144 Comments

eh, I kind have trouble believing this tale.

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DBD AV Club

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Raised by Wolves might be the most ambitious and greatest sci fi show of this century or it could be the dumbest, no room for in between. The problem is, I can’t tell which one it is yet.

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author

I think the new Netflix superhero show, Guardians of Justice, also fits this description.

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Enjoying the new season of M Mrs. Maisel, it's not great TV in my book, but it is a lot of fun. Was surprised this season started exactly where the previous one ended. Working through Cheer & Rez Dogs.

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Has anyone else called (6 times for me) Comcast/Xfinity & complained about the dearth of HD channels? My dad in N San Diego County on Spectrum gets *all* PAC-12 channels in HD. He also gets several HBOs, Showtimes, etc. It can't be a bandwidth issue, as they've doubled up on channels for some reason (there's a 3 digit and a 4-digit channel for every HD station). When I left Directv, I told them the only reason was lack of PAC-12 Network (which was not the whole truth, but wanted to put in my vote). They suck only slightly less than Comcast, but have multiple HD premium channels. However, I need to pay someone for my internet, phone, & mobile and splitting things up makes my total outlay rise about $150/mo. I'm not up for cord cutting/streaming as I make extensive use of slow-motion, freeze frames, etc. Thank you congress for handing the cable companies a forever monopoly.

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I don't get the Pac-12 Network in HD either, even when I pay the extra $10 per month for the Sports Package. Then again, I live in Pittsburgh, PA. The single Pac-12 National channel is often not what I wanted to watch anyhow, so I really just paid the right to stream it on my computer or phone.

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Anybody check out the Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes show on HULU yet?

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No, I didn’t even know about it but I might start this tonight.

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She’s very good. I really enjoyed Dopesick so we’ll see if this measures up.

In other news, F-ck Stanfurd…

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https://twitter.com/USCPSC/status/1499818672512196618?s=20&t=pl6FnXiR9SimUTRDghOJ8A

US Consumer Product Safety Commission has an important message about safety

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The New York Public Library has a collection of items for Women's History Month (https://shop.nypl.org/collections/women-history-month) including this pint glass! https://shop.nypl.org/collections/women-history-month/products/great-women-of-science-pint-glass

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Quordle

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a good hard nerdle today

https://nerdlegame.com/

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quordle yesterday -- that bottom left word was a WTF. Took the full 9 to get there.

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I forgot what yesterday's was. I've had a couple of days in a row where it took the full 9. I think yesterday I wasted 3 rounds because there were at least 3 different words that would've fit. Same today. The top right word I had spots 1 - 3 correct and it took me 3 guesses to get the word.

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*lower right word

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today in Worldle I learned there's place called the British Indian Ocean Territory

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I only got it by scrolling through all the possible options after it was shown to be south of Maldives. Somewhat fortunately, this place's name is rather descriptive of its location.

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I was able to work out where it was but I couldn't remember the name, I think the US Navy has a base there which is why I'd heard of it.

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Diego Garcia

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I wonder if you got a different wordle than I did.

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Worldle, not Wordle. Guessing countries by the borders alone.

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ah...misread.

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Today's was pretty tough. I ended up using the last 3 guesses to get the last 3 words.

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triple letters are straight bullshit. I only got 2 of today's words.

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That was my last word down to my last guess where I got all except for the first letter (fortunately, the double letter were confirmed by guesses of other words). There was only two acceptable words and the other word was an apparently obscured slang word for a janiter?

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I didn't think that triple word was right, but I had to get it in 1 if I was going to finish the other 3 words. Had letter 4 correct and a few ideas on where letter 2 were not. I didn't think that was the correct answer but had to go with it and got lucky that it was right.

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TIL Quordle. Man this is hard.

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It definitely changes your strategy a bit from Wordle.

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For Quordle, I use the same two starting words (RAISE, DONUT) before trying to solve anything. For Octordle and Sedecordle, I use (SNARE, COULD, MIGHT) before trying to solve anything. I personally found Sedecordle to be the easiest just because solving the more obvious words give you more information.

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I don't have starting words. I just think of a word that has at least 2 vowels with a couple more common consonants. Unless I'm real lucky I then look for another word that has a couple more vowels and common consonants.

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That's my way of approaching it. Often use a word I saw in a news article that I hadn't used before. Just to mix it up a little.

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DBD test kitchen

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So last night was a joint effort, my wife made the filling for the Swiss chard/ricotta/gruyere (a little) empanadas, my daughter made the pastry, and I opened the wine - a 2009 Bernardus Marinus (Bordeaux style from Carmel valley I had forgot I had any left).

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slow down there. don't strain yourself

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Had leftover pork Piccata on a brioche bun for lunch, very tasty.

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😄

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That is an amazing looking bird.

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It really is. It is like a peacock got dipped in a rainbow.

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Wow. I’ve never heard of it. To see it against the snow- amazing!

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Nice to know it’s not endangered at the moment.

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This house looks normal - if not a bit spartan - up until picture number 16 through 9 3/4.

https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/7844-Palmilla-Ct_Reunion_FL_34747_M50637-67473

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From watching several My Lottery Dreamhome episodes in Florida, I think this house is missing the mesh pool enclosure that keeps out mosquitoes and alligators.

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One of the rules of Real Estate. Never buy the most expensive house in a cheap neighborhood. Buy an economical house in the best neighborhood, e.g. Atherton or Piedmont.

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All that and no pinball?

I wonder if that cleat canopy bed is made with glass or plexiglas? Either way, I wouldn't want those posts over me. I'm not a canopy bed person.

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author
Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022Author

I have that same bed, minus the S&M headboard. The posts are held in place by lock nuts.

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022

A couple critiques of this property; just a couple. 'Cuz if I don't limit myself it'll be a rant. But I digress.

1) Putting the kitchen right next to the Living and Dining spaces is asking for grease to get all over EVERYTHING. I don't give a fig how powerful that hood is, grease escapes the suction and moves outward.

2) This feels like a flip without any sort of taste. Just excess. I noticed that the website says the property more than 13 times *more expensive* that neighboring properties. Like I said, excess.

This ostentatious display really pisses me off. It's what I call an "ugly American property".

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I think this was built solely to be a high-end AirBNB near Disney. The size of the kitchen is out of all proportion with the size of the house, and if you had any intention of actually living in it as a home you wouldn't configure the living space to be that size or layout, but as a giant hotel room for a big multi-family group for a week, it works.

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This kind of reads to me more as a flamboyant person who came into a ton of money, which may or may not have been made illicitly, and who has kids, and who now has problems either financial or legal or with no longer being alive. For the custom kids themed stuff, you'd have to be pretty looney to do that for a flip and not think you're adding little value (if not losing value) and turning off tons of potential buyers.

I also recently started watching Narcos Mexico, so I'm ripe for a juicy backstory.

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Yeah, this is my take as well. It seems like a standard flip until you get to Hogwarts and Avengers HQ. No way does a flipper just randomly add those two themed rooms. Someone owned this house and created those two rooms for their kids.

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Now it’s owned by some billionaire that’s gonna throw a $5M/yr NIL at Arch Manning to come to UCF.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reunion,_Florida

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Himalaya

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Definitely on the list of mountain ranges to visit at some point in life. I believe it is possible to do some non-technical touring up to about 22,000 feet. That sounds pretty appealing, as does some extended time in Nepal and areas of Northern India such as Himachal Pradesh

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Once had a week of work at the embassy in Kathmandu. I didn't get a chance to get out of town but met a bunch of interesting folks in the city. I'm not into mountain climbing but wouldn't mind going back and doing some trekking.

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Took an epic India/Nepal trip with my dad when I was a kid. Took the train up to Darjeeling, which I think was he highest elevation railway.

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Himalayan food - as opposed to low-land Nepali food - can be summarized in six words: dal, rice, instant ramen, chapatis, tea. There is poor, there is dirt poor, and then there is Himalayan because they don't even have dirt.

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Mar 4, 2022Liked by BentPawn

I almost climbed Everest about ten years ago. I had been training in the mountains and had the dough, $50,000 to pay for the trip. For some reason I didn't pull the trigger. I ended up taking a year sabbatical and traveling the world as a traveler, riding donkeys and camels, visiting off the beaten track places.

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saving my $50k for a heli-skiing trip w/ friends

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Climbing Everest sounds a lot less appealing now than it did 10 years ago. Still, traveling the world for a year still sounds much more appealing and was proabably a much more enriching life experience.

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Also, the amount of garbage and detritus on the mountain is pretty significant by this point, so you can't expect a pristine experience.

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Yup

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sounds like the correct choice was made

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022

would very much like to go. not exactly sure how and when this is going to happen. maybe in my old age ...

there is a fun Hindu myth which i will try to summarize. the Pandavas, the winning 5 brothers from the Mahabharata, and a their (strangely) shared wife and their dog set off into the Himalayan hills. one by one they all fall dead except the dog and the eldest brother.

eventually Indra (king of gods) comes down to offer the eldest brother a ride to the heavens but not the dog. the eldest brother refuses to get the free ride w/o the dog because clearly the dog was just as virtuous as he was to get to this point. then, it is revealed that the dog is really the god of Dharma (truth) and they both proceed to the heavens where they are reunited w/ the other brothers and wife.

https://dogwithblog.in/story-of-yudhisthira-dog-mahabharat/

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My paternal grandmother's experience says it can be done in your old age.

After my g'father died in '64 Anna (that was her name) got the itch to travel. Travel she did. Anna visited South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, with emphasis on India and Nepal. She may have also traveled to Australia, but I'm not certain. At any rate, she was in her mid-70s when she first trekked to Nepal. She was the oldest in her travel group and she took many photos (slides, really).

Anna was about 5'4" and weighed just over 100 pounds dripping wet, but she was game for adventure. This was not a passing fancy, though. You have to understand that Anna had been hiking and exploring for over 50 years when she made her trek(s) to Nepal. Anna and Jack (my g'father) hiked throughout the Sierra.

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author

Slava Ukraini

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This is an chilling, and possibly correct take on the situation. You might remember her from Trumps first impeachment.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/02/28/world-war-iii-already-there-00012340

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I read this article earlier and I agree with her assessment. In the opening she talks about the elephant in the room that no one wants to mention in terms of China and Russia and that is how western businesses played a role in China and Russia’s growth and consolidation of power.

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NATO to discuss options today. Despite what headline says, no-fly zone seems unlikely

https://www.ft.com/content/fe80e279-aad8-442a-b4d5-0a4f5e44e7df#post-8229952a-9621-4d67-973a-a55a1079e841

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no fly zone DENIED

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This was always going to be a proxy war. The question remains whether the CIA and allied spooks can smuggle enough material into Ukraine to turn the tide. Make no mistake, Ukraine is still losing, just much slower than expected.

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Good.

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It seems like a hot war would be a disaster and could lead to nuclear exchanges.

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It isn't clear to me whether "nuclear exchanges" means the scale of "dirty bomb", "Chernobyl" or "ICBM". Obviously, all three levels are bad - the difference between the 5th, 7th and 9th levels of hell. Seems clear to me that Putin has the ability to inflict any level of nuclear terror he wants, but does he have the self-control to withhold the holocaust-level attack? I've also got to think that, if he is thinking clearly, does he base his nuclear option on whatever military action, if any, NATO takes?

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The rationality of Putin, or lack thereof, are concerns. There are theories that he has ALS or Parkinsons, or dementia, any of which could impact his decision making. The fact that he is willing to pulverize Ukraine, shelling schools and hospitals, makes it difficult to see how there will be any peaceful transition to a new government. A puppet regime will be opposed and lead to a long and deadly insurgency.

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I read somewhere they guessed he had cancer and was pumped full of steroids.

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If he's full of cancer, he'll be dead inside of a year, likely sooner.

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We're not talking "dirty bombs," and I doubt that we're talking anything tactical in the sense of localized to Ukraine. When Putin talks about taking things nuclear, it's invoking the kind of MAD (Mutual assured destruction) threat to deter the US from taking action.

The hard part for regular folks like you and me is that it's not necessarily clear if we (the US) are set up to carefully do "one for one" responses with nuclear weapons. If the Russians were to launch more than one missile, then there are predefined protocols for how many we launch and what we target. That shit can get out of hand _very_ quickly.

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Ugh. This is the Cold War, redux. Except we now have someone who may be certifiably mad who can launch nuclear weapons.

The situation is insane.

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I'm not convinced at all the Putin is mad or insane, just because he has no regard for the interests of others when it does not serve his purpose. He may well mis-calculate, with potentially very serious consequences for all concerned, though.

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it really is like a revival series

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I wonder if the US has a plan to take out Putin if it seems to get close to that point (MAD). Like a spy in his inner circle or some special forces already in place in Moscow. Maybe I've been reading too many Clancy novels...

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Drone?

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I'm curious if you still read the new Jack Ryan books. Once Clancy died, I quit reading the books written by other authors using his characters.

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Elsewhere in college

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Reddit thread asks who has the worst college gameday experience. Stanfurd seems like a pretty popular choice, but Cal gets mentioned.

https://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/t5albg/which_school_has_the_worst_game_day_atmosphere/

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they're not wrong about Cal. The lack of cohesive tailgating scene somewhat dampens the game day experience

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022

As does a 2/3 empty stadium. But the tailgating definitely goes a long way in creating a game day atmosphere.

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Terrible traffic, non-existent parking, outrageous prices for lodging (in unsecure locations), fuel, tolls, etc., don't help either.

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022Author

Enshrining this tweet for the archives:

https://twitter.com/jongsanders/status/909304321577181184

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author

Washington & Jefferson football player expelled for bringing a sign to a basketball game. Expelled for a sign? [reads article]. Oh, man. Cya.

https://news.yahoo.com/w-j-student-expelled-over-201700957.html

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This brings to mind a dark moment in ASU basketball history when a visiting Arizona Wildcat was the target of a chant of "PLO! PLO!".

I'd guess everyone knows who the target was. While the Arizona AD apologized publicly for the behavior of Wildcat fans, I don't know if any of the chanting idiots suffered any consequences.

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I remember hearing about this.

I remember late 80s UNC vs Duke. UNC had a player called J.R. Reid. Some shitty Dook Fan (@that narrows it down@), held up a sign that read "J.R. CAN'T READ".

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I remember JR Reid...he was goooood.

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Quick athletic big man before that was a thing.

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Baylor's Tyquan Thornton breaks the combine record for fastest 40: 4.21s

https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1499557673330782237

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This is stunning. A tenth of a second is a huge gap when trying to tackle/defend someone. A laser timed 4.50s is incredibly fast - 4.4 leaves secondaries in the dust. As a reference, Jahvid Best's 4.35 was so fast that one could not dive at him and fall fast enough to catch him. Tyreek Hill is a game-changer because you have to respect his 4.29 speed. Thornton would leave Tyreek in his dust.

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022

Multiple guys tested in the 4.3 range, including Olave, Wilson & Watson. Not saying they’re not fast, but a cooked up stopwatch and a “fast track” were rumored to be on hand, given the number of fast times.

Tyreek is a freak because his stops, starts & cuts out of his breaks are so fast. Not sure Tyquan Thornton will play as fast at 6’3”, but he’ll definitely be impossible to catch if they hit him over the top in stride.

Only thing that will put a damper on his career is if Jimmy Garoppolo is his QB.

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Dude! You're such a hater!

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022

Not really...I actually don’t hate Garoppolo at all. He’s a great teammate, seems like a good guy, and is sure handsome. But he’s an average at best QB that doesn’t throw downfield, yet his advocates make him out to be frigging Tom Brady. Please.

If he looked like Sloth from Goonies, he never gets that contract!! ;-)

But I’ll root for him in Pittsburgh...or Indy...or Washington.

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Come on, man - in a discussion about fast receivers you randomly throw Jimmy G under the bus yet again - don't you ever get tiered?

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soooooo he'll be the Raiders first round pick?

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author

Today in Covid

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author

OUR CRUMBLING DEMOCRACY

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You can't make this up:

Moscow Mitch getting a kickback?

Kentucky's teacher pension system is one of the largest shareholders in major Russian bank

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/education/2022/03/04/amid-russia-invading-ukraine-kentucky-teachers-pension-system-caught-middle/9373911002/

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Capitol Insurrectionist convicted and sentenced to 60 days jail. She asks the judge to make it weekends only and she's a different person because she's watched Shindler's List since then. Seriously.

https://lawandcrime.com/u-s-capitol-breach/i-feel-betrayed-woman-sentenced-for-jan-6-breach-claims-she-was-promised-white-house-job-gets-jail-time-instead/

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A woman of peace and reconciliation?

https://twitter.com/RepMTG/status/1499594566789390352

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Is it a dark omen that MTG is the one making the measured, rational statement on Twitter?

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Context matters. She's a Putin supporter, isn't she?

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I mean when she's correct, she's correct.

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A stopped clock, and all that.

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Lindsay Graham - a serial government overthrower.

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I mean, the sentiment isn't wrong. But why inflame a tense situation unnecessarily by posting it on Twitter?

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Because Graham is expressing his frustration. He has no solutions for the Ukrainian invasion short of assassinating Putin.

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Because Lady G only does subtle in his personal life.

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pqtm. Louie Gohmert 😆

https://twitter.com/Rick_Steven88/status/1499460169993965568

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That made my week.

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PRO

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The Steph Curry effect?

https://twitter.com/forensictoxguy/status/1499575046624489473

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One of the comments:

Kevin

@forensictoxguy

·

1h

Replying to

@forensictoxguy

A lot of old heads in the comments and QTs complaining. This is an All Star game. Defense doesn’t get played in those games. Just sit back and marvel at the shooting abilities. That’s all. It’s ok to smile. You know how hard it is to sink -one- of those shots? C’mon, people.

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Seems so.

Curry's impact on the game may be way more than we might imagine.

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CAL

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Men's Swimming won two Pac-12 titles yesterday, which is good but not great, particularly considering how they swept almost all of the swimming events last year. Stanford and ASU are much stronger this year and Cal lost points for some morning swims where they were holding too much back. Anyhow, the NCAA is always the bigger goal anyways as the guys don't even bother shaving for the Pac-12.

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Mar 4, 2022·edited Mar 4, 2022

Bears score 44 points in a blowout, 27-point road loss to an ASU team that they housed at Haas in Jan. They are 3-13 since, and are just plain awful offensively. They’ve scored 62 points in their last 60 minutes, and have averaged 54 points over their last 4 games, with 48.5 ppg this week.

Talk of a Fox extension should be an outrage, yet 80% of the fan base does not even care enough to raise a stink, which seems a rather large indictment of the program in and of itself.

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The big $$$$ donors don’t care about W-Ls. They want the kids to graduate.

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Then make sure they know a dedicated practice facility would help them graduate... ;-)

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Baseball at Florida State tonight is on ACC Network, which I get as a mid-Atlantic resident. Will watch some if I remember.

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It's on Xfinity in the Bay Area. HD Channel 826 I believe (or 824) if you want to set your DVR.

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I think Sunday's game is on the ACC Stream-only channel, but not Saturday, which is a bummer.

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And is part of the YouTube tv lineup

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Go Bears!!!

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