The Housing Bubble

convicted sex offender lives across the street…

What’d he do? Urinate in public? Have sex with his 17 year old gf when he was 18?

(not a fan of the sex offender registry as it’s currently implemented, if you can’t tell)

“What’d he do? Urinate in public? Have sex with his 17 year old gf when he was 18?

(not a fan of the sex offender registry as it’s currently implemented, if you can’t tell)”

I call BS on this statement. I’ve checked the registries near my three residences over the past decade, and I cannot remember one conviction which was for something as benign as you’ve suggested. All were rapists and molesters. The sheriff web sites go into detail with not only pictures of these wastes of life, but descriptions of the crimes, the time served, and the probability of re-offending. I think it’s an awesome service for families with children, and single women. If it were up to me I’d brand their faces or cut their genitals off- or both.

My aunt helps to maintain the offender database for her state, and, trust me, the people in it aren’t angels.

I call BS on this statement. I’ve checked the registries near my three residences over the past decade, and I cannot remember one conviction which was for something as benign as you’ve suggested.

Here are some cases where something as benign as I’ve suggested has landed one on the registry:

http // ladyliberty.wordpress.com/2007/03/07/teens-photograph-themselves-found-guilty-of-child-pornography/

http // seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003101190_offender03.html

http // http://www.boingboing.net/2007/02/20/teen_couple_who_phot.html

http // http://www.bakelblog.com/nobodys_business/2007/03/florida_banishe.html

Here’s a good general link:

http // http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1c7_1245056884

Certainly there are people who do bad things, and those people are on the list (rightly so, though I think the registry is bad in general…either they’ve served their time or not. Not allowing them to live in certain areas, and being able to change the rules after they were sentenced seems unconstitutional to me). My point is that the list no longer serves the purpose it was originally intended to.

I too have heard you can be registered just by being arrested for public urination, skinny-dipping, mooning, etc. Is this not the case? I sure hope it isn’t. (I’ve done all three) I don’t have a problem with the idea of the registry, as long as those registered are truly sex offenders.

Hrm…somehow my “beat the filter” link editing got foiled. Sorry for that mess up there.

The most recent sex offender in our town put a hand down the pants of a 7 year old before the mother ran out and intervened. He avoided jail time because he was mentally disabled in an auto accident. This protects the kids in the neighborhood how? Oh yeah, it was not his first incident.

Friend walked outside her bedroom late one night while her husband was out of town, saw something weird in the low light and reached out to see what it was. It was a man’s arm. She soon found out, the family friend she’d met while volunteering at the local fire dept had been peeping in her windows for weeks. Her neighbors noticed his car was parked down the road from her house a lot but said nothing perhaps wondering if it was an affair. As the case went to trial she found out he’d already done time for doing something to a minor. He had been allowed to join the fire dept and have access to people in vulnerable situations very soon after returning from jail in a town small enough that his employers knew what they were doing. Good thing he left when she screamed.

drumminj, I consider it my responsibility to discern the boyfriends of the underaged from these creeps. I’m very thankful for the registry.

Cherry picking national date to try to support your argument is pretty weak, drumminj. How about just checking the King County registry, huh? I just pulled up a specific address in North Seattle. Within a 2 mile radius, there are 32 offenders. It reads like a who’s who of child molestation and rape. Why don’t you follow this link and show me what I’m missing? These creeps are getting what they deserve.

http://www.icrimewatch.net/results.php?AgencyID=54473&whichaddr=&SubmitAddrSearch=1&AddrStreet=6015+35th+Ave&AddrCity=Seattle&AddrState=48&AddrZip=98115&AddrZipPlus=&radius=2

Sure anybody can find examples across the spectrum. The point was that people are on the list who don’t fit the original intent of the list. I am personally aware of one guy who was railroaded into a plea deal that he now wishes he’d never taken. It resulted in him being in the registry due to a consensual act with an adult that was originally reported as an assault due to embarrassment on the part of the woman when her boyfriend found out. Even though she admitted to the truth later, the legal system spun out of control from there and his life has been nearly destroyed over it.

Cherry picking national date to try to support your argument is pretty weak, drumminj

What argument am I supporting, BB? I looked in my neighborhood. I can look at your link too. I never said that most people on the registry are there for non-sex offenses. I simply pointed out that there are people on the registry that IMO shouldn’t be, for things like public urination, streaking, and statutory rape. I provided links to back up my claim that it does in fact happen.

So what argument have I supported weakly?

(btw, in my neighborhood it would appear there are several people on the registry simply for talking to minors…but of course there’s not a case # referenced where one can see the details of the actual crime, rather than simply the statute under which they pled/were convicted).

btw, it would appear that one has to register as a sex offender in WA state if you were convicted of kidnapping.

Not exactly a “sex crime”…

The fact that there are such evil people on the registry just goes to show the absurdity of including the mooners and the public pissers. I’m not saying there shouldn’t be a list, just that it should be a list of actual sex offenders. Not people guilty of doing something I’ll bet 90% of us have done.

What are you looking for, drumminj, perfection? Has our legal system ever been perfect? Because a few people may not, in your eyes, be deserving of such a stigma, should we just bag the whole system to provide cover for the majority who are deserving? Are you, personally, being affected by this?

“(btw, in my neighborhood it would appear there are several people on the registry simply for talking to minors…but of course there’s not a case # referenced where one can see the details of the actual crime, rather than simply the statute under which they pled/were convicted).”

What?? Why don’t you offer some proof? This, IMO, is a ridiculous allegation.

BB, I go with the mantra of “better to let 10 guilty men go free than convict one innocent man.” So while I don’t expect the list to be “perfect”, I think that a great injustice is done if someone must bear that stigma (and life-long punishment), if it’s not warranted.

No, I”m not personally affected by this. Can’t I seek out justice for others, even if I’m not suffering injustice at the moment?

What?? Why don’t you offer some proof? This, IMO, is a ridiculous allegation.

It’s a ridiculous allegation that there are people on the list solely for communication with a minor? Perhaps you should look at the list more closely, namely this offense:

9.68A.090 - Communication with minor for immoral purposes

See description here:

http // apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=9.68A.090

“Communication with minor for immoral purposes”

You know what? If some scumbag is talking to a little kid about sexual acts, and other unspeakable things, they ARE a sex offender. Do you disagree? This whole subject is a real hot button issue with me. My younger sister was raped and sodomized for a week by some sicko in a van. It’s only by the grace of god she wasn’t murdered. The whole idea of protecting the “rights” of these wastes of life is exactly what enables individuals like Joseph Duncan to operate. Disgusting.

Do you disagree?

Actually, yes, I do. I don’t believe that having a sexually explicit conversation with a minor should be a crime, let alone one for which you’re branded and punished for life.

I’m sorry to hear about your sister, and agree that rape is a crime and one should be punished appropriately for it. However, words != physical violence.

Regarding the registry itself, I feel that it is punishment after the fact. The sentence gets extended/changed as the laws about the registry change. This, IMO, is not justice. It’s equivalent to changing the punishment after you’ve been sentenced. That should not happen in a system of justice. It’d be like being sentenced to 10 years in jail, and just as you’re on your last day, they tell you that they changed the law and now you have to do another 10 years.

Note that I’m not passing judgement on individuals or trying to defend people who commit crimes. I’m just arguing that we punish people appropriately and fairly.

I agree that public urination or solicitation (for money or for free) of an adult shouldn’t be on the list. In Mass. when they first developped the list they had a bunch of gay men who took pleas to keep the police from publishing their names and addresses in the 1960’s. Sometimes they were simply picked up in raids of private parties. Others were having sex at rest stops, which may be a public nuisance, but is still a far cry from sexual assault.

However, I’m pretty sure the crime you mentioned, “Communication with minor for immoral purposes”, is one of those charges like “conspiracy to—”, where they catch the guy while he’s still grooming the kid in order to molest him, but before he actually does the deed. I don’t know the law in that state, but it might also cover the old lure the horny young teen in the chatroom and try to set up a date deal. In my state I think that’s called “solicitation of a minor” something or other. But I could be wrong.

I know in some cultures these sorts of things (not forcible rape, but graphic discussions and touching) aren’t considered as taboo, but they are in our culture. At some point an adult should be mature enough to realize what they are doing is highly illegal. Now, maybe if you move to one of those Islamic paradises like Afghanistan or Niger you can marry and rape young prepubescent girls (and divorce them when they bore you) or pay a fee to rape young boys and it’s all good. In the US, not so much.

“I don’t believe that having a sexually explicit conversation with a minor should be a crime, let alone one for which you’re branded and punished for life.”

It’s my opinion that people like you are dangerous.

It’s my opinion that people like you are dangerous.

You’re welcome to your opinion. I’d just ask yourself why it should be illegal to do so with someone under 18, but somehow at 18 it’s okay. What about an adult with the mental capacities of a child? Why not just make sexually explicit conversations illegal, period?

If it accompanies another crime, then sure, that crime should be prosecuted. But conversations, short of “conspiracy to commit…blah blah” are protected speech.

Should it be illegal to teach your kid about “the birds and the bees”? What about your niece/nephew? Is it wrong to teach your kid (or someone else’s) what ‘oral sex’ is, or how to perform it? To instruct in the use of condoms?

What if I have a conversation with someone over IM, who presents themselves as being over 18? What if a girl comes up to me in a bar and starts hitting on me. If I have a suggestive conversation with her, and then she ends up being under 18? Age of consent in WA is 16, yet because she’s a minor, I’m committing a crime? Is it a crime for her to say sexually explicit things to me?

Bantering… Drummin

18 are freakin kidding me…10-12year olds are listening to filthy hip hop and rap music training the little girls that its ok to be a pole dancer as a career.

sexting, sending half naked pics via cellphone

come on its a whole new era in sex crimes…everyone cant be jailed.

————————————————————-
Why not just make sexually explicit conversations illegal, period?

If some scumbag is talking to a little kid about sexual acts, and other unspeakable things, they ARE a sex offender.

Wow,

Drumminj - have we seen you on an episode of Perverted Justice? You are sick - just go away. What a sick twist to a forum that I respect and enjoy all viewpoints - except this one.

PUUUKE

Ben - I generally don’t like post deletions but this one is sick:

“I don’t believe that having a sexually explicit conversation with a minor should be a crime, let alone one for which you’re branded and punished for life.”

Cripes - I missed this one from Drumminj:

“Is it wrong to teach your kid (or someone else’s) what ‘oral sex’ is, or how to perform it? ”

Yes - absolutely

Go away - I think a poster here has a tool to block posters from my views. Can someone post that link please?

Thanks!

Go away - I think a poster here has a tool to block posters from my views. Can someone post that link please?

Oh the irony…I created that tool. You’re welcome to use it if you like: The Joshua Tree Extension. Just add my name to the ignore list.

I’m sick because I feel that speech is supposed to be free, and that conversations in and of themselves shouldn’t be illegal. By all means ignore me for believing in freedom of expression.

You really believe that sex ed should be illegal? Really?!

Drumminj,

Yes - that’s ironic.

Look at the language you have used and put it in context of an adult with a non-consenting minor. Far different from sex ed in a controlled and consenting environment.

Jason, do you have children?

Far different from sex ed in a controlled and consenting environment.

The whole point of the age of consent laws is that children cannot give consent. As such, even a classroom is not a “consenting” environment (especially considering children are compelled to be there). BanteringBear attacked my assertion that a “sexually explicit” conversation with a minor should not be illegal. I’m pointing out that sex-ed can be “sexually explicit”. And it doesn’t have to happen only in a classroom - as I pointed out it could be a parent, or an uncle/aunt, etc.

No, I do not have children. And as such my reaction to this is objective and based on favoring justice and freedom, rather than emotional and reacting to some perceived threat (real or otherwise) to someone I care about.

If you feel that a sexually explicit conversation with a minor should be illegal, let me ask this: is a 16 year old who has an explicit conversation with another 16 year old committing a crime? If not, how can it be a crime for an 18 year old to speak exactly the same words?

BTW - I did not realize we were on a first-name basis.

I think it is okay for Bits/Buckets freedom of speech.

You all have your pov and personal experiences, but drumin has a point too. Legal system isn’t perfect, but it should allow for case by case fixin if it is a moonin etc. Shoot, if that is the case, I would be a perv from college, struck Dennys in college/Sandiego. Go ahead,arrest me.
Got flashed as a young teen, and that was disturbing cause the guy chased me down. Yet, at end of year, all the boys in HS would have a drunken pantsing party in the river bed and drive through town to throw their tennis shoes into the trees at the swimming pool at HS. I can’t think of how many lives would have been ruined by those teens and getting arrested. But they didn’t. Thankfully.

All other cases are horrid and should be punished.

Yes,

I’m done with this - I’m here for the housing and investment insight I have gleaned here over the years. And desertdweller - the stuff above doesn,t even give me pause.

I’m still somewhat concerned that a thirty-year-old male feels it’s OK to :to teach someone else’s kid what ‘oral sex’ is, and how to perform it? ”

Ages and situation are apparently unimportant.

DONE

I’m still somewhat concerned that a thirty-year-old male feels it’s OK to :to teach someone else’s kid what ‘oral sex’ is, and how to perform it? ”

There’s a difference between feeling it’s “okay” and feeling it should be illegal.

Not all things I disapprove of should be illegal, IMO. With freedom comes the need for tolerance. “Freedom of speech” isn’t just freedom of speech you agree with.

Anyway, sounds like we’re all dropping this conversation. Feel free to think I’m some kind of pedophile and ignore me. I’ll continue to defend people’s freedom to engage in behavior I might not approve of and to speak things I might not agree with.

“Actually, yes, I do. I don’t believe that having a sexually explicit conversation with a minor should be a crime, let alone one for which you’re branded and punished for life.”

All I can say is drumminj, you’re one sick puppy, Go away and don’t come back.

I’ll continue to defend people’s freedom to engage in behavior I might not approve of and to speak things I might not agree with.

Think of your logic here (or lack of such) - it’s not about whether you approve of it or not, it’s about what’s moral and immoral. This is not a relative thing. Please just go away…

Drummmin,
It’s a bit late and I don’t know if you’ll read this, but I wanted to support you for sticking up for rational free speech. We all need to remember that some “trusted adults” are simply that, and that ad hominim attacks–even those motivated by legitimate personal concerns– are unwarranted here.

In my life, I’ve seen good-minded adults emotionally ruined by spurious accusations from vengeful kids, and I’ve had my own creepy experiences with adults who’ve had felonious boundary issues.

Suffice it to say that it’s a thorny issue. You made some valid points that perhaps we should all take a deep breath and thoughtfully consider.

it’s not about whether you approve of it or not, it’s about what’s moral and immoral. This is not a relative thing. Please just go away…

Laws aren’t necessarily driven by morality (otherwise many many more things would be illegal in this day and age). Regardless, I’d have to say that I wouldn’t consider it immoral. At the same point in time, I wouldn’t likely have a ’sexually explicit’ conversation with a minor. I’d consider it bad form and inappropriate.

If you want to think Im a ’sick puppy’ for what I believe, I can’t stop you. But recognize what you think I’m sick for - believing that a *conversation* shouldn’t be illegal. What you’re basically saying is that it’s okay for a kid to watch a movie that has sexual content. But it should be illegal for an adult to describe the exact same scene in words. Likewise, it’s okay for an adult to give a teenager a book about sex, describing different sex acts, but it should be illegal for that author to sit down and quote the book in person.

Is that logical? Rational? I’d argue ‘no’. You’re welcome to think otherwise, but you won’t find me telling you (or anyone else) to “please go away” because I disagree with you.

WTF??? When did I say it was OK for a kid to watch a movie with sexual content??? Or that it was OK to give a teenager a book with sexual content? Where exactly did I say that? No where, I don’t say that nor believe it.

I don’t want you to go away because i disagree with you, I want you to go away because you’re making me quite ill. Sorry, drumminj, you’re not talking about free speech, you’re talking about a complete lack of morals here. I believe kids have the right to grow up without being subjected to such sickness.

My reply isn’t posting, but basically I want to know where I said that such things were OK. They’re not. I didn’t say that. And what the H is this crap doing on a housing blog?

When did I say it was OK for a kid to watch a movie with sexual content??? Or that it was OK to give a teenager a book with sexual content? Where exactly did I say that? No where, I don’t say that nor believe it.

My bad, Lost. As far as I understand it, those things are legal right now. I made the assumption you agreed with those laws as they currently stand.

Honestly I’m shocked to read that you believe minors shouldn’t be “subjected” to such things as sex ed, and they shouldn’t be allowed to read a book or see a movie with any sexual content.

I’m pretty sure I was born.

I do! I do!

Says I was born in Pittsburgh in the same year that Chevy produced its best, most classic car ever. (That would be 1957.) Still see cars from that year, and, oh, do I get excited when I do.

Oh, I might add that I interrupted my parents’ date night. They’d gone out to see “Shootout at the O.K. Corral” on a Saturday night. After all, I wasn’t expected to arrive for another three weeks, so why not?

Well, so much for that plan.

I didn’t care that there were 34 shots fired in 17 seconds at the O.K. Corral. I was finding Mom’s Place to be a little too confining, and I wanted out.

My mother dismissed my wanting to emerge into The Real World as yet another one of my gestational rampages. (I was so active in utero that I was thought to be twins.) My dad said that it would be a good idea to head over to the hospital, just to be sure.

I think he had visions of me being born in the Fort Pitt Tunnel during the Monday morning rush hour, and being my prim and proper father, he didn’t want anything like that to happen.

So, into the hospital my folks went. I was born around sunrise the next morning.

Awww. I think that’s a good story.

I can’t say what the specific case was in Japan, but McDonald’s often does try to cater to local tastes. Not that they mind foisting hamburgers on anyone and everyone who will have them, but if they can make some extra sales, they do it. Like veggie burgers in India, and beer in Germany. I’ve even heard they serve Vegemite in Australia but never set foot in a McD’s when I lived there. (But what ELSE could you ever want for breakfast, eh?)

I thought they served goat burgers in India. I’ve wanted to try a goat Big Mac ever since I heard that. And in my experience all McD’s in Europe sell beer. (A fine tradition.)

I thought they served goat burgers in India.

In France, the Big Mac is a Royale with Cheese.

Na Lavi,

The Quarter Pounder is a Royale with Cheese (because of the metric system)

Big Mac = Le Big Mac

At least, according to John Travolta in Pulp Fiction.

At least, according to John Travolta in Pulp Fiction.

Oops. Right.

In France, the Big Mac is a Royale with Cheese.

Wellll, look at the big brain on Lavi d!!!!

Goat is over-rated, trust me, I know…

I ate at a KFC in korea the last time I was there…most of it tasted funny, but I have eaten some strange things in my day…

I’ve only ever had goat barbecued…and it was pretty darn good. (Of course a good “pit master” can make something as funky as mutton into a gourmet treat.)

Yes, Ireland has curry fries. The pommes frites by way of Belgium and the curry by way of India.

For a more Americanized twist, you can also get curry flavored crisps.

Goat used in Asian Indian cooking is excellent. Goat biryani is just wonderful. I totally freaked out an Indian lady that I was acquainted with by asking her for some of the delicous-looking biryani that she had put out in a sort of smorgasbord. She said, looking at me strangely, ” It is goat biryani.” I said, “Even better. I love goat.” She didn’t believe me, but gave me some. I ate it right up and asked for more. She was so impressed that after that, she kept bringing my husband & I little freshly-prepared Indian snacks. Yum.

Now that you mention it, Silverback, I remember I’ve also had a goat curry and it was really good too. I’m also a goat cheese lover, although an ex-GF of mine (who grew up on a farm) said if you’ve ever raised a billy goat, you’ll never like the cheese, because the goats smell the same, but funkier. (Therefore I will never raise billy-goats- problem solved.)

“travel the world and try a McDonalds in every country…”

Not a bad idea. Who knows, McDs might even sponsor you? An interesting aside might be the various condiments given as standard issue with the fries. In the US- catsup of course, in the UK- malt vinegar, in
France- mustard, in Holland- mayo (actually “fritte sauce” in McDs there- Big Mac sauce/1000 island), in Greece- lemon juice (I seem to recall through an ouzo haze). I’m sure there’s more….

e.g. the monkees

+1. When I was a kid living in a Chicago suburb a band called the Cryan Shames had a minor national hit (”Sugar and Spice”). They were the neighborhood garage band. I still hear that song on the radio every once in a blue moon.

Requisite HBB content: the neighborhood was a new subdivision built by Centex. We moved there in 1963. Our house was the least expensive model at $19,950, 3BR/1BA, single-car garage on about a quarter acre lot. Not sure what the square footage was.

InMontana,

Check out “garagehangover.com”

They are constantly unearthing “gems” from the past. Mostly “me too” clone bands that tried to cash in on the craze. But I’ll have to respectfully disagree.

There’s just no way ( numerically ) and prior to unfettered acces to the internet they could -begin- to compete with the proliferation of pulp we’re seeing today. In fact it’s hard to meet someone under 25 that -hasn’t- been “in a band”. It’s just so turn-key there’s absolutely no good reason ‘not’ to?

And there’s no “legacy” today whatsoever. Just rejecting everything that’s been previously recorded doesn’t necessarily constitute “music”.

if his hair looked right and he got in with the right bunch of fellows.

People see you havin’ fun, just a lyin’ in the sun.

boomers and music but thats over long time ago I think it would be the second turning according to this theory
————————————————————
The First Turning is referred to by Howe as a High. As this follows a period of crisis, one of the hallmarks of a First Turning is a heightened sense of community and collective optimism, driven in part by the fact that the society has just come through a difficult and challenging time. Consequently, during First Turnings, societal institutions tend to be strong while individualism is weak. The post-World War II “High” of the mid-1940s through early ’60s is the most recent example of a First Turning.

The Second Turning, called an Awakening, typically starts out feeling like the high tide of a High, with signs of progress and prosperity everywhere. But just as everything seems to be going along swimmingly, large swaths of society begin to chaff under the social conformity of the High, beginning to gravitate to more individualistic pursuits and demanding that their personal interests come first. You may recognize the “Consciousness Revolution” of the mid-1960s through early 1980s, correctly, as the Second Turning.

Next up, the Third Turning, which Howe calls an Unraveling, is much the opposite of a High. To wit, individualism dominates, while institutions are increasingly weak and discredited. Quoting Howe on the Unraveling…

“This is a time when social authority feels inconsequential, the culture feels exhausted, and people feel bewildered by the number of options available to them. It is a time of celebrity circuses and a tremendous amount of freedom and creativity in our personal lives, but very little sense of public purpose.

The most recent Third Turning began in the mid-’80s with Morning in America, and continued through the ’90s. Previous periods of Unraveling in American history were also decades of cynicism and bad manners. Think of the 1920s, the 1850s, the 1760s. And history teaches us that the Third Turnings inevitably end in Fourth Turnings.

Finally, there is the Fourth Turning, called a Crisis. The recent Third Turning appears to be winding down, and we are currently on the cusp of a Fourth Turning. This is a time of great turmoil, when society’s basic institutions are torn down and rebuilt, and seemingly insurmountable problems are addressed. During Fourth Turnings, America engages in a struggle for its very survival and redefines its identity as a nation. Large wars are often a part of this process. The American Revolution, Civil War, Great Depression, and World War II were all features of past Fourth Turnings.

The First Turning is referred to by Howe as a High. As this follows a period of crisis

1920s, the 1850s, the 1760s

Very interesting. What were the “difficult and challenging times” which preceded these “Unravelings”?

In other words, wouldn’t a difficult and challenging time be more along the lines of the Civil War (1860’s if I remember my HS history) and the late 1770’s?

Nevertheless, thanks for posting that.

So am thinking about maybe a small cabin in the country.

Which is what I got. I love my garden, and a really good garden does take years. Well, you never really are done with a garden, it’s one of those ‘ It’s the journey, not the end point’ metaphor whossnames, but to get to the point where you are growing just basic fruits and vegetables and herbs can take awhile and requires close attention to your local conditions and soil types and stuff, and what you want to have happen. Maximum beauty and ease for minimum effort is MY goal. ‘Terroire’, baybee.
Either that or you’re just arguing with the reality of your place, which is stupid.

For instance, I live in rural Thurston county and I have a neighbor down the road, poor, poor, silly hermit-man, who spends HOURS fiddling with his lawn, mowing, and snipping, and fertilizing, and stalking moles, and yada yada. This is the forest, man! It wants to be a forest. Only a FOOL argues with reality, surely?
If you wanna live next to a ruler-edged vivid-green utterly weedless lawn edged with color-coded petunias and two 4′ tall trees from Home Depot—then go live in Lacey, fa Chrissakes!
It’s just crazy.
Oftentimes of a lovely summer evening or on weekends I will be swinging indolently in my hammock hanging between two giant hemlocks, brushing my feet on the plush viridian-green moss and I’ll hear, drifting through the trees, the sound of a far-away weed-whacker. Or I’ll take a bag of chips, my favorite knife and big bowl and a cutting board and wander out to my small backyard and flop myself down by the veggie beds and mince up a giant mound of salsa cruda from tomatoes warm from the vine, and basil, and green onions, or whatever else I can reach without getting up and I’ll sit and leisurely eat until I can’t move anymore, and you know what I’ll be hearing? Often as not the far-away sound of his lawn-mower, as he labors incessantly trying to turn the forest into a subdivision golf-course.
It makes me feel even more relaxed and smarter than ever.

And he’s not even winning! He’s only just p*issin’ off his part of the forest.

My mother and father built a house in the Pennsylvania woods. That was back in 1966, I grew up in it, and they still live there.

Mom and Dad take a great deal of pride in how they care for their little corner of Penn’s Woods. They have an arborist come in twice a year to assess the health of the trees, and if need be, they remove the sick and dying trees.

The neighbors below them are a different story. The lady of the house decided that the interior of the house was too dark, so that meant the trees on the property had to go. My folks (and many of the neighbors) still haven’t forgiven them for that.

HEY Oly gal and Ahansen…just sitting here reading, and I see a coyote slowly walk past my tiny patio..
thought it was a grungy dog, but noooooo.

This is the bits/buckets section so It thought I would inform you. Glad it wasn’t a bear, Ahansen. Hope you are doing much better.

This is the forest, man! It wants to be a forest.

Or it wants to be a garden?

LOL - Olygal - have you tried explaining the concept of Astroturf to him?
Or concrete-ing over the yard and painting it a grass-like green?

Sounds like he’d find it easier.

Then again, what would he do with all that spare time?
That kind of obstinacy takes real time and dedication

OlyGal,

Your post made my day! Thank you - I’ve got a neighbor that crawls up and down his driveway with SCISSORS after mowing to cut a perfect square edge.

Wack-job - hopefully losing his MD bayfront monstrosity. Four levels of stupidity wedged in between 1920 era beach cottages.

Post of the Day:

And he’s not even winning! He’s only just p*issin’ off his part of the forest.

I could make you sick by telling you that our first house in East Brookfield, Ma (central MA for sure) was $35,900. Rte 1, Box 11, Harrington St. 1978.

heh… i just saw the nick and realized who i was talking to.. you gotta be homesick as all @$@%.. sorry i went there.

eh,

it’s ok….

I miss grass so much, I may buy 25 lots just to cut the grass!

I hate how houses are so close together. Me and the wife were thinking about looking at a house with empty lots beside it where the developer went bust. That way we could get some space between us…

Stpn2me,

Go for it. My parents did that very thing. Bought an end lot and the one next to it so nobody could build a house anywhere close to them and built their house.

I remember, although I recall it as being more in the 70s. It got replaced with global warming, and now global change.

I remember, I believe it was early 70’s. It was quite the rage in the environmental movement. Mass starvation and wars over food/farmland were predicted, and naturally, naysayers were mocked for their denial of the situation.

I remember also being given the idea (by left-leaning docudramas), circa 1984, that nuclear war was imminent; this prompted me to buy an expensive, powerful car, because — what the hell, might as well have some fun.

70’s eh. Guess I’m older than I thought. Reminds me of a line in the movie 12 Monkeys…”Science ain’t an exact science with these bozos.”

Gotta keep us lemmings in fear of something at all times.

Glad to hear you got the big car and made the best of it.

In the 1970’s they figured out we were getting towards the end of an interglacial period. But the best theories at that time said that glacial onset and exit were gradual, 1000’s of years processes. So nothing to worry about.

In the 1990’s, they dug up the Greenland Ice cores and discovered that the glacial/interglacial transitions could occur within a century. They also noticed that temperatures were rising, and global warming was clearly occurring. (yes, really, it is.)

then a couple of bright sparks pointed out mechanisms whereby a warming tendency could potentially trigger an ice age - assuming the planet was coming towards the end of the inter-glacial period. (determined by axial inclination, and the physical position of the continents)

Responsible scientists started to use the term climate change.

Irresponsible scientists desperately resisted the temptation to write papers titled ‘How I learnt to stop worrying and love global warming.’

– w

“Responsible scientists started to use the term climate change.”

And how perfectly crafted a term it is. It allows for anyone’s complaints about the weather to be directed into a condemnation of some political or economic group.

Skepticism (which is not the same as denial, look it up if you’re confused) is always a healthy position. Politicians seek votes. Competing industries seek advantage. Scientists seek funding.

Too right, warlock. I saw some talks where they presented theories about rapid cooling. Turns out from the ice cores that once the system becomes unstable, rapid, violent swings in global mean temperatures are possible.

The problem with the GW “debate” is that it is being held by the misinformed; touchy-feely alarmist types who don’t know the science versus self-titled skeptics who don’t bother looking at the science because they “just know” that they’re right.

A real skeptic would actually delve into the science and mathematics of climatology, but, *gasp*, that would require hours of work and some actual thinking.

My father is a climate scientist (he’s a geophysicist) so I grew up around the AGW debate of the 1980’s. At the time there was a severe controversy within scientific circles, NOT about whether the GMT was rising (it is), NOT about whether CO2 levels (been rising since beginning of Industrial Revolution), NOT whether CO2 causes a greenhouse effect, no, but TO WHAT DEGREE human activity was contributing to global climate change. In the past thirty years, scientists (using bigger and better processors to run their models and some really awesome satellite data) have learned a lot more about global weather patterns (like el Nino) and how our climate works. Today, there’s very little debate about AGW in the scientific community because they have models that actually work now.

It took so long because the weather system is a chaotic system. That required a new branch of mathematics and a lot of new algorithms and a geometric increase in computing power to be able to model in any meaningful way. That wouldn’t have been possible in the 1970’s.

It’s a shame that some perhaps well-meaning but poorly informed people once spread doom-and-gloom about ‘the coming ice age’. Most scientists did not take this seriously, but most scientists (aside from Carl Sagan) didn’t bother to engage the media. It might help to point out here that there used to be a number of astronomical theories (hypotheses, really) of what caused ice ages which have been shown wrong in the intervening years.

But as for the 80’s doom and gloom, I was there, and I distinctly remember the prediction that NYC was going to be inundated. So far, only little, powerless islands in the Pacific are getting inundated, but we have seen what seemed almost unthinkable when I was a child: the retreat of massive glacier blocks and thinning of ice sheets. H2O has a very high specific heat. That’s a LOT of energy in the system. You’d better believe that’s going to send something nasty someone’s way. 0.74C and our surface is 2/3 salt water. Uh-huh.

“A real skeptic would actually delve into the science and mathematics of climatology, but, *gasp*, that would require hours of work and some actual thinking.”

Funny how people who’ve made up their minds can always judge how much thinking is “enough” for everyone else. Somehow when the other guy doesn’t agree with you, HE needs to do more homework.

Not a Gator –

Thanks for that post. It seems far less antagonistic that my usual AGW screeds!

Also, don’t forget the > 0.5 C carryover even if we stopped pumping out CO2 today.

MrBubble

And as we’ve seen with the Housing Bubble, the experts with the most impressive credentials and the greatest media presence always turn out to be right, and independent thinkers who question the “consensus” always end up looking like fools.

hey, wait a minute…

THAT was a wonderful post, Gator. Thank you!

Oly, a coyote coulda had me for mid morning bkfst..different critters here than what you have. He just sauntered past my patio in the “greenbelt”.

Hahahaha!

Well, I can say with great happiness and certainty that I drove down that very street two weeks ago following my dad after my husband & I went out to sit on his boat (which he is sadly too old to take out much anymore) and watch the Gold Cup races on the Detroit River. We drove past several massive homes for sale, and wound up eating dinner with him in Grosse Pointe Something-or-Other at a neat little restaurant called Lucy’sTavern on the Hill. First of all, let me say, that lady has some kind of major speech impediment. The only thing that she said that sounded “Michigan” to me was “that’s for certin”. Secondly, you can get some major deals in the Pointes, as they’re called. Probably better than hers. Thirdly, you don’t have to be a member of a yacht club to berth your boat on Lake St. Clair or the Detroit River. Just rent a slip at a marina. And fourth, a lot of homeowners there who are trapped and trying to sell their places wouldn’t care if the buyers were from Mars, as long as they paid in cash. Just sayin’. You can get a nice foreclosure in the Pointes for in the $ 250,000’s and up, and probably for less if you look around. This would be the equivalent of $ 1.5m in CA. Lower taxes, too.

Was your co-worker able to get the “record of late payment” removed?

“Was your co-worker able to get the “record of late payment” removed?”

Not yet. I told him to pay the new mortgage servicer since he could easily afford it, but he was stubborn.

I have a swamp cooler. A MasterCool which has worked like a champ since I had it installed four years ago.

I am (was) a Tradewinds man, myself.

You’re welcome!

I was just taking a break from one of those photographic projects that is taking for-freaking-ever to finish. And, for some reason, walking around the house seems to have quite a lowering effect on my frustration level.

I cracked the kitchen blinds, and what should I see but another tradesman’s truck at the house just to the north of this one. It wasn’t the same trades-truck that was there this morning.

Something tells me that some whoppin’ big bills are headed in the direction of the investor/owner of the property. He’s one of those University of Arizona students who picked up a real estate license while he was in school.

When graduation time came, he attempted to flip the property. And failed. It’s been rental for a couple of years, and I’ve had zero problems with his tenants.

But, a few months ago, the neighborhood grapevine told me that he was delinquent on his property taxes. And then came the water line. As mentioned above, he had to replace his old line in May.

Something tells me that this fella’s getting a lesson in how difficult it is to get rich in real estate.

Try explaining that to the NAR.;-)

I can recall bicycle touring through North Dakota in 1987. The largest town I rode through was Mamarnth, which was well on its way to becoming a ghost town.

Mind you, I only spent part of a day in ND — I was focused on getting into Montana ahead of some stormy weather. But I remember that it was big, silent country with very little human presence.

I just looked up some pictures of Manmarnth. A very “busy” place indeed. The ruins of the “Barber Theater” (looks like an opera house of some sort ) are open to the weather, and I could actually hear the grass growning in the picture of their city park ( “Marmarth City Park (below): a relaxing place to picnic or camp.
Rest rooms and water taps available.
Second Avenue West at Fourth Street South. ” )

I’d probably like it there.

Alaska has a 26 billion dollar reserve I believe…

Hm. Alaska +$26B, Californa -$26B.

Perhaps we can make a trade of some sort?

Perhaps we can make a trade of some sort ?

You gotta a deal….They get the terminator and I get Sarah

Better hurry - word is she’s already packing up stuff at the Governor’s Mansion….

Isn’t she known as the “Governor Lady” ?

hehe…

Right after she found him shoving the remains of his accomplice in the wood chipper.

Is the ? a request to explain?

From MSN’s market dispatches

“Ford this morning reported an unexpected second-quarter profit of $2.8 billion, due to accounting gains related to its debt reduction.”

“Ford’s auto operations burned through $1 billion in the period…”

From Yahoo finance (end 2008 balance sheet):
Cash and equivalents: $22B
Accounts payable: $78B

They don’t need paper gains, they need money.

i see the flaw in my logic..

Assuming it’s a 6 month CD, 6 months from now a euro might be worth more (or less) than it’s exchange in dollars due to exchange rates.

so buying a CD denominated in euros is just like buying euro futures..

Yeah, it seems to me in true hyper-inflation people have lost all faith in the affected currency. I get how a devalued dollar would make stocks go higher, but in a total economic panic I would think most companies will be going bankrupt along with the rest of us. Did the
German stock market go up during the Weimar hyper-inflation?

Yeah, that was where it was. I just googled it in Portland and it must be closed for good. I knew it closed in 98 or 99 but when I saw your post I thought maybe they had resurrected the place.

IIRC, a dance club for the “see and be seen” set called Barracuda now occupies the space. That’s too bad.

Put some Ice in that coffee

Oh! Well, talk about wishful thinking. I guess I’ll remember that name now, though.

Wifey loves German-style potato salad and cole slaw. She also loves Leberkäse. That’s when I pretend I don’t know her.

LOL, well now I know what to avoid I guess. And now I’ve got to google it cuz I have no idea what Leberkase is….

Googled it. Now I understand your aversion.

I had a friend in college that would sit at the couch with a knife (or was it a spoon?) and slice off and eat pieces of Braunschweiger. So nasty.

Yes sleepless I am acutely aware of that…Part of what makes Portland unique…I ride my bike every day around here but its quite dangerous…I just try and stay on the back streets…

Did you also know that you can ride a bike in Portland?

We have bike lanes in Las Vegas. But I fail to see how a stripe of white paint is going to keep a 2-ton car from running you over if it’s pointed in your direction.

Hell, even the sidewalks aren’t safe, based on the number of skid marks I’ve seen going up onto them.

Nearly killed myself from the heat biking home today (missed the bus … ironic, since I’m a bus driver). I would not want to ride a bus in Vegas, ugh.

G’ville is a nice town for bike riding, but, you know, I have an inkling Portland offers a bit more culturally.

I mean, Portland has Powell’s (which has gone national with powells.com). Gainesville has a semi-annual Friends of the Library sale in an old shed. This is apparently such an event in Florida that people pour into town for three days on the Greyhound from such locales as Tampa and Jacksonville.

*sigh*

Nearly killed myself from the heat biking home today

Hey! I’m riding my bike home in the heat today after work.

I would not want to ride a bus in Vegas, ugh.

I stick to the sidewalks, yield to all pedestrians and try never to give a car a shot at me.

I have an inkling Portland offers a bit more culturally.

I don’t know about that, but the few times that I visited the Portland area (Keizer), I constantly fantasized about riding my bike there.

I would not want to ride a bus in Vegas, ugh.

bus. Thought I read “bike”.

Feh.

lavi,

Regarding your first reply I was totally joking about the bike lane thing. You guys are proving my point by relating your bike experiences. People act like none of these activities (farmer’s markets, biking, and beer for that matter) can be had anywhere else.

Portland simultaneously doubles as a city I like and the most narcissistic city I know of.

oh, and scdave, you too. Joking. I really don’t think Portland is that unique in regard to biking.

I would not want to ride a bus in Vegas, ugh.

bus. Thought I read “bike”.

YOu read right–I wrote it wrong! I meant ride a bike. I would definitely ride a bus.

I meant ride a bike. I would definitely ride a bus.

I’ve ridden the buses here - so I had no problem with “Ugh”

Oregon recently passed a law which states that a vehicle has to clear a bike by at least
three feet, and if that means crossing a double line, you won’t be illegal doing so.

So, veer to the left to avoid a cyclist and get
hit head-on by an 18 wheeler…go figure

*dingdingding*

Rent will eat up 2/3 of takehome if you let it.

And yes, living with your parents will kill your social life. I finally got out. Best decision I ever made.

I think parents today are quicker to disapprove of a child’s shabby bohemian existence than to encourage their independence–and that’s sad.

It’s called osmosis; the liquid moves to equalize concentration (usually of a salt), IIRC.

My thought is that you would have to be _awfully_ dehydrated before your blood is more-salty than seas-water.

yeah… they are way different, sea water is saltier by a factor of 3 or so

i just searched a couple sea-survival pages and one guy recommends that if the only water available is foul or in the bottom of a raft or similar, it can taste so bad it can cause vomiting, and taking it as an enema might be better (it will be absorbed).

But he’s talking relatively salt-free water.

the guy’s pretty serious.. no holds barred (says to store an extra pint of rain water “up there” if you have few containers

www dot caske2000.org/survival/survivesea.htm#Survival%20at%20Sea