A HERETIC I AM
A HERETIC I AM's JournalGet all that out of your system now, did ya?
Feel better? Now that it is a few hours on, do you feel like you gave me the good old what for? A proper online thumping, as it were?
I am so happy you made the insinuation that I, someone who has been a member here almost 5 years longer than you have, perhaps doesn't belong or should find another message board to post on. Why didn't you just come out and tell me you thought I was a closet Republican and I should go and post at Free Republic? Why be so coy?
It is clear you think I don't belong here, or rather, and perhaps more to your true point, I SHOULDN'T BE ALLOWED TO POST ON DEMOCRATIC UNDERGROUND BECAUSE YOU DON'T LIKE WHAT I SAID
There. That's really what this is all about, right? You don't like it when your sensibilities are distressed and dammit all to hell, THAT PERSON RIGHT THERE SHOULDN'T BE ALLOWED TO SAY THESE THINGS!!. And my sensibilities, or anyone's for that matter, should not be distressed. At all.
Right?
I really, REALLY love this bit from your post #50 ;
That doesn't mean I have to like, or feel comfortable with all.of their aspects.
Do you realize how privileged that makes YOU sound? I'm betting the answer is No, you don't. Of course, I have no idea if you have ever traveled overseas, or if you have ever even left the county you were born in, but the arrogance is astounding.
If I were to call you or any other woman a "Twat" then I would expect and frankly deserve to have that post or thread hidden. It is a pejorative in that context. But that's not what happened. I didn't do that. And in the context of the piece I put up, the author is calling the President of the United States, Donald Trump a Twat. Which he absolutely is.
Googling the word brings this up, from Wikipedia;
The secondary definition is "also used in British English as vulgar slang for the vulva or female genitals in general"
Which means that even though the word can be used in the context you find offensive, THAT'S NOT HOW IT WAS USED here. There is a reason the 'vulgar' definition is secondary; Because it's not the first!
One other thing; You said "You are "tired" of people "being offended"? Aw, yeah..Whiney white guys have it so tough, don't they?"
1) You put "tired" and "being offended" in quotes. Nowhere in ANY of my responses on this thread did I use those words in a way that your quote marks make sense.
2) You follow that up suggesting I am "tired of people being offended". That is absurd on it's face. Humans get offended all the time for all sorts of things. To quote you, "That doesn't mean I have to like, or feel comfortable with all.of their aspects." But on the other hand, so what?
3) You suggested I was "privileged" twice. As if it is an insult. Funny! Good one! As a truck driver, I rarely find myself referred to in that way. Thanks!
4) You think I am on my way to being permanently banned from DU? Really? Well, it's been 5,672 days now, and 18,750 posts. About 3 and 1/3 posts per day on average. I suppose I should start using more words you don't approve of, eh?
5) I only whine when I am tired. I wasn't tired during any of my previous posts. I am a white guy however, so you at least got one thing spot on correct in this whole thread.
6) No. I don't give a fuck anymore. I am not going to walk on eggshells, so to speak, on this board simply on the off chance that one or two or however many people might find one single fault with something I post. The vast majority of posts I put up are innocuous, by and large. It took someone else's writing to get you to be pissed off at me! That's pretty funny if you think about it.
I don't put up that many OP's. I'm not going to alter my posts just to satisfy you or anyone else who insists on finding offense where none is intended.
OK? Bless your little heart and have a nice day now, hear?
"If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set." Great screed from FB
From a good friend on Facebook shared this outstanding diatribe:
https://www.facebook.com/terry.casey1/posts/10161693482585093
A few things spring to mind.
Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem.
For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour and no grace - all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed. (Emphasis mine - AHIA)
So for us, the stark contrast does rather throw Trump’s limitations into embarrassingly sharp relief.
Plus, we like a laugh. And while Trump may be laughable, he has never once said anything wry, witty or even faintly amusing - not once, ever.
I don’t say that rhetorically, I mean it quite literally: not once, not ever. And that fact is particularly disturbing to the British sensibility - for us, to lack humour is almost inhuman.
But with Trump, it’s a fact. He doesn’t even seem to understand what a joke is - his idea of a joke is a crass comment, an illiterate insult, a casual act of cruelty.
Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers.
And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults - he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.
There is never any under-layer of irony, complexity, nuance or depth. It’s all surface.
Some Americans might see this as refreshingly upfront.
Well, we don’t. We see it as having no inner world, no soul.
And in Britain we traditionally side with David, not Goliath. All our heroes are plucky underdogs: Robin Hood, Dick Whittington, Oliver Twist.
Trump is neither plucky, nor an underdog. He is the exact opposite of that.
He’s not even a spoiled rich-boy, or a greedy fat-cat.
He’s more a fat white slug. A Jabba the Hutt of privilege.
And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully.
That is, except when he is among bullies; then he suddenly transforms into a snivelling sidekick instead.
There are unspoken rules to this stuff - the Queensberry rules of basic decency - and he breaks them all. He punches downwards - which a gentleman should, would, could never do - and every blow he aims is below the belt. He particularly likes to kick the vulnerable or voiceless - and he kicks them when they are down.
So the fact that a significant minority - perhaps a third - of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think 'Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:
Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.
You don't need a particularly keen eye for detail to spot a few flaws in the man.
This last point is what especially confuses and dismays British people, and many other people too; his faults seem pretty bloody hard to miss.
After all, it’s impossible to read a single tweet, or hear him speak a sentence or two, without staring deep into the abyss. He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of shit. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum.
God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid.
He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart.
In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws - he would make a Trump.
And a remorseful Doctor Frankenstein would clutch out big clumpfuls of hair and scream in anguish:
'My God… what… have… I… created?
If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set.
I frickin LOVE Google "Street View"
If you have never played with it, I'm telling ya.....it's awesome. If you have played with it, please share your favorite spots, or coolest places you have "driven" around.
I've driven around the Ferrari Factory in Marenello and the Maserati Factory in Modena
I've driven by our old house in Mill Creek Towne, outside of DC and where I lived in Alice Springs, Australia.
Around the Faroe Islands and through the countryside of the South Island of New Zealand
The walk along the Viet Nam Memorial in DC and the Pyramids of Giza
For all of the links above, you can scroll around - a panorama of you like, by putting your mouse pointer at any spot, clicking and holding and moving the mouse. You can scroll out and see the area from above, and scroll way out and see the satellite shots. You can move along the ground, following the track the camera car made by clicking ahead of you on the street or path.
There are plenty of places that aren't photographed, but the amount of ground they HAVE covered is frankly, astounding.
I've requested and been granted the position of Host of this group.
Shortly after this version of DU was launched (way back in 2011!), I put up this post, in which I provided a little background and my experience in the Securities Industry;
For most of my adult life I have been an over-the-road tractor trailer driver. In 2006 I had an opportunity to change careers and joined AG Edwards & Sons, Which at the time was the 5th largest retail brokerage firm in the country and the largest based outside of NYC (St. Louis).
I studied for and passed the Series 7 general securities license exam and the Series 66 General State Law license exam (which allowed me to legally call myself a "Financial Advisor" ) and the Florida State Insurance exam for Life, Health and Variable Annuities. Those licenses allowed me to trade every security except Commodities and Futures. I "hit the street" in September of 2006. The Dow peaked exactly 12 months later!
AG Edwards was bought by Wachovia and Wachovia was bought by Wells Fargo. Things went from bad to worse and I lost my position with the firm in July, 2009, primarily due to the fact that my book of business wasn't deep enough to weather the downturn and by the end of 2008, no one wanted to talk to a broker about anything other than CD's. A retail broker with a small book can't make a living selling CD's.
The rules stipulate that if a registered representative leaves a firm and is not hired by another, any securities licenses held expire 24 months after the last day. So my licenses are expired. I am back in the trucking industry, hauling new cars primarily in the South Eastern US. (Edit, 2/19/2015 - I currently haul US Mail for a contracting firm. Got out of the car haul biz in September of 2013)
I say all this so that anyone I might respond to in this group can know that I do have some professional background in the securities industry. I am fairly well versed in how Mutual Funds work and are structured as well as how to analyze them, Bonds, Stocks, Exchange Traded Funds, Closed End Funds and have a working knowledge of Options, though Options are much like speaking French. If you don't use it, you get rusty and I am pretty rusty on a lot of that material. I am familiar with and know the differences between 401(k)'s, IRA's, Roth IRA's, 403(b)'s, 457 plans, and some estate planning strategies.
So....the reason I petitioned the Admins for this privilege is because I noticed an uptick in participation in this group over the course of the last 18 months or so. Higher rates of participation to me, means a higher probability of a need for oversight. Those of you reading this and regularly check on/post in this group know that it is by no means the most heavily trafficked group on DU! Not by a long shot.
BUT.....
It is, in my humble opinion, a VERY important group to those that seek sincere, serious conversation and advice regarding investing, retirement planning, Real Estate and any and all matters that fall under the blanket of "Personal Finance and Investing" .
I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO INTENTION OF BEING HEAVY HANDED IN ANY WAY!
I want to make that absolutely clear. While I have my own personal opinion regarding what kind of "advice" is appropriate on a message board where the participants do not know each other in real life, I am, for lack of a better way of putting it, "Pro-Choice" all the way down the line. In other words, post away. I'm not going to get involved in, as I said, heavy handed moderating of this group.
The reasons I might see fit to lock or otherwise interfere with a thread or post is if it deliberately attempts to promote a specific security or investment. In other words, posts that say "You need to buy stock in XYZ company RIGHT NOW!!" are over the top, as I think most of you would agree.
On the other hand, a post that said "You should check out XYZ company! They seem to be ready for a huge upswing (or whatever) and here's why", THAT would be perfectly fine, in my view.
Telling someone to make a specific purchase or execute a particular trade are things to avoid. Pointing out a trend or offering research to back up an opinion is a different story, and that is the point I'm trying to make.
Now why is that? Because if someone were to actually TAKE that advice and the trade goes south, it could mean the loss of large sums of money and as a result, could cause serious and irreparable harm. It's a matter of ethics. This is the very reason the securities industry places severe restrictions on licensed and otherwise "Registered Representatives" from commenting or offering advice on forums such as this one. Now I realize that most, if not all of you aren't licensed brokers. If you were, you would know all this and would comply without me saying a word. But since you AREN'T licensed, there isn't a damned thing the Securities and Exchange Commission can do about it anyway!
And for the most part, neither shall I.
I take this subject very seriously because dammit, it IS A SERIOUS SUBJECT and someone very close to me, who had a direct impact on my family, over the course of a few decades, took bad investing advice, ignored good advice and basically squandered a multi-million dollar asset pool before anyone could put a stop to it. All this to the detriment of people I love.
So...my intentions are simply to act like a Border Collie! Keep things moving along (Which they pretty much do by themselves, anyway!), don't let anything stray too far afield and keep the wolves at bay.
I am more than happy to answer specific questions in private via PM if anyone cares to contact me. I am by no means any kind of stock market expert, I am not an Attorney, an Analyst or a Certified Financial Planner and I am not, as I indicated above, currently licensed to trade any securities. But I do have experience which some may find relevant to their situation or concerns, and as such, am more than happy to provide any guidance or help I can.
I like to end my posts with the following, and it is my sincere wish for all;
May all your trades be net gains.
Paul
A few points about this bullshit re: Marine One not flying due to rain (Text edited)
(This post has been edited several times for grammar, spelling and accuracy pertaining to information I was not previously aware of)
The Marine Corps Squadron charged with transporting the president via Rotary Wing Aircraft is "Marine Helicopter Squadron One", or HMX-1, based out of Quantico, VA. They operate two primary helicopters that transport the President.
The Sikorsky VH-3D Sea King, the one we are most familiar with and the one commonly seen landing on the South Lawn of the White House;
(This is new to me, so I stand corrected! ) A Sea King being loaded onto a C-17;
However, very often they do not carry a Sea King aboard either the C-5 or the C-17 airlifter, so when the President travels and a helicopter is brought along, it is sometimes the VH-60N, which is the executive version of the UH-60 Blackhawk.
The H-60 easily fits inside the large Air Force transport aircraft;
To fly for HMX-1 is a HUGE honor for a Marine Helicopter Pilot and only the best of the best rise to this level.
The Sikorsky dash 60 is used by every branch of the armed forces and by several overseas customers. Over 4000 have been built of the numerous variants.
BOTH OF THESE ARE ALL WEATHER HELICOPTERS. The Coast Guard flies the UH-60 into storms to save lives.
(For posterity, I am going to re-write that sentence; )
The Coast Guard flies these fucking things into storms of all types, INCLUDING KNOWN ICING CONDITIONS, SEVERE SNOW STORMS, HEAVY WINDS AND DOWNPOURS to save lives. The people that fly the H-60 are well aware of it's capabilities and.....
There is NOTHING stopping one of these aircraft from safely operating in a gentle French rainstorm.
Nothing.
Except a petulant president who didn't wanna go out today.
YAY! (The difference between inspiration and aspiration;)
Inspiration
Aspiration.
(I say "YAY" every day this buffet of displays replays cuz YAY is better than 'Hey' or "NAY". YAY means HOORAY!, it's Sunday, LOLCATS day, and this array is made by a friend who can outweigh Manet.)
HEY!! ALL YOU SAYING YAY! I LAY CLAIM TO THAT REFRAIN!
I play my yay at a gourmet buffet from a chalet on broadway in Bombay and I will not defray, delay or crochet a yay just to belay your misplay with my yay.
Okay?
OK...here comes a hide....
Do you practice being this difficult? Or is it something that comes naturally?
Let me put it another way then, since apparently nuance COMPLETELY escapes you.
I KNOW MR.OBAMA HAS BEEN SUBJECT TO A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF RACISM, BIGOTRY AND RUDENESS HIS ENTIRE PRESIDENCY!!
OK?
Jesus H. Christ drinking a cold one on the Eisenhower Balcony and drooling it all down his front.
Worth every penny for the laugh quotient. n/t
One thing about this "vast majority of officers" that isn't mentioned.
The distance from being Officer Friendly to beating the crap out of someone or killing them can be measured with a micrometer.
Entirely too many police officers seem to take the position that if you do not do exactly what they tell you to do the instant they tell you to do it, you deserve to be punished, REGARDLESS of whether or not the victim has actually committed a crime.
They don't do a particularly dangerous job and it is, after all, a job they CHOSE.
I'm convinced that a large proportion of police officers get into "Law Enforcement" (a misnomer if there ever was one) because they like the idea of being able to tell others what to do. They relish the power their badge and gun gives them and if you don't like it, you had better watch out.
What would happen to my industry if truck drivers began running people off the road for the slightest infraction on the highway? How long would I be able to keep my job if I put people into the ditch for not letting me over when I have my turn signal on? What would be the reaction of the general public if trucking companies rallied around bad drivers and gave them "Administrative leave"?
The police have become an entity unto themselves and they have repeatedly demonstrated they hold the opinion that they deserve to go home more than the general public. An attitude shift needs to happen if they want to get back to the point where their profession is actually respected and looked up to, instead of being considered the band of armed thugs who can hurt the populace with impunity that is the case today.
Profile Information
Name: SchmengieGender: Male
Hometown: Podunk, FL
Home country: USA
Current location: Various.
Member since: Mon Aug 4, 2003, 03:56 PM
Number of posts: 24,376
