cg2112

Actually, my father-in-law was in AA, in and out of rehab many times, and tried as hard as he could to give it up. He was a man of great character, who cared about his family, loved his children, and was a great friend to all who knew him. You don't know what you're talking about. It's not that easy. It's not about will power at all. Will power has absolutely nothing to do with it, and everything you say is at odds with actual medicine. One of the characteristics of alcoholism, in fact, is the inability to consistently abstain. You don't have to agree - that's fine, it's okay to have your own opinions, but just keep in mind that when science and opinion are at odds, science is usually right. You can't put alcoholism on hold. Once you're an alcoholic, you're an alcoholic. You can be sober, but at that point, you're a sober alcoholic. The attitude that "it's will power" kills people. Teach alcoholics that if they just have the will power, that if they just try hard enough, and you're just going to end up with an alcoholic who stops drinking for a short time. And given the progressive nature of addiction, without treatment, the drinking is going to end up getting worse.

Well, since you don't drink, modern science must be completely wrong. I, also, have a long line of alcoholics and addicts in my family. Both my parents and my grandparents. I do drink, and don't really have much of an issue with it (today - I was used to be a pretty irresponsible drinker, but that was an issue with responsibility, not alcoholism). But then, on my ex-wife's side, her dad died of alcoholism, despite fighting it with everything he had until his body shut down. She's 11 years sober, thankfully, but she knows that if she picks up a drink, she won't stop. That's not to say that alcoholics aren't responsible for their actions, they are. Especially guys like this, who have been arrested many times, and can easily make the clear headed decision not to put himself in the position where he would end up driving. Please don't think I'm trying to make anyone feel sorry for this guy.

That can go with it. The bass pad doesn't work, and it's a low end kit, though.

Yes, I am comparing some dude drinking his ass into addiction to some dude smoking his ass into cancer (though, some are genetically predisposed to addiction, something a lot of people who know little about alcoholism don't really know). Thank you, by the way, for your effort to engage in civil discussion. Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

I want to buy another bike. Anyone want to trade for an awesome drum kit? I can only imagine that people are buying because they don't have money (like me!)

It's really not as simple as "put down the beer." It's hard for people who aren't alcoholics to understand. Saying "alcohol isn't fucking disease it's an addiction" doesn't make all that much sense, as addiction is a disease. You may be of the opinion that addiction isn't a disease, but you're going to do no good trying to arguing that point to me - you're going to have to take it up with modern medicine. People who think that addicts can just put it down remind me of Michael Savage, that right wing talk show host who told his audience that autism was a fraud, that it was just a case of kids who haven't been told to knock the act off, that autistic kids just don't have someone around to tell them to stop being idiots, don't be a putz. Like autism, a lot of people don't understand alcoholism, and think that it's just a sign of weak character, but it really isn't. It's a real disease, like diabetes or cancer, and it kills people, just as it killed my father-in-law. And again, that doesn't excuse this guys behavior. He put himself in the position before he was drunk, knowing that he'd end up drunk. He deserves to go to jail, and should be held responsible for his actions.

I half agree. First, alcoholism isn't an excuse for breaking the law. No disease is, and alcoholism shouldn't be treated differently than any other disease. That said, the dude is almost certainly an alcoholic. People don't put themselves in that position over and over again who aren't. I know I've been there, a DUI in 1998. For people who don't have to drink, the threat of getting arrested (and most certainly, having it happen to them once) is enough. However, for someone who does have to drink, the consequences are less important than getting high. What the guy needs is to detox, is my guess. 5 to 10 years in prison, which is what he'll likely end up serving, even if the sentence is appealed successfully, will hopefully be enough to do that.

Normally, I'd be pretty appalled, but "life" doesn't really mean "life." He'll be eligible for parole in 5 years, and probably won't spend more than 10 years in jail. A long time for DUI, but 9 times is ridiculous. http://apexnewsnetwork.com/26047/texas-man-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-ninth-dui/

What OS does it run? You *should* be able to share the internet connection fairly easily, unless Verizon does something to block tethering. You might miss your cable internet if you do end up doing that, though. It seems snappy on a mobile unit, but for an extended period of time, 3G on a laptop is sucky.

First, I don't know many liberals who support abortion. I know that liberals, like the majority of Americans, support the right to choose abortion, but that's something completely different. Second, these are two completely different and unrelated issues. There isn't really a relationship between nature conservation and abortion rights. Common misconception. It's not "other peoples' money." It's money that we, as tax payers, pay to the government to pay for the running of the country. This money may pay for the running of the federal government, various social programs, infrastructure, or a needless, fabricated war. Either way, there will always be something that people don't like paying for. I don't like paying for a fake war built on deception and fear, and you may not like paying for health care for Americans in poverty. Doesn't matter who you are, there are always things that you won't like the government paying for. Shouldn't people scream against environmental disaster? Is this really a comparison between hundreds of millions of gallons of oil in the ocean and driving a Toyota Corolla? Given the current same sex marriage debate, this is laughable. Unless you mean the way liberals want to tell you who you can marry, what you can do with your body, and, of course, where you can build a community center with a prayer room. That must be what you mean. This cultural center is a great example of this. It's private property. The community approved it. Meanwhile, conservatives are hell bent on stopping it. So much for the will of the people and property rights.

That's ridiculous. Do you have any idea how hard it is to fit inside a kitten?

t's not right across the street, either. It's a couple blocks away. It's not a deliberate move to slap America in the face, the cultural center is being opened by Americans. Who says this? Who says this? Who says this? Who says this? I can't really quote the rest, because it's almost all bullshit. This isn't a "liberal vs. conservative" issue. There are plenty of close minded liberals who think that Islam attacked us on 9/11, too. But the fact of the matter is, this cultural center is being built by Americans, primarily for American muslims. They're on the same side as you.

Eh. Most Americans don't live in the community where the cultural center is being built. Which, again, is not at ground zero. I'm not sure what "American" or "Un-American" has anything to do with it, though. No one is talking about building an anti-American monument on the spot. It's a cultural center, built by Americans for Americans, built blocks away from ground zero.

Luckily, no one is building a mosque at ground zero, so it's a non-issue.

Did I not lay it on thick enough?

I drink Bud at home most of the time, so I don't need to worry about a cheap beer when I'm broke. If I go out, I like to stick to Sierra Nevada (or almost any pale ale, really), Newcastle, Anchor Steam (which no one seems to have anymore), until I stop caring, then I go back to Bud.

I like you guys a lot, but sometimes I'm really surprised by what I read. I would think that after Iraq attacked us on 9/11, we'd grow to be more tolerant. We even elected a terrorist Muslim who isn't even an American citizen as our President. Palin 2012!!1

Yeah, but you've still got the bike. Breaking even (saving as much on gas as you've paid for the bike) is really profit, because you still have the value of the bike/

Look at that, there it is. I totally missed it.

Aren't new endorsements supposed to have a novice designation? I didn't really think about it when I got my endorsement in July, but my license doesn't have a novice designation at all. I thought they said "Novice until XXXX" or something like that. I just have an "M"

I'll be riding nowhere, probably. Like everyone else around here, it seems, I'm in IT. On-call this weekend.

Also, my boy.