Category: *heh*

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Waste of Time

Memory spurred by random crap on the Interwebs: When Doc Yarborough told me he wanted me to apply for a MENSA membership (after some p-sych tests taken as part of a senior p-sych course), I knew it was not for me. I mean, why join yet another group I’d have to explain everything to?

Nah. I just gave him my (extracurricular) survey on the GSR research he was interested in and bugged out. (The info I handed him was based on my idiosyncratic results of running the unblinded tests on myself. Decidedly NOT valid for anything but an open comparison of results, and could have been influenced by my knowledge of the research, but still interesting to him. My results were decidedly. . . Odd, of course. *heh*)

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The Original ‘Florida Man’

De Leon was a Ponce.

On another topic. . .

If Banana Ball rules were instituted in MLB, I might stay awake for a whole game. If Banana Ball rules were somehow _translated_ into the NFL – even if just in spirit – I might even actually find watching football moderately interesting.

Actually, if gladiator “deathmatch” rules were instituted in the NFL, I would definitely watch. . . Oooo! NBA deathmatches! Wait. No, MBA deathmatches! Yeh, watch the Wall Street Bloodsport! (The NHL already has these beat, so. . . ) Better: CSPAN after a constitutional amendment REQUIRING all congresscritters to be armed whenever Congress is in session. CSPAN would rule cable.

? This is what happens when a guy dreams w/o enough coffee in his bloodstream.

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It’s a Real Head-Scratcher

I don’t understand why Peter Jackson did all the CGI stuff to make Andy Serkis into Gollum for LoTR, when James Carville could have played the role w/o even any makeup.

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Apropos of Nothing in Particular. . .

Just a random thought that intruded into my day. . .

I really do not understand why the MK MPT-76 is termed an “assault rifle” instead of a “main battle rifle” as

Its 7.62×51mm (roughly a .30 caliber round in fairly high-powered configuration matching the typical .308 Winchester “deer” and other medium-large game round) NATO round falls outside the parameters generally accepted for assault rifle rounds and was initially used in M14 main battle rifles and M60 machine guns (in the US military).
Its USE in the Turkish military is as a main battle rifle.

Still, in general use, most refer to this rifle as an “assault rifle,” completely against all reason.

It’s a real head-scratcher. . .

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Terminally Stupid Quora Questions

I used to think FarceBook and TwitPost were the best “stupid traps” on the interwebs, but Quora has begun to convince me otherwise. For example, a recent question:

Why does Grace O’Malley-Kumar’s mother believe there should be mandatory prison terms for knife carrying?

(Recap, some goblin in Nottingham, England, attacked a teen with a knife as she tried to protect a friend, killing her.)

My answer to this stupid question is,

Because she stupidly blames the tool for the actions of the killer. Banning the carrying of knives is as stupid as banning guns. Only those who intend no harm to others will comply. Those who intend to harm others will not comply. After all, they already intend to break the law with acts of violence.

What should be done instead is for the killer (whom I will not name, because spreading his name just adds to his “fame”) to be executed using the same means he used to kill Grace. Publicly. Videoed and broadcast regularly as a warning to other goblins. (BTW, that is how drunk drivers who kill someone should be executed: by having their car – or its remains – dropped on them until they are road paste. Again, videoed and shown as a warning to drunks who choose to drive.)

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Memory Aids. . . of a Sort

The fun thing about aging is that, while new injuries seem to take longer to heal, at least I probably won’t miss them for long, since old injuries (some 60 or more years old) continually remind me of their continuing (have I stressed “continue” enough yet? 😉 ) presence. Joy! It’s a memory boost! Maybe I will NEVER “forget” an injury! *heh*

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“Military Grade”

Confession: while I despise the word “smirk,” primarily because subliterate 20-somethings misuse it so much, I confess to smirking (appropriate use notice! *heh*) whenever I see some company tout a product as “military grade.” (Too often – once is too often, but sadly it seems to be more often than that – “military grade” means “low bid from the company offering the most graft.”)

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Is It just Me?

Yeh, it’s probably just me. *heh*

Lil hitches in a sci-fi (or really, any) story stand out when the rest is well-written (especially if it’s “hard” sci-fi, which must meet a stricter standard for suspension of disbelief). Here’s a marginal blip: in order to “blend in,” a Chicom operative orders a cheese pizza. . . and eats it. The thing is, while lactose intolerance among those of northern European ancestry has generally been around 5%, among the Chinese, especially the Han, it’s around 90%. A cheese pizza just doesn’t seem normal. To me, that would stand out, not blend in.

*shrugs* My Wonder Woman chides me sometimes about being a bit too detail oriented, so maybe this is just an idiosyncratic problem.