World Cup 2018

[Dinsdale]

I'd imagine Senegal looks a bit like Fallbrook CA. Rainforesty...

Fallbrook averages 10" of precipitation a year. That qualifies as "arid."

Back up and take another run at it.

[Dr_Phibes]

Firehazard? I recall Mickey clears out a few times a year when the smoke gets thick.

[smackaholic]

You guys should totally be going for the Mexican team...

...before the wall goes up.

2026 should be interesting, when the WC is shared by Canada, Mexico and the US, and there's a big beautiful wall all the way across the US/Mexico border.

Not sure how teams and fans will get from Mexico to US venues.

1. Fly to Canada first?
2. Leave their kids behind?
3.

It's only a trebuchet if you are lobbing drunken lumberjacks from Quebec into Maine.

[smackaholic]

According to the Google, it is Catapulta.

[Mikey]

Friends of yours?

[Goober McTuber]

If you ever wanted to sneak something into the US go thru airport security in Mexico while Mexico is playing soccer.

Good luck with that. The trick is not getting through Mexican security. It's getting through US customs.

That is laughable. All one needs to do is sign up for Global Entry and Customs Officers don’t even look up at you. Just cleared Customs and Immigration on Sun and never said a word to a single person along the way.

Last time I came through Milwaukee from the Caribbean they herded everyone and their luggage into a big room and brought in the sniffer dog. They singled out a couple people for a more "detailed" search.

We came through Chicago this year and when we got home and opened our luggage, we found that the TSA had been through it pretty thoroughly.

I've known a number of people over the years who have chosen to move drugs over borders. To a man, they have always said the US border is the last one they'd want to try.

[Screw_Michigan]

That is laughable. All one needs to do is sign up for Global Entry and Customs Officers don’t even look up at you. Just cleared Customs and Immigration on Sun and never said a word to a single person along the way.

Then why were you whining about Mexican customers? You mix your intolerance for brown people with your hatred of DHS and combine it into....something....I don't know. Something shitty.

Nice job.

[Left Seater]

Then why were you whining about Mexican customers?

Where was I complaining about customers?

I don't hate brown people. Some of my best friends are brown.

Yes, I think TSA is a joke. Customs isn't much better. Let's hear your take on how TSA is doing a bang up job.

[Screw_Michigan]

I didn't say you hate brown people, you're impatient with them.

TSA---can't defend it, but also can't prove a negative. No attacks since 9/11.

But yes, any idiot would tell you that security at airports could be more efficient.

[LTS TRN 2]

Marty's batting 1000 :(

The black man is the muscle of the Jew.

No, you mean the dupe o' the Jew...who are you trying to kid? :wink:

[L45B]

Meanwhile, Japan versus Senegal on the tube.

By no means do I have any related soccer knowledge but this seems like an American commentator’s nightmare game to call. Literally one misstep from a career ender.

“Japan playing a smarter game of soccer right now.”

“Senegal just too athletic for the smaller Japanese team.”

“Senegal playing fast but undisciplined.”

“Senegal just too dependent on a specific game plan.”

“Japan working much harder for its possessions.”

“Senegal obviously looking out for the welfare of its own players during that midair collision.”

[Shlomart Ben Yisrael]

DA!

[smackaholic]

Then why were you whining about Mexican customers?

Where was I complaining about customers?

I don't hate brown people. Some of my best friends are brown.

Yes, I think TSA is a joke. Customs isn't much better. Let's hear your take on how TSA is doing a bang up job.

I work pretty closely with TSA every day. Plenty of them are good folks. Others, not so much. The main problem is not the personnel. It is their designated task.

They are handcuffed by asinine PC driven regulations. They aren't paid nearly enough for the bullshit they put up with.

[Left Seater]

I work pretty closely with TSA every day. Plenty of them are good folks. Others, not so much. The main problem is not the personnel. It is their designated task.

They are handcuffed by asinine PC driven regulations. They aren't paid nearly enough for the bullshit they put up with.

Sure that is some of it. It doesn't explain how or why they routinely fail to detect banned items that they are tasked to detect in carry on bags. It also doesn't explain why so many of them have been busted for theft. If they aren't paid enough for dealing with the public, they should go down the street and get another job. Thing is though many of them are unhireable in a traditional setting and with their combination of education and background their best deal is to stay where they are.

[Wolfman]

I only fly about once a year, but my take on "air safety" is this. Locking the cockpit is the big game changer for would be 9/11 style terrorists. They could kill all the crew and passengers and no planes are going to be flown into big buildings, etc.ever again. TSA checks are all theater, and annoying theater at that. We could go back to no body searches,etc. at random and nothing will happen, except the average flyer would be happy not to be groped by some TSA perv, and no more Grandma in a wheelchair being treated like a criminal.
Oh, World Cup? I was just having a couple beers at the nearby Chili's and England/Columbia was on one of the 100 TV's they have. I watched some of it. A lot of dribbling, passing, etc. but no really aggressive attacks at actually scoring a goal. Not too interesting. Sorry futball fans.

[Rooster]

Except that a certain airline had/has a universal code for all of their cockpit door locks. Yeah. And every mechanic and pilot knew the code. Not exactly the most secure system seeing how human nature defaults to the easiest/laziest/lowest common denominator.

[Screw_Michigan]

Oh, World Cup? I was just having a couple beers at the nearby Chili's and England/Columbia was on one of the 100 TV's they have. I watched some of it. A lot of dribbling, passing, etc. but no really aggressive attacks at actually scoring a goal. Not too interesting. Sorry futball fans.

Catching buzz at the early bird, eh?

[Left Seater]

Except that a certain airline had/has a universal code for all of their cockpit door locks. Yeah. And every mechanic and pilot knew the code. Not exactly the most secure system seeing how human nature defaults to the easiest/laziest/lowest common denominator.

Another certain airline has unique door codes, which is tied to the ship number. Impossible for anyone to find that info.

[Rooster]

I know a guy who has a particular job which allows him to learn unique skills such as lockpicking. He has made it clear that locks are there to make home and vehicle owners feel safe, because he can nearly defeat any of them in seconds— and it doesn’t take any particular affinity for B&E or a super sensitive sense of touch, just good ol’ tools, most of which are readily available on the internet along with explicit instructions on how to use them.

[Shlomart Ben Yisrael]

eh?

[Screw_Michigan]

I know a guy who has a particular job which allows him to learn unique skills such as lockpicking. He has made it clear that locks are there to make home and vehicle owners feel safe, because he can nearly defeat any of them in seconds— and it doesn’t take any particular affinity for B&E or a super sensitive sense of touch, just good ol’ tools, most of which are readily available on the internet along with explicit instructions on how to use them.

Clearly birds of a moronic feather flock together.

[Rooster]

Heheh, you are probably one of those guys who quintuple locks their apartment door thinking that will keep you safe.

[Screw_Michigan]

Heheh, you are probably one of those guys who quintuple locks their apartment door thinking that will keep you safe.

No, I have one. Because I live in a safe building in a great, wait for it, DC neighborhood.

Look, I get what your buddy is saying. But to say locks exist to make owners feel better is simply ludicrous, even by your standards.

[BSmack]

Locks, like any other security tool, exist to put a barrier between your valuables and those who are not capable of hacking in. This is a good thing.

[Dr_Phibes]

thought security guards were cheaper?

[Rooster]

Locks are largely a psychological pacifier to ease your mind about security. They may deter an uneducated snatch-n-grab thief, but my friend made it clear that barrel locks, mag locks, cypher locks, combination locks, handcuffs, Yale/Masterlock key locks, and Schlage door locks are all easily defeated in 10 seconds or less by anyone with minimal training and the right tools. They give the appearance of imperviousness, but really just are decoration. Each and every one has a critical weakness which relies on the thief not knowing what it is to be effective.

[smackaholic]

Meanwhile, Japan versus Senegal on the tube.

By no means do I have any related soccer knowledge but this seems like an American commentator’s nightmare game to call. Literally one misstep from a career ender.

“Japan playing a smarter game of soccer right now.”

“Senegal just too athletic for the smaller Japanese team.”

“Senegal playing fast but undisciplined.”

“Senegal just too dependent on a specific game plan.”

“Japan working much harder for its possessions.”

“Senegal obviously looking out for the welfare of its own players during that midair collision.”

You just know that dude was dying to let a lazy niqqqers blast fly.

[smackaholic]

Locks are largely a psychological pacifier to ease your mind about security. They may deter an uneducated snatch-n-grab thief, but my friend made it clear that barrel locks, mag locks, cypher locks, combination locks, handcuffs, Yale/Masterlock key locks, and Schlage door locks are all easily defeated in 10 seconds or less by anyone with minimal training and the right tools. They give the appearance of imperviousness, but really just are decoration. Each and every one has a critical weakness which relies on the thief not knowing what it is to be effective.

Kind of like TSA.

[BSmack]

Locks are largely a psychological pacifier to ease your mind about security. They may deter an uneducated snatch-n-grab thief, but my friend made it clear that barrel locks, mag locks, cypher locks, combination locks, handcuffs, Yale/Masterlock key locks, and Schlage door locks are all easily defeated in 10 seconds or less by anyone with minimal training and the right tools. They give the appearance of imperviousness, but really just are decoration. Each and every one has a critical weakness which relies on the thief not knowing what it is to be effective.

Kind of like TSA.

Speaking of TSA. Forgot to take my belt off at JFK's TSA. Unlike the clusterfuck I had to deal with in Rochester, dude took one look at me, decided that my crank was not something he felt like touching and said, "Nah, you good."

Bless that man's lack of work ethic.

[Left Seater]

Holic, since you deal with the TSA and are the closest thing we have to someone standing up for them, what is the deal with their outright lies.

I often have two laptops with me in my carry on computer bag. Mine and the wife's. Sometimes the TSA agents want me to pull one of the two out. Sometimes they don't. One guy in SAT says the machines can't get a good read if there are multiple lappers in the same bag. Others say that it is complete BS and I could have 4 or 5 and it wouldn't matter.

I only ask because I have started to take out the 2nd lap top and often get yelled at by TSA that I should keep all things in my bag since I am going thru the TSA Pre-Check line. They don't like when you ask a question, so I am often just told not to take it out. Then the bag gets pulled aside and they take them both out, re run it and I am on my way. I usually speak up at this point and tell the person on the video screen duty that they should inform their co-worker that they don't know what the fuck they were talking about as I was taking one out. The dumb co-worker often overhears this exchange, and pipes up with something along the lines of "well I didn't know you had two computers in there." My usual response is along the lines of don't assume things then and let me give you some info so you don't look like an incompetent ass in front of these other travelers and your co-workers. That usually works to fully piss them off.

So is this just TSA making crap up as they often do, or is it a limitation of the x-ray equipment?

[smackaholic]

SOP for TSA....if there is such a thing, is laptops stay in bags in pre-check. Period. End of statement. Other lines, "anything bigger than a phone" must come out and ride through the xray in their own bin. You could have a laptop and an ipad go in the same bin, so long as they aren't stacked.

But as you know, every now and then you get that 3 striper douche who decides he is gonna run "his checkpoint" differently. He might decide to have everyone pull their laptops out.

And if you think you see much variation in the policy there, try a day in my shoes. Most airports I have the ability to bypass checkpoints with my SIDA badge. There are "employee checkpoints" where there may or may not be TSA present to screen you. They usually aren't.

Anyhooo, sometimes it is just easier to go through a checkpoint, if the lines are short, so I do. In these cases, even though I have all sorts of stuff with me toolwise that no passenger could carry through, I still have to remove my laptop though, unless I am in the pre-check lane. There is one Supervisor at Logan, Terminal B, at one of the small checkpoints who informed me that I could not bring my big scary screwdriver through "my CP". He was absolutely fine with me bringing all my toys in to fix his ETD that was 5 feet away from both of us, but I'd have to go downstairs, SIDA through two doors into the "sterile area" and do my job. I used to argue with such tools, but am now resigned to their dumbfukkery and take the walk with a smile.

Trying to make any sense out of TSA rules will just result in a headache. But, they don't make the rules. Some douche in DC does.

[Left Seater]

I get that the front line employees don’t make the rules. But they are the ones enforcing them and making up variations on the spot. Screening would go much faster if we as pax knew what to expect. But when Tom in Louisville says to take out a laptop when 95% of the other airports tell you to leave it in, it just slows everything to a crawl. Then when Tom claims his way is the correct way and you question it, he will just say it is the rules and regulations. When you point out that others operate differently he says they are breaking the law.

[Goober McTuber]

Meanwhile, Japan versus Senegal on the tube.

By no means do I have any related soccer knowledge but this seems like an American commentator’s nightmare game to call. Literally one misstep from a career ender.

“Japan playing a smarter game of soccer right now.”

“Senegal just too athletic for the smaller Japanese team.”

“Senegal playing fast but undisciplined.”

“Senegal just too dependent on a specific game plan.”

“Japan working much harder for its possessions.”

“Senegal obviously looking out for the welfare of its own players during that midair collision.”

You just know that dude was dying to let a lazy niqqqers blast fly.

You're assuming that the commentator is braindead bigot like you. Not bloody likely.

[Mikey]

l to r: Trump’s inauguration / Paris after the FIFA WC final.

[Screw_Michigan]

Mikey my friend, that's not Trump's inauguration on the left. It's the Champs-Élysées.

[Mikey]

WTF was I thinking?

[Left Seater]

I watched a bit of this World Cup. Some was on tvs that I didn’t control and a few times that I navigated there myself. It was fine. Saw a few amazing plays. Saw some boring soccer as well. That will happen though with as many games as were played.

My main take away is the flopping has to go. In chatting with a Mexican National at an airport he at first said it is just part of the game. Later in our conversation he admitted the game would be so much better without it. Why the hell doesn’t FIFA tell the officials to care these guys for flopping? Yes there was a foul, but these athletes are some of the best conditioned in the world, they could easily play through 60% of these fouls instead of acting as if they had been shot. In fact sometimes they would have a huge advantage if they played thru the foul.

A couple of Red cards for this flopping even when a foul occurs, and the flopping would be gone. The NBA is horrible with the flopping but soccer is exponentially worse.

Congrats France.

[Shlomart Ben Yisrael]

WTF was I thinking?

Hopefully, the choice between nylon and hemp...when you decide to check out from planet Earth and hang yourself.

[Shlomart Ben Yisrael]

I'm sorry Miguel...that was a bit terse...

[Mikey]

I much prefer hemp. Especially the kind we get from Humboldt.