I hate to start a new thread, but I need to rant.

Overheal

Reindeer wrote: »

"Ma'am" in military doctrine is much different than it is in civilian life. Being as Boxer is ignorant, I can see her issues with it. In most military branches, you only address female officers as Ma'am, or persons outside of the military. Same goes with Mr and Sir - those are all addresses for officers.

What I found rude is Boxer requiring she be addressed as 'Senator' and then goes on to ignore the rank of the Brigadier General whom has dedicated his life to his country at a pay rate that is a small fraction of what that greedy sell-out of a woman makes. I don't recall her using the Brigadier Generals rank ever. Her duplicity in this instance is just a small taste of her overall duplicity in the senate.

Goes to highlight what value she places on the Military: next to none.

LostinKildare

Reindeer wrote: »

As LIK has shown, you are a product of your environment. When you are raised in a governmentally controlled nanny-state, you learn to live in that state. You become dependant on the government, and you can not imagine someone living outside of it. How many governments throughout history can we count that have thoroughly made their citizens dependant upon them that have also guaanteed their citizens freedom?

Ireland hasn't really tasted real freedom in such a long time, so I do not expect it's citizens to fully appreciate it. Most believe themselves to actually be free citizens to this day. Perhaps that is true when it comes to socialism. But it is not real freedom compared to that of the US. Once a populace is used to being coddled, they are not at all eager to leave the only nest they know. Most Europeans are used to all the governmental control, from the start of their lives, until they die.

When you take up a conversation with such a person, you waste both of your time. How can a socialist argue against the benefits and demerits of a society they have never enjoyed the essence thereof? MTM, not every Irishman is fortunate enough to spend as much time as you in the US and then to return home as most that live for a significant time in the US tend to stay there, if at all possible, due to the freedoms therein. LIK is Lost In Ireland still, and will forever be until they live the life and understand.

Where do you imagine that I am from? What repressive regime has molded me into such an automaton, Reindeer?

Actually I'm an American born and bred (from the "real" part, no less) and yet, somehow, I've formed opinions that are vastly different from yours. Nice paean to freedom, but your arrogant idea that one has only to live in the USA to be thoroughly convinced of its innate superiority smacks of Ugly American groupthink. Lockstep "us vs. them" nationalism isn't patriotic. And while you've been getting your knickers in a twist about seatbelts the US govt's been busy stripping away habeas corpus, freedom of speech and association, and privacy laws and bodily integrity guarantees.

"until they live the life and understand" -- nice. I think Sarah Palin needs someone to help her with her speeches. You ought to get in touch.

LostinKildare

BTW, Boxer did address him as General, several times, before the brief clip that's sparked such outrage.

http://epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Hearings.Choose&Hearing_id=c7026be1-802a-23ad-4fa3-4c8ed0b6d074 (begin about 29 mins in)

It's fine to address someone as "Ma'am" but she prefers "Senator." So what? You act like she screamed with rage, called the guy an *sshole, and reduced him to a trembling puddle of tears. What a non-issue.

Manic Moran

Having affairs is a time-honoured tradition. Politicians, of course, are by no means exceptions to this rule.

Still, how stupid can you get?

http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/breaking-news/oc-assemblyman-in-bed-with-lob/

NTM

Húrin

Manic Moran wrote: »

Education (generally), lack of moral judgmentation of individuals for Democrats; defence, individual liberty and responsibility, reduced government spending for the Republicans. (Yes, I know about Bush's war debt, but wars are expensive and he didn't add many other subjects to the bill)
NTM

Why are wars a special case that "don't count" as increased government spending?

LostinKildare wrote: »

There are a lot of statistics on fatalities and head injuries for people wearing helmets vs. not wearing helmets, so yes this is a well known risk.
http://www.iihs.org/research/fatality_facts_2007/bicycles.html

Bicycle helmets don't help safety any more than motoring helmets or pedestrian helmets would. They're just imposed by people who don't cycle who imagine, falsely, that cycling is an especially dangerous form of transport.

Manic Moran wrote: »

There has to be a line somewhere. Is there a law requiring three-foot-high fences around swimming pools and ponds in people's back yards? (280 children under five in one year in the US for pools and spas) Is there one requiring that kitchen knives be stored in child-proof drawers?

Why not draw the line there? If there is a law mandating smoke alarms why does this somehow require laws along the lines of what you list here? Why are Americans so madly ideological?

Reindeer wrote: »

As LIK has shown, you are a product of your environment. When you are raised in a governmentally controlled nanny-state, you learn to live in that state. You become dependant on the government, and you can not imagine someone living outside of it. How many governments throughout history can we count that have thoroughly made their citizens dependant upon them that have also guaanteed their citizens freedom?

Ireland hasn't really tasted real freedom in such a long time, so I do not expect it's citizens to fully appreciate it. Most believe themselves to actually be free citizens to this day. Perhaps that is true when it comes to socialism. But it is not real freedom compared to that of the US. Once a populace is used to being coddled, they are not at all eager to leave the only nest they know. Most Europeans are used to all the governmental control, from the start of their lives, until they die.

When you take up a conversation with such a person, you waste both of your time. How can a socialist argue against the benefits and demerits of a society they have never enjoyed the essence thereof? MTM, not every Irishman is fortunate enough to spend as much time as you in the US and then to return home as most that live for a significant time in the US tend to stay there, if at all possible, due to the freedoms therein. LIK is Lost In Ireland still, and will forever be until they live the life and understand.

This is absolute nonsense. Ireland is not an oppressive socialist country. Americans don't have more freedom than us. Where is your evidence for any of the above allegations?

axer

Reindeer wrote: »

Ireland hasn't really tasted real freedom in such a long time, so I do not expect it's citizens to fully appreciate it. Most believe themselves to actually be free citizens to this day. Perhaps that is true when it comes to socialism. But it is not real freedom compared to that of the US. Once a populace is used to being coddled, they are not at all eager to leave the only nest they know. Most Europeans are used to all the governmental control, from the start of their lives, until they die.

Last time I checked the Irish government didnt listen to my phone calls or read my emails.

Manic Moran

Last time I checked the Irish government didnt listen to my phone calls or read my emails.

In fairness, my TD did respond to one of my emails, once.

NTM

DeVore

He means "unsolicited interception" of phone calls and emails. Google Echelon and Clipper chip for starters...

DeV.

Manic Moran

And who says humour is a lost art to Irishmen?

NTM