scrambler

Minx, What do you suggest we do? Men see action as a solution to problems. Women just want to talk about problems, it's a relational thing. That's an oversimplification but, in general, tends to hold true. Before you rebutt, I realise that there are always exceptions you can point out. Maybe Dr. Phil can pop in here with his words of advice.

Cpt, I suggest we send our troops over there pronto and set these bastards straight! Not.

The perfect war story. Tons better than the Jessica Lynch story. They don't make 'em like they used to.

Hmm...must be an officer. Defensive weapon... "Get in there, men! Knock out that German machine gun nest!"

Here's a couple of truths: 1) All of us will eventually die. 2) But, we don't know when we'll die. So, what I'm trying to say is that if you're into adventure climbing then you should be prepared for the eventuality of death. I don't know exactly what that would be. Funny too, is the paradox represented by engaging in high risk (to life) activity to squeeze the fullness out of the act of living. Does this taunting of death somehow work out to increase your vitality? Sort of a challenge to the universal order. If I challenge the gods, do I become stronger, more virile? I know as a guy, I hate weakness, there underlies why I climb, because it makes me seem stronger.

Hey, do you recall that fellow named Guy Waterman? He sat down on a mountaintop (Mt. Lafayette in New Hampshire??) and froze to death, deliberately. Happened about two or three years ago and was written up in obits printed in Rock & Ice, Climbing, etc. The Waterman saga involving his two sons was also briefly discussed in Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild.

This is what Nietzsche had to say about euthanasia: "To die proudly when it is no longer possible to live proudly. Death of one’s own free choice, death at the proper time, with a clear head and with joyfulness, consummated in the midst of children and witnesses: so that an actual leave-taking is possible while he who is leaving is still there." Frederick Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols, “Expeditions of an Untimely Man,” aph. 36 (1889) Are we in league with death when we choose freely to accept living life with high risk? Do you agree with the sentiments expressed above? Or, is it just a fool's journey? Thought I'd ask you Oregonians since you voted to allow dying with dignity (or something like that, whatever you call it). Now don't read too much into this. Basically, I'm asking if there's any shame in dying before you become decrepit. "Why not? Why not? Why not?" Tim Leary on his deathbed

YEs, Mr. Caveman, I have had a nip ot two this evening. I gave up on the AA idea and decided that a little nip here and a little nip there would not hurt anyone, even me. Besides I need to beable to drink sociably in my job description. And as far as Sisu goes I'll have a drink Tsk,tsk,tsk, Johnny. Alcohol--cunning in its ways like the Great Deceiver. Ya surrendered to the wrong spirit...

tHE CHAT ROOM HAS EVIL PEOPLE ON IT THAT CONSPIRE WITH THE EVIL FORCES OF HELL. Hell doan exist, Johnny. It's san imagin'ry creashun design'd to keep ya 'n line. Respect myah authority!

Well, it kind of started out as a ruse. Avatar... Quote... So would highjacking the thread, that'd be considered acceptable under the rules of spray? Stealth spraying? Pretty soon you find yourself in a quagmire.

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Ok, the intent of the Second Amendment is to defend against oppression. But it seems to be interpreted as, "I have the right to kill you if you infringe on me. That includes my identity and especially the beliefs I hold. A challenge on my dearly held beliefs is an attack on my identity. And damn it, my identity is who I am. Without it, I am nothing. Don't mess with my house and my possessions. That's an attack on me and I'll kill you for it. Possession of a gun is my God-given right and if you attack me I'll send you to your Maker." Oftentimes, you'll find the Truth when you follow the trail of money. Where do you think the money leads? And really, what are we bickering about? If the intent of the Second Amendment is to fight oppression, then why do we get bogged down in the details surrounding guns and not see where the real loss of rights occurs? I suspect technology will provide any answer to the gun control problem when guns are manufactured that can only be fired by their owners (one potential solution--no more cops killed by their own guns, e.g.). And, we'll still have our sacred Second Amendment right. Whatcha think?

Existence exists. Period. No qualifier necessary. More along the lines of Descartes' "Cogito ergo sum" (I think therefore I am). Existence without thinking (reasoning) is a lowly existence, subhuman, no better than livestock. Nietzsche, anyone? Backwards. You ARE, then you are able to think. It is called primacy of existence, Ayn Rand. You cannot think without first existing; you cannot be conscious to think without first existing. If you don't exist, how do you think? Ok, this is rather an absurd example but animals exist yet they don't have the right granted to us. And, people who don't use their ability to think, well...

Existence exists. Period. No qualifier necessary. More along the lines of Descartes' "Cogito ergo sum" (I think therefore I am). Existence without thinking (reasoning) is a lowly existence, subhuman, no better than livestock. Nietzsche, anyone?

Whoa...this thread's going in several different directions. If by God you mean Reason, then sure I agree wit ya. Reason is a facility of man's mind. Vive la Raison! Existence with conviction is superior to existence alone.

Incubus. I had a nightmare last night. Was that you on my chest then, suffocating and scaring the living crap out of me? Or was that sucubus?

That's an idea I've entertained. Makes as much or more so, sense than to say that these are God-given rights. In the history of Man, we had to fight for these rights and to forge a government and its guiding document. The established orthodoxy of religion sure didn't give these rights to us. The Church would have been all to glad to keep us under its thumb. Reform does not usually come from institutions (which BTW tend to be conservative). Now, as for God-given, well that makes as much sense to me as the phrase, "All men were created equal." I wasn't privileged to have an expensive private school education so maybe I'm missing something here in my interpretation of the world around us. These ideas: Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness are abstractions. Government is the vehicle that imposes the order or stability on our world to realise the concrete reality of these abstractions, in other words, to make them manifest. It does worry me, to see that the opposite is becoming the case because the ruling elite is afraid of losing control. So, maybe I had a moment of lucidity in an otherwise murky existence... Simply a misunderstanding... Playing the devil's advocate. Conviction... So you're saying that this is the basis of our rights? ...our individual convictions?

I would say the parent was the problem. THe gun is the owner's responsibility; i.e., the parent. My ol' man was career military. Thus, my brother and I grew up with guns, shooting at beer bottles in the water and hunting. I would have never thought of bringing a gun to school because there was the fear instilled in us by the ol'man. You see, he used to leave his coiled belt in the same closet where the rifles and ammo were. A visible reminder. So, yeah... I gotta agree with ya, Greg. Maybe we gotta point at a more elusive culprit, the loss of time to spend with kids to teach them or the lack of foresight on the part of parents or... However, I do think that access to guns has increased dramatically over time and that is part of the problem. Now, the knee-jerk reaction is to limit accessibility, which I don't necessarily accept. when I was a child all the guns in my home were on a gun rack next to the front door. It was never an issue. Do ya think that maybe there are substandard people? And that, we should raise the bar a bit in permitting people privileges such as driving? And maybe, the same reasoning could be applied albeit to rights granted by government in return for your willingness to be governed?

I would say the parent was the problem. THe gun is the owner's responsibility; i.e., the parent. My ol' man was career military. Thus, my brother and I grew up with guns, shooting at beer bottles in the water and hunting. I would have never thought of bringing a gun to school because there was the fear instilled in us by the ol'man. You see, he used to leave his coiled belt in the same closet where the rifles and ammo were. A visible reminder. So, yeah... I gotta agree with ya, Greg. Maybe we gotta point at a more elusive culprit, the loss of time to spend with kids to teach them or the lack of foresight on the part of parents or... However, I do think that access to guns has increased dramatically over time and that is part of the problem. Now, the knee-jerk reaction is to limit accessibility, which I don't necessarily accept.

I can't help but think that these are all complex issues that transcend a simple solution. A simple solution... That's what I fear. Are you too willing to submit your life to a system or a political party because it has the answers? Not enough time in your life to think? "Guns don't kill people. People do." Yes, people certainly do kill people... with cars, knives, etc. Yet, accessibility to guns is part of the problem. The kid that sneaks his father's handgun to school is part of the problem. There are so many other parts of the equation that it makes the mind boggle. I know one thing. We, as Americans, aren't afraid to kill. Maybe that's part of the plan... "Videodrome is real... it has something that you don't have, Max. It has a philosophy. And that is what makes it dangerous."

EVERYONE IS SUCK

Only 'cause I couldn't find one for DMT...

running out of coffee not being able to play outside lukewarm spray

Seven times and counting. I'm not smoking

The doc had some bad news during the followup on my broken ankle. I might not be able to climb (or run) again. But, it's a beautiful day and I think I've found a solution: ROBO EXOSKELETON!!!! Sure, it's dorky looking but, hey, I'm a dork anyway. Newsclip----A consortium of 30 Japanese companies are planning on working together (yeah, like that ever happens) to produce a robot exoskeleton that can be worn by the infirm, elderly or handicapped people. A prototype of HAL-3 (Hybrid Assistive Legs) has been developed by Yoshiyuki Sankai, professor and engineer at Tsukuba University. Developers hope that by the time these devices come to market, they will be "thin enough to be worn like underwear and will allow users to run and move...freely." --borrowed from street tech

"Fo shizzle my nizzo"