Allamorph

[quote name='James'][font="palatino linotype"]One of the best antidotes for troll threads, too, is to liberally spread some troll-killer around. Works like a charm. ~_^[/quote] [font="Calibri"]But then I can't pretend to be all grouchy and mean-spirited. ó_ò[/font] [/font][quote name='James'][font="palatino linotype"]I think it should go without saying that you can critique a leader without being able to do their job, but I think your first paragraph pretty much hits the nail on the head. There are presidents who have really gross errors in judgment (Nixon, for example), but I don't think anybody ought to be surprised when a president can't fulfill every single thing that people expect. Obama, like all candidates, did say a bunch of things during the campaign and then when he actually came to office and saw the true nature and extent of various things (especially in terms of foreign affairs), he quickly realised that some of those ideas and promises from the campaign were simply unrealistic. Happens to the best of 'em.[/font][/quote] [font="Calibri"]I think you're right. I could critique what he's doing and (I hope) do so without a terrible amount of blind bias. I just feel in this case the job description is so expansive that it becomes much too easy to speak my opinion on a matter I'm almost totally ignorant aboutâ??such as how best to govern a country where you not only have to worry about simply the whole or simply the parts, but both simultaneously, and then the union of the two on top of that. Thus it's really easy to fall into either the Blind Support or the Blind Disgust camps. Plus, given the distance between that office and myself, the spheres of influence don't even come close to interacting, so any critique I might have goes as far as "okay yeah that's cool brah", and so it does no good at all, really. Critique is criticism with a purpose, and when you remove the purpose, it's only criticism left. And that's just plain ... well, grouchy and mean-spirited. =P But mostly I just wanted to pick at [color="DarkRed"]Boo[/color].[/font]

[center][img]http://cheezcomixed.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/koma-comic-strip-beware-ye-troll-threads.jpg[/img] [left][FONT=Calibri]Barack Hussein Obama is no different than any of the last string of presidents we've had. He is not the Mystery Savior of "questionable origin", he is not a steaming pile of horse crap; he's just another guy in a series of guys who got up, promised more than they could deliver, did (or are doing) what they were (are) able to do from an office of which they knew less about than they originally thought, and got paid the Big Bucks to do it. I haven't felt like critiquing him since he's been in office because [i]I don't have a clue how to do his job[/i].[/FONT] [/left] [/center]

[center][img]http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3427/3709334563_ba86a247e0.jpg[/img] [FONT=Calibri]My vet would like a word with your dog.[/FONT] [/center]

[FONT=Calibri]Ship to boot camp late Oct. Out of commission for at least two months, probably more given the need to adapt to an entirely new environment. No staying power.[/FONT]

[quote name='Vicky']EDIT: In fact, yeah, I'ma do an RPG soon! In September at some point. Watch this space. Spread the word. And more importantly y'all better join.[/quote] [FONT=Calibri]Can't. [/FONT]

[FONT=Calibri]Looks like Marvel is redoing their Spiderman movie franchise. Looks about as interesting as the first three. [I]*cough*[/I] That, and the action sequence at the end of the official trailer looks like Mirror's Edge ripped and reskinned. Gee, Hollywood.[/FONT]

[quote name='Elle Jay'][font="Times New Roman"][color="#556B2F"][size="3"]So I walked outside my door on the top floor to see what my nephew made in the living room. :V[/size][/color][/font][/quote] [FONT=Calibri]Awesome Cuphenge is awesome.[/FONT]

[quote name='chibi-master']I don't want BAD things! Why can't anyone ever send me links to something pleasant?! TT^TT[/quote] [FONT=Calibri]http://www.dumblittleman.com/2009/06/12-tricks-your-brain-is-playing-on-you.html Kind of a brief, less-in-depth-than-I'd-like article, but the core of what is said in it is truth.[/FONT]

[quote name='chibi-master']But you would be doing the same, so don't give me any of your sass! :P[/quote] [center][img]http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z158/Allamorph/Misc/lolz/keep-trying.jpg[/img] [/center]

[quote name='chibi-master']I really wish that cashier would have kept his snickering to himself, though. ... I happen to appreciate the nostalgic factor of a freaking cardboard box with a toy in it GEEZ.[/quote] [FONT=Calibri]Translation: [[i]Chibbers at the register[/i]] *esctatic hopping* "Oh my god, I'm getting a [i]Happy Meal!![/i] I haven't had one of those in [i]ages[/i]. THIS IS SO FUN I'M GONNA DIE."[/FONT]

[FONT=Calibri]Yesterday was our monthly Navy DEP (Delayed Entry Program) meeting, and since it was SEALs that accomplished the mission, obviously this subject came up. And after the initial "so how did the news make you feel" question from MM1, we got some hard information out of the deal. Well. Hard[b][i]er[/i][/b], I should say. But anyway. First, Pakistan was kinda pissed at us after the whole thing, mostly because we didn't tell them our intel or plans. However, the past few times this situation has arisen, we [i]have[/i] told them, and bin Laden was alerted to the attempt and fled. So on the one hand they're crying about noncooperation and jurisdiction and stuff, and on the other hand I'm thinking "you know, you leak information like a sieve, and we can't even be sure you're not sympathetic to him in the first place". I think the President made the correct decision in not alerting them, because had he done so I feel bin Laden would have escaped once againâ??and then we wouldn't have all gotten (well, mostly me gotten) into this lovely little argument here. =P As far as speculation that it wasn't even bin Laden who was killed (mostly supported by the speedy removal of the corpse), MM1 said he really didn't care what sort of spin came out of the White House, but[i] "...if the SEALs tell me they shot the mother****er, then they shot the mother****er"[/i]. So there you have it. According to MM1, the SEALs were under direct and explicit orders to demand that bin Laden surrender should they find him during the mission. If he did not surrender, they were to shoot him, but they had to ask him to surrender first. Bin Laden speaks English, as I have been informed. The SEALs asked him to surrender in Spanish. Apparently he doesn't know that language. Regarding the body, the reason for the dumping overboard was almost gotten right by Sam. I also think using the 24-hour stipulation of Islam was a bit of an excuse as well, but then again, if they hadn't buried him within that time period, you can bet an international incident between the US and the Middle East would have immediately flared up. However, according to MM1, they buried his body at sea because they feared if he was buried on land, there would be fanatics among his followers who would have built a shrine to him at his gravesite, for worship and spiritual guidance. MM1 also said they were considering razing the compound where he was killed for the exact same reason. (Another Future Sailor confirmed that this had been done, but I can't find any news stories on the issue.) That's about all the new 'info' I have right now.[/FONT]

[quote name='Gavin'][font="Tahoma"][size="2"]That's no [s]ordinary[/s] rabbit.[/size][/font][/quote] [center][img]http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/o/obiwan2.jpg[/img] [/center]

[quote name='CaNz']Okay, this really is insulting. The people who killed Osama were not murderers, they were United States Navy Seals[/quote] [font="Calibri"]I think you're missing the part where I said I was glad he was gone. To further clarify the point, not only am I strongly considering attempting to become a SEAL, but were I given the chance [i]I would have shot him myself[/i]. Doesn't make it right, nor worthy of celebration.[/font] [quote name='CaNz']Besides, even if he was stabbed in the back in his sleep, we are not celebrating the act of murder, many Americans are celebrating the fact that a horrible man is dead. I think most people could care less about how it happened, they are just glad it finally did happen.[/quote] [font="Calibri"]Tell that to the people who are cheering for him to "burn in Hell". That's not happiness. That's vindictive gloating. And thank you, [color="DarkRed"]James[/color], for making the effort to understand the point, even as you're stuck trying to reconcile yourself to both sides of a horribly polarised case in an effort to smooth out all the feathers. To sort of attempt to steer the current conversation away from such a volatile angle, it occurs to me (for the first time, actually) that a "war on terror" is rather an ambiguous 'enemy', if you will. Raises a couple more questions in my mind. [list][*]How do you know when you've won? or at least when you are able to go back to just being vigilant?[*]Specifically to this situation, how stable does the Middle East have to be for us (the US) to end what is essentially protective occupation?[/list] Not easy answers, I know.[/font]

[quote name='Ventura'][font="Comic Sans MS"]Seems to me that if that were his motivation, he'd have done it, I dunno, closer to election time?[/font][/quote] [FONT=Calibri]I think Obama deserves a little more credit than that. The closer you get to the actual date, the more it looks like a stunt, don't you think? I mean, since you [i]did[/i] put it that way....[/FONT] [quote name='Kei'][font="Tahoma"][color="#000080"]I was not attempting to do any such thing. Forgive me for an apparent poor choice of words.[/color][/font][/quote] [FONT=Calibri]I know. The unfortunate part of being the OP for this is ... well, you're the OP. Ergo. Let me put it this way. Am I glad an evil man is gone from this world? Yes. Am I glad that this blow (if it is true) may very well break the back of [i]al Qaeda[/i]? Sure. Am I glad that the families of those who perished in the bombing of the Twin Towers can feel some measure of closure, if this is what they wanted? Absolutely. Why are we celebrating death? More to the point, why are we celebrating [i]murder[/i]?[/FONT]