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Thread: It has to start somewhere and it might just as well be here :-)

  1. #1
    Bad address email on file Darris Chambless's Avatar
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    Redhot Jumper

    Hello everyone,

    Chad and I were sitting here talking about this subject and we have arrived at a conclusion that we feel we should share with the rest of the world. It is a clear cut case of "Did you know?"

    Did you know that Firestone is responsible for deaths on the open road? Did you know that if it weren't for the governments lax testing policies on the tire industry as a whole Firestone would have never made dangerous tires for us to drive our SUV's on (No wonder Algore wants to ban SUV's and the internal combustion engine) But just wait, it goes much much deeper than that.

    After much deliberation Chad and I have determined that all deaths that occur on the open road are actually the fault of Spain. How did we come to this conclusion? Scientifically of course.

    Think about it; if Christopher Columbus had not made the trek to the Americas (actually trying to find another route to India I believe it was) it would have never been populated by people that found it necessary to make drainage ditches. When one puts in a drainage ditch one is compelled to build a road next to such, creating a complex system for transpotation purposes. When you have a road you must have something to motivate along its structure with. So you go through the gamut of the wheel, the wagon, the bicycle, the motor car, the Edsil and so on until one gets to the EVIL SUV. Now you put Firestone tires on said SUV when the government has lax testing procedures and viola you're asking for disaster.

    But that's not where it ends. No sir-ree. When the dreaded SUV tires blow out on the highway, and you end up overturned in a ravine AND you are unfortunate enough to not know your exact location AND you have a cell phone, it is also Spain's fault that the Cellular companies do not have the equipment in place to triangulate the signal in order to find you if you don't know where you are.

    So you see we should all get together and sue the pants off of Spain for this whole mess. What were those guys thinking?!? :-) The next thing you know they will end up being the cause of cancer in laboratory rats.

    So everyone should sleep well knowing that it's not your fault it's Spain's fault, whatever "it" is.

    Darris "Whenever you need to know just ask Me." Chambless

  2. #2
    Master OptiBoarder Jeff Trail's Avatar
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    Darris & Chad...

    Something in your "under every bush lies a evil corupt goverment man" theory :)is slightly off course...
    Follow this ...who ownes Firestone now? Japanese... I think it's a far more simple plot, then blaming the Spanish :)(even though it was a pretty good "connect the dots" theory) ...
    I think it's a plan that was hatched during WWII ... they got the first lick in at Pearl Harbor and this is just the second "sneaky" attack ... They (as in WW2) sent someone before congress and was stalling time all while putting th plan into action.. I seen it all again playing out on C-SPAN when Firestone's main stockholder/CEO sat there being apologetic and rambling on..all at the same time they were designing the treads to blow out..Since SUV's are so popular they figured they could wipe us out one at a time, or a car load at a time
    How about them apple's ? ... and I bet it was a Firestone engineer on the grassy knoll as well!!! :)

    Jeff " we Americans can take it (just talk to my lawyer).." Trail

  3. #3
    Master OptiBoarder karen's Avatar
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    Darris-I gotta know-do you drive an EVIL SUV??

  4. #4
    That Boy Ain't Right Blake's Avatar
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    Darris,

    Remember, Columbus' voyage was paid for by Spain, but he was from Italy. In addition to being his home of record, Italy is also the home of the former Roman Empire (as opposed to the Holy Roman Empire, which was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire, but I digress...). One of the great achievements of the Roman Empire was the Roman Road, which connected cities across Europe. These roads enabled the wealthy Roman oligarchy to drive around in their SUHC's (sport utility horse carts), which enraged the common people and ultimately led to the fall of the empire.
    But the root cause of the Firestone problems goes back even further in history. The culprit was a man by the name of Og, who was the first to claim credit for inventing the wheel. Og's dream was that one day people would use his wheels to build glorified station wagons in which they could drive to the grocery store. He withdrew his claim, however, after a Mesopotamian government official desperate to hang on to power waged a war against Big Wheels. Still, had it not been for the invention of the wheel, we would not have the problems with Firestone.

    Thank God for the History Channel!

    Blake

  5. #5
    Bad address email on file Darris Chambless's Avatar
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    Okay People,

    Although your responses were pseudo descent they weren't scientific.

    Karen, I drive a big gas guzzling 1 ton Chevy pickup with a 454 V-8 engine that can pull a house (or crush an SUV which ever the case may be) It has a turbo 400 transmission with overdrive and a really obnoxious air horn :-)

    Jeff, wrong. The Japanese may own Firestone but they are not to blame. The Spaniards are. The Japanese just bought into an already established company. Remember; the Japanese don't design the products we buy, they buy the companies that make the products we buy ;-)

    And finally Blake. Blake Blake Blake Blake Blake. Tisk tisk. You truly believe that you know historical events (he says snidely) Well...first you are correct that Christopher (I knew him well which is why I'm on a first name basis with him ;-) was from Italy but he got there via Spain. You see Columbus was diddling the Queen of Spain which is why he went back to her to get the financing from her. Then he got transferred with the company he was with (it was either that or be downsized out of a job) Chris was actually the technical adviser for the Whizzier Chocolate factory that made specialty chocolates for the wealthy. I don't think he liked the job particularly which is why he decided to start sailing instead.

    The drudgery of 9:00 to 5:00 everyday, smelling chocolate for eight hours and having to put up with the paperwork, filling orders and coming up with new ideas for new chocolates sos not to get into the monotony of everyday chocolatedium. Godiva Chocolates? His idea you know. But did he take the credit? Nooooo! He let the lazy new age executives take all the glory. That's the kind of giving guy he was, 10 hour days seven days a week.

    Now as to your info about Og. Og didn't actually invent the wheel. What Og did was carry water to the guys that actually invented the wheel. He was the lackey so to speak. Og's cousin Archibald actually invented the wheel.

    Archibald was a genius in his own right. He not only invented the wheel but also belly button lint, Carnuba Wax (which was made from the ear wax of Yaks) and eye ******s (he will go down in history as the man that invented that little social equalizer I can tell you). The one invention that he is not noted for but should be was the Stainless Steel Emasculator. It was proud day when he lopped off the first set of...well, you know?

    Ah yes. Archibald was a man among men when men were among the men gathered where men go...or something like that. Oops I almost forgot the most important thing though. Archibald invented the first Methanol. He did it by eating handfuls of decaying pond scum and waiting for his intestinal fortitude to do the rest. He was a riot at parties. I remember one time we were at this shindig and he got so waisted. Being that he only spoke Cromagnon made it difficult for me to understand the jokes he was telling but let me tell you he knew his comedy. When he started telling those off color jokes, boy was my face red. I laughed so hard that I had T-Rex milk squirting out of my nose. Were those good times or what? I miss the old days.

    As to the Romans...Now there's a bunch of pansies if I've ever seen any. They wore dresses for goodness sake and couldn't write a complete sentence to save their lives. Always saying "Oh Great Caesar this. Great Caesar that." The salad was okay but I never thought it was "Great" or anything. Not to mention these guys were pigs. Have you ever been to a vomitorium? The sanitation was atrocious. The orgys weren't bad but all the time spent in the hot tubs before hand just really took a lot out of you. By the time you got there all you wanted to do was take a nap. I think the wine had a lot to do with it though and the comfy pillows didn't help either.

    Well it is late and I must be off to solve the worlds problem. Ya'll mustn't keep me to yourselves.

    TTFN,

    Darris "Friends, Romans, Countrymen. Lend me your ears! I come to bury Caesar not to praise him. Everybody say, Oooh! D-Man's in the house." Chambless


  6. #6
    sub specie aeternitatis Pete Hanlin's Avatar
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    What I want to know is who's fault it was that the vault was 2" too low at the Olympics!!! Geesh!

    Now I see Algore wants to subsidize oil for the "poor" people in the North. Give it up Al, I used to pay $300+ a month to heat my home in Penna. That's life, REAL Americans deal with it everyday. Oh, I forgot... YOU haven't had to deal with much of anything for years, have you? You've worked for the government almost all your adult life...
    What a pathetic excuse for a man and an American you are, Al. You assume we citizens are all weak and clueless about how to live our lives. You say you'll graciously give us some money (oh, you forgot, it was already ours before you taxed it) IF we spend it on just the right things ("right" being the things you want us to spend it on). You'll provide for us in our senior years- because heavan knows we shouldn't be expected to plan for retirement on our own. You'll take care of education- just give the teachers more money and they'll just HAVE to do a better job, right?

    You assume we're all pretty much stupid, too... this week, you claimed your mommy sang you to sleep with a union fight song (remember, you were talking to a bunch of union workers... the ones who aren't very happy that you paved the way for jobs to go south of the border)- problem is, the song wasn't even written until 1975!

    Al, you'll win this election, because your opponent's message can't be delivered to the public without being filtered by a group of people who vote Democratic over 90% of the time... Have fun playing with us lemmings, Al- we've got actual work to do.

    Pete "whew, I feel a little better" Hanlin

  7. #7
    Bad address email on file Darris Chambless's Avatar
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    Um Pete,

    Although I'm with you on this big small-medium guy I'm wondering how or what caused you to drift off on this tangent? Did someone tinkle on your Tony Lamas or wee-wee in your Wheaties?

    Like I said, I agree with you 100% and would even go so far as to say that, in my opinion, Algore (along with Slick Willie) should be crushed under one of those SUV's and taste his own blood while everyone that ever believed any of the hipe and lies brought to us by this administration suddenly realized that they were idiots for believing these lying, thieving most unholy of unholy's and told Algore so in his final moments that they had come to see the light that is conservatism. Maybe that's a little extreme but in my mind it would be justifiable :-)

    I like hearing that Algore is going to release oil from the oil reserves in 5 million gallon increments. Why? Well it's because of a haunting question that has plagued me since I learned of the US oil reserves. The question is this; where do they store this oil? I mean Fort Knox allegedly houses all the gold, but where is this storage tank that holds 560 million + gallons of crude oil. Not to mention a very important issue which is very well known in these parts (being oil country and all) The oil fields around here can only pump "X" number of gallons in a day, week or month by law. The fields have the capacity and capability to pump several hundred thousands of gallons with no real sign of a lull in it. So we have all this oil in its natural habitat (underground)no one really knows how much oil is down there and oil production is limited by law.

    Another thing I find to be funny is why the government has such a strong interest in oil production when Algore wants to do away the the internal combustion engine? Could it be that they know (like any person with half of a brain) that without automobiles and internal combustion engines the US would cease to function. In rural areas they need to tap the methane pockets in landfills for heating gas. I have a friend that works with an ecology company and they have been studying this exact thing. They have found that one pocket of methane that forms in a landfill can supply a town with a population of 10 to 12 thousand with gas for heating and that's just one pocket. The most interesting part is that they tapped one of these pocket around this area about 15 years ago using it at a specified rate and the methane level has never dropped. As it is used, more forms.

    Some people just don't understand reality I guess. When I was in elementary school I was told that we only had a 50 year supply of oil and then it would be gone. That was 25 years ago but today kids in elementary school are being taught that we only have a 50 year supply of oil left and then it will all be gone. Somehow another 25 years of oil was found although I'm not sure where it came from.

    The world is getting warmer, due to pollution and SUV's. Yet all the studies that have been done show the temperature has dropped 1/12 of a degree worldwide in the last 100 years. So how can the world be getting warmer by way of a cooling trend? That's like saying your getting taller by shrinking.

    I have always tried to be objective in my beliefs, but unfortunately Algore's ideas are complete stupidity. I do hope that he doesn't truly believe all of this stuff. I believe Algore may be an intelligent man, after all he has been able to make people believe the bull and one must be somewhat intelligent to pull it off.

    If it's any consolation Pete, if Algore does get the presidency (I haven't voted yet nor have you) He won't be able to do anything. He would be a "Lame Duck" in his first term and that would be cool :-)

    Well I've said my piece and hopefully consoled you young man. Keep that chin up little buckaroo :-)

    Darris C.

  8. #8
    Master OptiBoarder karen's Avatar
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    While we are off on a tangent-my question is if we use 75 million barrels of oil worldwide a day what the h*ll difference is 5 million barrels going to make. Also, if our refineries are up to 94-96% production where is the real problem??? If we release more unrefined oil and our refineries are already working at almost full capacity how long will it take for us to feel the negligible effect of those measly 5 million barrels??? And if that oil us to be used in emergencies only-like war or some real emergency- not the liberalist fabricated ones then what is that idiot thinking???
    Karen" the Republican Princess who obviously listened to Rush today"

  9. #9
    Master OptiBoarder Shwing's Avatar
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    Darris, the oil is actually stored in your own state.

    I just read that it is housed near the gulf coast in underground (I think I read limestone) caverns.

    Shwing;-}

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    Master OptiBoarder Shwing's Avatar
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    Found it: "The government reserve, created in 1973, has about 571 million barrels of oil in a series of salt domes near the Texas-Louisiana border."-AP

    On another tangent, anyone remember the mid '70's?? I know most of you were probably wasted, but I was in grade school during the oil crisis of about '77(?).

    I remember (living in Jersey) huge gas line ups, and the local Amoco had differing colours based on the amount of gas they had: green= gas up; yellow= gas up quick, cause it's going fast; red= emergency vehicles only. Or something like that.

    Anyone remember what the price of oil was then? Anyone remember what the price of a litre/ gallon of gas was??

    I can't stand that slime ball you have in the White House, nor his Veep. Uncle George (and I do mean Uncle) was a victim of circumstance, and happened to be caught in a recession. He wasn't re-elected though he, more than even (humbly) Reagan had more to do with the end of the Cold War (he was ambassador to the U.N.; head of the CIA, and VEEP).

    Anyway, here in Alberta, high oil is a good thing, as our provincial gov't is raking in hand over fist moola, as we make the stuff, and all the budgets are based on oil, and at a price of about$18!!!

    Yes, we are going to get squeezed this winter.

    I just had a patient 3 days ago who is an engineer for the major natural gas supplier in Alberta (which is how we heat our homes).

    She said to expect an additional $100 per month, over and above what we usually pay!!!

    Ouch. I guess that $300 rebate from the government really is needed for the gas bill, and not a new snow blower....

    Shwing;-}

  11. #11
    Bad address email on file Darris Chambless's Avatar
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    Redhot Jumper

    My Dearest Karen,

    What a great set of questions and would you please send Chad and I a picture of you so that we will know who we are dreaming about ;-) Releasing 5 million gallons of additional oil won't make any difference to the people, but it does make a political difference. Algore will look like a very compassionate guy before the election and get more "brownie points" to try to get him into office.

    There has never been a more clear cut case of using false information and giving false hope for political gain. He's scaring people into believing that they need his help and the additional oil. I do hope that people are smart enough to realize that this man is not only as crooked as Bill, but is worse. Both Algore and Bill have taken credit for so many things that they had little or nothing to do with and vehemently deny all of their wrong doings even though there is e-mail documentation, video tape, thousands of eyewitnesses and sworn testimony to prove it.

    Also, the refineries would never be able to handle an influx of oil over and above what they are already processing. BUT we, the tax payers, will be responsible for paying for the additional oil in 5 million gallon increments whether or not it is ever released or not. Since we will never know if the oil was actually released, if they say it was then we have to pay to put it back. Isn't that cool? :-) I can honestly say that this oil will NEVER hit the open market and will NEVER even be moved from the reserve itself. It's all just political spin.

    Shwing,

    I am familiar with the "reserve" the AP refers to. These storage caverns are actually not a reserve storage at all. These are the tanks that oil for refining is pumped to before it is sent into production. The tanks are constant level tanks meaning that as oil is taken out more is pumped in. This is also done to keep these tanks from collapsing. The government may be calling it a reserve but it isn't a reserve at all, it is merely one stop in the refining process.

    I don't know how accurate the studies are, but for many years it has been said that we have only tapped 20% of the oil fields that exist. If this is true can you imagine the number of gallons that would be available? So "reserve"? I don't think so. Political hipe? I know so.

    Well ya'll take care and I'll be talkin' to ya',

    Darris C.

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    Master OptiBoarder Jeff Trail's Avatar
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    Putting "politics to the side :) I think , when really looked at, it was a very clever move (BTW I doubt it was the "President" doing it all) BUT nevertheless it has two pluses...
    First, I think it's misunderstood exactly "what" we are doing with it...we are selling it! For a MUCH higher price then what it was purchased for..That return argument of "yea but we have to replinish at a higher price", just won't fly.. do the math BEFORE you use that argument, you purchased alot of it at an historical low.. you sell at a very high point..and you have manipulated the market to start bringing price of crude down so the replensh cost will still be less then what it was sold at (at a nice tidy profit) :)
    Second, of course it is only going to be a few million barrels a day, so what? Well, just when it was announced, the average price of crude dropped $3 a barrel...So even though the actual physical amount of crude isn't that effective.. just "doing it"
    (selling) had a pretty good effect..No matter what you may think (party wise) the U.S. does have some international clout.. and this oil thing (be it only a token) did have a nice little rippling effect..and we make a nice little profit to boot? ..Shoot I thought you guys would finally be happy a "goverment" plan where we gained all the way around.. that's a rare thing now adays

    I don't give a tinker's damn whose idea it was, technically it was a smart move, buying low (oil reserve) selling high, a very minimal amount (not really large enough to effect the status of what the reserve is needed for).. That was just "smart" business.. it's what I and millions of others try to do everyday on the stock market :)
    I don't really care as long as it worked (and was really clever when you look at from neutral eyes).. sometimes when you are so busy trying to insult and tear someone apart you aren't going to agree with anything, no matter what they do.. me? I try to keep an open mind .. but then again I was (I think one of the few if "only" democrat who posted on Pete's thread) .. and amazingly I was trashed..hmmm go figure :)
    Some of us can differ in ideology and still be civil.. hard to believe ..

    Jeff" No matter what affiliation you are.. I still think it was a clever hedge on the oil" Trail

    [This message has been edited by Jeff Trail (edited 09-24-2000).]

  13. #13
    Bad address email on file Darris Chambless's Avatar
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    Redhot Jumper

    Howdy Jeff,

    Yes political affiliations aside on my part as well. I don't hate or even dislike Democrats, I do dispise Bill Clinton, Hilary Clinton, Algore and everything that they have a hand in. You're a Democrat and I have a great respect for you and your intellect so please don't feel that I'm trying to tear someone down because of their party affiliation. I am doing everything within my power to tear down Billy boy and Algore however. These two are slime balls regardless of their political affiliation and I know many people that side with the Democratic party ideologies and can't stand that these two are representing them and even voted Republican in the last election. In a nut shell I don't agree with much of the Democratic platform, but I hold no ill will toward people for following that platform. I don't have any love however, for slime balls, but slime balls are individuals not a group.

    Now as to the oil being released from the reserves and driving the price down. Although your take on it sounds good it isn't the reality of the situation. The 5 million barrel increments will never be released. Why? Because it isn't needed. OPEC has already released additional oil to the US even though Clinton fought against it. Then Clinton turned around and took credit for getting oil released to the US from OPEC. If you look around you however, you will notice that prices went up not down at the pumps when this was done several months ago. Why? Because we bought the oil ("we" being the tax payers) but left it where it was because we have no place to put it with our current production as it is.

    When the price is high then yes, profits are high but who really benefits? Do we the consumers benefit? How would we know? We see lower prices at the pumps or maybe a lower price on our heating and cooling bills, but we still pay for the priviledge of having those lower prices. It's called a "con" in fact its the ultimate con. We pay for oil that we didn't get (but might get later) We pay for additional oil that is never released to the open market (we are only told that it will be released) We pay to have the "oil reserves" replenished (which isn't necessary because the "extra" was never removed) The oil prices fall to our amazement almost instantaneously at the very moment reserve use is announced and yet (as Pete said) people in northern states will still pay $300.00 a month to heat their homes. How can this be? I'll tell you.

    Oil prices were being kept artificially inflated which didn't bother the oil producers because they make more money when the prices are high. When the time is right (read during an election season) administrations make comments like "We're going to release oil from the reserves to help the needy in the northern states heat their homes at afordable costs." at which point the oil prices start coming down which they were going to do anyway, we were merely paying more to keep them high (but we didn't know that was what we were doing. We the tax payers don't get to see the manifests or contracts)It would be interesting to see if the northern states actually get a break on heating oil prices. My bet would be that they will pay the same amount that they always have.

    Pete keep your eyes and ears open this winter and see if your kin in Penna pay less for heating oil. Also keep abreast of the severety of the winter season.

    I'll make it simpler to understand: Picture the tax payer as being a checker at a grocery store and the current administration as the customer/con-man on the other side of the counter.

    The administration walks up to the counter to purchase an item at a cost of $1.00 and hands the checker a $50 bill.

    The checker makes the change four $1's, one $5, two $20's.

    The administration then asks if he can get change for one of the $20's.

    The checker hands him five $1's a $5 and a $10.

    The administration looks at the change and says "actually I didn't want that much change. Let me give you back the ones and the five and give me another $10."

    The checker does so while the administration is reaching into his pocket and pulls out the four $1's and the $5.

    The administration then says "I forgot about getting this change back and it should be enough anyway let me give you another $10 and give me back my $20 and I'll just use the change you gave me. Sorry for the trouble."

    The checker takes the change and gives him his $20 back.

    If you didn't notice in all this the aministration just made nine dollars profit on a $1.00 purchase and the checker was none the wiser.

    Keep 'em talking and doing and they will never notice that you conned them. Therein lies the majority of the problem. We only know what they tell us which could be whatever they need to tell us to keep from getting caught or to boost their political careers. The tax payers don't know what really goes on and the administration wants it that way.

    If I had the time I could literally write a book that would make everyone question their own political beliefs regardless of what they are and start seeing things for what they are, a three card Monty. No one ever beats the Monty ;-)

    Jeff I consider you a good friend and will never change my mind about that. I don't care what you or anyone elses party affiliation is. I do care about what goes on in politics because it concerns and affects us all. Wrong decisions are wrong decisions no matter how you slice them. Two wrongs (Slick Willie and Algore) don't make a right :-)

    Take care,

    Darris C.

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    Master OptiBoarder Jeff Trail's Avatar
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    Darris,

    I hate to be the bearer of "bad news" :) but I kind of look at it differently then you do. A couple of things I see pop up is the "President" did this the "vice President" did that yada yada yada..but how many people work in the fedral workforce.. and how are (two people) going to run and micro manage that? Oh they are the top of the heep but regardless it is mostly Congress and deptartments making policy in my opinion.. and people tend to go crazy about one or two people :)..I remember seeing the hearings on C-Span when they were wrangling over the "additives" to gas (which was blamed for starting all this) but the funny part was it was actually being mixed into the gas 2 that's right 2 monthes before the prices went crazy.. me I think it was the oil comapnies doing the "fixing" not the goverment (which decided..and BTW republican majority on those hearings I watched) ..I think it is big business taking advantage of a situation myself.
    I think Goverment is so big and convaluted that no one is really running the show..oh the high profile stuff that makes good sound bites makes it,but the day to day stuff.. forget about it.
    One other thing that I never see mentioned is the xtra taxes the state county and city tack onto gas prices..in my city .14 on every gallon is "local" taxation..
    Last point (since I'm on the soap box :rolleyes :) is I know I used to manage a multi location practice before I opened my own stores and lab and I know I only managed 32 employee's and it was a nightmare keeping track.. now multiply that number by a couple hundred thousand federal employee's.. it's a cluster f#$%!! :) .. I lived in D.C for a number of years and I used to be a daily reader of the Post and some of the things I seen was scary as heck..when I left there the latest great scandal (that I never seen covered anywhere else) was that Goverment employee's were getting those mail order "diploma's" and getting HUGE pay raises.. the way the caught it? A secratary was making $94,000 a year and supposedly had a "masters".. as someone who lived inside the belt way I think the whole place needs cleaned out :) ..people being what they are though they take full advantage of the situation.. go figure.
    Let common sense be the rule and not greed.. PLEASE...
    BTW I was really aiming towards anyone "personally" Darris, I was just hinking technically it was a fairly smart move on the Goverments part to sell off that small portion.
    Oh and where the heck is Chadman? have seen him grace us with a posting for awhile..did he get mad and take his tinker toys and move to another sandbox? :)

    Jeff"was given some advice by an "old optician"..never mix politics & religion and retail" Trail

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    Senor Jeff, (Someone please tell me how to get that cute little Spanish "thingie" over the "o" in senor please)

    Thanks for noticing that I haven't been around. I thought no one missed me, except for UPS who misses me by 20 days on a part for my car I needed 15 days ago...bastaaads

    Speaking of which, that's pretty much where I've been. I got a new toy about a month ago, a 1994 Toyota Supra, Twin Turbo, Targa Top..340 Horses to the rear wheels!!! Can anyone say midlife crisis? (Although I'm only 29...does that mean that I'm only going to live until 58? Damm...bring on the beer and stogies, before they're outlawed)

    Anyway...I've been spending most of my computer time speaking to fellow speed geeks and learning how to mess with my car and get the most out of it...and most of my time away from work shining the rims and changing the fluids, plugs, brakes...anything that might possibly interfere with geoing fast and stopping faster.

    And with all this teenagerhood coursing through my veins I've been neglecting the Optiboard...much to my chagrin.

    I have been following most of the political stuff on here, but Pete is my Spokesman Extraordinaire when it comes to politics around here and I haven't had to help him yet :)

    One more thing, since Darris and I had to miss Expo West, we are almost certainly going to do everything we can to make Expo East. I think the only thing that could make it a worthwhile trip is if you promise to give me 1 hour and two beers to help you understand why an intelligent, knowledgeable, hard working man such as yourself should not be shuffling down the wrong (read: morally vacant) path of Liberalism.....Heck, I'll even buy the beer. Afterwards you can sign my NRA card and allow me to pin the obligatory "W" lapel pin on your jacket. (lapel would have been redundant ;-))

    Take care...talk to ya soon,

    Chad "Wanna Race?" Huber

  16. #16
    Forever Liz's Dad Steve Machol's Avatar
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    Originally posted by Chad Huber:
    <FONT COLOR=#FF0000>Senor Jeff, (Someone please tell me how to get that cute little Spanish "thingie" over the "o" in senor please)</FONT>
    You mean like this?

    Se&#241;or

    Just use (removing the spaces between each character):

    & # 2 4 1 ;

    in place of the n-tilde character.



    ------------------

    OptiBoard Administrator

  17. #17
    Master OptiBoarder Jeff Trail's Avatar
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    Chad,

    94 Supra huh? ..cool beans..One thing though, this is just the beginnig of your "pre" mid life crisis :)...
    I went through it as well, bought a new Trans-Am, turned around sold the new one and got a 78, had the low end torq, racing cams, suspension the whole nine yards..Oh and got 32 points on my Lic. and got them suspended for 6 monthes..that was the "mid" twenty life crisis.. now that I'm in the mid 30's.. well I got a Harley :)
    Not as fast BUT loud as heck ... even have a few OD's I do work for that bought Harley's as well.. needless to say THEIR wives blame it all on me
    Your next step is to get the heads bored out and have a racing cam popped in there..
    Then you get to drop in a new rearend that has a lower ratio.. then when you and Darris get bored you can take turns going out in the parking lot and burn rubber!! :-)
    Oh BTW, you don't think a guy raised in West Virginia isn't going to belong to the NRA?.. good God you want to give me a heart attack?
    Proud owner of a 357, a 44 auto mag, 12 gauge pump (full bore), S&W target pistol...oh and a paint gun :) a fly fishing rod and a couple of deep sea rods chucked in the shed somewhere...
    One of these days we'll have to have an "opti-board" convention in Key West and I'll show everyone how fun it is to fly cast for Bone fish in the Keys :) ..that is after we have all done the Duval crawl.. you start on one end of Duvall street and drink your way to the other :)

    Jeff"I need more time for the "fun" stuff" Trail

  18. #18
    Bad address email on file Darris Chambless's Avatar
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    Howdy Jeff,

    "A couple of things I see pop up is the "President" did this the "vice President" did that yada yada yada..but how many people work in the Federal workforce.. and how are (two people) going to run and micro manage that?" My point exactly, these two (Clinton and Algore) are the first to jump in front of the camera when something has a high favor rating and claim that they were the reason it happened. More than half the time the things they lay claim to as their accomplishment wasn't even created by their administration. "The president did this" Nope he merely said he did it. "The vice president did that." Again, Nope. He only said he did it and they both want you to believe them because "they feel your pain." :-)

    I'm not attacking the Democratic party in any way, but I am attacking Slick Willie and Algore. These two people (and I use that term loosely) are in the political arena for political gain and personal legacy ONLY. They want their names to be in the history books and want history to look back on them favorably. They will say or attempt to do whatever they can that will get them to that end with no regard for what it will do to or for the country. What plagues my mind is that it is so blatantly obvious with these two and so many people either ignore it or just don't see it. These guys TAKE the credit for everything but never give credit where credit is actually due.

    I am with you 100% on doing some serious house cleaning in our capital. There are many in place right now that are more worthy of being shot by a firing squad than being allowed to hold office, on both sides. I think that Clinton is an excellent speaker not to mention very intelligent (politically) and charismatic, now if he only had a soul, a conscience and maybe the ability to see and think objectively about what the outcome of his political decisions would be I might even consider him to be a decent president. I love to listen to the man talk but I hate listening to what he has to say ;-)

    Note that I have consistently refer to Clinton and Algore and not the Democratic party. My only objection with the Democratic party, which I have stated, is that I don't agree with their platform. That is merely a difference in opinion based on my political belief, but that's healthy in my opinion. Democrats have their ideas, Republicans have theirs, Reform has theirs we put them altogether to reach a compromise that will best serve the people of this nation. That's how it should be. AND in a perfect world...:-)

    Let's build an optical empire, make lots of money and we can own a president too :-)

    Now on a more serious note, I'm in the process of looking for a Yamaha V-Max. When I get one I'm sure Chad will have to have a bike again too and we will ride out to Florida, get you and wreak havoc on the locals. How does that sound? :-)

    So you like guns too, eh? I actually only own a 22 cal. Ruger competition piston, which I have competed with and a Savage Arms 20 gauge Fox over and under. I have never had to actually own any of my own weapons because my dad has always been a gun buff. That's probably why I collect knives ;-)

    I've shot every thing from Garands to SPAS to Colt Gold Cups with gold plated grips and just about everything in between. I use to compete with my dad in large bore pistol competitions. He has a Colt Gold Cup 45, modified slide with compensator and Pakmeir (SP?) grips (modified) and Millet sights. Sweet weapon to shoot. He recently picked up a Baby Eagle 9mm that I haven't shot yet but am looking forward to. He also picked up a Bull Pup Riot 12 gauge with folding stock, just because :-) I can't wait to get that one out either.

    Well, Jeff I hope to meet you in person someday soon. Take care till then.

    Darris C.

    PS. Speaking of knives, I am a preferred customer of Smokey Mountain Knife Works (don't ask how you get that kind of designation though ;-) and this past Sunday was my birthday. My wife (God love her) bought me a multitool and not just any multitool. You know the Leatherman multitool? This one makes those look like a childs toy. It has the usual tools: Phillips screw drivers, flat blade screw drivers, knife, pliers etc. BUT it also has a built in flashlight, digital tire pressure gauge and a built-in fold up ice scraper. Is that extreme or what? ;-) My wife is the greatest! Love ya honey! :-)

    Darris "Still reeling from the excitement" Chambless




  19. #19
    Master OptiBoarder Jeff Trail's Avatar
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    Darris,

    Be sure you guys make it for March or October.. March is "bikeweek" oh.. around 400,000 bikes come to Daytona to party for 10 days :)..October is "biketoberfest".. not as big as the March party, only around a couple hundred thousand :)
    Want to know what it's like to hear the roar of straight pipes for 15 days? Then come here in March.. It's actually pretty fun. Have about a gazillion wet T-shirt contests.. and cole slaw wrestling at a local bar called the cabbage patch.. last year over 10,000 people showed up just for that one event :)
    I have a few OD's that come down every year for it and stay with me and we get kinda "gruffy" looking and play biker for a week.. you should see it, last year we had 4 OD's, me both my brothers (own Harley's of course) and the odd ball.. an Orthodontist we know ...People tend to say "yikes a bunch a "bikers" ..but when you figure a soft tail is running around $20,000 most "bikers" I know are lawyers, dentist and doctors :)
    Load the bikes up and come on down..you and Chad have an open invitation..bring the wives along as well, they'll fit right in with mine and the others spending MONEY :)

    Jeff "washing the bike for biketoberfest" Trail

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