sports fan

"Break Room"? This should be in the "Controversial Issues" forum. (Or maybe the "New Members Introduction" forum.) :lol2:

Looks like folks are on the Big Red bandwagon! Toppers are underdogs in Vegas but chosen 13-1 here on BGP. :thumb:

I think it will be a long night for the Cards, but I am pulling for them nonetheless.

You may be 100% correct. I have no idea. I just know that whatever the "correct" version is will be difficult to assess because the media will be promoting the version that gets the ratings.

Sounds to me like there is more to this. Total speculation, but how do we not know if this boy joked with his friends (as 14 yr-olds will) that his clock looked like a bomb? Maybe, maybe not. How do we know if he had been warned before regarding homemade electronics? Maybe, maybe not. If you really think about it, how many 14-yr olds are so proud of a clock they make (whether it looks like a bomb or not) that they take it in to school to proudly show their teacher? The average 14-yr old I know would be much more proud to show off to his friends how much his clock looks like a bomb.

If the officer really said that then yes, I have a problem with that also. But that is the boy's version of what happened. This whole story lacks depth. Had the boy been told before to not conceal electronics? Was there ever an issue with any other kids in this regard? Had this boy been targeted unfairly before? I cannot imagine there is a parent out there that has a kid in school that would not hope the school errs on the side of caution. Gun, bomb, drugs, doesn't matter. Black, white, Muslim, Jewish, doesn't matter.

When Call-a-Mart would deliver your groceries and Charles' Chips would deliver your pretzels? When the first TV remote control came out and it was the size of a brick? When you put cassettes into an 8-track adapter so you could play them in your car? (related to the above: Having to use the "rew" and "ff" buttons?) Burger Chef & Jeff? Marathon Bars? Add-a-bead necklaces? Stirrups on baseball uniforms? I am sure I will think of more.

And Pasqualli's (sp.?)

I can't believe it took so long to get to "Hotbox". In Louisville I would say 60/40 Hotbox over Pickle. Never even heard of "Runners" until this thread. And "Monkey in the Middle" was a different dodge-ball type of game.

Ohio State was great but kind of spread out. Florida was quite a party and so was Florida State. Never been to WV or Tennessee but they are on my list to hit someday. I'll still take Alabama & ND. :dancingpa

The only part of this story I do not like is the handcuffs. Not necessary. I don't think the school officials overreacted though; better to err on the side of caution. Could you imagine if a wing of the school blew up and then some teachers say, "Well he said it was just a clock." The media would have a field day with that. This is unfortunate, but sadly just another sign of the times.

This was alluded to in the WKU/IU thread, and may have been discussed before, but I think it has been a while. For those folks who have been to several different college venues, which one offers the best overall experience? For me Alabama was the best tailgating, but the best overall game day experience is Notre Dame and it isn't even close.

Can the Toppers go on the road in the Big10 and get a "W"? They are a slight underdog as of this morning. I am saying Ferby goes for 100+ yards and Doughty throws for another 375 in a Western victory, 35-31.

Say what you want about Wolford at X, but at the end of the day he is the only guy mentioned so far that KNOWS what it takes to win with an NFL roster. Is he the best coach? Probably not. But he has a bullet on his resume that no one else has.

Go Purples!

I'll go with Sheldon by a TD over Wolowitz.

This is a Big Bang Theory matchup. Jim Parsons plays Dr. Sheldon Cooper vs. Simon Helberg who plays Howard Wolowitz. Don't know if anyone else made the connection, but there seems to be something there...

SK has to score at least 1 point in 20+ quarters of head-to-head action before they even think about riding in the same car (let alone the front seat) as T.

Classic Nature vs. Nurture. Sure the upbringing is important, but (IMO) by their very makeup pit bulls are more aggressive than other dogs. I wouldn't want to pet one, but I have no problem with people's right to have them. They just must be willing to take responsibility for them. Hopefully that is not in the form of a lawsuit that injures someone else.

I think the top 6 are spot on, but I would have Manual & X tied for 5th until they play each other.

If everyone posted, "oh I am so sorry" then this would not be a controversial issue. I am right there with EVERYONE wishing the family every peace possible at this time. The "controversy" part (that is for this forum I believe) is that we don't do MORE for this officer. There should be 20,000 people at his funeral - not at some anti-police rally. I cannot believe that people think I am comparing this tragedy to the Blake incident. I am comparing the public outrage. This one demands more. Sincere apologies for anyone who thinks I am thread jacking. In over 2000 posts I have never been accused of that. I am just trying to show where controversy may (IMO does) lie in this "Controversial Topics" forum.

My apologies for being too controversial in the "Controversial Issues" forum. I simply feel that society (not me personally or any specific person on this forum) wants to say, "Oh I feel so bad for this officer's family" in a situation like this, but when the situation is reversed (cop is the shooter) we bring celebrity status and/or race and/or socioeconomic status and/or (pick something else) into the equation. If all those things don't belong in the discussion of this tragic death then why are they a part of so many other threads? May officer Ponder rest in peace; he gets three decades of my rosary today (my kids always get one :-) ). The folks who think I am insensitive to this issue get the final one.

We can all lament the officer on BGP, and rightfully so. I'm talking about the bigger societal problem. Let's see if Yahoo posts as many stories about Ponder (which they should!) relative to the number of stories about Blake. And I promise you no one on this forum feels worse for that officer. I have a friend in KSP, one in LMPD and two cousins in law enforcement - one a sherrif's deputy and one in the Secret Service. They have been deserving of more respect - and less criticism - for a long time now.

Wrong.

My point is that we (society) are quick to blame an officer for anything he/she does. And then we are slow to blame others when officers are in the right, even when it means an officer dies. Blake calling for an officer - who was just doing his job to the best of his ability - to be fired is shameful. There should be 10x more outrage (make that 100X more) concerning this poor officer who lost his life doing his job. But 10 years from now people will remember that Blake got tackled in a case of mistaken identity, while no one will remember Ponder's name.