Battra92

I assume you're aware of it's origins. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Tea_Party The term many believe was first coined by Rick Santelli from the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on CNBC though the roots of the party really started more with Ron Paul's 2008 Presidential run. But that's another topic altogether. See, that's due to the mass media coverage of the events. Googling around I was able to come across this list listing many of the crimes reported (and Lord knows how many unreported) at the OWS protests. Fox is what it is and for the most part their news is decent. They make a big distinction between their news shows and opinion shows. Chris Wallace is one of the best out there, currently. Brit Hume was always great to watch. Also, I have no desire to have less of my own resources confiscated so that it can go to others who choose not to purchase things they need instead of things that they want.

Well at least you are honest about it, which is more than I can say for some.

Actually public opinion of the "Occupiers" is pretty low. I can't find the news story but it was showing something of only 30% approval rating. The thing is, I know a lot of people hate to admit it but America is mostly a center-to-right country. This isn't a massive corporate conspiracy to brainwash people or anything like that. The Wall Street Journal has more than overtaken the New York Times and USAToday as America's #1 selling Newspaper, FoxNews runs circles around MSNBC and CNN in the ratings war. According to Gallup, the numbers just show how Americans identify themselves. The occupiers aren't helping their cause either. When was the last time you saw someone deficate on a police car at a Tea Party? When was the last time you saw Anti-semitic signs at a Tea Party? When was the last time you saw violence or mass litter or rapes or suicide or drug use at a Tea Party? Never. Now I'm not saying this shows the Tea Party cause to be right strictly based on that alone but one has to admit that the Tea Party is the most influential grass roots political movement of the 21st century so far. What have been their methods: 1. PEACEFUL protests. See my points above. 2. Getting Involved at the local level as well as the state and federal level. Many members of the tea party have run for local office or state office. Many others volunteered or donated money to candidates they support. 3. Holding their elected officials accountable. This can go back to going to the Town Hall meetings during the summer when Obamacare was being crammed down the collective throats of Americans. People went to scheduled meetings with their elected officials and spoke out. When those people ignored them, work was done to boot them out of office. The occupiers methods? Cause mayhem, destruction, confusion and violence. I see people out there now claiming that it's because the NYPD is owned by JPMorgan Chase or some such nonsense. I wonder if these people even listen to themselves.

Which is actually a relatively new thing, really. Governments were instituted among men really just to make sure that there were laws, mutual protection from neighboring countries and for things that benefitted the public as a whole (such as building a road.) The idea that a government should make sure you don't starve is an idea foreign to people of 150 years ago. That was the work of the clergy, churches and various charities. Feeding, clothing and sheltering your family for thousands of years was the main motivator for employment. Indeed! Just this morning while driving into work I got to thinking. My wife and I wish to purchase a house in the next year or so. I got to thinking about how nice it would be if I just had the money and could put it towards the house and to get other items I've been wanting (a larger television, nicer furniture etc.) The truth of the matter is, I can either get a better job, a second job or spend less. Since I have a huge backlog of games, DVDs and Blus and a great collection of old ones I've opted to spend less on new items and enjoy what I have and sell what I don't want any more. I could be at home living with my parents, eating their food and spending all of my money on video games and movies and iTampons and stuff or I could not work (or work very little) and pirate all my entertainment. But I don't. It's part of being an adult.

So you have two choices: get more disposable income or do without.

I currently own three Region Free DVD players not counting my PC and Macbook. They are exceptionally cheap and many just require you to look up a code on Videohelp.com, punch it in and Bob's your uncle!

The thing is, for whatever reason companies make business decisions. It could be a complex study or because of what their Magic 8-Ball said. It's frustrating but what can you do? Well, I have a Region Free DVD player/recorder that converts PAL to NTSC so I buy UK and Japanese DVDs and run my Wii through the Composite inputs and outputs on the player and play UK games on my Wii using the Homebrew channel. I've never pirated a Wii game and I prefer to buy DVDs so I've found something that works for me most of the time. But a lot of companies won't listen to consumer demands. It's just a sad reality. Look how long it took the RIAA to allow things like iTunes and AmazonMP3 to make sense?

I don't know anyone who has been able to get Dolphin to work. All I want to do is to use it to play my disc version of Wind Waker. Maybe when I upgrade my PC I'll figure it out ...

A thought: so the Occupy Wall Street people are upset at the bank bailouts, right? Well let's forget for a moment that the banks have already paid back their loans and the government made a profit. These people likely had no jobs (were in college) and therefore paid no federal taxes. Why are they concerned about how someone else's tax money was spent? It's fairly obvious that their goal isn't a Jeffersonian Democracy.

The problem is "working together" usually meant Republicans bent over and grabbed the ankles and did what the Democrats wanted. Eventually Republican voters got pissed at this and voted a lot of the establishment morons out. I like a good battle of ideas but the problem is, the goal of every politician is to get re-elected. They are usually successful too because voters seldom take their reps to task. EDIT: I love how I get voted down for pointing out a truth that people don't like. I don't make the rules. Maybe I should've said, "oh everyone should all just come together and smile on your brother and get together and try to love one another."

It's on PBS here along with Keeping Up Appearances and Are You Being Served? (my favorite!)

My wife almost bought these shoes the other day. She told her mom about them and her mom commented "you're not a little girl any more." I dunno, I thought they were alright ...

A friend of mine asked everyone for Amazon giftcards to buy a PS3. When people know what it is going for, they were mostly on board apparently.

That was my reaction when I started playing Sonic Colors the other day. Good to know Generations is worth getting as well. As for me I'm currently playing New Play Control! Pikmin 2 Otomedius Excellent and Sonic Colors Well, I would be if my wife would give Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4 a rest.

I had to look up who Frank Miller was. It sounds like a generic name from a 60s exploitation movie. Maybe the name of the cop who finds the dead hooker or something. I will say one thing, though in regards to his post. He has a point although maybe not the point that he was trying to make. Since the occupy movement is apparently all in a hissy fit over the "evil" bankers making these kids pay back their student loans (which are almost all owned by the government but why let logic get in the way) they could enlist in the army/guard and get some of their loans paid back. Not a perfect solution for all but it may work for some people and for many of the coddled spoiled kids out there, it might actually give them some perspective on life. Speaking of student loans and colleges, I read an article the other day pointing out many of the problems with the so-called occupy generation. One of them was the lie that getting a college degree (in anything) would guarantee you a job. I have a bachelor's degree in Business Information Systems with a minor in Computer Science. I know I got my IT job not because of my degree but from the fact that I had seven years experience working my way through college (for $7.50-$8 an hour I might add) at a small business where I worked as the the sold member of the IT support staff as well as having to work retail, be the receptionist, take inventory, and be the janitor plus working two years repairing computers at my college's computer helpdesk. The truth is, in this crappy economy people don't want to take risks. That even includes hiring young people fresh out of college with a philosophy major to do work for their business. Perhaps it's even a sin to offer that many degrees in philosophy and other such degrees. If you get a degree in philosophy you really have one career path ahead of you: Philosophy Professor. When one professor teaches 30 kids a class ... well you do the math. It's a strange circumstance when I see kids from my high school who never went to college but went into a trade such as carpentry or auto mechanics or plumbing being quite successful while I have close friends who have their MA's and are living at home barely getting by. It's ironic that the manual labor jobs we were told as kids were "beneath us" by our teachers and elders are the very jobs that always seem to be in demand and have semi-decent pay. When the "occupiers" were littered with applications to McDonalds many took to Facebook, Twitter and the like to complain about the "grave insult." The fact is, though. Sometimes you have to do all you can. I have a friend who does freelance IT work and also works at a hotel as her "day job." I know a history major who is a security guard and an English major who drives a forklift and another who does clerical work. Whatever pays the bills!

Jay-Z to Sell Occupy Wall Street Shirts Oh and keep the profits for himself of course.

Network is a film that can be watched in clips. In some ways, it's like a news show in that you can just jump in at any part provided you know the basics. While most people take the line "I'm as mad as Hell and I'm not going to take it anymore" as the best line Howard Beale delivers but the line that stuck with me is the one directly before it. "I don't want you to protest. I don't want you to riot - I don't want you to write to your congressman because I wouldn't know what to tell you to write. I don't know what to do about the depression and the inflation and the Russians and the crime in the street. All I know is that first you've got to get mad. You've got to say, 'I'm a HUMAN BEING, God damn it! My life has VALUE!' "