John Prezioso

Hi Guys. I wanted someone to let me know if there is something I need to change in my sig, or if I chose a proper ship, name, and wing. If I did something wrong, please let me know.

Will do. Thanks again.

I am humbled. Thank you. I hope I can make a worthy addition to your fleet! Honestly, I was much to scared to ask for membership but I am sure gald that B.Z. sought me out.

quote: I say Summer 2007! OH NO! That's way too long!

Hello. I was recently recruited by Ben Zwycky. I was on vacation at the time, but I am back home now. BZ sent me an email saying the first thing I should do is register in the ISS Fleet database, but I don't know how.Anyone want to help a greenhorn?

Ov vey! You environmental wackos are starting to remind me of McCarthy and his obssession with communists. LOL!

quote:If this is true then why is it that most innovation is going on in the US. One word - capitalism. Don't get me wrong; we NEED a system that protects the inventor. I guess our current system is a bit too imperfect of a solution for my tastes for the reasons I described. Soback: Very well put. I agree with everything you said, but a lot of innovation is also due to COMPETITION, something that socialism inheritantly discourages. I just wish we could fix the current US patent system a bit.

quote: I'm not very inside the whole patent stuff,but I imagine it to be quite unlovely The patent system in a word SUCKS. But you really REALLY need something to protect the small inventor. A lot of the problem with patents in the U.S. is 1) How easy it is to patent something simple and thereby prevent ALL similar but not identical concepts from being utilized. 2) How restrictive of technological advancement it its through its draconian employment. Competition is artificially stifled and we end up with a WAY less-than-ideal solutuion. And we are stuck with it.

Well, in the strictest sense, it's not really a MMO like Everquest and AO, but have you tried Guild Wars? No monthly fee, and fantastic multiplay AND outstanding single player.

Street: I saw your latest post as soon as I posted mine, so I'll respond quick before I go. Despite what you believe, I believed on my own, without considering any overall "methodology", that invading Iraq was a good move. You do not agree, but that is neither here nor there. As of now, while the benefit of hindsight illustrates to us that mistakes have been made, overall it is my estimation that things are going rather well in Iraq AND in the war on terror. If you disagree, I am sorry. I consider myself just as informed on current events as you consider yourself - I simply don't see things the way you do.

Nomad: If your point is that terrorists tend to spring up predominantly in areas where injustice is greatest, I could possibly agree with you. But I steadfastly refuse to submit to the idea that ANYTHING the U.S. or her allies have done or could do can cause the Islamo-fascists (which I categorize differently than followers of Islam) to hate us any more than they do. A quick glance at 20th century history proves this, imo. There is NO justification for terrorism - period. NOTE: I'll be on the road for the next 36 hours, but I will be back soon.

Nomad: Do yo actually believe that one operation in one country can realistically eliminate ALL terrorism throughout the world? Talk about rhetoric... Regardless of how many terrorists are killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, there are still untouched cells throughout the world, some in the U.S., and obviously, Great Britain.C'mon, I know you are more intelligent than this; yet another thinly veiled attempt to bring discredit on the U.S., it seems. quote: Because this phenomenon feeds on injustice through the globe... ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!?!?!?! INJUSTICE?!?!? Terrorism, my friend, is bred by fanaticism and hatred, NOT injustice. Give me a break!!!! Street: quote: ...."IT's really NOT about you". It is completely submersed withn the ideological base, which people "LIKE" you blindly adhere. I have to admit, I really don't understand what you are trying to say... could you explain this "idealogical base" I am supposedly blindly adhereing to?

quote:WW2 made the Jews STRONGER... WW2 was not about the Jews. It was about stopping the spread of imperialism and fascism. Which by the way, was accomplished through WAR. Imo, your defeatist attitude is misplaced - terrorists can be defeated. But only through the only language they understand: The language of force. I recognize the enemy is cunning, focused, and driven - no "redneck" attitude here. All the more reason to find them and kill them.

quote:Then, YOu MUST ignore ALLL MEDIA, and ALLL organizatioal independent reports...or you are believing a perverted version of the truth.... No, I don't completely ignore them. To give an analogy, I watch CNN/MSNBC/BBC the way you might listen to Rush Limbaugh - You know he is going to cover the relevant topics of the day, but while listening you remain keenly aware of his conservative bias and take everything he says from within that context. For me, the bias in mainstream media is WAY to the left, and the "news" they report is only the news that supports THEIR agenda. Anything that runs counter to what message they are trying to convey gets skimmed over or dropped completely. If I trust ANY large media outlet to provide a reasonable objective picture, it would be FOX News. They still aren't great, but they are imo the most unbiased of the bunch. Many left-leaning people will scoff and say that they are conservatively biased, but the truth is they SEEM conservative only relative to other leftist media. Actually, they sit about in the center. The most important difference is they make a clear distinction between editorialist OPINIONS and "news". As far as "independent" reports, well lets just say that WHO is doing the reporting has much more bearing on whether I believe a story than WHAT is reported. I keep notes on the track records of a lot of these "independent" sources.

2325. C'mon, we need more! Someone has to think of the children!

quote:There is no justification on earth, to dilute the freedoms that this country was founded to protect. Just to add to my previous points, I must say here is something that you and I profoundly agree upon. I take issue with the Patriot Act, but unlike you, I view it as more of an unfortunate and ill-conceived knee jerk reaction than part of a larger agenda on the part of our government. Irregardless, certain items need clarification and adjusting in order to avoid being in danger of conflicting with the Constitution of the United States. quote: ALL information is useful when being presented in an objective format. That which is being presented in a Subjective format is impartially biased and has better than a 50% chance of being a LIE fabricated to mislead.Excellent point. It also happens to be the reason I discount almost all of the sources you cite as proving your point. Mainstream media (BBC included) have long since lost any credibilty with me and many others due to their blatant elitist agendas. And if you put forth Amnesty International as an unbiased source considering their blatant anti-Americanism, I might just laugh...

Street, I promise I read all of your post, so if it seems like I'm ignoring it or leaving some of your points unanswered please do not assume I am conceding. It was just...long. Firstly, if that letter is a legitimate representation of the events of the prison, then the people responsible should be thrown in prison as well. There is no excuse for such treatment. I will state that I see no equivalency whatsoever between Americans in the U.S. justice system and the terrorists who currently inhabit Club Gitmo. Having said that, I do not condone torture, as it would bring us down to the level of those murderous animals we are trying to protect our citizens from, and, imo, that should not be. Where I believe we stand on opposite sides is: 1) What defines a terrorist 2) What defines mistreatment 3) What sources we each consider credible Needless to say there will be more points of contention, but on the current topic, I think this is a fair assessment. We could go into each in detail , but I have a feeling how the argument would play out, as I have debated many times with people on your "side of the fence", so to speak. quote:YOU need to wakeup Prez, I cant wait till you or one of your family runs into a SITUATION. THEN, you can preach ZERO Tolorance,and ZERO Flexability, with use of excessive and cohersive force.Funny you should say that. I have been thinking something VERY similar about YOU since we first locked horns. You see, I have been wondering how you would feel if YOUR dad was in the WTC 2 building during 9/11/01. I had always been kind of indifferent to worldwide terrorism prior to this (admittedly to my shame now) but let me tell you, having your dad (who missed being ground into dust by the collapsing tower by seconds) detail for you the horrors no one should ever have to witness first hand does something to you. I mean, this is MY dad. Not somebody else's. 2 points: 1) I tell you this because I think it is relevant to the discussion, NOT because I want your or anyone else's pity. 2) It emphatically puts all of this so-called abuse and these so-called atrocities in perspective (for me, anyway) Does this make me biased? Probably. Does it make me blindly want to lash out at anyone wearing a turban or carrying a Koran? Well, to be perfectly honest, it did at first. But unbridled anger has long since given way to grim determination to do anything in my power to support any president who puts the war on terror in the forefront of his or her administration. What I find ironic is that is this war on terror that you consider a war of agression and imposed rule by force that has taught me that there is a difference between a terrorist and a muslim loyalist, and not all of Islam's followers are the enemy. To counter your "warmongering" claim, I can only state for the hundredth time that I HATE WAR. I am not blind to what it reaps. It should always be a last resort. But I could not disagree with you any more vehemently than I do when you claim that the Iraq war was wrong, and that Bush is a Hitler clone for waging it. Where is your eveidence? How can you believe such an awful thing without unimpeachable proof? More to the point, how can you think that Bush AND his entire administration AND the entire upper echelon of the American military all are in on what you inexplicably believr to be a modern day coup? DO you have so little faith in your fellow Americans? I would sure like to know what drives a man to such suspicion and bitterness. As a final point I will add that I do NOT suggest that Iraq had a major role in 9/11, as you have constantly accused me of being "confused" about, but terrorism is terrorism, regardless of which country is supporting and funding it.

I disagree. The primary target of the war are Terrorists. We have absolutely no quarrel with the good citizens of Afghanistan and Iraq.

AS for anyone else who might actually submit to the same extremist way of thinking that Street employs: quote: Usually the neocon response has some reference to emotional rhetoric, rather than an intelligent base. Now, does anyone actually have any evidence to back this statement up? Details please. Emotions like loving your country and being angry at those who would destroy her are not the only thing that drive our thinking. But they are what make us so steadfast once a path is chosen. quote: First, to understand MY views and position, one must have SOME realization, as to WHAT constitutes a definitive difference between Communist/marxist ideology and what WE refer to as a FREE democracy. To claim any parallels to Marxism and contemporary American democracy shows a disturbing ignorance(lack of knowledge) of world history. Is "Marxist" a nice-sounding, convenient word to use while debating, or does anyone REALLY understand what MARXISM is? Go ahead... google "marxism" and see how it compares... quote:SINCE the 1st bush administration, the republican party has tried to push thousands of bills through(some of which this administration has successfully accomplished) which ARE IDENTICAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to bills introduced in PRE-WW2 Germany, following Hitler winning his ELECTED position. Ah, how silly. Clearly someone here is hoping no one will actually know the history of the Nazi rise to power in pre-war Germany and will take this asinine comparison at face value. Sorry. Ain't washing. To believe for a second that ANY American president could ever be able to turn our Democratic Republic into a facsimile of Fascist Germany proves 2 things: 1) You are completely and utterly ignorant of how our Constitution set up a three-branched government of inter-mingling checks and balances. In other words, the U.S. Supreme court and Congress might have something to say about a President assuming absolute power for himself... 2) You are paranoid. See a doctor. quote:This is VERY relevant to the issue, at hand: Prison Abuse. War on the Terrorist....and especially in regard to the INVASION of IRAQ.(TAKE AND RULE BY FORCE METHODOLOGY) This is interesting. Allowing Iraqi citizens to vote in the first free election of their lives is ruling by force? I don't remember seeing any American names on the ballots. How are we supposed to rule by force when Muslims hold 100% of the government positions? It is clear that some people will ALWAYS believe the invasion of Iraq was the wrong move. Fine. I personally believe it was not the only possible next move after Afghanistan, but it was one of many reasonable ones. If you do not, that is okay. But does making fantastical claims that one look at current events disproves in about 5 minutes somehow change the fact that we DID invade Iraq? At what point do you stop throwing a hissy fit because something you disagreed with has clearly had MANY positive results, at least as many as all of the negative ones you naysayers continually harp on? quote: sorri fella, this is a fight to the death...Im NOT leaving my country ...Im fighting YOU communist loving _____ to the grave!!!! Hmmm... seems like you ought to be fighting someone who actually is fanatical enough to act out on his threat of killing every "infidel" in America instead of people who don't share your viewpoint. But that's just me.

You know street, every time I read one of your posts, I run across neo-con/neo-nazi inferences. Do you think this makes you sound more credible? I find it ridiculous myself. Your basically saying that if you have an opposing viewpoint from the all-knowing, all-seeing "Street", then you get lumped in with a group that feel it was okay to exterminate 6 million innocent Jews AND would like to see all foreigners exterminated so that the White race can be the all-powerful group it deserves to be. Imo, you must be pretty insecure to post like this EVERY time. Your facts are not facts; they are unsubstantiated conjecture, and as such are easily refuted. However, it is simply not worth the time debating someone who throws around the term Neo-nazi as if it was a synonym with conservative. You may be "almost 50" but perhaps your debating skills still need some maturing...

Wow, someone's a little bitter. Never mind that he is mostly right...

Ugh - that one HURT.

2 examples of persistent I found: 1) Universal Combat 2) Shingen

Hey, it's getting there! 129 Million bucks after this weekend. Don't look now, but Batman is about to turn a profit! Woohoo! NOW GET TO WORK ON THE NEXT ONE!!

Not to pile on grizzle, as Jaguar had an answer to you previously, but I would like to respond as well. quote:3000 deaths qualifies as the single most dangerous threat? 9-11 was a tragedy, no doubt. But if you buy the line that terrorism is the #1 threat to our survival then I'd question your blindness to reason. Just think if one of those jets had been filled with vx gas or a nuclear bomb. The devastation would have been orders of magnitude greater. The fact of the matter is we have been lucky. Yes we have been hit by terrorists before, and have you noticed with each attack, the terrorist become more brazen? What would have been their next trick? No one in his right mind can believe that 9/11 was intended to be the end. As of right now, attacks on our soil have ceased, and I believe its because the U.S. has taken the fight to them, not sat back and waited for the next salvo as we had been doing for so many years. I buy nothing the government says at face value, regardless of what it may seem. Is it so hard to fathom that some well-educated people agree with and support what the government is doing? Just because it is in fashion lately to have some wacko conspiracy theory about the administration's real intentions does not mean that we are naive because we don't. I don't think it does, anyway. quote:On any given day your life is threatened by far more mundane things than a possible terrorist act. I had hoped you would give me more credit than feeling the need to state something so inheritantly obvious. I was talking about on a national scale. Our greatest threat as a nation is terrorism, imo. What is it in your opinion?