Posts made by eobox91103

This connection problem absolutely must be fixed. I'm sure admins notice that the traffic on the forum has gone way down with the new system, both because of the connection issues and the clumsiness of the interface.

Once connection issues are resolved, I suggest two more fixes:

1. Restore the "mouse over" functionality that lets one read the initial post when mousing over a title.
2. Restore the "frozen pane" at the top of the forum screen so one can go immediately back to the torrent section/search features rather than clicking once to get to the torrents, and then again to select a search option.

Good luck as you work on these issues.

@freakmagnet said in Frequent "lost connection":

Anyhow, it hasnt posed any issues for me (it happened again twice in a comment -and my typing is not that slow!)

I notice this as well. Whenever I compose a post, I always copy it to my clipboard to that if the broken connection loses it, I can easily put it back.

@raphjd said in Scotland officially bans free speech:

@eobox91103

You probably don't realize it, but it makes you look like a hypocrite when you attack me for something, while blatantly ignoring the same thing from someone to who I was replying.

I made no such attack. My whole point is that attacking others is inappropriate for useful discussion. I try not to use the word "you" in a reply unless it's clearly complimentary.

I once heard a proverb that, "If you throw a stone into a pack of dogs, the one that yelps is the one that you hit." It is good to think on that...but as staunch dog lover, I'm a bit uncomfortable with the proverb.

@raphjd said in Scotland officially bans free speech:

@eobox91103

What do you call this;

Lol, no they don't. Alarmist, whiny BS.

Is that an attack or is that just being a good liberal?

It probably counts as an attack. Unfortunately, nobody has a monopoly on name-calling and insulting other posters in the forum, although I've noticed a couple of people who seem to be competing for that title.

@raphjd said in Scotland officially bans free speech:

@bi4smooth
I didn't attack him for a different opinion, but for his useless claim ...

Thank you for admitting that you attack people, rather than address issues. That is the essence of the (useless and pitiful) ad hominem style that has no place in thoughtful discourse. It makes the Politics and Debate section almost useless.

@djsoapbubble Welcome DJ. I taught in South Bend for a few years, and Chicago was a welcome diversion for culture and shopping.

You'll find a variety of boards and topics here, and many are quite interesting. The "Politics and Debate" topics sometimes get swamped by angry postings, but there's plenty of other stuff going on.

The boards were recently redesigned, and are, IMHO, more difficult to use. I think traffic has dropped off as a result, but should gradually return as people become accustomed to the new arrangment.

@homppeliboy Welcome to posting on the boards. Unfortunately, you've noticed the worst thing about them: There are a few trolls on here who, when they disagree with your viewpoint, will start insulting the poster, rather than making arguments. This is the classical fallacy of arguing ad hominem...which essentially means that when someone can't make a reasonable argument, they just start calling people names. At that point, the forum thread has lost any value and is best ignored.

I hope you post on other threads that don't get similarly corrupted.

@bi4smooth said in "Healthy at any size" vs C-19:

I think you missed my point. I don't object to someone opting-out of a vaccination, if they have an intelligent reason (I have a neighbor who says she's allergic "to everything" and she's afraid she'll have a reaction - that's reasonable!).... thinking that the new vaccines will turn you into a robot... that's just not rational!

Actually, I do agree that if someone has a legitimate medical reason for opting out of a vaccine, that makes sense. But this is a tiny segment of the population, and while those people are at risk themselves, and a risk to others, it's a very small number. (Of course, COVID started with a "very small number" and has now killed millions.)

Unfortunately, most anti-vaxers are that way for wholly irrational reasons. They might not buy into Q-anonish crap like microchips and robot transformations, but instead follow a social/political agenda the discounts the dangers of the virus and put themselves--and others--at great and unnecessary risk. I find it ironic (to use a polite word) that many of these folk have a Dear Leader who not only contracted COVID himself, but then got covertly vaccinated.

@bi4smooth said in "Healthy at any size" vs C-19:
Thank you for the kind words and additional wisdom.

Hear, hear! Some people make a habit of extrapolating data to the point of hyperbole... At 6'4, 240 is considered overweight... my doctor disagrees and say's I'm quite healthy! He considers my bloodwork and says (convincingly) that I should "keep up the good work"... even when specifically asked "Should I lose weight?" his response was "only if you want to for aesthetic reasons - there is no health risk at your height and build to being your current weight"... (yay me!)

You have a good doctor. The standard "body mass index" calculators would suggest that you are not only overweight, but just a few pounds away from being obese! You'd need to go down to 204 lbs to be considered "normal weight" for your height. I have a hunch that shedding 36 lbs would not improve your life.

I read an interview with someone who's choosing NOT to accept a COVID-19 vaccine because (and I'm not making this up): "He doesn't want to be a guinea-pig and wake-up next year a robot or something"

Thankfully, we live in a free country, and being THAT STUPID is not illegal!

This starts to get even more complicated. In theory I accept the idea that people should have the freedom to refuse vaccination...but only as much as I have the freedom to not be exposed to them. If someone declines vaccination and stays perpetually at home, or goes off to live in an anti-vax commune somewhere, fine. But I don't think they should go out in public, into stores, onto airplanes, and God forbid onto a cruise ship.

It reminds me of a sign I saw at an airport security post somewhere: "You have the right to refuse security inspection. If you exercise this right, you will not be permitted into the gate area."

@anythingold I agree with what you're saying. My posting was a bit tangled up because there are several issues going on here:

1. The OP said, "Despite what we've been told for the last 15 years, being obese is not healthy." I don't think that's been the message, but there has been a greater consciousness that overweight/obese people still deserve ordinary human respect, and media stereotypes that women should look anorexic are counter to that.
2. The article's purported link between being overweight and COVID death rates is not the result of a study--it's anecdotal at best, and skewed because of national policy phenomena.
3. The article is also sloppy in shifting terminology from the initial mention of "overweight" to "obese."

Bottom line: Yes, indeed it is complicated, but many people crave simple solutions to complicated problems. The best we can do is follow the current cutting-edge medical advice to protect our own health and the health of others. I've had my two Moderna jabs...and while I'd rather have other things stuck into my body, it's still a good feeling.

@raphjd said in "Healthy at any size" vs C-19:

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/03/04/health/obesity-covid-death-rate-intl/index.html

Despite what we've been told for the last 15 years, being obese is not healthy.

While age is the main factor in hospitalizations for C-19, being overweight is a very close 2nd.

Thanks for the link. The story is a bit sloppy: The actual study linked COVID death rates with countries' overweight percentages, but then the article soon dwells on obesity. Being overweight and being obese refer to two different ranges of body mass index. The news piece doesn't make that clear.

Also, it would be helpful to find the actual source data. While there very well could be a connection between COVID severity and being overweight, the data is likely to be skewed given than 20% of the COVID deaths are from the US: While that country does have an overweight problem, it also had a terrible public health program (or lack of one), and that's going to affect that outcome of this kind of study.

@bc22 Let me try this with an uploaded image:

which should show up above.

The worst of the lot has to be "very vintage" scenes that were filmed with no audio, and then somebody dubs fake moans onto the video. It would be hilarious to watch a couple of guys in a studio recording these sounds while the (silent) video was playing

@andergarcia said in What kept you from completing suicide?:

@bc22

Had never thought of completing suicide... If I ever thought of that, I would just need to think of all the great people I have around me (my boyfriend, my parents, my brother, my closest friends...).

I had a boyfriend some years back who committed suicide. The wreckage that leaves among family and friends is overwhelming. I've had some dark times now and then, but I could never have my legacy be that kind of destruction.

Suicide is not a grand Shakespearean "to be or not to be" existential decision. It's about ending one's pain. But it doesn't solve anything--it's surrendering to the pain and darkness because one cannot see any alternatives.

I am not passing negative judgment on those who attempt/complete suicide--I still love my lost boyfriend very much. It is, though, tragic that he, and many others, did not see an alternative to resolving their pain.

@anythingold said in Do you have a good gaydar?:

Our culture has changed significantly, and now we have more trans people that exists more than ever. I think it takes a lot more careful observation to spot a gay guy nowadays. (just my opinion).

I agree. A radical take on this would be from the [late] sociologist Michel Foucault, himself a gay man, who saw "gay," "lesbian," and "bisexual" as social constructs, rather than actual categories of people. He didn't deny that GLB people exist, only that they were sociologically more similar to "left-handed people" who aren't a social category. (This is a simplification of his view.)

I'm not saying I agree with him, but it's an interesting idea to consider.

@fezobe said in Do you have a good gaydar?:

Problem with such shows is that you cannot really check them - their supposed orientation could be designated at random (or specifically) by screenwriters with the real thing being completely irrelevant.

That's true; like porn, they're fiction. But I can say that I lived in Los Angeles for a while and hooked up/dated one of the gay-identified guys from "Boy Meets Boy," and he was most definitely gay. (No, I'm not going to say which one, out of respect for his privacy.)

If you'd like an amusing test of your gaydar, download "Playing it Straight" on here at https://www.gaytorrent.ru/details.php?returnto=%2Fmytorrents.php&id=0fcf8d30b4bef36f3f627acd8bc2072fdecd2cf98061038f, or "Boy Meets Boy" at https://www.gaytorrent.ru/details.php?id=0e3e6ff1611472b33f627acd8bc2072f739d8c510482de62. These are similar miniseries (one British, one American) where a girl/guy dates a bunch of guys, some of whom are straight, and some gay. You don't find out which until someone is eliminated. (Note: Don't look these up on Wikipedia, as it will tell you who's gay and who's straight, and that takes the fun out of it.

PS: The torrent for "Boy Meets Boy" is an unnecessarily large DVD/ISO file. If you want it in .avi/.mp4 format, let me know and I can share it.

@beachbum99 said in Hey everyone! Bore da!:

Send some snow our way, Ill take some pictures in it haha

We can send snow, but maybe we can also send you some you some vowels. With place names like Cwmystwyth and Bwlchgwyn , it seems like you might have a shortage of them...

(Just kidding/teasing; my family is from the England and I remember nice visits to Wales when I was a wee lad.)

How do I get a taste test?