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Edited By Arpikarhu on Mar. 15 2002 at 2:50

i just started listening to this band. very cool. anyone else into this group?

I guess it's ok for all those Jesus-freaks with their bumper stickers proclaiming how "Jesus saves all", "Jesus, don't leave earth without Him" and (I think) the extremely offensive "It's a life, not a choice" This country has turned into a bunch of frigging pussy-whipped thin-skinned hypersensitive fucks.

I hate vanity plates, but this is ridiculous....and I'm sure that "ILVGOD" plates are fine...

Quote:'ATHEIST' plate raises a holy ruckus

After getting complaints, the state decides a Florida man's license plate is objectionable and yanks it.

By KATHRYN WEXLER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 14, 2002


Steven Miles has tooled around Gainesville for 16 years with a license plate that says "ATHEIST."

To Miles, it is a form of self-expression, one he is happy to spend a few extra dollars every year to keep.

But to the state of Florida, the tag is "obscene or objectionable," according to a letter Miles received last month from the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. That puts the personalized plate on the department's blacklist, right up there with epithets, expletives and words describing certain body parts.

The state must use "great caution" in screening plates, the letter said. Medical reference books are consulted. Slang dictionaries, too.

"The plate must be canceled," it ordered. Officials want it mailed back.

Miles, 55, is incensed. Giving up his tag is out of the question.

"It's kind of disconcerting to know that the United States is based on freedom of expression, yet in actuality, it's quite restrictive," said Miles, an electrical engineer at the University of Florida.

He also is vice president of Atheists of Florida.

The review was prompted by a complaint signed by 10 people, said DMV spokesman Robert Sanchez.

A supervisor in the Bureau of Titles and Registrations in Tallahassee sided with the protesters and decided to yank the plate. Department officials routinely refuse to issue blatantly offensive personalized tags. But pulling them off the street is rare.

A few complaints about license plates trickle in every month and are reviewed on a case-by-case basis, Sanchez said.

The last kerfuffle happened in October over a Fort Myers personalized plate that depicted manatees and had the phrase, "EAT UMM." It was pulled.

Miles thinks his First Amendment rights are being curtailed. He said he intends to fight and is in touch with the American Civil Liberties Union.

"I was quite surprised and angry that one person would infringe on my rights," Miles said.

He has a backer in Christos Tzanetakos, a Fort Pierce resident. About six years ago, Tzanetakos founded the Atheists of Florida, a civil liberties group that claims a 300-person mailing list. He recently wrote the department a stinging letter about its decision.

The DMV appears to be succumbing to the "religious hysteria that prevails after Sept. 11," Tzanetakos said Wednesday.

"For the department to claim or state that the word 'atheist' is offense or objectionable is something to be upset about," he said.

Sanchez said a letter in support of Miles is prompting the DMV to take a second look at the issue. But if Miles is unsatisfied with the final decision, he has an alternative, Sanchez said.

"There is a venue for people's free speech on automobiles and that's a few inches below the license plate," he said. "That's a bumper sticker."

The controversy over the plate didn't start with the DMV. Others have reacted strongly to it since he screwed it to his Isuzu in 1986.

"I had a wrench thrown at me in Jacksonville about 10 years ago. It went right over the hood," he said. Another time, "someone surreptitiously tore up my tag and threw it in the bushes. I put a frame and a plastic cover on it after that."

People would sometimes slip into his yard and place notes beneath the plate or the windshield wipers. Some took issue with his stance; others cheered him on.

But it never occurred to him to give up his tag.

Lakeland resident Kenneth Vickery understands why. For 15 years, he has owned two personalized plates dear to his heart: "ALL4GOD" and "GOD4All."

Vickery was concerned to learn of Miles' run-in with the DMV. "They may cancel mine, too."

Miles should be allowed to display his message, he said, "if that's what they want to advertise."

Vickery, a preacher at the United Methodist Temple in Lakeland, added this about Miles:

"If I get a chance to meet the guy, we've got something to talk about."

Alright coach potatos. Time to come up with the most obscure TV shows you can think of. Those shows that only lasted a few episodes, played on Saturday afternoons, or otherwise vanished into oblivion.

Anybody remember the show about a motorcycle cop who was "killed" and then given a super-motorcycle and bulletproof riding clothes? It was an obvious Knight Rider rip-off, only the bike didn't talk.

Or how about the show about a group that was like the Texas Rangers in space? There was one alien guy (played by the chinese character actor who is the bad guy in dozens of films) who had to sleep in a tank that looked like a giant washing machine, or he would fall into his species uncontrollable killer rage. And the leader of the group was a really hot blond.

This is to piggyback on my other thread about cheating. Just about everyone in there seems to be in agreement that cheating is wrong. But, how many people here HAVE cheated on someone they were with? Married, just dating, doesn't matter. Who has done it?

I left this as a poll only because I wanted it to be anonymous and for you to be honest.

Quote:Hollywood Hulk Hogan vs. The Rock
Two icons in sports entertainment will battle it out on March 17 to determine who is the greatest superstar of all time. Hollywood Hulk Hogan will go one-on-one with the Great One at WrestleMania X8, and you can rest assured that it will go down as a monumental event in sports-entertainment history!


Undisputed Championship
Triple H vs. Chris Jericho
On the Feb. 18 episode of RAW, Triple H regained his status as the No. 1 contender for Chris Jericho's Undisputed Federation Championship. After coming back from a major leg injury, will The Game be able to become a five-time Federation Champion? Will Y2J be able to overcome his greatest threat to his Undisputed Championship?


Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Scott Hall
For weeks now, these two men have been toying with each other mentally, as well as physically. Will Stone Cold be too much for the Bad Guy to handle? Or will Hollywood Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash assist Hall in his quest to permanently dismember the Rattlesnake?


Intercontinental Championship
William Regal vs. Rob Van Dam
After winning a three-way No. 1 contender's match on the Feb. 25 episode of RAW, RVD solidified his one-way ticket to WrestleMania X8 to challenge William Regal for the Intercontinental Championship. Will the Englishman's mat skills bring him another win, or will RVD's high-flying attack lead him to victory?



Ric Flair vs. Undertaker
This battle has grown incredibly personal in recent weeks, with Taker taking out his aggression on Ric's best friend, Arn Anderson, and on Ric's oldest son, David. Can Taker improve his WrestleMania record to a perfect 10-0? Or will the Nature Boy come up big at the biggest show of the year?


Tag Team Championship
Billy & Chuck vs. APA vs. Hardys vs. Dudleys
The Tag Team Championship has changed hands at the last two WrestleMania events -- and the Hardys and Dudleys have been a part of both of those matches. Will history repeat itself this Sunday at WrestleMania?


Women's Championship
Jazz vs. Lita vs. Trish Stratus
Jazz has been a dominant force in the Women's division, but can she withstand the attack of two of the Federation's most talented divas? And can Trish bring home the title in her hometown of Toronto?



Kane vs. Kurt Angle
It's Kane against Kurt Angle ... the Big Red Machine against the Big Red, White and Blue Machine ... a 7-foot monster against your Olympic hero -- and there can only be one winner!



Edge vs. Booker T
One is a five-time WCW Champion and the most decorated superstar in WCW history. The other is a seven-time Tag Team Champion, a four-time Intercontinental Champion and a Toronto native. Who will come out on top at WrestleMania?

So, how will the match end? Y2J has held on to the titles for some time now so I think they will give the belts to HHH. I hope to god he doesn't do the heel turn with Steph though, I think that may sicken me to no end.

What in America is desperately in need of parody? What takes itself so seriously that it needs to be knocked down a notch?

Western - Blazing Saddles
Sci-fi - Space Balls
Horror - Young Frankenstein/Scary Movie
Teen Angst - Not another teen movie

What's else should be on the list? If you were Mel Brooks (or the Wayan's Brothers, or Michael Moore), what would be your next target?

Oh, and Michael Moore is making a movie about...wait for it...COLUMBINE! That's right. The movie is about how the shooters went to their BOWLING CLASS before going on the shooting rampage and tries to blame the shooting on bowling. It's called "Bowling for Columbine".

I know what you're saying, here comes SozeWeek. This is too good not to post.

To paraphrase Jon Stewart, "Visas, they're everywhere you don't want them to be"

<font size=3>Lawmakers call for breakup of immigration service after hijacker-visas episode</font>
Thu Mar 14, 4:09 PM ET
By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Issuing student visas to two Sept. 11 hijackers showed the Immigration and Naturalization Service was beyond salvation, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee (news - web sites) said Thursday, and abolishing it was the only way out.

The Bush administration, while expressing embarrassment, asked Congress to hold off to give the agency a chance to reform itself.

The episode "is indicative of the enormous mismanagement at the INS," said Rep. James Sensenbrenner (news), R-Wis. "This system is broke and this agency is broke."

Sensenbrenner has introduced a bill that would split the INS in two, with one agency handling immigration services and the other responsible for border enforcement. He said his committee would vote on it April 10.

On Monday, Huffman Aviation in Venice, Fla., received student visa approval forms for Mohamed Atta and Marwan Al-Shehhi, two of the terrorists who flew hijacked jetliners into the World Trade Center six months ago. The two trained at Huffman in 2000 and early 2001 and applied for visas to attend technical schools.

Russ Bergeron, an INS spokesman, said the visa for Atta, an Egyptian, was approved last July and the visa for Al-Shehhi, from the United Arab Emirates, the following month, and the paperwork received by the flight school was a routine repeat of notifications the INS had given the men and the school last summer, before the attacks.

But Rep. Bob Barr (news), R-Ga., a co-sponsor of Sensenbrenner's bill, said the incident with the visas "proves once again, we cannot just tinker around the edges — the INS needs to be completely reformed from top to bottom."

Attorney General John Ashcroft (news - web sites) said the visa blunder was "rather infuriating. ... A breakdown of this kind is inexcusable in my judgment."

Ashcroft said Congress had blocked the administration's efforts to reform the INS. "I would hope Congress would let Commissioner (James) Ziglar lead in reforming this troubled agency."

Sensenbrenner said he had talked to both President Bush (news - web sites) and Ashcroft about the future of the INS and was aware that Ziglar believes that improvements in the agency can be done administratively. "I know of no one in the House or Senate who agrees with him."

Sensenbrenner also urged the Senate to move quickly on a measure, passed in the House earlier this week as part of a larger immigration bill, that would require much tighter monitoring of foreigners granted student visas.

The legislation sets the end of 2003 as a deadline for the State Department to exclusively issue tamperproof visas, and proposes a computerized tracking system to record when a foreign student is granted a visa, when he enters the country and enrolls in school, and when he leaves school.

Blaming INS workers rather than the contractor responsible for belatedly mailing out the visas was wrong, said the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 24,000 INS employees,

The union's national president, Bobby L. Harnage said INS workers "have been working 12-hour shifts to fight the war on terrorism" and that Congress is at fault for continuing to "blindly support the privatization of the federal government."



Edited By Keyser Soze on Mar. 14 2002 at 11:10

OK, I was listening to Stern this morning, and he said something that really fuckin pissed me off.

Something to the effect of men that tell their significant others if they cheat are idiots.

WTF?? Why are they idiots because of this? OK, it's a dumb thing to do in the first place, but I would not be able to live with myself if I did that. I couldn't hold that secret. I mean, that's just wrong.


Am I an idiot for thinking this way, and for not wanting to keep a secret? :confused: