Drove through on Interstate 15... with no intention of stopping whatsoever... have no desire to go there, ever... found the Hoover Dam to be more interesting... and then on to Arizona, where they actually fix the roads... right at the AZ border, the road became like this absolutely perfect pavement... remarkable...

Camped at the north rim of the Grand Canyon... simply stunning...

Permanently tattooed "single, leave me the hell alone" on my forehead... (and on the inside of my lower lip)

... I cover it up with movie make-up...

Michelle Yoeh

Vintage...

YO...

.....YO

Ah... so its the "I thought we were just friends" thread... LOL

I know several people I would like to crush... (preferably grind to a pulp, etc...) does that count for crushing?

I used to live in 714...

... but now I live in 734...

Maybe they all illegally immigrated to Mexico to work at one of the new Ford or GM plants... ???

I invented the Anti-love spray tattoo...

I love pizza...

... some people throw "I love you" out so frequently, it becomes meaningless... like "I love pizza" could be as enthusiastic...

does naughty things with pumpkins

didn't really carve those pumpkins

has a hidden demon horn in his hand in his profile picture...

Yes, building is great, if you know how. I build my own, but I wouldn't necessarily suggest somebody with zero computer build skills attempt a build. It isn't really hard, but there are many things to remember to check for, and then you are your own computer support if something goes wrong. I spent $950 in hand-picked, top quality parts, then searched DELL our of curiosity to see what the similar featured machine at DELL would have cost... $3,500... and at Apple, they would have had me cough up $5,500 for the same machine.... just ouch... and the DELL machine would have the same "specs" but with all cheap-as-they-come parts from who knows where.

My best suggestion would be to buy a used machine that is about a year old. Seek out companies on the Internet that sell previously leased computers. NEVER just walk in to BestBuy or some retailer and break out the VISA card for a machine... ohmygod... that is the best way to piss off a $hitload of money really fast.

There are companies that lease the latest-greatest machines to businesses. They are usually very well maintained. They usually dump the bad machines (if any) before they get to the second-hand market. A second-hand retailer will buy the machines from the leasing company by the pallet full, including monitors, keyboard and mouse.

Here is a link to one such second-hand retailer:
http://www.pcsurplusonline.com/index.cfm

They may or may not have something you want in stock right now, their stock changes constantly, so you have to check back from time to time. I've bought several machines from pcsurplus and they all worked great. They also offer a short term warranty.

Unless you are ultra-rich and just simply want to piss off a bunch of money, I would suggest NEVER buying the latest-greatest computer at the retail outlets. As soon as you walk out of the store, the depreciation of the machine begins instantly. You are much better off to buy an already depreciated-in-value machine from a second-hand retailer.

It still works as a computer, it still opens e-mails, it still does word processing... it just saves you a ton of money that you can use to do other things in life.

You should be able to get a used machine for about $200-$300, less if you are a frugal shopper and compare specs. There is absolutely never any need to buy the latest-greatest junk, unless you are of the mind set that you don't mind paying premium prices for plastic junk that is going to be worthless in about 6 months.

The only one hitch about a used computer is that you will need to install your own operating system and software. But Windows XP can be had for less than $50 on eBay these days. I have a computer networking degree, and I still refuse to screw myself by loading Windows Vista. Windows 7 is just the un-screwed-up version of Windows Vista... literally the same thing with less errors. An older machine will still run WinXP just fine and WinXP is an awesome operating system.

>>> DON'T buy into the "you've just got to have the latest everything" marketing the computer industry thrives off of...

All the old software still works fine... they need you to buy the new software because they need to stay in business.

One other thing about an older machine, it might have a smaller hard drive than what is available in a brand new machine. BUT... if it is only a year old or so, it should have a hard drive that is large enough for your needs.

Also... assess your needs....

What do you use the computer for?

E-mails, Word Processing, and surfing the net?

Then you only need the most basic system, and a fairly small hard drive.

RAM helps, but WinXP does not recognize RAM over 3GB, which many computer manufacturers never told folks who bought oodles of RAM for that same operating system. So, if its a WinXP machine, 3GB is all you are ever going to put in it. It has to do with 32-bit operating systems only being able to access so many addresses on the RAM. A 64-bit operating system like Vista or Windows 7 has the ability to access more RAM, so you can buy whatever your ego tells you you need if you really are into spending money.

I still have a Pentium III 866MHz computer that runs just fine on the Internet with 512MB of RAM. On a high-speed Internet connection it opens web pages only slightly slower than a much newer machine. It also has a 256MB video card, and runs just fine. I don't do games, so I have no need in that machine for any special video card.

As far as a sound card, no need to really waste much money there, either. Digital music is digital music, just how great of a sound are you looking for out of a set of computer speakers anyways?

If you are an audiophile, then you need to be tracking down a component separates system at the hi-fi store... pre-amp, receiver, tuner, CD, etc...

There are decent computer speakers these days, for not that much money. I have a Logitech system that comes with two main speakers and a subwoofer. The sub is worth its weight in gold as far as sound reproduction. And... the lady upstairs still calls the cops if I am jamming out to some mp3s over my computer system... the Logitech speaker were all of $40 brand new.

Even the DVD burners are no big deal these days... I used to be on this kick where I thought Plextor drives were the only way to go, so I'd buy them at premium prices as soon as they came out.... ick... until I burned through about three of them, and realized I was wasting money, so now I just pop in a $25 LiteOne drive and do the exact same thing as the very expensive Plextor drives.

I wouldn't waste money on any "premium" component unless you know exactly why you need to spend extra money on it. Chances are very good that you are just paying for a company's name and not really buying any more quality.

This isn't necessarily the case when buying all-in-one computers off the shelf. For instance, an Acer is NOT the same inside as a Compaq or an HP. Acer, and a few others cheese-out the internal components to the cheapest contractors, and that is how they cut the corners on the costs. They are do this to some extent, but some are cheesier than others for a reason.

Don't buy a DELL just by product name recognition only. Ten years ago I would not have said that, because DELL got to where they are today by putting together really nice stuff, at one time. Now they do the cheesy thing very well, and their computers are pretty crap-o-la right off the block these days... PLUS they also have 100% of their home tech support... NOW LOCATED IN INDIA... so if you like struggling with cultural differences and heavy-accented tech support agents, buy a DELL by all means.

My last experience with the "new" DELL tech support agents was this... I had to (I'm not kidding) spell my name to the guy SEVEN times... "J-A-M-E-S"... he still never got it right. THEN... he ended up sending the on-site tech support guy out to replace my CD-ROM drive... TO MY PARENT'S HOUSE 120 MILES AWAY !!! After that, I said "to hell with dell"... that was my last DELL machine... and that was Jan. 2003... SIX YEARS AGO... and DELL is still going at it with the Indian tech support... and, by the way, lot's of American tech support folks no longer have a job at DELL because of their globalization of off-shored tech support to India... my take on DELL... stay the hell away from DELL.

HP and Compaq are the exact same company now-days after a merger, so no difference there.

I wouldn't suggest buying a SONY computer, either. In my experience with anything and everything SONY, everything I have ever bought with the SONY name on it has fell apart after a very short time. Including Walkmans, alarm clocks, stereo gear and other "SONY" branded junk... I was amazed when they entered the computer market... thing "Sony Walkman" goes computing... not a great idea for a purchase there... about the only thing I can think of that SONY ever got right and their claim to fame was a SONY TV set... everything else was crap and a way to expand their business.

If you just gotta buy a new off-the-shelf machine, I would suggest buying off the Internet NOT in a walk-in retail store. One good web site for computer buys (and price comparisons) is NewEgg

http://www.newegg.com/

But they are NOT always the best price. They do have a lot of information about each and every model of anything they sell. Plus, there are customer reviews posted on most every items on the web site. And, they include specs on every ad, too, which is helpful if you're building a machine.

One online place to avoid is TigerDirect. OhForCripesSake... I ordered a video card from these guys... and days... months later they were still calling me and telemarketing me at inconvenient times, asking if I wanted to buy any more crap. I hate telemarketers as it is... let alone a company telemarketing me after just one purache. I didn't give them my contact info to bother the bah-jeezus out of me. Screw them guys...

If you are building your own, or seeking to upgrade, a cool web site is PriceWatch:

http://www.pricewatch.com/

All you do is enter in what you are searching for (motherboard, RAM, video card, etc...), and the web site finds you the best price available on the net. They are NOT a retailer, they are just a computer-searcher web site. I imagine they make money off of certain retailers some how or another, but they generally do have the lowest price. You do the search, the lowest price and several others come up, then you click on the small link and it takes you to the retailer who IS selling the item. Originally they just did computer components, but I notice they now do other items such as apparel and shoes. That is new...

Another great way to shop for computer parts is to simply enter either the model name or part number into Google. Sometimes I have found the best price this way. Usually, the PriceWatch page will have the best price. But you might luck out and find an even better price by just "Googling" the product name or part number.

Another way to find a cheap used computer is... if you have any kind of college in your area... they will have a "property disposition" department. I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan, home to the University of Michigan (U-M). The U-M is constantly upgrading computers in classrooms and throughout the campus... they have a HUGE supply of used machines. I'm talking probably 500 used machines on hand at all times. Used monitors, keyboards, everything. At a place like that, they wipe the hard drive so you'll need to install your own operating system and software, but they will sell you a machine for like $100-$250... comes with a short-term warranty... there are colleges in most cities.

Just for reference, here is the web page to the U-M property disposition department:

http://propertydisposition.umich.edu/

I doubt they ship anything to anyone, but use that as an example of what to look for at a college near you. Chances are they will have a similar department that is recycling old working machines. The technology might be 2-3 years old, but still very functional.

If all else fails, you might put a new computer on your Christmas list (if you celebrate Christmas, I do not any longer do gifts at Christmas...)

Pawn shops and thrift stores sometimes have computers, but buyer beware there... I wouldn't recommend buying a machine from a pawn shop or thrift store unless you know exactly what it is, and know exactly how to fix it if its messed up. People often give stuff to thrift stores just so they don't have to pay for the recycling fee associated with placing them in landfills (which isn't a good idea, because there is a BUNCH of toxic stuff inside of every computer ever built... a great way to pollute the environment is to dump your old machine or monitor in the nearest dumpster... )

Whew... my arm hurts from typing all that....

Comparing pilgrims to illegal Mexican aliens is like comparing walking on foot to riding in a jet airplane.

Our society has evolved, and created laws in the process of evolution, and Pilgrims have absolutely nothing to do with today's ethical dilemma surrounding immigration.

Nothing about how we started as a "New World" has anything to do with the dilemma we now face in modern times with poverty on one side of the border, and plenty on the opposite side of the border, and the nature of humans is that they are drawn (as we all would be drawn) to something better than the poverty side.

Sheriff Joe has his hands full. He is a by-product of what our system has evolved into, in order to keep the poor at bay, we have developed strict border patrol laws on immigration to keep the poor out. Meanwhile, they can most likely smell the wasteful McDonald's hamburgers... and might get a whiff of the huge stock of groceries and/or retail items available to all in this land of plenty.

I'm going to do a little of this border sneaking myself. I live in Michigan, where Detroit's unemployment rate is now 28.9%. http://www.epi-data.org/epinews/epinews20090929.html

I'm ready to sneak SOUTH across the Michigan border to any state that has jobs. There sure are no jobs here. 28.9%... nearly 3 out of every ten people here are jobless. And this is the statistics of those reporting job loss to the employment security commission. The actual real figures are even higher. I am a "Michigan Mexican" (just coining a phrase, howbeit a Causcasion man...). I can understand a people who want to get the hell out of a worthless, f--ed up geographical location...

...and it has nothing to do with Pilgrims...

BTW... my family name immigrated to Plymouth Rock in the early 1600s (shortly after the Mayflower) aboard a ship by the name of "The Anne"... so I am a Pilgrim, or at least a direct descendant of those who came here as a method in search of religious freedom.....

I honestly think this is an observation of most all women in the continental U.S. The typical lifestyle in the U.S. is stressful, full of feminist views, the women here demand equality, and many have been given over as lesbians... well, maybe I am somewhat biased, living in Ann Arbor, a huge collective of Gay/Lesbian folks here...

I had the opportunity to travel to the island of Guam in 2006. I actually flew there to meet someone I had met on the Internet, someone I felt special about, and someone who felt the same way about me.

What I found in that culture was a huge difference from the mainland U.S. norms... much more friendly people, both male and female, much less stressful lifestyles... and I felt peaceful the entire time I was there (2 weeks)...

I am certain the bitchy, disrespectful, feminist-valued, near-lesbian population of U.S. mainland women are only within our borders... and few, if any, can be found outside of this culture set (within our borders)... it is what is now expected of women... if they don't have absolute equal rights, some kind of hardline career, then they are not trying hard enough according to our societal norms (seemingly)

Just remember, the U.S. population (total) only represents 4.3% of the entire world population of 6 billion people... divide that (equally) in two, and you have a mere 2.15% of the population on one side of the male/female split... that leaves a vast majority of women who DON'T live in the U.S. but still populate the planet...

I am working on several college degrees right now, and as soon as I am finished with this college thing, I am screaming the hell out of Michigan AND the U.S. as fast as my little legs can peel...

I am not even going to waste my time looking for love within the typically disrespectful, feminist base of man-haters bred in the U.S...

I would rather have bamboo shoved under my fingernails than try to form another relationship with a mainland U.S. woman...

Gonna go find me one of them island girls on Guam.... or parts unknown...

I can note a few things worth commenting on...

...First, we seem to exist in a society where the news media rips apart whatever they want us to think about... in this case, the media circus focuses their effort on a hardline man famous for being a hardlines man, and throws suspicion in his path... that same suspicion, to many, is enough to prove guilt... as in it seems like it is no longer the edict "innocent until proven guilty"... but rather... "if I heard it on the Internet, it must be true"... it is to the ridiculous point that if a rash of people get an e-mail about an urban legend, they will believe it to be true, and forward the same mis-information on down the pike... as if it is Gospel, without even stopping to check the references, etc...

this is the mind set of the primed "sheeple" who just need to be told what to believe by the media... not so much an issue of sheriff Joe, or any other thing... if it gets in the way with a political agenda, it gets blasted in the media... and if stories can get broadcast more often by the same media, it gives the illusion of truth... which is how the media circus steers the masses with what is called propaganda... every government uses propaganda, it is simple political science... what we DON'T have is a free-thinking population that thinks about what the media is actually doing... instead, they suck it all in, hook-line-and-sinker... and react, before checking details, references, or doing any research... not just about sheriff Joe, but to the effect that not many actually want to be involved with the political thought system... howbeit millions complain about the same system... and we expect the corrupt politicians to do all the thinking for us, so we can... let's see... watch football, baseball, hockey, sports, and play X-Box with our time... ANYTHING but actually THINK about anything real...

sheriff Joe's tactics may seem a bit rough by some of today's ultra "weak-on-crime" liberal thought, but he gets results... ons aspect of his enforcement policies is that criminals put in his jails don't get cushy jail sentences in air conditioned jails, instead, they are put in tents, in Pheonix, even in the summer, (think hot-as-hell) and they are put in a penal state, not a resort state like many jails and prisons have become in this country... it is actually a punishment for someone to go to jail in Maricopa County, AZ where Joe is sheriff. Here in Michigan, and in other parts of the country, criminals can become "institutionalized", believe it is better for them to be in jail or prison, than to be in the free society, so they commit crimes shortly after being released from their sentences, so they can go back into the system that was taking such good care of them... three meals a day, cushy beds, free cable TV... etc... this is what sheriff Joe takes AWAY from the criminals, and the softy-on-crime left-wingers hate him for it...

but he gets results

so the typically left-winger media, throws a few stones of discontent at sheriff Joe in an attempt to use propaganda to smear his reputation, and attempt to cause populace doubt... in other words, the media is waging a political battle towards sheriff Joe, instead of actually reporting un-biased news coverage...

add to that limp-wristed politicians both Republican and Democrat, who don't have the stomach to take a stand against illegal immigration...

yes, this country was founded on immigration, but the bar of this culture has been raised, and in the course of events, as the nation grew, so did the nation's legal system... herion and cocaine were once legal substances, but those have become illegal... times change, laws change, and the society evolves... and rules are laid down for people, all people, to follow

I have a personal friend who is from Africa. He immigrated here LEGALLY on a student Visa. He had to bust his a$$ weekly with all of the laws and regulations connected to legal immigration... he brought with him a college education from his university in Africa, which he was adding to with an education from a college here in the states... he fell in love here, he has started a family here, and this man works two 40-hour a week jobs, one at a factory where there is no heat or air conditioning, and one at a nursing home where he works in the kitchen... and he still takes classes on top of this...

he works the 3pm-11pm shift Sunday through Thursday nights... Monday and Friday he works from 6:30am to 2:30pm at the rest home, after working all day Monday, he goes on to his factory job in the evening... Saturday and Sunday he works from 6:30am to 9:30pm at night at the rest home... he has (to my knowledge) never taken a day off, and has been working like this for nearly four years straight...

THIS is a man worthy of legal immigration...

Compare this to some criminal who crosses the border, knowing it is illegal to do so, sometimes with the help of extremist liberal groups that leave food, water, and maps for the illegals in border states such as where sheriff Joe has this kind of problem just a few miles away...

It is now, in our society, illegal to just come here whenever you wish... you can't compare that to Pilgrims who struggled to get here in the 1600s... there is no logical comparison, in fact, it is a ridiculous comparions. The society has evolved, and the people who you have put in charge of doing th political thinking for you have made laws that have made it now illegal to cross the border at will...

My friend from Africa is not a burden on society... he is busting his tail to make something of himself now that he is here... I here few U.S. citizens that love America any more than he does...

It is an ethical dilemma, that across an imaginary geographical line, we have extreme poverty, and human beings willing to risk life and limb to have at least a small piece of our prosperity. Prosperity that a lot of Americans now take for granted.

I would guess that, if the border rules were completely removed, there wouldn't be a country called Mexico anymore, because there would be a mass exodus of people from their land into the geographical territory where they have been convinced exists better jobs and a better life style

Picture this... a rich neighborhood in the U.S, bordered by a poverty-stricken neighborhood...

Of course the rich folks are going to b.itch because the poverty culture isn't up to their standards of living... and when the people from the poverty culture walk into the rich town, dressed in their poverty clothes, the rich b.itch even more because to them it is a foul thing...

But in all this drivel and blah-blah... one thing is true... the line between the countries is an imaginary geographical boundary... just as people wouldn't generally want to live at the north or south pole due to the climate, it is human nature not to want to live in a country full of poverty...

Thus we have an ethical dilemma

In order to live as separatists, in a land caged in by imaginary geographical borders, we must ignore the struggle of fellow humans who for no other reason other than the bad luck for being born in a poverty country, the social system makes them out to be the "bad guys" because it is so blinded by the richness of the nation, that it has never really experienced what it is like to live without the huge croppings of plenty so many in this country now take for granted

Some people enjoy pizza, beer, food galore, grocery stores chock full of items, department stores and retail outlets chock full of goods, and have since taken it for granted that the U.S. population only represents 4.3% of the total world population of 6 billion people...

We have become a land of glutons and ravenous wasters because we have such plenty in this country... and we seemingly want to selfishly put our arms and hands around "mine, mine, mine" and turn backs on the other 95.7% of the world that might not have it as good as we have it here...

Then b.itch and complain when humans are tempted by the plenty within, to come here at all costs, and attempt to enjoy some of this good stuff for themselves...

It is an ehtical dilemma to possess more than you need, control all that you possess with laws and a military, and deny others any close venture at that same excess...

This is one of the many reasons the American lifestyle, as we know it in today's world, is becoming "threatened" by outsiders such as "illegal" immigrants... globalization is creating a world where other societies can now experience a very minute peek at our prosperity, and there will come a shift from this land being a land of ultra-plenty, more so than any other place in the world... to being more like the rest of the 93.7% of the humans living on the planet who do NOT live here...

Many in that 95.7% don't even have the luxury of flush toilets or running water...

Yes, keep out these icky people, so I can continue to take my flush toilets and running water, and full-to-the-brim groceries... for granted...

Makes perfect sense... to someone who is very lost, I suppose...

Make sure and separate the rich from the poor... heck, let's just take a few of those Micronesian islands we blew the $hit out of with hydrogen bombs in the 1950s, and send all the poor people over there to suffer on there own... just put all the "illegal" aliens on boats and deport them to Micronesia... yeah, what a great idea... then build massive fences around the U.S. like post-war Berlin, Germany...

Let's be sure and put a huge divide between the rich and the porr, at all costs... it seems this is the thinking of some... but it is perposterous...

Knocking on our borders, screaming to get in, clawing at the dry river beds, coming across the border from poverty to extreme wealth, is simply normal human beings like me and you... let's send you over there to see how you like living in that society of poverty... nope, can't take your TV or X-Box... sorry... you gotta live and dress like a person from Mexico... and let's give you like several months... maybe several years of internment there to decide what you will do next... besides calling your rich momma and crying, what would YOU do in that position?

I would probably be running across the Arizona border at 3am, regardless of machine guns and German Shepherd border dogs... hoping to get my share of the human plenty...

Sheriff Joe is just a public servant, dedicated at upholding the laws as they are written... they are currently writen to prevent poor people from crossing the border into a land of plenty, and they have assigned sheriff Joe (and others) to the task of trying to keep out the poor... he isn't a cause of the problems, he is a by-product of them...

One solution, just off-the-cuff, would be to implement imperialism again just long enough to go to war with Mexico, and annex the entire country of Mexico as part of the U.S.... doing away with the problem of Mexican nationals illegally crossing the border... then our laws would protect them instead of persecute them... and we could exploit their natural resources (such as oil, gold, etc.) just like we exploit our own natural resources...

It would give the liberals a war to fight for, and a reason to go to arms (some for the first time in their life I might add...)... free the Mexican people, make them ALL Americans.....

But that would never work, because then there would be no cheap labor in Mexico to exploit anymore for car parts and numerous other globalized items which are made very cheaply by the willing-to-work-for-pennies Mexican folks...

An ethical dilemma indeed... one that will most likely never be solved in our lifetime

1/16 scale John Deere tractors and all kinds of farm implements to go with them...











and then going to tractor pulls with grandpa...

Electric football...