The Corps
found it had too many
Sgts and offered an early retirement bonus. They went through lots of retirement plans but nothing seemed to please everyone.

In the end, desperate, they promised any Sgt who retired immediately his full annual benefits plus $10,000 for every inch measured in a straight line between any two points on his body, with the Sgt getting to select any pair of points he wished.

The first man, an Air Force Sgt, accepted. He asked the pension man to measure from the top of his head to the tip of his toes. Six feet.
He walked out with a check of $720,000.

The second man, an Army Sgt, asked them to measure from the tip of his up-stretched hands to his toes. Eight feet. He walked out with a check for $960,000.



When the third Sgt, a grizzled old Marine Sgt named Poppa Gringo, was asked where to measure, he told the pension man: "From the tip of my penis to my testicles."

The pension man suggested that perhaps the Marine Sgt might like to reconsider, pointing out the nice checks the previous two Sgts had received. But Poppa insisted and the pension expert said that would be fine, but that he'd better get the medical officer to do the measuring.


The medical officer attended and asked Poppa to drop 'em. He did. The medical officer placed the tape on the tip of Poppa's penis and began to work back.


"My God man!" he said, "where are your testicles??"

"Korea," smiled Poppa

One way,To get mexico to stop this rabble mob from marching thru mexico,to the USA,,STOP ALL money t***sfers to mexico,by the i******s working here. Take ALL the money,that they want to send to mexico,put it into an interest bearing savings account,in the senders name,should take less than a month for mexico to get the message,"Dont fuck with the USA" IF,Mexico doesnt get the messags in 3 months or so,use that money to pay for the wall.........Meanwhile,post OUR Armed Military on the border,

Part 1 of 3... Posted To Me On April 2, 2018... Don D.


We Are The New Native Americans



My friends,



Imagine what America was like merely 100 years ago. There were the outhouses equipped with Sears Roebuck catalogs, kerosene lamps, and hand pumps for your water. There were no hot showers; the annual bath was in June, although some had a swimming hole in the summer. Most of our energy needs were renewable biofuel: The wood used to heat our homes. It all had to be cut and split, however, and there were no chainsaws. Most families raised their own food, supplemented by what they brought from a nearby lake and the forest, and everything was true horsepower. People spun their yarn and made much of their own clothing. There were no telephones.



There was no welfare to bail out the imprudent. Sickly children mostly died, so the gene pool remained fairly healthy. There were no Fitness Gyms because folks got plenty of necessary exercises.



The average American never got further than 25 miles from the house he or she was born in. You were acquainted with all the neighbors, fiercely independent but who could rely on each other to raise a barn or get in the hay, and society was very stable and predictable. Children made their own basic toys although a doll might arrive at Christmas, and possibly some oranges, once a year. Children pitched in, and it was not unheard of that a 12-year-old girl cooked the meals for the haying crew. There were cows to be milked morning and night by hand, not to forget the chicken coop.



Even my father, born in 1904, came to life before Henry Ford did his thing, I think exactly 100 years ago. He said it was lucky to get 500 miles of use from a car tire, and that included several inner tube patches, and it took all day to drive 60-70 miles to go trout fishing “up north.” In the winter they rode the train to the relatives’ farm for rabbit hunting (with ferrets) and were picked up at the station with a horse and sleigh.



It took little more than a generation to finally annihilate the American Indian culture and sequester those who hadn’t been k**led or starved on to Reservations, places not fit for the new Americans. So it was for the herds of free-ranging bison. The platform of life in America had evolved and the original inhabitants of this land no longer had a place. The Short-faced Bear reigned for centuries, but lost his environmental niche and became extinct. Accommodate or perish: That is nature’s law.



Al Gore almost succeeded in having the chance to capsize America in 2000, and John Kerry likewise in 2004, and the turnover is inevitable because the American sub-species of homo sapiens has evolved to acclimate to the evolution of a new environmental niche. Most folks own computers, but no one could build one from scratch. Cars have become too technical for the backyard mechanic, and they will tell you that you need an oil change if a tire gets underinflated, and how many miles until you are out of gas. Energy requirements to run this sophisticated social system have escalated beyond anyone’s earlier imagination, resulting in energy dependence on alien countries in order for us to survive.



We fret about the I*****l A***ns from Mexico and having to push #1 for English, but that is just the beginning of the story. The T***s-American Super Highway is already under construction, 4 football fields wide, running from South America through Kansas and into Canada, with the plan for open borders across the Americas and even for a standard currency, like the Euro.



We move on the average every 4 years so we have not only lost our rootedness with nature but to a neighborhood. Both parents typically work and sometimes different shifts, further alienating families. We have lost our cultural or collective identity.



You see, this society has been t***sformed by technology and international corporations. Television bathes us in virtual reality, fed to children in their video games. Most people apparently no longer bother to distinguish fact from entertaining fiction. We have gone from a society of people who were self-reliant and self-sufficient, the salt of the earth, to a society where most everyone would starve without the supermarket, could not work without energy-intensive t***sportation, and is trained by all the reminders and cautions our products provide not to be responsible for oneself. Folks try to sue Burger King for making them fat.



We are a physically weak and obese society. All of this means that We the People have gone from a fit people, steeped in liberty and independence to dependency, physically unfit but sustained by dependence on the pharmaceutical industry, and thus craving entitlements and requiring socialism and the “nanny state.”



The latest example of what socialism portends is the housing market collapse, caused by the Democrats this past 10 years, who insisted that everyone be given houses whether or not they could pay for them. But the fact is that this dependent evolving sub-species of American requires socialism and is now, in 2008, finally v****g decisively to capsize and t***sform the America which Abraham Lincoln so wisely observed we were already testing then, “whether this nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure.”



So you see, my friends, you and I are the new version of the Short-faced Bear or the first native Americans. Our environmental niche has slipped away and we are now displaced and marginalized. The ecological platform of the America of the Revolution and the Constitution has not endured and thus, inevitably, the America of the dependent, socialistic metropolitan anthills has superseded us. All within a century. Where is there a Reservation for us? There seems to be nowhere left to go.



(Part 2 Coming Soon)

As we reflect on the meaning of Easter and new beginnings and chances, may we pray that our nations elected leaders follow Christian principals in the coming year. May we each come to a better relationship with each other and help one another. May we let go of the hurts of the past and look forward to a better future. May we do one or more secret kindnesses every day, and may we pay the kindnesses of others to ourselves forward. Hope each of you who were able to attend a Sunrise Service were renewed with faith and purpose. May God bless you and your beloved ones.

Here we go again: another Facebook controversy, yet again violating our sense of privacy by letting others harvest our personal information. This flareup is a big one to be sure, leading some people to consider leaving Facebook altogether, but the company and most of its over 2 billion users will reconcile. The vast majority will return to Facebook, just like they did the last time and the many times before that. As in all abusive relationships, users have a psychological dependence that keeps them hooked despite knowing that, at some level, it’s not good for them.

Decades of research has shown that our relationship with all media, whether movies, television or radio, is symbiotic: People like them because of the gratifications they get from consuming them – benefits like escapism, relaxation and companionship. The more people use them, the more gratifications they seek and obtain.

With online media, however, a consumer’s use provides data to media companies so they can serve up exactly what would gratify her most, as they mine her behavior patterns to tailor her online experiences and appeal to her individual psychological needs.

Aside from providing content for our consumption, Facebook, Twitter, Google – indeed all interactive media – provide us with new possibilities for interaction on the platform that can satisfy some of our innate human cravings.

Interactive tools in Facebook provide simplified ways to engage your curiosity, broadcast your thoughts, promote your image, maintain relationships and fulfill the yearning for external validation. Social media take advantage of common psychological traits and tendencies to keep you clicking – and revealing more of yourself. Here’s why it’s so hard, as a social network user, to pull the plug once and for all.


People get a lot of pleasure from their social media interactions – and that’s by design. guruXOX/Shutterstock.com
Buoying your ‘friend'ships
The more you click, the stronger your online relationships. Hitting the 'Like’ button, commenting on photos of friends, sending birthday wishes and tagging others are just some of the ways in which Facebook allows you to engage in “social g***ming.” All these tiny, fleeting contacts help users maintain relationships with large numbers of people with relative ease.

Molding the image you want to project
The more you reveal, the greater your chances of successful self-presentation. Studies have shown that strategic self-presentation is a key feature of Facebook use. Users shape their online identity by revealing which concert they went to and with whom, which causes they support, which rallies they attend and so on. In this way, you can curate your online self and manage others’ impressions of you, something that would be impossible to do in real life with such regularity and precision. Online, you get to project the ideal version of yourself all the time.

Snooping through an open window
The more you click, the more you can keep an eye on others. This kind of social searching and surveillance are among the most important gratifications obtained from Facebook. Most people take pleasure in looking up others on social media, often surreptitiously. The psychological need to monitor your environment is deep-rooted and drives you to keep up with news of the day – and fall victim to FOMO, the fear of missing out. Even privacy-minded senior citizens, loathe to reveal too much about themselves, are known to use Facebook to snoop on others.

Enhancing your social resources
The more you reveal, the greater your social net worth. Being more forthcoming can get you a job via LinkedIn. It can also help an old classmate find you and reconnect. Studies have shown that active use of Facebook can enhance your social capital, whether you’re a college student or a senior citizen wanting to bond with family members or rekindle ties with long-lost friends. Being active on social media is associated with increases in self-esteem and subjective well-being.

Enlarging your tribe
The more you click, the bigger and better the bandwagon. When you click to share a news story on social media or express approval of a product or service, you’re contributing to the creation of a bandwagon of support. Metrics conveying strong bandwagon support, just like five stars for a product on Amazon, are quite persuasive, in part because they represent a consensus among many opinions. In this way, you get to be a part of online communities that form around ideas, events, movements, stories and products – which can ultimately enhance your sense of belonging.

Expressing yourself and being validated
The more you reveal, the greater your agency. Whether it’s a tweet, a status update or a detailed blog post, you get to express yourself and help shape the discourse on social media. This self-expression by itself can be quite empowering. And metrics indicating bandwagon support for your posts – all those “likes” and smiley faces – can profoundly enhance your sense of self worth by appealing to your ingrained psychological need for external validation.

In all these ways, social media’s features provide us too many important gratifications to forego easily. If you think most users will give all this up in the off chance that illegally obtained data from their Facebook profiles and activities may be used to influence their v**es, think again.


Social media train us to crave the feedback and respond to the nudges. SPF/Shutterstock.com
Algorithms that never let you go
While most people may be squeamish about algorithms mining their personal information, there’s an implicit understanding that sharing personal data is a necessary evil that helps enhance their experience. The algorithms that collect your information are also the algorithms that nudge you to be social, based on your interests, behaviors and networks of friends. Without Facebook egging you on, you probably wouldn’t be quite as social. Facebook is a major social lubricant of our time, often recommending friends to add to your circle and notifying you when a friend has said or done something potentially of interest.


A Facebook ‘nudge’ can push you to attend a local event. Facebook screenshot, CC BY-SA
Consider how many notifications Facebook sends about events alone. When presented with a nudge about an event, you may at least consider going, probably even visit the event page, maybe indicate that you’re “Interested” and even decide to attend the event. None of these decisions would be possible without first receiving the nudge.

What if Facebook never nudged you? What if algorithms never gave you recommendations or suggestions? Would you still perform those actions? According to nudge theory, you’d be far less likely to take action if you’re not encouraged to do so. If Facebook never nudged you to attend events, add friends, view others’ posts or wish friends Happy Birthday, it’s unlikely you would do it, thereby diminishing your social life and social circles.


Are you willing to say goodbye? Facebook screenshot, CC BY-ND
Facebook knows this very well. Just try deleting your Facebook account and you will be made to realize what a massive repository it is of your private and public memory. When one of us tried deactivating her account, she was told how huge the loss would be – profile disabled, all the memories evaporating, losing touch with over 500 friends. On the top of the page were profile photos of five friends, including the lead author of this article, with the line “S. Shyam will miss you.”

This is like asking if you would like to purposely and permanently cut off ties with all your friends. Now, who would want to do that?

=========================
If those charges are proven as prima facie evidence, this is the biggest scandal in the world Biblical history. What's going on has turned against the real Catholic faith and its tradition.

Dear God, I hope what I have been reading do not happen. The original St Peter’s Church was built by Saint Constantine the Great, during 326-333 AD. He died 337 AD. This was the original church built when Jesus said to Peter:

Matthew 16:17-19
17 And Jesus answered and said unto him. “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
18 And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Wh**ever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven.”

While praying every day, I am puzzled, hurting, and ashamed with the news I’m hearing about the Vatican. I am sure millions of Catholics around the world feel the same.

Every day I fear about the current events going at the Vatican, against the traditional faith that I have followed guided by the Holy Scriptures. Our Catholic Church still practice the "old Catholic faith".

One thing I blatantly notice:
1. Suddenly, the Muslims praise, defend, and love the pope. I saw news at the Vatican with Mullahs and the Pope hug each other.
2. Suddenly, the left, MSM, and the democrats, praise and love the Pope. MSNBC’s topic last Easter Sunday was the greatness of Pope Francis.
3. There has been 1 million Christians in the Middle East annihilated by Muslims within just few years. No one seem to care about that. But Obama despite of the million persecuted Christians, he only accepted hundreds of thousands of Muslim refugees into the US. No Christians allowed except about 52 as a window dressing to show that Christians are also allowed to come to the US. Reports came that there were 27 Christian refugees not accepted by Obama and were returned to the Middle East only to be massacred by ISIS.

My questions.
4. Why the Pope did very little to intervene helping the million persecuted Christians in the Middle East?
5. Why the Pope accepted Muslim Syrian refugees in Rome, instead of the persecuted Christians?
6. Why the Pope during the Obama administration, tried to intervene US open borders to welcome tens of millions of refugees regardless of their terrorist background, and drug poisoning business?

You may want to voice your views to the Administration of this forum, are you aware you can block posters?

I haven't been on Twitter for several months, and the reason is the high number of Trolls.
I wanted to keep up with President Trumps tweets out of general interest and the same couple hundred trolls would attack EVERY single tweet regardless of the content making it nearly impossible to have discourse.
In this case I understand the logic of blocking politically motivated trolls.

To one and all: I apologize for not including a "sarcastic content warning".

I was attempting to point out that some _ snowflake is attempting to sue the president for being blocked from his twitter account.

Said _ snowflake tweeted: You didn't win the e******n, Putin won it for you.

President Trump then blocked the insolent little rabble-router.

Now said _ snowflake says that the president is violating his freedom to speak, on said president's private social media account.

Aren't there penalties for frivolous lawsuits, found to have no merit, or for using the federal court system to harrass a political opponent?