The Bitching Thread [Archive] - Page 17

Buffalobiian

Wed, 02-22-2012, 07:47 AM

A friend recommended that when you argue about the definition of something, ask that they define it and that's the quickest way to end an argument. Make them tell you what a "drug" is vs. what a "plant" is, I suppose.

You start pretty much ALL arguments with definitions. Debating is done that way too, by defining the topic when you're First Affirmative. First Negative may accept or reject their definition.. but as yourself and shinta have alluded to.. it doesn't make for much of an argument afterwards when you go into definition-arguments since it becomes A-says-but-B-says.

But in your case, and in general, my favourite (and instinctive) move is always to ask them to clarify or explain their definitions. Not only does it clear out any misunderstandings, but when/if they say something really stupid it lets you attack them first. After you make them look stupid (usually from contradicting themselves), THEN you make your argument (if you're supposed to).

I have so much fun tearing people apart it's almost sadistic.

(Another fun thing to do is when people argue that there's only one proper way to do something, you make it so it seems as if they're closed minded in not being able to accept other equally valid ways. There are always two choices.

On the other hand, when you propose a point and the opponent tries to provide an alternative, you bag them out as if they're trying to take an inferior, easy way out. Stop trying to take shortcuts - there's just one way: the hard way.)

Animeniax

Wed, 02-22-2012, 10:45 AM

I like to start arguments by spit balling, which is not necessarily based on definition. Then we see where the discussion/argument leads and redefine our assumptions and definitions as we go.

Sapphire

Wed, 02-22-2012, 11:11 AM

You start pretty much ALL arguments with definitions. Debating is done that way too, by defining the topic when you're First Affirmative. First Negative may accept or reject their definition.. but as yourself and shinta have alluded to.. it doesn't make for much of an argument afterwards when you go into definition-arguments since it becomes A-says-but-B-says.

But in your case, and in general, my favourite (and instinctive) move is always to ask them to clarify or explain their definitions. Not only does it clear out any misunderstandings, but when/if they say something really stupid it lets you attack them first. After you make them look stupid (usually from contradicting themselves), THEN you make your argument (if you're supposed to).

I have so much fun tearing people apart it's almost sadistic.

I may have seen this type of "arguing" from you, pasting definitions of random words with no theme isn't exactly ripping them apart.

rockmanj

Wed, 02-22-2012, 01:03 PM

I don't know if arguments need themes, but I definitely look for a premise that supports the person's conclusion along with reasoning that supports said premise. If neither is sound, then I reject it.

Buffalobiian

Wed, 02-22-2012, 06:21 PM

I may have seen this type of "arguing" from you, pasting definitions of random words with no theme isn't exactly ripping them apart.

That's only the beginning. Definitions are used to establish the playing field for both parties to play on. In our case throwing dictionary meaning show that the opponent isn't using word correctly, as well as providing a somewhat credible source for your own definition.

As for themes, you don't need one for rebuttals (which I mostly used if I think I know what we're talking about). You just need someone with a flawed argument, or an argument with holes.

To give an analogy, you can take down an opponent's castle by poking at weak points or attacking a shaky foundation. You don't need to do it in any particular way/order, nor do you have to counter by building a bigger castle of your own.

That is, you don't have to prove you're right. You just have to show they're wrong - eg. by giving a dictionary definition.

Kraco

Wed, 02-22-2012, 06:36 PM

People won't like you if you argue for an argument's sake and not only to solve a deadlock to proceed with the matter.

Buffalobiian

Wed, 02-22-2012, 07:00 PM

People won't like you if you argue for an argument's sake and not only to solve a deadlock to proceed with the matter.

You can certainly argue for argument's sake, but it's also a way to weed out flawed solutions to existing problems.

For example, net diezens aren't providing a way to reduce piracy or copyright infringement. They're just saying SOPA isn't the way to do it.

shinta|hikari

Fri, 02-24-2012, 07:10 PM

Arguing for argument's sake is interesting and entertaining, but the bad consequences, one of which Kraco mentioned, is not worth it. People, particularly less intellectual ones, tend to be sensitive during arguments.

Buffalobiian

Fri, 02-24-2012, 11:19 PM

Yeah, I often get told that I argue for argument's sake (or develop an argument from a previously low-key conversation). Well.. not often as in by lots of people. Just one person I converse with fairly often.

I'm not so sure if that's the case (unless I have the definition of "arguing for argument's sake" wrong). Basically if someone says something that either:

1) cites a fact or theory without credibility
2) talks about a flow of events or consequences with a logical flaw
3) in general just doesn't make sense or sounds wrong

-then I point it out or wonder/clarify/point it out/ask them about it.

For me, to continue the conversation in agreement as if I didn't pick that up is like continuing a lie. It's also like those social settings where you lie, falsify or just in general buffer everything you say just to keep the other person happy, keep the flow going or keep the party from falling apart. (For me, it pretty much coincides with those events where you laugh and chuckle even when you don't think something is funny - I think we all know what kind of talks we're talking about now).

But if what I was doing was "arguing for argument's sake"... well damn, but that definition I must be doing it then.

I have so much fun tearing people apart it's almost sadistic.

I gave that a bit of thought afterwards as to why I feel that way, and it's a combination of:

1) watching someone struggle, then
2) winning

The first of which pretty much IS sadism. :confused:

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

Anyway, my bitch:

The guy who was meant to come fix my net yesterday didn't turn up. I wasted the day at home away from my headphones (some of you would know how much I love them) so I can hear the door knock. I've had a total of 3 conversations with my net provider (involving crackling phones, lame waiting music and heavy accents - repeated multiple times in each phone call), and they still couldn't find out where the tech went.

Today I called them again (instead of them calling me) to find out that he didn't turn up because it was raining. They'll reschedule a time and SMS it to me later. (and I'm bound to have to ring them back to reschedule at a time which I'm home).

So I'm without decent net again for another week and uni's kinda falling behind too thanks to it.

Xelbair

Sat, 02-25-2012, 08:23 AM

He didn't come because it was raining? are you fucking kidding me?
change the provider ASAP.

dragonrage

Sun, 02-26-2012, 12:20 AM

Buffalobiian, from what I have seen, you're a sick prick. You do have intelligence (even if most of what you say is without a serious point and at times total bullshit) but you have a seriously flawed personality as well. I don't respect you and I don't like you but it certainly doesn't matter since I don't know you in real life or care to. Note that I am stating my opinion with all the "I". The rest of you please forgive the inadequate grammar.

Dissect, negate and make fun of that. Enjoy.

shinta|hikari

Sun, 02-26-2012, 12:37 AM

Are you a victim of what Buff does or something?

He isn't attacking people randomly. He just tries to correct things he sees as flawed, and forcing him to do otherwise is an injustice, and is a much worse act than for what you blame him.

Whether he gains pleasure from that should not matter. Motive is never a justification for the action.

rockmanj

Sun, 02-26-2012, 02:57 AM

Wow...that is a strong animus. I don't think I have seen him do anything that deserves that sort of attack.

Assertn

Sun, 02-26-2012, 03:11 PM

Wow...that is a strong animus. I don't think I have seen him do anything that deserves that sort of attack.

I'm pretty sure dragonrage wrote a similar piece directed at me once. Must be his thing.

dragonrage

Sun, 02-26-2012, 04:15 PM

I'm pretty sure dragonrage wrote a similar piece directed at me once. Must be his thing.

Lmao, Steve you crack me up. Please if you have time, find said "piece" I would really like to read it.

Kraco

Fri, 03-02-2012, 08:42 AM

Archangel

Fri, 03-02-2012, 10:49 AM

I remember using it, was pretty cool.

Buffalobiian

Fri, 03-02-2012, 06:26 PM

lolipower.org hung up its gloves. In case somebody didn't know, it wasn't Shinta's favourite site, but a ddl site for recent anime. I got half of my anime shows and movies from there for great many years. It was an exceedingly convenient site with nothing extra like captchas, registering, or other bullshit. Clicking a server icon was enough to initiate the download.

Was it out of financial, legal or personal burden?

It was a good little site. Not the quickest to upload anime, but it had a decent archive and also used its own servers so I didn't have to wait in line when I had to resort to DDLs. It was particularly a problem at university (which is when I need DDL anyway) where public fileservers would say I've downloaded too much from them already when in fact I've downloaded nothing.

Kraco

Fri, 03-02-2012, 06:39 PM

Was it out of financial, legal or personal burden?

Loli grew up.

I think we'd need Shinta to interpret the real meaning from that. I visited the channel briefly but it was silent and the topic told they don't like new people, so I gave up trying to find out the reason. In the end it doesn't even matter.

shinta|hikari

Sat, 03-03-2012, 07:48 AM

Loli growth ----> Death.

UChessmaster

Mon, 03-12-2012, 11:52 AM

Someone threw a dead body in front of my house... >.> family crying their lungs out outside.

Sapphire

Mon, 03-12-2012, 12:03 PM

The fuckk????????????/

Kraco

Mon, 03-12-2012, 12:37 PM

One kind of a once in a lifetime experience. At least it wasn't anybody you knew.

Archangel

Mon, 03-12-2012, 04:31 PM

Someone threw a dead body in front of my house... >.> family crying their lungs out outside.
Where the hell do you live?

UChessmaster

Mon, 03-12-2012, 06:13 PM

Well, turns out the guy was some old engineer with Alzeimer that ran away from home and kinda got lost, apparently he had a heart attack, someone found him and moved him right next to the highway... which is kinda where i live.

Animeniax

Tue, 03-13-2012, 07:25 PM

You're going to be a doctor right? Maybe they thought you could help the guy.

enkoujin

Mon, 03-26-2012, 11:41 PM

Middle Easterns make the best doctors.

"Hello, I'm Ahmed

-ical doctor."

Sapphire

Tue, 03-27-2012, 12:09 AM

Ey, the first funny thing you've said all life.

enkoujin

Wed, 03-28-2012, 09:58 PM

Irrelevant-course accreditation.

Over here, mechanical engineers are forced to take organic chemistry (combination of our Science faculty's two equivalents) to get their degree accredited by the professional organization here, which is a lot of bullshit because I see absolutely zero correlation to the discipline of this type of material in here.

Seriously, I see none. What do the electron transfers of halogens from a hydrogen halide have to an alkene have to do with mechanical engineering? The concepts of putting things together building blocks into the most obscure fashion with a few exceptions to each rule?

"Oh, you can't put that bromide there because the reaction catalysts dictate that it's too hot even though you can do it while it's cold. You have to add it to the end of the chain here because it's more thermodynamically better."

"Yeah, you can't apply Markovnikov's rule here because Boron's a special molecule."

Fuck that shit.

Buffalobiian

Thu, 03-29-2012, 01:41 AM

I dislike organic chemistry no matter how relevant it is.

Xelbair

Thu, 03-29-2012, 07:57 AM

Well at Surverying, Geodesy and Cartography engeneering course i had to study physics, psychology, Real estate ecomomics, and in the future i'll have to study a small parts of mechanical engeneering, and civil engeneering

enkoujin

Thu, 03-29-2012, 08:19 AM

Physics have formulas and gives you general knowledge of sciences and allows you to apply mathematics that you'll need to exploit no matter what type of engineering you are in.

That psychology sounds like an option course, but yeah, that's completely irrelevant. I mean, I guess you could always try to apply it to social situations with your co-workers and clients, though.

I'm pretty sure almost everyone has to take real-estate economics because the present/future value formulas are useful for your employer where you'll need to determine the value of any engineering investment projects before the managers give the green light to go.

Finally, from what I know, your line of work sounds very much like geomatics engineering over here. I always thought that geomatics was a branch of civil engineering. Of course, as you know, civil and mechanical engineering are closely related on a general level.

dragonrage

Wed, 04-11-2012, 01:39 AM

Damn, I was eating a very late dinner/ extremely early breakfast and now I have a fish bone stuck in my throat that I can't seem to get out. Guess I was too tired and sleepy to chew properly. If you don't hear from me, you don't hear from me. Good night.

p.s. in response to Enkoujin middle eastern comment.

we all know that death is the final destination for us, middle easterns (sucide bombers) just wants to make sure we get there faster.

Just wanted to get that off my chest.

dragonrage

Tue, 04-24-2012, 12:33 PM

bump....

After 6 or more years of not playing video games, I finally decided to get a up to date system to occupy my time and my weary mind. Being a Playstation fan from long ago, PS3 was the logical choice. Anyways I bought one from amazon, it was suppose to arrive last Friday but apparently I missed the delivery, can't really see how that happened since I was home most of the day and so was someone else for the rest. UPS didn't attempt delivery on Saturday but on Monday instead, which is fine as I was again home for most of the day and someone was home when I was not. Now is Tuesday the final attempt for the delivery and no one will be home and the location the package will be held at is closed on the weekends and the only time available to pick it is is during the week when I am suppose to be at work. Either that UPS guys is a stealth ninja or something is just not right which has made me hesitant to sign anything for them to just leave the package. I've never had any problems like this before.

Sigh* Oh well, it will be returned to amazon and my money will be refunded, I should have had it shipped to my job in the first place but I didn't want to lug it around on the train, lazy I know. Thinking about whether it was not meant to be or if I should reorder it and have it shipped to my job, where they sure as hell make sure that I get my packages delivered.

p.s. I've called UPS and amazon and they both say they same thing, they can't really do anything.

Kraco

Tue, 04-24-2012, 02:55 PM

Maybe your doorbell is just broken. You never ring it yourself, so you wouldn't know, unless you had lots of other visitors during those days.

Animeniax

Tue, 04-24-2012, 04:24 PM

I hate that bullshit. I don't want to admit it but basically I've stayed at home entire days waiting for a package to arrive just to see "attempted delivery" on the online tracking or a missed delivery note on the door. F*cking ridiculous. I would have heard a knock or doorbell chime. I suspect delivery companies get to keep the stuff they don't deliver and divvy it up amongst the drivers and their insurance covers the charge to the sending company.

I'd take it as a sign that a new game console is not what you need in your life right now and find another way to spend the time and money you would have wasted playing PS3 games.

bump....

After 6 or more years of not playing video games, I finally decided to get a up to date system to occupy my time and my weary mind. Being a Playstation fan from long ago, PS3 was the logical choice. Anyways I bought one from amazon, it was suppose to arrive last Friday but apparently I missed the delivery, can't really see how that happened since I was home most of the day and so was someone else for the rest. UPS didn't attempt delivery on Saturday but on Monday instead, which is fine as I was again home for most of the day and someone was home when I was not. Now is Tuesday the final attempt for the delivery and no one will be home and the location the package will be held at is closed on the weekends and the only time available to pick it is is during the week when I am suppose to be at work. Either that UPS guys is a stealth ninja or something is just not right which has made me hesitant to sign anything for them to just leave the package. I've never had any problems like this before.

Sigh* Oh well, it will be returned to amazon and my money will be refunded, I should have had it shipped to my job in the first place but I didn't want to lug it around on the train, lazy I know. Thinking about whether it was not meant to be or if I should reorder it and have it shipped to my job, where they sure as hell make sure that I get my packages delivered.

p.s. I've called UPS and amazon and they both say they same thing, they can't really do anything.

dragonrage

Tue, 04-24-2012, 05:00 PM

Someone came home early and apparently the package was delivered and signed for, I guess the bitching on the phone to UPS and Amazon helped. Last night I had amazon call UPS and make a notation of everything in a very stern and no bullshit, polite tone. Now I have Uncharted 3 320gb PS3 to bid my time. Going to get some first person shooters on my way home.

I do other things with my time, but lately I've been going tough time that has been driving me to the brink of insanity. I'm hoping that a few games will help me lose myself enough to get things in order or at least help me fall asleep at night, my thoughts have been working over time lately.

Just want to blow shit up and kill things without the messy bits and legal troubles :).

Kraco I don't have a door bell..... Just saying that I have ordered other things that were delivered with no problems before.

Archangel

Tue, 04-24-2012, 05:09 PM

I did the same thing when i went through a bad time except i bought a 360. I wouldn't say i regret the purchase but i don't use it nearly as much as i thought i would.

Animeniax

Tue, 04-24-2012, 07:20 PM

Weird, not sure if I should I feel less unique or like a part of a brotherhood... I did the same thing last time life sucked. I bought a PS3 with Uncharted.

Archangel

Tue, 04-24-2012, 07:47 PM

Geeks think alike i guess.

dragonrage

Wed, 04-25-2012, 01:06 PM

It's possible.

I don't really intend to get much use out of this, over the years I've learned that I much more enjoy playing with a group of people or online but I tend to get bored easily with video games. And from playing last night I can see how much my skills have dulled from it's former glory and how much things have changed. Everything takes longer now, or maybe it was just all those damn updates and registering I had to do.

Just primarily going to use it as a stress reliever when I can't go out or don't want to and going keep it for the multitude of people that looked at my PS2 ( that hasn't seen almost any use) and told me "dude, that's old".

p.s. after playing for about 5 hours, I slept better, so I guess it is serving it's purpose.

Archangel

Wed, 04-25-2012, 02:07 PM

5 uninterrupted hours? I'd get the hugest headache.

Btw, you know what's a great stress reliever? Hitting the gym.

dragonrage

Wed, 04-25-2012, 03:12 PM

I had a gym membership for a while (four years or so) but didn't have the time to really make use of it. When I had first signed up I have a 5% body fat and I was underweight. Now I am 30 lbs heavier and have the perfect weight for my height, but sitting around all day has given me a bit of a stomach.

I work out at home with light free weights and with the regular push up, crunchers, reverse crunchers and so on once in a while. I also started back cycling on the weekends when I have time.

5 hours is nothing, in high school my friends and I would play for 24 hours plus straight.

Animeniax

Wed, 04-25-2012, 03:37 PM

I find going to the gym is a more worthwhile experience for reasons other than fitness. It's a culture and social scene unto itself. Between the eye candy (I work out at a university gym), the douchebag meatheads that serve as both motivation and a caution, and the personal achievement of the workout, it's a much more complete experience than working out at home.

dragonrage

Wed, 04-25-2012, 04:31 PM

I rather work out at home or at a gym that has little people, you get a better sweat, don't have to wait on machines and you work out at your own pace without all the extra critics. I originally joined because I wanted to build more muscle mass and was there to support a friend that needed to loose weight for health reasons. I work out to be healthy (which I am), feel better about myself and to ensure my cloths fit.

I like cycling because it's a good sweat, you feel free and you feel less bond by constraints,10-20 miles is pretty easy and if you want to push yourself harder you can do more.

I know guys that use the gym to cruise for/ look at girls. I'll admit it makes me smile watching everyone working out and interacting, but without company don't really see myself being there. I would like to take up a contact sport though.

Animeniax

Wed, 04-25-2012, 09:45 PM

I'll say I've noticed there isn't a lot of mingling at the campus gyms I frequent. People who come to work out together chit-chat, but you don't see guys hitting on girls or vice versa, or talking at all even. I get motivation from cute girls at the gym so I like going there to work out. I can even run without headphones and not get bored if there are cute chicks on the track. Of course, the db meatheads keep me grounded since I'll never be as big and built as them, though sometimes it can be discouraging.

I got a replacement fan under warranty and of course it's obviously a returned item, though it seems to function fine. I still don't like receiving used goods, you never know how well they were taken care of or whether they were abused and will break after a week.

fahoumh

Thu, 04-26-2012, 09:36 PM

Buffalobiian

Thu, 04-26-2012, 09:52 PM

I'm surprised they don't make it easier for people to pick up parcels at a local UPS "store", or whatever you'd call it.

Same. Almost all couriers have an agreement with our federally-run postal service, where undelivered parcels can be placed at the local post office for collection by the recipient.

dragonrage

Thu, 04-26-2012, 10:31 PM

I'm surprised they don't make it easier for people to pick up parcels at a local UPS "store", or whatever you'd call it.

I was too, I actually had to pick up a package before, years back I did it on a Saturday and they had redirected it to a UPS store of my choosing. But now they have different policies for Ground, Air, Next day Air and use different facilities for them and they have different operating hours. I think they are just lazy, or it was part of the restructuring and a ploy to get home to use 2nd day shipping that cost more and delivers on Saturday. Also it's different for business, they make sure the packages are delivered, never had a problem when shipping to my job, no matter what the day, and they ensure they deliver before your end of business day.

UChessmaster

Fri, 04-27-2012, 02:08 PM

Am i the only one dissapointed with this generation`s entertainment?

Music is not about romance, awsome guitar solos or deep lyrics, instead is about doing stupid catchy tunes, trying to wear the most absurd clothes and repetitive lyrics.

Movies are no longer about good impacting stories and meanful acting, instead is about just how much CGI you can shove in 120 minutes.

Video game consoles are not even about video games anymore, is about how many other things the damn machine can do BESIDES playing games, how good the online system is and an ever growing focus on graphics while sacrificing gameplay.

Am i just growing old and i`m just not adjusting to the new era? is this what parents feel like? What`s next? A cellphone that can`t do phone calls? Can i have the 90`s back?

Wait a second... when did i got a custom tittle?

darkshadow

Fri, 04-27-2012, 03:45 PM

Am i the only one dissapointed with this generation`s entertainment?
In some areas yes.

Music is not about romance, awsome guitar solos or deep lyrics, instead is about doing stupid catchy tunes, trying to wear the most absurd clothes and repetitive lyrics.

Stupid catchy tunes, absurd clothes and repetitive lyrics have been around forever, it's not just this generation; there are still plenty (ashitton) of artists that make great music. And really, there is nothing wrong with catchy tunes.

Movies are no longer about good impacting stories and meanful acting, instead is about just how much CGI you can shove in 120 minutes.

I watch about ~100 movies per year in theaters alone and this statement is just terribly wrong, watch Drive or Cabin in the Woods for instance if you think it's all about CGI.
Yes blockbusters are getting bigger, but that's only a natural progression from advancements in technology; Inception and the very recently released Avengers are good examples of huge CGI productions that are really good movies by themselves.
Xmen first class however is a good example of a huge CGI production that was pretty mediocre as a film.

Video game consoles are not even about video games anymore, is about how many other things the damn machine can do BESIDES playing games, how good the online system is and an ever growing focus on graphics while sacrificing gameplay.

This is also very very wrong, consoles are getting more advanced and their slew of features are, like with movies, a natural progression of advancements in tech.
2010 was a great gaming year and spawned one of the best games ever, but even then 2011 managed to best it with overall better games being released.
What's really surprising is that 2012 seems to be an insanely good year for gaming.

Am i just growing old and i`m just not adjusting to the new era? is this what parents feel like? What`s next? A cellphone that can`t do phone calls? Can i have the 90`s back?

I'd say yes and no, I think your problem might be that you need to expand your horizons.
The only thing I miss from the 90's are really good cartoons, this generation is growing up with shitty flash animated nonsense.

Kraco

Fri, 04-27-2012, 04:20 PM

Wait a second... when did i got a custom tittle?

Unfortunately the good old times are over, so you'll have to go with a custom title. Nothing works as it used to, with a limited set of choices given to you. Now you face limitless choices and need to make your own decision.

Buffalobiian

Fri, 04-27-2012, 09:37 PM

Regarding music, I do get the impression that older songs tend to be simpler in the layers of instruments and effects that go on top of it all, so it's easier to listen to the actual vocal quality of the singer. In modern songs it gets lost amongst everything else going on.

fahoumh

Fri, 04-27-2012, 11:56 PM

Same. Almost all couriers have an agreement with our federally-run postal service, where undelivered parcels can be placed at the local post office for collection by the recipient.

Here Canada Post does exactly that. I may miss the package sometimes because the doorbell works sporadically and people have a habit of showing up the minute I have to use the bathroom.

I was too, I actually had to pick up a package before, years back I did it on a Saturday and they had redirected it to a UPS store of my choosing. But now they have different policies for Ground, Air, Next day Air and use different facilities for them and they have different operating hours. I think they are just lazy, or it was part of the restructuring and a ploy to get home to use 2nd day shipping that cost more and delivers on Saturday. Also it's different for business, they make sure the packages are delivered, never had a problem when shipping to my job, no matter what the day, and they ensure they deliver before your end of business day.

Sometimes I wonder if they actually knock on the door loud enough for someone who isn't within 1 metre of the door to hear it. I think if a package is undelivered it should always go to the closest store or office and be picked up at the recipient's earliest convenience. I've waited around all day before for a package and it fucking sucks.

Xelbair

Sat, 04-28-2012, 06:38 AM

Am i the only one dissapointed with this generation`s entertainment?

Music is not about romance, awsome guitar solos or deep lyrics, instead is about doing stupid catchy tunes, trying to wear the most absurd clothes and repetitive lyrics.
I agree about music - it is getting worse day by day... but as DS said - repetitive catchy tunes with no meaning have been in the industry for ages.

Movies are no longer about good impacting stories and meanful acting, instead is about just how much CGI you can shove in 120 minutes.

Moves are the same - when you were in 90s you've seen mostly good ones that were made in 80s and 70s and skipped all the crap. Now it is CGI, back then they used explosions... but good movies still exist.

Video game consoles are not even about video games anymore, is about how many other things the damn machine can do BESIDES playing games, how good the online system is and an ever growing focus on graphics while sacrificing gameplay.

It seems that you've really haven't been playing new games - this is one of branches of entertainment that is getting better and better - i agree that there are some bad games, and inide glorification is bullshit - but generally it is getting better and better.

Am i just growing old and i`m just not adjusting to the new era? is this what parents feel like? What`s next? A cellphone that can`t do phone calls? Can i have the 90`s back?

Wait a second... when did i got a custom tittle?

90s weren't so great - you've just seen only good parts of them.

Ryllharu

Sat, 04-28-2012, 07:32 AM

I agree about music - it is getting worse day by day... but as DS said - repetitive catchy tunes with no meaning have been in the industry for ages.As lame as it makes me sound, a lot of the best bands today are one's most people never hear about. Clear Channel, Cumulus Media, and the RIAA (or CRIA or whatever) make sure the only stuff you hear are the same Top 40 on all stations and networks, or the same 100 classic rock songs on rotate. If people get a service like Zune, or use iTunes genius suggester and put in the effort to make those suggestions not useless (takes about a month), you can find some really good bands, many of them actively touring, or old bands you missed.

It's not that music has gotten worse, it's that people are not looking hard enough, and accepting the belief that the major conglomerates are showing them everything that's out there. Heck, even satellite radio can introduce you to some awesome bands you're not familiar with, and they are a major conglomerate. I always find new bands when I rent a car. :D

It seems that you've really haven't been playing new games - this is one of branches of entertainment that is getting better and better - i agree that there are some bad games, and inide glorification is bullshit - but generally it is getting better and better.Honestly, the only bad thing about games these days is the endless streams of uninspired FPS games (which were endless Doom clones back in the day) and like you pointed out, the indie glorification movement. A lot of indie games are crap, or just really dull. There are a few great gems, but most of them are clones of each other, or flash games, or old games. Indie ≠ visionary.

The scope of the stories, the voicework, the mechanics, all of those have been getting better and better along with the graphics. I remember when all the story you got was what you read out of the manual, usually less than 100 words.

90s weren't so great - you've just seen only good parts of them.I used to think I hated everything about the 80s. Then thanks to all those VH1 specials, I realized that everything I thought I hated about the 80s, actually happened in the early 90s.

Buffalobiian

Sat, 04-28-2012, 10:32 AM

Music is not about romance, awsome guitar solos or deep lyrics, instead is about doing stupid catchy tunes, trying to wear the most absurd clothes and repetitive lyrics.

Even given the same overall song...

1985

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9BNoNFKCBI

2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Glny4jSciVI#t=66s

Kraco

Sat, 04-28-2012, 10:33 AM

It seems that you've really haven't been playing new games - this is one of branches of entertainment that is getting better and better - i agree that there are some bad games, and inide glorification is bullshit - but generally it is getting better and better.

PC gaming did suffer, though, because great many games are now made for both consoles and PCs, and are thus compromises that have to work for both platforms. Of course it's not all bad development, not by far, since without consoles great many games would have never been made at all.

darkshadow

Sat, 04-28-2012, 02:25 PM

The artist selection for that new We are world was just atrocious, sure there were some good ones, but is suffering a clear case of "mainstream" injection; I mean miley and bieber? And how big was that difference between celine dion and fergie..ugh.
Still overall not a bad effort, but it could've been a billion times better if it just had really good artists.

Animeniax

Sat, 04-28-2012, 07:52 PM

Worse, it looks like for most of the song they sung their parts separately in remote sound stages, then the parts where mashed together. In the original, they were all in one room together on bleachers for the whole song.

Also, I love how rich people are asking regular people to donate to the cause. Why don't they donate some of their millions to the cause instead? F*cking hollywood phonies.

dragonrage

Sun, 04-29-2012, 02:58 AM

After many years away from a game console, I'm getting back in the swing of things. One of my favourite games was socom and I was badass at it. But that is besides the point, while playing Killzone 3, I was gradually getting back into the swing of things until I noticed that the enemy was always behind me and it was always the same guy. Turns out this asshole has a cheat that puts him on both teams and he interchanges when it is to his advantage.

Totally ruined my game, and he kept joining the same games I was in. After observing him, it was clear what names he was playing under so I would follow his ass and wait for him to switch just so I could kill him. And I did, many times, I really hope it pissed him off. But then I realised a few other players were doing it as well, wtf?

I really wish I knew where these assholes live so I could hook their balls up to a generator and fry them so no idiots would ever be born again; wishful thinking I know.

What made it worse was that on a few games I was on a roll too 5-6 kill streak (would have been a lot more if they didn't keep killing me, cheaters that is) and I still haven't been able to get my headset to work; Best Buy you cheap piece of shit!!

This is one of the things I don't miss about gaming.

Buffalobiian

Sun, 04-29-2012, 04:35 AM

After many years away from a game console, I'm getting back in the swing of things. One of my favourite games was socom and I was badass at it. But that is besides the point, while playing Killzone 3, I was gradually getting back into the swing of things until I noticed that the enemy was always behind me and it was always the same guy. Turns out this asshole has a cheat that puts him on both teams and he interchanges when it is to his advantage.

I had this guy do it in COD4 or MW2 when I was really into it too (forgot which).

He'd join your team so you don't notice him as hostile on your radar. He'll get behind a few people and unpin his grenade. He then switches teams, and that grenade's kills count towards his kill points.

After that, I think I just hid somewhere and sniped his ass.

I never did understand cheaters neither. There's no thrill or sense of accomplishment unless you're good, not your hacks.

The only things I could come up with is so that you can:

a) brag and have people worship you as the MVP and bask in unearned glory, and/or
b) be able to cheaply shit over other people who are trying to develop actual skill so you can laugh in their face at how futile their efforts really were.

Archangel

Sun, 04-29-2012, 06:25 AM

You don't understand why a guy would want to troll the shit out of people via the internet?

Kraco

Sun, 04-29-2012, 07:37 AM

You don't understand why a guy would want to troll the shit out of people via the internet?

They are the kind of guys who didn't have the muscles or the presence to bully weaklings back in school (because they were weaklings themselves), so they are paying back by bullying honest players.

shinta|hikari

Sun, 04-29-2012, 10:53 AM

Cheaters usually have no talent, so skill cannot be developed. I hear that it is pretty frustrating when you want to do something but are not any good it. They really have no other choice if they want to win.

enkoujin

Sun, 04-29-2012, 11:02 AM

They are the kind of guys who didn't have the muscles or the presence to bully weaklings back in school (because they were weaklings themselves), so they are paying back by bullying honest players.

That's true for repressed teenagers or young adults who have had awful childhoods due to a low self-esteem or bullying. The anonymity also makes it easier to express one's self on the internet because there are little or no repercussions to what you do on the internet. Really, though, I can see much more honesty in people reflected on the web than in real life where faux pas and social restrictions come into play.

Regarding the anonymity aspect, there are a lot of outlets on the internet. It's hard for other communities to keep track of you because you can establish a new identity every time you go to a new community. It's very hard to do this in real life because rumours will obviously spread about you.

For example, I can easily go from here (from which I have "acted out-of-line" many times) to another anime forum and keep trolling them with a clean record because they have no records of my past history. In contrast, if I had a criminal record in real life and I moved to a new city within the country, chances are that the new city will have information about me because of the same network. This example shows that because there are almost no consequences to your activities on the internet, you are given the "go-ahead" to keep on retaining your troubling personality.

You also have to consider the victims' perspectives as well. Some things that people may read may not exactly be clear because the teaching of reading comprehension itself is not standardized in the world. Unless you know the writer's personality very well through their past posts or activities, it is difficult to detect sarcasm or trolling through their posts unless it is stated explicitly or is accompanied with font formatting (e.g., italics and emoticons). For example (not to pick on anyone here),

"Anbu Girl is probably an obese Japanese wanna-be otaku."

sounds a bit different if you add an emoticon in it

"Anbu Girl is probably an obese Japanese wanna-be okaku. :)"

The writer of a post may also have excluded details that lets you see a post in a different perspective. It's very complex to comprehend what the person on the other side of the monitor is trying to convey to you sometimes.

For example, we are having a discussion on the most "evil" people in history. Many would definitely vouch for Adolf Hitler. However, I may come in and say something very general, say...

"Hitler wasn't too bad of a person."

that would lead many to believe that I was a "troll" or an "idiot". In fact, if I had put more detail in my post (e.g., "To play the Devil's Advocate", etc.), you could see how I justify why Hitler wasn't "too bad of a person".

"Speaking as a Devil's Advocate, Hitler wasn't too bad of a person because under Stalin's regime, an estimation of up to 10 million Ukrainians died through the Holodomor, a man-made genocide-famine by the USSR to terrorize Ukraine. Obviously, 10 million > 6 million last time I checked. Millions of Stalin's own people were also sent to the Gulags and Siberia where they died from abysmal working conditions, starvation, overcrowding and poor hygiene."

Even with this argument, there are still some people who are unable to change their ideas because there is a rooted foundation when we all started using the internet that not many things on the internet are accurate without a reputable source. Especially because many interactions with trolls are by forums/boards and gaming, it is difficult and bothersome to include references and reputable sources with their posts.

There are also others who are just unwilling to accept new ideas, so they may deem an opinion like that as "trolling" because there are some people out there who have firmly rooted ideas that cannot be shaken due to a personal history (e.g., brainwashing, propoganda, traumatic experience) which causes them to deny new messages.

The interactions of people is a very complex subject, in my opinion. Many concepts of linguistics and a lot of other factor a lot into how one may be judged as "trolling" even if they supposedly were not. It's difficult to say much about the subject. Keep in mind that as sickening as it may be, some people (i.e., the trolls) generally get entertainment value out of another's expense (and usually justify something like karma due to how horribly they've been treated in the past).

Animeniax

Sun, 04-29-2012, 11:08 AM

I don't know, when we used to play MUDs (precursor of MMOs), I had some buddies who would cheat/break the rules because it was fun. They were very skilled gamers and had legit characters and played seriously for the most part. But they'd get a kick out of cheating and pissing people off. The more you complain and rage, the harder they laughed. Seems about how most bully/victim relationships work.

I imagine others who cheat are skilled players who just get bored and start cheating for fun. They can't get away from playing the game, but they don't enjoy playing it as seriously anymore.

shinta|hikari

Sun, 04-29-2012, 11:27 AM

That kind of cheating is no different from bullying, which is a sign of a major inferiority complex.

Ryllharu

Sun, 04-29-2012, 12:15 PM

So is the other kind. Can't build the reputation legitimately due to lack of skill, cheat to fulfill one's need for superiority at something.

Or entitlement, seeking a shortcut to status that was meant to be earned.

Archangel

Sun, 04-29-2012, 12:23 PM

Y'all really need to learn the meaning of "doing it for the lulz".

Ryllharu

Sun, 04-29-2012, 12:26 PM

I don't have a problem with the ones doing it just to be a-holes. I've always enjoyed the antics of the errant teamkiller.

There's nothing inherently malicious about their behavior, so long as they don't follow the same person around all day, and just do it to whoever...5 times in a row. Their targets are almost always at random or on a whim. They're not after a specific target, anyone will do.

It's the cheaters who take games too seriously that I think are a problem.

dragonrage

Sun, 04-29-2012, 12:54 PM

I understand the, just for kicks factor. I do, I normally just leave the game and join another and let them have their fun. I get it, cheating is fun for morons.

I also understand that skilled plays cheat because someone else is cheating and it's a way of evening the odds. But what's the point of doing it to people that aren't over and over again, on your same team. In my opinion they have severe inferiority complex, sexual, social and otherwise, it's really sad. Or just an asshole in life and everything else, in which case their balls should be fried.

I think it would put off any one from playing, as it did to me.

p.s. Also while playing Ghost Recon: Future soldier, beta version, another guy was doing the same thing but the server went offline soon after. Just seems like you can't get a clean game anywhere.

Animeniax

Sun, 04-29-2012, 01:05 PM

Are you particularly vocal or domineering in your teamplay, dragonrage? Maybe you upset someone for that reason and they decided to spend some time messing with you. I was playing ME3 MP the other week and this loudmouth kept barking orders over voice, so I ignored him, even when they were strategically sound orders. It was funny to hear him rage over voice.

I used to love playing Counterstrike back when they had the APC on that one map. I'd run over teammates and it was f*cking hilarious how pissed they'd get. Then on BFBC2MP, I'd spend an entire game just driving around in the humvee or cobra running enemies over. Teammates would get pissed because I wasn't taking or holding positions. But I was highly effective at running people down. It was a blast.

dragonrage

Sun, 04-29-2012, 01:09 PM

I don't have a working headset and no I am not, I'm generally quite and do my own thing, helping out when I can. I was even reviving my teammates during the game. And it was in multiple games not just one.

Also it wasn't just me that it was being done to another guy started tracking him down like I was and waited to kill him.

(added content) One game we killed him so much that he left.

I don't know if kill ratio is a major factor to gaining points to upgrade your weapons but hey maybe that is why they did it. It was my first day playing the game so it was a major bumper realizing that I had totally forgotten about online cheating. It seems more widespread now more than ever, but it has only been one day.

Animeniax

Sun, 04-29-2012, 01:16 PM

I just hooked up my headset and it really helps in ME3MP for telling newer guys what they're doing wrong. Much more satisfying than yelling at the screen.

This video is nostalgic for anyone who knows what I'm talking about with the APC on CS siege:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQxxLis86kw

Animeniax

Mon, 05-21-2012, 09:04 AM

darkshadow

Mon, 05-21-2012, 11:14 AM

What kind of delivery service leaves shit on your doorstep, I think that's even illegal here.

enkoujin

Mon, 05-21-2012, 12:03 PM

Not sure if you can do this, but why don't you send it to your parents, friend and/or a neighbour to receive it? Then, you can treat both parties to a beer or pay them money for being available to receive your package.

Animeniax

Mon, 05-21-2012, 01:10 PM

What kind of delivery service leaves shit on your doorstep, I think that's even illegal here.

UPS, the world's largest shipping company. Apparently it's no big deal to them if they lose a package. I imagine they're heavily insured. Just sucks for the customer when the package is lost.

Not sure if you can do this, but why don't you send it to your parents, friend and/or a neighbour to receive it? Then, you can treat both parties to a beer or pay them money for being available to receive your package.
Not an option really. If I had it redirected to a neighbor, I'd have to have all packages sent their or set it up every time through the delivery company. It would be a hassle. It would be best if people weren't thieving fucking assholes and didn't fuck with other people's shit.

Ryllharu

Mon, 05-21-2012, 01:16 PM

Animeniax

Mon, 05-21-2012, 01:22 PM

If you really think someone is stealing your shit, buy a security camera setup. Logitech has one that is fairly-to-moderately cheap. You could probably use a hunting scout camera if you secure it well enough to prevent vandalism by the thief.

I'd say it was more likely your neighbors than UPS.
Yeah I'm pretty sure it's a neighbor or someone in the neighborhood. It's a quiet suburban subdivision. When that UPS truck rumbles through making deliveries, it's pretty easy to know someone is getting a package. Plus we get lots of solicitors (lawn care, bug care, religion, etc). If they knock and no one answers, they might see the package as a consolation prize. Fuck them.

I'm considering a video camera for the front door (I almost did a peephole camera setup after the first time someone swiped a package from my porch) but that sucks. As I get madder about this, I'll be more likely to do it.

Xelbair

Mon, 05-21-2012, 03:34 PM

What kind of delivery service leaves shit on your doorstep, I think that's even illegal here.

^ this. Seriously - leaving packages on your doorstep is retarded.

Uchiha Barles

Mon, 05-21-2012, 03:39 PM

Not an option really. If I had it redirected to a neighbor, I'd have to have all packages sent their or set it up every time through the delivery company. It would be a hassle. It would be best if people weren't thieving fucking assholes and didn't fuck with other people's shit.

What you should do, is have UPS hold your package. You can have them hold your package at a nearby UPS customer service center, free of charge, for 5 days. You can then pick up your package yourself during business hours on any of those days.

Animeniax

Mon, 05-21-2012, 06:14 PM

What you should do, is have UPS hold your package. You can have them hold your package at a nearby UPS customer service center, free of charge, for 5 days. You can then pick up your package yourself during business hours on any of those days.

Is this a permanent option you can log with the local UPS office? I'm not looking forward to having to contact UPS each time I expect a package. I was doing that a while with Fedex and it's a hassle as well as adding a day or two to the shipping process. With Fedex, if you create a delivery exception while the package is in transit, on the day it is supposed to arrive it still goes on the truck for delivery to the local Fedex station and won't be available for you to pick up until the next day. Not a big deal with 2 day shipping, but still bullshit that I can't receive packages on my own front porch without some asshole helping himself to it.

^ this. Seriously - leaving packages on your doorstep is retarded.
It's weird since this is the US and there are fucking thieves and criminals everywhere, but UPS has made itself very successful with this delivery model. It cuts down on repeated delivery attempts which saves time, gas, and effort.

Uchiha Barles

Mon, 05-21-2012, 07:13 PM

Is this a permanent option you can log with the local UPS office? I'm not looking forward to having to contact UPS each time I expect a package.

It seems like there are options for this to be done automatically, but I'm not familiar with the service or the cost. Something about you being a 'mailbox holder' (which probably costs money) or a UPS My Choice Premium member. Here's a link to information concerning the latter:

http://blog.ups.com/2011/09/14/hate-waiting-for-a-package-ups-my-choice-is-here-to-help/

And yeah, you're right about the package usually making it to the delivery truck before they pull it off, but UPS has usually been good about pulling it off the very morning they receive it at the hub (in my experience).

Ryllharu

Mon, 05-21-2012, 07:16 PM

Buffalobiian

Mon, 05-21-2012, 07:41 PM

It's not like UPS is immune to blame. Truck drivers can steal just as well as neighbours. DHL had organised theft going on within their staff while back.

Animeniax

Mon, 05-21-2012, 09:12 PM

fahoumh

Mon, 05-21-2012, 10:30 PM

I had a package sent from Amazon delivered and left at the front door by UPS... and it's not there when I get home. Second time this shit has happened. Either UPS is faking it and stealing my shit, or some asshole is walking by and helping himself to any packages on my porch.

I've had stuff delivered to my house before and left on the front porch if nobody's home or we simply don't hear the doorbell (it's finicky at best) and thank goodness we've never had any issues. But it's a constant worry so I usually sit somewhere with the front door in plain view so I don't miss the carrier.

This is a middle-middle class suburban neighborhood, so the perp is probably some suburban gangster piece of shit. Worse is if it's one of my neighbors who hears the UPS truck and then drops by to steal whatever they leave.
Sounds like the same kind of P.O.S. that has walked onto our property and stolen my bicycle twice out of the FUCKING GARAGE and once off the front lawn. You seriously have be a real asshole to casually trespass to steal someone's property.

My bitch this week was while I was putting new calipers on the car my girlfriend noticed that my passenger side fog light is cracked. I spent over 2 years scouring the local classifieds for an OEM driver's side and finally found one in a town 2 hours from me. I don't want to buy a replacement from the dealer because it's like $360 in Canada and around $200 in the US. But none of that matters because I'm broke...boo-urns.

Animeniax

Mon, 05-21-2012, 11:25 PM

I've had stuff delivered to my house before and left on the front porch if nobody's home or we simply don't hear the doorbell (it's finicky at best) and thank goodness we've never had any issues. But it's a constant worry so I usually sit somewhere with the front door in plain view so I don't miss the carrier.

Sounds like the same kind of P.O.S. that has walked onto our property and stolen my bicycle twice out of the FUCKING GARAGE and once off the front lawn. You seriously have be a real asshole to casually trespass to steal someone's property.

Here's a funny video about how UPS delivery service works:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTlLOF2moxY

UPS's answer to this (they even reference the spoof video, like it's some joke)? Have you sign up for their "my choice" service and pay $40/yr or $5/request. The only useful free option is to have it held at the UPS shipping location (not a UPS store, that costs $5 each time or the $40/yr membership). Fedex lets you route packages to the Fedex store of your choice for free.

My bitch this week was while I was putting new calipers on the car my girlfriend noticed that my passenger side fog light is cracked. I spent over 2 years scouring the local classifieds for an OEM driver's side and finally found one in a town 2 hours from me. I don't want to buy a replacement from the dealer because it's like $360 in Canada and around $200 in the US. But none of that matters because I'm broke...boo-urns.
What kind of car is it? Fog lights are pretty useless from what I've seen... but they do look cool. My passenger side taillight has been cracked for 4 years to the point its fogging up inside. I haven't gotten around to paying $180 to replace it.

fahoumh

Tue, 05-22-2012, 12:38 AM

Here's a funny video about how UPS delivery service works:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTlLOF2moxY

Hahahaha...that is funny. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of other people have a similar perception of UPS.

UPS's answer to this (they even reference the spoof video, like it's some joke)? Have you sign up for their "my choice" service and pay $40/yr or $5/request. The only useful free option is to have it held at the UPS shipping location (not a UPS store, that costs $5 each time or the $40/yr membership).

Charging customers for having a job and/or life is lame. Are these shipping locations regionally located? Or do they have like 2 or 3 per State/Province?

Fedex lets you route packages to the Fedex store of your choice for free.

Any undeliverable packages from Purolator and Canada Post are taken back to the nearest office and are available to be picked up usually the following day. I don't know why UPS can't do the same.

What kind of car is it? Fog lights are pretty useless from what I've seen... but they do look cool. My passenger side taillight has been cracked for 4 years to the point its fogging up inside. I haven't gotten around to paying $180 to replace it.

It's an '02 Acura TL-S. The fog light is mostly a cosmetic issue for me but I'm admittedly pretty vain when it comes to my car.

Animeniax

Tue, 05-22-2012, 09:31 AM

Hahahaha...that is funny. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of other people have a similar perception of UPS.
It's funny but UPS thinks it's a joke if " UPS mychoice" is their answer to customer complaints.

Charging customers for having a job and/or life is lame. Are these shipping locations regionally located? Or do they have like 2 or 3 per State/Province?They're somewhat local. There are a few in any major city and each services different areas of the city. They aren't as numerous or conveniently located as UPS retail stores.

It's an '02 Acura TL-S. The fog light is mostly a cosmetic issue for me but I'm admittedly pretty vain when it comes to my car. Nice car. I'd take a lot of pride in it if I drove one. Foglights look awesome when they are on with the headlights. Very aggressive and serious look. I want to get foglights on my 04 STi but I like the foglight covers.

1278

fahoumh

Tue, 05-22-2012, 05:17 PM

It's funny but UPS thinks it's a joke if " UPS mychoice" is their answer to customer complaints.

They're somewhat local. There are a few in any major city and each services different areas of the city. They aren't as numerous or conveniently located as UPS retail stores.
They really need to get their act together...seriously.

Nice car. I'd take a lot of pride in it if I drove one. Foglights look awesome when they are on with the headlights. Very aggressive and serious look. I want to get foglights on my 04 STi but I like the foglight covers.

Thanks. The 2nd gen TL is by far the best looking, IMO. All the car needs is a drop and the OEM bodykit to make it sooo much better than stock. Hell, even the bodykit is enough. I actually put yellow bulbs into the fogs for a more JDM look...which is kind of ironic since the car was built in Ohio.

Is that your STi? I kind of like that iteration without the foglights.

Animeniax

Tue, 05-22-2012, 08:02 PM

Thanks. The 2nd gen TL is by far the best looking, IMO. All the car needs is a drop and the OEM bodykit to make it sooo much better than stock. Hell, even the bodykit is enough. I actually put yellow bulbs into the fogs for a more JDM look...which is kind of ironic since the car was built in Ohio.

Is that your STi? I kind of like that iteration without the foglights.

No offense but I hate the direction Acura went with all of their cars after third gen. They look too boxy and luxury-based and not as sporty. I'm surprised they have a factory in Ohio, but I imagine it's a Honda factory.

That's not my STi in the photo but same everything besides the wheels. I got them in silver which I think looks better than the gold ones. I haven't gone with aftermarket wheels because I want to keep a stock look, and it's expensive to get wheels that look as good and are lightweight forged like the stock wheels. Mine looks like this but with less wheel gap and a WRX wing:

1280

Animeniax

Tue, 05-22-2012, 10:25 PM

Ani's certainly got an axe to grind with UPS and is searching every way to place the blame on them. Most people don't have a problem with their packages getting stolen. The vast overwhelming majority. Or they live in an apartment building where the manager signs for packages.

But it really all depends. They (FEDEX) have left a $1200 computer on my steps, labeled on the outside of the package what it is...and I've had to sign for $30 packages. So the absurdity of it goes both ways.

So you were wrong yet again, Ryl. Turns out it was a mistake by UPS. The package tracking shows it was delivered on Fri May 18. I spent the entire weekend wanting to hurt someone real bad for stealing stuff from off my porch. Then today, walking out the front door, there's the package waiting for me. No additional stickers denoting it was re-shipped or just improperly handled, no explanation where it's been for the past 3-4 days (I checked on Sat and they don't deliver on weekends anyway).

Now I'm more inclined to believe the first lost shipment back in Nov was also UPS's fault. That delivery was scheduled for the Wed right before the Thanksgiving holidays and it shows delivered on tracking but was nowhere to be found. I'm confident now thinking the driver dropped the package into a dumpster and started his holiday early.

Out of this mess, I get a free Android phone ($130), but any future claims to Amazon will be met with added skepticism on their part (not because they know of this, but because it will be the 3rd claim). So hopefully Amazon and UPS split the bill for this mess up, and I get a free phone for my troubles.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 05-22-2012, 10:43 PM

fahoumh

Tue, 05-22-2012, 10:50 PM

No offense but I hate the direction Acura went with all of their cars after third gen. They look too boxy and luxury-based and not as sporty. I'm surprised they have a factory in Ohio, but I imagine it's a Honda factory.

That's not my STi in the photo but same everything besides the wheels. I got them in silver which I think looks better than the gold ones. I haven't gone with aftermarket wheels because I want to keep a stock look, and it's expensive to get wheels that look as good and are lightweight forged like the stock wheels. Mine looks like this but with less wheel gap and a WRX wing:

No offense taken; I actually agree wholeheartedly. I especially dislike the stupid grill design they spread across the entire Acura lineup. And since the 2nd gen, the TL has been built in Marysville Ohio alongside the Accord.

Are those BBS wheels or Enkeis? My cousin has an '07 STi Limited and I thought it was lame how they put Enkei rims instead of the usual BBS. The car is supposed to be special and most every stock rim manufacturer is step down from BBS, IMO.

Animeniax

Tue, 05-22-2012, 11:39 PM

So I get it that this package contains the phone you'll be refunded for, rather than being randomly sent a new phone of your choice (or not)?

I haven't had a bad run-in with the post before yet. The postman who works most of the shifts actually knows me by name now because I internet-shop all the time.
Yep, same phone I originally ordered. I didn't get a refund though, they sent me a second phone. Not sure what I'll do with it. Pretty sure I won't be returning it to Amazon.

Knowing your postman is good, but over here they change so often it's pointless. Plus now that you know them, do they expect a gift or token of appreciation sometime each year? I think that was in a Seinfeld episode.

No offense taken; I actually agree wholeheartedly. I especially dislike the stupid grill design they spread across the entire Acura lineup. And since the 2nd gen, the TL has been built in Marysville Ohio alongside the Accord.

Are those BBS wheels or Enkeis? My cousin has an '07 STi Limited and I thought it was lame how they put Enkei rims instead of the usual BBS. The car is supposed to be special and most every stock rim manufacturer is step down from BBS, IMO.
That's what I like about my STI... made in Japan. Not that it really matters, but a personal preference.

Mine has the BBS lightweight forged wheels that came stock on STis in 2004-2007. They are definitely higher quality than most any other stock wheels. BBS aftermarket rims are pricey.

Wow, that sucks. It looks like only the limited 2007 got the painted Enkei wheels. The other 07 STis got the BBS wheels. What a crappy decision by Subaru.

Buffalobiian

Wed, 05-23-2012, 12:55 AM

Knowing your postman is good, but over here they change so often it's pointless. Plus now that you know them, do they expect a gift or token of appreciation sometime each year? I think that was in a Seinfeld episode.

Haha, no.. He knows my name because he's always delivering to me when he gets to my house. I don't actually know his because he doesn't wear a name badge. It can get a little awkward at times since he's up so early for work and I'm usually in my PJs and we don't usually have much to talk about outside from our initial greeting.

Kraco

Wed, 05-23-2012, 03:05 AM

Haha, no.. He knows my name because he's always delivering to me when he gets to my house. I don't actually know his because he doesn't wear a name badge. It can get a little awkward at times since he's up so early for work and I'm usually in my PJs and we don't usually have much to talk about outside from our initial greeting.

You could ask his name, shake his hand, and thank for all the deliveries over the years the next time he brings you something. Most people don't mind being thanked even if they are just doing their job. That would probably make him want to treat your delicate figure orders all the more carefully.

Ryllharu

Wed, 05-23-2012, 03:32 AM

So you were wrong yet again, Ryl. Turns out it was a mistake by UPS. The package tracking shows it was delivered on Fri May 18. I spent the entire weekend wanting to hurt someone real bad for stealing stuff from off my porch. Then today, walking out the front door, there's the package waiting for me. No additional stickers denoting it was re-shipped or just improperly handled, no explanation where it's been for the past 3-4 days (I checked on Sat and they don't deliver on weekends anyway).

Now I'm more inclined to believe the first lost shipment back in Nov was also UPS's fault. That delivery was scheduled for the Wed right before the Thanksgiving holidays and it shows delivered on tracking but was nowhere to be found. I'm confident now thinking the driver dropped the package into a dumpster and started his holiday early.Instead of making pithy remarks in response, I'll say that I'm glad it worked out for you.

enkoujin

Thu, 05-24-2012, 11:50 AM

I have stomach flu because people don't wash their hands properly before handling my food.

Assertn

Thu, 05-24-2012, 01:15 PM

I have stomach flu because people don't wash their hands properly before handling my food.
I'm looking at you, MOM

Death BOO Z

Fri, 05-25-2012, 04:05 AM

I don't like people...

"What do you mean I can't get in today!? I have my student card!"
no, you have last years' student card, if you weren't an ass, you would have posted the damn yearly sticker on the card and then we wouldn't have the damn problem.
"The paper said it was free entry until 12;00"
then you shouldn't have showed up at 13:00.
"I'm not a student, I have band practice! that's the building where I have band practice! why isn't that enough!"
Because you're a fuckin' idiot, and you should drop dead. asshole.

next week, I'm back to entitled idiots who don't pay and think they deserve something.

Buffalobiian

Fri, 05-25-2012, 04:46 AM

Animeniax

Fri, 05-25-2012, 07:47 AM

enkoujin

Fri, 05-25-2012, 03:10 PM

Thanks for doing mankind a favour and telling those idiots off. I really hate people who think who can't differentiate between entitled rights and obtaining privileges.

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 02:40 PM

Went in for the extensive physical testing, psych eval, and procedures to get hired on with the local police department after months of applications, background checks, and nearly finishing with the process of getting into academy... and I get disqualified for not listing the one time I tried marijuana a few years ago. Apparently it's ok if you try drugs when you're in your experimental teen years, but if you try them later in life then it surely must have been for recreation and you're a junkie and a liar. Like we all follow the same timeline in life and you're only allowed to do certain fuck ups at certain periods in your life.

It's weird, since everything (and I mean every-fucking-thing) seemed to fall into place as far as becoming a cop, including getting a degree, getting an internship, and going through the entire hiring process as almost a perfect candidate... then this one fuck up has thrown all of that off the track and into a gully where unicorns lived but now they're a bloody mess because a train just crashed into them while they were peacefully eating grass. Now I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do in life. Getting dq'd from this application will also make it harder to apply to other PDs, as they require that you list previous dq's and failures to get hired and why.

Lesson to all, not sure what that lesson is. Life is weird. I guess it goes on, but who the fuck knows what now. Of all the evil shit I haven't done in life, choosing to omit the one time I tried marijuana is enough to basically ruin my chances to do something with my life. Fucking awesome. Hell damn fuck shit hell fuck damn.

Ryllharu

Thu, 06-07-2012, 03:10 PM

...and I get disqualified for not listing the one time I tried marijuana a few years ago. Apparently it's ok if you try drugs when you're in your experimental teen years, but if you try them later in life then it surely must have been for recreation and you're a junkie and a liar. Like we all follow the same timeline in life and you're only allowed to do certain fuck ups at certain periods in your life.

No, it is because you didn't disclose it. That makes you a liar (by omission), and why you get DQ'd.

That's the exact same way a lot of people lose or are denied DoD security clearance. Honesty is appreciated, don't hide anything, that's how they know they can trust you...which is the whole point. Not declaring that you had a previous bankruptcy (implying money troubles and potential for being bribed or bought off), trips to "hostile" countries, misdemeanor infractions, etc. All of them carry similar weight during the evaluation.

It's not what you forgot to disclose, or even what you did, it's that you didn't disclose it.

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 05:00 PM

Kraco

Thu, 06-07-2012, 05:11 PM

I know how bureaucracies work, they don't look too hard into it when they comb through hundreds or thousands of applications.

You say you know how they work, but your method still got you disqualified.

From a purely moral point of view, if two choices get you disqualified but one is honest, the other dishonest, anybody desiring to be a police officer should go for the honest one. From your posts during the last couple of years I got the impression you felt a pretty strong call to become a cop, so I find it a little bit strange you tried to scheme your way through.

Ryllharu

Thu, 06-07-2012, 05:34 PM

Bullshit. If you do disclose it, then it "doesn't necessarily disqualify" you, which is the bullshit they peddle when trying to get you to admit to every little indiscretion they can nail you for. But basically it does disqualify you, period. Except if you disclose it on an application, then they can disqualify you without ever hearing your side of it or getting more details about it. I was hoping by disclosing it in person, then at least I would be able to qualify the omission and come clean. I know how bureaucracies work, they don't look too hard into it when they comb through hundreds or thousands of applications. They look for immediate disqualifiers and you the applicant will never know why you didn't get a callback.

No, that's why you're a moron. It in no way disqualifies you for putting it down. Where I work, DoD Clearance is required, not optional. The applicant doesn't always get interviewed if everything looks good. They ask around instead. They'll interview the people you put down as references, your immediate family, and bounce what you wrote down off their databases. They'll find out you lied, and that's when they disqualify you. You don't get a chance to explain yourself, because that was what the disclosure portions on the forms are for.

A lot of the people I work with openly admitted to previous drug use on the form. They got asked about it. The conversation goes like this:

"So...you used recreational drugs?"
"In HS/college, yeah, but I don't anymore."
"Well, as long as you pass the drug test, okay."
[Moved on to next topic]

You get the chance to explain yourself because you disclosed it. Again, they're not looking for a perfect record, they're looking for honesty. Instead, what you did makes it look like you were trying to hide it. They didn't see it during the disclosure process. Then you told them. Now they know you're deceitful and a liar.

Quit trying to dodge responsibility by blaming it on "The System." You can't blame anyone but yourself.

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 06:55 PM

You say you know how they work, but your method still got you disqualified.

From a purely moral point of view, if two choices get you disqualified but one is honest, the other dishonest, anybody desiring to be a police officer should go for the honest one. From your posts during the last couple of years I got the impression you felt a pretty strong call to become a cop, so I find it a little bit strange you tried to scheme your way through.

I think there's a lot of discretion involved in the selection process, and I relied on that that my one indiscretion would not disqualify me. I wanted to get into the process, and putting down that I had tried a drug would have precluded that, which in hindsight would have saved me a lot of time and effort and might have been the right way to go. I did have a strong calling to be a cop, possibly even a divine calling for it. But I guess I misread the cards or god was dicking around with me. Who knows, maybe this is one of those "one door closes, another opens" or some shit. It's hard to see that now since I'm still feeling gut-kicked over this.

I think "scheming my way through" is an assholish way to put it. I wanted to be able to present my case, so I omitted the fact that I tried a drug one time. Too often one negative factor is all it takes for your application to be thrown in the garbage. So I'm not perfect, but I am 99.9% perfect to be a cop and a good person, or at least I thought. I guess all the fatties and slackabouts I've seen with this PD are more suited than I am to be cops.

Ryllharu

Thu, 06-07-2012, 07:01 PM

Thinking you have a divine calling to be a cop, combined from what we know about your views thanks to your posts here, quite frankly, I'm glad.

You're exactly the type of person who should never be allowed to become one.

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 07:04 PM

No, that's why you're a moron. It in no way disqualifies you for putting it down. Where I work, DoD Clearance is required, not optional. The applicant doesn't always get interviewed if everything looks good. They ask around instead. They'll interview the people you put down as references, your immediate family, and bounce what you wrote down off their databases. They'll find out you lied, and that's when they disqualify you. You don't get a chance to explain yourself, because that was what the disclosure portions on the forms are for.

A lot of the people I work with openly admitted to previous drug use on the form. They got asked about it. The conversation goes like this:

"So...you used recreational drugs?"
"In HS/college, yeah, but I don't anymore."
"Well, as long as you pass the drug test, okay."
[Moved on to next topic]

You get the chance to explain yourself because you disclosed it. Again, they're not looking for a perfect record, they're looking for honesty. Instead, what you did makes it look like you were trying to hide it. They didn't see it during the disclosure process. Then you told them. Now they know you're deceitful and a liar.

Quit trying to dodge responsibility by blaming it on "The System." You can't blame anyone but yourself.Man you are so full of shit. Getting a security clearance to work some cushy paper-pushing government job doesn't have the same requirements as that required to be a police officer. I get the irony of that statement based on my choice to omit a fact, but it should still serve to show you're full of shit. Prior drug use as a desk-jockey gov't monkey doesn't come into play like it might as a police officer, where drugs are ever present and a daily temptation. I'll admit I fucked up by not disclosing it, but you still don't know what you're talking about. Admitting drug use on the initial interest form prior to the application process all but disqualifies you from consideration considering how competitive the PD in this city is and how many applicants they get. I'm sure your slide-rule cookie-cutter notion of the selection process might fit the rough and tumble world of gov't schlubs who want to get paid for doing as little work as possible, but it doesn't fit every (most) scenarios.

The system is as fucked up as anything else, and denying that is what keeps you at your job and a part of the bureaucracy that keeps everything running like shit. Keep pushing papers, it's your calling in life.

Thinking you have a divine calling to be a cop, combined from what we know about your views thanks to your posts here, quite frankly, I'm glad.

You're exactly the type of person who should never be allowed to become one.

Divine calling isn't a choice, it's a realization. And you're the kind of person who holds police to some inhuman saintly standard of perfection, then slams them when they mess up. I'm almost happy I won't be a cop so I don't have to save people like you from yourself, them get sued for doing my job so you can feel more like a man.

Archangel

Thu, 06-07-2012, 07:20 PM

I'd make an awesome cop, i'm a people person.

Ryllharu

Thu, 06-07-2012, 07:25 PM

Getting a security clearance to work some cushy paper-pushing government job doesn't have the same requirements as that required to be a police officer.

Oh? I assure you, security clearance is exceedingly stringent. They look at everything that might give them a reason to assume you'd ever get desperate enough to sell secrets to foreign countries. At certain levels, they don't just consider interviewing a few of the people listed as a reference, they actually call all of them.

And it's not just paper pushing. Trades workers also operate all over the place in government jobs. As do cleaners who work in those buildings, guards, food services staff, maintenance workers, transportation services, and even the person from the USPS who drops off and picks up the mail. But nice assumption.

edit: And by the way, we get thorough medical exams the day we start too. Whether you're a trade worker or a paper pusher.

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 07:36 PM

Oh? I assure you, security clearance is exceedingly stringent. They look at everything that might give them a reason to assume you'd ever get desperate enough to sell secrets to foreign countries. At certain levels, they don't just consider interviewing a few of the people listed as a reference, they actually call all of them.

And it's not just paper pushing. Trades workers also operate all over the place in government jobs. As do cleaners who work in those buildings, guards, food services staff, maintenance workers, transportation services, and even the person from the USPS who drops off and picks up the mail. But nice assumption.

And by the way, we get thorough medical exams the day we start too. Whether you're a trade worker or a paper pusher.

Oh my bad, so besides getting clearances for paper-pushers, you also get them for manual laborers and other unskilled workers who have a pulse and no immediate debilitating health issues. Bravo. I'm sure the standards are just as high as with a job where you have control over the freedom and lives of people, carry a deadly weapon, and have the full power and authority of the state. Again, I realize the irony of asserting all of these powers of police and how betraying that trust by omitting a fact on your background statements is easily sufficient reason to disqualify you from the selection process. But I hate it when people try to apply their workaday middling scenarios to apply to all cases. Just keep it in your piehole because it doesn't help.

You can't say there is a negligible effect of having admitted to drug use on the initial interest forms for a police job because that's how it applies to security clearances for gov't desk and labor jobs. Because then you'd be talking out of your ass.

I'd make an awesome cop, i'm a people person.

That's not what policing is about. It's basically baby-sitting and getting shit on and still smiling so they can't file a complaint against you. I'm ok with that because I've been in IT support for a few years and it's basically the same thing. Funny thing is, there are a shitload of pot smokers where I work in IT right now in the public sector. Gov't workers no less.

Ryllharu

Thu, 06-07-2012, 07:43 PM

You can't say there is a negligible effect of having admitted to drug use on the initial interest forms for a police job because that's how it applies to security clearances for gov't desk and labor jobs. Because then you'd be talking out of your ass.
No different from an applicant "forgetting" that vacation they took to China, smart guy.

Oh, and the civilian guards at a lot of the government contractor facilities have better weapons than the city cops, but don't let facts get in the way. And they do draw their sidearms...just because someone has their badge tucked under a coat.

Thu, 06-07-2012, 08:08 PM

You're such a stupid bastard that you're still defending the thought process that cost you a job. I wouldn't expect anything less from the kind of drooling moron who idolizes the police force.

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 08:43 PM

Hahahahahahahahahaha

Sweet, another guy who is as pathetic as you. Now you can feel better about yourself. But you're mistaken, since no one is quite that pathetic.

You're such a stupid bastard that you're still defending the thought process that cost you a job. I wouldn't expect anything less from the kind of drooling moron who idolizes the police force.
No, not defending it, if you bothered to read any of it I take full responsibility for what I did. I'm just saying that ryllharu's explanation of why I was wrong has nothing to do with it so he should shut the hell up.

No different from an applicant "forgetting" that vacation they took to China, smart guy.

Oh, and the civilian guards at a lot of the government contractor facilities have better weapons than the city cops, but don't let facts get in the way. And they do draw their sidearms...just because someone has their badge tucked under a coat.
A vacation to China makes you a threat to national security =/= prior drug use for someone who will be around drugs and criminals for a living. Yes lying by omission for either is bad, but the correlation still does not exist to the level you're trying to big-up your little desk job.

Buffalobiian

Thu, 06-07-2012, 09:13 PM

Try the next dp regardless. At least then you know you did, rather than wondering later on in life whether you would have gotten a chance elsewhere.

Abdula

Thu, 06-07-2012, 09:34 PM

That is too bad Ani. Hope something else works out for you. Its nice of Ryl and DS and Y to let you vent your confused frustration on them though

Animeniax

Thu, 06-07-2012, 10:33 PM

Try the next dp regardless. At least then you know you did, rather than wondering later on in life whether you would have gotten a chance elsewhere.

I probably will once I've thought it through, but really this is probably a blessing in disguise. Austin and its surrounding areas really are a shitty place to be a cop. It's got this conservative values country/hillbilly background because its central Texas, but it's got a liberal feel because of the uni and all the hippies. Add in the proximity to Mexico and you have a 36% brown population. Add all that together and what locals like to dub as a charming "weirdness" (they have t-shirts advocating "keep Austin weird") makes it a town in flux trying to find an identity. What that means to cops is that they are expected to be superheroes because of the conservative crime control base but you're on a tight leash because of the liberals and their anti-police mentality. So in the end you try to do your job but get scrutinized and sued and can lose your job easily just to appease the public. I even considered starting out with a smaller PD so I wouldn't have to put up with the bullshit, but the tide of the process swept me to apply at the major PD. Thanks for the advice, I'll let you know how it goes.

That is too bad Ani. Hope something else works out for you. Its nice of Ryl and DS and Y to let you vent your confused frustration on them though

It's not a confused frustration. I know what I did wrong and why and why the outcome is what it is (I hate that saying btw, fucking cop-out excuse). I'm mad that guys like ryllharu try to apply their situations to my situation like they know what the deal is. Y is a pothead and I hope that shit doesn't catch up to him but I know it will. DS is just being DS.

In the end I actually appreciate their feedback, though it's hard to tell since I'm on full defensive psychological preservation mode. It's been therapeutic venting and I hope you guys aren't too put off and will continue to interact. Though now that I've exposed a weakness I'm sure you'll all pounce and try to tear me down some more. Give it your best.

Kraco

Fri, 06-08-2012, 02:43 AM

Ryllharu

Fri, 06-08-2012, 03:01 AM

It's not a confused frustration. I know what I did wrong and why and why the outcome is what it is (I hate that saying btw, fucking cop-out excuse). I'm mad that guys like ryllharu try to apply their situations to my situation like they know what the deal is.
You just don't get it, and that's the saddest part. You're almost there though.

(A) Intentionally not disclosing prior drug use (because you were afraid it would disqualify you for a job where drug enforcement in involved).

(B) Intentionally not disclosing a trip to China (or Iran, or Pakistan, or Syria, or Russia, etc.) for a job that requires US security clearance.

(A) and (B) are exactly the same. Like I said several posts back, It's not what you left off, it's not whether it is drug use, a drug misdemeanor, a trip to visit family in China, a business trip, the 2008 Olympics, or a trip to Canada, or that for four months you lived with a now ex-girlfriend.

Get this through your head: It isn't the prior act. It is that you lied about it, and they caught you (because you told them). Honestly, how were they even going to find out about recreational drug use? At least with a trip to China while trying to get a job that requires US clearance, they can actually look up customs records, or off your passport.

A person who manges to do that, whatever the omission is, doesn't just suddenly appear like they might not be trusted, they just proved that they can't be trusted. I don't know how you can't see the obvious parallel.

Animeniax

Fri, 06-08-2012, 08:16 AM

Do you reckon your chances might be better if you tried again in some less conservative state and a city/town with less fierce competition? The USA is a helluva big country, after all, so you should have lots of options. Unless they systematically drop applicants who were dropped elsewhere for any reason. I imagine if you got in anywhere and had a spotless record of a number of years, it would be far easier then to move back to a place where you'd rather spend the rest of your career in.Yeah at this point I'm thinking that might be the real point of this entire mess... some karmic alignment that will force me to move to a city/town more suited to me. I don't really like Austin, but I do have a house here. But the weather, people, traffic, and mindset of the locals really don't jive with me. I'm just not sure where else I could/would want to live and work.

You just don't get it, and that's the saddest part. You're almost there though.

(A) Intentionally not disclosing prior drug use (because you were afraid it would disqualify you for a job where drug enforcement in involved).

(B) Intentionally not disclosing a trip to China (or Iran, or Pakistan, or Syria, or Russia, etc.) for a job that requires US security clearance.

(A) and (B) are exactly the same. Like I said several posts back, It's not what you left off, it's not whether it is drug use, a drug misdemeanor, a trip to visit family in China, a business trip, the 2008 Olympics, or a trip to Canada, or that for four months you lived with a now ex-girlfriend.

Get this through your head: It isn't the prior act. It is that you lied about it, and they caught you (because you told them). Honestly, how were they even going to find out about recreational drug use? At least with a trip to China while trying to get a job that requires US clearance, they can actually look up customs records, or off your passport.

A person who manges to do that, whatever the omission is, doesn't just suddenly appear like they might not be trusted, they just proved that they can't be trusted. I don't know how you can't see the obvious parallel.
Nope, you're still mostly wrong. When the reviewer cop told me I'd been disqualified, he specifically mentioned how prior drug use in my 30s was significantly more damning than if it had been in my teens or early twenties, aside from the fact that I did not admit to it on the applications. Partly because it adds to the deception since it makes my omission more willful since the use only occurred a couple years ago so I couldn't say I forgot about it. But also because he couldn't trust that it was purely experimentation or that it was done for the purpose I stated, which was to "get my feet wet" before jumping into the pool that is police work. He made that point clear, that experimentation with drugs occurs when you're in your teens, not as a 30-something.

They would have found out about the drug use because of the polygraph test that they administer. Do you administer a poly for security clearances?

Ryllharu

Fri, 06-08-2012, 03:20 PM

Do you administer a [polygraph tests] for security clearances?Yes. They're always done for Top Secret clearance, and occasionally for Secret, depending on what you'd need to look at. Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) in particular. It is quite well detailed on the wikipedia articles (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Security_clearance#Requirements_for_a_clearance) about the topic.

If you knew you were going to get polygraphed, all the more reason to disclose it up front.

But also because he couldn't trust that it was purely experimentation or that it was done for the purpose I stated, which was to "get my feet wet" before jumping into the pool that is police work.
That's quite possibly the most boneheaded reason I've ever heard to try out drugs.

Animeniax

Fri, 06-08-2012, 04:58 PM

Yes. They're always done for Top Secret clearance, and occasionally for Secret, depending on what you'd need to look at. Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) in particular. It is quite well detailed on the wikipedia articles (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Security_clearance#Requirements_for_a_clearance) about the topic.

If you knew you were going to get polygraphed, all the more reason to disclose it up front.

That's quite possibly the most boneheaded reason I've ever heard to try out drugs.

Polygraphs aren't some magic truth telling device. You can fail/set off triggers on the poly just by being nervous or sleepy. I could have passed the poly satisfactorily without ever admitting to the drug use. I think kudos should be given that I fessed up. Thinking back, not sure why I decided to admit it instead of trying to beat the poly. It would have been a fun experience, especially if I beat it.

I think it's more pathetic to try drugs because you think life sucks and you want to dull the pain and tedium by getting high. There are so many better ways to improve your life than by drowning in your own sorrows (getting high).

Fri, 06-08-2012, 05:26 PM

I think it's more pathetic to try drugs because you think life sucks and you want to dull the pain and tedium by getting high. There are so many better ways to improve your life than by drowning in your own sorrows (getting high).

I say that your hilariously stupid stated reason for trying drugs is, hands down, the dumbest possible rationale. It's good to know that despite endemic incompetence and corruption in many police forces around America, they are still clever enough to avoid hiring you.

http://www.marriedtothesea.com/060712/dont-smoke-weed.gif

Animeniax

Fri, 06-08-2012, 07:34 PM

I say that your hilariously stupid stated reason for trying drugs is, hands down, the dumbest possible rationale. It's good to know that despite endemic incompetence and corruption in many police forces around America, they are still clever enough to avoid hiring you.

http://www.marriedtothesea.com/060712/dont-smoke-weed.gifYeah those guys are such great successes. They'll be remembered for how well they led this country and its effect on the international community.

I have to agree with you though. As fucked up as the police are in the US, they've managed to keep out probably one of the best candidates to make positive changes and a true force for good. Guess I'll spend my energies playing video games instead. I wish I had less drive and optimism than I do and could just be happy getting high and sitting around. Then I could be like you Y.

Abdula

Fri, 06-08-2012, 10:31 PM

Wow! It must be an awesome world inside your head Animeniax.

Animeniax

Fri, 06-08-2012, 10:35 PM

Wow! It must be an awesome world inside your head Animeniax.

You're one to talk, you emo bitch. Buddy old pal!

Abdula

Fri, 06-08-2012, 10:57 PM

Emo? Me? Tears of blood are so 4 years ago. I'm all mellow now

Animeniax

Sat, 06-09-2012, 01:27 AM

Emo? Me? Tears of blood are so 4 years ago. I'm all mellow nowDid you start smoking weed?

Abdula

Sat, 06-09-2012, 10:58 AM

Ew no. Why would I do that.

The Heretic Azazel

Sat, 06-09-2012, 11:01 PM

So now that you've failed as a cop, will I be seeing you zooming through my local strip mall on your segway?

Animeniax

Sat, 06-09-2012, 11:07 PM

So now that you've failed as a cop, will I be seeing you zooming through my local strip mall on your segway?

Nah, I go hard or go home. APD is one of the top forces in the country (in their own estimation) including pay, benefits, and training. To settle for a smaller outfit or a shittier PD would be a step down, like joining the army instead of being a marine. I don't play that shit. Since I can't be APD (I can reapply somewhere between 3-10 years, they'll let me know) I guess that's God's way of letting me know that's not my path in life. Now I have to make my own path in life, and that's what's eating me, since I'm not sure what else I want to do with my life and it's getting late in the game to decide on a change now. So fuck it.

Buffalobiian

Sat, 06-09-2012, 11:46 PM

You can't apply for another PD position elsewhere in 3 years?

Or is that 3 years before you can apply to the same place again?

Animeniax

Sun, 06-10-2012, 12:20 AM

3-10 years before I can apply to Austin PD again. Fucking rapists and murderers get less time as punishment.

I could apply elsewhere now, but I'd have to list on that application that I was disqualified from APD for lying by omission. That would pretty much doom that application as well. So basically it means the end of my career in law enforcement as far as I can tell. Maybe for the best, except now I feel like I have no purpose in life besides to survive.

Buffalobiian

Sun, 06-10-2012, 12:44 AM

Animeniax

Sun, 06-10-2012, 09:46 AM

What happened to wanting to open up a ramen shop near the university for the students? That fall through as well, or just no capital for it?

Nah, that was always a pipe dream. I have no business or food sense (everything tastes about the same to me). I could raise the capital but I'm not sure $6-10 ramen bowls would sell that well, though the student body at this uni seems to have enough disposable income.

There was a ramen shop in another part of town and it failed, but it wasn't close to uni. Rent at locations near uni is outrageous.

XanBcoo

Sun, 06-10-2012, 09:57 AM

I'd suggest getting a food truck near 6th, but ramen isn't really drunk person friendly. And again, it would probably be crazy expensive to rent out a location within walking distance of that sort of nightlife.

My interactions with the APD have been nothing but positive. Last time I was there for a protest they were as friendly and accommodating as they could be towards the crowd.

Animeniax

Sun, 06-10-2012, 10:39 AM

I blame that on the liberalism prevalent in this city because of the hippies and idealistic college crowd. Anytime APD steps out of line, it's a huge uproar in the media. But I've also only had positive and professional interactions with the police, even when they were giving me a ticket. Of course, you and I are white and yellow, respectively. I'm sure the brothers and brown people don't get treated quite as nicely by the mostly white police force in Austin.

Not sure I'd want to target the drunken frat crowd anyway. I was thinking more about the yuppie/hipster crowd that "loves" Japanese "culture" and has the money to drop on $6-10 ramen bowls and $4 "imported" beers. But I don't know or want to know about running a business and much less a food business. It's just not my thing. I don't have that entrepreneurial spirit.

Abdula

Sun, 06-10-2012, 11:58 AM

My interactions with the NYPD have all been pleasant experiences. Cops are fun people, they have a tough job and they do it.

I guess that's God's way of letting me know that's not my path in life.
This is my bitch. I hate it when people say that, particularly when they fail at something. Its the biggest cop out ever. People do stupid things or make bad decisions but the reason they are not successful is because God didn't want them to be. It really makes me irrationally upset because how stupid do you have to be to believe that. Seriously, there are very few things that make me angry but people who believe that some deity sits and micromanages their lives happens to be one of those things.

Animeniax

Sun, 06-10-2012, 03:47 PM

My interactions with the NYPD have all been pleasant experiences. Cops are fun people, they have a tough job and they do it.

This is my bitch. I hate it when people say that, particularly when they fail at something. Its the biggest cop out ever. People do stupid things or make bad decisions but the reason they are not successful is because God didn't want them to be. It really makes me irrationally upset because how stupid do you have to be to believe that. Seriously, there are very few things that make me angry but people who believe that some deity sits and micromanages their lives happens to be one of those things.

That's fine you believe what you believe. I've had enough signs and "coincidences" to know that we all don't have free choice and just make our own way through life. The people you meet, the experiences you have, the failures you have, they occur for a reason and for some greater plan. That's not true for everyone though.

Think of it like this: we're an ant farm run by some kid. Some ants will get more attention that others from this kid. God is the kid. We're the ants.

I didn't "fail" at anything. I followed a path laid out for me that suddenly diverged into nothingness and with no alternative path that makes sense.

XanBcoo

Sun, 06-10-2012, 03:52 PM

I'm sure the brothers and brown people don't get treated quite as nicely by the mostly white police force in Austin.

Yeah, I think I selectively chose not to remember that the APD is notoriously racist once you get into high-latino areas like Riverside.

I never had to worry about being pulled over when I lived there because the police were too busy stopping hispanic men for God knows what misdemeanors.

Goddamn that's a terrible thing to say :(

enkoujin

Sun, 06-10-2012, 04:10 PM

HAHAHAHA "cop-out"!

I don't know if you guys are rubbing salt into Ani's wounds, but the wordplay is too hilarious.

Like Bill said, try applying elsewhere. Don't limit your options - counties, etc. are all alternatives (better than nothing). I have also noticed that you're particularly good at writing and arguing on the forums here - maybe law school could be another possible path for you.

Abdula

Sun, 06-10-2012, 04:20 PM

Yeah I used the phrase intentionally

That's fine you believe what you believe. I've had enough signs and "coincidences" to know that we all don't have free choice and just make our own way through life. The people you meet, the experiences you have, the failures you have, they occur for a reason and for some greater plan. That's not true for everyone though.

Think of it like this: we're an ant farm run by some kid. Some ants will get more attention that others from this kid. God is the kid. We're the ants.

I didn't "fail" at anything. I followed a path laid out for me that suddenly diverged into nothingness and with no alternative path that makes sense.

Of course you know I wasn't attacking you personally or anything like that. You mentioned God's will in regards to your present situation 2 or 3 times however and as I said it is something that irks me. I have had a great deal of "coincidences" in my life as well and have been in a lot of situations that seemed preordained. I simply do not believe in predestination though. Most of the people I have met use it as an excuse for their own shortcomings or as justification for their supposed superiority.

-That last sentence of yours reminds me of something I had in my sig a few years ago

enkoujin

Tue, 06-12-2012, 12:27 AM

Not too sure if this belongs here; it's somewhat explicit.

There was a guy across my street who profusely sweared so loud from his residence that everyone within a five house radius could hear him. He proceeded to do this for five hours until 9 PM and I simply ignored it because I thought he was angry with an upcoming hockey game tonight or that he might have lost his job/money on the stock market or something like that.

After five hours of screaming, the police and an ambulance was called. Apparently, a woman commited suicide in there and I guess he was too scared to call emergency services for some reason.

Now, I can't sleep peacefully knowing that I'm a lowlife who couldn't recognise a dire situation to communicate with a neighbour or to call emergency services to help a countryman and the thought that someone committed suicide lives across the street from me. I don't believe in the supernatural, but it feels damn creepy right now.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:27 AM

Kraco

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:38 AM

Yeah. If I was hearing loud cursing but no sign of fighting, I wouldn't call the cops until it was late at night and I'd like to get to sleep. It probably wouldn't have occurred to me they were in fact cries for help. You curse when you cut your own finger with a knife, then curse some more when you hit a table leg with your toe when going for the band-aid, but you don't want your neighbour to call the police to check out the situation.

enkoujin

Tue, 06-12-2012, 02:00 AM

Yeah, it was pretty WTF the entire time around. He opened his balcony and kept swearing "FUCK, FUCK, FUCK!" over and over again. I'm not too sure what psychological factors came into play that took him four hours to call the police of ambulance unless it was traumatic shock that prevented him from stepping outside and phoning for some help (or knocking on others' doors to call for help).

You've got to have a pretty good imagination to think that a man swearing down the road got caught up in a homicide event rather than a sporting one.

I usually assume or think about worst-case scenarios and possibilities, but the fact that sports (hockey, particularly) can make grown adults feel so many emotions ranging from tears of ecstasy to violent rioting in this country prevented me from my pessimistic thoughts.

Nonetheless, thanks for your opinions; I think I can sleep better tonight... even though the thought that someone just ended their own life close to my house still disturbs me.

Archangel

Tue, 06-12-2012, 07:20 AM

The downside of being a pussy, next time man up and actually interact with someone.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 06-12-2012, 07:22 AM

The downside of being a pussy

Or.. you know... tolerant.

Archangel

Tue, 06-12-2012, 07:45 AM

Tolerant of some mad man shouting angrily outside your door?

Man up and do something about it or call the cops, just ignoring it hoping it goes away is a pretty vaginal course of action.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 06-12-2012, 07:49 AM

Tolerant of some mad man shouting angrily outside your door?

Correction: On his balcony. One floor up. Across the street.

just ignoring it hoping it goes away

Correction: just ignoring it and not giving a shit and/or letting the guy vent.

Animeniax

Tue, 06-12-2012, 08:29 AM

Yeah, I think I selectively chose not to remember that the APD is notoriously racist once you get into high-latino areas like Riverside.

I never had to worry about being pulled over when I lived there because the police were too busy stopping hispanic men for God knows what misdemeanors.

Goddamn that's a terrible thing to say :(

For the running test we took a van to a local high school (our tax dollars at work, fucking 7 recruiters came along for the ride when there were only 3 recruits). Along the way, the cops were not shy at talking shit about any people they saw on the streets during the drive (it's in a bad part of town).

They definitely looked down on any underprivileged and non-mainstream people they saw, and even though we were recruits (or maybe because of it) they were shameless about indoctrinating us into the mindset of the APD. Two of the recruits were country white guys, so they fit right in.

Archangel

Tue, 06-12-2012, 09:38 AM

Correction: On his balcony. One floor up. Across the street.

Correction: just ignoring it and not giving a shit and/or letting the guy vent.
Good job, a life which could have possibly been saved was lost on account of you not giving a shit.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 06-12-2012, 10:01 AM

Good job, a life which could have possibly been saved was lost on account of you not giving a shit.

Not your fault. If he really did lose his job and was venting for example, and you called the cops on him - it might have been the last straw and made him jump.

The opposite could have also happened. Your retroscope doesn't give any reason to approach the same presenting situation any differently in the future.

XanBcoo

Tue, 06-12-2012, 10:19 AM

Not your fault. If he really did lose his job and was venting for example, and you called the cops on him - it might have been the last straw and made him jump.
There is absolutely no possible likelihood of that having happened.

Archangel is right. Calling the authorities and actually confronting the situation is the best course of action.

Edit: When did insane hypothetical scenarios become the basis for an argument?

Buffalobiian

Tue, 06-12-2012, 10:29 AM

There is absolutely no possible likelihood of that having happened.

I wouldn't say that. It'd say it's no less likely than someone having another person (yes, taking this assumption would mean that we theorised that there was another person in the house that we did not know about) in their house dead, then screaming for five hours from his balcony without calling for help or leaving the house.

Again.. retroscope at work here. You're more likely to believe that someone died in his house because it happened.

XanBcoo

Tue, 06-12-2012, 10:31 AM

Buffalobiian

Tue, 06-12-2012, 10:37 AM

Thinking "There's someone screaming like a maniac next door, maybe someone is in trouble" is not the same as "There's someone screaming like a maniac next door, I better ignore it in case he jumps off his balcony" holy shit man.

Definitely. My scenario wasn't to be used as a "reason" to not engage the man, it was to highlight that the engagement itself wasn't necessarily going to end positively.

By the way, I'd replace "scream" with "swear/curse" there, as that's what Enkoujin wrote. Screaming implies panic to the degree that they didn't even formulate a proper word.

A man saying "FUUCK.. FUUUUCK.... (5hrs later).. FUUUUUCK" gives a different angle to the situation.

Abdula

Tue, 06-12-2012, 11:59 AM

When did insane hypothetical scenarios become the basis for an argument?
About the time Naruto got its own sub forum.

I think Buff is right at least initially. A guy just cursing over and over is not going to get much of a reaction out of me. The problem is that it continued for over 5 hours. A half hour I can understand maybe even an hour but anything beyond that is just completely unreasonable.

Now, I can't sleep peacefully knowing that I'm a lowlife who couldn't recognise a dire situation to communicate with a neighbour or to call emergency services to help a countryman and the thought that someone committed suicide lives across the street from me. I don't believe in the supernatural, but it feels damn creepy right now.
Don't be too hard on yourself. Based on what you said even if you had called the cops right away it wouldn't have changed the outcome much, given that the woman was already dead. Don't focus on the fact that someone died across the street from you either, such things happen. Death is one of those things that can really unhinge people especially if they feel they are somehow responsible.

Animeniax

Tue, 06-12-2012, 12:15 PM

I don't appreciate other people who I don't know trying to make their problems into my problems. Learn to deal with your own shit. I deal with mine without involving you.

Tue, 06-12-2012, 12:48 PM

Don't ever call the cops for any reason.

Archangel

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:22 PM

American mentality at its best, i swear the police is worse than the criminals around there for the way you people keep bashing them.

Animeniax

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:28 PM

Don't ever call the cops for any reason.

Yeah, because people become cops solely because they want to help people. How naive of you.

Abdula

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:32 PM

Lol I wonder if he gets robbed if he is still going to adhere to that

Animeniax

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:35 PM

Lol I wonder if he gets robbed if he is still going to adhere to that

I think he's trying to make fun of me since I want to be a cop but I don't like to help people. I've discussed this with buddies before and my reasoning is that my primary motive for becoming a cop is not to help people, but to be able to punish them when they fuck up.

Abdula

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:41 PM

Wow, just like that my hope for you died. ;)

Why don't you become a judge or a corrections officer then because unless you plan on shooting or battering every criminal you encounter, you are not going to be dishing out much punishment.

Assertn

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:44 PM

Step 1) Don't call the cops.
Step 2) Smoke some weed.

Edit:

Emo? Me? Tears of blood are so 4 years ago. I'm all mellow now
Wahh? I missed this conversation. So Abdula got over that crippling problem of his that he assured us no mortal being could comprehend?

Abdula

Tue, 06-12-2012, 01:47 PM

Step 3) Doctor Who

enkoujin

Tue, 06-12-2012, 02:17 PM

Explaining my cowardice or course of actions here:

The downside of being a pussy, next time man up and actually interact with someone.

Tolerant of some mad man shouting angrily outside your door?

Man up and do something about it or call the cops, just ignoring it hoping it goes away is a pretty vaginal course of action.

Thanks for taking great interest in my anecdote, Archangel.

Someone is furiously swearing repetitively across from the house from you and you think it would be safe for you to walk over and ask what's wrong? I mean, granted, I was the one who suggested that I should've done that in retrospect. i.e., if I knew it was a suicide and some guy was swearing was yelling about it loud enough for other people could hear, I would have went over to find out what was wrong. I'm not physically strong or agile either, so if it was, say, a homicide and I walked over there, things could have turned ugly for me.

However, I didn't know his situation and another fact is that the guy was yelling (not directly from his balcony), but inside his house with his window open. He never came outside asking for help and I was in my room facing the other side with headphones after I first heard him yell. I heard from my sister that he had been yelling constantly every time.

Like I said, I live in Canada in a quiet neighbourhood. You don't expect any sort of violence to be happening much and the only times I've interacted with emergency services or called for help are when I'm directly involved in the situation (e.g., someone vomiting or someone clearly being harassed).

As previously stated, I want to emphasize that I was locked up in my room with headphones, so I was oblivious to how long he was yelling for. EDIT: until my sister told me about it when she came to sleep and I went down to see three police cars and ambulances there.

Good job, a life which could have possibly been saved was lost on account of you not giving a shit.

I don't know what exactly happened. The suicide, quoted by the man, was "she hanged herself". I'm not too sure whether or not I could have stopped it if I intervened because I don't know whether she killed herself earlier in the day by herself and the man discovered her like that or if she killed herself in the presence of the man.

There is absolutely no possible likelihood of that having happened.

Archangel is right. Calling the authorities and actually confronting the situation is the best course of action.

Would you call the police if one of your neighbours was angry and cursing without any great details? All I heard was "fuck fuck fuck" and not something like "OH MY GOD, PLEASE HELP ME! SOMEONE CALL HELP!"

It's not like I was in my living room the entire four hours listening to him curse loudly. I have to admit that I did close an intervention window because when I initially heard him screaming. I was tutoring my sister from the living room at the time when the screaming first started and closed our window and told her to concentrate on her homework instead of listening to the man.

I think Buff is right at least initially. A guy just cursing over and over is not going to get much of a reaction out of me. The problem is that it continued for over 5 hours. A half hour I can understand maybe even an hour but anything beyond that is just completely unreasonable.

Don't be too hard on yourself. Based on what you said even if you had called the cops right away it wouldn't have changed the outcome much, given that the woman was already dead. Don't focus on the fact that someone died across the street from you either, such things happen. Death is one of those things that can really unhinge people especially if they feel they are somehow responsible.

Thanks, Abdula. I really appreciate your input.

Don't ever call the cops for any reason.

Thanks, Y, but apart from the shady dealings with higher-ups in the force along with some [corrupt] police officers (where they turn a blind eye to a co-worker's law breaking), I trust my Canadian police force to help me when I'll need it.

Step 1) Don't call the cops.
Step 2) Smoke some weed.

I have never ever tried any marijuana products nor do I wish to experiment it anytime soon, but I'll just take that as "chill out and don't worry about it". Thank you, Assertn.

Thanks to Kraco as well.

Kraco

Tue, 06-12-2012, 03:11 PM

Over here the police has issued a semi-official statement that you have to listen to loud noises (such as angry cursing or arguing) for two hours before calling the authorities, unless there are clear cries for help or something even worse like gunshots.

Tue, 06-12-2012, 04:23 PM

I think he's trying to make fun of me since I want to be a cop but I don't like to help people. I've discussed this with buddies before and my reasoning is that my primary motive for becoming a cop is not to help people, but to be able to punish them when they fuck up.

I wasn't making fun of you at all, although I can see how the comment would be interpreted that way in hindsight. If someone has attempted suicide, you should call paramedics, not the police, as it's not a criminal matter. That being said, thanks for this insight into your absolutely bankrupt morality.

Archangel

Tue, 06-12-2012, 04:36 PM

In that case i'd agree, obviously. I was discussing Enloujin's case though, where it was simply a madman at his doorstep from his perspective.

enkoujin

Tue, 06-12-2012, 04:44 PM

Why don't you become a judge or a corrections officer then because unless you plan on shooting or battering every criminal you encounter, you are not going to be dishing out much punishment.

I agree wholeheartedly with Abdula, Ani.

If your main motive for your career is dishing out judgment, being a police officer doesn't cut it. You're just there to apprehend criminals without resulting to force with exceptions to dire situations. Being a judge, prosecutor or someone high up in bureaucracy who regulates the law is more in sync with what you're looking to do.

An important quote I've been told many times by my humanities teachers is that police officers exist only to enforce the law - they are not the law itself. It might be dangerous for someone as judgmental, pretentious and power-hungry as you are to be a policeman, honestly, unless you try to change your philosophy.

Animeniax

Tue, 06-12-2012, 04:55 PM

By most estimations of criminals (and everyone else in society), apprehending criminals and submitting them to the criminal justice system is punishment. I don't mean that I'll brutalize them or overstep my bounds in punishing them. I simply mean bringing them to justice and to pay for their crimes against society. "Helping" someone in terms of police action almost always involves punishing another party that is the source of their problem.

Btw, update on my situation: I got the letter of rejection from PD. I'm allowed to reapply in 2 years. Not bad. Typically dq's lock you out for 3-10 years. I take this reduced sentence as a sign that they realized my infraction wasn't as bad as all that. Still, 2 years is a long time at my age. And 2 years from now, the same cops at recruiting will probably remember me and might not give me a 2nd chance. We'll see what I do from here.

XanBcoo

Tue, 06-12-2012, 06:34 PM

Would you call the police if one of your neighbours was angry and cursing without any great details? All I heard was "fuck fuck fuck" and not something like "OH MY GOD, PLEASE HELP ME! SOMEONE CALL HELP!"

It's not like I was in my living room the entire four hours listening to him curse loudly. I have to admit that I did close an intervention window because when I initially heard him screaming. I was tutoring my sister from the living room at the time when the screaming first started and closed our window and told her to concentrate on her homework instead of listening to the man.

Sorry, I said Archangel was right but I wasn't totally agreeing with him. You could not have prevented the incident but alerting some authority would have been a far better course of action than doing nothing at all, by your own admission. It doesn't make you less of a man (whatever the fuck that means) for not doing so, just not conditioned to confront those sort of situations in that way.

I probably wouldn't have called anyone, but I realize that too would have been a mistake.

Archangel

Tue, 06-12-2012, 06:56 PM

I never said it would have prevented anything or everything, only that it could of and that it would have been the correct course of action.

Oh and it positively makes you less of a man, i honestly can't wrap my mind around such a huge bitch who would allow some crazed out hobo scream outside his house for hours without doing anything about it. You don't even have to go outside yourself but fuck, do something...

enkoujin

Tue, 06-12-2012, 07:37 PM

Like I said, if I had known what was going on at the time, I would have done something. A cry for help, a declaration that someone was dead, etc. instead of constant "FUCK"s, I would have have done something.

I'll keep that in mind for the future that if someone was having some kind of vague angry fit inside their own house without any detail regarding their situation (and not coming outside his home), but was projecting it loud enough for everyone to hear in the neighbourhood and I was in the constant presence of his tantrum (i.e., if I was in my living room and not in my room with headphones), I guarantee that I will confront the issue next time by choosing to call the emergency and non-emergency police line.

Thanks, Archangel and XanBcoo.

XanBcoo

Tue, 06-12-2012, 08:07 PM

Oh and it positively makes you less of a man, i honestly can't wrap my mind around such a huge bitch who would allow some crazed out hobo scream outside his house for hours without doing anything about it. You don't even have to go outside yourself but fuck, do something...
lol bitches amirite

http://img811.imageshack.us/img811/9065/phantomjerk.jpg

Assertn

Tue, 06-12-2012, 08:19 PM

lol bitches amirite
http://img811.imageshack.us/img811/9065/phantomjerk.jpg
I think we should replace the forum's header images with Arc's shirtless pic, to remind us anime nerds what it means to man up.

Animeniax

Tue, 06-12-2012, 09:31 PM

I think we should replace the forum's header images with Arc's shirtless pic, to remind us anime nerds what it means to man up.

I don't appreciate the stereotype that people who watch anime are all chicken shits who don't act, though that is the popular perception and deservedly so. I'm with Archangel, sometimes you have to do something.

Buffalobiian

Wed, 06-13-2012, 12:34 AM

Refrain from name-calling or attempts at flaming, people.

I never said it would have prevented anything or everything, only that it could of and that it would have been the correct course of action.

It's true that the action may have possibly prevented something. Likewise it is also true that may have caused something negative to happen. It's all guesses from here.

What would be the future course of action? Calling the cops whenever someone yells out again? Cops don't come out for free - there's the manpower, fuel and the disturbance they themselves bring to a neighbourhood when they turn up. That's not counting the important bit: opportunity cost - when the police is checking out someone who is yelling from their house, they can't be elsewhere.

Police at Kraco's country have the right idea about striking a balance there. Cops here don't want to know about theft at a store unless it's been going on for long enough, or if the value is over $300.

With limited public resources, you have to weigh up the cost of calling people out whenever this happens every single time.. And by "this", we are talking about a loud man sonically recognised as being angry, not distressed.

i honestly can't wrap my mind around such a huge bitch who would allow some crazed out hobo scream outside his house for hours without doing anything about it.

It's not too hard. One deaf person might carry on living happily while another might think it's worse than death. Whether one cares or not (aka gives a shit) about something being taken from them (in this case, environmental quietness) depends on how much they value it.

edit:discrepancy time- Enkoujin.. so you were tutoring your sister... with headphones on?

enkoujin

Wed, 06-13-2012, 01:56 AM

No, I was tutoring my sister when I first heard the noise. I helped her for about ~10 minutes and then left to my room and put my headphones on.

Uchiha Barles

Wed, 06-13-2012, 04:50 AM

People who scream, in general have a problem. The problem can range in severity from simple and inconsequential to complex and life altering. The key here is that if someone is screaming, in general, there is a problem.

Recognizing that, decide where you stand with regards to helping, and how much you're willing to stick your neck out for someone else. Do you care to help? How much risk are you willing to take in doing so? Answer those two questions and act accordingly. Reading through this I'm actually with Archie on this, but more sympathetic even so.

Buff is correct in that involving yourself by going over there and asking what the problem is or calling the cops could have either positive or negative results. However, the best you can do is to make a decision based on the information you have. A screaming man has a problem, and a man screaming loud enough for the neighborhood to hear for an extended amount time (even 10 minutes is long enough for concern) is not concerned about others reaction to him, probably because he's withdrawn himself from his environment as a coping mechanism; his problem is severe. How you react to this should be based more on what you know, and less on what you don't know.. You know there's a problem, but you don't know what the problem is.

That being said, I can see your decision going either way. There were times when I've heard someone getting shot right outside my window and wouldn't so much as peek through the window so as not to risk being noticed. The screaming people obviously had a problem, but I usually had a good idea as to why that took place, and what would happen to me if I got involved. Those were shit neighborhoods high in crime, low in income, with a criminal base that reacted harshly to people who gave information to the police. I keep my nose out of that.

In any case, this isn't something for you to lose too much sleep over. What it is, is an opportunity to learn from and grow as a person. Take it. The next time something in any way similar to what you experienced here happens, you should be completely comfortable with the decision you made.

Buffalobiian

Wed, 06-13-2012, 05:00 AM

How you react to this should be based more on what you know, and less on what you don't know.

I would tend to agree with this statement.

My biggest question is how you evaluate the situation (in other words, how you interpret the "what you know" part):

1) Do you readily identify the "noise" as a distressed screaming?

Or

2) Do you readily identify the "noise" as loud, angry cursing?

The first emotion Enkoujin identified in his post is "angry", which I would identify as situation #2.. which in turn doesn't necessarily suggest he's in trouble.

.. but hey, I know people who will approach angry people (who don't appear to want help) and ask if they're alright.

enkoujin

Wed, 06-13-2012, 06:03 AM

Thanks for your opinion, Uchiha.

It's difficult for me to identify situations where I can freely intervene unless it was super explicit. Recognizing emergencies is definitely something on my to-do list now.

In other bitching, I'm waiting to hear back about my major placement. At the end of the year, the first-years have to rank the majors they want to get into and are admitted based on their GPA and the quotas needed.

Most of my first-year peers on Facebook have all heard about what they have been placed in and it feels like I'm the one of the few ones who haven't heard back from the admissions staff. Everyone's been announcing their majors in their status feeds, making Facebook major groups and celebrating.

In the meanwhile, I've thoroughly calculated my GPA and compared it to the admissions list and I'm pretty sure I got into my most desired major. For some reason, though, my brain is on stress overdrive and I couldn't sleep tonight because the desire to know which major I was placed in beat out my body's natural tendency to fall asleep. Maybe it's because I read status updates where people despaired at the fact that they did not end up where they wanted and I translated this fear of occurrence to myself.

I really hate how my brain subconsciously? interferes with what I really need to do even when the physical need to sleep beats the need to complete homework the night before every time except this situation.

Uchiha Barles

Wed, 06-13-2012, 06:06 AM

I would tend to agree with this statement.

My biggest question is how you evaluate the situation (in other words, how you interpret the "what you know" part):

1) Do you readily identify the "noise" as a distressed screaming?

Or

2) Do you readily identify the "noise" as loud, angry cursing?

The first emotion Enkoujin identified in his post is "angry", which I would identify as situation #2.. which in turn doesn't necessarily suggest he's in trouble.

.. but hey, I know people who will approach angry people (who don't appear to want help) and ask if they're alright.

I edited that part for clarity but since you quoted it faster than I edited I'll put it back. Explaining how you go about evaluating is complex, but most people can do it easily enough. First, you hear the screaming. The screaming indicates a 'problem', not necessarily 'trouble'. If it's a singular "FUCK!!", then that doesn't necessarily warrant further consideration. But if it's extended, or stands out in any way beyond that, then without further information, you decide if you want to help or not. If you decide you want to help, you then decide how much risk you're willing to take, which is where the complexity comes in. Using enkoujin's example, he would then have to consider his relationship with the neighbor, and anything else he might know about the guy either in detail or in passing. Helping may require getting further information, and if his analysis of the neighbor and the relationship between them supports him going out there and talking the guy with an acceptable risk level, then he goes. Otherwise, he looks for another less risky way to acquire the information, or he looks for a way to help that requires less information (e.g. calling the cops).

This can take less than a minute to consider. The point is, *if* you decide you'd like to help figure out if you're able to help. If yes, then do it. Regret is a bitch.

Animeniax

Wed, 06-13-2012, 09:26 AM

What would be the future course of action? Calling the cops whenever someone yells out again? Cops don't come out for free - there's the manpower, fuel and the disturbance they themselves bring to a neighbourhood when they turn up. That's not counting the important bit: opportunity cost - when the police is checking out someone who is yelling from their house, they can't be elsewhere.

Police at Kraco's country have the right idea about striking a balance there. Cops here don't want to know about theft at a store unless it's been going on for long enough, or if the value is over $300.

With limited public resources, you have to weigh up the cost of calling people out whenever this happens every single time.. And by "this", we are talking about a loud man sonically recognised as being angry, not distressed.

By not having the police readily respond to complaints/calls for assistance, you're just encouraging vigilantism and for people to take care of bad situations on their own, increasing the chances for things to really get out of hand. I'm not sure about places like Finlandia or Australia, but in the US, that means increased gun violence and death.

Kraco

Wed, 06-13-2012, 09:42 AM

Buffalobiian

Wed, 06-13-2012, 09:59 AM

By not having the police readily respond to complaints/calls for assistance, you're just encouraging vigilantism and for people to take care of bad situations on their own, increasing the chances for things to really get out of hand. I'm not sure about places like Finlandia or Australia, but in the US, that means increased gun violence and death.

Ideally the police should come out every single time, and the discretion of when they should be called in the first place should lie with the community.

It's when people get lazy and/or paranoid, then turn to the better-safe-then-sorry model, in addition to the police meeting budget and manpower requirements that they must arbitrarily enforce a threshold for when they should actually act.

It's tough.. but.... :/

edit: regarding the "taking things into your own hands" part... I had a little chuckle (from remembering the little "tolerance" talk with Ark above).

Animeniax

Wed, 06-13-2012, 10:21 AM

I don't enjoy interacting with the police so much that I'd like them called every time someone is disturbed by noise or suspects a slim chance of something being wrong, but not necessarily even criminally wrong. Especially with the economic recession promoting criminal activity yet decreasing the national budget, the funding for the police included. So, the already stressed police forces have far better things to do than to check out every cursing dude.

Besides, ours is such a nanny state anyway that the last thing needed is the police sticking their nose in everyday business.Of all the necessities you shouldn't slack on in a recession, police and emergency services like fire and medical should be on the top of that list. Cut funding for other programs (national defense, subsidizing oil and wasteful farming practices, etc), but don't cut funding for vital services that serve the public and also keep people at work.

Ideally the police should come out every single time, and the discretion of when they should be called in the first place should lie with the community.

It's when people get lazy and/or paranoid, then turn to the better-safe-then-sorry model, in addition to the police meeting budget and manpower requirements that they must arbitrarily enforce a threshold for when they should actually act.

It's tough.. but.... :/

edit: regarding the "taking things into your own hands" part... I had a little chuckle (from remembering the little "tolerance" talk with Ark above).
You have it backwards. The public should call in every incident, and the police use discretion when to respond. The police have the training and the authority and know where their people are and whether they can respond quickly and effectively. People don't have the common sense to be trusted when to call and when not to.

No you shouldn't call the police for every weird noise or peculiar person, but a guy cursing for hours should warrant a call. If nothing else, reporting it to police is a good start to document the incident. If there's enough calls, they will act. If they can establish a pattern, they will have something to act on. Don't just ignore it.

Animeniax

Wed, 06-27-2012, 08:26 PM

Amazon will no longer be tax free in Texas starting July 1. What the hell is this??

Abdula

Wed, 06-27-2012, 08:35 PM

Hilarious is what that is. I bet it seems like they are specifically targeting you right?

enkoujin

Wed, 06-27-2012, 09:04 PM

Texas? More like Taxas, amirite?!

But, seriously, bro, that's awful. Are there any other alternatives to Amazon down there?

Animeniax

Wed, 06-27-2012, 09:12 PM

Nah, different states have been after Amazon for sales taxes for years. I guess Texas was the only one so far with the balls to follow through, and Amazon caved. I'm not long for this shithole state and it's 100F+ weather, so it doesn't matter that much. Previously I think only California and maybe a couple other states required taxes from Amazon.

@enkoujin: with their Prime membership that included free 2 day shipping, Amazon was the best place for pretty much anything you needed and for cheap. You can actually get cheaper prices for computer equipment at Newegg and cheaper prices for other stuff at other online retailers, but few have the selection of Amazon as a one-stop shop. And the shipping prices typically made shopping at other companies less appealing.

@Buff from below: probably not worth it, plus the additional transit time. There are other e-tailers with better pricing already. Of course, Amazon has this amazing few-questions-asked customer service, kind of like Walmart. Other places aren't so customer friendly.

Buffalobiian

Wed, 06-27-2012, 09:12 PM

Amazon will no longer be tax free in Texas starting July 1. What the hell is this??

Check out if sending the packages to a different state, then having them sent back over via a mail-forwarding service is worth the extra cost. Might not work for cheap items, but could be worth looking at for purchases exceeding a few hundred dollars.

UChessmaster

Sun, 07-01-2012, 04:42 PM

Got friendzoned >.>

darkshadow

Sun, 07-01-2012, 05:21 PM

Friendzone doesn't exist...but please elaborate.

shinta|hikari

Sun, 07-01-2012, 05:30 PM

It does exist.

UChessmaster

Sun, 07-01-2012, 05:38 PM

Well i met this guy and apparently im like the brother he never had. We talk every day a lot, but at this point i think i waited too long and speaking of dating and whatnot feels awkward.

Uchiha Barles

Sun, 07-01-2012, 06:05 PM

Well i met this guy and apparently im like the brother he never had. We talk every day a lot, but at this point i think i waited too long and speaking of dating and whatnot feels awkward.

Yeah, I'm with darkshadow on this. I've seen enough people in the "friend-zone" get out of it to know that it doesn't exist. It's basically a rejection that's convenient to use to avoid hurting the feelings of the person being rejected. It's convenient because you two have made each other available enough for that line to work. So, first thing to do, is to revoke some of your availability from that person.

edit: Ah, misread your post. You haven't actually been "friend-zoned" or rejected. This is probably the most cliche advice ever, but it works. If you like this guy, tell him and let the decision rest on him. Don't reject yourself for him.

enkoujin

Sun, 07-01-2012, 06:11 PM

If you really want to salvage all you can, I've heard of cases where you can still be their "friend" and see if anyone from their networks has compatibility with you.

I'd definitely take some time to gather your thoughts and getting back to normal before doing anything of that degree first, though. A sympathetic beer and best wishes to you.

fahoumh

Sun, 07-15-2012, 11:32 AM

Some asshole hit the side mirror on my sister's car a few days ago and it's busted; there's even evidence of light grazing on the door right underneath it. The part that really pisses me off is the fact that they didn't even have any consideration or decency to leave a note. Now we're left with a broken side mirror that we have to replace and no way to find out who did it.

Animeniax

Tue, 08-07-2012, 01:21 PM

Japan just lost in the men's olympic soccer semi-final to Mexico, ruining the chance of having both their men's and women's teams in the finals (never happened in Olympic history). Mexican players flopped like fishes, the cheap bastards.

darkshadow

Wed, 08-08-2012, 04:50 AM

My crt monitor just died.

Animeniax

Tue, 08-28-2012, 03:02 AM

My crt monitor just died.

Late to reply, but that sucks. I hate when equipment just up and dies, apparently for no reason and without warning. Unless it's been giving you problems before now.

It seems some of my favorite shows are going through growing pains, with the writing suffering most likely due to the shows' successes and popularity. The first 2-3 seasons of Children's Hospital, NTSV:SD:SUV, and Louie were all pretty amazing. The newest episodes of each series not so much. They went from clever and hilarious to ludicrous and unfunny. Here's hoping Archer doesn't fail in its new season.

enkoujin

Tue, 08-28-2012, 08:06 AM

My crt monitor just died.

Props to you for using such an ancient device until this day.

Not many people can still use outdated technology to the point where they'll break down.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 08-28-2012, 08:39 AM

But DS loved his CRT for its strengths (colour reproduction, response time), so does that count?

deathnightwc3

Tue, 09-25-2012, 08:06 AM

My sister is a bitch. My grandmother has dementia, so someone has to keep watch over her and since my aunts don't want her to be taken to a nursing home 4 hours away, they decide to pay me(very little a month) to take care of her. My sister constant bitches about me having some money, while at the same time complains that she has to go to my mom's nail salon to learn for free the trade and expect to be paid for it. All she does is goes there for 2-3 hours, bitches when she gets home, goes and smokes weed in her room and fills the entire house with the disgusting smell. She even has her BF living with her, which my mom is against but doesn't do anything about it. Best of all, she has a kid(not the current BF's) that she basically leaves alone the entire time so she can smoke and have sex in her room, which everyone can hear, and then complains that her kid isn't doing so well in school. Makes me want to punch her in her fucken face.

Buffalobiian

Tue, 09-25-2012, 08:32 AM

Wow. That's... fucked up.

deathnightwc3

Tue, 09-25-2012, 10:15 AM

Yeah, tell me about it. I literally have to turn off the AC just so the smell doesn't go past the stairs. And just a few minutes ago, she bitched at me for buying $6 worth of McDonalds breakfast today, and thinks I'm loaded. My mom has a 300 dollar gift card that she wants to use for gas only, my sister found out about it and wanted to buy clothes with it. My mom gave me the card to fill up the cars with gas(two of them), so I do, then stop by and get some breakfast. I paid in cash for the food, and now my sister thinks I'm just using the card for w/e. So she bitches at my mom about it, my mom calls me and tells me no fast food blah blah then says to give her the card so she can buy some pants. I warned her she'll probably spend it on other shit or get the most expensive pants she can find, but w/e. So I tell my sister she can buy her pants and hand her the card. She snaps at me and says 'why, so you can spend the rest of it on food?'... God she's lucky I can control my anger, or she would of had a blood face. Also, I told her forget and kept the card.

Sorry for the long bitch, just tired of her.

Kraco

Tue, 09-25-2012, 10:25 AM

Man, you need to move out. You won't survive in that house much longer without losing your sanity with people like that. I'm sure your sister would also be much more tolerable if you only had to suffer her company once a year, you know.

deathnightwc3

Tue, 09-25-2012, 10:33 AM

Oh I definitely plan too, but I'm also trying to convince my mom to kick her out. My mom has alot of stress on her hands and my sister only cares about herself. Money is really tight on her, being a single mom, I try to lessen the load on her. My father was the main bread maker in the family, and when he passed, she's had to work harder. All the while, my sister leaves all the school/Taekwondo expenses to my mom, plus she's feeding her BF with my mom's food. And in all honesty, I'm suprised her BF hasn't left her, considering she's so lazy. He works 2 jobs, while she sits at home and complains.

Quick edit: Also, it's slightly hard to move out right now, with my grandma the way she is. She wanders outside trying to go to her old house and she makes a mess everywhere(and if your in an asian family like me, you know how your parents react to messes). My sister has said out loud that she won't help her, my twin brother has a job and can't really help with his schedule, and my younger brother has autism, so I'm pretty much the only one my mom can rely on to take care of her.

Death BOO Z

Wed, 09-26-2012, 12:32 PM

that sounds rough.
wouldn't it be easier if both you and your grandmother would move to her old house? you'd still have to take care of her by yourself, but you won't have the additional burden of dealing with the rest of the family.

deathnightwc3

Wed, 09-26-2012, 02:47 PM

She's kinda not allowed there anymore, my aunt and uncles live there and they don't have time to watch her at all. She's one of those old farmer type korean ladies, so she might attempt to do something there that she did before. We've already had that house catch on fire, nearly burnt the entire house down.

Edit: Bitch for today, went to the dentist to finally get my crown on my tooth. it's been like 5 weeks now since they started. So after they finally put it in, they show my teeth xray, tell me that the side was bad, and the core wasn't good either from before they started. The lady said they were either going to replace the tooth or do a root canal. They choose root canal, trying to save the tooth. Well, she tells me since the core of the tooth was bad, the crown and tooth(what's left of it) might break off, which then they'll replace... Kinda pissed me off, sounded like they only did the root canal, because it might break off anyway, so they get to do both, squeezing more money out of me.

Ryllharu

Wed, 09-26-2012, 06:40 PM

Not all dentists are good at what they do, sadly. Some of them are downright terrible.

A (older) friend of mine was forced to go to one that never used novocaine, the dentist didn't believe in it. He'd drill until the patient couldn't stand it anymore, then stop, meaning a lot of the decay never got drilled out. So my friend had to get rework down the road.

Luckily, my own is really really good at what she does.

Unfortunately, years of never flossing forced me to get a filling. Now I take much better care of my teeth. Better they are fixing it then letting it get worse. Still, you might want to find a new dentist.

Sat, 10-06-2012, 10:30 PM

I hate people using "pretentious" to criticize something. It's an empty buzzword. By saying something is "pretentious" with no supporting criticism, you're just trying to make your opinion sound like more than a value judgment - in effect, people who criticize things for being "pretentious" are themselves being pretentious.

Archangel

Sun, 10-07-2012, 09:34 AM

Animeniax

Sun, 10-07-2012, 11:58 AM

How delightfully quaint that you would be opposed to the word that best describes you.

I was sure that was a setup so I didn't respond.

My bitch is meeting up with people you knew from high school/college after a time apart and seeing they haven't changed for the better or progressed much at all. They're following the path that 95% of people follow... work, maybe family, and slowly fading into old age. Gone are the dreams and freedom and potential to do whatever people dream of when they are young and free. That didn't happen to me, so it's comforting to look in from the outside, but also depressing because the human spirit is so easy to crush and make a person into an automaton.

Buffalobiian

Sun, 10-07-2012, 12:36 PM

I never had any of that to start with, so I don't think I can relate to you there.

Sun, 10-07-2012, 12:59 PM

How delightfully quaint that you would be opposed to the word that best describes you.

I'll admit I posted this after reading you call some anime pretentious, but it wasn't about you in particular. It's just a pet peeve.

Archangel

Sun, 10-07-2012, 01:27 PM

I'll admit I posted this after reading you call some anime pretentious, but it wasn't about you in particular. It's just a pet peeve.
I think you read me dismissing the idea of an anime being pretentious. That or you read an old post i don't remember.

Sun, 10-07-2012, 02:13 PM

You're right, it was animus.

Do you disagree though?

My bitch is meeting up with people you knew from high school/college after a time apart and seeing they haven't changed for the better or progressed much at all. They're following the path that 95% of people follow... work, maybe family, and slowly fading into old age. Gone are the dreams and freedom and potential to do whatever people dream of when they are young and free. That didn't happen to me, so it's comforting to look in from the outside, but also depressing because the human spirit is so easy to crush and make a person into an automaton.

Speaking of posts that look like a setup.

Animeniax

Sun, 10-07-2012, 03:11 PM

Speaking of posts that look like a setup.

I'd say my post is more along my usual lines of thought, which is why I'm so critical of people and what they choose to do with their time that seem like a waste of time (replaying video games is high on that list). That it concerns people I know and actual events in my life over this weekend only reinforces my purpose for posting it here.

As far as your earlier post and Archangel's reply, I think it's funny that someone like you that I'd consider pretentious would accuse others of the same fault. It's ironic because I am critical of people who are critical of people, so I guess in our cases it goes back to "takes one to know one."

Sun, 10-07-2012, 05:27 PM

As far as your earlier post and Archangel's reply, I think it's funny that someone like you that I'd consider pretentious would accuse others of the same fault.

Oh gosh, was that the implication? Thanks for explaining it for me.

Animeniax

Sun, 10-07-2012, 08:25 PM

Oh gosh, was that the implication? Thanks for explaining it for me.

How pretentious of you!

Buffalobiian

Sun, 10-07-2012, 08:58 PM

I never had any of that to start with, so I don't think I can relate to you there.

I'd say my post is more along my usual lines of thought, which is why I'm so critical of people and what they choose to do with their time that seem like a waste of time (replaying video games is high on that list).

I spent 40 hours completing Borderlands 2, then spent another 50 hours (so far) replaying it.

I'm like... the very definition of what you're bitching about.

Animeniax

Sun, 10-07-2012, 09:15 PM

I spent 40 hours completing Borderlands 2, then spent another 50 hours (so far) replaying it.

I'm like... the very definition of what you're bitching about.

Nah, only if you did it all the time and had a very limited outlook on life, which vibe I don't get from you, at least from your posts. Replaying video games isn't that bad by itself, but coupled with other introverted tendencies it might be a bad sign. I really think there are better ways to spend your time learning and experiencing new things.

I spent a lot of time playing BL1 (can't recall how many hours exactly). Playing BL2 is so much like an expansion that I've stopped playing. I'm currently level 24 and just met Brick and joined his slabs. I might finish the main mission but the side jobs are pointless.

Sun, 10-07-2012, 10:11 PM

How pretentious of you!

What a surprise, you don't know what words mean.

Animeniax

Mon, 10-08-2012, 12:32 AM

What a surprise, you don't know what words mean.

That's ironic like rain on your wedding day.

Carnage

Fri, 10-19-2012, 12:27 AM

HOLY FUCKING SHIT IM WASTED RIGHT NOW

Animeniax

Fri, 10-19-2012, 12:52 AM

You type pretty well considering. Your bitch should come later today with the hangover.

My Uverse DVR rebooted itself and wiped all my recorded shows. Not much, but sucks thinking its unreliable for long term storage of media.

Animeniax

Sat, 10-27-2012, 10:52 PM

Spent 9 hours today removing, rebuilding, and reinstalling the power steering pump and hoses in my car. Thought I had it fixed... but it still leaks fluid (can't figure out where) onto the exhaust manifold, causing it to burn and smoke. Plus no power steering which makes driving nearly impossible. Time to take it to a pro on Monday.

Death BOO Z

Sun, 10-28-2012, 02:50 PM

even if you would have found the leak, can you really reliably replace something like that in your car?
I'm all in for do-it-yourself and shit, but the engine?

my bitch: I was supposed to have an interview for a research assistant position today, but the professor didn't respond to any of my e-mails asking when to meet her. even though she was the one to suggest Sunday. (I even prematurely ended my shitty job for it).

I need to get a start on my career path, whatever the shit it's going to be.

Animeniax

Sun, 10-28-2012, 11:23 PM

The power steering components aren't really a part of the engine, more a part of the suspension and steering controls. The pump is only tied to the engine in that it is driven by a belt that turns with the turning of the engine. At this point it's probably just a leaking hose somewhere in the system, but I can't identify it without getting it on a lift. There are hoses that connect the power steering pump to the steering rack and back to the fluid reservoir. If the rack is leaking, that gets expensive to replace (difficult to service yourself, though I haven't researched it) but not too bad, around $300 for a re-manufactured rack, plus labor to get it installed, which involves a bit of suspension work.

An interview on a Sunday? I guess that's normal considering your people don't consider Sunday a holy day. Hopefully you didn't send too many email and scared her off. Just check with her tomorrow and hopefully it works out.