OT: General OT Thread #40: Giving Up Winning for Lent Edition

[W75]

Yeah. It's been tough times in Europe and in America too recently. What I understand.. the Army have a strong influence in politics there. Their president, Erdogan, is kind of a "wackoish" leader with "dictatorialish" manners. And actually army might have more liberal and democratic views. I may be wrong also..

But whatever it is, I hope no violence. We've seen enough blood recently.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

Hope this doesn't break the general "no politics" rule, but there appears to be a military coup underway in Turkey right now:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-36809083

I have friends there so I hope this ends up being nothing

EDIT: At present I can't find any English reports with more info than this one in German from the Munich newspaper:

http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/tuerkei-berichte-ueber-schuesse-in-ankara-1.3081627

Basically, the army is all over the place, blocking bridges over the Bosporus, jets flying low over the capital, there are tanks at the airport, and most recently, there appears to be a social media blackout so regular people can't show the world what the hell is going on There's one quick cellphone video in that link (in Turkish, which I don't speak), but it looks like the army telling some kid to turn his phone off... one assumes before the blackout.

Sigh.

Turkey has a unique form of government/military from what I understand. The Military doesn't answer to the government, the Military are to keep the dream of a secular Turkey alive, so when they believe a leader to be going down a non-secular path they takeover and try to install someone they believe will return to what Atatürk wanted.

Erdogan wanted to impose Sharia law in Turkey, is accused of supporting ISIS and other islamic extremists, and was trying to change the laws/constitution to give himself singular rule of Turkey.

Hopefully this is a rather quick and relatively blood-less coup.

 

[Fremitus Borealis]

Turkey has a unique form of government/military from what I understand. The Military doesn't answer to the government, the Military are to keep the dream of a secular Turkey alive, so when they believe a leader to be going down a non-secular path they takeover and try to install someone they believe will return to what Atatürk wanted.

Erdogan wanted to impose Sharia law in Turkey, is accused of supporting ISIS and other islamic extremists, and was trying to change the laws/constitution to give himself singular rule of Turkey.

Hopefully this is a rather quick and relatively blood-less coup.

I know Erdogan is highly unpopular, but wasn't aware of any ties to ISIS. I *do* however see how the military could absolutely make the claim that he is doing **** all to protect the Turkish people from ISIS and other terrorists right now, so I expect that to be a large part of their reasoning.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

One of the few nice things about moving out to Maplewood is that now I can shop at Hy-Vee and I am really close to D-spot. Those wings are unfairly good.

 

[Minnesota]

One of the few nice things about moving out to Maplewood is that now I can shop at Hy-Vee and I am really close to D-spot. Those wings are unfairly good.

Their radio commercials are the bane of my existence right now.

 

[TaLoN]

Got my new Audi S4 today! Amazing vehicle to say the least!

Didn't get a chance to take pics of it yet (spent a lot of time getting things setup how I like, and taking it for a spin), but will post some later if/when time allows...

 

[Wabit]

Got my new Audi S4 today! Amazing vehicle to say the least!

Didn't get a chance to take pics of it yet (spent a lot of time getting things setup how I like, and taking it for a spin), but will post some later if/when time allows...

Out of curiosity, how hard is it to set up a car? Set the seat, the mirrors, and the radio stations. What am I missing in my slightly inebriated state?

I've also never had a vehicle newer that 2000, so I might be ignorant.

 

[Wilderness]

Got my new Audi S4 today! Amazing vehicle to say the least!

Didn't get a chance to take pics of it yet (spent a lot of time getting things setup how I like, and taking it for a spin), but will post some later if/when time allows...

Wow, cool. It is new? Of course it is Quattro? Pics would be great

I have 2006 Audi A4 and I love it.

 

[TaLoN]

Wow, cool. It is new? Of course it is Quattro? Pics would be great

I have 2006 Audi A4 and I love it.

Very lightly used, less than 10k on it.

I wanted new, but they stopped making them with a manual transmission just a little before I went in to order one, so they worked with me on finding a very lightly used one spec'd to my preferences.

Yes the S4 is Quattro

Out of curiosity, how hard is it to set up a car? Set the seat, the mirrors, and the radio stations. What am I missing in my slightly inebriated state?

I've also never had a vehicle newer that 2000, so I might be ignorant.

Depends on the car, and if you are familiar with the systems etc. For example, it took me 5 tries and 30 minutes time to get the Homelink garage door opener programmed properly.

I took a lot of time actually reading through the owners manual on various systems etc.

 

[Dampland]

Out of curiosity, how hard is it to set up a car? Set the seat, the mirrors, and the radio stations. What am I missing in my slightly inebriated state?

I've also never had a vehicle newer that 2000, so I might be ignorant.

you poor deprived loser. I'm rocking my 1998 Oldsmobile and a 2001 F-150. Hell my house is newer than my cars!

 

[Dampland]

By the way, this world is going to hell in a handbasket:

ISIS and other Terrorists killing innocent people all over Europe
Police killing some innocent people, and People killing innocent Police.
"#XXXXLives Matter" (but only when it fits the group's agenda)
Teens actually look to Kanye/Kardashians and Bieber as role models.
Adults are dying and causing road accidents because of a Pokemon game.
Teens are posting naked selfies on the internet, (good luck with your future careers)
MLB baseball had an all-star game that neither the all-stars nor the fans wanted to go to/watch.
Professional athletes making "only" 10 million dollars a year are saying they are basically "indentured servants"
Kids are all given particpation trophies ... "because there are no losers" (except in real life and the adult world..... try asking for a trophy at work for not doing any work right and losing your company money)
The Olympics are being held in a country notorious for Drugs, Prostitution and now a killer mosquito. (and people wonder why athletes are dropping out of it)
EA still can't seem to understand that until they provide regional servers for South America/Brazil, and Spain; those players will continue to ruin Battlefield with their lag cheating.
Poor Americans are fat, because healthy food is too expensive compared to McBurger Bell fast food.
Pantera's Dime Bag Darrell gets killed by a "fan" in front of his brother, yet al lthe members of One Direction are still alive?

ok, rant over

 

[00xtremeninja]

I am as upset about Dimebag being killed as the next guy, but do you really want to wish death on anyone?

 

[Fremitus Borealis]

Still playing the waiting game with prospective employers I received an offer from Job #1, wanted to wait until I hear back from Job #2 before saying "yes". To delay (while getting real info), I asked a few specific questions about benefits and some other stuff, prefacing my email with the statement that I'm "weighing my offers" or something, and need to know answers to these questions before accepting.

So Job #1 returned my email today, essentially deflecting all my questions by telling me to email the HR person, and then asked if I want the position. It's like... I'm one part relieved they got the email at all (I was starting to worry), but on the other hand I'm not sure they read it very thoroughly. This kind of ******** is making me a bit worried about what the work environment will be if I end up having to take this job by default.

Still haven't heard back from Job #2. That interview felt awkward enough that I feel pretty sure they won't hire me unless there are literally no other warm bodies around...... but I still won't know until they ****ing get back to me and tell me as much.

Sometimes I wonder if employers actually enjoy the extent to which they are really jerking around their applicants' futures.

 

[Finnished]

You guys excited for your heatwave? Apparently we are having one too later this week lol.. though our daytime temps may be lower than your night temps from what I checked.

 

[gphr513]

Getting out of town just in time. Heading to the cabin tomorrow after work for a mini vacation. Thursday and Friday are supposed to be like 92-95 up there. Perfect lake/water days. Then a nice cool down to the low-mid 80s on Saturday!

 

[tomgilbertfan]

By the way, this world is going to hell in a handbasket:

ISIS and other Terrorists killing innocent people all over Europe
Police killing some innocent people, and People killing innocent Police.
"#XXXXLives Matter" (but only when it fits the group's agenda)
Teens actually look to Kanye/Kardashians and Bieber as role models.
Adults are dying and causing road accidents because of a Pokemon game.
Teens are posting naked selfies on the internet, (good luck with your future careers)
MLB baseball had an all-star game that neither the all-stars nor the fans wanted to go to/watch.
Professional athletes making "only" 10 million dollars a year are saying they are basically "indentured servants"
Kids are all given particpation trophies ... "because there are no losers" (except in real life and the adult world..... try asking for a trophy at work for not doing any work right and losing your company money)
The Olympics are being held in a country notorious for Drugs, Prostitution and now a killer mosquito. (and people wonder why athletes are dropping out of it)
EA still can't seem to understand that until they provide regional servers for South America/Brazil, and Spain; those players will continue to ruin Battlefield with their lag cheating.
Poor Americans are fat, because healthy food is too expensive compared to McBurger Bell fast food.
Pantera's Dime Bag Darrell gets killed by a "fan" in front of his brother, yet al lthe members of One Direction are still alive?

ok, rant over

Too lazy to actually break this up, but a lot of this is either pessimistic or hilariously specific.

"Teens" don't actually look up to Beiber/Kardashians. Some do, but they are in the vast minority. Also 12-18 year olds are so transitory, things change they like something one day and hate something the next so it really doesn't matter. Crappy pop artists and people have always been big and people have always been concerned about their influence on the youth. Madonna was scary for parents to have their kids look up to, rock music that was just about sex and drugs (whose artists had lives that followed suit) were revered by kids as well.

You can look at Pokemon as that, or you can see a game that is bringing together SO many people, people that would never talk to each other in normal day-to-day life, old people, young people, black white and every other race, people are bonding over this shared experience and it's a really neat thing to see.

The teen selfie thing isn't really a problem. There are just SO many naked pictures of people out there that it's doubtful that for the majority of people a few naked pics are going to be a problem. Teens are crazy hormone-filled creatures and the only real problem is charging a 16 year old with Child Porn for having been sexted by a schoolmate.

Baseball is losing popularity. That's not a problem, it's how things go. Hell the probowl for the NFL is widely unpopular by players and fans and that's not a problem, ASGs in general are crap, across the board.

The participation trophy thing was an over-correction that won't be the way things will always be, I know at least a dozen young parents and they all are annoyed with that culture, so as the next generation has their kids I believe that will get less "everybody wins" and become more nuanced. Also from my experience it's not an "nobody loses" type thing and more of a "Hey you really tried hard and gave it your all" type of thing, which goes against you trying to say that it's a culture that celebrates intentional ineptitude.


I love that somehow battlefield lag cheating is on a list with ISIS as far as the world going to hell.

You can't seriously be mad that a boyband members are still alive? Come on, that's insane, especially somehow trying to make Dimebag and One Direction related. Unless one of One Directon's members like murdered one of your family members I can't imagine why you'd be so angry at them. They're young, be mad at the adults that are running that whole show, not the kids that got internationally huge when they were 16.

Realistically the world is not worse than it's been in the last century. Some things are better, some things are worse, but the march of progress beats on. We know more now then we ever have in history (obviously), medicine is so much better even from when I was born 25 years ago, the internet is a thing!

So much of your post just reads like "Oh man this new generation is the worst!". Realistically I'm more mad at the generation above me, the congressmen and senators that don't understand the internet fully, that don't understand the complexities of the technology in our world but are all too happy to take lobbyists money and make laws that hurt the neutrality of the internet, that make it illegal to modify technology you bought, and that allow the NSA to spy on all of us.

 

[DANOZ28]

dampland, you missed one - the entire world is bankrupt! now back to happy thoughts such as puppies , beaches and 10's. edit & alcohol!

 

[00xtremeninja]

I wish my wife would go into labor tonight so she can avoid the misery of the heatwave the next two days being 39 weeks preggers

 

[Fremitus Borealis]

Too lazy to actually break this up, but a lot of this is either pessimistic or hilariously specific.

"Teens" don't actually look up to Beiber/Kardashians. Some do, but they are in the vast minority. Also 12-18 year olds are so transitory, things change they like something one day and hate something the next so it really doesn't matter. Crappy pop artists and people have always been big and people have always been concerned about their influence on the youth. Madonna was scary for parents to have their kids look up to, rock music that was just about sex and drugs (whose artists had lives that followed suit) were revered by kids as well.

You can look at Pokemon as that, or you can see a game that is bringing together SO many people, people that would never talk to each other in normal day-to-day life, old people, young people, black white and every other race, people are bonding over this shared experience and it's a really neat thing to see.

The teen selfie thing isn't really a problem. There are just SO many naked pictures of people out there that it's doubtful that for the majority of people a few naked pics are going to be a problem. Teens are crazy hormone-filled creatures and the only real problem is charging a 16 year old with Child Porn for having been sexted by a schoolmate.

Baseball is losing popularity. That's not a problem, it's how things go. Hell the probowl for the NFL is widely unpopular by players and fans and that's not a problem, ASGs in general are crap, across the board.

The participation trophy thing was an over-correction that won't be the way things will always be, I know at least a dozen young parents and they all are annoyed with that culture, so as the next generation has their kids I believe that will get less "everybody wins" and become more nuanced. Also from my experience it's not an "nobody loses" type thing and more of a "Hey you really tried hard and gave it your all" type of thing, which goes against you trying to say that it's a culture that celebrates intentional ineptitude.


I love that somehow battlefield lag cheating is on a list with ISIS as far as the world going to hell.

You can't seriously be mad that a boyband members are still alive? Come on, that's insane, especially somehow trying to make Dimebag and One Direction related. Unless one of One Directon's members like murdered one of your family members I can't imagine why you'd be so angry at them. They're young, be mad at the adults that are running that whole show, not the kids that got internationally huge when they were 16.

Realistically the world is not worse than it's been in the last century. Some things are better, some things are worse, but the march of progress beats on. We know more now then we ever have in history (obviously), medicine is so much better even from when I was born 25 years ago, the internet is a thing!

So much of your post just reads like "Oh man this new generation is the worst!". Realistically I'm more mad at the generation above me, the congressmen and senators that don't understand the internet fully, that don't understand the complexities of the technology in our world but are all too happy to take lobbyists money and make laws that hurt the neutrality of the internet, that make it illegal to modify technology you bought, and that allow the NSA to spy on all of us.

I assumed the whole thing was tongue-in-cheek

 

[Engebretson]

I wish my wife would go into labor tonight so she can avoid the misery of the heatwave the next two days being 39 weeks preggers

My wife is 33 weeks right now, so the end is just out of reach and she still has to suffer through the worst parts of July and August.

Good luck with everything and hopefully all goes well in the next week or so!

 

[FVM]

Too lazy to actually break this up, but a lot of this is either pessimistic or hilariously specific.

"Teens" don't actually look up to Beiber/Kardashians. Some do, but they are in the vast minority. Also 12-18 year olds are so transitory, things change they like something one day and hate something the next so it really doesn't matter. Crappy pop artists and people have always been big and people have always been concerned about their influence on the youth. Madonna was scary for parents to have their kids look up to, rock music that was just about sex and drugs (whose artists had lives that followed suit) were revered by kids as well.

You can look at Pokemon as that, or you can see a game that is bringing together SO many people, people that would never talk to each other in normal day-to-day life, old people, young people, black white and every other race, people are bonding over this shared experience and it's a really neat thing to see.

The teen selfie thing isn't really a problem. There are just SO many naked pictures of people out there that it's doubtful that for the majority of people a few naked pics are going to be a problem. Teens are crazy hormone-filled creatures and the only real problem is charging a 16 year old with Child Porn for having been sexted by a schoolmate.

Baseball is losing popularity. That's not a problem, it's how things go. Hell the probowl for the NFL is widely unpopular by players and fans and that's not a problem, ASGs in general are crap, across the board.

The participation trophy thing was an over-correction that won't be the way things will always be, I know at least a dozen young parents and they all are annoyed with that culture, so as the next generation has their kids I believe that will get less "everybody wins" and become more nuanced. Also from my experience it's not an "nobody loses" type thing and more of a "Hey you really tried hard and gave it your all" type of thing, which goes against you trying to say that it's a culture that celebrates intentional ineptitude.


I love that somehow battlefield lag cheating is on a list with ISIS as far as the world going to hell.

You can't seriously be mad that a boyband members are still alive? Come on, that's insane, especially somehow trying to make Dimebag and One Direction related. Unless one of One Directon's members like murdered one of your family members I can't imagine why you'd be so angry at them. They're young, be mad at the adults that are running that whole show, not the kids that got internationally huge when they were 16.

Realistically the world is not worse than it's been in the last century. Some things are better, some things are worse, but the march of progress beats on. We know more now then we ever have in history (obviously), medicine is so much better even from when I was born 25 years ago, the internet is a thing!

So much of your post just reads like "Oh man this new generation is the worst!". Realistically I'm more mad at the generation above me, the congressmen and senators that don't understand the internet fully, that don't understand the complexities of the technology in our world but are all too happy to take lobbyists money and make laws that hurt the neutrality of the internet, that make it illegal to modify technology you bought, and that allow the NSA to spy on all of us.

This. Thousand times this.

 

[Fremitus Borealis]

My wife is 33 weeks right now, so the end is just out of reach and she still has to suffer through the worst parts of July and August.

Good luck with everything and hopefully all goes well in the next week or so!

Mine is about 18 weeks in now, so she really isn't even "showing" yet. The doctors actually congratulated us the other day that thanks to the timing of conception + our good lifestyle choices, she should completely miss the window of "worst possible time of the year to be visibly pregnant"

 

[TaLoN]

Wow, cool. It is new? Of course it is Quattro? Pics would be great

I have 2006 Audi A4 and I love it.

Pics will likely have to wait for Sunday at the earliest, I brought it in to install a clear bra, will get it back again tomorrow, but tomorrow also starts my work week, and considering I work 12 hr shifts, I'm not going to bother trying to take pics and upload them just yet.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

There are waaaaaay too many quality podcasts out there right now. Currently subscribed to 33 podcasts, I listen for about 7 of my work hours a day plus commute and I'm still falling behind.

 

[Wild11MN]

There are waaaaaay too many quality podcasts out there right now. Currently subscribed to 33 podcasts, I listen for about 7 of my work hours a day plus commute and I'm still falling behind.

What kind of stuff do you listen to? I'm subscribed to like 8, but they're all sports podcasts. Any recommendations for shows? Got any good hockey ones? For hockey I just have Marek vs. Wyshynski for now.