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marantzo
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 10:16 am Reply with quote
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Of course, Marj is an exception. Laughing
Joe Vitus
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 10:17 am Reply with quote
Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 14498 Location: Houston
Believe me, I understand the need for covert operations, and I'm not saying that at all times all the military is trying to do should be revealed. There are very obvious reasons why it should not. But the lying after the fact, and actually blaming another country, that is insidious. Especially after the Bush administration, and the greater presidential power Obama has continued to seek, this is simply unacceptable.

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gromit
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 10:22 am Reply with quote
Joined: 31 Aug 2004 Posts: 9005 Location: Shanghai
Joe Vitus wrote:
But the lying after the fact, and actually blaming another country, that is insidious.

At their request.
And basically as a condition of doing the operation.
SOP.

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billyweeds
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 12:51 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 20618 Location: New York City
Not so incidentally, all hail Kirsten Gillibrand, the junior senator from New York, who was importantly involved in the repeal of DADT and in the 9/11 first responders triumph. She's a comer, make no mistake. Female politician-wise, she's the refreshing palate-cleanser to the horror of Sarah Palin.
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marantzo
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 1:26 pm Reply with quote
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Billy, I want you to know that I think Obama has had a hell of a week.
billyweeds
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 1:35 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 20618 Location: New York City
marantzo wrote:
Billy, I want you to know that I think Obama has had a hell of a week.


Thanks, Gary. That means a lot coming from you.
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Earl
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 3:40 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 09 Jun 2004 Posts: 2621 Location: Houston
Hi, all.

Since I have some vacation time this week, I was hoping to come in here and write reviews of Love and Other Drugs and Today's Special as well as contribute (finally) to the Overlooked Films thread.

But, unfortunately, I was the victim of theft two nights ago. Someone broke into my apartment and, while I slept just 3 or 4 steps away, took the laptop from my bedroom. I am a heavy sleeper and didn't hear anything and didn't discover the laptop was missing until I woke at 5A.M. He/She/They/The Slime got in through my back door (I had stupidly left it unlocked), disconnected the laptop from its wall cords and left via the front door.

It's a good thing I wasn't hurt and that the laptop was the only thing of any significant monetary value taken. (Weirdly, they also took some bottled water which was on the counter by the door.) But I can't tell you how unsettling it feels to know a criminal was in my home while I slept.

Anyway, right now my only internet access is via my iPhone and wherever I can camp out for a bit in a place that has internet access, like the branch of the Houston Public Library where I am now. I'm still a slow typist on my iPhone, so I won't post often or, when I do, very much. But I hadn't been posting a whole lot lately anyway because life has kept me kinda busy.

My spirits are better than they were yesterday and I'll try not to let this ruin the holidays. Will post when I can.

Later.

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whiskeypriest
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 4:05 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 6916 Location: "It's a Dry Heat."
The thirsty thieving bastards. Sorry to hear that, Earl.

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lshap
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 4:09 pm Reply with quote
Site Admin Joined: 12 May 2004 Posts: 4246 Location: Montreal
Earl - Gone through two robberies myself (though not while I was there). Aside from the damn inconvenience of reclaiming stuff, remember that 99.9% of these vermin are terrified of bumping into the victim. They're lowlife, cowardly thieves, whose only interest was making quick cash.

If you're properly insured, make it the insurance company's problem. Merry Christmas, and congratulations on your brand new laptop.

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gromit
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 4:46 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 31 Aug 2004 Posts: 9005 Location: Shanghai
lshap wrote:
remember that 99.9% of these vermin are terrified of bumping into the victim. They're lowlife, cowardly thieves, whose only interest was making quick cash.


Not sure who makes up your statistics for you.
And to me, it's pretty brave to break into someone else's home, risk arrest, and steal stuff while someone is sleeping right there. My heart would be pounding so loud just on entering the unlocked door, it'd burst if I tried to take anything, even the bottled water.
I'm much too cowardly to break&enter, steal, or even walk into a room surreptitiously while someone I don't know is sleeping.

----------------------------------
You do get some extra holiday crime just before Xmas, as money is tight for many then, and they also hope they can rob you of a stash of expensive presents. Small, easily resold electronics preferred.
Just another argument in favor of a bulky desktop, though I guess they could steal my thin monitor.

Anyway, Earl, best you slept through it. They just wanted stuff, and getting robbed is probably much better than any confrontation. Though I suppose it'd be nice if you woke up and they got spooked and ran off. I'm a heavy sleeper but if a burglar entered, I would probably wake up from the sound of my cat frantically scrambling into the closets to hide.

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lshap
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 5:20 pm Reply with quote
Site Admin Joined: 12 May 2004 Posts: 4246 Location: Montreal
gromit wrote:
lshap wrote:
remember that 99.9% of these vermin are terrified of bumping into the victim. They're lowlife, cowardly thieves, whose only interest was making quick cash.


Not sure who makes up your statistics for you.
And to me, it's pretty brave to break into someone else's home, risk arrest, and steal stuff while someone is sleeping right there. My heart would be pounding so loud just on entering the unlocked door, it'd burst if I tried to take anything, even the bottled water.
I'm much too cowardly to break&enter, steal, or even walk into a room surreptitiously while someone I don't know is sleeping.

----------------------------------
You do get some extra holiday crime just before Xmas, as money is tight for many then, and they also hope they can rob you of a stash of expensive presents. Small, easily resold electronics preferred.
Just another argument in favor of a bulky desktop, though I guess they could steal my thin monitor.

Anyway, Earl, best you slept through it. They just wanted stuff, and getting robbed is probably much better than any confrontation. Though I suppose it'd be nice if you woke up and they got spooked and ran off. I'm a heavy sleeper but if a burglar entered, I would probably wake up from the sound of my cat frantically scrambling into the closets to hide.


I hate it when you make me throw statistics at you. I actually checked the stats for Canada and nonviolent residential burglaries is about 96%. I remember talking to the officer, standing outside my house right after we discovered the break-in. She told me that 99% of thieves will run if they think someone's home. I confirmed that for myself about 20 years ago when I was housesitting my friend's place. While trying to open the front door I heard scuffling from inside. They'd jammed the lock, I couldn't get in, and they left through the back before I realized what was going on.

Only a guess, but I'd suppose that in Earl's case they didn't know he was there, and probably would've bolted if he'd woken up.

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gromit
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 5:50 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 31 Aug 2004 Posts: 9005 Location: Shanghai
Sure, they're usually looking to rob, not assault. Though sometimes they are up for raping. And there are home invasions where they tie up family members, hold hostages, Dick&Perry-style like the sad case in Connecticut recently.

But robbers don't know what a confrontation will bring, even though they they might tote a weapon of some sort. And if they are seen and can be identified, the chances of getting caught go way up. So most robbers want a quick simple job, often casing a place to know when no one will be around.

I more took exception to the notion that they are these terrified cowards. I think that description makes you feel better, but doesn't describe things well. They're not terrified, they're just into sophisticated risk management and job efficiency.

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Kate
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 6:47 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 1397 Location: Pacific Northwest
Yikes Earl - that is creepy. I am glad that was all that happened and that you are ok!
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gromit
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 7:12 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 31 Aug 2004 Posts: 9005 Location: Shanghai
People might want to try reading Pravda now and then. http://english.pravda.ru/
Some of the articles are completely wacky, especially the religious ones. I was reading one the other week and for the whole middle part, I thought it was an Onion-style spoof, until it became clear that it was all in earnest.

Pravda seems to be some odd Russian fusion of news&tabloid. I wonder who owns/runs it?

One story today is all blustery and disdainful:
Quote:
Japanese ambassador to spy on Dmitry Medvedev?
Japan's perception of Russia is weird, to put it mildly. The behavior of the Japanese administration looks like a childish game. It is simply impossible to logically explain their actions. The new head of the Japanese diplomacy in Russia will be collecting gossip about the plans of the Russian leaders.


Sometimes an article starts out journalistic for the first paragraph and then goes off on a weird tangent using crude opinions.

An example today is an article presenting a scientific explanation for near-death experiences of blinding light. The theory is that synapses fire off one last burst of electricity. Then the next paragraph talks about unexplained out-of-body feelings. And then it goes off into full-blown paranormal silliness:
Quote:
In Russia, the phenomenon of near-death experience was explored by psychiatrist Vladimir Raikov. He conducted his experiments with the participation of an extrasensory individual, who could voluntarily generate an "astral twin." The phantom could be visible, but it would only obey his master's orders. The psychic ordered his own "ghost" to move to the room next door. In that room, Raikov had another patient - a hypnotized trance. The other patient has never seen the psychic and did not know how he looked. However, when she was asked to describe the appearance of the "astral twin," the woman provided the detailed description of the psychic.


I like how they are curious about the hypnotized patient but the visible astral projection is considered ordinary stuff.

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Marj
Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 8:29 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 21 May 2004 Posts: 10497 Location: Manhattan
First, Gary, thanks. Wish I could laugh, but it's hard to after reading about Earl's ordeal. I think it's more than a little creepy too. I think were it to happen to me, it would feel like a violation.
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