Rookie needs the stick!

Role call:

Who has seen a person expire (die) here?

is the a use by date?

i guess there were no takers for my 'halal gamey hindqt. of troll.' will i have to pay to have it sent to land fill?

re: #2 RTLM

Role call:

Who has seen a person expire (die) here?

?

The reason I ask is that I have and my young son has too.

I watch his friends play the shoot'em up video games in his company and they laugh and giggle when they "kill" someone.

It makes my boy cross/sad and they tease him. I'd try to explain, but they wouldn't understand and it might further embarrass my son. We talk about it later.

Point being that those who have seen a death have a greater appreciation for life than those who have not.

when i was 14 i saw my father die, not going to make a joke about dieing way too many memories for me on that subject.

re: #5 RTLM

I have. In a clinical and in a hospice setting.
I can agree with that.

re: #2 RTLM

I have.

/why?

re: #5 RTLM

The reason I ask is that I have and my young son has too.

I watch his friends play the shoot'em up video games in his company and they laugh and giggle when they "kill" someone.

It makes my boy cross/sad and they tease him. I'd try to explain, but they wouldn't understand and it might further embarrass my son. We talk about it later.

Point being that those who have seen a death have a greater appreciation for life than those who have not.

Sorry, but I don't get that from this...

Role call:

Who has seen a person expire (die) here?

re: #5 RTLM

Yes.
And it doesn't have to have been a human. Seeing old Trusty, the family dog, go out has changed LOTS of my friends for whom death was just... a 'game' before that...

re: #10 Karridine

Yes.
And it doesn't have to have been a human. Seeing old Trusty, the family dog, go out has changed LOTS of my friends for whom death was just... a 'game' before that...

RTLM said "here". We are at LGF, so LGF means "here" to me.

a cyber 'here' vs a 'here' in place

re: #1 AmeriDan

Rookie needs the stick!

Stop begging.

Btw, care to explain why ?

even the death of a human doesn't always have the same impact a person who has been sick all her life doesn't have the same reaction as a person who appears to be young and healthy and dies suddenly.

re: #5 RTLM

Point being that those who have seen a death have a greater appreciation for life than those who have not.

Wrong. In Afganistan, Iraq etc they see death every minute and seems they don't have enough. Too much death makes you immune. Same with video games.

re: #12 yochanan

Yo, the 'here' was modifying 'Has anyone (here) seen someone die?'

/it was a lumpy construction, English-wise, but not out of bounds

re: #12 yochanan

a cyber 'here' vs a 'here' in place

All I know is I have never seen anyone die here at LGF.

There may have been a member or two pass away, but I doubt they died here- in real time- at LGF.

Another quote attributed to Bronte, which seems somehow fitting for these times:

Prejudices, it is well known, are most difficult to eradicate from the heart whose soil has never been loosened or fertilized by education; they grow firm there, firm as weeds among stones.

re: #15 Rookie

Rookie, he didn't assert MANY deaths, just 'a passing, A death'...

You're right, seeing too much can inure one to death, but likewise NEVER being in the presence of a sentient being dying CAN (doesn't HAVE TO) make one insensitive to dying, as if it were a game...

re: #5 RTLM

You have excluded those, like myself, who have been way too close to death, twice. I would make the argument that these people would have just as great, if not a greater appreciation of life. But I understand your comment and agree with the spirit of it.

re: #17 AmeriDan

You have a shrewd sense of humor, Dan! :D

Hey You and you know who you are [Link: www.youtube.com...] and every other day as well

re: #9 AmeriDan

I'll relate my experience.

May of 1986 at the Evergreen, CO carwash. Got done hosing/brushing off my '77 Firebird and pulled out of the stall to let a county dump truck in. I was drying my car off with the .50 cent paper towels.

They went to work cleaning and climbing all over the huge truck. One kid got up on top of the edge of the wet dump truck bed edge and slipped off, doing a perfect head stand in the air from 12 feet and landed inverted. I heard a clang from some tool he was holding. When I saw him, his eyes were obscured by a dark film. His friend was there before me and he ran to the gas station and called 911.

I didn't really try to help. I just looked at him, understood that he was dead and got in my car and drove off.

Not one of my prouder moments.

re: #14 yochanan

Tell that to the person dying. The difference, in your example is the addition of grief for the perception of what the person "would have/could have" been. It is conjecture at best.

I have not witnessed the violent death of a young and healthy person. But I can tell you that many cling to life end stage because of their relationships and the people that they love.

It is useless to attempt to weigh the value of a life. Every life matters. The loss of it matters little to the deceased - but to those who have survived.

re: #23 RTLM

This does not really support your earlier argument... it does NOT say to me, "RTLM has no appreciation of life...", especially as I can understand your feeling of helplessness and finality when you saw him.

It was over. There was nothing you could do, and he was NOT your family or your responsibility... there was little that hanging around, watching, could have contributed....

re: #16 Karridine

Yo, the 'here' was modifying 'Has anyone (here) seen someone die?'

/it was a lumpy construction, English-wise, but not out of bounds

Okay, fine, but as other comments have shown... most people have seen someone else die... in real life and for many reasons.

If the complaint is against violence in video games. I agree, but it's not something I can control in other people's kids.

If I had a child, my child would not be playing those kind of games. I think there are many parents here that would say that too.

So there would be no need to have that talk with them.

I've had a gun shoved in my face twice and been the victim of a violent crime under threat of death... I can tell you that my mind raced to find a way to survive. That was paramount...continuing to breathe.

re: #13 Rookie

Stop begging.

Btw, care to explain why ?

Heh, it's gonna be fun watching you get piled on before saying something even more stupid than you did in the last thread, and getting the boot.

re: #15 Rookie

Have you?

re: #18 freetoken

Bronte is wrong on this one. The most hateful people on this earth, the ones who's ideas or actions leads or will lead to millions of deaths, were/are educated people:

Marx, Lenin, all nazis, Stalin, Mao, Dinnerjacket, Obama...

Educated people are capable of doing much worse.

re: #23 RTLM

That's very sad, and I feel for you. This is an open thread so feel free to share. But your first comment, and the second, were really round about ways to get there.

re: #7 The Albatross

I have. In a clinical and in a hospice setting.
I can agree with that.

Same here. My mother, ten years ago, at home. I was taking her pulse at the time.

I have faced loaded guns, with one in my hand. But her death was something entirely different.

I'm not sure I've ever gotten over it. I'm not sure if I ever will.

Hell, I'm not even sure I ever want to.

This is why I don't make jokes about death. Or in other words, when I comment that some foreign dictator, etc., is likely to "receive Excedrin Headache Number 7.62" after a coup, etc., I'm not trying to be funny- just facing facts.

But then, I've never been accused of having a sense of humor, either.

eon

re: #20 ethanxxx

You have excluded those, like myself, who have been way too close to death, twice. I would make the argument that these people would have just as great, if not a greater appreciation of life. But I understand your comment and agree with the spirit of it.

.

Looks like the Certificate of Birth for the messiah is posted on his "fight the smears" site now..

[Link: my.barackobama.com...]

re: #15 Rookie

Wrong. In Afganistan, Iraq etc they see death every minute and seems they don't have enough. Too much death makes you immune. Same with video games.

I disagree. I have had the honor of knowing many men who have fought on the field of battle and watched men die. Without exception, they all have a greater appreciation of life and never want to experience or bring about the horrors of War again.

re: #29 RTLM

Have you?

I was not present on the actual moment, but I had my share of dealing with dead people on close proximity. Relatives or not.

From what I rkmow from various books written by survivors of death camps / POW, after a while you don't see death as impressive as it is for us, now. Depends of everyone heart in the end, I guess.

Regarding the really violent games (like GTA), the only thing you can do is keep your kid out of them. The parents of the other kids should do the same.

re: #32 eon

I have attended to end stage at various times and full codes. My focus shifts completely to the person, I do not think of myself or my own experience often until weeks or months later.

I viewed it as a way of honoring the person...to assist someone until they leave this world. Most caregivers do. It is an expression of love.

re: #35 ethanxxx

*ding*

re: #26 AmeriDan

Uhm, maybe most people posting here,
tonite,
on the dead thread,
have witnessed a dying... but American culture these days is NOT generally set up for dealing with death, Dan

In Grandma's day, GreatGranma would have had people beside her as she died, AND she would have been the Corpse-of-Honor at a 1-2 day wake... kids would have seen her empty shell, and they'd have helped in the killing and cleaning of chickens, pigs, cattle and other farm animals, deeply respectful of their food and leather value...

But the general observation that, "Americans don't get exposure to death" is pretty accurate, despite tonite's sampling...

re: #35 ethanxxx

I did not reffer to American or Nato soldiers. I referred to the local population killing each other for decades, now.

re: #39 Karridine

Uhm, maybe most people posting here,
tonite,
on the dead thread,
have witnessed a dying... but American culture these days is NOT generally set up for dealing with death, Dan

In Grandma's day, GreatGranma would have had people beside her as she died, AND she would have been the Corpse-of-Honor at a 1-2 day wake... kids would have seen her empty shell, and they'd have helped in the killing and cleaning of chickens, pigs, cattle and other farm animals, deeply respectful of their food and leather value...

But the general observation that, "Americans don't get exposure to death" is pretty accurate, despite tonite's sampling...

I would have to agree with that. Morning folks - how's things?

Wow.
It is a dead thread.

But
Having seen children and mama sans run over by large military truck conveys,
and no one stopping that gave a shit.

And weapons of war tearing people to pieces.

I have been tugged at many times.

and that is all I will say about that.

I can't agree that the general observation that, "Americans don't get exposure to death is accurate".

They do or they will. It is inevitable and certain. Perhaps you mean that they don't get exposure random, senseless violent deaths. There I would agree.

re: #40 Rookie

I did not reffer to American or Nato soldiers. I referred to the local population killing each other for decades, now.

Ah!
Then you have introduced (inadvertently, perhaps) the CULTURE underlying that kill-kill-kill phenomenon, Rookie...

I, for one, will not argue that Muslims or Afghanis or other non-American cultures see 'killing for MY tribe's honor' as something mechanical, and 'not respecting death' as a characteristic pandemic, endemic and everpresent there!

re: #39 Karridine

Very good point. I'm from an old family, and at 43, the "baby", but I just didn't see where RTLM was going with the first and second post.

re: #39 Karridine

In Grandma's day, GreatGranma would have had people beside her as she died, AND she would have been the Corpse-of-Honor at a 1-2 day wake...

Is still happening in Eastern Europe. I do not want to give any details, but staying 3 days around someone you loved is pretty hard stuff. But I think is a necessary process.

Just get rid of the person as soon as it dies seems barbaric to me.

re: #43 The Albatross

Okay, I'll note the agreement and quiet my yapping trap, Albatross. :D

re: #30 Rookie

Well, if you insist on arguing with a quote...

Note that Bronte was female in the early part of the 19th century. Being born of an Irish father while being Anglican she would be living in an age when religious and ethnic tension meant something. It was also an age of death by disease at young years, to which her sisters succumbed. She was a woman in a man's world (publishing). Slavery was practiced in many countries at that time.

It was also an age when many people had little formal schooling.

You might want to judge her words from within her context.

re: #42 ibmkeyboard

You've said plenty.

re: #35 ethanxxx

Wrong. In Afganistan, Iraq etc they see death every minute and seems they don't have enough. Too much death makes you immune. Same with video games.

I disagree. I have had the honor of knowing many men who have fought on the field of battle and watched men die. Without exception, they all have a greater appreciation of life and never want to experience or bring about the horrors of War again.

Agreed. By the same token, there are some people for whom death, or more exactly the power to inflict it on others, becomes the ultimate "high". Call the roll of the worst dictators and monsters in history, from Vlad Tepes to Pol Pot, and Gilles de Rais to the BTK Killer, and you find a strain of madness running through the human experience which holds that being able to kill, having someone else at their (never to be granted) mercy, is to these twisted individuals a feeling of almost godlike power.

This is why I strongly oppose any attempt to deprive ordinary citizens of the means of personal defense. The idea that "the government will protect you" is meaningless when it is the government, acting as the agent of a madman, which seeks to end your life. Tell the people of Iraq that Saddam's government was "protecting" them when Uday and Qusay were raping women and small boys at random, and feeding people into woodchippers feet first- while they were still alive. (IMHO, the only thing wrong with the way those two bought it was that it was too merciful compared to what they'd done to others for over two decades.) Again IMO, when a government offical tells me that I cannot be trusted to protect myself from even the random nuts who roam our streets (thank you, President Carter- not), I cannot help but wonder what he'd like to do to me if he thought he could get away with it.

The fact that leaders (like our present President) who are willing to trust us to protect ourselves at need are held in contempt by our "enlightened elites" I think tells us more about those "elites" and their secret (or not so secret) yearnings than they are probably comfortable with us knowing.

eon

Forgive me, my insomnia got me into the middle of something (obviously)... can we have a more upbeat topic for this open thread so that I won't go out into the great wide 3D and be morose?

re: #46 Rookie

Ah! NOW you're saying something, and it pertains to a LOT of America.

When someone OLD dies, closed coffin (IF there's a wake at all) and WHISK the geezer off to the cemetery! All very clean, very un-messy...

re: #42 ibmkeyboard

Wow.
It is a dead thread.

But
Having seen children and mama sans run over by large military truck conveys,
and no one stopping that gave a shit.

And weapons of war tearing people to pieces.

I have been tugged at many times.

and that is all I will say about that.

*rolls eyes*

Here we go again.

"Something of vengeance I had tasted for the first time; as aromatic wine it seemed, on swallowing, warm and racy: its after-flavor, metallic and corroding, gave me a sensation as if I had been poisoned."

— Charlotte Bronte

"Revenge is a dish that is best served cold...."

-- Sicilian Proverb

To add to the discussion: yes I have witnessed death, and violence, and violent death- all in "real life". Anybody who thinks such things are proper subjects for amusement or entertainment is a fool.

/Good Morning everybody!

re: #47 Karridine

I like your yapping trap Karridine. Alas I have woken to a rather literal frame of mind.

re: #46 Rookie

Is still happening in Eastern Europe. I do not want to give any details, but staying 3 days around someone you loved is pretty hard stuff. But I think is a necessary process.

Just get rid of the person as soon as it dies seems barbaric to me.

One of my favorite professors was from Eastern Europe, a brilliant chemist who seemed to never sleep. I did a summer internship with him the year that he arrived and he had the dickens of a time understanding that I could not work from dawn until midnight because I had children to care for. He would get a very quizzical look and wonder where my mother was, that I had to care for my own children.

re: #51 The Albatross

Forgive me, my insomnia got me into the middle of something (obviously)... can we have a more upbeat topic for this open thread so that I won't go out into the great wide 3D and be morose?

Sooo, how bout them Celtics?

How's the weather at your place?

Hey, Albatross!

You ever read any of The Village Idiot's Apprentice's comments here at LGF?

Well, I had the pleasure of meeting him yesterday, outside Bangkok! Straight shooter, intelligent, engineering wizard, and patriotic American!

/UPBEAT, much? :D

re: #37 The Albatross

I have attended to end stage at various times and full codes. My focus shifts completely to the person, I do not think of myself or my own experience often until weeks or months later.

I viewed it as a way of honoring the person...to assist someone until they leave this world. Most caregivers do. It is an expression of love.

You have my respect. The hospice caregivers who helped with my mother were incredible. (Pancreatic cancer; her prognosis was six months- she was gone in 96 days.) Nothing makes it easier, but they made it possible to cope with.

As I said to them then, I say to you now; Thank You.

eon

re: #54 CIA Reject

Anybody who thinks such things are proper subjects for amusement or entertainment is a fool.

Ding, ding, ding! We have a winnah.

Good morning back at ya.

re: #40 Rookie

I did not reffer to American or Nato soldiers. I referred to the local population killing each other for decades, now.

Then you would be right. Many a Muslim Leader, including OBL, have stated that they embrace death the way Americans embrace life. I personally don't understand it and never will, but I don't mind exploring options that will give these hysterical self-righteous book burning carpet chewing Muppet's with s**t for brains what they want.

re: #61 ethanxxx

Elegant quote! :)

/you oughta attribute it, though
"...hysterical self-righteous book burning carpet chewing Muppet's with s**t for brains..."

77 degrees at 6 am here on the Emerald coast of NW Florida. The day is sultry.

Who are the celtics? Heh, just kidding.

Karridine, I haven't met a lizard 3D... but I certainly would like to.

re: #42 ibmkeyboard

Wow.
It is a dead thread.

But
Having seen children and mama sans run over by large military truck conveys,
and no one stopping that gave a shit.

And weapons of war tearing people to pieces.

I have been tugged at many times.

and that is all I will say about that.

I'm positive you aren't implying that our American military would do such a thing. Since you are talking about "mama sans" (racist term by the way) you must mean the Japanese army - like maybe at Nanking.

re: #61 ethanxxx

Then you would be right. Many a Muslim Leader, including OBL, have stated that they embrace death the way Americans embrace life. I personally don't understand it and never will, but I don't mind exploring options that will give these hysterical self-righteous book burning carpet chewing Muppet's with s**t for brains what they want.

Well said!

re: #50 eon

Vlad Tepes lived in 15th centuries. It was as cruel as any of the people living at that time, I do not think it was much more severe in punishment than other rulers.

And the stories about him - there is much exaggeration due to German writings. He was a brave soldier. Without him, maybe Columbus could not have the time to travel West with Otoman armies all over Europe.

Putting him in the line with Pol-Pot, who killed millions of his own people, is not fair.

re: #50 eon

I sit, and will now stand, in perfect agreement with you. My cache is large and my powder is dry. I hope I never have to use it, but... there it is.

re: #58 Karridine

Hey, Albatross!

You ever read any of The Village Idiot's Apprentice's comments here at LGF?

Well, I had the pleasure of meeting him yesterday, outside Bangkok! Straight shooter, intelligent, engineering wizard, and patriotic American!

/UPBEAT, much? :D

Oh, you did meet up then? Good. He was saying yesterday that he hoped to be able to get together with you.

Karridine, I envy you. You have no idea what I wouldn't give for some decent Thai food.

re: #63 The Albatross

I got his email at 1015 Thursday, and by 12 noon I was on my way to the bus station out of BKK, because he's leaving tonite...

Yeah, a chance to meet a Lizard 3D... well, I couldn't pass that up, 'Tross! Specially being here in Thailand! :D

re: #59 eon

Thanks really. You gotta have unshakable conviction to do the work, I burned out in 9 years but am ready to put my whites back on as soon as my immune system is ready.

re: #62 Karridine

I know... What's his name? From the UK, wears glasses... HELP.

re: #56 galloping granny

Yes, the grandmothers are usually taking care of the nephews. Not a very good thing after me, you cannot work all day long and neglect the kids.

re: #68 galloping granny

EETCHER Hardowt, Granny!

I married my Lao-Thai wife for eminently SELFISH reasons... tongue, tummy... and she's a GOOD mother to our sons! :D

I am lucky, I get excellent Thai, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Korean and Phillipine eats... have various good friends in our Asian community here. Since the husband is a sportsman, we share the venison and antlers. I would love to visit Thailand and Vietnam one day.

re: #71 ethanxxx

Dang! I can see him, too, but pulling up a name is NOT happening! :(

re: #73 Karridine

EETCHER Hardowt, Granny!

I married my Lao-Thai wife for eminently SELFISH reasons... tongue, tummy... and she's a GOOD mother to our sons! :D

You sound like a smart man, Karridine. How are the boys? Any more problems (I heard a while back that someone was trying to kidnap them?)

re: #63 The Albatross

77 degrees at 6 am here on the Emerald coast of NW Florida. The day is sultry.

Who are the celtics? Heh, just kidding.

Karridine, I haven't met a lizard 3D... but I certainly would like to.

If I can work out my schedule this summer- which I always manage to do- I'll be passing through that way in a month or two. I loves me some Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral.

On another topic-

Here in Central OH, Columbus, the state capital, got hit with a major storm last night. Flooding in several parts of the city (notably near the Scioto River, which runs right through it), with several thousand American Electric Power (AEP) customers blacked out, and power not expected to be back on until this evening at the earliest. Not even close to the catastrophe that Cedar Rapids, IA has experienced, but it's been a long time since Central OH saw anything similar to this.

The thunderstorms that caused it are expected to continue well into late tomorrow, dumping even more rain on the area.

/watching how the local and state governments react should be interesting, to say the least

cheers

eon

re: #71 ethanxxx

I know... What's his name? From the UK, wears glasses... HELP.

Harry Potter?

re: #75 Karridine

Dang! I can see him, too, but pulling up a name is NOT happening! :(

Found it!

Pat Condell

re: #74 The Albatross

Then you'd better GET MOVING, Albie, before its all KFC and 7-11-ated!

Really, the metro areas are RAPIDLY becoming Thai-style extensions of The Mall Environment....

re: #74 The Albatross

I am lucky, I get excellent Thai, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Korean and Phillipine eats... have various good friends in our Asian community here. Since the husband is a sportsman, we share the venison and antlers. I would love to visit Thailand and Vietnam one day.

You are lucky. We have a couple of Chinese restaurants where they have dumbed everything down to suit "American" tastes. Yuck. I did get into Boston a couple of months back and had lunch at a marvelous Malaysian restaurant (not moslem - pork on the menu). That was some fine Mango Chicken. Could have licked the plate. And not a coca-cola in sight anywhere.

re: #79 AmeriDan

Harry Potter?

Good one!

re: #77 AmeriDan

I'm east of Pensacola.

re: #76 galloping granny

Someone was, and we deal with that on a daily basis. Thanks for asking.

My father died last week, and I posted a Note In Passing...

Other than that, we're fine. And that link was the basis for a 1-hour remembrance when his grandsons returned from school...

/scroll down to the pictures

re: #83 ethanxxx

Good one!

Broken watches being right twice a day, etc.

re: #80 ethanxxx

Yes! Thanks! The good Pat! :D

re: #85 Karridine

Someone was, and we deal with that on a daily basis. Thanks for asking.

My father died last week, and I posted a Note In Passing...

Other than that, we're fine. And that link was the basis for a 1-hour remembrance when his grandsons returned from school...

/scroll down to the pictures

I saw that too and posted telling you how wonderful that was and that you have my sympathies. I suspect you might have been a bit too upset to notice. It is very hard to lose your parents - even if you weren't all that close.

I'll be getting that call over my Dad one of these days. He is very fragile, almost a shadow of what he was even just a few years ago. And I'm afraid I will have some of the same issues that you do, as Dad and I have been mostly at odds for many decades now.

re: #81 Karridine

We've got a long time friend, Thai, who is building his home there and working here. He'll be retiring there and we'll look forward to being able to visit. I'm not exactly sure where in Thailand, but I know it's rural and away from the coast. Not near a major city.

re: #66 Rookie

Vlad Tepes lived in 15th centuries. It was as cruel as any of the people living at that time, I do not think it was much more severe in punishment than other rulers.

And the stories about him - there is much exaggeration due to German writings. He was a brave soldier. Without him, maybe Columbus could not have the time to travel West with Otoman armies all over Europe.

Putting him in the line with Pol-Pot, who killed millions of his own people, is not fair.

According to the Catholic Church, which investigated his area, Vlad killed roughly 40% of his own subjects in two areas, with no help from the Turks. I agree with you that he was a great military leader, and a serious thorn in the sides of his (Islamist) enemies, and came from a different time with different standards.

That doesn't change the fact that, by any times' standards, there was something seriously twisted in his psyche. The fact that he even horrified his contemporaries who were (nominally) on his own side is a strong indication that all was not well in his mind.

/just saying

cheers

eon

re: #88 galloping granny

Do not fear it, Granny.

Its the reward, the payoff, the pot-o-gold at the end of life's rainbow...

...and fearing it cannot set it back even ONE day, My Friend.

/yes, I read your thoughtful, caring comments. Thank you.

re: #89 The Albatross

We've got a long time friend, Thai, who is building his home there and working here. He'll be retiring there and we'll look forward to being able to visit. I'm not exactly sure where in Thailand, but I know it's rural and away from the coast. Not near a major city.

In that case, Albie, you should know that if he spends $50,000 on house and land, he will have a palatial palace on a palatial estate!

YES! It is still THAT cheap over here, but the window is closing, Kiddo!

re: #85 Karridine

I am so sorry for your loss. My father passed away 3 years ago from a broken heart, 6 months after my mother passed away, so I know that there is little that I, or anyone, can say to you that will heal your pain.

re: #91 Karridine

Do not fear it, Granny.

Its the reward, the payoff, the pot-o-gold at the end of life's rainbow...

...and fearing it cannot set it back even ONE day, My Friend.

/yes, I read your thoughtful, caring comments. Thank you.

Oh, I don't fear it Karridine. I lost my dear mother many years ago, so I know what it is all about. What I "fear" (and I don't really, since fear is a useless emotion most of the time) is the fact that this will leave me the matriarch, the oldest person in the family. I spent many years of my life in the position when my mother was so ill and my dad so busy with her. It isn't something I relish.

It also makes me more than a little sad that the differences between my father and I will never be solved. I have learned to ignore them for the most part, but it will leave an empty place with no hope of healing.

re: #84 The Albatross

I'm east of Pensacola.

Let's keep in touch and I might be able to swing by for a coffee on my way down to Cocoa.

Or you could just come to Memphis.

Aussie DogfightAtBanksTown is featuring one of Carl in Jerusalem's links about Obama. I like Dogfight and Carl...

Carl's article is here: Al-Qaeda terrorist's son an Obama fundraiser

re: #77 AmeriDan

If I can work out my schedule this summer- which I always manage to do- I'll be passing through that way in a month or two. I loves me some Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral.

Ever go to Bunky's on A-1A?

I love it -

Sen. Obama was going to ride into Washington aboard a white horse and clean out the stables, except his high horse keeps coming up lame.

[Link: www.ibdeditorials.com...]

re: #92 Karridine

My Cambodian friend is doing the same in Quebec... bought in cheap and will be retiring in Canada. Has himself a beautiful bit of dirt and is commuting to build a really impressive home as well.

Me? I got my bit o' dirt uphill from pristine Holmes River Creek. A lot of locals have bought places in Mexico and have retired there.

re: #96 The Albatross

Aussie DogfightAtBanksTown is featuring one of Carl in Jerusalem's links about Obama. I like Dogfight and Carl...

Carl's article is here: Al-Qaeda terrorist's son an Obama fundraiser

Heh! The guy is just dirtier every single time you look at him.

re: #94 galloping granny

THAT speaks to the heart of MY situation, Granny...

11 years ago, my youngest son and I went Stateside to say goodbye to my mother and my father... Mom still lives, but if she can't see you, she doesn't think of you... out of sight, out of mind...

Dad was the conscious one, and he cared for Mom... whom I believe WILL know that he's gone, and will go soon to be with him...

But while I was there, a long-standing rumor was turned into reported reality by other family members, and Dad was NOT prepared to come clean or talk about it, so my last day with him was ... strained, as he knew that I KNEW... and our parting later that day was etched into my mind, him unable to say 'I love you' or 'I will miss you...'

And now its passed...

re: #95 AmeriDan

Bookmarked your site... only been to Memphis once, on my way to Cleveland. I'm a regular here, so when you think you're heading out let me know. I'll give ya some local hospitality to set you straight.

OK... This thread is in need of some Comedy relief. This is from my good friend at LGF, Noamsayin.

A duck walks into a bar
Looks at the bartender an says
Got any bread?
Bartender says, no
The duck asks
Got any bread?
bartender says
No, I just told you, we don't have any bread
duck asks
Got any bread?
bartender says
NO... No bread!
the duck asks
Got any bread?
bartender says
Damn it duck, if you ask me one more time if I have any bread I'm going to nail your beak to the bar
the duck asks
Got any nails?
bartender says... No! No nails either
The duck asks
Got any bread?

re: #97 CIA Reject

Ever go to Bunky's on A-1A?

Is that a barbecue/burger place near the town that you would pass an Air Force base to get to from Cocoa? Can't think of the names of all the towns at the moment. If it is, I have eaten there. Good stuff.

Favorite Florida place to eat... The Red Cabbage

Okay, din-dins calls, and I must help Wifely One prepare our repast...

CUL, gang!

Later Karridine... have a good one.

re: #90 eon

According to the Catholic Church, which investigated his area, Vlad killed roughly 40% of his own subjects in two areas, with no help from the Turks.

Seeing that Tepes was at odds with Catholic Church (he eventually converted in prison in Hungary), as the population was Christian Orthodox, I have my doubts of the accuracy of that report. Of course it's very hard to verify this things. Also, I agree he was not well, and probably it got worse with time.

But usually, the way a ruler was treating his own people will be reflected in the popular tales. There is no resentment in those about Tepes, and someone should expect this after so many killings.

Anyhow, whatever he did bad, it was dwarfed in the centuries to come.

/I had posted today more than in two years. Time for me to leave.

re: #104 AmeriDan

Is that a barbecue/burger place near the town that you would pass an Air Force base to get to from Cocoa? Can't think of the names of all the towns at the moment. If it is, I have eaten there. Good stuff.

Favorite Florida place to eat... The Red Cabbage

Patrick Air Force Base. Spent a few summers there. Loved it... especially in the early morning when the Sun is coming up and a light breeze is blowing in from the ocean.