This isn't about flag etiquette so much as about freedom of speech, though. At least not the way I see it.

I've never seen a group of people get this worked up over a music video before...

Oh don't mind me... I'm just stirring up trouble. Everyone needs a hobby, right?

For anyone who's at all foggy on the intersection between flag etiquette and the First Amendment:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Flag_Code

Important quote from the above link:

"This is a U.S. federal law, but there is no penalty for failure to comply with it. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that punitive enforcement would conflict with the First Amendment right to freedom of speech."

So there we have it. Whatshisface may have disrespected the flag, but the First Amendment gives him the right to do so. And since we do have laws against assault, nobody has the right to do him violence over it.

The right to make a whole bunch of noise over it? Absolutely, because that's covered under the First Amendment too. But beating him? No.

They took it offline several weeks ago because it wasn't functioning properly and I think this is the week it's supposed to be replaced with new software, but maybe that hasn't been fully integrated yet.

Psst... Krupa... I think MsHarmony's point was that she didn't expect assault to be one of the consequences of free speech.

And she's right; it shouldn't be. Free speech is legal in this country. Beating someone "until they pee" isn't, at least not unless in a UFC match or something.

This country is supposed to be under the rule of law, not the rule of whoever doesn't like something and is willing to punch someone else over it. That's why we call ourselves "civilized", although it seems to me that often those who rail the most about how our civilized values seem to have waned are also first in line to talk about beating someone's azz. The cognitive dissonance is staggering.

Just a thought for the day.

Me three...

Hand towel? Washcloth? Or maybe...

...you have GOT to be kidding...

*sends email to Trash*

So some of us were vaccinated with a phonograph needle; so what?

Someone's got to make up for all those "strong, silent types" running around loose in the world.

I have an Android phone (LG Enlighten) running Gingerbread 2.3.4, and up until recently I used an app called Dax Social to access various social sites including Mingle2 when on the go. As of the past few days, I am no longer able to successfully use Mingle2 with that app. I can still access Facebook, Twitter and other social utilities just fine with it (out of the many it offers) but when I click the icon for Mingle2, it does the following:

Loads up the home page, showing me icons for mail, forums, etc.

If I click on my Inbox, it shows me my messages, BUT...

If I attempt to actually read a message, it either

A. Displays the message for about two seconds and then kicks me back out to the initial app screen where I'm asked to choose which social utility I want to access, OR

B. Refuses to load anything at all and just "hangs" with a blank screen and an indicator that it is trying to load something but nothing ever happens and it eventually stops trying. This occurs both on 3G and on WiFi.

If I click to enter the Forums rather than my Inbox, it will take me to the forum page, but if I click to read a thread, it kicks me back to the initial app screen again (the one with all the social utility choices, as mentioned above).

Last night I tried an experiment, and attempted to access Mingle2 with the Boat Browser app on my phone, and could not even log in successfully -- again, it would try to load something after I typed in my username and password, but would just "hang" and eventually time out.

I then tried using my phone's stock browser, and was finally able to access the site and read forum threads. I didn't try doing anything with my Inbox on the stock browser, although if anyone would like me to test that I'll be happy to do so and report my results.

My carrier is Verizon in case that makes a difference, although given I'm having issues on both 3G and my home WiFi, it shouldn't.

Zelienople, Pennsylvania

or was it Toss-Across... I can never remember

Not me, but... paging Mrs. Blitzer to the white courtesy phone...

Have you ever short-sheeted someone at summer camp?

That doesn't make any sense!


<tongue in cheek> And people wonder why some folks </tongue in cheek>

I don't know how they can charge a finder's fee when I've never found one!

I have to hum; I forgot the words.

Lost socks meet up at the Sock Exchange. Remember "first star to the right and straight on 'til morning"? The Sock Exchange is the next exit on the left.

I'm sure you'll do just fine, and your positive attitude is really going to help.

Best of luck to you, and I will continue to keep you in my prayers!

*chokes on her iced tea*

Wait, what? "the chase aspect some women want"...? Seriously? Did I miss a turn and end up in Backwards World?

Here's the straight skinny:

It isn't women who want the chase. It's almost always men, when it's anyone at all. We women are taught from the damn cradle that men would rather chase a woman than catch her, and that we're supposed to play hard-to-get and act aloof so that men will want to chase us. We're taught that if we act interested in a guy, he will LOSE interest in us immediately because the thrill of the chase is what turns men on.

Seriously. This is what women, at least in my generation (I'm one of the last-born Boomers) learned at our mother's knees. And some of us, such as myself, always thought it was a bunch of bull$hit and that any guy who held that attitude was an immature azz whom we'd be better off without.

And then we grew up and started dating and discovered that there really ARE men like that, and our suspicions were confirmed: We really ARE better off without guys like that.

Some of us never had the mindset or patience for those kinds of headgames anyway. I know sure as hell never have.

But the problem is, for every one of us who recognizes gameplaying and refuses to participate, there are a dozen women who, for whatever reason, internalized the teaching and have practiced it ever since (and probably taught it to their daughters). Most of them probably hate it as much as a lot of you guys do, but until someone or something comes along and breaks the cycle, it's likely to continue.

Let me go on record here and now as saying I do not enjoy headgames, I would far rather have an honest and loving mutual relationship than be pursued, and I really wish the human race as a whole -- BOTH genders -- would grow the hell up.

Okay, who else wants the soapbox? I think I'm done for the moment.