Desipio Message Board

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Quote from: ShitTank on April 28, 2009, 05:50:24 PM
That whole thread was awesome. I feel better about myself after reading it.

Rec'd

Quote from: MikeC on April 28, 2009, 01:39:56 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on April 28, 2009, 12:21:27 PM
I take from your silence that the DHS memo really was just a red herring, MikeC?

The report I am really not interested in. The findings from the research in alot of these cases is that individuals were tracked as being members of these extremist groups and then joining the military and then returning to these groups. Alot of them were being tracked for the circles they already were in not because they were veterans first. The report doesn't distinguish that fact and simply lables all returning veterans as an area to watch.

That is absolutely not what the report is stating, Mike. It's not suggesting that extremist groups are infiltrating the military. It's suggesting that "a small percentage" of "returning" veterans will be targeted by extremist groups. This isn't a blanket generalization of all military personnel. The report isn't saying that TEC, JD, or any of the other veterans that frequent this board are radical terrorists. It's not throwing their service under a bus. It's simply stating that there's the potential that extremist groups will recruit "a small percentage" of returning veterans.

Quote(U//FOUO)  DHS/I&A assesses that rightwing extremists will attempt to recruit and
radicalize returning veterans in order to exploit their skills and knowledge derived from
military training and combat.  These skills and knowledge have the potential to boost the
capabilities of extremists—including lone wolves or small terrorist cells—to carry out
violence.  The willingness of a small percentage of military personnel to join extremist
groups during the 1990s because they were disgruntled, disillusioned, or suffering from
the psychological effects of war is being replicated today.

Quote
It points out Tim McVeigh because he was a veteran as an example. The military didn't teach him how to build a bomb and blow up a building and the military didn't make him the man he was. He was that person before he joined and he was that person after he left.

He's certainly not indicative of all military personnel. However, his military experience certainly had an impact on his eventual decision to blow up the building:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1321244.stm

QuoteHe admits to killing two Iraqis, but was upset at what he saw as the needless death of countless Iraqis at the end of the Gulf War.

The army, he says, taught him how to switch off his emotions.

McVeigh was tipped for promotion and on his return, he tried to join the elite Green Berets. He took a battery of IQ, personality and aptitude tests, but, out of condition from lack of exercise in the Gulf, found the physical rigours of the training camp too tough and dropped out after two days.

Disillusioned, he went back to the regular army but soon gave up and returned to live with his father.

McVeigh took a series of dead-end jobs and followed gun shows across the country.

So, we have a returning vet who experienced some awful shit while he was in the military, probably had some emotional issues as a result, had trouble reintegrating in to civilian life, became disillusioned with the government, and basically had no good reason (a wife, career, friends) to not lash out.

Quote
Also an area that you quote is that white supremist groups and such are getting trainining in the Armed Forces. Yeah and their point is in the memo? Again its just targeting military personal when it is already well known these groups have been infiltrating and gaining training from law enforcement, to CIA, and FBI for over the last 20 years. Should the report also mention that police officers and FBI personal are potential risks? No it only specifically states military.

Again, read the passage. It's talking about returning veterans. It's not suggesting that the extremist groups are infiltrating military/law enforcement organizations. That's a completely different can of worms. It's a valid point--maybe it should be addressed in the memo--but it's different from the one in question.

Quote
Its kinda like saying all black people are more prone to violence and the government needs to watch the black population. Yeah i think government already did that for a long period of time.

No, it's not "kinda like saying" that at all.

QuoteIt was just a poorly written memo trying to paint all veterans as a risk, which is just pure horse shit.

If that's what you think, then you didn't read it.

I take from your silence that the DHS memo really was just a red herring, MikeC?

QuoteHerein lies the truth. My record stands for itself. It's excellent. Read the archives of this blog and you will find nothing but predictive excellence. To the contrary, your faggot friends say the dumbest shit I've ever read like, "Carlos Marmol should be dfa'd" or "The Jason Kendall deal was one of Hendry's finest moves". Meanwhile, [bozos' faggot friends (read: "us")] constantly patronize BCB as if they're any better. They're exactly the same as BCB only they speak of baseball in a different language - fictional, arcane, and irrelevant stats. But their insight is equally poor.

Oh, how humiliating.

Quote from: MikeC on April 28, 2009, 08:38:13 AM
It was not written under Bush, it was written during the Obama administration and put out by the stupid idiot Napolitano. It is amazing how Bush and his administration can write memos on future events for Obama to put out.

I haven't been watching the news, but apparently this is the contentious section of the memo:

Quote
(U)  Disgruntled Military Veterans

(U//FOUO)  DHS/I&A assesses that rightwing extremists will attempt to recruit and
radicalize returning veterans in order to exploit their skills and knowledge derived from
military training and combat.  These skills and knowledge have the potential to boost the
capabilities of extremists—including lone wolves or small terrorist cells—to carry out
violence.  The willingness of a small percentage of military personnel to join extremist
groups during the 1990s because they were disgruntled, disillusioned, or suffering from
the psychological effects of war is being replicated today.

— (U)  After Operation Desert Shield/Storm in 1990-1991, some returning military
veterans—including Timothy McVeigh—joined or associated with rightwing
extremist groups.

—  (U)  A prominent civil rights organization reported in 2006 that "large numbers
of potentially violent neo-Nazis, skinheads, and other white supremacists are now
learning the art of warfare in the [U.S.] armed forces."

— (U//LES)  The FBI noted in a 2008 report on the white supremacist movement
that some returning military veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have
joined extremist groups.

Disregarding which administration is responsible for the memo, is the right that hard up for an issue? The only problem I can see with the section is that it says "rightwing extremists will attempt" instead of "rightwing extremists might attempt." There's no way of knowing without a doubt that this type of recruitment will occur. However, the memo isn't implying that returning veterans are America-hating terrorists.

Rather, it's simply stating that there's a portion of returning veterans who may be having issues integrating themselves back in to civilian life. If the support structure isn't in place to help them, then some of those veterans are going to become prime candidates for recruitment in to extremist groups.

This isn't a new phenomenon. This is a pattern you can see all around the world. Terrorist groups look to recruit marginalized people because they have little to lose in joining up (a low opportunity cost, in morph's parlance). By joining up, they are tying themselves in to a social structure that they lack, that will be supportive of them and may provide tangible benefits like food, shelter, etc (INCENTIVES!). So, the benefits (INCENTIVES!) can easily outweigh the costs.

If veterans have "fallen through the cracks", then there's a chance that they can become disillusioned with government because they perceive it (perhaps, rightly) as having failed them. These are going to be extremist groups' wet dreams in terms of new membership because they have skillsets that are valuable to the group.

So, how is this pissing on the service of our enlisted people? If anything, it seems to imply that better support for reintegrating returning veterans in to civilian life should be a priority. Isn't that supporting the troops?

Quote from: PenFoe on April 27, 2009, 07:11:12 PM

Quote from: TDubbs on April 27, 2009, 06:37:50 PM
Go to www.espn.com.
click on any article.  type in the Contra code.  (up up down down left right left right b a b a).
start clicking on anything or type anything

Nothing happened - does it only work in Internet Explorer?

Whatever it was, it's been removed.
http://kotaku.com/5230185/the-konami-code-makes-espncom-magical#viewcomments

Edit: Try it here.

Quote from: TDubbs on April 27, 2009, 06:37:50 PM
Go to www.espn.com.
click on any article.  type in the Contra code.  (up up down down left right left right b a b a).
start clicking on anything or type anything

It gave me infinite Scoop Jackson. :(

Quote from: Eli on April 27, 2009, 02:23:27 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on April 27, 2009, 02:15:18 PM

Quote from: Eli on April 27, 2009, 02:10:10 PM

Quote from: *In a Nutsack on April 27, 2009, 02:03:44 PM
I know he works the count and can generate a robust OBP, but pull a .600 SLG and .780 OPS out of your rice bowls through July or August and then I'll SPLOOOGE!

If he has a .600 SLG and a .780 OPS, he's not working the count very well.

10 singles, 10 doubles, 5 triples, and 50 home runs over 400 PAs would be something to behold.

It'd be the GritPower we all fear.

It was rumored that CERN attempted to prove the existance of GritPower last fall. Yadda yadda yadda, most reports say the Large Hadron Collider should be repaired and back in operation by September.

EXCELLENT!

Quote from: Eli on April 27, 2009, 02:10:10 PM

Quote from: *In a Nutsack on April 27, 2009, 02:03:44 PM
I know he works the count and can generate a robust OBP, but pull a .600 SLG and .780 OPS out of your rice bowls through July or August and then I'll SPLOOOGE!

If he has a .600 SLG and a .780 OPS, he's not working the count very well.

10 singles, 10 doubles, 5 triples, and 50 home runs over 400 PAs would be something to behold.

Quote from: Tinker to Evers to Chance on April 26, 2009, 03:49:26 PM

Quote from: Tinker to Evers to Chance on April 16, 2009, 02:57:38 PM

Quote from: Tinker to Evers to Chance on April 11, 2009, 07:04:53 PM
SPLOOGE!

It's only three weeks. (?)

CD <3 MB

QuoteCHICAGO -- After playing one game at far less than full speed, Chicago Cubs outfielder Milton Bradley said Thursday he's not close to returning from a lingering groin injury.

"I want to say I am, but I'm not," Bradley told Cubs.com.

Bradley has not spoken to the media in at least a week. He spoke to Cubs.com because it is affiliated with the Cubs' organization, the Web site said.

Speaking of the fourth estate, the at-times-volatile Bradley accused Chicago's media of trying to make him "snap," a remark that comes on the heels of his ejection for arguing a called third strike during his April 16 pinch-hitting appearance, and the subsequent two-game suspension for making contact with umpire Larry Vanover.

"I'm just not into negativity," he said. "I can see already I'm going to be that guy that since nothing else is going on in here, 'We're going to harp on Bradley all year and see if we can get him to snap.' I'm not going to go for it. You can't get a good story if I don't talk to [the media]. You'll make something up, like you always do."

"If I talk to you, you're going to make something up, and if I don't talk to you, you're going to make something up. So just go ahead and make something up and leave me out of it."

Quote from: Slakee on April 24, 2009, 12:01:47 PM

Quote from: ChuckD on April 24, 2009, 11:18:28 AM
Maybe MikeC can get behind this.
http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=8a25059520b3d89e0120b49221340025

Without clicking on the link let me ask: Is it a picture of a dude?

Well, now that you've ruined the surprise, no, it's not.

Maybe MikeC can get behind this.
http://www.adultswim.com/video/?episodeID=8a25059520b3d89e0120b49221340025