Author Topic: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.  (Read 95763 times)

sol

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #350 on: December 23, 2017, 04:02:56 PM »
There is a deep and fundamental difference between lumping together members of a discriminated-against grouping and lumping together members of a dominant class.

I guess I see less difference here than you do.  I don't think we make any progress by indiscriminately lumping together all members of a class and then passing negative judgments against the entire group.

If you think the problem is discrimination against minority groups, then you're right.  If you think the problem is discriminatory attitudes, then I'm right. 

Which of these is the problem you want society to solve?  Because I think you're dangerously close the "black people can't be racist" argument.

PoutineLover

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #351 on: December 23, 2017, 05:09:00 PM »
I probably shouldn't wade into this, but here goes.
Sol, your argument is kinda like #not all men. Sure, not every single man, but enough that saying "men" conveys the point. Instead of taking offense and policing the language of the people you are supposedly allied to, do what you need to do without demanding recognition. I am glad that you personally are working towards eliminating sexism in whatever way you have decided to, but the fact is our society remains quite sexist and men still hold most of the power.
I'm white, and I don't take offense to the statement white people are racist, because I know that despite my awareness and support for anti racist causes, most white people are still racist. By saying "not me" I'm not doing anything to help and I'm just distracting from the actual issues. And black people can be prejudiced, sure, but they can't be racist to white people since they don't have systemic power over them and have historically been the subject of white oppression for basically all of our recent history.

sol

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #352 on: December 23, 2017, 05:23:48 PM »

Sol, your argument is kinda like #not all men.

No, my argument is the opposite of of that.  I am not personally offended.  I'm not speaking up because I feel maligned.  My feelings don't matter here.

I'm speaking up because I think it's counterproductive to the cause to use stereotypical and derogatory language to alienate people.  We need men to jump on the bandwagon, so why would you actively start throwing them under the wheels?  We need to embrace change, every single one of us.  You don't advance that cause by demeaning people, that's just embracing the same behavior we're fighting against. 

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black people can be prejudiced, sure, but they can't be racist to white people

This is so wrong I'm not even sure where to begin.

Let's try this: Do you also argue that men cannot be raped? 

Similarly, "racism" does not mean "white people oppressing black people" and the fact that anyone still thinks like that in 2017 just blows my mind.   Racism would not be "cured" if we instituted slavery of white people put black people in charge of everything for the next 800 years.
« Last Edit: December 23, 2017, 05:26:47 PM by sol »

PoutineLover

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #353 on: December 23, 2017, 05:56:31 PM »

Sol, your argument is kinda like #not all men.

No, my argument is the opposite of of that.  I am not personally offended.  I'm not speaking up because I feel maligned.  My feelings don't matter here.

I'm speaking up because I think it's counterproductive to the cause to use stereotypical and derogatory language to alienate people.  We need men to jump on the bandwagon, so why would you actively start throwing them under the wheels?  We need to embrace change, every single one of us.  You don't advance that cause by demeaning people, that's just embracing the same behavior we're fighting against. 

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black people can be prejudiced, sure, but they can't be racist to white people

This is so wrong I'm not even sure where to begin.

Let's try this: Do you also argue that men cannot be raped? 

Similarly, "racism" does not mean "white people oppressing black people" and the fact that anyone still thinks like that in 2017 just blows my mind.   Racism would not be "cured" if we instituted slavery of white people put black people in charge of everything for the next 800 years.
The original quote you had issue with was
Quote from: Rosy on Today at 09:42:23 AM
Men close rank and the good ole boy network is alive and well - make no mistake about that.
That's not derogatory to men, it's a statement of fact. I have personally experienced this. She didn't say "men are trash" or something inflammatory like that, in that case I'd get your point of view. Would you be happier if she added "most" in front of that sentence?
And no, the solution to racism is not eye for an eye, but racism by definition involves the systemic and legal oppression of another race, not just calling someone a cracker. You can't be racist against the dominant race, when our current society still greatly privileges said race. Prejudice is different, since it's individually treating someone differently because of their race. We need to dismantle the systems that prop up the racism, not reverse it.
And of course men can be raped.

sol

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #354 on: December 23, 2017, 07:25:42 PM »
The original quote you had issue with was
Quote from: Rosy on Today at 09:42:23 AM
Men close rank and the good ole boy network is alive and well - make no mistake about that.
That's not derogatory to men, it's a statement of fact.

It's a generalization, applied to all members of a group, to demean them.  And I fear it alienates some of the very people we need to be welcoming into the fold.

Speaking about your personal experiences is great.  Speaking about historical problems is great.  Describing current cultural problems is great.  Perpetuating negative stereotypes is less great.  You don't defend racist (or sexist) comments by saying "it's a fact" unless you are racist (or sexist).

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Would you be happier if she added "most" in front of that sentence?

It's not about what makes me happy.  It's about how we can all best advance the cause, by encouraging positive change.  We don't encourage positive change by adopting behaviors we claim to oppose.

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You can't be racist against the dominant race

We're clearly operating with different definitions of racism.  If the owner of a falafel restaurant refuses to serve a Latino customer because he's hates Mexicans, that's still racism.  No institutionalized oppression required, no dominant races required.  Racism can absolutely be a personal, one on one activity.

Dollar Slice

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #355 on: December 23, 2017, 07:41:09 PM »
This discussion of the one thing you have done that no one else has done used to be fun. Now we get to be lectured about how we need to be nicer to white men if we don't want them to be assholes. (I've been skimming, but that's the general impression I got.)

All I want for Christmas is an unsubscribe button, an unsubscribe button, an unsubscribe button...

Jenny Wren

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #356 on: December 24, 2017, 07:51:02 AM »

All I want for Christmas is an unsubscribe button, an unsubscribe button, an unsubscribe button...

Seconded....

PoutineLover

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #357 on: December 24, 2017, 08:03:25 AM »
And I fear it alienates some of the very people we need to be welcoming into the fold.
What fold are you talking about? I'm not welcoming anyone to the fight against sexism who can't recognize the part members of their own gender play in perpetuating sexism.
Pretending the old boys club doesn't exist to appease the fragile white male ego won't make it go away. First rule of the old boys club, don't talk about the old boys club.
If we water down the message so that every man can say well, that's not me so I'm fine, I have nothing to worry about, then who exactly are we holding accountable? Changing patterns of behaviour that disadvantage women requires naming those patterns, recognizing their effects and dismantling them.
Men have historically excluded women from higher education, property ownership, voting, corporate board leadership and yes, old boys club membership. Would any of that have ever changed if the previous sentence was never stated so that the poor men wouldn't be offended at that mean feminist saying nasty things about them?

All I want for Christmas is an unsubscribe button, an unsubscribe button, an unsubscribe button...

Seconded....
Sorry, this isn't the right place for this discussion. If it's going to continue, we should start a new thread.

arebelspy

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #358 on: December 24, 2017, 11:27:57 AM »
MOD NOTE: Let's get back on topic.

If you still want to discuss this, do not post in this thread, but PM me the first post where this digression started, and I'll move the posts to a new thread for you to continue discussing.

Cheers!
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big_owl

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #359 on: December 24, 2017, 04:34:37 PM »
I was randomly a co-author of a IEEE white paper that was chosen for presentation at an international IEEE conference, and somehow got chosen for publication in an IEEE IAS magazine.  I am what you'd call a world expert in rearing giant silkmoths, not many ppl alive have more experience than I do.   And finally, I have a stinkpot turtle that I've had for over 31 yrs.  He's at least 40yrs old!  Humble brag over!

davisgang90

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #360 on: December 24, 2017, 06:10:50 PM »
I flew in a Russian built Hip helicopter from Kabul to Gardez right before the US military decided we shouldn't fly in them as they weren't very safe.

On the same trip we flew in to Kabul on Azerbaijan Airlines right before the US forbid us to fly on commercial aircraft into Kabul as the airport was cutting the jet fuel with kerosene.

Fun trip!


Plugging Along

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #361 on: December 29, 2017, 02:14:00 PM »
- Stopped an armed home invasion by jumping onto the get away car as it was trying to drive away and ripping out the keys out of the ignitions while one of the gun man tried to take my mom hostage. 

- road in the locked trunk of a small taxi in Mexico for over an hour in 100+ degree heat only to find a machette in my face.

- got caught in wearing a shower curtain in the elevator from VP on my firsf  days after he congratulated me on my first management position

« Last Edit: December 29, 2017, 02:20:03 PM by Plugging Along »

stoaX

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #362 on: December 29, 2017, 02:23:03 PM »
- Stopped an armed home invasion by jumping onto the get away car as it was trying to drive away and ripping out the keys out of the ignitions while one of the gun man tried to take my mom hostage. 

- road in the locked trunk of a small taxi in Mexico for over an hour in 100+ degree heat only to find a machette in my face.

- got caught in wearing a shower curtain in the elevator from VP on my firsf  days after he congratulated me on my first management position

Wow - your story belongs in the "share your badassity" section!

Minnowstache

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #363 on: December 29, 2017, 03:05:48 PM »
I met Mother Theresa when I was 8 and living in a Catholic orphanage - she came and stayed for a couple of days! She was actually pretty cool - I have a good memory and remember her telling us stories including one that shocked me at the time. She travelled around India by train and when she did not have enough money the other people in the train helped them hide in the baggage rack when the ticket inspector came to check the tickets.

This was not in India but on the other side of the world (please don’t quote - NZ-). So many people did not believe my story that I wondered if I had imagined it but found it was definitely true a few years ago when I met someone who’s sister was a nun there at the time.
« Last Edit: December 29, 2017, 03:08:51 PM by Minnowstache »

e34bb098

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #364 on: December 29, 2017, 03:41:46 PM »
Kirk Hammett (guitarist from Metallica) asked me where the bathroom was.

Free Spirit

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #365 on: December 29, 2017, 04:05:24 PM »
When I was 5 yeas old Hulk Hogan came to the Wal-Mart in my town to sign autographs (and maybe he had a book out but I'm not entirely sure)  Well, my mom and I stood in line for quite a bit but when it was my turn to meet him he got up out of his chair like he was about to leave. I was kinda bummed thinking he was done for the day and I had missed my chance to meet him, I'm sure I had a defeated look on my face. He then crouched down in front of me, whispered, "I'll be right back, I just have to pee, make sure nobody steals anything..." and pointed to a lockbox where, I presumed, he was keeping his cash. I felt like the most important person in the world for those few minutes and he even signed my picture with a "thanks for watching over my stuff". haha

So, I can effectively say that I was a security guard for Hulk Hogan at the tender age of 5. :D

markbike528CBX

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #366 on: December 29, 2017, 07:41:33 PM »
Kirk Hammett (guitarist from Metallica) asked me where the bathroom was.

Mark Arm of Mudhoney kicked me in the head.  He was crowdsurfing and playing guitar simultaneously.  I've never done either.

Primm

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #367 on: December 30, 2017, 02:44:21 AM »
I spent my 40th birthday with Nick Mason.

davisgang90

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #368 on: December 30, 2017, 03:49:02 AM »
My helicopter squadron's wardroom (the officers) are no longer welcome at the Orlando Medieval Times location.

limeandpepper

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #369 on: December 30, 2017, 10:29:43 AM »
He then crouched down in front of me, whispered, "I'll be right back, I just have to pee, make sure nobody steals anything..." and pointed to a lockbox where, I presumed, he was keeping his cash. I felt like the most important person in the world for those few minutes and he even signed my picture with a "thanks for watching over my stuff". haha

Awwww that's nice!! :))

Fomerly known as something

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #370 on: December 30, 2017, 10:37:58 AM »
Been sent to three countries for work where you can't use a US based credit card.  One of those countries requires foreigners to pay for everything in hard currency and one has a special currency to be used by foreigners. 

Fitzy1

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #371 on: January 02, 2018, 10:00:09 AM »
I can trace my ancestry back to notable Viking Rollo Rothbrok...

More like tens of millions, I would think, probably most people in the UK & Ireland would be descendants of his. Just about everyone who had children in Britain in the ninth or tenth century would be an ancestor of the current UK native population. Being able to produce a paper trail to show ancestry that far back is pretty unusual though.
Good point. I can trace my ancestry back to William The Conqueror (1066), due to a link to a minor noble a few hundred years ago. Once you have a link to the nobility, it's straightforward to trace ancestry back further (even after taking into account suspected illegitimate children).

But millions of Brits must also descend from William The Conqueror, even if they don't know it. After all, it's 32 generations ago, and 2 to the power 32 is a very big number (even when you reduce it to allow for intermarriage).

This pretty much sums up how I traced my lineage, nobles had much better record keeping than peasants.

Also, hello *very* distant cousin!

lifejoy

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #372 on: January 02, 2018, 10:32:05 AM »
Hmm lived a supremely cautious, long, healthy and happy life without working too hard!

You wild, adventurous and industrious folk make for nice reading! But I think I’m not cut from the same cloth...

Has anyone else read catch-22 three times? :D

DesireeD

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #373 on: January 04, 2018, 04:10:04 AM »
Kurt Cobain threw up on the floor next to me in a green room before getting on stage to perform in a small grunge theater in Tacoma Washington in the late 1980's.

Roadrunner53

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Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #374 on: January 04, 2018, 06:22:21 AM »
When I was about 10 years old I was riding my bike in the parking lot of a small school near my house during the summer. The front door was open and I could see down the hallway to the back door that was also open. I couldn't resist so I drove my bicycle thru the front door out the back door! It was a long hall. Didn't see any janitors or anyone but I was very scared and peddled my ass home as fast as I could!


WhiteTrashCash

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #375 on: January 04, 2018, 08:06:20 AM »
Rosy,

Thank you for sharing your story.  I think your perspectives are important for people to hear, especially if they're facing similar circumstances.

But as straight white male who has devoted his entire professional life to supporting the changes you want to see, I feel I should also point out that the following statement was pretty disappointingly sexist and discriminatory, and undermines your entire message.

Men close rank and the good ole boy network is alive and well - make no mistake about that.

Whenever you lump all members of a group together and then make negative and discriminatory commentary about that group, you are NOT "being the change" you are contributing to the larger problem.  At least, that's true if "the problem" is people who perpetuate discriminatory stereotypes.  Maybe not a problem if you just want to tear down one gender at the expense of the other but that's not really social justice, is it?

If we want to see real change in society, we all need to work on it together.  Women cannot change the world alone.  Minorities cannot change the world alone.  We need everyone to get on board, including people in my demographic, and you only alienate them with comments like that one.  It's totally fair to talk about the injustices you have experienced, and that continue to plague big parts of civic life, but it's not helpful to lay the blame for those sins at the feet of people who are personally not responsible and who may otherwise be open to supporting change. 

By way of analogy, if you are a white American then your ancestors are responsible for genocide against Native Americans but it doesn't help struggling native communities if I go around shouting "racist!" at every white person I see.  For some of them it's a fair description, but for the rest you do more harm than good by establishing and then reinforcing divisive social positions.  This is how we end up with the people like Richard Spencer, who thrive on that us vs them mentality.  That's not the way to fix things.
Thing is, sol, that ever since human beings first circumnavigated the earth (1522, yes I did have to look it up) the social, economic and political structures of the world have been set up by and for the benefit of able bodied, white, heterosexual men.  The legacy of those 500 years is deeply embedded, and the last 100 years of growing recognition of that fact has still only scratched the surface of entrenched privilege.

I see Rosy's statement about men closing ranks and the old boy network as a statement of that fundamental truth.   Are there men who are part of the change we want to see?  Absolutely.   A statement about the biased structures we all live under does not need to be, and should not be, taken to be a personal attack on our male allies.

People in general want to be part of the "good guys" not the "bad guys".

Martin Luther King Jr. understood this and actively sought to involve white people in the civil rights movement, because he knew that whites make up the majority of the population in the United States and the way to bring them over to the side of blacks to support civil rights was by appealing to their shared humanity. This is why Martin Luther King Jr. was immensely successful and Malcolm X ultimately was not. Malcolm X promoted civil rights by focusing on differences and offering blacks catharsis. It felt good for blacks to vent their well-justified anger over their situation, but it didn't make whites want to join the crusade to change policies and laws.

Civil rights legislation passed in the United States in the 1960s because enough whites were persuaded by Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders to team up with blacks.

Today, it's important to remember that telling white people who grew up in poverty that they are "privileged", telling men that they are responsible for society's ills, and demanding reparations for things that happened centuries ago does not promote feelings of shared humanity. It supports problems like white nationalism and masculism and other formerly fringe movements that are troubling and anti-social. You only have to look at the recent growth of some scary beliefs and behavior to see the evidence for this.

soccerluvof4

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #376 on: January 04, 2018, 03:58:51 PM »
I was driving my car and a man was beating on a women out the front door onto the lawn. I stopped , jumped out and ran to the door and stopped the man and told him if he wanted to hit someone hit me. He ran into the house. I then went to help the lady who was walking down the street crying and beat up. Asked her if I could help or take her somewhere. Her response "f**k you and mind your own business.

When I was younger my brother and I were walking home from school (lived in the ghetto pretty much at that time) and got jumped in the alley and I got stabbed in my chest/Sternum but luckily was a cheap blade that snapped but still left a mark.

Also when I was younger when thermometers were filled with mercury i accidentally broke one and got a cut inside my wrist. To this day I dont know how my teacher noticed a red line moving up my arm and was fortunate it didnt get past my shoulder , pretty much saved my arm if not my life.



Rosy

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #377 on: January 05, 2018, 10:31:55 AM »
I see Rosy's statement about men closing ranks and the old boy network as a statement of that fundamental truth.   Are there men who are part of the change we want to see?  Absolutely.   A statement about the biased structures we all live under does not need to be, and should not be, taken to be a personal attack on our male allies.

I did not see in her statement a description of historical injustice.  I saw a stinging indictment of an entire group of modern day people, painted with a broad brush, applied to current living humans some of whom are present and participating in this discussion, and labeling them with a negative stereotype.  Not helpful!

It's the difference between saying "African American slaves in colonial America were illiterate" and "black people are stupid".  One is a description of a historical injustice.  The other is just racist and inflammatory.

Sol,
Ouch - to clarify: no stinging indictment intended at all, my apologies if it came across that way. We were discussing grievances and irritations women encounter in today's workplace and the good ole boy network is one of them. Do you really see it as inflammatory to say out loud that it still exists?
Of course, I am grateful for and recognize there are men who are part of the change we want to see. Thank you, Sol, for being one of them.

For this moment in time, however, my statement can still co-exist with the changes that are oh so slow in coming. Things are changing, the good ole boy network is no longer as prevalent as it once was and maybe the next generation will have no personal experiences like that at all and only read about it in the history books.
 
@former player and @Poutine - thank you, you understood exactly what I meant.
I didn't see this earlier or I would have responded sooner and Sol, you are still one of my favorites on this board.

accolay

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #378 on: January 07, 2018, 02:23:40 AM »
I was with a few people to pick up Conan O'Brien at the airport then take him to his hotel. I watched his luggage for a few minutes.

He's tall.

middo

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #379 on: January 07, 2018, 03:07:59 AM »
I've ridden a motorcycle from Geraldton (near Perth) to Hobart and back.   They are in Australia. Look them up.

soccerluvof4

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #380 on: January 10, 2018, 07:42:17 AM »
I've ridden a motorcycle from Geraldton (near Perth) to Hobart and back.   They are in Australia. Look them up.

I did, WOW....5550 miles roughly, 8816kms  RT....Thats alot!!! Been on long rides but nothing close to that at least by Bike. Awesome.

TheWifeHalf

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #381 on: January 10, 2018, 08:32:55 AM »
I never took a poll, but I bet no one here has raised basenjis. I can make that ore specific if I have to.

I now see a lot of the posts are about brushes with the famous. It only happened to me once. TheHusbandHalf and I were staying at the Mariott in San Francisco. We sat down for breakfast and they had an omelet buffet. He decide to partake, not me.

While he went to the buffet, about 10 feet away coming in the back door with a look of 'how can I get in here without being noticed', was Tiger Woods.

A month later it became public that he was not who many of us thought he was.

The reason we were in San Francisco was directly related to basenis!
« Last Edit: January 10, 2018, 09:12:15 AM by TheWifeHalf »

Kris

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #382 on: January 10, 2018, 08:36:36 AM »
I was driving my car and a man was beating on a women out the front door onto the lawn. I stopped , jumped out and ran to the door and stopped the man and told him if he wanted to hit someone hit me. He ran into the house. I then went to help the lady who was walking down the street crying and beat up. Asked her if I could help or take her somewhere. Her response "f**k you and mind your own business.


Ugh, that's sad as hell. Not surprising, though, in that if the woman wasn't ready to completely leave the guy, her rationale was probably that your intervention would just end up making the guy madder, which he would take out on her later.

Note that I am NOT saying you shouldn't have done it or that any of that was your fault. It's just the twisted worldview an abused person gets into.

partgypsy

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #383 on: January 10, 2018, 08:39:15 AM »
While I have previously published professional articles, and co-authored a book chapter for my day job, this year I got a book of my hobby published (even got on some people's best of's list(comics).
Was invited at one point to write treatments for Futurama, but I was too busy with regular job.

Between my dysfunctional family and my obliviousness getting me in weird situations have enough material for at least another.

soccerluvof4

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #384 on: January 10, 2018, 10:09:24 AM »
I was driving my car and a man was beating on a women out the front door onto the lawn. I stopped , jumped out and ran to the door and stopped the man and told him if he wanted to hit someone hit me. He ran into the house. I then went to help the lady who was walking down the street crying and beat up. Asked her if I could help or take her somewhere. Her response "f**k you and mind your own business.


Ugh, that's sad as hell. Not surprising, though, in that if the woman wasn't ready to completely leave the guy, her rationale was probably that your intervention would just end up making the guy madder, which he would take out on her later.

Note that I am NOT saying you shouldn't have done it or that any of that was your fault. It's just the twisted worldview an abused person gets into.


yea, it bothers to me this day and I think of it often having grown up in shit like that.  It also makes one realize why the police he going to domestic situations.  But , I cant help but wonder what happened to her/them long term because it was a beat down and I was on a pretty busy street when I slammed on the breaks and jumped out of my car.

talltexan

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #385 on: January 12, 2018, 07:11:27 AM »
I can trace my ancestry back to notable Viking Rollo Rothbrok...

More like tens of millions, I would think, probably most people in the UK & Ireland would be descendants of his. Just about everyone who had children in Britain in the ninth or tenth century would be an ancestor of the current UK native population. Being able to produce a paper trail to show ancestry that far back is pretty unusual though.
Good point. I can trace my ancestry back to William The Conqueror (1066), due to a link to a minor noble a few hundred years ago. Once you have a link to the nobility, it's straightforward to trace ancestry back further (even after taking into account suspected illegitimate children).

But millions of Brits must also descend from William The Conqueror, even if they don't know it. After all, it's 32 generations ago, and 2 to the power 32 is a very big number (even when you reduce it to allow for intermarriage).

Practically everyone in Asia is descended from Ghengis Khan right?

I think modern estimates are that Ghengis Khan was responsible for the extermination of 5% of the world population while he was alive, and that 1%-3% of the world's population today are descended from him. So he killed a lot of people, but at least he set about trying to replace 'em.

pegleglolita

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #386 on: January 14, 2018, 09:44:25 AM »
I've performed autopsies on hundreds of animals, including two elephants, a giraffe, a tiger, a kudu, camels, and a bald eagle.   

CowboyAndIndian

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #387 on: January 15, 2018, 07:27:28 AM »
I've performed autopsies on hundreds of animals, including two elephants, a giraffe, a tiger, a kudu, camels, and a bald eagle.   

Congratulations, I think. Or maybe I should say, my sympathies ;-)

GuitarStv

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #388 on: January 15, 2018, 09:09:57 AM »
I was driving my car and a man was beating on a women out the front door onto the lawn. I stopped , jumped out and ran to the door and stopped the man and told him if he wanted to hit someone hit me. He ran into the house. I then went to help the lady who was walking down the street crying and beat up. Asked her if I could help or take her somewhere. Her response "f**k you and mind your own business.

This is not surprising.  Domestic abuse is emotionally and psychologically complicated.  The victim needs to come to terms with a lot of things before they are ready to seek out the help they need.

I was cycling about forty kilometers out of the city near a camp ground and came upon a man screaming at a woman who was walking away from him several hundred meters in front.  She was crying, and had some scrapes on her face.  I slowed next to her, asked if she needed any help, and got a similar response to what you did.

Still glad that I asked though, it would have bugged me for the rest of the day if I'd just zipped by.

former player

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #389 on: January 15, 2018, 09:45:08 AM »
I was driving my car and a man was beating on a women out the front door onto the lawn. I stopped , jumped out and ran to the door and stopped the man and told him if he wanted to hit someone hit me. He ran into the house. I then went to help the lady who was walking down the street crying and beat up. Asked her if I could help or take her somewhere. Her response "f**k you and mind your own business.

This is not surprising.  Domestic abuse is emotionally and psychologically complicated.  The victim needs to come to terms with a lot of things before they are ready to seek out the help they need.

I was cycling about forty kilometers out of the city near a camp ground and came upon a man screaming at a woman who was walking away from him several hundred meters in front.  She was crying, and had some scrapes on her face.  I slowed next to her, asked if she needed any help, and got a similar response to what you did.

Still glad that I asked though, it would have bugged me for the rest of the day if I'd just zipped by.
I had better results once.  I heard screaming from the bedroom of the house next door at about midnight, went and knocked on the door, young woman opened the bedroom window, I said "do you want to spend the rest of the night with me next door?"  She walked out of the house in pyjamas and bare feet. Went back the next day to collect her clothes and live elsewhere.  I think it helped that she was young and the relationship was new: there hadn't been enough time for the usual hostage grooming to take hold.

BTDretire

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #390 on: January 15, 2018, 09:59:20 AM »
Mostly posting to follow but maybe this one will work?

Failed the vision test at the DMV.

I'm nearly blind in one eye (untreated lazy eye so now it's permanent), but never had a problem in another state passing the vision test. For some reason this state requires me to take a form to the eye doctor despite my better eye being fine when wearing contacts.

  I have a treated lazy eye and once during the vision test, they said read the letters, I said there's nothing there, they assured me there was. I closed my good eye and there it was, I read it and passed the test.
 

BTDretire

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #391 on: January 15, 2018, 10:07:19 AM »

When bob dole was running for president, his VP choice (Kemp) mistook me for a high end call girl and invited me back to his hotel after a debate.  (i didn't go. I'm not a republican)

 "high end" Was that a humblebrag?    :-)

BTDretire

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #392 on: January 15, 2018, 10:26:11 AM »
Licked my elbows!
I can do this!  My shoulders are unreasonably flexible.

Mine is I met my husband on the side of a battlefield in the 12th century.

  When I was younger I had a friend that bragged about getting a lot of dates, by licking his eyebrows!

BTDretire

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #393 on: January 15, 2018, 11:14:11 AM »
Well 2-1/2 hours of life gone after reading this thread. Thoroughly enjoyed it though.

 I ate a Cal Tech cafeteria and sat at the next table near Stephen Hawkings where he was presenting at a seminar on String theory. If that's not unique, he choked on his food and his aid removed him from the cafeteria.

 I lived in a dead end neighborhood, I got stopped by an officer blocking the entrance road, I proved I lived there, he let me through and I found a helicopter crashed on the street in front of my house.

 Had a nervous doctor take a sliver out of my eyeball with a hypodermic needle.

  Went to Alice Cooper concert "Welcome to My Nightmare" in 1975.

 I guess I need to get out more!  :-)


sol

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #394 on: January 15, 2018, 01:49:12 PM »
I ate a Cal Tech cafeteria and sat at the next table near Stephen Hawkings where he was presenting at a seminar on String theory. If that's not unique, he choked on his food and his aid removed him from the cafeteria.

Sorry, not unique.  I had dinner with Hawkings three times, as a Caltech undergrad in the 90s.  Funny dude, though conversation is unnaturally slow through the synthesizer. 

And yea, eating with a severe disability like that is rough.  I'm amazed he still volunteers to eat in semi-public settings.

I know there are a few other former techers on the forum.  They will all shake their heads knowingly when I say that life at a place like tech exposes you to an incredibly weird list of experiences not shared by anyone outside of the community. 
« Last Edit: January 15, 2018, 02:04:45 PM by sol »

Parizade

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #395 on: January 15, 2018, 01:59:21 PM »
A refrigerator fell on me. I survived but still have the scar.

le-weekend

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #396 on: January 15, 2018, 02:10:21 PM »
I danced with Frankie Manning, jazz age legend and widely credited originator of the lindy hop aerial, in Sweden.

 ( Parizade, I LOVE the little FIRE ticker and the quote at the bottom of your post above! )

Parizade

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #397 on: January 15, 2018, 02:17:51 PM »
( Parizade, I LOVE the little FIRE ticker and the quote at the bottom of your post above! )

thanks le weekend :-)

caracarn

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #398 on: January 15, 2018, 03:03:14 PM »
I am born on the 4th of July.  My brother who is six years younger was born on the 4th of July (1976 by the way, bicentennial baby), and my son was born on the 4th of July.

GuitarStv

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Re: Tell us one thing you have done that no one else here has.
« Reply #399 on: January 15, 2018, 06:07:11 PM »
I am born on the 4th of July.  My brother who is six years younger was born on the 4th of July (1976 by the way, bicentennial baby), and my son was born on the 4th of July.

Early October is a frisky month for your family.