Things I'm tired of.....

[llsteve80]

This is going to sound like a rant, and maybe it is. There are some things about everyday life that are seriously getting on my nerves and I feel like sharing them with you.

EBAY

I love ebay, it lets me have a PT job without leaving the house, which is good because I was laid off of my "real" job.

BUT

Buyers:

Stupidity, I mean come on people, do you really think that a guy who can't spell chronometer really is smart enough to make enough to have purchased a brand new rolex last year? And the reason he signed up on the bay was just to sell the watch? WTF Keep bidding on it then retard, I'm sure hubcapbillyboy134 would love to sell you his "rolex" that he got from his "uncle" Good thing he knows nothing about watches right? "this my watch. I like this watch. but i dont want watch, never ware" SURE, OK

Scammers:

Damn, get a job! Just because I lost mine doesn't mean I'm going to start hawking my reps as real, if you can't make it with what you got, maybe you should go back to college, it's never too late. Grow some balls and just rip someone off the old fashioned way, walk up to them, punch them in the face, tell them your name and take thier stuff. If you have to do it from several states away, you are not a man, you are a boy and I hope you get grounded.

Real Sellers:

Your title does not have to have "wristwatch" in it. We see the pic in the gallery listing, we know its not a freakin' spoon dude. Why did you pay extra for a subtitle that says "officially certified chronometer" WTF. Almost every rolex says that on it, do you REALLY think thats the selling point? BTW...See that little button on your camera with the flower logo on it? PRESS it! Get a gallery picture, its 35 cents, if you can't afford it, every one is going to think your watch is fake and it probably is.

The USA:

I live there I like it, but this is getting ridiculous. Has anyone seen escape from new york? Blimps floating around saying stuff like "no read meat, no smoking" Thats gonna be true in 15 years or so. In chicago, after the 1st it will be illegal to smoke indoors in public buildings, and you have to smoke 15 feet away from the building in order to be in compliance. Too bad that if you're 15 feet away from the building you are in public and can be arrested for public intoxication. So if you're out at the bars or clubs on the weekend, you just may be indirectly arrested because you smoke. Break 1 law to follow another.

There are many towns in the suburbs where it is illegal to drive past the same place 3 time within 15 or 20 minutes. You can be ticketed or arrested for "cruising" Are you kidding me? What kind of cranky old ass that hates kids thought of that? People really had to be whining about kids driving to get that one passed, or the towns just want some money for nothing. Keep in mind that this is in towns like Schaumburg and other affluent or semi affluent towns. Not really a high crime area.

There's too many petty laws to think about off the top of my head, but it's getting retarded. Its edging toward totalitarianism.

You know you're in trouble when every cop in Bloomingdale (semi upscale town) dresses like he's about to go on a swat raid. Go pull that old lady over, commando, thats the most dangerous thing you'll do for your entire career.

BP/Mobile and the rest of the Fuel companies.

9/11 was a godsend for you sh*t heads wasn't it? Go ahead, keep blaming china for the fuel prices, it's all because they use 6 times as much petrol since 9/11 than they used to and not the fact that you took advantage of Americans gullibility and fear to gouge prices. Exxon mobil recently posted the highest profit of any company EVER. What was it, 30 something Billion? Divide that by the number of actual mobil customers and compare it to how much more they spend per year on gas and you might find something. 9/11, the wars in the middle east and China are whats blamed for higher prices, but does anyone realize we get only about 17% of our fuel from that region? The rest comes from our hemisphere. Venezuela, a country looked down upon and dubbed 3rd world by arrogant Americans, has pump prices under a dollar. Granted, they don't have to import much crude oil compared to us, but hey. I'm going to have to do some research because I forgot, but one of the south American countries became energy independent a year or 2 ago.

The use e85 in all of their new vehicles, and are able to grow the corn for ethonal and refine the oil that comes out of their land. We have so many "experts" in our country telling us how E85 is not the answer, but if you ask me, they are mouthpieces for the oil companies. Everyone buys into this crap too. Big kicker is that the south American country in question buys a bulk of it's E85 cars from good ol' Ford motor company in Detroit.

[POTR]

Now, how about you tell us how you REALLY feel Steve.

[KB]

You can pretty much apply that rant to most of the western world, I know us Aussies haven't been allowed to smoke in public buildings for quite a while and they are pushing a ban on smoking in your own cars and homes are on the list a bit further down too.

Ken

[llsteve80]

Now, how about you tell us how you REALLY feel Steve.

Feel good, now

You can pretty much apply that rant to most of the western world, I know us Aussies haven't been allowed to smoke in public buildings for quite a while and they are pushing a ban on smoking in your own cars and homes are on the list a bit further down too.

Ken

I've always wanted to go to Australia, but the rumor is that the laws are stricter than the US. ( I find it hard to believe). That wouldn't stop me from going of course. I heard felons aren't even allowed to go there, is that true?

Side note:

I smoke, and I still understand the smoking in public building thing. What I was trying to point out was that, under certain circumstances, you would have to break a law just to obey another one. Of course it is unlikely that everyone who goes out for a smoke is going to get arrested for public intoxication, but it is rather amusing that it is technically possible. Actually, now that I think of it, in '99 that happened to me while visiting a girl at her college dorm in Iowa..... I rest my case

[b16a2]

I know how you feel. Over here in the UK our NHS is in a mess, even though the amount being spent on it has increased considerably, it is where it is being spent that is the problem.

And as for fuel prices......

[llsteve80]

I know how you feel. Over here in the UK our NHS is in a mess, even though the amount being spent on it has increased considerably, it is where it is being spent that is the problem.

And as for fuel prices......

[Victoria]

BABY I LOVED YOUR RANT!

Sorry to hear about the lay off, though. Sounds like you're coping "fine". Loved "hope you get grounded", LOL. I'm using that later on, so hope you don't mind.

But no good rant goes unchallenged on any forum I have ever been on, in the history of the internet, so here's my challenge to:

"I'm going to have to do some research because I forgot, but one of the south American countries became energy independent a year or 2 ago."

Especially the bit about buying from Fords (as we call them in the UK).

The country you have in mind is, yep you guessed it, Brazil. Country of which I have probably most knowledge of outside the UK, the US, Germany, and Romania.

Not challenging your assertion that US oil companies shouldn't be doing more to have alternative fuels for combustible engines. My GOD I want them to SO BADLY, so very badly, I can feel it.

The sooner we get rid of our dependence on crude oil, the better it will be for all concerned in the West. The only people buying oil will be China and other developing nations who of course, can't afford to develop alternative fuels, but I'm sure Greenpeace activists will thunder and rail against them. Never mind! Bring on ethanol baby!! Give me a Prius!! ...or at least a really nice hybrid Mercedes.

But some years ago, I wrote an article where I rebutted a point made by an NPR reporter concerning Brazil's statement that they are now oil self-sufficient.

"Energy self-sufficient" as you put it, comes with strings attached. Let me explain:

Brazil has state-owned utilities which are extremely inefficient, and costly, as state-owned utilities tend to be becasue they are a monopoly.

In the 1970s, the military government bought its first nuclear power plant, without consulting their community of scientists if anyone actually knew enough about it, to run it.

No one in the whole of Brazil did. At least, not enough to keep it going, so it sputtered on and off for years, before closing down (after nuclear "spillages", eek...never much reported internationally...) in the mid-80s.

Here comes President Lula and suddenly he wants Brazil to have nicer nuclear reactors than just the Angra one. Well, 4 years after his mandate (correction), and even Angra hasn't reopened. Well, there are people working inside a non-working nuclear reactor, but of course, being civil servants since it's a state-owned company, they have a powerful union and cannot be fired.

I think I remember an episode on "Yes Minister" about a hospital which was open, and staffed to the gills, but with no patients, but I'll leave you to ponder this yourself.

Anyway, several nuclear reactors are in the works in Brazil, as they were in the 1970s, the 1980s, the 1990s, the early 2000s...ah, Brazil, the land of the future. And always will be.

But back to your rant about the oil companies. If you're still with me.

So, the NPR report trumpeted that Brazil is now crude oil-sufficient. Yay!

Subtext: If a third world country like Brazil (they're not but hey) can, why not the US of A? Must be those DAMN oil companies, the rich baskets!!

No.

This is why Brazil, specifically can provide 100% crude oil to is own people, without having to mooch from others.

Number 1:

Brazil has almost 50% less population than the United States. It's 170 million to 300 million people.

Number 2:

Brazil has about 60% of their population living in what would be considered grinding poverty here in the US.

EDIT: The point of these two being that less population, and LESS of that population being able to afford cars = less cars. Even in ghettos in the US, you see cars, or people at least know how to drive one. Not in Brazil.

Number 3:

To pass a driver's exam (age 18, like in Europe, not 15 like in the USA) even a learner's permit, you have to attend mandatory driving school classes, I believe 15 classes minimum, whether at state-run or private schools, which run you about U$2000. You didn't read wrong. Can you get around that? Sure, bribing the school. You then take your exam, which includes a very nice psychological section -- oooh, that impresses foreigners! You have to be mentality fit to drive in Brazil! Yeah right. But if you don't bribe the exam taker, you are failed. Oh, in big cities like Rio or SP, if you don't go to the suburbs, you'll be on the "take your exam" list for MONTHS. More bribing to get around that.

And do the 60% of these poor people have these moneys to get a driver's licence? No. Who does? The middle-classes and rich folk, which are about...10%? of the Brazil population.

Let's call it about 20-30 million people who can drive in Brazil, not all of whom are supposed therefore to have cars. Ah, but people then say that Brazil produces a record amount of cars per year. Sure.

Wanna know how many? About 2.6 million cars. Per year.

What is that, a good week for Chrysler in Detroit?

Number #4:

Brazil uses ethanol, or "alc

[llsteve80]

This isn't a rebuttal on yours, but it's something. Not enough ammo yet, too busy, but quickly I'll post some statistics that I'm going to add up and configure to see what the ratio is between production, use, population, # of vehicles and capacity.

Some info I gleaned:

brazil

Oil - Consumption: 2.1 million bbl/day

Oil - Production: 1.59 million bbl/day

"But the number of motor vehicles in Brazil doubled between 1990 and 2003, with a leap from 18 million to 36 million in total."

Population:

176,029,560

Age structure:

0-14 years: 28% (male 25,140,954; female 24,199,276)

15-64 years: 66.4% (male 57,424,151; female 59,409,928)

65 years and over: 5.6% (male 3,992,017; female 5,863,234) (2002 est.)

usa

Population: 301,139,947 (July 2007 est.)

Oil - Consumption: 20.73 million bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - Production: 7.61 million bbl/day (2005 est.)

U.S. Motor Gasoline Consumption

9,159,000 barrels/day (384.7 million gallons/day)

As you can see, Brazil is WAY closer in production to use than the US, but keep in mind that they only use a 20% blend of alcohol in their fuel, the us is using 85%. Its almost reversed, so the number of actual needed oil per vehicle is way different and I have to sit down and do the math on it before I can figure out how boosting alternative fueling can affect how we use our crude oil and how much we import.

They do have a smaller population and that means less cars, but it also means that there is less consumption as well.

I don't think modeling our "plan" after Brazil would go anywhere, I was just pointing out that it is only a myth that it can't be done. I don't think we will ever stop importing oil, but it is very feasible to believe that we can be more efficient about it.

However, for comparison purposes, Brazil produces about 76% of what oil it uses, and the US about 36%

If you compare that to the blend of alcohol, it gets interesting, brazil using 80% gasoline and 20% alcohol, its close to its production numbers, but of course, not all crude oil is used for cars and gasoline.

I believe that it would be possible to seriously reduce our dependence on foreign oil by using a fuel blend. If only 15% of what goes in our car is actual gasoline, and I know I'll have to back this up later because I'm guessing, we may be able to reduce our consumption by at least 40%.

What bugs me the most is the oil companies statements that E85 and the likes are not going to free us of anything, which I think is a complete lie. Maybe E85 won't cut it, but what aobut say......E50 or something? They say there isn't enough corn for food and fuel, but I'm sure corn is less expensive to import than friggin oil.

I'm supposed to be working on stuff and this was supposed to be a quick reply...oops....I really have to go.

[Everythingape]

Whoa! ..back up! Let's analyze this..

15-64 years: 66.4% (male 57,424,151; female 59,409,928)

So what you're basically saying is.. ..there are more women than men in this age group.. That in turn would you give you quite good odds for getting laid.. ..interesting..

[Victoria]

I'm supposed to be working on stuff and this was supposed to be a quick reply...oops....I really have to go.

No, it was a really good reply, with informative stats, and a hand-on-heart opinion on alternative fuels.

I liked this bit.

"But the number of motor vehicles in Brazil doubled between 1990 and 2003, with a leap from 18 million to 36 million in total."

I guesstimated above that there are about 20-30 million people who can drive in Brazil.

As you can see, that would more-or-less go along with the amount stated above of old and new CARS which, thank God for Brazil having opened up their economy*, they had a buying spurt of enormous proportions these years.

DOUBLED! Imagine that in the US today.

EDIT: I Wikied how many cars there are in the US of A. I almost died.

"Total number of vehicles

According to the US Bureau of Transit Statistics there are 243,023,485 registered passenger vehicles in the US. Out of these roughly 243 million vehicles, 136,430,651 (56.13%) were classified as cars, while 91,845,327 (37.79%) were classified as "Other 2 axle, 4 tire vehicles," presumably SUVs and pick-up trucks. Yet another 6,161,028 (2.53%) were classified as vehicles with 2 axles and 6 tires and 2,010,335 (0.82%) were classified as "Truck, combination." There were approximately 5,780,870 motorcycles in the US in 2004, which accounts for 2.37% of all registered passenger vehicles."

243 MILLION passenger vehicles, versus Brazil's 36 million. WOW.

You made a point about consumption. It's not because Brazil has a smaller population. It's because Americans have an easier time of getting to the middle-classes, at least. That wasn't the case in Brazil. As they get richer, you will see 36 million turn into 70 million. Wait. You will see. 10 years.

This is also a function of opening up their market. I mentioned this in a previous post, but it's true of the telephone industries, which previously were state-owned, controlled. Once they opened the market, even the poorest person could have a pay-as-you-go mobile/cell phone, which revolutionised communications in Brazil.

More communication means more money. More money means people need to go places, without being at the mercy of public transport. Since Brazil is actually larger than the US (lower 48), they cannot use bicycles. On top of everything, it's dangerous, crimewise, and suicidal in that heat.

Are they a model of a "green" country? Not on your life. Recycling is something for rich white people in Leblon.

They turned to alcool because it was cheaper, and more self-sufficient, not because their consciences told them to.

It's actually a great point of nationalistic pride that they are in this state, today. I'm always leary of nationalism...because if you dare to attack Petrobras (which they call "a national patrimony"), you are seen as a loon. And giving anyone that much of a free hand, breeds corruption, AT BEST.

*They have the closest thing economically in the whole of South America, including Chile, to a free market one. Previously, they had a weird, quasi-controlled/quasi-capitalist economy they mislabelled as "Capitalismo selvagem", wild savage capitalism. Argentina is about 20 years behind the times -- having a few good years where everything is rosy, followed by a collapse in their economy. This cyclical mess is because THEIR economists did the same thing Brazilians did for years -- they put their fingers into the pie, and tried to control it, instead of just letting it BE.

@Everything: LOL. You're not that desperate to get laid in Norway are you? Sure. Go to Brazil! The Gisele B

[Everythingape]

@Everything: LOL. You're not that desperate to get laid in Norway are you? Sure. Go to Brazil! The Gisele B

[Victoria]

Does he/she samba well?

I can GUARANTEE you he/she/it does!

I have a standing invitation to Rio from my friend who deals in holiday apartments there.

Apartamentos de temporada. I know them well.

I should really take him up on the offer soon.

GO! You'll love it. I'll PM you tips up the keister.

P.S.: Amongst (young) high society in 2007, there were 3 places which were MUST-gos this year: China, the Bahamas, and Brazil.

If you didn't go, you weren't cool. I guess I am not cool.

[llsteve80]

243 million cars? thats almost 1 per person. could you imagine if a country like china had a percentage like that? We're crazy. I have 8 cars left still myself, but they're not for keeping.

@Everything---I believe the world population is about 52% women, and 48% men, so we're outnumbered anyway. Need to find somewhere where its like 3:1 women:men. Get on the Google!

I want to go to brazil too, lets have a RWG party there.......

[Victoria]

243 million cars? thats almost 1 per person. could you imagine if a country like china had a percentage like that?

I believe they're at 300 million vehicles already. That'll treble as their people get richer, having left Communism in the dust, at least economically.

The thing is, it's all very well for us to tut-tut emerging economies, and tell them not to duplicate our mistakes -- although I think the combustible engine was the single-most revolutionary invention for the common man in the past 150 years.

But why shouldn't they have a piece of the pie, like we do or did?

We're crazy. I have 8 cars left still myself, but they're not for keeping.

I remember you saying that, yes.

That's incredible. We technically have 3, but my car doesn't work and is in storage. 3 people, 3 cars. We used to own a 30-foot boat. Par for the course in America.

@Everything---I believe the world population is about 52% women, and 48% men, so we're outnumbered anyway.

Yep. That's the world norm. This is why it does my head in when certain people say we women should be called "minorities". Ugh.

Need to find somewhere where its like 3:1 women:men. Get on the Google!

Eww. A boatload of women. How ghastly. Like being in boarding school all over again.

I want to go to brazil too, lets have a RWG party there.......

I'll take you all to the Yacht Clube do Rio de Janeiro! I know the guy who set ups the orgies.

[POTR]

Whoa! ..back up! Let's analyze this..

So what you're basically saying is.. ..there are more women than men in this age group.. That in turn would you give you quite good odds for getting laid.. ..interesting..

Well, probably really easy, EVEN WITHOUT THE GENDER POPULATION GAP... especially if you're not from Brazil. Hell women dance naked in the streets to get attention... hell they dance practically naked in kid's shows... most of the vaqueiro's are all off branding EACH OTHER in the barn, and admiring each other's metrosexuality...

[llsteve80]

V--

Whats wrong with your car?

I think I would enjoy brazil, but the orgies not so much unless what I heard about Brazil being the most AIDS infested country on our side of the planet isn't true. Can't remember where I got that notion though. Google, here I come again!

Even with all of this going on with Brazil and everything, I wish I could be here the day where the oil all dries up. What a clusterfu-- thats going to be. I would imagine that we would know at least 20 years ahead of time, if not more, but i will be interesting to see how easy other methods of fuel are.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for big business and opportunity, but I dislike a company that complains about China sucking up all the oil and then brags about world record profits all in the same year. Most Americans have an attention span of about 5 minutes, so these things get forgotten.

I firmly believe that the more people there are in a room, the lower the average intelligence gets. That is to say for strangers and not events where everyone is acquainted. Say a road can fit 50 cars in a 1/4 mile stretch, then with 60, it would be clogged, and 40 it should be moving right? WRONG. People won't see tons of space between cars and will slow down just expecting a jam. Then it gets worse until it turns into a jam and now there are twice as many cars on the road at it was designed for. Thats just one example. Put 3 strangers in a room, and then lay yourself down on the floor and act hurt. They will hopefully quickly confer with each other and ask if you need assistance. Now go to the mall and do that. 200 people will stand there flabbergasted waiting for someone else to do something, and probably do this in a state of panic. More people = lower IQ, I coined that "collective stupidity" and I find it amusing. The larger a group of people you ask a question to, the longer it takes to get the answer, it seems like it should be faster because of more thinking entities in the room, but I'm telling you they cancel each other out.

There I go on a tangent on a rant......thats a new one even for me.

Edited November 2, 2007 by llsteve80

[POTR]

-- although I think the combustible engine was the single-most revolutionary invention for the common man in the past 150 years.

Maybe the internal combustion engine (one which does not burn itself ) has been the most USEFUL invention over the last 150 years, but it was revolutionary long before the US or France were... way back in 1680 a Dutch man (before they discovered Amerindian Hemp) designed the first internal combustion engine, but never built it, ran on gunpowder... the first one actually built was sometime before 1810 by some craze Swiss dude, ran on hydrogen, but the car designed around it wasn't too successful... then some BRIT adapted an old STEAM ENGINE (another revolutionary invention of great age) to run on GASOLINE sometime before 1825... THEN ABOUT 150 years ago some crazy BELGIAN hooked a simple GAS ENGINE with his new invention (A CARBERATOR) into a 3 wheeled cart and took a drive for about 50 miles or so... afterwhich it did become QUITE useful, infact transformational.

[marrickvilleboy]

hahaha you need a job bro...

but i do agree, the ebay thing does get on my nerve too....

[llsteve80]

Maybe the internal combustion engine (one which does not burn itself )

Funny mental picture with that one.

hahaha you need a job bro...

but i do agree, the ebay thing does get on my nerve too....

Job? I looked for 2 days and gave up. I'm taking this as a wake up call, party might be over for now, but with what I have and the PT stuff I do around here, cars, phones, sat boxes, etc, I'll be ok for a while. I'm going to go back to college next year, but may move to to the college town this spring.in order to get established there first. I will not be looking for work in the mean time. I must say, it will be interesting next year being a 27 year old freshman, but people always think I'm like 20 or sometimes 19 anyway. If I do move there this spring, I will get some kind of avg college kid job, but right now I'd rather have inconsistent income than be busting my ass for pennies. You are right, I do need something , maybe a new hobby.

Hmmm maybe there's a AD where I'm going and I can get a job there.........sweet.

[Victoria]

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for big business and opportunity, but I dislike a company that complains about China sucking up all the oil and then brags about world record profits all in the same year. Most Americans have an attention span of about 5 minutes, so these things get forgotten.

This isn't directed at you, but at all who think this way BUT that's one of the biggest lies I've ever heard in all my life.

If this is true, how come people can play Halo 3 for 6 hours straight?

I firmly believe that the more people there are in a room, the lower the average intelligence gets.

I couldn't disagree with you more.

Every opinion I hold regarding that topic is condensed in one book, fortunately for you -- since as you can see, I can spew forth for hours on a topic.

The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies and Nations

http://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Crowds-Collec...s/dp/0385503865

If you haven't read it, give it a go.

More people = lower IQ, I coined that "collective stupidity" and I find it amusing. The larger a group of people you ask a question to, the longer it takes to get the answer, it seems like it should be faster because of more thinking entities in the room, but I'm telling you they cancel each other out.

No, I don't think they do. But that's just my, the carefully educated, elitely raised little snob's opinion.

[llsteve80]

This isn't directed at you, but at all who think this way BUT that's one of the biggest lies I've ever heard in all my life.

If this is true, how come people can play Halo 3 for 6 hours straight?

I couldn't disagree with you more.

Every opinion I hold regarding that topic is condensed in one book, fortunately for you -- since as you can see, I can spew forth for hours on a topic.

The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies and Nations

http://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Crowds-Collec...s/dp/0385503865

If you haven't read it, give it a go.

No, I don't think they do. But that's just my, the carefully educated, elitely raised little snob's opinion.

I'll have to check that book out. Collective Wisdom is far more promising than collective stupidity, I based my judgement on my own observations. As far as the attention span, I don't mean 5 minutes literally, but we generally, as a whole, don't really complain about things long enough to change them. Instead, something else pisses everyone off and they all focus on that. There are groups dedicated to certain causes, but the country as a whole usually can't focus on an issue long enough to do something about it without getting distracted by the next big issue. We just need bigger groups, I guess.

As for spewing forth for hours on 1 topic, I can too, and I type fast and think fast so this is good.

[Victoria]

I'll have to check that book out. Collective Wisdom is far more promising than collective stupidity, I based my judgement on my own observations.

The Founding Fathers were the wisest bunch of politicians to ever hit this earth. They based their premise of democracy that you don't give any one group control, including "the average man", but use checks and balances to counter-balance individual or fleeting stupidities, of which any one group is capable.

God bless those rich white landowners every day of our existence in America.

I will now play a Yankee Doodle Dandy medley on my kazoo.

As far as the attention span, I don't mean 5 minutes literally, but we generally, as a whole, don't really complain about things long enough to change them. Instead, something else pisses everyone off and they all focus on that. There are groups dedicated to certain causes, but the country as a whole usually can't focus on an issue long enough to do something about it without getting distracted by the next big issue. We just need bigger groups, I guess.

Again, couldn't disagree more.

The country which invented the customer service 800 number, or the NAACP, or Wonder Bread is not a people who take anything lying down.

What you have done in 200+ years people whose civilisation's are 5000 years old, still haven't attained. It's not about attention span. It's just that because of this super human pace, you want things fixed NOW.

By golly if that attitude doesn't often get you what you want, too.

As for spewing forth for hours on 1 topic, I can too, and I type fast and think fast so this is good.

I know, that's what I liked about you when I read your rant.

Night!

[llsteve80]

What you have done in 200+ years people whose civilisation's are 5000 years old, still haven't attained. It's not about attention span. It's just that because of this super human pace, you want things fixed NOW.

This country has done a lot for only 200 years old, and there have been some HUGE triumphs in the past, but in my lifetime (beginning in 1980), I have not seen anything major. My parents were there for the end of segregation, huge rallies against the war in Vietnam, my grandparents saw the depression and the boom after WWII, and my great grandparents probably saw the crumble of the monopolies. (You can argue that monopolistic companies have just taken on a different form (microsoft), and I would not disagree with you because that is true.)

Maybe I'm just waiting to see what major change brought on by my generation will be. There have been some things close, but many may think that history is being made when in actuality it is mere headlines. When is the next major rallied cry from the masses calling for change going to take place? Are there just too many issues these days to see something like that occur again? Maybe so. 50 groups of 50 people for 50 different subjects will blend together into some kind of static white noise, while all 2500 of those people saying the same thing will be a resonating roar impossible to ignore by those who can bring the change about. I'm not talking changes like my original post in this thread, like getting petty laws passed, but something historic. Of course, there have been some good causes that went through, for instance Amber alert for kidnapped children and the Jessica Lunsford act that will probably be passed as well. Those were brought on by MAJOR public outrage and I'm happy to see them go into effect. As good as those laws are, it's not the same as the end of slavery or segregation. Every child should be protected and these kinds of laws should have been there long ago. It is definitely a good example of how Americans get things done.

Well, night, I'll be back tomorrow.