One only needs to look at insects like mayflies and some moths that molt without functioning mouthparts to see that aging past your mating prime is a net loss for most life, as the non-breeding parents simply use up resources that the young could be using.
Group A will listen to their vehicle radio with the balance set louder on the right side.
Group B will listen to their vehicle radio with the balance set louder on the left side.
Group C will be a control and their volume will be balanced equally.
After 6 months compare the statistics on safety, accidents, etc. Of course you would need to control for different music tastes, changing CD's while driving vs sticking to one radio station, etc. but if your sample size is large enough those factors should balance out.
>>the left ear has been shown in some research to be the route to the emotional side of the brain, and the right ear to the non-emotional, logical side.
This would have some interesting implications for conversations in vehicles, since the same person usually drives. Every conversation would thus be interpreted slightly differently by each person. Over time this might help create an interesting dynamic within the relationship.
I've noticed that I talk quite a bit more when I'm a passenger, but that could be simply because I'm not concentrating on driving (or because I'm compensating for the white-knuckled terror of being at the mercy of someone else's driving).
Excluding all of the oil products used in the feeding and transportation of cows/cow products, yes they are carbon neutral. The problem with cows is that they are emitting their carbon in large part in the form of methane, which is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
>>If you have ever been near an industrial cattle or dairy farm, the stench is unimaginable. In a large cattle farm you can see the methane pockets causing the horizon to wiggle.
This being slashdot, I must assume that your sentence simply came out wrong and that you know that methane itself is colorless and odorless.
>>The kind of obese aging people you find in much of the US are rarer in Western Europe, however, as are those scooters that carry them around.
Trust me, as an American who has spent a great deal of time in Europe and the Middle East- this is very true. It's really sad. And the first couple of days back home are weird... You really notice the difference and it feels like you're walking through a carnival sideshow or something. No offense to anyone personally, but the caricatures of us are sadly true for the most part.
Satellites, not so much. King Airs equipped with special ELINT equipment, on the other hand, are very popular and effective within the U.S. intel forces. I've had the pleasure of working on some of them. The problem with this is that flying unmarked King Airs over Tehran would be very conspicuous.
You're right, they are not obsolete in the way that the term is usually used. I guess maybe outdated would be closer to what I meant, as in a 70's dodge charger is outdated compared to modern designs that are lighter and more powerful, etc.
Where I work we still use old mills, lathes, and drill presses from the 50's or earlier, but that's not to say that we use them for parts with low tolerances, complex cuts, or for runs of said parts.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that although the plans for presses made in the 60's might be hard to find online, it might not be so hard to find plans online for presses made in the last decade. Of course there is a barrier to entry for access to these plans, just as I'm pretty sure you didn't get those plans in the 60's from the corner book store. My first instinct, where I in need of a huge stamping press, would be to take an existing press apart and duplicate the parts in situ. We are often left in this situation anyways as plans (actual dimensioned building plans), whether 30 years old or 3 years old, are not publicly available, even for equipment we're tasked to support.
>>Bad news: your 15% figure is out of date. We're now spending 17% of our GDP on health care, and if the trend of the 2000s continues, we'll be at 30% by 2020.
Independent of the rest of your post, your rising healthcare cost trend made me wonder how much of that is caused by our aging 'baby boomer' population. And on a related note, I am curious if other industrialized nations have the same phenomenon, and if so, if it is as pronounced as it is here in the U.S.
Can anyone shed some light on this for me? Does France, Canada, Japan, et al. have an aging boomer population that is also raising the healthcare percentage of their GDP?
I've spent time in my city library, and they most certainly do not specialize in drafting vellum.
What they do have is a huge section dedicated to historic letters and maps from when this area was colonized; manuals on fortran, basic, and... that's about it; and 20 copies of every stephen king book ever written.
And they have microfiche of many newspapers going back 200 years- useful, but not in the way you propose.
Lol, only on slashdot, where "if you have nothing to hide, why are you hiding" can be cited as an example of naive ignorance of the importance of privacy -OR- now with added flavor, it can be used to goad someone for claiming that the gov't *isn't* working nights to persecute you. Thank you for twisting the issue from "How do I show my kid some cool chemistry experiments" to "Nyah nyah, the gov't IS TOO out to get you! I'll prove it!"
My U/N and real name and address are all easily correlated.
The only reason to give some slashdotters my address is to get a lot of grief in return while they try to prove by being assholes themselves that the gov't is all assholes. So here's your chance to show your true mettle.
>>Today, ordering those exact same chemicals in the same quantity outside of having a 'valid' reason would almost certainly constitute a red flag somewhere and that should not be the case.
Citation needed. Give me a few examples, and leave out the ones that are obviously really unwise to give to kids, like hydrazine or hydrofluoric acid.
I think you're confusing my situation (not being hassled, not doing anything illegal) with another situation (not being hassled, doing something illegal). The entire point of my post was to illustrate the breadth of activities and possessions I can have WITHOUT falling afoul of the law while still being fun and interesting. At no point did I describe anything illegal. If police came through my house, they would find nothing remarkable or illicit.
The subtext of my post was that slashdot has this huge persecution complex, like the gov't gives a rat's ass if you have Ethereal on your computer or ammonium nitrate in your garage *but you aren't doing anything illegal with it*. What you consider to be lawful vs unlawful is a different topic.
You don't need my address. Many people already have my address, and I've never had a problem. The police know my address from my permit to purchase handguns. The FBI knows my address from my background check. And everything I own that could be considered hazardous is tied to my address either because I had to fill out a quick background check to get it or because I ordered it online with my own credit card under my real name.
Except that I already have secret clearance in the military, extensive background checks, perfect criminal and driving records, and several dozen character witnesses that would attest to the fact that I have never talked about committing a crime or anything else related to the subversion of the gov't. I am, in short, untouchable, and any trial would be thrown out. There also remains the fact that, like I said, I own nothing that could be made into a high-order explosive. My neighbor, on the other hand, with his drums of gasoline and used motor oil, fertilizer and plumbing scrap, looks like a textbook bomber.
The gov't is not out to get me, or you. The gov't couldn't care less about what I do as long as I don't hurt anyone and continue to pay taxes. In the Real World, the worst that could happen is that I mixed up some tannerite and left it in the garage overnight, since that would be considered improper storage of a 1.4 class explosive and that would result in a citation. At the worst.
Maybe mistakes do happen sometimes... But I think that behind the horrifying slashdot summaries there is an entire story that we don't get to hear that would explain the feds' actions. In fact, I know that's the case because half the political articles on/. turn out to be completely false.
I've done this very successfully using liver instead of spit. You get much more dna that way, since you're using chunks of cellular matter instead of just a few stray epithelial cells.
A few words of advice- Use everclear instead of rum. Get it as cold as possible; I used a salt/ice bath. The colder the better. Instead of pouring the alcohol into the glass, decant it using a glass stirring rod or something similar ( http://www.csudh.edu/oliver/demos/gravsulf/pour-r2.jpg ). Do this as slowly as possible. Pre-chill your stir rod to keep the alcohol cold. If you use cellular matter like liver or meat, grind it with a mortar and pestle. A spoon and a bowl will work in a pinch.
It is a very neat experiment to do with kids around, since you can see the results and there's nothing too toxic involved.
I think your reaction is a bit too knee-jerk. I have a great interest in all scientific fields, and as a result I own a LOT of scientific equipment. Microscopes, glassware, obscure-looking dyes and chems, breadboards and little electronic components, miles of wire, books explaining incidentally how to do 'bad' things, powerful lasers and magnets, etc. etc. Welding and brazing equipment, gasoline, propane, MAPP, mercury and lead, gunpowder and primers, flares- these are among some of the things I have on my property. And I do have some leftovers from my childhood chemistry set which might not let you mix up a batch of meth or HDX but you can do some interesting things (and more importantly, LEARN things). The FBI has not shown up, and neither has the DEA. Homeland security has been quiet about it. The police department hasn't visited.
I own many guns, a lot of ammo, some sharp knives, and some radioactive materials. You can buy your own radioactive materials, legally, from United Nuclear. Google them. They also provide many of the interesting chems that you might remember from your childhood. I also built (but operate legally, as a test set) an fm osc/amp set. The BATF, the NRC, and the FCC have all failed to show up.
Without leaving my house I could make any number of destructive devices, but I wouldn't do that because I'm an adult. I use my stuff to learn by experimenting. Again, the main idea is that the education is more important than the fireworks. I understand that keeping a 10-year-old's attention can be difficult, hence the spectacular (but educationally vapid) experiments for kids that age. But if a teenager can't understand or be impressed by demonstrations and explanations of buffered solutions, the speed of light, or cell mitosis... I have to say that maybe science just isn't for them.
fwiw, I just ordered 20 pounds of tannerite explosive *legally* and it was on sale. My point with all of this is that although science may be hard to find in our classrooms, it is NOT gone. You have to go looking for it but it is still legal and still for sale and if you want your kid to share your high school chem experiences, you can do it at home- and you won't find it at toys-r-us.
>>No time to stop and say "what in the name of FUCK am I doing here?"
LOL, My third trip to Iraq I actually did have time to think about this. I'll set it up for you (it may not make sense to everyone):
I was standing at the back of a long line at the west side BX at Anaconda where there were like 6 other empty but unmanned lanes for checkout. I'm pretty sure I was buying soap or clothespins or something. Most of the people in line were contractors in jeans and t-shirts. That's not where it began to sink in. Further up the line, 15 minutes later, I have to stand in front of a display for full-length mirrors. So for at least 5 minutes I had to stand there avoiding my own reflection.
What did I see? Sage green boots with sage green bootlaces. Sage green and tan trousers. Sage green and tan blouse. Sage green and tan hat tucked into a sage green and tan pocket. Sunburned face, short-cropped hair. One hand holding a bottle of soap and a pack of clothespins. Oh I forgot the reflective belt. Yep, gotta wear that yellow reflective belt. This probably sounds really stupid, but right then at that moment I thought, "How the FUCK did I end up in this fucking country wearing this stupid fucking outfit waiting in this stupid fucking line to buy fucking clothespins so I can wash my laundry in my fucking garbage can in my room and hang it out to dry in the fucking dust because my shift schedule makes it nearly impossible to get laundry done where NORMAL people do it and on top of that what mistake did I make in my life that made me willing to get shot at in order to do it? What the fuck did I do?"
I've been through some really shitty things over there but it wasn't until then that the realization sank in that I was 26, wearing a retarded costume designed by someone whose operational needs involved walking from their car to their office, and that nothing that 26 year olds enjoyed in life was available to me within an 18-hour plane ride. That for thanksgiving and christmas and new year's eve I was going to be stuck on an airfield in a cloud of garbage smoke with assholes who would stab me in the back for a smiley face sticker on their epr, who would lie to me with a smile on their face, who would steal from me, for whom I was expected to lay my life on the line, all in shitty weather with god's own mistakes crawling and flying and biting without respite while people I've never met and who I might actually get along with bombarded me with mortars and rockets. Where soldiers and marines slowly died in a field hospital across the street from a fucking taco bell. For a cause that I didn't believe in, that most americans didn't believe in, that I wouldn't ever feel proud of fighting for, that my kids and grandkids would look at as a colossal mistake.
I love my job and despite what I've said I wouldn't trade it for anything (well, hardly anything). The places I've been and things I've seen and the people I've met make up for all the really shitty times except during certain dark nights alone when they come back. This is the life I naively chose, the life I slowly adapted to, and now it's become an indelible part of me. Was it really my choice or not? It's impossible to say.
The point of all this: Kids, don't believe video games. And don't join the military. Go play paintball or counterstrike and get your degree and get your lame-ass job at a brokerage or in tech support or where ever because I'm telling you, and this is no bullshit, your lame ass job will seem like a royal appointment compared to being in the military.
And if you still join, I'm sure you'll have some good times, and it won't be until years later that you look back and think, "Hey that random guy on the internet was right. I really HAVE wasted four/six/ten years of my life trying to kill strangers. That's pretty fucked up. I wish I had someone waiting for me at home. I wish I had played a role in my family's life. I wish I hadn't missed out on almost every single fun time that my friends had back home. I'm done now and all I have to show for it is a DD214 and a duffel bag full of worn out uniforms."
Sorry, I had to rant, these things sneak up on you like that.
Well, you're right- the chemistry part of things could cause problems for a lot of people. But on the other hand so could soap-making. Me, I'm not a doctor or a chemist, but I can treat wounds and make helpful things like gunpowder and soap. You don't need a PhD to do those things- our ancestors did them thousands of years ago. What I like to see are people getting out of their element and learning a skill or two that they don't need but might prove useful. CPR class is an obvious example, but other really good experiences can come from craft fairs, boy scouts, summer camp, etc. Sometimes even just reading a book on a whim can give great insight when trouble arises (am I the only one who read a book on knots on a whim?)
It's sad to think about, but I'm pretty sure that in the event of a great disaster, our population centers would display markedly greater mortality per capita than other areas. From a survival standpoint, the center of New York City is about as bad as things get.
So anyways what I mean is, your original post was correct in that skill and knowledge may become the most valuable currency of all.
Slashdot Mirror
One only needs to look at insects like mayflies and some moths that molt without functioning mouthparts to see that aging past your mating prime is a net loss for most life, as the non-breeding parents simply use up resources that the young could be using.
-b
Well, here's an easy exercise to start with:
Group A will listen to their vehicle radio with the balance set louder on the right side.
Group B will listen to their vehicle radio with the balance set louder on the left side.
Group C will be a control and their volume will be balanced equally.
After 6 months compare the statistics on safety, accidents, etc. Of course you would need to control for different music tastes, changing CD's while driving vs sticking to one radio station, etc. but if your sample size is large enough those factors should balance out.
-b
>>the left ear has been shown in some research to be the route to the emotional side of the brain, and the right ear to the non-emotional, logical side.
This would have some interesting implications for conversations in vehicles, since the same person usually drives. Every conversation would thus be interpreted slightly differently by each person. Over time this might help create an interesting dynamic within the relationship.
I've noticed that I talk quite a bit more when I'm a passenger, but that could be simply because I'm not concentrating on driving (or because I'm compensating for the white-knuckled terror of being at the mercy of someone else's driving).
-b
Excluding all of the oil products used in the feeding and transportation of cows/cow products, yes they are carbon neutral. The problem with cows is that they are emitting their carbon in large part in the form of methane, which is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
-b
>>Guess what, the extraction of natural gas is an major methane contributor.
You do know that natural gas IS methane, right?
-b
>>If you have ever been near an industrial cattle or dairy farm, the stench is unimaginable. In a large cattle farm you can see the methane pockets causing the horizon to wiggle.
This being slashdot, I must assume that your sentence simply came out wrong and that you know that methane itself is colorless and odorless.
-b
Funny joke; but you can go to the monopoly website to get PDFs of monopoly money for personal printing in the even that you lose some.
http://www.hasbro.com/games/kid-games/monopoly/default.cfm?page=StrategyGuide/gametools
-b
>>The kind of obese aging people you find in much of the US are rarer in Western Europe, however, as are those scooters that carry them around.
Trust me, as an American who has spent a great deal of time in Europe and the Middle East- this is very true. It's really sad. And the first couple of days back home are weird... You really notice the difference and it feels like you're walking through a carnival sideshow or something. No offense to anyone personally, but the caricatures of us are sadly true for the most part.
-b
Satellites, not so much. King Airs equipped with special ELINT equipment, on the other hand, are very popular and effective within the U.S. intel forces. I've had the pleasure of working on some of them. The problem with this is that flying unmarked King Airs over Tehran would be very conspicuous.
-b
The matching *head*set has been causing problems with beta testers, though...
-b
You're right, they are not obsolete in the way that the term is usually used. I guess maybe outdated would be closer to what I meant, as in a 70's dodge charger is outdated compared to modern designs that are lighter and more powerful, etc.
Where I work we still use old mills, lathes, and drill presses from the 50's or earlier, but that's not to say that we use them for parts with low tolerances, complex cuts, or for runs of said parts.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that although the plans for presses made in the 60's might be hard to find online, it might not be so hard to find plans online for presses made in the last decade. Of course there is a barrier to entry for access to these plans, just as I'm pretty sure you didn't get those plans in the 60's from the corner book store. My first instinct, where I in need of a huge stamping press, would be to take an existing press apart and duplicate the parts in situ. We are often left in this situation anyways as plans (actual dimensioned building plans), whether 30 years old or 3 years old, are not publicly available, even for equipment we're tasked to support.
-b
>>Bad news: your 15% figure is out of date. We're now spending 17% of our GDP on health care, and if the trend of the 2000s continues, we'll be at 30% by 2020.
Independent of the rest of your post, your rising healthcare cost trend made me wonder how much of that is caused by our aging 'baby boomer' population. And on a related note, I am curious if other industrialized nations have the same phenomenon, and if so, if it is as pronounced as it is here in the U.S.
Can anyone shed some light on this for me? Does France, Canada, Japan, et al. have an aging boomer population that is also raising the healthcare percentage of their GDP?
-b
>>When you use the internet, and filter noise yourself, you aren't getting the same level of service.
Some of us are more than capable of being librarians ourselves, thank you very much.
-b
>>show me the plans for a 800 ton double action stamping press from the mid 60s on the internet
Show my the same plans on paper anywhere besides your own bookshelf. While you won't find complete plans (for obsolete machinery) on the internet, you can *learn* a great deal about it. You could start here: http://www.thefabricator.com/PressTechnology/PressTechnology_Article.cfm?ID=1844
I've spent time in my city library, and they most certainly do not specialize in drafting vellum.
What they do have is a huge section dedicated to historic letters and maps from when this area was colonized; manuals on fortran, basic, and... that's about it; and 20 copies of every stephen king book ever written.
And they have microfiche of many newspapers going back 200 years- useful, but not in the way you propose.
-b
An iPhone emulator that runs on a Commodore 64? Color me surprised!
Hopefully this means that I can upgrade my old boxes by emulating dual core processors on them. Links, anyone? ;)
-b
Lol, only on slashdot, where "if you have nothing to hide, why are you hiding" can be cited as an example of naive ignorance of the importance of privacy -OR- now with added flavor, it can be used to goad someone for claiming that the gov't *isn't* working nights to persecute you. Thank you for twisting the issue from "How do I show my kid some cool chemistry experiments" to "Nyah nyah, the gov't IS TOO out to get you! I'll prove it!"
My U/N and real name and address are all easily correlated.
My street: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=proctor+mn&sll=37.649034,-95.712891&sspn=41.079466,93.164063&ie=UTF8&ll=46.741853,-92.215081&spn=0.001095,0.002843&z=19&iwloc=A
The only reason to give some slashdotters my address is to get a lot of grief in return while they try to prove by being assholes themselves that the gov't is all assholes. So here's your chance to show your true mettle.
>>Today, ordering those exact same chemicals in the same quantity outside of having a 'valid' reason would almost certainly constitute a red flag somewhere and that should not be the case.
Citation needed. Give me a few examples, and leave out the ones that are obviously really unwise to give to kids, like hydrazine or hydrofluoric acid.
-b
I think you're confusing my situation (not being hassled, not doing anything illegal) with another situation (not being hassled, doing something illegal). The entire point of my post was to illustrate the breadth of activities and possessions I can have WITHOUT falling afoul of the law while still being fun and interesting. At no point did I describe anything illegal. If police came through my house, they would find nothing remarkable or illicit.
The subtext of my post was that slashdot has this huge persecution complex, like the gov't gives a rat's ass if you have Ethereal on your computer or ammonium nitrate in your garage *but you aren't doing anything illegal with it*. What you consider to be lawful vs unlawful is a different topic.
-b
You don't need my address. Many people already have my address, and I've never had a problem. The police know my address from my permit to purchase handguns. The FBI knows my address from my background check. And everything I own that could be considered hazardous is tied to my address either because I had to fill out a quick background check to get it or because I ordered it online with my own credit card under my real name.
Your point is taken but it's really unnecessary.
-b
Except that I already have secret clearance in the military, extensive background checks, perfect criminal and driving records, and several dozen character witnesses that would attest to the fact that I have never talked about committing a crime or anything else related to the subversion of the gov't. I am, in short, untouchable, and any trial would be thrown out. There also remains the fact that, like I said, I own nothing that could be made into a high-order explosive. My neighbor, on the other hand, with his drums of gasoline and used motor oil, fertilizer and plumbing scrap, looks like a textbook bomber.
The gov't is not out to get me, or you. The gov't couldn't care less about what I do as long as I don't hurt anyone and continue to pay taxes. In the Real World, the worst that could happen is that I mixed up some tannerite and left it in the garage overnight, since that would be considered improper storage of a 1.4 class explosive and that would result in a citation. At the worst.
Maybe mistakes do happen sometimes... But I think that behind the horrifying slashdot summaries there is an entire story that we don't get to hear that would explain the feds' actions. In fact, I know that's the case because half the political articles on /. turn out to be completely false.
-b
I've done this very successfully using liver instead of spit. You get much more dna that way, since you're using chunks of cellular matter instead of just a few stray epithelial cells.
A few words of advice- Use everclear instead of rum. Get it as cold as possible; I used a salt/ice bath. The colder the better. Instead of pouring the alcohol into the glass, decant it using a glass stirring rod or something similar ( http://www.csudh.edu/oliver/demos/gravsulf/pour-r2.jpg ). Do this as slowly as possible. Pre-chill your stir rod to keep the alcohol cold. If you use cellular matter like liver or meat, grind it with a mortar and pestle. A spoon and a bowl will work in a pinch.
It is a very neat experiment to do with kids around, since you can see the results and there's nothing too toxic involved.
-b
I think your reaction is a bit too knee-jerk. I have a great interest in all scientific fields, and as a result I own a LOT of scientific equipment. Microscopes, glassware, obscure-looking dyes and chems, breadboards and little electronic components, miles of wire, books explaining incidentally how to do 'bad' things, powerful lasers and magnets, etc. etc. Welding and brazing equipment, gasoline, propane, MAPP, mercury and lead, gunpowder and primers, flares- these are among some of the things I have on my property. And I do have some leftovers from my childhood chemistry set which might not let you mix up a batch of meth or HDX but you can do some interesting things (and more importantly, LEARN things). The FBI has not shown up, and neither has the DEA. Homeland security has been quiet about it. The police department hasn't visited.
I own many guns, a lot of ammo, some sharp knives, and some radioactive materials. You can buy your own radioactive materials, legally, from United Nuclear. Google them. They also provide many of the interesting chems that you might remember from your childhood. I also built (but operate legally, as a test set) an fm osc/amp set. The BATF, the NRC, and the FCC have all failed to show up.
Without leaving my house I could make any number of destructive devices, but I wouldn't do that because I'm an adult. I use my stuff to learn by experimenting. Again, the main idea is that the education is more important than the fireworks. I understand that keeping a 10-year-old's attention can be difficult, hence the spectacular (but educationally vapid) experiments for kids that age. But if a teenager can't understand or be impressed by demonstrations and explanations of buffered solutions, the speed of light, or cell mitosis... I have to say that maybe science just isn't for them.
fwiw, I just ordered 20 pounds of tannerite explosive *legally* and it was on sale. My point with all of this is that although science may be hard to find in our classrooms, it is NOT gone. You have to go looking for it but it is still legal and still for sale and if you want your kid to share your high school chem experiences, you can do it at home- and you won't find it at toys-r-us.
-b
>>No time to stop and say "what in the name of FUCK am I doing here?"
LOL, My third trip to Iraq I actually did have time to think about this. I'll set it up for you (it may not make sense to everyone):
I was standing at the back of a long line at the west side BX at Anaconda where there were like 6 other empty but unmanned lanes for checkout. I'm pretty sure I was buying soap or clothespins or something. Most of the people in line were contractors in jeans and t-shirts. That's not where it began to sink in. Further up the line, 15 minutes later, I have to stand in front of a display for full-length mirrors. So for at least 5 minutes I had to stand there avoiding my own reflection.
What did I see? Sage green boots with sage green bootlaces. Sage green and tan trousers. Sage green and tan blouse. Sage green and tan hat tucked into a sage green and tan pocket. Sunburned face, short-cropped hair. One hand holding a bottle of soap and a pack of clothespins. Oh I forgot the reflective belt. Yep, gotta wear that yellow reflective belt. This probably sounds really stupid, but right then at that moment I thought, "How the FUCK did I end up in this fucking country wearing this stupid fucking outfit waiting in this stupid fucking line to buy fucking clothespins so I can wash my laundry in my fucking garbage can in my room and hang it out to dry in the fucking dust because my shift schedule makes it nearly impossible to get laundry done where NORMAL people do it and on top of that what mistake did I make in my life that made me willing to get shot at in order to do it? What the fuck did I do?"
I've been through some really shitty things over there but it wasn't until then that the realization sank in that I was 26, wearing a retarded costume designed by someone whose operational needs involved walking from their car to their office, and that nothing that 26 year olds enjoyed in life was available to me within an 18-hour plane ride. That for thanksgiving and christmas and new year's eve I was going to be stuck on an airfield in a cloud of garbage smoke with assholes who would stab me in the back for a smiley face sticker on their epr, who would lie to me with a smile on their face, who would steal from me, for whom I was expected to lay my life on the line, all in shitty weather with god's own mistakes crawling and flying and biting without respite while people I've never met and who I might actually get along with bombarded me with mortars and rockets. Where soldiers and marines slowly died in a field hospital across the street from a fucking taco bell. For a cause that I didn't believe in, that most americans didn't believe in, that I wouldn't ever feel proud of fighting for, that my kids and grandkids would look at as a colossal mistake.
I love my job and despite what I've said I wouldn't trade it for anything (well, hardly anything). The places I've been and things I've seen and the people I've met make up for all the really shitty times except during certain dark nights alone when they come back. This is the life I naively chose, the life I slowly adapted to, and now it's become an indelible part of me. Was it really my choice or not? It's impossible to say.
The point of all this: Kids, don't believe video games. And don't join the military. Go play paintball or counterstrike and get your degree and get your lame-ass job at a brokerage or in tech support or where ever because I'm telling you, and this is no bullshit, your lame ass job will seem like a royal appointment compared to being in the military.
And if you still join, I'm sure you'll have some good times, and it won't be until years later that you look back and think, "Hey that random guy on the internet was right. I really HAVE wasted four/six/ten years of my life trying to kill strangers. That's pretty fucked up. I wish I had someone waiting for me at home. I wish I had played a role in my family's life. I wish I hadn't missed out on almost every single fun time that my friends had back home. I'm done now and all I have to show for it is a DD214 and a duffel bag full of worn out uniforms."
Sorry, I had to rant, these things sneak up on you like that.
-b
I recommend buying "the encyclopedia of country living". Look it up on Amazon.com for a good description of its contents.
Probably the best book out there and it covers topics you might not have considered.
-b
Well, you're right- the chemistry part of things could cause problems for a lot of people. But on the other hand so could soap-making. Me, I'm not a doctor or a chemist, but I can treat wounds and make helpful things like gunpowder and soap. You don't need a PhD to do those things- our ancestors did them thousands of years ago. What I like to see are people getting out of their element and learning a skill or two that they don't need but might prove useful. CPR class is an obvious example, but other really good experiences can come from craft fairs, boy scouts, summer camp, etc. Sometimes even just reading a book on a whim can give great insight when trouble arises (am I the only one who read a book on knots on a whim?)
It's sad to think about, but I'm pretty sure that in the event of a great disaster, our population centers would display markedly greater mortality per capita than other areas. From a survival standpoint, the center of New York City is about as bad as things get.
So anyways what I mean is, your original post was correct in that skill and knowledge may become the most valuable currency of all.
-b
For the price of ONE new psp game I could fill my iPhone with games and music.
That right there is why the iPhone is 'shaking the industry'.
-b