Aerik

Removing their voice from government won't make them go away. If you want to push for restructuring policy to help get them off their asses by giving them access to education or by reforming trade policies to bring back the manufacturing jobs that used to gainfully employ such people, then we're in agreement. Every prosperous society has some people that are a drain (they just die in poor societies), there's no way to eliminate the problem. But there are ways to mitigate/ reduce their numbers.

Found your problem

American Citizens and illegal aliens are not the same thing. Don't conflate allowing all citizens to be full citizens with allowing non-citizens to act like citizens. Bad argument. Anyway, it's not what I said.

Welcome to the Resistance!!! Here's your beret, grab a Kalashnikov from this stack here, and punch and pie are on the table in the back.

I personally would oppose any attempt to block American citizens from voting. Too many people in this country have fought and died to gain/ exercise their rights to suffrage, and it's a vital part of what gives us our strength. There's a reason every other industrialized country has moved toward some form of democracy. And anyway, if your ideas are so weak that the only way to implement them is to block people from voting, that's your problem, not democracy's.

Really? I don't see that shown there. Looks to me like the chart actually tries to focus on the reasoning behind the logic of both sides, while kind of broad-brushing their views. Not all liberals are lovey-dovey hippies, just as not all conservatives are Birchers or Dominionists.

Mac != Linux Hipsters != Nerds Based on does not mean equals, otherwise they'd all be equivalent- they're pretty much all based off the old Bell-Labs era UNIX. Get it right or GTFO!!!

Dare I make a Linux-snob joke? Actually, I'll probably have to do this later today- I have to boot into Vista for some of my homework, so it'll be updating itself. Joy.

I agree on the drag bars, once I get the cash for the goofy riser extenders. The original paint job was awful '70s blue/green with light blue and gold pinstripes, and it did have a couple of good rust spots (looked like dings that had eventually grown. The chrome on the front fender was dying a horrific death, with all manner of weird flakiness and rusting going on. While I'm happy with the ratty cosmetic result, my main concern was just protecting the metal.

Update-- This weekend I painted Siouxsie (yeah, that's right, she's old school). Meijer had a sale on flat black spray paint, so two cans of that, one can of primer, and a whole lot of sanding later: Before (just after Raincheck's test-ride) The front fender had cancer of the chrome, so we had to strip the hell out of it: The rear cowl and tank (showing evidence of bondo over the holes where the Suzuki badges were): Watching primer dry in front of a space heater. FML: Done, finally: Not shown: After the tank was finished and drying, I managed to knock it off the stand, rolling it across the pool table littered with tools. So, at 530 this morning, I had to sand all the new scratches and start again. Fun shit. My inability to use bondo well resulted in the outlines being somewhat visible even after quite a lot of sanding, so I'll have to re-sand and paint again at some point. I think I'll wait till I get a good scratch on it. I don't care if it looks a little rugged- Siouxsie's supposed to be a nasty old bitch anyway.

True, most revolutions could be considered acts of treason. The confederates, however, carried out their act against MY country, which would make them assholes to me even if my great-great grandparents weren't slaves. Assholishness is subjective, after all. Having spent a fair amount of time in the south, it still surprises me how much they brag and hold a grudge over a fight they lost 150 years ago. Then again, these are people who can speak an entire sentence without letting their lips touch.

If there is someone willing to buy something, some asshole will make it and sell it, whether it's a good idea or not. I think I've established on here that I'm pretty damned liberal, and I for one would never deface this country's flag in such a cheap way. Of course, I also disapprove of the flag shirts country singers love to wear, or the made-in-China flags people stick on everything. And the Texan habit of displaying the state flag more prominently (and often) than the national flag. And any display of the confederate flag (advertising support for an act of treason makes you an asshole). So maybe I'm just kind of old-fashioned when it comes to my country's symbols. EDIT: A little research shows that Obama is not making these flags-- some douchebag named Dave is, and he apparently screen-prints a fucking flag for just about anything he thinks he can turn a dollar out of. But, of course, give it 24 hours and Glenn Beck will be saying that Obama has been mass-producing them in secret for his planned takeover and abolition of the constitution, blah blah blah. From the guy's eBay store: I'm inclined to think the Shriners, Masons, and several other organizations may have a case to sue this guy, actually, given his use of their various logos.

Nothing wrong with Carharts. I don't care if I look like a retard, if it lets me comfortably ride all winter.

It's a good practice to get a signed bill of sale to keep for your records. That way, if they go and knock over a liquor store and your prints turn up on the barrel of the gun (or your name is on the last known transfer from the store) then you have something to show the cops. At least, that's what I've always done.

Very sorry to hear that, man. We just went through a similar situation with my mom's Bullmastiff (she'd had her since I was a teenager). Never easy.

Ugly? Shit, that thing is fuggin awesome. Too many sport bikes all look alike. That looks like functional nastiness, and it's wicked badass. Except it needs more black.

Cool, thanks all for the good ideas and quick responses.

Well, the rain started on the way to class today, and I discovered that all of my gear does fine in the rain except my boots. Anyone able to recommend a decent product to help waterproof a pair of leather boots? I'm leery of just buying these gimmicky sprays and such without any advance knowledge.

I'll most likely be there.