inherent to the design of the harness. A fly-by-wire
system would require an additional harness to achieve the same level
of safety. "When you consider the benefits Fly-By-Light technology
delivers to its users in terms of weight and safety, the system Gulfstream
tested was better than expected," said Pres Henne, senior vice president
of programs, engineering and test. "We're pleased with the system's
performance and will continue to research its use in future applications."
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This doesn’t surprise me. Nowadays, in some of the more sophisticated “glass cockpits” (i.e. the ones with those big LCD displays), the aircraft is so automated that it’s boring to fly one. Once the plane leaves the ground, the autopilot is engaged and depending on the flight program/profile in the flight management computer (FMC), the aircraft goes to the correct altitude and heading. The decent and final approach can be handled by the FMC as well. Some of the newer Embraer regional jets’ FMC’s will put the wheels down on the runway before relinquishing control over to the pilot if the pilot so chooses. We ain’t far from pilot-less aircraft. In fact, the F-22 Raptor will likely be the last manned aircraft the military will purchase.
Tom
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Ok, ok…...I get it. My original question/request was too obtuse. Let me try and narrow things down a bit.
- Bass horn/cabinet thing is out of the question.
- IB is out of the question.
- I want to build my own ported box out of MDF.
- I’d like to power the thing with either a new BASH type plate amp or maybe a used outboard amp. This is where the “cheap” factor comes in.
- I would like to buy a 15” driver (new if possible, but would consider used if not pounded on like cubed steak), but I’d also consider a single or dual 12” driver if I can get almost the same output. Again, this is where the “cheap” comes into play.
- It has to play well with my Heresy’s unlike that Gorilla thing dtel has going on. LOL….
- As for size, it can’t be a refrigerator for I’m thinking of mounting the thing on the rear wall up near the ceiling. So the thing can’t weigh more than the wife & I can lift.
- Cost?? I’d like to stay between $350 and $500.
Hope this gives you a better idea of where I’m trying to go. Oh – and I appreciate the responses and help.
Tom
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OT: Joke thread
in General Klipsch Info
Posted
A teacher gave her class a sex education assignment to watch a TV show that had something to do sex and to be prepared to tell the class about it the next day.
The next day, one-by-one each student stood up and told about how they saw a show about women having babies and soap operas where men & women were kissing and such.
The teacher gets to the last little boy and excitedly he says, “Well last night teacher I was watching and old Audie Murphy movie. And Audie was riding down through this pass when all of a sudden there was 3 Indians coming at him from the front and 3 Indians coming up from the rear. And Audie pulled out his six shooter and shot and killed every one of them Indians!!”
The teach said, “Well that certainly sounds like an exciting movie, but what did it have to do with sex?”
The little boy said, “Well…..it taught them Indians not to f*** with Audie Murphy!!”