I Said, Hey... What's Going On?

[NikoBaltimore]

1 hour ago, (BP) said:

Yes, we deserve the elderly, weak candidates they force on us because we’re bad people. That must be it. 

Stuff like what Pete said is out of anger and I understand that mindset.  There's a whole lot of that going around.  But as tempting as it is for me to say that what it inadvertently does is shame those who don't deserve it.  Now a lot of shame can be thrown around for the process as while Biden is fine the party hitched their wagons to him and pushed him over everybody else.  Because everything is wrestling to me it's not a stretch to find parallels with how they'll prop up a star over more deserving options.  Shame can also be dished out to the avenues that foster misinformation such as Facebook.  But for individual people shaming them doesn't do much good especially when I feel that they rely on that division for their own gain.

BUT I do agree that not voting is hard for me to justify if one is able to do so.  I try not to demonize them but I will admit to sometimes thinking "Really?  Well, Okay, I guess"  Voting third party would be nice if there was a credible candidate.  But going back to shame there's plenty of that that can be dished out to how the two-party system works.  It basically devolved into the "My team is greater than your team" stance that's overtaken the race.  So no matter how awful 45 he is because he's on their team they'll back him anyway.  There's a lot of things that need to be done to fix that but an opportunity for another party to step up and have equal footing would be so damn nice.

As for the debate I tried for less than ten minutes before turning it off.  If my wife wasn't there I'd just watch it and want to drink a whole bottle of whiskey.  But I got what I needed from CNN's live coverage on the site.  I wanted to cry or yell or something but I just felt really numb to the whole damn thing.  To say it's the worst year ever is a gross understatement and I'm just hoping that next year leads to actual progress.

EDIT:  @PeteI don't want to add another post but to comment on your post below you're well within your rights.  I'm very angry about this myself and this post is as much a reminder to myself as well as making a point.  So if it means avoiding particular bars or places and avoiding roads with a ton of signs then I'm doing that for the sake of my sanity.  I just hope that once all this clears I can look at somebody from the other side and go "Lemme buy you a beer" so we can try and make peace.  But as for Biden I'll pick him but I don't feel too good about it.

Edited September 30, 2020 by NikoBaltimore

[(BP)]

In this context I would settle for a collective narrative about a certain voting bloc being that it’s either too insignificant to deserve policy considerations on a national level or that it’s so powerful and widespread that it can tank an election for a candidate. Pick one bad faith argument at a time. 

[jaedmc]

Friendly reminder This is Not a politics thread. Or a Debate live watch thread.

We've been pretty loose about it because of COVID and Protests for Racial Equality, but we're not going to make this the place to dissect these two man shitshows until November.

[NikoBaltimore]

2 minutes ago, jaedmc said:

Friendly reminder This is Not a politics thread. Or a Debate live watch thread.

We've been pretty loose about it because of COVID and Protests for Racial Equality, but we're not going to make this the place to dissect these two man shitshows until November.

Sorry about that.  I don't use other social media for this and with what was posted felt a need to say something that hopefully makes sense.  I would have loved to post this on Facebook but with the shitshow it is that's just not happening.  But I'll see to avoid talk about it on here. 

Edited September 30, 2020 by NikoBaltimore

[Pete]

47 minutes ago, NikoBaltimore said:

Stuff like what Pete said is out of anger and I understand that mindset.  There's a whole lot of that going around.  But as tempting as it is for me to say that what it inadvertently does is shame those who don't deserve it.  Now a lot of shame can be thrown around for the process as while Biden is fine the party hitched their wagons to him and pushed him over everybody else.  Because everything is wrestling to me it's not a stretch to find parallels with how they'll prop up a star over more deserving options.  Shame can also be dished out to the avenues that foster misinformation such as Facebook.  But for individual people shaming them doesn't do much good especially when I feel that they rely on that division for their own gain.

BUT I do agree that not voting is hard for me to justify if one is able to do so.  I try not to demonize them but I will admit to sometimes thinking "Really?  Well, Okay, I guess"  Voting third party would be nice if there was a credible candidate.  But going back to shame there's plenty of that that can be dished out to how the two-party system works.  It basically devolved into the "My team is greater than your team" stance that's overtaken the race.  So no matter how awful 45 he is because he's on their team they'll back him anyway.  There's a lot of things that need to be done to fix that but an opportunity for another party to step up and have equal footing would be so damn nice.

I think I'm well within my right to be angry at people who look at what an absolute shit sandwich the USA has become since Dick à l'Orange won the Presidency by minus-three million votes thanks to an election process that literally predates slavery and go "more please."  Biden was never my top choice, as some of y'all might remember from my previous avatar. But the people have spoken, and he now stands as the single strongest candidate BY DEFAULT to oust Trump. 

Believe me, I'd love to see a viable third party system... but people like Jill Stein and Howie Hawkins (both of whom have won as many meaningful political offices as I have) treat it as a vanity project, showing up once every four years rather than put in the work. There's a reason people like AOC run under a Democratic ticket instead of the Green Party, because they know the third party system is currently untenable. They're far more successful promoting green issues from within the system than without, and it's a shame more people haven't picked up on that.

Done venting per @jaedmc. How about that local sports team?

[StretchMediatedHypertrophy]

[jaedmc]

I'll just make the font bigger. And bolder. And underline it.

[Coletti]

Somewhat related to the politics but perhaps a welcome tangent...

Has anybody here applied for citizenship in another country of heritage? Being half Italian gives me the option to gain Italian citizenship and a passport. It sounds very tempting for a multitude of reasons. Anybody else gone down this path?

[Kuetsar]

All I'll say is that I wish someone would taking the booking of 2020 away from Vince Russo. . .

[Craig H]

EDIT: Nevermind

Edited September 30, 2020 by Craig H

[supremebve]

Just now, Craig H said:

One of them isn't a clown and it does a major disservice to keep labeling them as such. Knock it off and be better.

Both of them are clowns, and you can't convince me otherwise.  One of them is the king of the clowns who is also the pied piper of racists, assholes, and douchebags, but the other is still a clown.  Honestly, if you had to bet your life on it, would you bet against either of them being rapists?  I'd sleep good at night betting my life that they are both rapists.  My point is and remains, if this is the best we got, we got a losing hand.  There are 300+ million people in this country, and we are deciding between two rapists.  That is a horrible sign for a society.  This shit is over.  We have lost.  We aren't coming back from this.  

[Kuetsar]

Well it was a nice thread while it lasted. . . .

[Craig H]

5 minutes ago, supremebve said:

Both of them are clowns, and you can't convince me otherwise.  One of them is the king of the clowns who is also the pied piper of racists, assholes, and douchebags, but the other is still a clown.  Honestly, if you had to bet your life on it, would you bet against either of them being rapists?  I'd sleep good at night betting my life that they are both rapists.  My point is and remains, if this is the best we got, we got a losing hand.  There are 300+ million people in this country, and we are deciding between two rapists.  That is a horrible sign for a society.  This shit is over.  We have lost.  We aren't coming back from this.  

I understand your frustration. It sucks having those feelings. Nothing much more to say than that. 

[NikoBaltimore]

29 minutes ago, Kuetsar said:

Well it was a nice thread while it lasted. . . .

I was actually going to talk about some issues with my mother-in-law in rehab after the stuff at the hospital.  But the way it's looking I'll save that for another thread.

I was wondering if people here would care to setup a Discord room.  I don't really use it but it could be something to consider.  And if anything if there was discussion like this it can go over there instead of on the board.  Just an idea.

Edited September 30, 2020 by NikoBaltimore

[Curt McGirt]

We can save the thread by starting to talk about other shit instead. So start. 

[supremebve]

35 minutes ago, Curt McGirt said:

We can save the thread by starting to talk about other shit instead. So start. 

Being the person who derailed this topic the worst, I'm really trying to think of something else to talk about...but there isn't really anything else going on. 

Oh, here's something, I bought a new smoker on Amazon, they sent the wrong one, and instead of going through the process of returning a 200 lb. box, they just told me to keep it and refunded me the money.  So, I got a free smoker.  Another part is that, I'm still thinking about getting the one I want, so I'll have 2 new smokers.  It seems like overkill I know, but the free one is significantly smaller than the one it's replacing and the one I ordered.  It will be fine for the fall/winter when I'm not going to be doing a lot of big cooks, but come summer when I want to do a brisket, a pork shoulder, some ribs, and maybe some turkey, having the larger one is going to be essential.  

[jaedmc]

1 minute ago, supremebve said:

Being the person who derailed this topic the worst, I'm really trying to think of something else to talk about...but there isn't really anything else going on. 

Oh, here's something, I bought a new smoker on Amazon, they sent the wrong one, and instead of going through the process of returning a 200 lb. box, they just told me to keep it and refunded me the money.  So, I got a free smoker.  Another part is that, I'm still thinking about getting the one I want, so I'll have 2 new smokers.  It seems like overkill I know, but the free one is significantly smaller than the one it's replacing and the one I ordered.  It will be fine for the fall/winter when I'm not going to be doing a lot of big cooks, but come summer when I want to do a brisket, a pork shoulder, some ribs, and maybe some turkey, having the larger one is going to be essential.  

That's fucking awesome. I think the most I got out of an Amazon shipping snafu was two rolls of duct tape instead of one. So I'm wildly jealous.

[Curt McGirt]

This year I had somebody send me a sealed record that the manufacturer had shipped with only one of the two records inside, and the guy I bought it from on Discogs told me to just keep it AND refunded me the money. I thought that was great. But a free smoker? That's wild. I hope you got a big family because you can have some crazy meals. And if the small one is taking up space I guess you could always gift it to somebody. 

[Curt McGirt]

Oh and I had to fight with Amazon over getting the wrong records before. I kept a Funkadelic one out of spite... and because it's awesome.

[John from Cincinnati]

TNA once accidentally set me two copies of everything in a DVD order I placed, which is the most LOLTNA thing ever. 

[NikoBaltimore]

1 hour ago, Curt McGirt said:

We can save the thread by starting to talk about other shit instead. So start. 

Considering how the main wrestling thread can be closed out despite attempts to keep it open I've learned to wait and see.  But for stuff I didn't expect to get I bought Sgt Peppers on vinyl from a farmers market but it had Magical Mystery Tour in there instead.  I was looking for that anyway so since I got Sgt Pepper's for my birthday I was a happy camper anyway.

Edited September 30, 2020 by NikoBaltimore

[jaedmc]

9 minutes ago, Andy in Kansas said:

TNA once accidentally set me two copies of everything in a DVD order I placed, which is the most LOLTNA thing ever. 

I'm sure they were very grateful someone finally ordered some DVDs so they could make some space

[Ryan]

I sent in my absentee last week, so now I just sit back and watch and try and ignore until I can't anymore.

If it all comes crashing down and it hurts inside, @Pete will save me.

[Zimbra]

8 minutes ago, jaedmc said:

I'm sure they were very grateful someone finally ordered some DVDs so they could make some space

Were TNA the ones who used packs of gum as dunnage in their packages?  Because I'd be mad I had been cheated out of delicious gum.

[Technico Support]

TIL what "dunnage" means.

On the grilling tip, I need to preach about the greatness of lighter cubes.  How I just learned about these things after grilling for over a decade is beyond me. 

I grill with natural lump charcoal and a chimney starter, and nothing sucks like having the newspaper at the bottom of the starter inexplicably go out without igniting the charcoal and waste like 20 minutes of grilling time.  Lighter cubes are some demonic mixture of excellerant and wax that you light, then put the chimney starter on top of them.  They don't go out and they don't impart their gas stink onto the charcoal.  And they're cheap.  That's today's public service announcement among the madness, arguments, and impending race war.   I'm grilling some wings right now.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Technico Support