Smokin

The 8th AF museum is ok, but in reality it has a whopping 5 aircraft. A must visit is the Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles or the SAC museum near Omaha. You could fit over a dozen 8th AF museums in either of those museums.

You're kidding yourself if you don't think that we're all already on the list...

Cocaine is one hell of a drug

I didn't miss the 10 minutes. I missed the entire thing because I'm not going to support it by watching it. Although I wouldn't say I'm missing it Bob. I have no issues listening to Putin or any other potential/actual enemy to learn how they think and why they do what they do. I have an issue with a journalist going into a country that holds journalists hostage for political gains and giving the leader of that country legitimacy by doing an interview like this. I think it played far more into Putin's hands than Carlson's. I also think Putin is too smart to give us anything that we could actually learn from. Before his untimely (too late) death, I had no problem with people listening to Osama bin Laden. I would have had an issue with a US reporter interviewing him. Maybe I'm making an unnecessary distinction, but there is a difference between listening/learning and doing something to gives an enemy a platform that they will use to their advantage. Along those lines, the follow on posts read FAR too much into my statement. I have absolutely no problem listening to people on the other side of the political spectrum. Many of the problems with our country is the lack of a willingness to engage in meaningful dialogue. But there is a big difference between this and the Putin interview.

Given that Russia currently has a jailed WSJ reporter, I am floored that this interview happened. First, he probably couldn't ask too tough of questions for fear of the interview ending with him in handcuffs and being tried as a spy. Second, interviewing a man that effectively kidnapped a fellow journalist without the promise that Evan Gershkovich would be released should raise some moral concerns.

No bonus? What 11X do they think they're going to get to come back? I'm already going to get half my base pay just to breath. That would cost me in lost revenue as much as the AF would pay me. And what are the chances I get a TX course? Probably slim, so I'd just be some admin dude, scheduler, or designated brick holder for the OG? Solid pass. Without more than the normal AD yearly bonus amount, the only way they're going to get any pilots is if they offer a better QOL than the airlines. Good luck with that. If they let me work from home (assuming no TX), max of 30 hrs per week with a schedule of my choosing averaged out over the month, I'd maybe consider it. Maybe. But probably not for long. I'm sure they'll get a few guys in unique life situations, but I think the response will be mostly guys laughing and saying "I told you so".

If you don't have an honorary squadron commander, get that program up and running. A few local big wigs leaning on local businesses to each chip in a bit and you'll be a significant way there. You'll also likely have an easier time making the bar a self-help process and purchasing morale stuff with a GPC. Find a pilot in the squadron that is good at woodworking/construction (actually good, not 'I put together my IKEA desk after only 3 attempts' good) and that would be a huge help also.

It takes a long time to get rich on your money. Making money off of other peoples' money is the way to go. For example, I bought a new house when the housing market was down. I put a grand total of around $15K into the house between VA funding fee and improvements. I rented the house out after I moved and sold it 10 years later at 200% more than I paid for it and walked away with about $50K more than the original purchase price. I did all this with other people's money because I got the loan at a low rate so it was worth keeping it to keep making money off of other people's money. If someone is willing to loan you money at well under inflation, take as much as they will loan you and put that money to work. Don't buy a car with it, most companies now are subsidizing rates down to similar or lower than the 3% from USAA. Invest it and your 40 year old self will thank you. VFIAX is absolutely what I would do. Then make yourself constantly add the same amount into that fund that you spend on beer and you won't have to worry about retirement.

Now that's a Beretta I could buy. Probably similar weight and pattern as the 92...

I doubt that many R's will sit it out in the general at the risk of four more years of Biden. I'm sure a few will, but I doubt it'll be a significant number. As much as the never-Trumpers dislike Trump, they dislike Biden just as much and at least Trump *might* decrease the severity of a couple problems they care about.

You will always be able to find crazies in any party and posting links of individuals being crazy doesn't reflect the larger party. Trump hosting that nut is bad, but on the whole, it is a sizeable portion of the left in America today that is anti-Israel. If there were a party affiliation in that poll, I'd bet that the vast majority of that 20-25% are registered Democrats. If that stat of thinking the Holocaust was fake is real and actually representative, that is insane. But one should also not be surprised when you sow insanity in the school system and the resulting crop has a lot of insanity. If there is no objective truth and the 'truth' is whatever I perceive, then obviously history can be manipulated and there is no reason to think that it has not been exaggerated. Same with all the anti-American propaganda now being taught as actual history.

Hearing... great, no reason there cannot be reasonable accommodations for office jobs. Severe intellectual disability? That is absolutely absurd. When is the left going to realize that it is not the right that put Trump in office, it was a knee-jerk reaction to BS like this.

I check off all of those... so do I get to join some sort of "super-privilege" club that will get me VIP seating at games and do cool things like that? "Owning class"? How is the American population so dumb that they cannot see that these people are not mentally living in 21st century America but mentally living in the reconstruction era and think they're dealing with ex-slave owners? If the people spouting this stuff actually believe it, they should be in a mental institution. The only "privilege" I have was growing up in the care of a loving, two parent house that gave me the work ethic to succeed. The same exact type of house that these people are actively trying to destroy. And if being a Christian is a "privilege" here on earth, then convert to Christianity. I think they will soon find that being a real Christian is not a privilege in this life.

Biff, I think you need a hobby:

Don't forget that the Ryan Air airport is up to 2 HOURS from the city named on the ticket. Made the mistake of flying Ryan Air to "Oslo". Two hour bus ride from the airport and we finally got to actual Oslo.

How about land loans? I'm considering buying 20-80 acres of land and then building with cash.

Wasn't even an exit row. Apparently it could be configured as an exit row, but it was not an emergency exit door as that particular airplane was equipped.

Best upgrade for an M9: Sell it, buy a Springfield, and take your wife on a fancy hotel date with the extra money.

Barbus - I hope so. Biff - I agree that most immigrants have more traditionally American values (work ethic, traditional family structure, etc) than many Americans do now. The problem is that people so rarely vote their values. According to Pew research, Catholics are 7% more likely to be Democrat than Republican. It is insane to me that the Catholic church teaches that abortion is murder, yet people that self-identify as Catholic vote to keep the practice legal anyway.

Impossible. With an evenly spread 50.0001% majority a party can change any law (including the Constitution) that they want to. My concern is this flight is going to make a state that was 55/45 red/blue into a 50/50 tossup without meaningfully changing the spread in the states they left. Many traditionally red states don't have enough of a majority to absorb the blue state flight without being in danger of turning blue themselves.

I see what you're saying and agree to a point, but the problem is bigger than FSU. I still think FSU should have sat out the bowl to highlight how messed up the process was. Can't blame the kids for sitting out when they got screwed out of a chance at the title. The NCAA basically said that they don't care what the FSU record was, the school didn't count because it wasn't SEC. The players got the message. I think this is a culture problem, but this would happen at almost any school right now in the same situation. Not a culture problem at FSU specifically (I detest all Florida teams, so this is painful for me to say), but a culture problem in college sports and our society at large. There is no real commitment anymore. Between the transfer portal and the ability for a kid to commit to a school only to "de-commit" and go to a different school, the NCAA has built a system that rewards continually shopping around for the best deal regardless of any commitment made. It is only a sad reflection on the rest of our sad society.

No SEC teams in the championship game (and shouldn't have even been one in the playoffs)... Maybe we can finally have a break from 'SEC is the only conference that matters' attitude next year.

Problem those people will move to other states and continue to vote the same way. "You know, I really like this new place, but it could really use some more government programs, more legal drugs, and way less guns..."

The seatbelt extender should be the go/no-go for having to pay for an extra seat to be empty. And if that will cause someone to get bumped, it should be the person that is too fat to fit their backside in a normal seat. Our society has become a parody of itself. In the 80s and 90s quest to give kids self esteem, we forgot that what people need more than self esteem is shame. Shame has kept societies functioning far better than self esteem ever could.

That full MCX upper looks awesome, if only it weren't $1700...