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Controversial opinions about anything

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  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,184
    I agree, @Creasy47. Sometimes I doubt whether all this press attention is a good thing in the first place. Yeah - yeah, "the people deserve to know" and all that but what good has foreign meddling in those affairs ever done? People have tried, time and again, the Bonos of this world, to talk, to achieve constructive dialogue... And where do we stand now? Nowhere! Except that we have an occasional riot here in Europe when an attack is launched in the Middle-East. Folks who have families over there feel like they are somehow entitled to knocking over cars and destroying shops in the upper half of the Northern Hemisphere. Apparently, they blame our politicians for not doing anything about it...

    *sigh*

    Will all due respect, when two peoples with conflicting religions on top of every else quarrel with missiles, talking usually leads to almost nothing. We can smile a few times in front of a camera, shake hands, part as friends and then nuke the enemy. Yes, I'm very cynical about these things.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    @DarthDimi, I'm right there with you. They've been at it for such a long time, and nothing is going to change that. Just let them duke it out. Like you said, talking will only do something in the eye of the public, before they rush home and grab their guns and bombs and start attacking like they wanted to do in the first place. I don't see a way of appealing to both sides, so since it has gone on this long, I'm sure both sides will continue to fight and shed blood as long as there are citizens.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,804
    Here's the thing: when you see two kids in a schoolyard fight, and one is really big and one is really small, you can kinda guess who's actually the bully. Just sayin'.
  • WillyGaloreWillyGalore
    Posts: 6,396
    chrisisall wrote: »
    Here's the thing: when you see two kids in a schoolyard fight, and one is really big and one is really small, you can kinda guess who's actually the bully. Just sayin'.

    Not always...

  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,976
    @WillyGalore, that was the exact same thing that I first thought of when I read that. Totally unexpected outcome to that video.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,804
    WillyGalore wrote: »
    Not always...
    Okay, now that's a really poor example. When I say big, I don't mean fat. But the outcome in that video was great.
    =D>
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,184
    @WillyGalore, I LOVE that video - and yet I'm not supposed to I guess. As a teacher, I'm not supposed to condone any violence on the playground. But in this case, I can at least understand it and sympathize.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    It's not really condoning violence. Here I call it "Not taking $*&T from anybody." ;)
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    edited July 2014 Posts: 17,804
    DarthDimi wrote: »
    As a teacher, I'm not supposed to condone any violence on the playground. But in this case, I can at least understand it and sympathize.
    I'm amazed the kid got up after that. My first thought was that he might be really seriously injured. But, bullying victims sometimes respond with explosive ferocity...
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    Posts: 2,341
    This is tragic for the Palestinians. After what they endured during the holocaust, I would think that the Israelis would be more sympathic. But no. This is a sorry testiment to human nature.
    I mean Hitler (and Japan) claimed they needed "living space". When given an upper hand and the backing of a superpower, the Jews are given carte blanch to crap all over the idigenous people of Palestine.
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    edited July 2014 Posts: 2,341
    Forgive the double post but the new format makes it necessary.
    Anyway, Jewish aggression has led to organizations like Hamas and the PLO militancy. They are tired of being pushed around.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    @OHMSS69, there is an "Edit" option in the top right corner next to the Quote option. Hover to the right of the "Quote" option and you'll see a black gear icon. Click on that and you can edit your post.
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    edited July 2014 Posts: 2,341
    @Chrisisall
    thanks for posting that map. I can use it to make my points at the water coolers. :)
    @0BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Like I said, the new format takes getting used to. Muchas gracias.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited July 2014 Posts: 11,189
    A lighter one relating to movies:

    The film Independence Day is a great piece of fluff entertainment.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,184
    @BAIN123, it really is! I hate Emmerich but ID4 is one of my boyhood pleasures. Must have watched that film well into the double digits. I will say this, I prefer the theatrical version to the extended version. Randy Quaid just doesn't do it for me.

    IMO, everything Emmerich put out after ID4 was just more of the same, more arrogant bogus, more silliness. People say bad things about Uwe Boll. Roland Emmerich is worse.
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited July 2014 Posts: 11,189
    I too grew up with Independence Day.

    I couldn't stand 2012 when I saw it in the cinema and was extremely close to walking out. ID4 though is a lot fun and, most importantly, suited its era perfectly. There's some crappy performances (*cough*Bill Pullman *cough*) but that's part of its charm - he's a great B-Movie actor in a similar group to a pre-Bond Pierce Brosnan. He's also balanced out by some genuinely strong actors around him who make the most of fairly flimsy characters (Robert Loggia, Margaret Colin, Vivica A. Fox, Jeff Goldblum, Brent Spiner, and Will Smith).

    I actually really like Randy Quaid too.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,184
    At the height of the film's climax, I really didn't need all of his victory cries.
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    Posts: 2,341
    Independence Day was the big blockbuster hit of summer 1996. Yet its nothing more than an adaptation of HG Wells' "War of The Worlds".
    Alien invasion, alien technology is so superior to our puny toys, in the end they use a virus[computer] to kill the aliens.
    I never read a review that pointed these facts out back in 1996. Does reviewers read any of the classic novels? Jeez!

    Its till a good entertaining film.

    I liked Randy Quaid too.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,184
    I thought it blended elements from War Of The Worlds with elements from Childhood's End. It was very popular indeed. At one point I called it my favourite movie ever. #-o

    Fair enough. I guess I dislike Quaid's character a lot more than Quaid himself. ;-)
  • BAIN123BAIN123
    edited July 2014 Posts: 11,189
    OHMSS69 wrote: »
    Independence Day was the big blockbuster hit of summer 1996. Yet its nothing more than an adaptation of HG Wells' "War of The Worlds".
    Alien invasion, alien technology is so superior to our puny toys, in the end they use a virus[computer] to kill the aliens.
    I never read a review that pointed these facts out back in 1996. Does reviewers read any of the classic novels? Jeez!

    Its till a good entertaining film.

    I liked Randy Quaid too.

    I've read War of the Worlds and even live right near its UK locations (Woking, Leatherhead, Horsell Common).

    ID4 is a lot dumber in tone but I still enjoy it.
  • 4EverBonded4EverBonded the Ballrooms of Mars
    Posts: 12,480
    thelivingroyale wrote: »
    @Creasy47 I gave it a chance and tried my best to enjoy it but I couldn't. I watched the whole first season and I still didn't get half of what was going on or care about the characters. Still, I would have kept watching it if I was at least entertained but I wasn't. It bored me.

    @jobo I found it really slow paced too, so it's not just you, and I completely agree with you.
    royale65 wrote: »
    yes, but it has boobs ;-)

    So does my mother in law. Doesn't mean I like her :P

    Seriously though I heard that a lot before I watched it, that there was loads of sex and gore and it was dead shocking but there really wasn't that much. The show was just a let down for me, after all the hype I was expecting it to at least entertain me.

    I have not seen the show. I read the first book and did not enjoy it (apparently I'm in the minority). I found it tedious and for whatever reason, uninteresting. I will probably skip the tv show. And this from someone who loves LOTR and the Chronicles of Narnia.

    I have not yet seen Downtown Abbey yet. Is that controversial? :-B
    Does anyone here really like it? That one I do want to at least try.

    And if anyone has watched it, did you like it a lot better than the recently revived and then cancelled Upstairs Downstairs?
  • TuuliaTuulia
    Posts: 2,081
    4EverBonded wrote: »
    thelivingroyale wrote: »
    @Creasy47 I gave it a chance and tried my best to enjoy it but I couldn't. I watched the whole first season and I still didn't get half of what was going on or care about the characters. Still, I would have kept watching it if I was at least entertained but I wasn't. It bored me.

    @jobo I found it really slow paced too, so it's not just you, and I completely agree with you.
    royale65 wrote: »
    yes, but it has boobs ;-)

    So does my mother in law. Doesn't mean I like her :P

    Seriously though I heard that a lot before I watched it, that there was loads of sex and gore and it was dead shocking but there really wasn't that much. The show was just a let down for me, after all the hype I was expecting it to at least entertain me.

    I have not seen the show. I read the first book and did not enjoy it (apparently I'm in the minority). I found it tedious and for whatever reason, uninteresting. I will probably skip the tv show. And this from someone who loves LOTR and the Chronicles of Narnia.

    I have not yet seen Downtown Abbey yet. Is that controversial? :-B
    Does anyone here really like it? That one I do want to at least try.

    And if anyone has watched it, did you like it a lot better than the recently revived and then cancelled Upstairs Downstairs?

    Had to search back a bit to find out what the "it" people are referring to was. I assume Game Of Thrones? If so, I tried to watch it (the first few episodes of season 1), found it boring, so I gave up.

    I haven't seen all of Downtown Abbey, but I've liked what I've seen, great acting all around. No, I don't think there's anything controversial about not having seen it or any other series. Can't comment on Upstairs Downstairs. There was a series by that name shown on tv when I was a kid. Watched it I then, but can't remember a damned thing. Haven't seen any of the revival.
  • OHMSS69OHMSS69
    Posts: 2,341
    I like Downton Abbey @4EverBonded. I really loved the first three seasons but this last season (number 4) was awfully bad. Boring, great storylines left to wither and die. wasted potential and an all around terrible season. I doubt I will ever watch it again.
  • Mendes4LyfeMendes4Lyfe The long road ahead
    Posts: 8,401
    SPECTRE has the best 'ballad' type bond song in the series.
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    Mendes4Lyfe wrote: »
    SPECTRE has the best 'ballad' type bond song in the series.

    ABSOLUTELY it's bloody brilliant.
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    Russia is unfairly demonized. For everything they are accused of, the West and the Arab world get away with attrocities 100 times worse.
  • jobojobo
    Posts: 7,507
    Thunderfinger wrote: »
    Russia is unfairly demonized. For everything they are accused of, the West and the Arab world get away with attrocities 100 times worse.


    I can agree with that, controversial or not.

    Morale seems to basically be a cultural thing. In the west we always have "reasons" for commiting attrocities, which somehow legitimize it for some reason...
  • SaintMarkSaintMark
    Posts: 7,653
    Russia is not unfairly demonized, it is only that we take opposition against the western demonization from the other viewpoint than our own.

    Lets face it Europe has quite a track record for atrocities in our history and the US does its best to facilitate their military industrial cooperation and does leave a bloody footprint everywhere these days. So we can easily say that we are a bunch of right bastards as well.
  • BondJasonBond006BondJasonBond006 on fb and ajb
    Posts: 9,020
    Doing a Halo jump is better than sex.
  • SarkSark Guangdong, PRC
    Posts: 1,138
    I'll have to do a HALO jump sometime so I can compare the two.

    Some people should really stop reading RT, since this thread isn't supposed to be about politics I'll leave it at that.
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