Pet peeves

Ekserb said:
Ew. Have you seen it? Please. It's pinkish-grey, has lots of unattractive folds and crevices - it looks a lot like every other brain.

And trust me, they all taste the same, too.

Dr. Lecter, I presume? May I offer you a nice Chianti and some fava beans?
 
Interview with "Peak Oil Man"

I am not (yet) firmly in the "Peak Oil" camp, but I thought the story below was a very interesting piece written by someone I do not know. It's full of something called "common sense" and as we all know, Common Sense in this country died somewhere around 1960. I have to admit that I have been utterly confounded, astounded and amazed at the complete lack of any demand response to higher gasoline prices. All that suggests to me is that the price of gasoline isn't really all that high. Hillary, John (Edwards), Barbra, Diane, Barbara (Boxer), Maria (Cantwell), Bob (Casey), Nancy (Pelosi), Ed Rendell, and the morons of the media pointing fingers and spinning conspiracy theories about the energy industry only betrays their ignorance or an underlying belief in the gullibility of the American people.

_______________________________________________________


Interview with "Peak Oil Man"

Hi, Can You Do an Interview?
So I drove into town and parked. And there I was, walking out of the Mellon Garage, minding my own business, when some guy walked up to me and said, “Hi, can you do an interview?”
“What do you want to talk about?” I asked.
“The price of gasoline,” he replied.
“The price of gasoline?” I said. “How interesting. Whom do you work for?” I asked.
The man replied that he works as a stringer for a national press outlet, meaning that he writes articles and gets paid by his wire service if an article gets picked up. He wanted to talk, as he put it, “with a man in the street.” Little did this fellow know or suspect that he had picked “Peak Oil Man. ”
“Well, OK,” I said. “What would you like to know?”
The Hardship of Paying More
“Gasoline is up to $3 and more per gallon. What do you think about the hardship of people paying more for gas?” he asked.
“Hardship?” I said. “I think that at $3 per gallon, gasoline is still pretty cheap, compared with its true value.”
I do not think that mine was the answer that the reporter was expecting to hear. “What do you mean? What is the true value of gasoline?” he asked.
“Do the math,” I replied. “$3 per gallon of gasoline is less than 19 cents per cup. What would you pay for a cup of coffee at McDonald’s or Starbucks? What do you pay for a gallon of Coca-Cola?”
“But that’s different,” said the reporter. “You don’t need Coca-Cola or coffee from Starbucks. People need gasoline,” he opined.
“Oh, really?” I commented. “I usually take the streetcar into town and don’t burn any gas. Today is different, and I need a car later on. So I am driving and paying for it. And notice that the Mellon Garage is full. People sure do not seem to be driving any less just because the price of gas has gone up.”
“Well,” said the reporter, “that’s because 85% of the driving that people do is essential driving. They can’t just cut back and drive less.”
Now it was my turn to ask a question. “What do you mean, that 85% of driving is ‘essential driving’?”
“You know,” he said. “People have to drive to work, drive to go to the store, or to medical appointments. A lot of people have to drive as part of their job. That kind of driving. It’s essential.”
Energy, Culture, and Transport
That comment launched us into a discussion of the choices people make about lifestyle, living arrangements, and occupational choices. “People can live where they want to live,” said the reporter. “But high gas prices penalize them for living one place and working somewhere else.”
My reply was that “People ought to pay for what they use, and if they are using scarce energy resources like gasoline simply to commute from home to work, they ought to have to pay for it and pay the world price to boot. If you live in the suburbs where a house may be less expensive, you might just have to pay for it at the gas pump.”
I further noted that “Quite a bit of what passes for the culture of the nation is really a reflection of the price and availability of energy. Cheap energy has given rise to a culture of physical dispersion, if not sprawl, coupled with a sense of personal entitlement to private and energy-intensive forms of transportation, housing, and many other things.”
It was rapidly becoming clear that the reporter was having trouble processing what I was telling him. “Why shouldn’t people be able to go where they want to go, when they want to go there, and in their own private car?” he asked.
“It depends on how you look at the issue of personal transportation,” I said. “For the past 100 years, while oil was cheap and available, there has been a trend toward more and more personalized transportation for relatively short hauls. With the rise of the automobile (the roots of the word mean ‘self-moving’), people have become accustomed to driving in their own cars close to home, to work, and for short and medium distances. But during World War II, when there was hardly any gasoline available for anything but the war effort, people adjusted to living with little or no gas.”
I continued, “But think about moving long distances, especially if you want to move rapidly. Few people really have any expectation of privacy or private conveyance when, for example, they get on a commercial airplane to fly across the country. Then, you are shoulder to shoulder with the next passenger, and before they let you board the plane you have to deal with getting X-rayed at the airport screening station. So for short hauls, people are conditioned to hop into their personal cars and drive. For long hauls, they are willing to be herded into an airplane and treated like cargo.”
I followed up on that last point. “In terms of passenger-seat miles per gallon, a transcontinental airplane flight is actually more fuel-efficient than a single passenger commuting to work in a standard-sized automobile. You would need four people commuting and carpooling in an automobile to achieve the same fuel-efficiency as a Boeing 747 carrying a 75% passenger load.”
The reporter asked for the source of that statistic, and I told him that it came from Boeing, although I did do some math at one point to confirm the number. Getting back to the discussion about the price of gasoline, I noted that “People used to live in or near the urban cores and take streetcars everywhere they needed to go. Just beyond the end of the streetcar lines, it was farmland. But in the past 50 or 60 years, we have built roads everywhere and filled them with automobiles. So the current demographic of Pittsburgh , for example, now sprawls all over Allegheny County and into five adjacent counties. It is not that most of the commuting culture is what you call ‘essential’ transportation. It is just that this is the energy-intensive existence we have created for ourselves. It was great when oil was cheap, although not sustainable. And now that oil is expensive, we have to ask if we have to change our cultural expectations. If not, we are about to have some very big problems.”
What About the Oil Companies?
My questioner was not finished with his “Man in the Street” interview. He asked, “Well, don’t you think that the price of gas is going up just because the oil companies are hoarding supplies?”
“There is no evidence of that,” I replied. “In fact, U.S. refinery output is at its highest level in history. There has never been a time, since John D. Rockefeller first started buying up refineries in Cleveland back in the 1860s, when the U.S. refining industry made more product than in the past couple of months. Plus, the U.S. is importing unprecedented levels of refined product into the country, something over 10% of total demand. So the refiners are running flat out, we are importing tanker loads of fuel, and the demand trends are still rising. So there is where you get your rising price.”
“But,” said the reporter, “everybody talks about how the U.S. oil industry has not built a new refinery in 30 years. Aren’t the oil companies just letting the old refineries run down, so there are shortages and they can raise the prices?”
This is one of those “when did you stop beating your wife?” kind of questions. The oil industry cannot get any credit in the public mind for anything, no matter how far it goes or how deep it drills. First, the political process makes it all but impossible to build new refineries, and then the entire industry gets beat up for not building them. Still, the question deserved an answer. And I gave it to the reporter, with both barrels.
“Not at all,” replied one of the few Peak Oil correspondents on the face of this or any other planet. “In fact, the overall trend in the U.S. refinery business in the past 30 years has been to expand existing refineries, as opposed to building new ones. For many reasons, it is just too hard to build a new plant in this country, so the refiners have been overhauling and expanding the existing production base. There are fewer environmental hurdles, the local communities tend to be more in favor of expansion, and the refiners are dealing with fewer political unknowns. So the net effect is that in the past decade, refinery upgrades and expansions in the U.S. have added the equivalent of 10 ‘new’ refineries to the total base, and there is something like the equivalent of eight more refineries being ‘built’ via upgrades to existing facilities. This is why U.S. refinery output is at a record high.”
So Why Is the Price Rising?
The reporter knew by now that he was talking about oil and refined product with someone who knows something about the business. He paused and thought for a moment. Then he asked, “So why is the price of gas rising?”
“The price of gas is rising,” said the Peak Oil correspondent, “because there are more people buying it than there are selling it. And there will be, for the rest of your life.”
Thus ended a random interview with a man in the street.
Until we meet again…
 
monique1971 said:
Why would you assume that every woman's best feature is her pussy?

Ah, interesting question, and the answer is not simple. in fact it involves some fairly deep philosophy, not appropriate to this thread. A short answer is that it is the channel through which life itself flows....

As a pet peeve BTW, I'd include the attitude so prevalent in western society that it is somehow "unclean" or even "evil". That pisses me off hugely....

swingsn..
 
Ekserb said:
'Cause everyone pisses me off!!!

You'd better start contributing to this thread with some serious peeves, otherwise you're going to find out exactly what Bluebell is talking about.


Oo-er. I'm scared. See, I'm shaking....

Good for ya, Ek.

:D

swingsn..

PS - pet peeves?

1/ closet moralists

2/ prudey attitudes towards nudity and genitals

3/ demonising sex

4/ religious fundamentalists (particularly YECs)

5/ George W. Bush, but I won't go into that right now...

I'm sure I could think of dozens more..... but that'll do for a start...
 
swingsncarousels said:
Ah, interesting question, and the answer is not simple. in fact it involves some fairly deep philosophy, not appropriate to this thread. A short answer is that it is the channel through which life itself flows....

Fair enough. Personally, I don't have such a mystical attitude towards my reproductive organs, but I do see your point.
 
swingsncarousels said:
Ah, interesting question, and the answer is not simple. in fact it involves some fairly deep philosophy, not appropriate to this thread. A short answer is that it is the channel through which life itself flows....

Fair enough. Personally, I don't have such a mystical attitude towards my reproductive organs, but I do see your point.
 
swingsncarousels said:
Well I think he's really a pussycat, and it's just a pose. He's got kind eyes, and I bet his kids think he's bloody marvellous...

:D

Swingsn..

You're so right and so wrong about him. Not that I really know him. But bluebell and I are conducting a study. We want to put him in a tank and look at him.
 
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monique1971 said:
You're so right and so wrong about him. Not that I really know him. But bluebell and I are conducting a study. We want to put him a tank and look at him.

What size tank? I'll need room for my computer. That porn isn't going to download itself, you know.
 
Ekserb said:
What size tank? I'll need room for my computer. That porn isn't going to download itself, you know.

Oh, we'll make sure that you have room for a computer. And a little rock on which you can sun yourself. And a little dish for your food pellets.
 
Just the essentials, of course.

monique1971 said:
Oh, we'll make sure that you have room for a computer. And a little rock on which you can sun yourself. And a little dish for your food pellets.
And for the love of all that's holy (meaning Ekserb's penis, of course) don't forget the lube and sex toys.
His favorite is the ass-reamer the size of a cricket paddle...
 
Ekserb? With KIDS? Hail holy queen and mother above, save us all. T'won't happen.

swingsncarousels said:
Thanks for this link. It was very informative as to what's going on behind the scenes.

How come? I like the guy and I like his style. And I'm only trying to be friendly...

:confused:

swingsn..
You're welcome.
It's more of a PSA for you.
I don't live near him but my Spidey Sense could already detect bristling.
(And dammit, it excites me.)

swingsncarousels said:
Well I think he's really a pussycat, and it's just a pose. He's got kind eyes, and I bet his kids think he's bloody marvellous...
That belief has been shared before.
I shall not describe what happened to the believers.
 
Only In America!

Only in America- where both the buffalo and ambulance chasers roam!

I fervently hope and pray that this patently obvious attempt to shake down the defendants for money will be laughed out of court.
______________________________________

Hancock's Father Sues Restaurant, Towing Company in Son's Death

By Danielle Sessa

May 25 (Bloomberg) -- The father of St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock sued a restaurant, the driver of a stalled car and a towing company for their roles in his son's death.

Hancock, 29, was killed April 29 when his sport-utility vehicle smashed into the back of a tow truck that was assisting a disabled car on a highway in St. Louis. Police said Hancock was drunk, had marijuana in his car, was speeding and wasn't wearing a seat belt.

The suit, filed in St. Louis Circuit Court, said Mike Shannon's Steaks and Seafood and its manager, Patricia Shannon Van Marte, served Hancock drinks even though he was visibly intoxicated, and that his intoxication was ``involuntary.''

It also said the driver of the disabled vehicle, Justin Tolar was negligent for allowing his car to crash into the median and stall in the left lane of the highway.

Eddie's Towing LCC and the tow-truck driver, Jacob Edward Hargrove, were negligent in pulling up behind the stalled car without providing a warning to oncoming traffic, the lawsuit said

Hancock's father, Noel Dean Hancock, is seeking damages in excess of $25,000.

Hancock was involved in another car accident three days before his death. Police determined that alcohol didn't play a role in the earlier crash. Hancock was then late to that afternoon's game and the St. Louis Post Dispatch, citing sources it didn't identify, said it was because he was hung over, a claim manager Tony La Russa denied.

The case is Noel Dean Hancock vs Mike Shannon's Steaks and Seafood, Patricia Shannon Van Marte, Eddie's Towing LLC, Jacob Edward Hargrove and Justin Tolar, 0722-CC01721, filed in the City of St. Louis Circuit Court.
 
I have missed this thread. Seems like nothing has changed but the seasons. Oh and Trysail's fonts have become smaller and less green. (Hi Try!).

Welcome Swings! Beware The Ekserb....he bites, so please keep your hands out of the cage.

Now for my peeve. Not sure if this has been addressed before but what is it with people who start threads and misspell the title? In their haste to create a thread they have shown everyone on Lit what dolts they are.
 
Daizie said:
Welcome Swings! Beware The Ekserb....he bites, so please keep your hands out of the cage.

Actually, I'm a jump ahead on this one, because I'm on a mail group where I deliberately present myself as a GOF (Grumpy Old Fart), and have fun tweaking noses. Been there and done that.....

But I'm really a pussycat, and my grandkids think I'm bloody marvellous!

:cathappy:

swingsn..
 
Daizie said:
Now for my peeve. Not sure if this has been addressed before but what is it with people who start threads and misspell the title? In their haste to create a thread they have shown everyone on Lit what dolts they are.

I think it may have been covered, but you're right. I hate that, too. Oooooo, boy do I hate that.
 
Car-related ... sort of

What are those little plastic buckets for? You know, the ones hanging from the side of the gasoline pump? They have two rectangular holes; one seems to be shaped just right for a paper towel dispenser and the other could possibly hold liquid and a window squeegee. I'm guessing because I've never seen anything in these bins in any gas station I've used in the last ten years.

Is it so goddamned, mother fucking hard to find an employee that will get off his fat ass to fill these things with water once or twice a week? And make sure the glass cleaning tools are still around? Or at least pretend to give a shit when I mention it?

I don't think this is too much to ask. I mean, it was only a few decades ago that we expected these pricks to come out to our cars and fill them with gas for us. (And they didn't even charge extra for this service! It seems like a fairy tale, I know, but it happened.) Now I'm not even allowed the tools to do the job myself. I guess I should start carrying my own windshield cleaning kit in the back of the car. Fuckers.
 
Squeegee perversion

Ekserb said:
Is it so goddamned, mother fucking hard to find an employee that will get off his fat ass to fill these things with water once or twice a week? And make sure the glass cleaning tools are still around? Or at least pretend to give a shit when I mention it?
I agree. Unfortunately, I've almost entered the realm of "Ignoring It Entirely" because I know it's so damned fruitless.
Even if there is a squeegee in the bucket, the foam is all mangled and falling off, like some pervert was dry-humping it after letting it go for a squish on his windshield.
 
Location woes

One of my Lit peeves has to do with people's locations.

Both of the following irritate me:

1) When someone has entered a scarily long string of text, which stretches out the thread page and makes it impossible to read without scrolling to the right (I realize it could be their sig line as well, but I know the lengthy location rant is also culpable).
And what they've typed in the location space is never worth reading anyway.

Curled inside the far-flung reaches of my boyfriend's soggy jock-strap and contemplating the intricacies of the universe is not worth scrolling for.

On the other hand, a well-placed jock-strap reference could be funny...wait...no, NO, DAMMIT!

2) When people type something that isn't a location at all.

Thinking about doggy balls and Cheerios is not a valid location.
Even theoretically.
Or with a gigantic suspension of disbelief.
 
bluebell7 said:
like some pervert was dry-humping it after letting it go for a squish on his windshield.

I laughed waaaaay too hard at this! haha Hmm, and I'd like to have a word with Catherine Linton, too.
 
Yeah, Catherine needs some help

AtFirstSight said:
I laughed waaaaay too hard at this! haha Hmm, and I'd like to have a word with Catherine Linton, too.
Heh. Thanks. :)
 
Mine's simple..

I hate having holes in my socks. I don't know how they get there, yet they seem to show up in mostly new socks. Someone should invent hole-proof socks....

That would be awesome.
 
Ekserb said:
What are those little plastic buckets for? You know, the ones hanging from the side of the gasoline pump? They have two rectangular holes; one seems to be shaped just right for a paper towel dispenser and the other could possibly hold liquid and a window squeegee. I'm guessing because I've never seen anything in these bins in any gas station I've used in the last ten years.

<rest of rant snipped>

Huh. Where I live, the buckets are always filled with water and the squeegees are always in the bucket. Gotta love the midwest.

Of course, in winter, it all freezes solid.
 
monique1971 said:
Huh. Where I live, the buckets are always filled with water and the squeegees are always in the bucket. Gotta love the midwest.

Of course, in winter, it all freezes solid.
I concur with Monique. Even in NJ, our buckets are filled and have usable squeegees. We may have the highest car insurance rates and bad drivers may fill our roadways but dammit we have clean windshields!!!
 
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