Dyed in the wool Republican

I am a conservative. I am told that I am supposed to oppose Universal Healthcare, that it's tantamount to Socialism.

I don't agree. I think that if we do not get Healthcare regulated, and if we leave it to the Free Market, that the price of Healthcare will spiral because of Demand, not because of higher costs.

I think Jesus would be ashamed to see a Christian nation using disease to profit off the unfortunate.

I will support Max in his efforts to control the spiraling "cost" of Healthcare. It is time to regulate the Insurance Companies. I don't care what side of the aisle you sit on.

Follow up on October 15, 2001 - Max Baucus gave in to the Insurance Lobbyists. I didn't vote for him before, but I planned to once he fixed the Healthcare Crisis. He didn't. He handed our grandchildren's future over to the greed and profit of the Health Insurance Industry.

I sure as hell won't be voting for him ever. He made a mess of things. No leader is he.

Good Men Losing their Jobs

My next door neighbor, and his next to him have both been laid off.

Smurfit Stone is closing down, and Jim Palmer Trucking is filing for Bankruptcy. I don't know what idiot claimed that Missoula would be safe from the depression.

I've been told I won't have a job soon. But I have my pension and I have my medical. I'm safe. It seems unfair that so many good men and their families aren't.

Follow up on Missing Snow

Last month I posted that there was no snow. There is still no snow.

3 weeks till Christmas and nary a skif.

Santa might as well bring his skateboard.

It's beginning to look a lot like October.

It is November, and we still haven't had any snow. Ski season is upon us, and we have no snow.

The economy is in the shitter. And we have no snow.

What will Missoula do for revenue this winter if we have no snow?


This is a shout out to fellow Missoulian, Catlin Nappe, whose tails of childhood have touched me and my girlfriend deeply. Beast of Burden was classic.

You can find her stories here at The Odd Neighbor.

http://theoddneighbor.blogspot.com/search/label/childhood

If you click on her labels she has another section for the Olden Days that has some very funny anecdotes.

WTF is this?

This sprinkler looks like an old chinese man with a sack.

I don't accept this.

http://blogshares.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=20233.msg107278

I think it is wrong to make one player a scapegoat for a server not equipped to handle legal play.

°f®ôG²ïë° did nothing more than hit the Chance button too soon.

After the 20 WTF moment, I think I'm going to find something new to waste my free time on. And I won't recommend Blogshares to anyone, especially if they are considering the Premium Membership. Only Johns pay to get jerked around.

It's a shame. There are some really good people there. Suburban Wolf and Island Dave are great guys. But when it comes to legal play, too many honchos are wearing blinders. They were determined to find this player guilty even before supposedly examining evidence that proved he was playing LEGALLY.

They even changed the nature of the charges mid-case. When Nexy first brought charges, she implied that °f®ôG²ïë° was using some sort of bot or script:

"...°f®ôG²ïë° hit chances in the same second
and clearly not from using the multiple-play
feature."

Then when it was provided that these multiple hits could be made without a bot or script, and WERE made using the "multiple-play feature," the BSEC crew denied that this was about bots, but was more about excessive strain on the server. Well, that's just not true. That's NOT what Nexy wrote when she brought charges. She wrote that it was "clearly not from using the multiple-play feature." In other words, she assumed he was using some other means. And now she pretends that was irrelevant.

And another interesting point comes up. Even by their own rules, the only action they should have taken was to temporarily ban his IP:

Loading multiple pages, whether in multiple tabs or browser windows, from BlogShares at once is allowed. However, players are warned that they do so at their own risk. If the Game Administration find that any player is creating an excessive strain on the server, that player may be subject to a temporary IP ban so the system can be protected. Excessive strain includes, but is not limited to, opening dozens of tabs, loading pages with heavy database calls, and/or refreshing these pages on a frequent basis. Repeated violations of this policy may result in permanent IP bans or BSEC action.

A few months ago, I was disturbed when they banned AXA for no reason. No charges were brought. He was banned for being disliked by players he had beat, but I was new and decided there might be some history I was ignorant about. But I'm not new anymore. And this charge against °f®ôG²ïë° was bullshit. Bullshit.

In an ethical moment, I have deleted Blogshares tab from my blog. No one reads this stupid thing anyway but there is a principle here.

I'm Smoking Buffalo Today

Just the smell of smoking meat keeps me hungry all day. But nothing I eat hits the spot. I'm not going to be satisfied till I can stuff my face with the buffalo I've got smoking on the back patio.

I pulled two 8-lb rump roasts, and I rubbed them with salt pepper and garlic powder and onion powder, and let them sit in the refrigerator overnight.

Then I smoke them with apple and mesquite at about 225 degrees, I smoke them for about 5 - 5 1/2 hours, then I wrap them in foil, and put them back in till the inner most part reaches a temperature of 200 degrees.

They've got less than an hour to go, but then I need to let them REST for a couple more.

Served best with cold beer.

Pure as the driven snow!

Too Lazy to Blog

Memes were invented for people too lazy to write.

You Are Oscar the Grouch

Grumpy and grouchy, you aren't just pessimistic. You revel in your pessimism. You are usually feeling: Unhappy. Unless it's rainy outside, and even then you know the foul weather won't last. You are famous for: Being mean yet loveable. And you hate the loveable part. How you life your life: As a slob. But it's not repelling as many people as you'd like!

The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

Why God Made Beer

Classic Spooner

Find your own pose!