I watched these kids grow up!

Funny story...

I was out for a walk yesterday and ran into a friend who was with her 4 year old grandson. She told me a funny thing he had said the other day.

The blueberries are everywhere in the store right now -- you haven't lived until you have had an Olympic Peninsula blueberry. Sorry, I digress.

Anyway, the little boy had a fistful of blueberries and said to his Momo, "The blueberries make me feel like Nanda. I want to flip!"

And then I turn on the Sift today, and there are my boys, right there on the front page! (They juggle too, by the way....)

Oh youre so right, I really fancy arguing that there is no battery here, perhaps common assault but who gives a fuck... Seriously dude, you need to get off that high horse and realise your opinions are as inconsequential as the very short period of time this vid will be visible and about as important. Meanwhile why don't you spend your energies somewhere more meaningful, like lying down in the road to peacefully protest whatever it is that Peace Will Find a Way Weekly tells you is flavour of the month - perhaps articulated lorries. This is all rather boring now and lets face it, yesterdays news. You go ahead and butthurt rage a little more, i'm moving on. Peace out Mannnn.

>> ^ChaosEngine:

>> ^thumpa28:
{edit} gah im breaking my golden rule of not arguing with retards on vs, ah well. You think everyone should research the vagaries of common assault vs battery before commenting on a video about someone trying to grab the olympic torch... hokay. How about I stick to commenting on the video at hand and leave the shouty shouty nerd rage to the people like yourself, who try to turn every post into an emotional battle, presumably because thats how you get your emotional needs met rather than learning how to interact in the real world. Im sorry you feel that way, hope you get fixed soon. Im going to leave you alone now.
So, in other words, you were completely wrong, got schooled, and now you're playing the "waaah, I'm not talking to you" card. About what I'd expect...
>> ^gorillaman:
The ideal of peaceful protest is one of the great propaganda victories of repressive government.
'You can have your little protest as long as you don't actually try to accomplish anything. We can steal billions of public money to fund a PR stunt for our nationalist authority, effectively equivalent to several days of forced labour for everyone in the UK, but if you try to grab a torch we bought with your money then you're a violent criminal.'

Er, yeah, if you assault someone then you are a violent criminal. Quelle fucking surprise.
And I never said you couldn't be disruptive. He could have gotten a group of people to lie down on the road in front of the torch bearer, he could have streaked along side her, he could have done something vaguely clever or even funny. A funny story will bring attention to your cause (see the Yes Men and the Arctic Ready campaign).
Unfortunately, those things require wit and imagination, two attributes he clearly lacks.
Meanwhile, most of the rest of us simply don't give a fuck. Why? Because, frankly, the Olympics ranks pretty low on the list of things to be concerned about.

>> ^thumpa28:

{edit} gah im breaking my golden rule of not arguing with retards on vs, ah well. You think everyone should research the vagaries of common assault vs battery before commenting on a video about someone trying to grab the olympic torch... hokay. How about I stick to commenting on the video at hand and leave the shouty shouty nerd rage to the people like yourself, who try to turn every post into an emotional battle, presumably because thats how you get your emotional needs met rather than learning how to interact in the real world. Im sorry you feel that way, hope you get fixed soon. Im going to leave you alone now.

So, in other words, you were completely wrong, got schooled, and now you're playing the "waaah, I'm not talking to you" card. About what I'd expect...

>> ^gorillaman:

The ideal of peaceful protest is one of the great propaganda victories of repressive government.
'You can have your little protest as long as you don't actually try to accomplish anything. We can steal billions of public money to fund a PR stunt for our nationalist authority, effectively equivalent to several days of forced labour for everyone in the UK, but if you try to grab a torch we bought with your money then you're a violent criminal.'


Er, yeah, if you assault someone then you are a violent criminal. Quelle fucking surprise.

And I never said you couldn't be disruptive. He could have gotten a group of people to lie down on the road in front of the torch bearer, he could have streaked along side her, he could have done something vaguely clever or even funny. A funny story will bring attention to your cause (see the Yes Men and the Arctic Ready campaign).

Unfortunately, those things require wit and imagination, two attributes he clearly lacks.

Meanwhile, most of the rest of us simply don't give a fuck. Why? Because, frankly, the Olympics ranks pretty low on the list of things to be concerned about.

Your right fire makes people stupid and panic for no reason most of the time. Funny story I was working as a fry cook at a Buffalo Wild Wings in my home town in Texas when one night one of the guys pulled the fryer out to clean behind it well he yanked on it too hard and it ripped the gas hose off the connection to the wall. I swear to god 6 guys saw fire spurt out of the valve and immediate dropped everything and ran for the hills. I saw that the valve wasn't damaged in anyway so I calmly walked over and turned off the valve the fire went out and the disaster was averted. I couldn't believe how everyone else just panicked instead of taking the logical easiest path to put out the fire. I'm just glad no one pulled the Ansul fire foam system that would have cost the store 20k and we would have spent two days cleaning the inside of the kitchen out.

>> ^kceaton1:

>> ^PlayhousePals:
>> ^Stingray:
Fire extinguishers: Not just ornaments

It appeared that the guy near the end was using the contents of a gas can to extinguish the flames. A fail all around if that were true =oD

I'll assume this is sarcasm that didn't translate well across the Internet--it was water, the stuff you use to wash off your windows with--which is ALSO found RIGHT NEXT TO all the man-made flames and fuel for cars--BTW did you know fuel vapor is pretty nasty--I swear eia is just not enough sometimes.
Fires (and any other such similar event were an emergency is involved) while active creates apparently, an atmospheric anomaly that causes--from what I've noticed in these situations--a strange and sudden affliction that seems to afflict the human nervous system in roughly 95% of the population (some of you may think I'm being TOO generous) it has these noticeable effects: mass stupidity, mass standing comatose adult/children (like deer in headlights), GRABBING THEIR FUCKING cellphone to video it, calling anyone but 911, calling 911 when the situation could have been averted for atleast a minute (sometimes more, MUCH MORE--it can get ridiculous) by them doing a small innocuous measure--but the measure is: beneath them, might get them dirty, they may get close to "the action", they could injury themselves requiring a band-aid; and so, so, so, so, so, many other things that could be listed, but you really can just go to the Failblog and look around and find one thousand examples I don't have here. But this 95% always does the things I listed above and do similar ridiculous actions OTHER THAN stopping the problem! It really is quite amusing and it's also why we've got the term "hero". Hero really should read:
Hero: The person that finally decided to resolve a problem when everyone else decided it was better to journal about it. You get my drift... Yes, there is the "real" hero out there, but they typically have other things that show that they are, like undying loyalty from their followers or getting the Medal of Honor--that type of thing.
This window washing water can be found in large containers, like the one he was carrying to put the fire out, around EVERY single station (typically, sometimes there are even WATER HOSES in the middle). Atleast ONE person was paying attention and put the fire out on both the fuel hose and the gas tank (it looked like he got them out--with a little bucket of water...well used if I might say). He is a minor hero, but he's one of those people that solves an emergency put before a group of people, and decidedly did not take photos first.
Just felt like the man deserved some credit, so I decided to have someone say something good about him (me ); since it's mostly about the idiot eia douche who RAN to find help from the store manager, running RIGHT PAST the fire extinguisher--fucking poetic and on camera. That guy will NEVER live this down...
I'm ALSO assuming he did panic and run into the store to find the clerk, rather than just running away, BUT people HAVE done that... ((Benefit of doubt for this eia, I guess...)

@dystopianfuturetoday

I think you go about prostylization the wrong way. I see you as kind of a digitized version of the guy who stands outside of bars with a megaphone and a sandwich board, passing judgement off on revelers that just don't care at best, and want to pick a fight with you at worst. Well intended, but not persuasive or well received.

I went about things the wrong way when I first arrived here, being somewhat of a neophyte to evangelism, which set the tone for the rest of my time here. Along the way, I've made some mistakes and said some things which further served to marginalize me, which the antitheists here have throughly capitalized on.

I was more hot blooded when I arrived, and cocky, being throughly schooled in all manner of philosophical argumentation, and having been *experienced* in the transcendent, I was more interested in dismantling arguments than showing the love of Christ. I regret that, but what's done is done. What's true is that God makes everything new.

My main failure was to take the bait of the innumerable insults that have been thrown my way. This was simply an immaturity in my faith, not really understanding what Jesus said about how I should react to them. He said to love that person, no matter how much they hate you. Pray for those who persecute you and despitefully use you. The insults are not as bothersome anymore. I'm more interested now in love than argument.

You write these large blocks of text filled with Bible verses, judgement and a good deal of fire and brimstone. FYI: Bible verses, judgement, fire and brimstone only work on people who already believe in and fear God, just as you probably have no fear of Xenu, Allah or Mitt "White Horse" Romney (google it - funny story)

I have a wide variety of conversations on the sift, many of them on historical, philosophical, and scientific topics. People ask me questions about nearly everything, and so I think it would be difficult to pigeonhole my comments this way. Certainly, I have witnessed the truth about Gods judgment, but this isn't my main focus. As far as fearing God goes, you're right, many do not, but their conscience is still witnessing against them.

I'll look up Mitt "white horse" Romney.

The Christians in my life that make me most sympathetic to Christianity are the ones who express their faith through actions, not words. I've only met a handful of these people in my life, but they've all made a positive impact on my life. These are the people who exude love, empathy, understanding and compassion. These are the people that say 'I love you' when you really need to hear 'I love you.' You feel it almost like an aura around them. And, in every case, I had to inquire about them to discover their faith - with none of that uncomfortable evangelizing that comes off more like used car sales pitch than deep expression of faith. And, unlike the used car sales pitch, when I did learn of their faith, I felt a genuine respect for it.

Certainly, Christians should be doing good works at every opportunity. Faith without works is dead. Scripture advises two approaches to reach people. It says some save with mercy, and others with fear. Some people are so hardhearted that the only way to pierce their armor is to make them realize that they will have to answer for their secret sins, the ones that people hide behind their masks of public purity. To let them know that they didn't actually get away with it, whatever it may be. That's kind of why it kind of amuses me when I hear someone say something like "If I saw God I would tell Him off", as if God doesn't have them dead to rights on a list of sins 5 miles long.

Others are like a fragile flower, which must be handled very carefully and gently. Ones who have been abused by the church, for instance. It is truly sad how common this actually is. Of course there are many situations inbetween these two approaches, but in general, it is some combination of the two, leaning towards one of them.

I appreciate what you're saying about your friends. Perhaps this is the way the Holy Spirit has called them to deal with you. They are most certainly praying for your salvation. Again, it depends on the situation. It depends on the kind of relationship, and how much time you have to invest in someone. It is usually expedient to share the gospel in most cases.

Ultimately, it is out of our hands. I can't save anyone; only the power of God can change someones heart. When someone is saved, it is a true miracle.

Of course you can't choose what you believe; what you believe chooses you, so none of these people have brought me any closer to God. But that's OK, because they've done something much more important, they've brought me closer to my fellow humans. They've shown me the power of empathy (not that I'm always the most empathetic person - I've a ways to go in that category) and how contagious just being a good person can really be.

You believe according to your experience, and how interested you are in what is actually true, versus what you appear to see. If you believe that you are generally right about everything, then you will never look beyond your preconceived notions. I only changed my mind about God because He showed me the spiritual reality. I could not logically believe in naturalistic materialism as being a legitimate description of reality after that.

It's wonderful that your friends have taught you something about life, especially concerning the love of God. What Jesus teaches is that every human being has intrinsic value and is worthy of respect and love. He teaches us to love unconditionally and sacrificially, disregarding our own preferences for the good of others. If you can move past all of the contentious issues that surround these topics, and look to the words of Jesus Christ, you will find a transcendent love superior to the wisdom of this world. He gives us a standard of behavior that is impossible for any human being to live up to (without His help). Jesus asks more of you than any other person, in this time or any other, ever will.

I'm not sure if this helps you, especially considering it's pretty hard to refute aggressive atheists if you don't talk a great deal about your faith. Maybe a better path would be to understand where these atheists are coming from and what you have in common. Mutual respect. I don't know.

It does help me, and I appreciate your advice. There is always a better path when there is an argument, although, there is simply no avoiding having to debate certain things, when certain misconceptions are presented as the truth about what Christianity is. Even though you may be predisposed to agree with religious criticism, you must notice the distortions that are bandied about in the atheist community about Christianity and religion in general. I hear the same ones, over and over and over again.

I mean you no offense by this comment, my religious spite phase has mostly passed. I'd like to see you have a little better time on the site and not be the subject of scorn. Many of the discussion you have with atheists seem like a waste of time for all parties, because it's just a clash of worldviews rather than an attempt to find common ground and make progress. Some of the atheists on this site can be very cruel. I don't really follow these long back and forth theological battles anymore, but if someone crosses that line and is cruel to you, I'd be happy to join in on your side. If that appeals to you, drop me a PM.

I'm glad to hear that you are no longer in the business of giving theists a hard time. There are certainly enough people working doubleshift on this that you can walk away with your head held high. Yes, I agree, common ground should be sought out as a matter of course, although it is not an exaggeration to say that convinced atheists and theists typically disagree on almost everything. It's also hard to approach this on a human level, being that this is the internet, and the medium is far inferior for interpersonal communication. It is good for certain kinds of communication, but when it comes to empathy for instance, much is lost.

In any case, I genuinely appreciate your offer. Thank you for your magnanimousness. I may take you up on it sometime. I might also ask you how you see humanity avoiding a dystopianfuturetomorrow.

@shinyblurry Some constructive criticism:

I think you go about prostylization the wrong way. I see you as kind of a digitized version of the guy who stands outside of bars with a megaphone and a sandwich board, passing judgement off on revelers that just don't care at best, and want to pick a fight with you at worst. Well intended, but not persuasive or well received.

You write these large blocks of text filled with Bible verses, judgement and a good deal of fire and brimstone. FYI: Bible verses, judgement, fire and brimstone only work on people who already believe in and fear God, just as you probably have no fear of Xenu, Allah or Mitt "White Horse" Romney (google it - funny story)

The Christians in my life that make me most sympathetic to Christianity are the ones who express their faith through actions, not words. I've only met a handful of these people in my life, but they've all made a positive impact on my life. These are the people who exude love, empathy, understanding and compassion. These are the people that say 'I love you' when you really need to hear 'I love you.' You feel it almost like an aura around them. And, in every case, I had to inquire about them to discover their faith - with none of that uncomfortable evangelizing that comes off more like used car sales pitch than deep expression of faith. And, unlike the used car sales pitch, when I did learn of their faith, I felt a genuine respect for it.

Of course you can't choose what you believe; what you believe chooses you, so none of these people have brought me any closer to God. But that's OK, because they've done something much more important, they've brought me closer to my fellow humans. They've shown me the power of empathy (not that I'm always the most empathetic person - I've a ways to go in that category) and how contagious just being a good person can really be.

I'm not sure if this helps you, especially considering it's pretty hard to refute aggressive atheists if you don't talk a great deal about your faith. Maybe a better path would be to understand where these atheists are coming from and what you have in common. Mutual respect. I don't know.

I mean you no offense by this comment, my religious spite phase has mostly passed. I'd like to see you have a little better time on the site and not be the subject of scorn. Many of the discussion you have with atheists seem like a waste of time for all parties, because it's just a clash of worldviews rather than an attempt to find common ground and make progress. Some of the atheists on this site can be very cruel. I don't really follow these long back and forth theological battles anymore, but if someone crosses that line and is cruel to you, I'd be happy to join in on your side. If that appeals to you, drop me a PM.

>> ^ForgedReality:

>> ^garmachi:
Colbert's been on fire lately! Also, Romney's a douche.
promote

Name one besides Ron Paul who isn't a douche.
(Notice: Sarcasm box NOT CHECKED)


Meh, they're all douches, insane libertarian creationists included.

>> ^garmachi:

Colbert's been on fire lately! Also, Romney's a douche.
promote


Name one besides Ron Paul who isn't a douche.

(Notice: Sarcasm box NOT CHECKED)

Your video, Colbert-On Romney's "Funny" Story About Plant Closing, has made it into the Top 15 New Videos listing. Congratulations on your achievement. For your contribution you have been awarded 1 Power Point.

Colbert's take on this:

http://videosift.com/video/Colbert-On-Romneys-Funny-Story-About-Plant-Closing

</shamelessplug>

It's been in some television shows too. I think Southland had an episode where some kid would throw his bike on the ground and make like the people hit him or someone had hit him. Then they'd either take the car or steal whatever they could out of it while people were checking on the kid.

Kid really can't be prosecuted since he's a minor, and.......good luck on the rest.

Soon as it's on TV, it seems like you start to see those kind of crimes in the news. Not sure if it's new awareness of it, a surge in the crime, or it catching people's eye because it seems kind of fantastic since it was on television.

And there's another less obvious crime that this video made me think back to with the guy in the street being on crutches.

People faking disabilities for quick cash. Homeless people do it.....I've got a funny story about this I'll stick at the end of this comment. And there are people who go around with these little US flags with a piece of paper on it that shows sign language, and it might be legitimate in some cases. But they show up in fast food joints and go out to the tables, throw out some sign language and point to the paper and another that asks for donations...then give you a little plastic flag and leave quickly. They don't have any kind of charity affiliation that you can see....

And the homeless guy story. My dad and his cousin worked at the GM factory. The cousin used to give guys money because they'd claim they didn't have enough money to eat (lunch money basically) because they didn't make enough. And even after my dad pointed out that they make the same or more than both of them do, he still felt sorry for them. Well this changed when my dad showed him the "homeless" guy that would sit out in front of the plant during their shift changes. He was older maybe 50-60 and would tell them how bad it was for him and probably get 10-30 bucks each shift change, in the early to mid 70s. One day the cousin gave him a buck and my dad laughed at him, and this cousin is kind of a hotheaded guy so he accuses my dad of being a heartless prick, etc. So my dad gets him to walk with him to the edge of the building and he points out a nice caddy sitting there idling WITH A DRIVER, and tells him to check for that car every day that "homeless" guy is around. The days he wasn't out during shift change, the car was not there. The days he was there, car was sitting out there idling. The guy made enough money by panhandling at the GM plant to hire a driver to drive him around and was there nearly every day the plant was open....getting money from the workers and very few ever caught on. Got some other "homeless" people stories, but this one is by far the best I've ever heard.

I think they were laughing more at Zack Braff's (possibly faked, definitely exaggerated) reaction. Plus, it is a funny story.

I call Londonderry "Derry", it's like calling Los Angles "LA" and there's nothing wrong with their usage. I wouldn't call it Derry in a formal situation but I'm just being anal here. I love a good bit of anal.

I upvoted the funny story, what's this talk of not understanding? They're joking, right?>> ^Quboid:

I understood every single word of what she said. What's the problem?
Also, this is the first time I've heard my home town mentioned on the Sift, yay!

Funny story my name used to be Auger88 but for some reason I had trouble validating the account probably a typo on my part or something anyway if you try enough times you trip a security block that then flags your IP address so that everytime you click ANY video on the site you get Rick Rolled!

It was so funny I couldn't even get mad about it. Admin sorted it out, the IP ban part for me at least if not the name. Still, hilarious! These pics remind me of that.

>> ^ant:

VS needs to use them.

@Morganth

Funny story - This "actual footage" is from a planned "docu-series" that G4TV paid to film, edit, stylize and promote on tv and the internet.

http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/707093/g4-announces-groundbreaking-new-series-bomb-patrol-afghanistan/

Meh, then again. G4 probably just borrowed previously existing footage from the 8 or so conveniently placed camera the U.S. military deploys with every bomb disposal mission..