Random Thoughts Thread

[smokymountainrain]

If you like women with bodies that resemble preteen boys then no, if not then yes.

Hmmmm...okay.

[old_gregg]

Shot?? By drake?? Haha. Drake was at Wimbledon last month. Meek is pretty safe.

hey drake got shot in degrassi

[Jeff Lebowski]

The hotness bar around here is pretty low. People openly believe that Amy Schumer is a hottie.

Only after being hounded about it by 11 angry dudes.

[HuskyFreeNorthwest]

Only after being hounded about it by 11 angry dudes.

Nice!

[Uncle Ted]

Time to take the batteries out of the wireless door remotes...

This Hacker’s Tiny Device Unlocks Cars And Opens Garages

THE NEXT TIME you press your wireless key fob to unlock your car, if you find that it doesn’t beep until the second try, the issue may not be a technical glitch. Instead, a hacker like Samy Kamkar may be using a clever radio hack to intercept and record your wireless key’s command. And when that hacker walks up to your vehicle a few minutes, hours, or days later, it won’t even take those two button presses to get inside.


At the hacker conference DefCon in Las Vegas tomorrow, Kamkar plans to present the details of a gadget he’s developed called “RollJam.” The $32 radio device, smaller than a cell phone, is designed to defeat the “rolling codes” security used in not only most modern cars and trucks’ keyless entry systems, but also in their alarm systems and in modern garage door openers. The technique, long understood but easier than ever to pull off with Kamkar’s attack, lets an intruder break into cars without a trace, turn off their alarms and effortlessly access garages.
[...]

http://www.wired.com/2015/08/hackers...opens-garages/

Or invest into one of those Russian drones with the machine gun and train it to guard my stuff.

[cougjunkie]

Can't imagine this is going to end well.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ocial-facebook

The team investigating the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine say they have identified debris that 'possibly' comes from a Russian-made BUK missile.

Flight MH17 was shot down on July 17 last year, killing all 298 people on board during heavy fighting between Kiev's armed forces and pro-Russian separatists.

Ukraine and many in the West have accused pro-Russian rebels of shooting down the plane, saying they may have used a BUK missile supplied by Russia.

But Russia and the rebels have always denied responsibility, pointing the finger at Ukraine's military

[Clark Addison]

Random Thought #1: Why is this thread in The Water Cooler? I always look for it in The Back Fence?

Random Thought #2:

My daughter's elementary school's mascot is the "Red Wolves". For the beginning of the year open house on Thursday, the theme is "Hungry Like a Wolf". I will be severely disappointed if this video isn't playing on a loop in her classroom:

Also, considering going dressed as Simon Le Bon.

[falafel]

Where you going to get the wig?

[Clark Addison]

Where you going to get the wig?

[Topper]

Proponents of New Keynesian Economics rely upon the wonderful myth that government spending of $1.00 will reap multiple dollars in GDP. However, this mythology has never been proven.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin...an-multiplier/

It seems to be based upon the macroeconomic belief that if children are given money to spend by a parent, those children will spend not only the money given by the parent but also spend additional money, thus benefiting the economy at large. However, it has not been proven with any degree of measurable proof.

Here is a compilation which evaluates papers trying to prove this hypothesis over multiple decades. http://www.govtmultiplier.com/

Another study shooting down the multiplier. http://news.heartland.org/newspaper-...tiplier-claims

Professor Taylor has discussed this before, and has an excellent economics blog. http://economicsone.com/ I find his discussions insightful and help clear up the jargon economists typically employ. For example, note his discussion on ending "Too Big to Fail", with a new proposed "Chapter 14 Bankruptcy".

For his discussion on the multiplier, see http://web.stanford.edu/~johntayl/Co...nd%2010-25.pdf



Yet, politicians seem to be able to easily persuade voters that spending and borrowing will promote economic growth. I expect to see the Democratic candidate perpetuate this myth and bad economics, but wonder aloud why voters fall for this time and time again.

[Eddie]

I was looking for a threat titled "I saw it while browsing" or maybe "Things I learned ABOUT church", but since they don't exist and this seemed pretty random, this thread will do.

I was checking out an article online and got caught by some click bait called "Surprising Things you didn't know about Mormons". I couldn't help but share.

1 - Mormons are Christians who believe that God was once an ordinary human being who lived on earth like any other man.

Umm...I'm not sure that is completely accurate. But they have the general idea, I suppose.

2 - A recent study found that Mormons can identify other Mormons by looking at their skin texture. Mormons typically abstain from caffeine, alcohol, cigarettes, and other lifestyle choices that can affect skin appearance.

This one is my favorite - and really probably the only one I'd never heard before. I just got the topic for next week's deacon's quorum lesson!

3 - It's one of the fastest growing religions in America. Right-wing talk show host Glenn Beck is a high-profile convert to the Church.

Glenn Beck? Really? Is there a reason they didn't use Gladys Knight instead? Is there no one else? Steve Martin? Snoop Dog?

4 - The average age of marriage for Mormons is approximately 23, less than the U.S. average of 27.

How much will this change in the next couple years as we get more used to sending younger missionaries? Or did that already RAISE the average age - since more women are going on missions and getting married later instead of at 19-20?

5 - Black Mormon males could not enter the priesthood until 1978.

I am surprised if more people don't know this. It seems to get covered quite a bit.

6 - The Church abandoned polygamy in 1890, but it was not until nearly two decades later that authorized plural marriages ceased completely. The vast majority of Mormons today do not support polygamy.

"Vast majority"? Hmmmmm.

7 - The CIA and the FBI have Mormon recruitment programs. Mormons' strong morals make them ideal candidates for law enforcement and intelligence careers.

I've heard this one before.

8 - "The whole armor of God" is a Biblical metaphor used to describe the underwear that some Mormons wear. The garments—a white undershirt, and white boxer brief-style shorts or pants—are adorned with symbols to remind Mormons of their covenants.

But this one is new. My seminary teachers talked about the whole armor of God a LOT, but never mentioned garments.

9 - Mormons teach that humans are gods and goddesses in embryo, spirit children of God who have entered into mortality in order to gain a physical body.

This is one of the few facts about Mormons I was not surprised to read with this group.

10 - Brigham Young, Joseph Smith’s successor, actually proposed the creation of a Mormon state, the State of Deseret, which would have stretched from Idaho to southern California and from mid-Colorado to eastern California.

Every kid in Utah knows this - Mormon or not. It's covered in Jr. High during Utah History class.

11 - Mormon founder and Prophet Joseph Smith taught that there was life on the moon.

This sounds vaguely familiar. But I don't recall the context... Didn't someone else say something about that too?

12 - Joseph Smith believed that the Garden of Eden was in Jackson County, Missouri.

This is another one of those facts that I figured would be on the list. But the photo they had attached to it wasn't every Eden-like...or even garden-like for that matter.

13 - Mormons believe that the devil and Jesus are brothers.

This one could've been SO much better. No only is Jesus the devil's brother. But he's YOUR brother. And that makes YOU the devil's brother too! They totally missed an opportunity here.

That's it. Hope you enjoy as much as I did!

[Joe Public]

But the photo they had attached to it wasn't every Eden-like...or even garden-like for that matter.

Perhaps it was a photograph of Jackson County, MO, then.

[Moliere]

I just passed level 1130 in candy crush. I wonder where I got all the time to do that.

[creekster]

Hot springs Arkansas is an odd place. But they have some pretty good bbq. Anybody else ever eat at mcclardy's?

[thesaint258]

Hot springs Arkansas is an odd place. But they have some pretty good bbq. Anybody else ever eat at mcclardy's?

I dated a girl from there, once. That's when I learned not to date girls from Arkansas.