The Oldiesfreak Deluge of Absurdity, Ignorance, and Bad Posts III

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

18 as a purchase age, no actual drinking minimum.  The best way to prevent unhealthy relationships with alcohol is for parents to expose kids to booze themselves, in moderation- that way it's not some sort of forbidden fruit.

FWIW I was 16 when I first had alcohol and that seems about "right".*

As for the scourge of drunk driving, the obvious solution is to raise the driving age instead.   Maybe start introducing learner's permits at 18, and don't issue full licenses until 21.  (I would also consider raising the age to serve in the military or to own firearms to 21, along with driving- the privilege of operating deadly machinery is not a right in the way that votin' or boozin' is, and really does need to be only entrusted to people who have demonstrated sufficient maturity.  Sorry folks.)

*I would not necessarily oppose a purchase minimum of 16, but it would have to be coupled with raising the driving age for me to support it; and I also don't think it's necessarily a bad thing for teenagers to be able to be exposed to alcohol before they're allowed to buy it themselves.

Terrible parts in bold.

I'm aware that my specific proposal regarding the driving age is more idealistic than practical, and I'd be happy to have an open discussion about that- keeping in mind, of course, that "automobile ownership" and "mobility" are far from the same thing.  (I'm aware that this point is not obvious to many- and the fact that it is so obscured is the first problem we have to tackle.)

But it is an indisputable fact that cars are indeed deadly machinery (more deadly than firearms in fact), and thus need to be regulated and restricted to protect the life and limb of both its operators and victims.

The main problem here is you are basically forcing people to live with their parents until 21 unless not in college, especially as a learner's permit is basically worthless unless you live with your parents. I'd have no choice but to go home every summer in college until I was 21.

Considering how interested in improving public transit traininthedistance is I think he's probably already contemplated that and has long-term solutions in mind, although if one raised the driving age first that would be the short-term result, yeah.

Public transit from Bismarck, ND to Mankato, MN would be pretty tricky.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I still have yet to hear how it'd be possible for me to live away from home during the summers until I was 21 though, or how I could learn how to drive living so far away from my parents with a learner's permit even if I got such a job. Or how I'd be able to travel to Minneapolis and Sioux Falls while in college to go to all the shows I did.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

18 as a purchase age, no actual drinking minimum.  The best way to prevent unhealthy relationships with alcohol is for parents to expose kids to booze themselves, in moderation- that way it's not some sort of forbidden fruit.

FWIW I was 16 when I first had alcohol and that seems about "right".*

As for the scourge of drunk driving, the obvious solution is to raise the driving age instead.   Maybe start introducing learner's permits at 18, and don't issue full licenses until 21.  (I would also consider raising the age to serve in the military or to own firearms to 21, along with driving- the privilege of operating deadly machinery is not a right in the way that votin' or boozin' is, and really does need to be only entrusted to people who have demonstrated sufficient maturity.  Sorry folks.)

*I would not necessarily oppose a purchase minimum of 16, but it would have to be coupled with raising the driving age for me to support it; and I also don't think it's necessarily a bad thing for teenagers to be able to be exposed to alcohol before they're allowed to buy it themselves.

Terrible parts in bold.

I'm aware that my specific proposal regarding the driving age is more idealistic than practical, and I'd be happy to have an open discussion about that- keeping in mind, of course, that "automobile ownership" and "mobility" are far from the same thing.  (I'm aware that this point is not obvious to many- and the fact that it is so obscured is the first problem we have to tackle.)

But it is an indisputable fact that cars are indeed deadly machinery (more deadly than firearms in fact), and thus need to be regulated and restricted to protect the life and limb of both its operators and victims.

The main problem here is you are basically forcing people to live with their parents until 21 unless not in college, especially as a learner's permit is basically worthless unless you live with your parents. I'd have no choice but to go home every summer in college until I was 21.

Considering how interested in improving public transit traininthedistance is I think he's probably already contemplated that and has long-term solutions in mind, although if one raised the driving age first that would be the short-term result, yeah.

Public transit from Bismarck, ND to Mankato, MN would be pretty tricky.

Main line from Chicago to Seattle or Calgary or both, with lots of branches?

The Mankato airport basically only ever does flights to the MSP airport, with maybe a once a day flight to another smaller regional one like Sioux Falls, and the Bismarck one is basically the same (I think it has only two real routes, MSP and Denver.) Not surprising but can result in some annoying overlays. Of course as I noted in the other thread most people from Mankato don't even bother with the airport and it's mostly just for commercial use, if you have to fly somewhere else you just drive up to MSP and go directly from there. One time my job had a server go out and the distribution center they got them from was in Edina, so rather than wait for a shipment or flight they just sent up a couple employees to drive up there the same day, pick one up and bring it back, with the view it wasn't that big of a deal because it was just four hours out of an 8-hour day.

But I did take a Greyhound a couple times. (Which basically just functions as you described.) The problem is this is typically how the schedule would run:

10AM: Leave Mankato
Noon: Arrive in Minneapolis
Noon-2PM: Hang around the bus station.
2PM: Leave for Bismarck.
2PM-11PM: Sit on the bus while it goes through all these rural stops often off the main highway.
11PM: Arrive in Bismarck.

...While I just drove I'd make it to Bismarck around 7PM.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

It isn't totally harmless; legalising it will arguably lead to more people dying as a result of it.

In regards to marijuana.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

He linked to a 9/11 Truther site, so it's fitting in both.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The problem with Oldiesfreak is he also posts really bland posts he happens to agree with in the GPG.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The proposal he's replying to is pretty bad, but this post manages to be so dumb and so wrong on sooooo many levels:

Ban him because he is a conservative?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I understand the backlash just in the sense that there is a fear that American identity and culture are eroding. America was always a melting pot: Newcomers learned English and became Americans. I think the ad reminds everyone that that has changed.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

-Shutting down government is an act of terrorism.
-Time Magazine's recent cover of Hillary Clinton was sexist.
-Jesus was a socialist who hated religion and God.
-Hillary Clinton is either the devil or perfect.
-True Leftism.
-Bloombergesque moderate heroism/liberalism.
-Republicans are basically objectivists.
-Banning a certain poster on a private website is somehow a violation of human rights.

There's literally not a single thing in that list that is either widely believed on the Atlas forum or rare anywhere else on the internet, much less both.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Just like if you go to Europe and check out their ultra right wing parties they are to the left of Democrats. 

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Context not really needed.

fringe liberal Burger Court in 1974.

Isn't it kind of a given that everything he posts belongs in this thread and thus posting it is unnecessary? Then again that stands out even by his standards...

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'm certainly no fan of Chavez or Maduro, but calling them fascist does sound pretty absurd to me.

Yeah, the only explanations for that that I can think of are that ag subscribes to the 'horseshoe' thesis or that he's using 'fascist' in the 'political ideology I disagree with A WHOLE LOT' sense.

Except that he also compares them to Mussolini so...

I think his reasoning initially was that Chavez's agenda was quite similar to Jorge Haider or Le Pen's, basically espouse nationalism (something Chavez was huge on) while implementing state control of the economy. A very simplified version but the whole basic jist.

I agree that the Mussolini comparison doesn't work though. In fact the real problem is that Mussolini's brand of fascism isn't really applicable anywhere besides 1920s-1940s Italy. Even the other fascist regimes in Europe at the time were a rather different flavor.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

PASOK 2015!

...Only on Atlas can you find PASOK hacks that aren't either senior citizen Greeks or member of patronage machine unions.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Words can't express...

I'm going to assume western Ukraine is more fiscally conservative, and eastern Ukraine is more socially conservative?

I was reading this on my phone while doing a Ingress farming event sitting in a lobby. Everyone was wondering why I started laughing so hard. Seriously I'll just hope that was a joke because if it wasn't...wow.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Quinnipiac also just released numbers that showed senseless Ohioans favor of medical marijuana use with 87% of Ohioans approving and 11% of FFs disapproving, are in favor of recreational/personal marijuana with 51% of Ohioans approving and 44% of FFs disapproving, and 50% of FFs in support of same-sex marriage in Ohio with 44% opposed. That's still a shame though if more people support drug use, both medical and personal, than they do of two people of the same-sex who love each other to marry. Ohio's on the wrong side of history and if our Republican majority needs to do anything to protect this state, it's preventing marijuana from ever making the ballot in Ohio since the voters can't be trusted. It's no coincidence that voters 18-29 overwhelmingly support it and would just abuse the drug if they ever got the opportunity to use it. I support decriminalization as does John Kasich and likely Ed FitzGerald as well, but they're right as money when they say we have to prevent drug abuse and crime and legalizing marijuana won't do any good for our streets. It's an addiction and if voters agree that what happened in CO and WA is bad for the country, have never before tried the drug, partially agree that it leads to doing other drugs, and overwhelmingly agree that someone on marijuana driving a car is very uncomfortable, then they don't know what they're getting the state into by supporting both types of marijuana. Besides, this amendment has failed before and Attorney General Mike DeWine recently affirmed his position against marijuana who is able to reject the petitions and amendment should he choose. It's clear that the voice of Ohioans is within the grasp of DeWine and I know he'll make the right decision. The amendment would need 385,000 signatures to get an opportunity to be on the ballot, but they're doing much worse than FreedomOhio is with the early petition numbers. They would need the signatures by July 2nd, 2014. If the Ohio Rights Group gets their way, their next target will be recreational marijuana which can't happen. It can't.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

One thing's for sure though...after this a majority of Ukrainians will never again allow their country to fall under Russia's sphere of influence.

Being under Merkel's sphere of influence isn't much better.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The lease is basically in perpetuity, and even Putin isn't pretending it's about the base.

But that is what it is about, the possibility of the base on hostile soil.

If you were an ethic Russian official sitting in Moscow 100 years ago today you could look westward and say, "For our potential enemies to get here, they will have go through the territories filled with Poles, Finns, Belorussians and Ukrainians, that we govern before the set foot on Russian soil.  In the Black Sea, we have a fleet based on our soil to stop them.

If you were an ethnic Russian military official sitting in Moscow 30 years ago today, you could look westward and say, "For our potential enemies to get here, they will have to get past our Allies in East Germany, Czechoslovakia  and then Poland.  Even then, if they enter the Soviet Union, they will have to get past Belorussia and the Ukraine before they step on Russian soil.   In the Black Sea, we have a fleet based on our soil to stop them."

Today?

I'm not defending Putin, but I do understand why he might be a tad worried.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Video games created Anders Behring Breivik. So obviously they are freedom fighters.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Why is this inherently a good thing? Of course the figure will be low if people are being forced to buy insurance!

Isn't it a good thing that people have health insurance? Or do you rather prefer them to die cause they can't afford to pay their medical bills?

This is what liberals, who claim to be so intelligent, just can't understand...you continually suffer from this illusion that the government can manage our society better than the individuals in this society. It goes directly against the American way to force something onto people. Period. Maybe that's the way you do it in Europe, lord knows we Americans know that because it was my countrymen that fought and died so that your country could be free of oppression.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I don't think anyone really believes those four are the "Cold War enders" besides Obamanation.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I'll be at a show in Fargo Friday.

It's in another suburb?

Fargo a suburb. LOL.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Crimea is for all intents and purposes Russian and the 1954 transfer to the Ukrainian SSR was a mistake, though I disapprove of how Russia pursued this annexation.

I wonder how many No voters support Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence. It seems that self-determination only matters when you support the group which wants it.

It's really time for you to show some respect and shut up with your trolling. It was never smart nor funny, but at the point where we are now and people are beginning to die you should really take a step back.

I understand that this is remote for most of you American teenagers but I have friends from the Ukraine crying themselves to sleep with worry for their families. Whiny bitching about irrelevant analogies only serves to make you look dumber.

And I know people whose lives were nearly destroyed by US imperialist ventures, so...

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Crimea is for all intents and purposes Russian and the 1954 transfer to the Ukrainian SSR was a mistake, though I disapprove of how Russia pursued this annexation.

I wonder how many No voters support Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence. It seems that self-determination only matters when you support the group which wants it.

It's really time for you to show some respect and shut up with your trolling. It was never smart nor funny, but at the point where we are now and people are beginning to die you should really take a step back.

I understand that this is remote for most of you American teenagers but I have friends from the Ukraine crying themselves to sleep with worry for their families. Whiny bitching about irrelevant analogies only serves to make you look dumber.

And I know people whose lives were nearly destroyed by US imperialist ventures, so...

Given that this is actually true as I explained later in the thread I fail to see how this is absurd.

No the statement is still incorrect. Now if you had said "US military action" it might be correct, but would still not provide any type of non-fallacious rebuttal to Gustaf's point.