^Say it isn't so, Siftie. You are real! You simply must be! I thought we had something special. Remember Vegas?! Ballet class?! Community service? Turner Classic Movies? Wearing hats? It was all real!

Wasn't it?

Oh god, has this all been a lie? You... you lied to me! You bastard! Oh well, let's get you to your diamond nonetheless. And, yeah, a bronze diamond? What the fuck is that? *books

So when it's real, you'll find out before the eleven o'clock news, because you'll be dead. That's always reassuring.

>> ^blankfist:
Don't you love it when someone gets the bright idea to hold a drill but refuses to let the general public know what's up? About four or five years ago they were doing some sort of anti-missile test off the coast of California, so up in the sky all you could see was trails of missile smoke. They finally told us what is was when the 11 o'clock news came on that night. Thanks.

>> ^SaNdMaN:
^ What the heck are you talking about? The whole point is to surprise people that the person they've just seen explaining the technology is actually CGI. Did you think that the CGI demonstration was just the face turning red and black? That would be stupid and pointless.


The demonstration was showing that THE FACE was CG for the whole video.

Geebus.

They are showing that their motion tracking system is really great at FACES.

The rest is REAL.

You want proof? how about this?:

Using (USC's) Institute for Creative Technologies' special scanning system that can capture facial details down to the individual pore, the face of actress Emily O'Brien was transformed into a digital representation of herself, which could then be entirely machine-manipulated. A special spherical lighting rig captured O'Brien in 35 reference facial poses using a pair of high resolution digital cameras. The facial maps were then converted into 3D data using Image Metrics' proprietary markerless motion capture technology.

Holly Crap!
Is this for real?
You can't even blow your nose in private when you think no one is looking.
What gives them the right (human being to Human being), to watch you non stop.

I could go on but, Ill just fume!

Ok westy, I'll give you a serve too if you like... it's just it's so... so... hard to actually read your damn posts!

Look, rationality is a great trait, it helps with being able to sort out all sorts of things, being rational should be brought into play in many areas where it isn't.

BUT

If you live your life SOLELY rationally, and never give in to ANYTHING else, then you're going to be one miserable sonofabitch.

Music... you don't have to rationalize anything to enjoy music, and you can sometimes really enjoy music you know to be 'bad', but you don't care because it makes you feel good and sublime. If you were being purely rational you could talk your way out of enjoying it.

Dramatic arts... Watching a movie, play, whatever... you KNOW it's all not real, you KNOW it's 'fake', but if you allow yourself the privilege of suspension of disbelief then you can enjoy in feeling real emotions based on people's performances. It can be truly wonderful.

Nature... you can look at a beautiful forest or waterfall or animal and think rationally about how it came to be, or you can just feel wonderful that such things exist in this world, and that they can bring you such joy just by seeing them.

Sport... While you can rationalize that you have nothing to really link you to the people over there in Beijing competing for the same country you live in, being able to link yourself with them, to think of them as your team... allows you to get caught up in the moment, allows you to feel a thrill when they win (especially from behind), and it can make you feel great.

I guess the secret to life is knowing when to be rational and when to just allow yourself to enjoy a moment, and quite frankly, I think the Olympics should be some of those moments, just once every four years, where we get to enjoy these feelings without blowhards trying to suggest we're all being mentally challenged for doing so.

I put to you that we are actually running at a higher level as we have worked out one of the things to make life that much more enjoyable, and I welcome you to the insight once you've had enough of being a grumpy pain in the bum towards everyone.

It is indeed real.

You could use the same argument as to why GM and the California Energy Dept. and the US Federal Govt. canned the EV1 production in the later 90's.

"Ahh its gotta be fake if the car manufacturers dont wanna support it!!!"

Think about that for a min..

It is all too real, you can tell by the way they followed the universal gang/mob treaty of 1872 section 4: "when engaged in epic mortal combat of Henchman V.S. Bowlcut Hair topped action hero, Henchman must circle said hero. Attack one at a time, initiate contact with hero by charging blindly and grab hold while reciving no more than 3 blows before going down. If a weapon* were to be used, Henchman must pose with weapon before shuffling forward to recive hits."

*for rules and regulations on firearms, please read section 5 of the treaty.

Oh Schmawy, must you hide behind the masks? I know who the real you is. No reason to hide it from everyone.

>> ^kronosposeidon:
Of course it's fake...for now. However it probably won't be long before fembots are real. You know there's a market for female "companions" just waiting to be exploited by technology. It's not a matter of if, but when this technology will become real.


You want a "companion"? Check out a RealDoll.

http://www.videosift.com/video/Man-comes-out-to-his-girlfriend-as-a-sex-doll-user

I figured you woulda had one by now...

Of course it's fake...for now. However it probably won't be long before fembots are real. You know there's a market for female "companions" just waiting to be exploited by technology. It's not a matter of if, but when this technology will become real.

no takers??
firetruck
nobody gets the prize..
Mr. Hoard, I keep fergettin' it's yer livelihood-and I know you know how much hatred their is for haters. You still don't get it do ya?? Have I not gone out of my way to explain myself with regard to my contempt for your vibe at times?? Your perception perhaps, is what's askew, again: while a Marijuana user myself, I blame the marijuana in your case. Labels, labels, and more labels-ad-hom, neo-con, I really don't know which labels place me in a tidy box, to be filed in the "Oh he's one or more of those" categories....why???
Because you never give up the sacred cow....Unlike most folks, I don't necessarily care what you think or say as much as I want to know why you say or don't say, think or don't think. Sorry to bust your version of relaxation-perhaps you are witnessing another, and yes, their have been a few, who have left this place out of sheer frustration. (not unlike what dag's head felt like 8 or so hours ago, after all that cheap Aussie wine, or what mine felt like reading the same thread, w/o wine)

I too relax here, but experiential awareness being a dynamic thing, I also get wound up, frustrated, just as much or more than yourself, as do we all-I can't be asked to abruptly halt something for want of understanding-If I should ever become siftquisitionated, new rules will have to be added to the already, long-winded tomes.

If my legacy here is to be eternal asshole, mine for you would be, Eternal Panderer....a title which I came up with on the fly, and had to check a dictionary to make sure it fit...funny, the definition I was thinking of alludes to the schoolyard homophone you were called on the blog, by some qm-type.....

relax.
I am not your enemy, and don't hate your input, and like so many of the directions your dredging of the internet takes me-you have given me many hours of satisfaction here, as well as many moments of other-(damn,I'm gettin' some blood-fill in the ol' Vienna sausage)

You think too much in one direction, me in another-welcome to the world of the real. You need people to be who they will, to remember who you are.God help the Canadians, and these pussyfied Americans, both of whom would babble themselves into box of scorpions, and then talk about the long-term effects of the pain, the poison,all the while standing in the box. My frustration must be in my head as well......told ya we juxtaposed well-

I have called Hillary a cunt here, clitless, etc., and all I get is ignored-at the very least, you will never suffer that- I try to call it like it may be, not like it is-

Go back and read the siftquisition you always refer to, the answer is there, i've told you more than once.....simply checks and balances

>> ^Grimm:
Where are my fellow skeptics? I can't believe you guys would think this was real. ...you should have felt your leg being pulled.

Oh no doubt this is fun with photoshop. That said, my personal account above^ is not fiction and brings the grain of truth that people need to believe this could be real.

>> ^youdiejoe:
... witnessed a mother giving, what must have been a kid between 1 -2 years old, swigs of her Mountain Dew soda

I think I could actually hear the kids teeth dissolving as it sipped on the green goodness.

Awesome Smibbo! I like this Smibbo much better. All that worrying about feelings just holds you back. Let it all out! Kick my ass! Our discussion has finally begun.

Yes, you remind me of myself when I was in my twenties.

Your opinion similarly reminds me of that of a young adult. I didn't mention it earlier as I thought it might anger you.

Ever read Pop Psych?

No, is it a good read?

I didn't say anything about being free from the influence of culture. THat was part of my argument with you.

Then what holy hell are we arguing about. We Agree!!! (:

Tell me, would you have said the same things to me originally if you had known I was raised by an adoptive family of minority status here in the US?

Yes.

Would you have told me that I was "a little bit racist" then?

Yes.

And if I had asked you "well then HOW am I racist and WHO am I racist against?" what would you have said?

"It's different for everybody, so I couldn't say without knowing more about you. I would probably start with the parts of culture you like most and least. I'm not a psychologist, so I probably wouldn't be the best person to ask."

I would hope you would have needed more information about me before you coulkd truthfully answer.

Yes, I typed that just above before reading this.

But because you see a picture of a white child on my avatar you assume you can dictate my prejudices? My bigotry?

Specifically? no. Generally? Abso-fricken-lutely, I can judge you as part of the larger multi-cultural society of which I am a part.

Think about that.

Done

Point being, unified in America or not, culture is a vast enterprise that evolves and changes

I'm with you so far.....

..but more importantly encompasses much more than the mainstream that is shoved in our faces 24/7.

Well... yes.... but culture encompasses EVERYTHING, and that is apropos of......?

Yes, subculture and subsects of average culture. Which culture have I been influenced by? Which culture have I subscribed to myself willingly and unwillingly?

Prejudice doesn't discriminate (no pun intended) against willing or unwilling.

If there's anyone who knows the truth of the statment "my assumptions don't define you" it's me.

You are clearly obsessed with how other people perceive you. You are the last person still discussing this thread with me, and all of your arguments are based around how others (namely me) perceive you. If your assumptions about my assumptions are correct, then you've got nothing to worry about. And, if your assumptions are wrong about my assumptions, then you've got nothing to worry about because who fricken cares? I'm a random smart-ass on the internet, 10 years your junior. MY OPINION IS MEANINGLESS!

Yes, I will not pretend to be humble in this respect and you don't have to believe me just because I say so but I do say this much: the average person's assumptions about me, upon meeting me, are generally 95% dead wrong. I am speaking of pure appearance here. Thus although I appreciate your recognizing this vital fact of human esteem, I know it quite well; no one defines me but myself. HOWEVER I also know just as well that there are categories and labels people use in order to facilitate communication. Categories and labels do not have to be evil inherently, a fact I am aware of but I'm not sure you are. I could be called a "freak" a "mutant" or "zomgwhathappenedtoyou?" and I doubt I would even blink, much less care because I'm aware of the dire need humans have for categorizing the outside world in order to make some kind of comfortable sense. I do not begrudge anyone their labels. I take issue with productivity and action.

Me, me, me, me, me, me, me! When you sing you begin with Do Re Mi, the first three words just happen to be, Mi Mi Mi..... How many I's and Me's do you count in that paragraph?

Your assertion that "everyone's a little bit racist" strikes deep against my core because

As well it should...

(here's the crux) it's non-productive.

At the very least it's produced a nice discussion between the two of us, which is a good thing, right?

I wouldn't care except that I see how important a subject it is to you..

I don't buy it, you've expended way to much time and energy to not care.

You say something like that to the "right" people and they will all nod and play "whose more self-aware" with each other. Mutual back-patting is nice but hardly productive to any particular ends. You say something like that to the "wrong" people and you will perk their defenses to the extreme and fuel the fires of backlash. And in the end, right or wrong people, what does it ultimately matter? If you're right, thenwhat's the point of caring? If you're wrong then you've made people needlessly paranoid. Either way you've contributed to the exact opposite of what you wanted to happen.

There is always violent backlash at every major cultural change. Think of the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, Western Expansion, Suffrage, Civil Rights, etc, etc........ It's painful, but seems to be part of the process.

Again, I like the 'real' you. This Smibbo is a bad ass and needs no ones approval.

I'm going to vote up 10 of your vids as a sign of respect!!!

I'm happy to continue if you like.

legacy, from personal experience you don't need to watch a show even once to know more details about fictional peoples lives than you ever would have wanted to even if they were real. You just have to be unfortunate enough to spend a little time around fans.

"I didn't say that. My point was "quit suggesting it used to be better"."

It was better under Clinton.

“Iraq is just a blip compared to Vietnam.”

So now we’re not supposed to say or do anything about Iraq until it gets as bad as Vietnam?

“Melodramatic.”

Melodramatic is acting like the world is going to end because you can’t have ice cream for desert.

America is under the control of a secretive administration that has no qualms with locking people up without charge, and spying on its own citizens. It is currently threatening a nuclear first strike on Iran. There is strong evidence that they stole two presidential elections and will not hesitate to steal a third. They blocked investigations into 9/11. Our debt is skyrocketing, our dollar is weakening, and thousands of innocent people are being killed or injured every week. Those are very real and pressing problems which concern me greatly.

On top of all that, we are seeing more and more overzealous police/security forces and little indication that the trend will subside. In this case, a girl’s wrist was broken over some spilled cake, and the student who recorded the incident was arrested.

There’s nothing melodramatic about it.

In one of your posts above you equated people who report police brutality with “whiners” and “rats.”

That says more about the real you than you will ever realize.

If you think things are getting better under the Bush administration, and that they will fix themselves of their own accord, your ignorance should be registered with the local authorities.

I doubt you're Canadian. You're one of the local republican retards hiding behind an alternate nic. You're a conservative or a republican because, as our government did with the Patraeus/Betray Us incident, you focused more on the criticism, and ignored the veracity of its message.