RationalWiki:Saloon bar

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total non sequitur

How come lambs are so cute AND so tasty?--En attendant Godot_{"«Curiosity is insubordination in its purest form. V.Nabokov»} 19:22, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

I once went to outer space, but they had no marshmellows, so I came back. ĴάΛäšςǍ₰ why me? 19:24, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

My suspension bridge has turtles but it does not have blue pyjamas.--Bob^{bing up} 20:46, 10 May 2009 (UTC)--Bob^{bing up} 20:46, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

I think Obama has a chance in 2012. Evil educated Phantom Hoover! 20:50, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

A snake wears spats because it doesn't have any armpits. --Kels 20:51, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

A Xbox 360 hears when speaked by a deporting furnace. Evil educated Phantom Hoover! 20:57, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

Shoes first, then pants. Never forget. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 21:05, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

Is that off or on? What if you're not wearing pants? _and marmite 00:11, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Have you ever noticed that the old Fred Astair number - Top Hat, White Tie and Tails never mentions anythign below the waist. Does he wear pants? Silver Sloth 09:58, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

"Tails" is short for "Tail suit" i.e. jacket & trousers (pants) _and marmite 10:08, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Wait, are you using "pants" in the British or American sense? Evil educated Phantom Hoover! 21:08, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

"If the square of a hypotenuse equals the sum of the square on the other two sides, why is a mouse when it spins? Never did know the answer to that one." --Kels 21:11, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

The higher the fewer, of course! Totnesmartin 21:25, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, but what's the difference between a crocodile? --Just passing by 21:38, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

A watermelon is bigger than a Grapefruit, but you can't surf in the mountains. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 22:51, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

What's the weight of thirty-eight Brazilian anacondas? --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 23:07, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

Democracy! Whiskey! Romania! --Kels 23:08, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

Cup cakes! Crumbly candy bars! Unlimited rice pudding! Totnesmartin 08:40, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Gravid tomatoes spiralling endlessly into morbidity. _and marmite 08:45, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

If Sam's spayed, how will we have any puppies? --Yossie^{Spring in Fialta} 09:43, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

also, a tin teardrop. Totnesmartin 09:55, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Where's the car? SJ ^Debaser 13:48, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

CP: Cult?

Ran across a "Characteristics Associated with Cultic Groups" checklist yesterday. Filling it out with CP in mind: check, check, hmm...debilitating work routines...check, check, check, check, check, check, check, check, check, money?...nope, check, check, and check. Huh--definately a cult, by my count.--WJThomas 11:24, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Somebody did a similar analysis a while back, but CP actually failed the cult test. I think one of the main reasons was that whilst a cult tries to prevent members fro leaving, CP seems to discourage people from joining.--PsyGremlin_Whut? 11:37, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Something like that. I do remember it being mentioned but CP did fail on some of the important points. It doesn't say "cut your ties with family and join conservapedia" for example, although it does do the whole Messiah-Schlafly thing occaisionally. ^postate 13:46, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Not a cult, as few things on the internet are truly a cult (except maybe WoW). If CP were started in real life with the people currently involved, it probably would qualify as a cult. Z3ro^talk 14:43, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Is it an eCult? ...are we an eCult!? ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 15:03, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Of course not, now drink this nice cup of KoolFlavorAid I made specially for you. --PsyGremlin_Whut? 16:59, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

I would venture that the "real world" part of CP (the homskollars, the "classes", etc.) are a manifestation of cult-like behavior - YEC loons - but the actual "cults" involved might be spread across several different churches. Now, if the HSers are all in one congregation, and Andy "teaches" virtually all the kids in that congregation, there might be a case to be made. Money? Andy does charge for his "classes"... ħuman 19:34, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

He charges for his work, therefore it's a cult? Totnesmartin 20:35, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

You call that work? You sir are more generous than I. Scammer charge too, as do cult leaders (scientology, anyone?). The who-man makes a good point. Z3ro^talk 20:54, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Of course, when he's arguing with the sane, he tends to claim he has "volunteered" zillions of hours getting zillions of teenagers into zillions of great colleges of their first choice. ħuman 22:14, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

To be fair, under this qualification RW could indeed be also considered a cult. 'Denial' would certainly be foremost for that criteria :) MarcusCicero 11:40, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Sky TV is a cult. I called to cancel my subscription because I built a media center PC with a freeview card, and it was similar to trying to leave Scientology. It took me close to 30 minutes to convince the woman on the phone that I really REALLY did want to cancel, and that I wasn't interested in 3 months free, and then after I had finally cancelled, the phonecalls started. They hand your details to a telespamming company in that scotland who called me almost every other day. They continued calling despite me making threats to report them to various watchdogs and ombudsmen. They kept calling after I had officially requested they remove my details from their system. The only thing that made them stop was when we moved house and changed number. </AntiSkyRant> Crundy 16:02, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Irrational dieters and the "pure water" obsession rant

I wanted to make a page on the "woo" somewhere about this, but not even sure how. So, I use spark's people for tracking my diet, and the biggest thing there is this idea that you need 8 cups of WATER in its pure form which just drives me batty. "Can I count juice as my water?" re from the crowd:NONONO. "What about decaf coffee" "NONONO". Ok, idiots, here's the thing. The water you drink goes into your tummy where it mixes with all the other foodstuffs you have eaten in the last hour or so. Now, unless you are going to claim that we cannot count water we took with our vitiman pills, and water we drank while eating breakfast, and water we ate while nibbling chocolate, then it is fully irrational to say it must be just "water", and not water +fruit (juice), or water + chocolate (caffeinated drink), or water + meal (ground up protein drink). Whether it's a bottle you buy at the store of "pure" water, or soup, IT ALL ENDS UP THE SAME IN YOUR TUMMY FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE. ok, rant over. sorry.--En attendant Godot_{"«Curiosity is insubordination in its purest form. V.Nabokov»} 18:13, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

You should do that one, I've even been told it by a dietician. It comes from a US Navy nutrition guide in the 1940s, and hasn't really gone away. The number 8 always recurs, whether it's cups, glasses or even litres! (that's 14 pints). Actually I'm pretty sure our Mr McWicked can get through 14 pints though...

Not of water. Pure ethanol, perhaps. Evil educated Phantom Hoover! 19:18, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

An ex-GF of my brother-in-law (US) came to stay with him and his wife and offered to bake some bread as she'd been on a French cookery course (somewhere in the US). Of course the only water she could use had to be Evian, that's what she was taught. Генгис^{RationalWiki GOLD member} 19:13, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

You know, it's not that I don't think you don't need the liquid, nor that i don't get the benfits that liquid have for digestion, feeling "full" on a diet, and rehydration -- it's the idea that you cannot put anything at all into the water (quote: a slice of lemon is ok. but nothing else), even though the second it hits the tummy it mixes with all the other foods. I mean, unless i don't understand science, I'm not sure why water that mixes with food at point T+1minute is any different than water at point T, and food at point T premixed. --En attendant Godot_{"«Curiosity is insubordination in its purest form. V.Nabokov»} 19:24, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Unless it's a homeopathic diet, then the water remembers what you mixed it with, and it's not really water anymore. Z3ro^talk 19:30, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Don't start me on irrational dieting. A very good friend of mine is an aficionado, and will only drink distilled water. Also she has decided, without going to a doctor, and in fact in disagreement with a professional dietician who says there's nothing wrong with her, that she's basically allergic to everything and eats the most absurdly complex (and expensive) diet. She has independently decided she's a celiac, and also that she has Candida (which, as far as I can see, is the ne plus ultra for all hypochondriacs). She completely trusts anything she reads on the interweb about her various 'complaints' (all of which, to my own eyes, are utterly nonexistant, and I know her very well indeed), but utterly distrusts anyone she's ever met who's actually been professionally trained in the the sciences of in the field. If someone without a college education has written a book about digestion, she'll declare it infinitely superior than any doctor's book. If they're Asian, better yet, as apparently all Western medicine is shit. She's a good friend, but it's hard to listen to her sometimes, the illogical drivel that pours out of her brain - we fell out over it once, but it wasn't worth it in the long run, we get along in too many other ways. I just do my best to avoid the topic, and that keeps us good. DogP 19:32, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

(UI)8 cups sounds about right - for the military. That's "allowing" 2 quarts per person per day, which is the requirement for hard working military in adverse conditions. Will some get mixed with Tang? Made into coffee? Used to rehydrate soup? Of course it will. One thing I have long wondered is how much "less" water is in various things we drink, due to their other ingredients "requiring" some of the water to process/excrete them - if it's even an issue. Like, say if it "takes" 1 oz of water to get the caffiene (etc.) in an 8 oz cup of coffee out of your body, then coffee would only score 87.5%. But, yeah, the "pure" water nuts are, well, nuts. ħuman 21:31, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

The only actual science in this is that of course tea and coffee are diuretics, so consuming them makes you pee more, thereby meaning a net fluid loss to your body. That said, if you drank tea all day, you're NOT going to die of dehydration. DogP 21:51, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

they're only mildly diuretic - I drink tea and coffee all day but i'm not dehydrated. Try dandelion tea for a real diuretic. Totnesmartin 21:55, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, but tea or water, when you drink 2 quarts or so a day (as I do. never sure if i'm diabetic, it's the altitude and dryness of Colorado, or I'm just inlove with drinking) you go pee all teh damn time. ;-) oh, i know why it's part of a good weight loss plan... you have to run every 15 minutes to the potty! (by the way, this is NOT woo, but feels like it shoudl be. Sometimes, you have to eat MORE to lose weight, cause your body goes into "starvation mode" and tries to conserve cals by not burning off excess. nasty game, dieting)--En attendant Godot_{"«Curiosity is insubordination in its purest form. V.Nabokov»} 21:58, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh dear, I was going to write something taking the piss, but I see I don't have to. 82.23.209.253 22:11, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Of course, our natural bodily fluids can only be replenished by distilled water or rainwater, free from the international communist conspiracy of fluoridation. Guess what year fluoridation began? That's right, 1945. The same year that the Red Army advanced in Europe.Klapaucius^{Esteemed Constructor} 22:18, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh sure, the international communist conspiracy is all about sapping & impurifying all of our precious bodily fluids. Щєазєюіδ^{Methinks it is a Weasel} 23:15, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

ALL this stuff about mandatory daily water intake is idiotic. If you need to drink water, you will feel thirsty. If you're not thirsty, you don't need to drink anything. Honestly, when I took my exams, everyone else in the hall was sucking on a bottle of water like a baby's dummy, as if you'd expire from dehydration just because you'd gone three hours without a sip. It's ludicrous, and must mean B!G BUCK$ for the bottled water companies.-- Kriss Akabusi^{AAAWOOOGAAAR!!1} 11:50, 12 May 2009 (UTC) PS I'm not actually Kriss Akabusi, so don't take this advice as coming from a top sportsman and motivational speaker. But still!

Even so, actual pure water will probably kill you. The number of times I've been hungover in a lab and so tempted to suck on a wash-bottle of distilled and deionised water... It's not good for you. ^postate 15:41, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

And, for the terminally idle, our local M & S stocks (as I suppose do the others) "Ice cubes made from Irish water" in plastic bags. _and marmite 15:51, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Well shoot...

Encyclopedia dramatica seems to be going down the tubes. Nothing major, just sayin'. ĴάΛäšςǍ₰ the Audi of all rifles! 00:34, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Wow, could it be because of that Cracked article? Or just forgetting to keep track of expenses v. income? ħuman 00:47, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Or the world realized that ED isn't funny. ENorman 17:50, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Wow, what does that say about us?--Nate River 03:16, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

This is where they realise their folly. 12 year olds don't have any money. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 11:00, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

What is the proper way to cook a can of Sardines?

Here's one thing I can't figure out, in all my continuous ranting and bitching, how the fuck do you properly cook some Sardines?

Same as lobster, throw the sealed can into a pot of boiling water. Remember don't put a lid on and make sure you keep your face over the pot. - π 02:13, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

If they're in a tin, they're already cooked. Open tin, drain, mush them up a bit if you like, season to taste, pile high on hot buttered toast, add clotted cream, and enjoy! ħuman 02:18, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Say, on a related topic, I've got some lovely strong blue Shropshire cheese and some water crackers. Is there some proper way to enjoy this treat? --Kels 05:08, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, smush them up together and chew them in your mouth til satisfied, then swallow. Rinse, repeat as necessary. ħuman 05:24, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Port, you need Port. Yum, Port. Mmmmm. Must have Port. DogP 06:47, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

As a Brit of a certain age I know that the only way to cook sardines is to

1. Place bread under grill
2. Open can of sardines
3. Find cloth to wipe up spilt oil
4. Panic at smoke coming from grill
5. Scrape burnt bits off the toast
6. Mash down sardines onto toast
7. Replace under grill
8. Eat
9. Change clothes due to numerous marks from fishy oil

See, simple. Silver Sloth 11:52, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Indeed! In fact, the very fact that somebody was able to create something as heavenly as mashed sardines on toast (no, not you *g*) might just prove the existence of a benevolent gOD. --PsyGremlin_Whut? 12:04, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Does anybody still call them pilchards? That's what Brits eat, not this fancy "sardines" foreign muck Totnesmartin 14:29, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

They may have been pilchards - they certainly bore no relationship to the sardines I had recently when in Gran Canaria - but the tin said "sardines" so that's what they were. My better half says that they should come in tomato sauce but she's from the other end of the country from me and we have lots of these disagreements (Should Christmas cake be iced or plain and served with cheese, for example). Silver Sloth 14:42, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Nobody noticed Everyone ignored my mention of the most heavenly topping for sardines on toast :(. I think it was clotted cream, anyway. It wasn't whipped, it was very thick. ħuman 01:10, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

If it was thick enough to spread like butter then it was probably clotted cream. Incidentally "pilchards and cream" is an old Devonian expression implying unseemly private behaviour hidden by outward respectability. Totnesmartin 09:33, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Ray! Ray, stop it! You're killing me!

Bahahahahahaha fucking hilarious! Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 04:52, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

You know what is stupider than Ray? These comments. My personal favourite:

“”bacteria and viruses can survive the most extreme conditions, if a habital planet were to blow up bacteria could survive one a metor, i just think its funny how dinosuars died by a metor then humans just seem to come out of the blue, i do believe our bodys adapted and bound itself to this planet and its animals, but i also believe our brain, and our ability to create and build came from space.

—Jtownlegends

YouTube never fails to provide clogo.- π 05:09, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

www.pulltheplugonatheism.com? Is that a Ken joynt? So a 30 minute debate is to decide the fate of the existence of God on teh innertubez? She would be so disappointed in those she designed so poorly... ħuman 05:59, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

That site is amazun! From this:

“”So if you call yourself an atheist, you are saying that you have no belief in a God—a Creator. Creation just happened. Everything you see—all the different breeds of dog (both male and female), all the different breeds of cat (both male and female), all the different fish in the ocean (both male and female), giraffes, elephants, cattle, sheep, horses, birds, flowers, trees, the sun, the moon, the stars, the four seasons, night and day, the marvels of the human body—the eye with its 137,000,000 light sensitive cells (we have been made well Robert) . . . all these marvels of creation were made by nothing. They all just happened. That’s atheism at its core. What an intellectual embarrassment.

Oh my god! They're right! How embarassing. I shall immediately convert to Christianity and believe in edible Jewish zombies who are their own father who commit suicide to free us from a curse they imposed. Thanks Ray Comfort. Crundy 14:17, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

That whole webshite is probably the most pathetic anti-atheist site I've encountered. He says nothing throughout beyond "I can't understand your reasoning, therefore it is wrong." It's crap. _and marmite 15:33, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

My favourite bit:

"If any species came into existence without a mature female present (with complimentary female components), that one male would have remained alone and in time died."

_and marmite 15:45, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

But that one male would have been sinless? No one else to kill, or wife to adulter... wait, I bet he would be swearing nonstop or coveting his dog's wife... Nevermind. --Shagie 16:50, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

You fool! Dogs are made by god for the car, cats are for wives. This is why no dogs existed before the invention of the automobile. Prove me wrong. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 09:47, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I've just got round to watching that with sound (don't have speakers or headphones at work). What the unholy fuck? It looks like one of those Scientology propoganda films that are flying around PooTube. Do they seriously think that if you include the coke can bit the argument makes more sense? ^postate 07:35, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm now physically vomiting. ^postate 07:40, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I reckon the first time I saw it it did have the coke can bit in it; it does actually looks more ridiculous. I will have to hunt youtube for it. - π 08:07, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

It is here, 2:28 onwards. - π 08:11, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Arrgh! Straight after the banana they go straight on with the already debunked irreducibly complex eye argument and that fucking quotemine job on Darwin. I stopped watching. Ed Poor 08:16, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I have a feeling that I have seen this from the beginning... I'll also have to go back to the original to see if my comment -wondering why it's okay to take Dawkins so out of context it's not even funny, but removing a small bit about a coke can was blasphemous quote mining- was approved or not. ^postate 08:24, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I reckon I have even seen Ken say that Darwin quote is taken out of context and he collects mined quotes, so it must be pretty embarrassing amongst YECs to still be wheeling that one out. - π 08:26, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

"... We're the A-Team."

I bought the first series of the A-Team on the weekend, and the second episode of it follows the A-Team as they rescue a bunch of kids from a religious culthead maniac. Can anyone think of any real-life, present day religious maniacs that like spending their days hanging around kids? SJ ^Debaser 08:50, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Pretty much of all of them I'd say. But I suppose you were thinking of someone in particular. Генгис^{RationalWiki GOLD member} 12:19, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I suuuuuuuure am! SJ ^Debaser 13:49, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Michael Jackson! --Kels 14:52, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I always thought of us more as Gilligan's Island--Nate River 03:27, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Please introduce me to the "millionaire and his wife"? ħuman 03:41, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I think I fall under "and the rest". - π 03:53, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, that makes you either "Mary Ann" or the "Scientist" "Professor". Pleased to meet you either way. Shit, does that make me Gilligan?! ħuman 04:04, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I kind of imagine you more as the Skipper and CUR as Gilligan, every time he says something you can hit him with his own hat. He was the Professor by the way, he was as far as I could tell Professor of Organic Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Experimental Physics, Nuclear Physics, Botany, Zoology and Pacific Islander Culture and Languages. Pity he wasn't a Professor of Naval Architecture. I feel more like a hokie farm girl than that. - π 04:12, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Doh, thanks for the correction, and my being too lazy to sing it to myself. Yeah, me skipper, CUR gilligan, that's funny, that is, I don't care who you are, that's funny. ħuman 04:17, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Conservative win

Doh! Previously if you went to IMDB and entered 'wanker' in the search box it came back with George W Bush. Now, it comes back with popular gay librul Irish comedian Graham Norton. Score one for teh assfly? Crundy 14:09, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Willy Wanker and The Fudge Packing Factory... I'm never putting that kind of search through there ever again. ^postate 15:35, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

thats a semi-classic Hamster 18:57, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Not quite as good as "Schindler's Fist" though. Crundy 10:39, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

A bit o' halp from the mob

So my girlfriend is currently failing Understanding Evolution, and needs to get a good grade on the final exam. I am one of the top 10 students in the class, and the final is today, and she wants to cheat off my exam so she can pass the class. I, personally, am extremly uncomfortable letting her cheat off my test, but I don't know how to nicely tell her that I don't want her to do so (even though that would mean she definitally will fail the exam). HALP! ĴαʊΆʃÇä₰ 17:41, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

As someone who had many people try cheating off of, there is no easy way to say no. You just do it and hope she's not resentful, sadly. And you didn't help her learn during class? For shame. Z3ro^talk 17:46, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

You are so fucked.

There is only one logical way to go about this: You need to assess the probabilities of catastrophic failure in each case (letting her cheat & getting fucked vs. not letter her cheat & not getting fucked</pun>) and then multiply by the cost of the associated failure.

Obviously, not letting her cheat is the answer (which I think you've already decided on. ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 17:47, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

(EC) You could, of course, lecture her about how cheating is a highly dishonorable thing to do, and how if she does it she shall have obtained her diploma under false pretenses. You should probably frame it in terms of "Do you really want to do this?", which is the only way you could probably get out of this unscathed. ListenerX^TalkerX 17:49, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Sadly, science is not really her forté. I did try helping her learn, we went over old midterms, studied (actually studied the material, mind you...) and everything else, but she just does not understand the material, and her grade in Understanding Evolution is showing it. ĴάΛäšςǍ₰ watches tacky tofus stink 17:50, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I might try asking her to make wild assurances upon your help in cheating. Bargaining for anal sex is usually a sure-fire way to get your girlfriend to stop asking for something. And it's probably going to turn out win-win. ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 17:55, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

so... she's failing the class, and on the final day she turns in a winning paper that bears similarities to the work of her boyfriend. How long d'you think it'd take the tutor to notice? Perhaps you could ask her to ponder that. But yeah, tough call mate :( Totnesmartin 17:59, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I am going to take a wild guess and posit that this exam is of the multiple-choice variety. Am I correct? ListenerX^TalkerX 18:02, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Depending on the format, it can be surprisingly easy. Once I took a test for someone in a class of over 100. I wasn't even enrolled in it. Just sat there, took the test, she put her name on it and turned it in. Of course, I got something worth-while out of the deal and a flat out refusal to do take the test would have been problematic. ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 18:06, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I would say that this is a valuable insight into the mind of your girlfriend. Do you really want to date a known cheater? And why can't she understand evolution? Either she's a dumb <haircolour>, she isn't interested in the first place or she doesn't believe in it. Not everyone is good at everything, would it really hurt her if she failed? If you've tried to tutor her in the past then you've done your bit but if you got caught it could ruin both of you. Генгис^{RationalWiki GOLD member} 19:11, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, the exam is over, and I think that it went over well. She pulled me to the side before class and told me that she decided she did not want to cheat, and would perfer to take a different science course next semester, so... potential explosion averted. As for myself, the exam went great, 110 questions, 1.25 hours, and only three questions I was unsure of, so barring stupid mistakes, I got a ~90 on my exam. I don't know how she did.

So, I suppose I want to thank y'all for your responses to this question, it was not as tough as I thought it would be to resolve. ĴάΛäšςǍ₰ watches remarkable imitation vomits insult 19:32, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Make sure to tell her you would have done it if she really, really wanted you to. Because you love her more than your academic integrity or something. Booya. ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 19:37, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Neveruse FTW! Z3ro^talk 19:38, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm glad it all worked out. It's a Festivus Miracle! Corry 19:42, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

This is evidence, I think, that the Christian notion of "sin" is a whole bunch of..., but dishonor is self-evidently a Very Bad Thing. ListenerX^TalkerX 19:44, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Gee, kudos for that little Life Lesson, o learned one. Clearly Javascap's whole dilemma here was all actually about the Christian notion of sin . . . Щєазєюіδ^{Methinks it is a Weasel} 21:02, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Since when does conversation here in the Saloon Bar have to stay on topic? ListenerX^TalkerX 23:19, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Glad that she came to her senses and did the honourable thing. Make sure you tell her how much you respect her for her integrity and not putting you in a difficult position which conflicted with your incredibly high morals as an idealistic atheist (I think I got that bit right?). Генгис^unbelieving 20:36, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, ditto Genghis. Glad it worked out in the best possible way. Now you don't have to dump her ;) ħuman 01:24, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

My name is Ace and I'm an alcoholic

For a variety of different reasons I will be dry for the next few days. It is 8:18am Wednesday morning and my last drink was at 11:30pm last night. I will remain high and dry until 4:00pm Friday afternoon. This decision was made due to my after hours productivity becoming almost zero. I am supposed to be studying the works of Thomas Hobbs, John Locke, Machiavelli and the like; also I am supposed to helping someone write a book but as of yet I have done sweet fuck all except drink, smoke cigarettes and make an awful mess. I haven't attempted something like this in many, many years. I even took two bottles of scotch on a four day hike to Machu Picchu some years back so I am really not sure how my body is going to react to this rapid detox. Probably not well. I think the last time I tried the shakes began at the 30 hour mark. Wish me luck on this endeavour, any tips on how to remain sane whilst sober are appreciated. And if I snap at any of you (which is likely - my fiancée is also aware the she best tread carefully), please accept my apologies in advance. Love Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 20:19, 12 May 2009 (UTC) Fuck it, I have been invited to a party tonight. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 01:51, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

This may not be inline with your goals, but I hear pot does wonders for what ails you during alcohol detox. ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 20:25, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Yeah thing with that though is trying to be productive! Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 20:27, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, I don't know how hard you're going to detox. If it's bad, "productive" could mean "stopping vomiting and getting something to stay in your stomach". ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 20:37, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Hah, when I went to Machu Picchu I found the coca-tea to most efficaceous especially when followed by a couple of Pisco Sours. Генгис^{Is the Pope a Catholic?} 20:39, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Ace--if you get the shakes, get thee to the hospital. My grandfather died of a heart attack while having the DTs. Granted, he was older and not in great shape, but still, you gotta take care...Amin7b5 20:49, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I am not expecting vomit nor extreme DT's. Just know I'll get extreme irritability, insomnia, night sweats and very bad dreams. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 20:51, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for posting the fact you are de-toxing at the Local Saloon. ;) ĵ₳¥ášÇ♠ʘ the most colourful sig on RationalWiki! 21:07, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I call this state "the ghosties" from the lights that seem to flash around the room when you're trying to sleep. Irritating as fuck. May I recommend a hot shower immediately before bed. Seems to combat the insomnia element anyway. Taytopacket 21:18, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

"The Ghosties"? I like it. I know the feeling. I also get into bizarre hypnogogic states when trying to sleep while detoxing and have weird hallucinations and hear muttering (mostly its when detoxing after a particularly hard week of drinking). Meh, I'll be fine, its only three days.....three days?....THREE FUCKING DAYS! Ahhh fuck! Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 21:35, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

When I'm turning off the boozeworks for a while, I usually just switch to coffee, caffeinated. Keeps your head together and you have the juice to be productive. Aboriginal Noise ^{with 4 M's and a silent Q} 22:05, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Ace, I went through a short period of self-monitored "detox" a couple summers ago. To further addle my brains I was syncing back into rising during daylight (I tend to drift later and later unless I really fight it). I took notes to be on the safe side (just minor observations and a timeline). Only thing was a bit careless about is that I live alone, so if something hit me hard I'd have to get to the phone and hit 911 (part of the reason for the notes). It was ok, but I ended up missing the sauce after a few weeks (or was it longer?). As it is, now, if I drink much less than usual (say, half my maximum), I don't sleep well, but feel better the following day, and the restlessness is made up for by lots of intense vivid dreams (Like the Gilliam-esque city I was hanging out in last night...). But as warned, keep the red telephone to medical professionals at close hand. Detox can have bad side effects as mentioned, and by the time they hit it's too late to go back off the wagon to fix them. Anyway, best of luck and health in your endeavor. ħuman 01:32, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi there Human, it's only three days so I should fine. It has been a long long time since I went longer than 24 hours (2 years maybe?) but I'll be alright. On friday night I'll be back on it but only for the weekend. My reasons are to get a few things done, like shaving. Also my money is tight at the moment. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 01:37, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

thanks for all your comments/advice but I have been invited to a party tonight. Let the good times roll. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 01:51, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Laissez le bon temps roulez! ħuman 02:19, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Party or not, wouldn't it be better to do it gradually? That is, reduce alcohol consumption without completely eliminating it? At least this works better in other cases (dieting, coffee, sports). You'd get the benefits without the drawbacks. Or do you think that you can't keep your drinking moderate, either all or nothing? Editor at CP^{Oh, Finland! Why?} 09:17, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

fuck it all, the party was a bust. A bunch of low-renters, low-brows and no-brows all haggling over the remains of their failed dreams and the dreams of their ancestors. I left in haste, hailed a cab and tossed my glass from the window. A guy as hep as me needs not such degrading experiences. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 09:42, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Sooooooo... are you still high and dry, or did you take another shot of whiskey? ĵ₳¥ášÇ♠ʘ the most colourful sig on RationalWiki! 03:01, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

BAH, the high and dry bullshit will never work. I am at the whim of something larger, what a fool I was to try defy it. No, whatever work I have to do will be done behind a cloud of liquor fumes. This is how it has always been. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 03:07, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh I miss him

Jinx _{hi Jinx!} is back on Ray Comfort's blog, and posted this gem. To bad he's on the outs at CP; he always made things so insanely stupid. Z3ro^talk 20:33, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Jinx _{hi Jinx!}: "Atheists: if atheism is true, then what benefit(s) would I gain by reconverting back to atheism? And if Christianity is true, then what do you think you would lose by converting to Christianity?"

There's no way you're this fucking stoopid, Jinx. You'd better hurry the fuck up and convert to the other couple thousand religions with your logically bankrupt wagering... ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 20:39, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

(EC) There is a comment by a "Jason" made 17 minutes later. Do you suppose that is Jinx _{hi Jinx!} arguing against himself? ListenerX^TalkerX 20:40, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Obama V Aliens

Here. I also found a Bush game, shoot-em-up style. -- 01:33, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Are you still here, Gilligan? HatWhack! ħuman 04:26, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh, no. He's fallen to the alcohol of the bored teenager, the flash game. Evil educated Phantom Hoover! 15:29, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I fell several years ago. -- 21:20, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Quantifying openmindedness redux

Open mindedness Good video, valid points. Yorick 04:34, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Why isn't the news actually like this?

I'm probably way behind the times, but this is an awesome editing job:

--JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 05:08, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

That's just wonderful work. Well done those peeps. DogP 06:11, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Trippy... ^postate 07:31, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

The new meme?

Is to make our sigs use the "unsigned" template? Please to help an old man, I may be hopelessly behind the times.... ħuman 05:31, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I am still using a sig which looks like ĴαʊΆʃÇä₰ current location: nearby the inexperienced monster, or if I want to, like ĴαʊΆʃÇä₰ why me?, or even Javasca₧ watches intransigent telephones deport! 19:26, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

It's not a meme unless it spreads, so far I haven't seen many actually use it. ^postate 16:02, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Star Trek again

Watched it at work last night. It WAS quite good! Not that I've ever watched any Star Trek before, but it was good indeed. Then two gypsies came in and I had to throw them out. SJ ^Debaser 10:40, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

At work? --  Nx/talk  10:42, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Si. At the risk of revealing too much about myself, I work in a cinema. SJ ^Debaser 10:45, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Ah I see. _{Quick Phantom Hoover, info for RationalWikiWiki!} It's a good movie, except for a few WTF moments. The ending battle was a disappointment (cheap knock-off of Wrath of Khan, complete with defiant to the last breath villain and escape at the last moment with explosion in the background) --  Nx/talk  10:57, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Yah it was a bit weird at the end. Didn't realise Trek was where "Dammit man, I'm a doctor, not a physicist!" was from. Also I haven't had the honour of a RWW page created aboot me yet. SJ ^Debaser 11:04, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I just got home from watching Star Trek - great stuff, I thought. My 21yr old daughter was with me - she didn't get all the references to the TV series etc, but picked it all up pretty quickly & enjoyed it also. Some of the dialogue/acting was a bit hammy, and effects were great. Liked the way they just dismissed the whole so-called 'time travel paradox'. Obviously setting up for a whole new series of movies. Can't wait!RagTop^{Gone sailing} 11:47, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

And then I found this.RagTop^{Gone sailing} 12:36, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Wow, a list of Star Trek spoofs, and they forgot the king. Epic fail. --Kels 19:49, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Rationalwikiwiki

I'm at my college/uni whatever at the mo and I tried to get onto Rationalwikiwiki... Blocked because "The page you tried to access is classified as: Tasteless/Illegal/Questionable". CP is unblocked as is RW (obviously) but Liberapedia is blocked. Conservative censorship in the British public education system anyone...? SJ ^Debaser 10:44, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I've tried to get around them in my time as well, and I find the Google caches are very good at gaining access to fairly static sites. Evil educated Phantom Hoover! 15:14, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

And RWW is about as static as it gets ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 18:11, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Google doesn't work at my college, but it doesn't matter as I'm not on RWW and considerably less active on LP than I am here. SJ ^Debaser 18:13, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Sorry ...

... for promoting an advertiser but I love teh meerkats. _and marmite 11:52, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Not even same! Taytopacket 12:30, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

This campaign is teh eevul. Peepul are buying meerkats as pets. They dig holes everywhere, you can't keep a meerkat in your house. Just say no to meerkats! Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 16:07, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

You shouldn't keep any kind of exotic animal as a pet, regardless of how cute it is. Z3ro^talk 16:12, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Damn, those commercials are annoying. Sitting their, watching neverending Friends repeats on E4 and then some meerkat pops up chatting about car insurance. Talking meerkats? Wearing robes? This brings all kinds of annoying biological and anamorphic questions into the equation... SJ ^Debaser 17:44, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

At first I thought you meant the Telus Mobility ads, but they're a bit more charming than the talking version. Ripoff of Geiko, perhaps? --Kels 20:55, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Anti-discrimination Ad

Here is something that has happened in my part of the world in the last hour. A strangely popular TV show about TV ads every weeks gives two ad agencies a brief to "sell the unsellable"; introduction of child labour, selling ice to Eskimos, invading New Zealand ect. They are usually quite amusing and a good laugh is had by all. This week how ever they did not run one of the ads, instead posting on the internet with a 13 minute discussion with the ad's creator and 3 of the panellists about the ad. The brief this week was End Shape Discrimination the company's ad that did screen is here. The other ad basically equated racism and homophobia with discrimination of fat people. The ad and discussion can be found here (take note of the warnings). Even in the last hour this has generated a lot of talk. I must say shocking as though the ad was I felt it did hugely alter my perceptions a lot. - π 12:52, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Now, why don't we have awesome ideas for TV like that in the UK? I might be tempted to turn on the actual physical TV set to watch that series. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 01:00, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

That is pretty interesting and funny. The "banned" one seemed pretty serious and effective but suddenly cutting to "FATPRIDE" was just hilarious. ^postate 07:47, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

WTF??

no... really... wtf?? --PsyGremlin_Whut? 14:18, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Lots of arms to rip off.

I don't see a problem; I always kinda assumed Wookies would support Ron Paul. Z3ro^talk 15:36, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Doesn't everyone go out in a Wookie suit when it is snowy? I always assumed that was natural. Aboriginal Noise ^{with 4 M's and a silent Q} 15:49, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Mine's pretty warm. User:Nutty Roux/sigtalk 16:45, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I can has Wookie suit too? Man, I want one of those. Secret Squirrel 02:27, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I have a thick wool cloak I wear in the winter time... keeps me warm even when the wind is a-blasting... Add a nice lightsaber and some eclectic clothing, Jed I. Knight! Javasca₧ is writing a comment 03:00, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Not so suprising fact = nerds are right wing crazies. News at 11. DogP 05:53, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Gack

Could someone help me so that my sandbox can do things like the collapse comment on here? -- 20:38, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Wow, that looks insanely ugly. Why would you want that? --Kels 20:51, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

To make a long story short, I think otherwise. I think that if I could have it so that my userboxes were organized into different sections that could be collapsed or expanded, that would make grouping easier and viewing them easier. -- 20:55, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

It doesn't even work on that WP user's page. Why not just do what I did (see my user page)? ħuman 21:00, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

I can't tell if that WP page is more hideous in a small window or spread across my widescreen monitor. It's like suicide. Don't do it. User:Nutty Roux/sigtalk 21:02, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Despite having several user boxes which are widely used on Wikipedia I think UBX's are a bit passé. I remember when Windows 3.0 first came out, I was changing colour schemes two or three times a day, downloading After Dark screensavers (remember the flying toasters?) and searching for the latest wav file for sound effects. Now I use the same muted scheme (Silver) on all my machines without any desktop wallpaper, have most sounds disabled and haven't changed any display settings since I installed the OS except when I connect to an external monitor with my laptop. Генгис^evolving 21:53, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Gack indeed. When I realized I could "customize" the various system sounds, I went searching for .wav files and found... a Looney Tunes sounds site. So when I got new mail, the roadrunner "beep beep"ed and whooshed away... and other far worse ideas. Now I settle for my custom XP start and stop clips, because I hate the stock ones. ħuman 22:33, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Back when sound cards that could play actual digital samples instead of just midi from a preset bank of instruments were the very latest and greatest thing, my sound card came with a whole range of sounds to show it off. It's amazing how quickly having someone saying "I've fallen and I can't get up" gets old when you replace the default system beep with it. (Oh, also my handheld PC circa 1997-8 would play the Scotty "Hello, computer" from Star Trek IV when you powered it on. Very Hackers.) --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 00:30, 14 May 2009 (UTC) --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 00:28, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Argh. Blast you all for chewing my time with retrocomputing diversions. Did you know the latest Linux kernel no longer supports old non-IDE, non-scsi CD-ROM drives? Even if my old computer with the Soundblaster pro CD-ROM drive hadn't packed up a couple of years back, I couldn't put a modern system on it anyway. Bah. No legacy support for computers only a couple of decades old, there's not even any econet support anymore. Fucking killjoys. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 00:47, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Computers a "couple decades" old? Like my turbo XT (10 Mhz!) with its 20 Mb HDD? I reused that floppy drive until it finally died - about 15 years or so as I recall. And I've been using the same case for about a decade (3 CPUs?). Which will probably be retired in favor of a Shuttle later this year. ħuman 01:07, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

If it's not backwards compatible with the ZX-81, what the hell good is it? ---Kels 01:55, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Back in college, we put the 'backwards' in 'backwards compatible.' We got a Wang semi-compatible to run linux 1.3. The 'semi-compatible' part meant that it only had 512k of base ram. We had to tell lilo (no Stitch) that there was an array from 512k to 640k and no, it couldn't write there. The memory cards were full length cards (not simms or sipps), and the drive was a half height 5.25" MFM drive. The MFM drive used a voice coil to spin the platters rather than a stepping motor of some sort - when it had to re-calibrate after hitting a bad block the drive would beep. The drive was so slow that it was faster to swap to an NFS mounted disk on a 10baseT network than local. Swapping was important, we only had 4.5 megs of ram and the drive was only 40 megs. The monitor was "Casper" brand - it was nicknamed "Casper the Unfriendly Monitor" because whenever it was turned on, the other monitors in the area would lose focus. For some reason, the kernel patches to run Wangix were never accepted into linux. Still, at least we weren't running Eunice. (Eunice is Unix emulation on VMS) --Shagie 08:06, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

You have to read that post with a melancholy violin melody in the background, and maybe add in a few more "you weren't there man, you weren't there"s in. ^postate 08:27, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Grunt

I want a drink. I want to feel like my brain was smashed out by a gold brick wrapped in lemon. Do you folks have anything like that around here? Yorick 04:41, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Alas poor Yorick it's past our bartender's bedtime, but there is a link to the bar at the top of the page. Make your choice interesting! And I hope you feel better in the morning. Things always seem worse at night. User:Nutty Roux/sigtalk 04:44, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Fuck that, I'll serve you! What do you want? I have whisky, beer and methamphetamine. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 04:45, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

A single plum, floating in perfume, in a man's hat, kind sir. User:Nutty Roux/sigtalk 04:48, 14 May 2009 (UTC)\

Drank that already, was OK. Now, you want some meth? I think I got acid floating around in my kit bag. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 04:49, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm looking for something that will knock me out for the next 24 days. And I swear I'm 21 I just left my wallet at home. Yorick 04:51, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

(ECed for 12 hours) I'd suggest LSD with a PCP chaser. But the whiskey with a meth chaser Ace offered ought to work almost as well. ħuman 20:15, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Dont worry kid, I trust ya. What you need is GHB and some whisky. Oh, but only have 2ml of GHB each time. Its powerful stuff. Hmmmm I think we need an article on it actually. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 04:53, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Since you are looking for a Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster, there are recipes here. ListenerX^TalkerX 04:52, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Cough syrupatini with coke on the rim. User:Nutty Roux/sigtalk 04:56, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Now your talking....reminds me of night I had in Bolivia....Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 05:00, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I feel the need to rant. Anyone have the experience where they loved a girl more than anyone else ever, and honestly knew it, but then found out that she liked you less than the manipulative asshole of an ex-boyfriend before you that essentially raped her, and then had her go around bragging about how she is "a feminist" for suddenly cutting all conversation off with you unless it is meant to hurt you? Just asking? Yorick 05:03, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I dated a bi-polar chick for awhile, screwed my head over and over and over. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 05:06, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Besides the second-wavers who consistently try to redefine the term, the greatest threat to feminism is immature girls who think it is an excuse to be mean to their "ex"es. ListenerX^TalkerX 05:18, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Commiserations old chap. It give me no satisfaction to say that you were warned <insert smug diff link here> about this loser that girl. No matter what anyone else may advise, ultimately we all have to go through our own learning experiences about the opposite sex. Sometimes it is actually easier when you can see that she's a cold-hearted bitch after all, yes it's a kick in the nuts but the pain will ease. In my experience this is a better way to finish than dragging it out over a prolonged period and wanting to be "just friends" - it's like ripping a band-aid off in one go. Also recognise that it's actually better that it happened sooner rather than later, your suffering would be even greater if you'd invested a year or two of your life in the relationship before she pulled the plug. You won't be the only one to see through her, other girls will know how she's treated you. The better you handle her bad-mouthing then the more your esteem will rise among the other females. In the meantime, the PGGBs are on me. Генгис^{You have the right to be offended; and I have the right to offend you.} 06:37, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I was wondering what was going on with you, Yorick, after your last post. Drown your sorrows, here's a pint o' Guinness and a pack of naked lady playing cards. SJ ^Debaser 09:32, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Gunz

How do you spell Ngghhhhhhhuugghhhaaa?

I had a look at NeoVampire's WP page, from the Gack link above and never mind the hideous userboksen - look at the gun collection. That's one thing I've never understood about gun nuts - by all means have a .22, or a shotgun or a handgun... but wtf are you doing with an FN P-90 or H&K XM8? It's not like they're hunting rifles or something? (Besides the only person who looks cool handling a P-90 is Henrietta.) --PsyGremlin_Whut? 07:48, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I've always thought that gun nuts basically use their guns as penis extentions. That's really the only explanation. ^postate 08:29, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

In the UK we have knives to worry about. A lot more personal (like Heath Ledger 'splains in the Dark Knight) but what'd be better if the people that think it's OK to carry them around ended up chopping their bits off by accident. SJ ^Debaser 09:39, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I think owning multiple guns is a suicide prevention tool, if they ever get so depressed they want to blow their brains out, the indecision over which of their vast array of guns to use lasts until after they've realised what a monumental mistake that would have been. I only own one gun, an India pattern musket, the firing process for which begins "First, mill some black powder coarse enough that using it doesn't make the barrel explode." --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 10:21, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

The guy is sick and confused. If you open the 'erotica' tab - !!NSFW!! - there's some BDSM pickies. OK, so each to their own and all but when you combine that with gun nut... Also, check out the categories he's in He seems to claim to be British, Irish and Mercan. As I said, confused. Silver Sloth 10:55, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, I've been in on my fair share of knife and electric stuff, but "gunplay" is a new one to me. ^postate 16:09, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

OMG, he has BDSM PICS! He's SICK, I tell you, SICK!! Seriously, there's lots to criticize him for, but BDSM makes him sick now? --Kels 16:17, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Actually, that relationships/sexuality list is fairly sane and I'd probably have most of those up if I cared for Userboxes that much... ^postate 16:55, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Re: the guns people collect... I understand it at a "collector" level - when your into some sort of thing, and get a few, ones you'll never use are still cool. I have far too many telephones, and of course at least some could never actually be used, if not many. Once upon a time it was "fun" to coax a 40's unit from Holland to ring and work and hang up properly, but eventually they are just neat things to look at. ħuman 20:23, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Weapons are useful. I posess one 9mm pistol (I uploaded a piccy of it), one bolt-action rifle(for target practice), and one katana (actual razor sharp, not fake). I posess these guns not because I am a gun nut or paranoid(OK, maybe paronoia), but because I use them for target shooting and hunting with some of my friends who are gun nuts. A gun is a powerful tool, and should be respected as such. I'll never really understand people who have 12 AK's or triple barrled shotguns in their house, but I see it as perfectly acceptable to have maybe a pistol or rifle. Theemperor.

Ok, why does Wikicommons even have those pictures? I mean, most of them aren't even used in articles, they're only linked to by creepy guys from their user pages.... What is the point of that? I've never been one for the "OMG, Wikipedia has Naked people, get it off the intertubz" type of argument, but they can really do better than serving as a porn dump. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 08:18, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

@kels - having BDSM pics, per se, doesn't make him sick - but, someone who seems to have an obsession with weapons AND with BDSM seems to have some definite issues. It's as if he only wishes to relate to other people when he's in a position of power. Silver Sloth 09:56, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Template for TK

Found a nice template on WiiBrew that ThickKunt could use on his userpage. Crundy 12:25, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I can imagine plenty of uses for that. Not mentioning any names, of course. 16:03, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh go on. There's a double shot of brake fluid in it for you. Crundy 22:00, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Info required

Is there a way of copying one website to another without downloading to my home machine & uploading to the new site? _and marmite 14:36, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

If you have shell access on either server yes, otherwise no. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 16:52, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I've gotwill have write ability on both, one I used to maintain & the other will shortly be mine. There's a lot of photos on the one & byte limiited on data Xfer so I don't want to use my allowance if I can avoid it. _and marmite 17:17, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

If it's not too complicated you could always ask someone with an unlimited broadband connection whom you trust to do it for you. Change the passwords beforehand if necessary and change them back afterwards. Генгис^{Is the Pope a Catholic?} 19:24, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Without knowing what I am talking about, you ought to be able to use an ftp program that lets you log onto two separate locations and just copy/move files. Your only bw would be sending commands and getting results. I use wsftp, but the free version defaults one of the windows to "local". I don't see why there wouldn't be a version that lets both windows be "remote". ħuman 20:27, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

In case anyone's interested gftp (apparently) does the job ["Supports FXP file transfers (transferring files between 2 remote servers via FTP)"] _and marmite 02:53, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Excellent find, I hope it works for you! (And hope I helped a tiny bit :)) ħuman 02:56, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Vaccine Hysteria--is there a doctor in the house?

I am going to exotic locales for research in the summer, and got shot up with a buncha vaccines yesterday--and by 10 at night I felt as bad as I've ever felt in a long time--tired, nauseous, headache. Feel much better after sleeping about 12 hours. Normal? Got another round of shots on Monday, don't want to feel like that....Amin7b5 15:52, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Was one of them the rabies vaccine? That one almost knocked me out last time I had it. Never had any problem with any of the other shots from the standard battery of "going to for'n parts with inadequate sanitation" vaccinations. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 16:01, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

You probably ought to ask PalMD. --Edgerunner⁷⁶ 16:05, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

It's completely normal to feel like you have a mild cold or middling allergy attack when your immune system gets kicked into overdrive to make all those antibodies. There's usually no live organisms in vaccines, so what you're experiencing is similar to what happens when you get invaded by foreign protein, but it won't replicate and you'll get better real quick. Just wait until the Lariam kicks in. Say hi to waking up in the middle of the night covered in sweat and screaming. Over and over. User:Nutty Roux/sigtalk 16:09, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

That's why I chose the Malerone--I'm prone to anxiety/panic attacks, so Lariam seemed like a Bad Choice. Amin7b5 03:02, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Myuzak

What's the low down on music related articles about bands and artists? I haven't seen many and I was wondering if this'd be something RW should include or not. Thought I'd ask this time as I created an article on South Park and had it deleted by CUR after about five days. SJ ^Debaser 17:23, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

CUR. Heh. As far as I've seen, these types of articles can get tendentious--ask Human about the Monty Python spainish Inquisition skit. speaking for myself, I'd love to see more articles on, say, "family values" reactions to things like South Park et al.--as well as "politically correct" reactions from the other side...Amin7b5 17:46, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

If you can include strong "mission" elements in the first version you put in the mainspace you might be able to get an article like that to live. Otherwise, not. IE, John Lennon is in the mainspace still, but Sir Paul got moved to fun. So the answer really is "no, unless they are pretty serious activists and that can come first". Like the two Beatles mentioned, I could see a Joe Strummer article surviving, but not Mick Jones. ħuman 20:31, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

The recent conversation at talk:The Clash might help. Totnesmartin 20:54, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Ted Nugent is a pretty serious activist and he haz artikel.. Secret Squirrel 00:18, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Exactly. ħuman 01:39, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

How do these morons get money?

I don't really understand this. Apparently, some people just donated $1500 to Ray Comfort, so he could give away copies of his stupid books to atheists. How is it there are these people who have disposable income, but are also stupid enough to believe that Ray is anything other than a Jebus whore living fat off of the Christ racket?

Surely the set of people who are well paid and the set of people who find Ray convincing have an intersection so small as to be non-existent? It makes me so angry that people are willing to publish his trash and cut down perfectly good trees to print it on, and that other people are willing to finance its distribution. Maybe I just ought to give up and become a cynical preacher, and rake in the priestly pound. Gah. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 18:51, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Cognitive dissonance, nepotism, cronyism, dumb luck... ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 19:07, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

The real questions are... "Should I order one?" and "Should I have it signed?" ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 19:10, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Only if you're going to compress it in to briquettes and use it to heat your house. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 19:20, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I dunno, I like collecting weird stuff like that - if it's free, anyway. I have a half dozen Bibles, a nifty tape & book Co$ thing, a homskollar YEC "science" textbook, etc... ħuman 20:51, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I also got a free DVD and some other junk from some YEC outfit last year before they realized they'd been sci-blogged or whatever and people were swamping them with requests just to use up their money. PS, I sent in my request; signed, of course. ħuman 20:55, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Why don't we all order a copy each and then post up photos of what we do to them? Totnesmartin 20:56, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Hehe...that sounds like fun. I'm with Human...I collect this stuff as a sort of science fiction genre. I got a bunch of homskollar books and lots of religious texts. ^{— Unsigned, by: Neveruse513 / talk / contribs} 21:05, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Be sure to use a false name when signing up for these free giveaways, that way you can tell which of these scammers are selling your details to marketeers or sending irritating missionaries to your house at a later date. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 21:12, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Eh, the aftermath is part of the fun! Moar fundie crap in the mail! ħuman 21:15, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I subscribe to "The Good News" available free from http://www.gnmagazine.org/subscribe/index.htm to keep up to date with the latest conservative creationist idiocy. (Yes, I do use an alias.) Генгис^unbelieving 21:18, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I couldn't possibly subscribe to a magazine called the good news unless every issue had professor Farnsworth on the front. --JeevesMkII ^{The gentleman's gentleman at the other site} 21:21, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Ooh, free bogroll. Soft, strong, and very absorbent. Where do I sign up? Crundy 22:03, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I could so get behind that idea... It's their money to waste how they see fit. ^postate 11:04, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Online lectures

I subscribe to http://skepticblog.org by Michael Shermer [author of the Skeptic column in Scientific American, How We Believe & Why People Believe Weird Things) and noticed he did a lecture called "Why Darwin Matters" which is now being hosted at the University of California San Diego. It's almost an hour long. But they also have a lot of other online content which people might be interested in. Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 19:42, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Perl help

Now that my Solaris Korn shell scripts don't work because we've moved over to Linux on a PC I decided that I needed to transcribe them to Perl which I've never used before. What I need to do is read binary files in a known format and decode the various bytes/words which may be hex, EBCDIC, ASCII, shorts, longs or IEEE floating point formats. My immediate need is to be able to read a hex byte and display it as a string so if the value is FF I can see that as a string in a text file or on the screen. If there's anyone who is an accomplished Perl programmer perhaps they could give a few tips on my talk page. Генгис^{RationalWiki GOLD member} 19:42, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm a completely non-accomplished Perl programmer, but as part of being "reasonable" when a friend was helping me make my handful of scripts work on my websites, I bought the O'Reilly manual ("Perl", a/k/a as I recall, the "camel" for the animal on the cover.) which is very good, and might contain the info you need. Heck, you might be able to google answers with the right keywords, I've been quite surprised by the amount of tech help out there. ħuman 21:03, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

You should use Python instead of Perl, if that is possible; I have heard Python referred to as "Perl done right." ListenerX^TalkerX 03:04, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

The unpack function might be what you are looking for. ListenerX^TalkerX 03:25, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Whoops; I should have looked at your talk-page first... ListenerX^TalkerX 03:35, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Religious creeps grrr.........

In my town, there may or may not have been a tornado. In any event, a tornado occured in my state. Next day, I find that people die. Doesn't bother me too much (creepy, I know). What does majorly piss me off is that a bunch of idiots had the NERVE to picket a funeral, claiming that the tornado was a punishment from god for tolerating Jews and homosexuals. -- 21:27, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

'grats, y'all just got Westboro'ed. ENorman 21:31, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Just wish LJS had been destroyed, I could have pulled out the God Hates Shrimp sign. -- 21:33, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

The creeps were also claiming that the swine flu in Mexico was a judgement from God because the Americans elected Obama. Why the Mexicans had to suffer because of that I can't quite get my head round. But no one ever requires that religion makes sense. Генгис^{Is the Pope a Catholic?}

How about a link, Arthur? ħuman 23:29, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Why doesn't God ever attack the picketers? I would love to see the reaction if one of those picketers got hit by lightning--Nate River 01:50, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Ah, you forget the obvious- Atheistic weather control, using devices invented by Nikolai Telsa, no doubt. The Emperor _{Kneel before Zod!} 02:02, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

But then it is not an act of God, but an act of man. Lacks the same appeal--Nate River 02:10, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

If bad things happen to sinners, it's God punishing them. If bad things happen to the Real True Christians, it's God testing them/Satan. --Yossie^{Spring in Fialta} 04:09, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Come gather round people, wherever you roam

I have an interesting story to tell the mob, but I'm not quite ready... Give me alcohol and I shall tell all. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 02:28, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Have vodka, do tell. The Emperor _{Kneel before Zod!} 02:30, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Have more vodka, spill your guts! ħuman 02:45, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Tease. Sterile igloo 02:46, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Ok... *Hic* After sucking down plenty of cold ones…. And a couple of warm ones, my storytelling impulses and my bladder have been jogged. Let me also take a moment to say you people are lousy drink buyers, which explains why so many of us are single. So here’s the promised story: I am currently in a production of Godspell in Denver (I’m an actor, we’ll do anything for money. See gathering storm commercial). It’s going very well, but there has been a little personal drama for me. The choreographer for show, someone I met back in January, and I have been talking a little outside of rehearsals. It became obvious that there is mutual attraction between the two of us. However, she’s a Christian and is having problems with her faith (personally I think it’s just her starting to see the issues that come with faith, and I hold out hope for her, but that’s another story). So anyway, there are some underlying issues here (bad ex boyfriend, personal doubt over faith, etc…) but this is really sad to me. Rejecting someone because they don’t share the same faith, despite mutual attraction and an obvious connection is really sad on so many levels. So to wrap up this story, the Christians can rejoice, another heathen agnostic has been denied a relationship because of the man in the sky issues. There is a little more to the story, but it’ll take more booze to get it out of me. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 03:23, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

When you say "problems with her faith," are you saying you might need to give her something like this, or something like this? ListenerX^TalkerX 03:32, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Alright, time to stop fucking around and start drinking like men.

hit me again, bartender...

Amin7b5 03:28, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

To Listener X, The latter and to Amin, I'll have a Vodka with a Witch Hazel chaser please. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 03:36, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

It sounded like you were getting dumped for being non-Christian. ListenerX^TalkerX 03:45, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh, well. The times they are a changing. _and marmite 03:47, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Not technically dumped, as we never really started dating... More like she's refuses to do what she wants to do because of an arbitrary litmus test... You know, what people like Andy always accuse liberals of doing... Oh well, I'm still open to a relationship if she changes her mind.... More so, and this is Psychology Major in talking, I really hope she figures out that faith should be a part of her life and not the only aspect of it. I have a strong suspicion that there is a hard core left wing agnostic inside just waiting to take over... Hey, it worked for Al Franken. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 04:09, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

(1) The terms "left-wing" and "fundamentalist" are not mutually exclusive; (2) it looks as though your prospective girlfriend does need a primer on how the Bible is not so hostile to inter-faith relationships as is whatever whackjob stands in the front of her church. ListenerX^TalkerX 04:17, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

I actually don't think this is a case where she thinks that people of different faiths shouldn't date. More likely, she's start to question some aspects of her faith and having the usual mental battle over. I think she views me in a strange way. She's been taught all her life that non religious people are unhappy, unstable, ticking time bombs. But she sees that I am not like that, and I think she's afraid that if she starts dating me, she will lose her faith altogether. I wanna tell her that dating me or not, it's not going to change the questions she has in her mind, but I think this is something she needs to figure out alone. SirChuckB^{Call the FBI} 05:06, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

^{[more detail please]} ħuman 04:15, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

I definitely agree with the fact that you hope it becomes part of her life rather than all of it. I know quite a few people who seem to use faith, sexuality or music taste as a total substitute for a personality and it's really annoying. Hope Godspell goes well, I remember doing backstage work for it a couple of years ago (I just wonder what the local Christian Union would have thought about it, considering that our Jesus was gay). ^postate 10:57, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Talk about nostalgia

So I'm listening to my friend's online radio station, and this song comes on that sounds really familiar. So next time it comes 'round I do a little digging, and what pops up but this classic demo, which I used to play all the time back in the 90's when I first saw it. Still an awesome song, but this time I can find a bunch more of their music. Anyone else remember that? --Kels 02:32, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

An older sort of tune

Talking to my dad a little while back (his birthday was today, by the way) and he happened to mention an old song his dad used to sing that dated back to the time of Napolean, from the point of view of a soldier at Waterloo. So he sent me the lyrics to the song which his dad called "Fields of Waterloo". It's an interesting bit of history (apparently it dates back to 1859-ish), which for some reason survives in coastal Nova Scotia. He sent my the lyrics his father sang, and taking a look around online I found some instances of the lyrics, but none of them are nearly as long as what he sent me (nine verses). Anyone have any thoughts what I should do with this little bit of oral history? --Kels 02:36, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Search for a wiki that collects old song lyrics? There's one called (I think) Lyripedia or Lyriwiki or some such that's mostly "pop", but at least if you stuff it there, it might be preserved until the aliens come back to check on how we've done ;) ħuman 02:47, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

You go to university? Check out their History Department, see who specializes in Canadian history/oral history and maybe one of their grad students will find it relevant for her research. Amin7b5 03:31, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm going to college, actually. So it's more trade oriented than academia. There are two universities here, although I'm not quite sure I'd make contact. It's a good thought. --Kels 03:33, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Found this and several refs to a modern one by Arena. _and marmite 03:42, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Try emailing the English Folk Dance & Song Society _and marmite 03:44, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Not the same song. It's actually pretty close to this, but the lyrics are somewhat different in spots. About what you'd expect in a folk ballad, lots of variation. I should try that email though. See if they're interested. --Kels 04:07, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Googling: waterloo "folk song" brings up the Plains ... one. Suspect it's a variant? Chinese whispers had a lot of effect on traditional ballads, you can find a dozen versions of anything over 100 years old. EFDSS will probably be interested, ["From MacKenzie, Ballads and Sea Songs From Nova Scotia Collected from Harry Sutherland of River John, NS Grieg reported that this was said to be written by John Robertson, a bugler in the 92nd Highlanders [WRM]"]. Appears to have a North American flavour. _and marmite 04:27, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Sir Walter Scott wrote a poem called Field of Waterloo, not the same is it? Генгис^{RationalWiki GOLD member} 06:01, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

One step nearer abiogenesis?

[1] _and marmite 03:02, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Fantastic stuff. Too bad our Creationist "friends" will just toss it off with a bit of perfunctory hand-waving. I feel bad for them missing all the really exciting stuff. --Kels 03:09, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Very nice. Especially "“Ribonucleotides are simply an expression of the fundamental principles of organic chemistry,” said Sutherland. “They’re doing it unwittingly. The instructions for them to do it are inherent in the structure of the precursor materials. And if they can self-assemble so easily, perhaps they shouldn’t be viewed as complicated.”" which is what, I think, PJR's favorite evolutionist, Kupper, is trying to get at in his book. ħuman 04:27, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Of course it's just an expression of organic chemistry! I've been telling creationists and other People Who Don't Get It that for ages. Biology is really just chemistry with bigger molecules :p ^postate 10:33, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Need some help ASAP

I borrowed a laCie HD from a friend to grab some movies from them. I had trouble immediatly with it. It didnt upload all the files onto my laptop and would freeze during the file transfer. I have had it working once or twice but now, though the HD sounds like it is working fine etc, my laptop acts like it isnt there. Tried all USB ports and shutdown etc etc, all the simple troubleshooting tricks. Any ideas? ASAP as my lady friend is getting drunk and shitty. Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 07:48, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Hmmm its not the HD, its my laptop thats the problem here. Hmmmmm Ace McWicked^{Disco Jesus} 08:11, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Let me google that for you!

Some dude at aSK has just used a brilliant website here. Superb way to sarcastically direct people to more info on any topic.

No doubt everyone but me has already heard of this months ago...-- Kriss Akabusi^{AAAWOOOGAAAR!!1} 09:29, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Took me a while to get what it was doing but that was awesome. ^postate 10:10, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

WIGORW?

Looking at RWW's WIGORW I've come to the conclusion that we aren't very lulzy. This is probably a Good Thing ^(TM) --PsyGremlin_Whut? 11:08, 15 May 2009 (UTC)