A change of perspective

“When you hike in the winter, peaches can sometimes be very good. According to the calendar and oh yeah, there's a clock next to the plate. You can look that up in the dictionary, but you probably won't find it in your Rolodex. National players and cultural events have a weird way of popping up when you least expect them. Don't smile at the ones with their faces screwed up in pain or turn the temperature down on the Johnson. There are only four dots in that perspective.”

“I am an industrial design student,
undertaking a project to design a backpack which is more resistant to theft, but still as functional as existing rucksacks. Does anyone have helpful hints, or are there any features which would reduce the threat against backpack theft?”

“Make it slightly frayed in nonessential areas and use very ugly color combinations. Design faux spillage stains on the bottom and work annoying bumper sticker slogans into the design - e.g. "Jesus drives a Chevy Truck". Add a slight musty smell to the pack.

Functional, yet theft proof.”

“I think keeping it on your back would be the best deterrent.

Removable shoulder straps and hipbelt. Akin to the ALICE pack design would be a option. Design a unique clasping or buckel, webbing system to adhere components together. So long as there are no handles/ external appendages or things to grab on the outside of the pack may help thwart people attempting to carry off a heavy cylindical slickey fabric backpack. Make it hard to carry.

or,

Make it heavy.”

“Now this is a funny thread. And Briar would know about heavy packs. LOL!”

“I vote for ugly color and non-functional look.”

“More info needed. Is it to be carried in Urban Jungles or Jungle Jungles? If its use is as a bookbag, the methods to defer its theft would be different than trying to dissuade a bear from walking off with it.”

“Use Violin's turd pack as a design startpoint!”

“Oh barf!”

“Exploding dye packs that go off when opened without entering the proper disarming sequence.

No, wait,,,don't do that,,,,I would return from every trip looking like a bank robber.”

“I've been wrestling with the theft one since I'm doing a year bping thru South America and bag slashers are abundant. The only thing I can come up with it make your own cable net or buy one of the "Pac Safe" cable deals.”

“You can buy a steel cable bag for your pack, that locks to a tree, pole, or whatever is handy. I don't know how much they weigh or how big they expand, but they look like a good design.
Looks like aircraft cable, which doesn't say much but it is good and strong.”

“Add a chasity belt.”

“Add an "I'm a member of the Brittany Spears fan club" patch”

“Stove Stomper stole the words right out muh mouf!”

“Hey Rosey, are you going to go to Patagonia? (Sorry, off topic.)”

“My question is right above this post. In case you didn't know how to read threads (I'm dumb).”

“You know it! Well, I can't say for certain but right now, I'd say it's a go. A good friend of mine from Germany wants to meet us there. Probably gonna buy an old range rover, hire a guide and head on out into the middle of nowhere for a few weeks.

After that it's time to kick back on the famous white sand beaches of Uraguay for, oh, a few more weeks and then on to Brazil!”

“Cool! It sounds like you guys have an awesome, awesome trip planned. Will you be in Brazil around Carnival time? Geez, how long have you been planning this? You'll have to keep us updated.”

“I'll post a thread all about it when I get closer to the date in June, probably soliciting some advice on what to bring. Uh, Carnival? Sure. It'll work out well for the itinerary we have so far. Winter in the Andes countries, summer down south and east coast. We're going for at least a year and have been saving for years...”

“Talk about dedication. I'm looking forward to hearing all about it.”

“I'm not trying to pick on anyone here, I just thought the reversal was funny.



"Yes! we should invade Iraq, and right now. If we wait until World Trade Center II, or worse, all you damned peace niks will be asking, why?, why did this happen to us?

Frag Saddam, now."
Buddha Bear
09:33:05 PM
08/01/02




"An attack on Iraq doesn't seem too feasible. The two most likely countries to host American troops have both opposed the war - Jordan and Turkey. The Iraqi Kurds don't want to attack Sadam; neither do the other opposition groups. Sadam has shown over and over that it's highly unlikely that the U.S. can foment a coup from within the military. This war is the most anticipated and discussed war in modern history. Sadam has had plenty of time to prepare. I read analysis that shows Sadam's air defenses will cause a fair bit of attrition on U.S. aircraft. Americans seem to lose their appetite for war when their billion dollar jets get shot down. What will an attack do to oil prices? What kind of government will be imposed on the Iraqis, and how long does the U.S. have to be there? And overthrowing Iraq will disrupt the calculus of American foreign policy for the region - that is, maintaining stability by having a moderately strong Iraq pitched against a moderately strong Iran. Also, will the U.S. be playing into al qaeda's hands if an attack causes popular uprising throughout the muslim world? Will Iraq unleash its own terrorists if attacked? Will Iraq attack Israel or Saudia Arabia? Will Iraq lob missiles at kuwaiti and saudi oil wells?"
-- Mutt
09:25:14 AM
08/02/02”

“get a life”

“I came across this one when I noticed that the high gas price thread was started on 9/11/01:

I will personally help lay the blacktop over the Middle East after we bomb it."
Buddha Bear
05:24:35 PM
09/11/01”

“oh how times change!! Its hard to be consistent these days.”

“Has it ever been easy to be consistent?

How many Americans wanted to enter WWII prior to Pearl Harbor?

How many would have wanted to finish the job if we would have invaded Japan?

No offense to anyone, but examination of opinions and course correction is healthy, IMHO.

I have always opposed the action in Irag. However, if we are committed to being there, then let's kick ass and take names.”

“Good point chili. I think the butchers bill for the invasion of Japan was expected to be 1 million men. These revisionist idiots who think we shouldn't have dropped the bomb probably wouldn't be around because they would've never been born.

200k them < 1000k US = easy math.”

“I don't think blasting thousands of women and children to bits should ever be easy.

I'd rather be an idiot than bloodthirsty any day of the week.”

“It was cool reading that! I owe you a thanks, Violin. I had forgotten some of my reasoning. I certainly have had a change of perspective over the years.

But what makes me curious is, well, what's your point? I had a change in perspective. That's what tends to happen when one has an open mind and new facts come to light and new analyses are written and read. I call it learning and adapting to change. (I'll leave it to my detractors to call it something more sinister.)

I don't think I need to defend my "change of perspective", though, if that was your intention. A balanced review of the tapes will show I had initially disagreed - and still do, to some extent - with the timing of the war. Moreover, I don't think one would have to go very far back in time to find me saying that. It's certainly not something I'm uncomfortable with.

So Violin! Let us in on this bit of mystery: what motivated you to search these posts out? It's rare to see effort in posting these days. But then why just dump them in a thread? I mean, if you went to all the trouble of finding them, why not clearly state your point? It might have made more sense, you know?”

“Tilt, if you're referring to my comment about easy math note that I said easy math and not easy to do. Those aren't the same thing.”

“I'd rather be an idiot than bloodthirsty any day of the week.

LOL! No need to state the obvious, Tilt.”

“If the action is based on what you call an easily reached conclusion, I'm afraid I don't see the distinction.

I have a real problem with the involvement of non-combatants: Dresden, the fire-bombing of Tokyo, V-1s and V-2s launched at London... that sort of thing. I read the John Hersey book Hiroshima almost thirty years ago... It's funny how some things can stay with you.

I wonder what Harry Truman's thoughts were, before and after the fact... and years later.”

“If it had been me, I'd have had nightmares every night for the rest of my life.

When I think of the bombing I think of lives saved, but I also think of the Oppenheimer interview with, Congress I think, where he quotes the Baghavad Dita (sp?). Pretty chilling stuff.”

“Oh Yeah... I've got that quote here somewhere ---


"If the radiance of a thousand suns were to burst at once into the sky that would be like the splendor of the Mighty One... I am become Death, the Shatterer of Worlds."

from The Bhagavad Gita
quoted by J. Robert Oppenheimer
Trinity Test Site
Alamogordo, New Mexico
July 16, 1945”

“Dita, what was I thinking? I knew it was Gita.”

“
You say Dita
I say Gita
Let's call the whole thing off!



(or maybe not?)”

“This thread needs reclassification... where's the flame??!?”

“I came here expecting to find out how backpacking changed someone's life. phhhhhhhhht!”

“It always jazzes up my day to hear that there's been another assassination attempt on Musharraf.

Who'll be in charge of the Pakistani nukes, then?


Not good.......”

“Don't sweat it, Lizs...

Our Official Net Nanny will be here soon enough, I'm Sure.... LOLOLOL”

“I think she's attempting to take that role on now.”

“Geeez, I thought she was one o' them First Amendment Types, <G>

Perhaps it's just a Truth in Labelling issue.... Call The FTC! or the BBC! or the OMB!”

“Like I said at the beginning, I wasn’t trying to pick on you or BB, mutt. I agree that reevaluating your assumptions and being willing to change your opinion is the mark of an intellectual.

However, from now on, I will refer to you as a flip-flopping waffler.”

“I didn't know Mutt was a Democrat?”

“Hmm.

Wasn't it the Captain of the Titanic who coined the expression, "Stay the course"?”