Thanks mm.
It would have had to have been.

Aren't these jokes a little funnier?

Or maybe it's just me.

What an excellent topic!

What thoughtful, insightful replies!

Not much to add,

BUT !!

Congratulations SassyEuro on reaching the four digit mark here @m2.

As has already been observed, no answer is an answer.
I agree, a polite response is preferred.
Welcome to the 3rd Millennium, where 10 fingered beings type with their thumbs.

R U ok w/ that?

[nope]

It's surely an obvious point, and one difficult to convincingly refute.

But I can't believe the Republican brand isn't being punished.

PS
Clarification / correction:

No.
The term I used was:

It is you that added the word "hero".

In addition, I've read McCain has a military decoration.
All that's needed is one, to be counted as "decorated".
I'd be surprised if he doesn't have a Purple Heart.
And I consider that a prestigious medal of high honor; but in any case more than enough to be correctly referred to as a:

"Number 1.... The traitor you called a "decorated war hero" is better known as the Hanoi Songbird. A traitor who spilled his guts to the NVA without being tortured." SS

I don't know where you come by this:
"without being tortured" insight.
But this is the first I've heard of it.

And as I am an honorably discharged United States military Vietnam [1] era veteran, such matters are of more than mere passing curiosity to me.

I eagerly urge you to provide your evidence for this character assassinating certitude you have posted.
But until you do, and until I have vetted it, I'll remain skeptical about it.

a) Please do not take me for a fool.
Your post hoc ergo propter hoc claim here is not supported by that history, as I've studied it.

b) Yes. McCain's pappy was an Admiral.
But according to what I've heard / seen / read of it; because of that high rank, McCain was offered early release from the Hanoi Hilton. And many a man that had been broken might have accepted. It takes a man of great character and stamina to decline such an offer; as I have read McCain did. I believe McCain's reply was: I'll leave when we (all his fellow POW's) can all leave.

One other thing.
Senator McCain can't raise his arms above his own shoulders, reportedly because of the way he was permanently injured when he was tortured.

I don't have much patience for character assassination.
But stating as certitude that a life-long faithful servant of the People is a "traitor" is beyond the pale.
If you can prove it, please do.
If you can't, or pretend you can but don't; please do not assassinate character in these fora.
Thanks.

“Adversity doesn’t test your character, it reveals it.” U.S. President Bush (the elder)

Your proof is welcome.

1) Sad but true.

2) Jindal didn't criticize Paul's dedication to the Constitution.
Instead, Jindal specifically criticized by asserting:


I've noticed, and have said as much, particularly about blokes like Gov. Christy.

Why do you think I opened the topic?

I like Rubio. But he's too young and inexperienced.

I may vote for him someday, but not in 2015 or 2016 (I hope).

*
Excerpted from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Electronic version licensed from INSO Corporation; further reproduction and distribution in accordance with the Copyright Law of the United States. All rights reserved.

[1]
This is a legal distinction. I've never been to Southeast Asia. I've never been in an active U.S. military combat zone.
I'm a Cold Warrior.
Yeah. We won that one.
You're welcome.

U.S. President George W. Bush has done as badly by his (Republican) party as he has done by his nation.

Bush (younger) has so badly tarnished the Republican brand, he caused a decorated U.S. military combat veteran (Senator McCain (R-AZ) to in time of War lose to a citizen that has never served in the military.

Four years later, in time of economic malaise a talented $money $man (Governor Romney R-MA) was again beaten by the Democrat.

The GOP is stumbling badly; groping for a refreshed party platform they can actually beat the Democrats with.

But there is none in conspicuous evidence.

So now, the circular firing squad has begun.

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), a "tea party" favorite, is under attack by his fellow GOP's.

What can be done?
Is there a Republican that has the intellect, the political skill, the charisma to get the GOP ducks in a row?

Or is Bush's smoldering crater so devastated, that it'll take grass-roots realignment to build a winning political platform for 2016 & beyond?

Though it is early, which Republicans do you want to see in the first debate (limited to ten candidates).

a)
Welcome c1

b)
I'm from New York.

Fa
ged
aboud
itt.

I'm not questioning your taste. Most of the guys here might post much the same.

But it's obviously not working for you; and in my opinion is not likely to.

If there's a college nearby, even a commuter / community college, sign up for a psychology course.
Even a good Psych. 101 course should give you some insights into why what you're doing isn't working.

PLUS:
You'll be around a lot of fellow students. And if you spend enough time in the right place in the library (might pay off to review the Dewey Decimal System) you may just meet Miss Wright.

Thank you L2.

You too, charming lady, may be a senior, someday ...

Perhaps I'm the "dope" here, but I'm exceedingly skeptical about the lead post in this thread.

Planet X637Z-43?

a) We only started detecting planets beyond our own solar-system a few years ago.

b) I gather most of those we've found are "gas giants" like our Saturn and Jupiter.

c) Photosynthesis is not likely on such spheres. The atmosphere is too deep (thick), the winds may be too strong, and the other life-forms necessary to compose an ecosystem would likely not be present.

d) It's difficult enough for police to detect THC in a traffic stop. How that would be done from many light-years away is beyond my imagining, and quite likely beyond current technological capability.

I assume it's a The Onion type spoof.
If everyone here already figured that out, please pardon me.
- It's only my second day here, &
- I'm very literal-minded (& have a science / technology background).

BTW:
According to my calendar, today is NATIONAL SENIOR HEALTH & FITNESS DAY.

Enjoy.

To be blunt, the Kim Jong dynasty of North Korea is a totalitarian Hell hole.

Christopher Hitchens reported that North Koreans are so chronically malnourished they on average are about 4" shorter than their South Korean cousins.
Sadly, (horrifyingly), it is not merely their physical stature which is diminished. Similar affects are reported for their intellect.

It is a horror so grotesque even gallows humor fails to soothe the grim reality:
- millions have starved in North Korean famine
- the good news is, the North Korean's are now eating lawn clippings, and tree bark to survive
- the bad news is, there isn't enough to go around

NK is essentially a prison nation, a "hermit kingdom".
A few manage to escape INto China, for the freedom and improved living conditions.

But as bad as the prison nation of NK is, there are prisons within the prison.
It's difficult for outsiders, Westerners to know the details.

But North Korean prison camp #14 had an escapee named Shin Dong-hyuk.

The stories he recounted to his South Korean custodians are harrowing. Prisoners there live lives of neglect, starvation, mental cruelty, and abuse. Some of the stories he told, such as having cigarettes extinguished on his back, are born out by his scars, consistent with such abuse.
And while the world might have been done a favor if NATO & South Korea had simply nuked Pyongyang ten years ago, the opportunity to do that may be disappearing, as NK builds its nuclear and other military capabilities.

What do you think we should do?

He's bringing down the deficit, but not the debt.
The most recent president to do that was Clinton*.

Yes.
It's very discouraging.
Of course, Senator Obama didn't run for president as a fiscal conservative, the way for example Governor Reagan did.

And though Governor Reagan gave fancy lip-service to balancing the budget, and paying down the debt; once in office not only did Reagan run up more debt than Carter, whom Reagan criticized for it during the campaign.
But once President Reagan was in office; not only did he run up more U.S. federal debt than Carter, the Democrat before him.
President Reagan ran up more U.S. federal debt than all the other U.S. presidents before him, COMBINED!!

It's too bad we voters can't simply vote for the party that's more fiscally responsible.

But neither is!

And further, it's selective to criticize Obama's "stimulus package" to help U.S. recover from the Bush / Cheney / Paulson economic downturn, the worst since the Great Depression.
They did their own wild spending; $700 $Billion $TARP.
$TARP wasn't intended to recover the U.S. economy.
It was merely designed to be the minimum spending necessary to prevent the Bush economy from slipping into full blown economic depression.

Pretending there's a lot of difference between Republicans and Democrats in general, or Bush & Obama in particular; is ridiculous.
We know better.

* albeit by fudging Social Security revenues
But we've been doing that for decades

Yes, BUT !!

Unless it's hilarious, one must be wary of making matters worse.

Approaching a woman unknown to you and introducing yourself by asking her what she'd like for breakfast tomorrow, would likely fail on any woman you'd actually want.
And what do you do if it works on a woman you don't want?

Most intelligent people (which oddly enough includes women) can read between the lines.

And a sensible woman will know, if a guy hits on her with a poorly chosen, rude, childish, or prurient pickup line that he's a loser because:
- He's so lonely he's memorized pickup lines
- he's either got such poor taste, or thinks so little of me, that he chose that one for me
- & not merely that, but, THIS is his BEST foot forward? If so he should get it out of his mouth.

Nope.
I might be more likely to use a pickup line on a 2nd or third date, just to start things off on a lighthearted note.

But for initial self-introduction, I suspect a handshake posture, winning smile, and self identification may make the most sense.

Be charming.
Be popular.

2A

Last I read, it was ~1,100.

I've also read, but have not been able to corroborate:
heat kills more humans than all other meteorological phenomena combined.

Heat kills more than:
- floods
- cyclones
- tornadoes
- hurricanes
- cold
- blizzard
- hail
- lightning

For those that like to conserve energy, and be more comfortable, a brief comment on cars:

A few decades ago, stock car race hoods were often painted flat black. The theory was, less glare for the driver.
But one race team tried an experiment, and discovered, by losing the flat black hood, and painting the hood the same as the rest of the car, it dropped the cabin temperature by a reported 30F degrees.

So, if you live where your car has an air conditioner which you use; you may both save $money, and feel more comfortable in a light colored car both inside and out.

Perhaps you're referring to his Washington Correspondence Dinner performances.

Yes. Some of that is pretty entertaining. But that's so for most of the presidents that have participated.

By and large Obama is criticized not for being too clownish, but for being too dry, too reserved.

a) I'm an NRA life member.
b) Our organization is responsible for advancing the political and legal agenda of private gun ownership, including concealed carry.
c) I'd be astounded if anyone could prove that no gun the NRA helped into private hands, has ever murdered a COP.

Probably.
But that doesn't mean it didn't also help save lives.

Post hoc ergo proper hoc; after that therefore because of that; a logical fallacy known to be false, even by the ancients. The rooster's call does not cause the sun to rise.

Hoover?
Dam!

Thanks.
True.
Obama set a very low baseline.
I suspect if we take the median of the Obama years, it may be lower per capita than other recent presidents.
Not sure.
Let's look.

"When you're a super power you have to buy these insurance policies" C7

It's too much!

I gather there are about 28 NATO member nations.
Not only does the U.S. spend more than any other NATO member nation on military.
The U.S. is reported to spend more on military than all the other NATO member nations COMBINED!!

We can't afford to continue to be the solar system's vigilante.

There's chronological age.
And there's behavior, activity, taste, and other factors.

I've been on dates with women that seem more interested in their smart phone than they are interested in me.

I'll be 61 in July.
To me that simply seems rude; quite akin to reading ones own mail in the company of a guest; a cliche' social faux pas.

I don't know what I'd have in common with a 30 year old woman.
But I don't m/any women my own age that could keep up with me.
It's not a competition.
It's just that I'd like a lady that would be willing to go swimming with me, or camping, or bike riding (I've got a Schwinn & a Yamaha, pick one!). I'm not ready to sit at the kitchen table playing pinochle, and cutting coupons out of the Penny Saver.

But as far out in the country as I am, eligible women are as scarce as hen's teeth.

Thanks for the link C7.
But due to bandwidth limitations, I don't follow every link.
You're welcome to post a teaser quotation.
If it's relevant, and informative, I may then check it out.
Over decades of experience, the vast majority of the time, it is not one or the other, and sometimes is neither.

SS is precisely right, and well stated SS.

We never should have done that, and President Truman knew it, and refused.

When the CIA bounced it off the newly elected President Eisenhower, Ike like.
The rest is history.
We're still paying the price today.

We should NOT be making enemies in the community of nations. We should be making friends.
We should not be proving ourselves treacherous, dangerous.
We should be beloved, trusted, and perhaps even protected.

a) We already have that. It's called the "FBI".

b) I haven't reviewed the most recent crime statistics. They tend to lag by a year or two, but that's still well into the Obama administration.

But does it make more sense to blame Obama, than to blame the NRA?

There are terrible floods in Texas. Some say they're floods of Biblical proportion.
Blame that on Obama too?
Obama isn't the police chief.
He's the Commander in Chief.

And there are other factors.
NYC Mayor DeBlassio didn't like NYC's long-standing "stop-&-frisk" policy; apparently objecting on civil rights grounds.

So I gather now "New York's finest" don't do "stop-&-frisk" anymore.
And some claim NYC COPs are so upset about that, they're allowing crime to skyrocket, just to make Mayor DeBlasio look bad.

It's easy to dismiss ISIL's rout of Iraq's military as simple cowardice.
And cowardice may surely play a role.
But the most significant gains against ISIL in Iraq seem to be by clan militias.
The Kurds seem to be having some success in defending their own territory.

As early as General Abizaid's rule of Iraq, there was discussion about dividing Iraq up into territory each clan;
- Kurd
- Shi'ah
- Sunni
would defend.

Seems to me had we done this, the clan militias would have been more persistent in defending their People.

I do.
Primarily U.S. politicians.
And primarily Republican U.S. politicians.

But the time Obama got his hands on it, the die had been cast (pun, if any, not intended).

Thank you for mentioning our CIA's leveraged ouster of Iran's duly elected Mossadegh SS.
I agree.
The U.S. turned down a dark path by installing the Shah, and it seems we've been on that Machiavellian path ever since (to one degree or another).

You make a painfully sharp point here SS.

We kill people without trial, with predator drone strikes, and have enraged the Peoples in whose lands we do so. The Pakistanis are furious with U.S., and rightly so.

And while we're changing regimes, and murdering people without trial, China is making friends building roads, digging wells for fresh water supply, to help those, in Africa for example, avoid diseases that are rare to nonexistent here; simple waterborne diseases.

We're waging Wars, and making enemies at enormous cost.
While China is making friends, at a fraction of the cost.

[this is #3 for LT]