oldshurst442

In today's world... Where producing horsepower is not a problem anymore. I mean, our automotive engineers have it all figured out and they have a formula and technique to get any horsepower they want out of any configuration and cylinder count that is wanted and needed. So...knowing that our roads are congested, knowing that our roads are crumbling and not safe to drive fast on, knowing that law enforcement is ever so strict in enforcing our very conservative speed limits on our roads and they do this because our populations are growing ever so fast so it does become a very dangerous action if we do speed over the speed limit. Is it really all that important to have high horsepower appliances anymore? Its great on our sports cars...but even them, its for bragging rights because all that power will probably never be used on public roads safely... If the answer is no. Then what horsepower number for our appliance vehicles is appropriate for our roads? Just a question.

By AMORTIZING depreciating assets properly...you get the most for your money... If you wanna be calculating to see what is the best way....then dealing in absolutes... (we dont do this or we never do that) will NEVER get you the most for your dollar. You live in sunny California... Maybe the ocean does rust your vehicles through the salty water breeze...but seeing that I visit Greece and its islands often enough, I dont see 5 year old cars with rust on them. Shyte....I dont see 15-20 year old Greek cars with rust on them. My wife's 2013 Ford Fusion's undercarriage is rusty...not holey....but rusty. 6 year old car. Well maintained. But...the salt used on our snowy Montreal roads will do that to a car. As you could see...long term survivability for cars in the North East...in the snow belt of North America...phoques up cars real bad, so...moot point about depreciation. Oh sure...one could buy a 10 year old Cadillac, Mercedes, Honda for peanuts...but what condition would it be in? Is it really worth the cheap price when it will probably not be reliable? And I aint talking about it stalling on you...but with rust issues....will it lose a bloody wheel on you doing 65 mph on the highway? Because, you really dont know how well the previous owner(s) kept their car... Housing is a whole 'nother subject. Ive seen many families buy 50 year old houses, on the high side of price, thinking they bought a gem...only to waste a good chunk of change demolishing and gutting because...problems... Ive seen plenty of families buy 50 year old houses on the cheap...thinking they bought a decent fixer upper...only to waste a good chunk of change demolishing and gutting because...problems... Now...the headaches of things breaking on you in the middle of the night or even finding good contractors...hopefully they respect their deadlines, hopefully they dont botch the job... Repairing or even renovating your home...your home being in a mess...lat minute breaks...and you cant even stay in your own home...renting a motel room... IS all that worth buying a used home? Because all that I mentioned is a real possibility. Ive seen it happen COUNTLESS of times. Not that buying new is a the ONLY way... But like I said...when someone deals in absolutes... I never do this and I never do that...will only give you heartache... Even if it actually is cheaper buying pre-owned....sometimes peace of mind is PRICELESS!!! I aint saying buying new is peace of mind...Im saying you gotta do your homework...new versus old in that moment with a particular object in THAT moment in time...peace of mind is priceless. But buying an old home...if you dont gut her entirely...you just dont know... Hell...same goes for a car...

I would buy a car new. A Cadillac. A Lincoln. A Mercedes Benz. Whatever car I choose to buy new if its the car I want to buy, its something that I could afford and if its really the money I wouldnt mind departing with. If I cant afford a certain car...Ill buy a less expensive one...new. If I could afford a certain car, but I dont necessarily want to depart with that kind of dough, yet again...Ill buy a less expensive one...new. Everything depreciates. Even houses when not taken care of... One does NOT buy a depreciating asset thinking they will lessen the blow by buying that same depreciating asset used. Yes...one COULD do that... Its a personal thing... But its also what you value. I dont value a used car...no matter what badge it has.... To me...its used. I value a NEW car...even if that NEW car is of a "lesser" badge... I PREFER to be the FIRST owner of MY brand NEW car... Because its MY car. To me...buying a used car...pre-owned...whatever positive spin slogan you wanna use...to me...a used car will never feel like its MINE. Ive owned used cars in my life. Hey...they got me from point A to point B. THAT is ALL that matters. But I also have bought new... Crappy, base model 2009 Mazda 3 with roll up windows...new. I could have bought something used that was a tad more luxurious...but you know what? That crappy, base model 2009 Mazda 3 was MINE... (wife's actually) It was MY baby. I got to soil it first. (use your imagination on this, boys....) Ive had a discussion about depreciation before with @dwightlooi but I didnt feel like answering back... When depreciation is mentioned...on depreciating assets...I NEVER hear the word amortizing... When someone buys a new...depreciating a asset (or used)...one has to look at his finances...he has to be HONEST with himself...and has to AMORTIZE that depreciating asset accordingly. One HAS to factor in the losses. And if he is COMFORTABLE financilly and MENTALLY about losing money on DEPRECIATING assets...then buying new WILL never affect him!!! THIS is what I meant @dwightlooi that depreciation does NOT affect me. I dont care what money my new car will be worth down the road.... I have factored in my usage for the car, the wear and tear on it...I will drive it and maintain it....I WILL be saving money for a NEW car also 5-6-7-8-9-10 years down the road to replace it....and when the car has done its duty serving me, and when its repairs are no longer worth it for me to keep her because now...I have also saved enough money to replace it with an EQUAL valued vehicle, then the car I bought new 5-6-7-8-9-10 years ago, will now be ready for replacement. Ive replace a new car after 6 years. I guess I could have leased. But my life changed and I needed a sedan. 6 years was maybe a tad too short for me to have amortized it properly, but I was single and have saved money for the first 2-3 years of buying the Alero so I had money for a new car anyway. Now I was married with a kid on the way, so the Alero coupe had to go. I bought an Impala... THIS is how it was done a loooong time ago. THIS is how I was taught to buy cars. (by my dad) I aint saying its the only way... Im only saying its the only way...for me! Hey...leasing is a great way to get your butt into a car. Hey...with all those used cars on the market of having 10 million cars plus sold each and every year...its also a GREAT way to get yourself that dream car you always wanted on the cheaper way of getting your butt in a car... I just dont like doing it that way. I like...new car smell...

Not rare. Not in Greece. E Class Taxis are preferred. Yes, like you said. Durable. Nothing wrong with that. But...when North American badge snobs try to snub Chevrolets and Fords BECAUSE of their high livery services, I tend to give the same argument back regarding German so called luxury vehicles. An E Class in Europe is no different that an Epsilon Impala. The equivalent E Class of the 1970s and 1980s was no different than a RWD B Body Impala/Caprice/Bel Air. If you could live with that comparison and reality, we all good. If not, maybe you are the problem and not me.... (Please keep in mind that when I say "you", I mean it in a general way, not YOU personally...)

Nope. Greece uses E Class for Taxis too... E Class...is like a Chevy when optioned out like one... In fact, a Chevy Impala LTZ or Premier, is better equipped, has a more luxurious interior than a mid tier E Class... They do sell bare bones E Class in Greece... I do not know about the rest of Europe including Germany, but Ive seen 2018 E Class taxis in Greece first hand last year...

I had a FLASHBACK to Much Music HONEYMOON SUITE I was hooked on those 3 songs! (Canuck Rock RULES!!!)

yeah... By the mid-80s, everytime Pop Goes The World or Safety Dance would come on or finish, the DJ would ALMOST ALWAYS say "Montreal's own..." Yes! It was fun! MTV...up here in Montreal...we did not get MTV until much much later. We got... Much Music. Which was not like MTV. On the plus side, we also got the French version: Musique Plus. Which made up for not having MTV...

I was always painfully aware. I dont know how popular this group was or how popular Safety Dance was outside of Montreal and Canada (apparently the song was like super popular) but that song never stopped playing on Montreal pop radio in the 1980s. Hey...I was a young boy when the song came out. I liked it. I loved it even. But by the time I became a teenager...you. know..enough is enough!!! They had another cute hit. Pop Goes the World. This song didnt get the same amount of airplay as Safety Dance, but it played enough times for me to HATE HATE HATE it nowadays. I liked it then though...when I was a young boy. Outside of those 2 songs...not much else that I know of. They made a song called Sideways. I liked it. But I dont think it faired to well...

Thanx. Ill read it later. I ALWAYS appreciate reading about airplanes!!!

There is a lot more wrong with it... Boeing execs knew about certain problems... https://www.plant.ca/general/boeing-made-mistake-in-handling-max-737-warning-system-problem-ceo-184448/ Im am vindicated...since some members in here did not want to believe me when the 2nd crash happened... and there maybe more to come...as investigations about Boeing's cover-up are on-going...

Too complex. Maybe for nothing... supposedly... Even the US Airforce has no faith in it... This is true... Although the F16 was designed with stealth in mind. It was the beginnings of stealth production in fighter jets. The F16 also has crazy maneuverability. I believe it to be the first fighter in history to have fly by wire tech. Meaning, the avionics systems are computer controlled. A human could not control the F16 at its highest potential... The F18 was never really that good of an aircraft either. But it did serve the US well. Thanx in part to the rest of the US Airforce's and US Navy's other supportive aircraft. Not likely. The F16 and the F15...YES!!! NOT the F35. It was nearly scrapped even... Yes. The F35 and whatever other aircraft the Russians and the Europeans and the Chinese will bring out in the next 10-15 years to rival the F35 will probably be the last human flown military airplane. Like I said, If Im not mistaken, the F16 started the path to computer controlled avionics.

Several reasons. 1. Technology advances. More maneuverable aircraft maybe need going faster, higher, climbing steeper and faster and the older airframes might not be able to cope with all those stresses. 2. A huge airplane like the F22 actually has a smaller radar signature than what those older airplanes show on radar. 3. You said it yourself. Sometimes its really about the money. The big money that is given to the military and defense budgets so these companies could crank out...military toys. a) because those military toys are really and trully neede b) sometimes its just to keep people working... c) sometimes its just to enrich the people behind those huge military contracts

Yup... And its such a shytty aircraft. Then you got NATO countries, like Canada, who were supposed to buy said POS aircraft for a certain price tag, because it was a joint effort to engineer and build it, but these countries, like Canada, saw that the F35 is truly a POS aircraft and now want nothing to do with it. Pissing of the American government. But then again, even the US Air Force wants nothing to do with this POS aircraft...but they kinda stuck with it...

Hornet on the left. Super Hornet on the right. Obviously with new electronics, radars and stuff.

The Airforce and Navy actually do that very same thing you mentioned. On select aircraft and ships. I dont remember when was the last update on the B-52. I dont know enough about the A10 But I guarantee you the F-15, F16 and F18 all went through several updates. The F16 is still being used. The F18 and F15 will both be retired as the F35 is supposedly taking both of their place. The F15 has been many many times updated in its close to 50 (or perhaps even surpassing) year service.

What was it you said? Oh yeah...I remember... But before I get slammed... I want you folks to understand something I do requests...

Even in THAT response... you are condescending...if it aint laughy things, its downvotes...whatever the case may be...you try to put doubt towards what the other guy is saying to you...instead of back and forth banter...instead of exchanging ideas... WILLFULLY... Meaning...my posts are not accurate no matter what. I aint lying...its just that I think Im saying the truth. Is what you want to imply, right? Instead of actually pondering what the other guy is saying to you, you IMMEDIATELY dismiss and CLOSE yourself to your own world!!! THAT is why YOU can and NEVER be able to discuss ANYTHING political...... YOU choose to NOT accept ANY ideas that are presented to you... Not me, not everyone else. YOU. THIS, is on you!!!

You want more proof @ocnblu? This post here...that I wrote is neither positive nor negative. That post that I wrote shows NO leanings of how I feel about Mount Rushmore, Natives, and Americans past and/or present... YOU took it personal and laughed at it...(then I took it personal because I SAW RIGHT THROUGH YOU!!!) THIS is the equality YOU are talking about???!!! I am STILL in awe with Mount Rushmore... I did NOT know it was built on sacred Native land... I respect history...all MY post said...all I wanted to state, is that NOW, I will be a even more sensitive to Native American history...hence I will be viewing it in a different light... NOW...I am MORE knowledgeable about what is what... hence why I ranted....this post... And why I called YOU up on it... Especially the bolded part... You dont see a pattern here? You think Im lying to you about how I feel? The pattern is this: History was NOT kind to the Natives... I am SENSITIVE to that fact...I COULD relate because the Ottoman Empire was not kind to Greece and Greece lost a lot of land to Turkey...yeah...like the Natives... I do NOT EVER want forget and ignore history...seems like YOU want to brush this under the rug... and then what do you do? You put the blame on others... Did YOU treat me as an equal? Did YOU actually understand what I wrote? OF COURSE NOT!!! CRY ME A RIVER IS WHAT YOU WROTE!!!! Which I already KNEW your response... I wrote this before YOU wrote cry me a river...because I KNOW you dont care...I KNOW YOU WILL NOT LISTEN NOR CHANGE YOUR IGNORANT WAYS!!! So yeah...I am embarrassed for YOU, my friend...

You...have NEVER remained balanced and fair... But...Its OK...we have common ground as I too, dont want a political forum opened up... Why? Because YOU have proven even with EVs....that YOU REFUSE to have ANY discussion. One small example. I once mentioned that I see 5 different Tesla Model 3s daily... YOU immediately scoffed at that. I proceeded to explain to you why in Quebec Tesla has no problem in selling cars and I proceeded to explain to you why EVs, not just Tesla cars, will be a major force in Quebec in the very near future. YOU...then...just short of calling me a liar...dont believe me. YOU will NOT listen to me whatever I say.... I not here to change your mind... But at the same time...YOU ONLY have YOUR ways off thinking and WILL NEVER budge on ANYTHING... While YOU EXPECT EVERYBODY ELSE to cater to YOUR whims... THIS post is PROOF positive of what Im talking about... YOU dont treat ANYBODY equally that opposes YOUR view... What uphill battle? A discussion? A discussion that PROVES your logic is flawed? YOU dont believe me that Quebec is a strong EV market... I even TELL you why... I, on the other hand...UNDERSTAND why in YOUR area EVs may NEVER take-off... But YOU will NEVER be able to SEE what is in MY NECK OF THE WOODS and YOU REFUSE to ACCEPT what I tell you... YOU FLAT OUT TREAT ME LIKE A BULLSHYTER!!! SO... STOP THE CRYING!!!

@ocnblu @Drew Dowdell Why you laughing Blu? (plus all the downvoting you do when somebody mentions THEIR opinion on politics that is different from yours yet you dont offer anything of value...just dumb rhetoric...as if you are knowledgeable on the subjects...) The massacre of Natives is funny to you? Why? You think its because it happened in the past that we should all just ignore history? Because you think it wasnt you personally that harmed Natives that somehow its all good now? Greeks were slaves to the Turks for 400 years during that horrid Ottoman Empire. Every March 21, Greeks celebrate their FREEDOM (Its called their Independence Day...but THAT is false...Greece was ALWAYS independent...we FREED ourselves) Greeks dont EVER want to forget that...and for you...that would be stupid, right? In THIS situation....we want the Natives to just go away? Because your laughy thingy says exactly THAT to me... How does that work? How does that work in the eyes and skin of a Native? Its easy for Greece and Greeks to start moving on from that past as the Ottoman Empire is no longer around....yet it still is...Constantinople and Cyprus is a very harsh reminder, but at least the main mainland Greece...Greece gets to be HELLENIC. In North America...the Natives see their land STILL being occupied bu NON Natives...and YOU have the AUDACITY to laugh? You know...politics is a strange animal... Politics involves EVERYTHING we do in our CIVIC lives. But, some aspects of politics is very human related. And when we are so IGNORANT on the plight of peoples because of our PAST politics and just want it to go away...well... You know Blu...I COULD discuss cars with you...its fun...but you are one very IGNORANT individual with everything else... I for one...will vote NOT to have a political forum open for us to discuss.... Not for me...for YOU... Im embarrassed for you and your ignorance...

yes..it was a wild ride. An awesome ride. Enjoy your parade!!!

There is no blood or violence in any sport... There are injuries. Some of those injuries ARE violent. Sports are physical and fast paced and collisions of all types do happen so yes...it can get violent but for the most part...that violence is NOT malicious. It does happen that one player could be malicious towards another player, but sports do mirror real life...and real life, can be malicious and violent... But...in the sports community, its less violent and malicious than in real life... Hockey gets a bad rap...because hockey players do beat the shyte of each other...they fight, hit each other over the head with their sticks... But its still not as violent as most people think it is. Im sure there are people that enjoy the gore that comes with playing a hard physical game. All teams sports remain team sports and Im not seeing what you are seeing with me me me players with high egos, There are athletes with huge egos....always been that way since the dawn of time...arrogance is a human trait... But its probably the sensational journalism that you read about certain athletes that makes you believe that modern sports is inflicted by this...But its really not. There are many beautiful story lines in all 4 major sports in North America that does NOT make the news... I bet you read about the women's soccer team...but I bet you have no idea what this picture is all about. Over paid, huge ego sports guys? TRUE! There are plenty of those. I will NOT argue... But no different than some CEOs in the corporate world.

My reasons why I loved to play hockey and to watch hockey Not in a particular order 1. Its a fast paced game. The fastest of all sports. Transitions happen instantly, frequently, on the fly. In fact, attacking, counterattacking and defending all in the blink of an eye is what hockey is all about and is what makes hockey such an interesting and fun sport to watch. 2. Its a physical game. As in hitting you opponent trying to get the puck from him being allowed as long as you hit him "legally" and "safely". You could "bodycheck" your opponent to separate him from the puck. (The bolded part is the correct terminology) Its great to see an awesome bodycheck just as its great to see a player avoid a bodycheck. Just as it is great to see a game with a lot of bodychecks dictating the pace just as it is exciting to see a game being paced by fast plays and cool maneuvers with players spinning, skating and dancing on the ice. But a nice placed bodycheck stopping a guy dead in his tracks...is in fact...entertaining. 3. Its an intimidation sport. All sports you could say, have a level of intimidation to them, but hockey, you really really do bully your opponent. But...your opponent most of the time does not get scared too often and sometimes, the bullied becomes THE bully instantaneously. Through various plays during the game, and it may not even be by pushing back psychically that turns the tide. Because the game is fast paced, awesome plays on the ice that gets the bullied to control the pace of the game turns the tide and the bully loses his grip and the tide is turned. 4. Contrary to popular belief...fighting is not exactly permitted in the game....especially in today's version of the game. Fighting was not even permitted in the "Rock 'em Sock 'em days of the 1970s and 1980s. Old time hockey of the 1920s and 1930s neither. (which was more rough than the '70s and '80s) BUT...its not frowned upon nor discouraged either. WHY? Because North American hockey...the ORIGINAL hockey game...ALLOWS the players to police themselves. Not so much in today's game...(but the refs have to do a BETTER job seeing the dirty hits on the ice (its an intimidation game...hence the dirty hits still present in today's game) and the suspensions have to be more frequent and more just to STOP and ELIMINATE the dirty hits from the game...but as long as the game will allow hits, the game will be about intimidation, and the refs and player safety WILL miss a few calls here and there....the game will ALWAYS allow the players to police themselves and THAT alone allows the bad blood between players and teams to dissipate quickly preventing worse outcomes. I think today's game, allowing some fights to happen, and more or less getting it right with head shots and the like, prevents worse stupid actions taken by players later. It was very common from the 1920s all the way to the 1980s for players to swing their sticks at each other's heads... It even happened (more than) a couple of times from the 1990s to the mid 2000s. Yes I like a good fight from time to time....THAT is not the reason why I like hockey...its the fact that players could police themselves. 5. Its a very hard game to play. All sports are hard. But hockey, you need 2 skills to perfect. a) The actual game of hockey. Its fast paced. So a participant needs to acquire and perfect hockey knowledge. (No different for a soccer player to learn soccer knowledge...) b) But...an ICE hockey player needs to learn how to...skate. That is a different set of skills...and he/she needs to skate perfectly while playing hockey 6. Small guys dictate the plays. Big guys dictate the plays. Big guys steamrolling along is fun to watch. Small guys avoiding the big guys is also fun to watch and all that leads to the transitions to happen fast and smoothly. Strategies often happen on the fly. Coaches do use the old "x' and "o" method but its more of a suggestion. There are many set plays that hockey players practice defending and attacking....but when the game is on, and you are in the moment, yes there are systems being followed, but its more likely that "in the moment" decisions dictate the pace. Hockey HAS lost that individual, artistic, spontaneous flow it once had, because systems and calculations have taken over, but hockey is still a more free flowing game than most other sports. Baseball will always be free flowing, but I have come to the understanding that baseball too, is succumbing to systems and number crunching, strategical thinking...more than allowing its players individuality... 7. Hockey players are tough as nails. Yes...athletes in general are all tough and strong. But hockey players are just one level above. Even football players dont play through their injuries as much a hockey guys do. Granted, football used to be a very tough grueling sport that did not allow injured athletes to continue...but hockey guys are known to be playing with broken jaws, lost teeth, broken toes, legs, punctured lungs. OK...Rugby players are on that level as well... Some call that stupid. They maybe correct. But...you got to admire that determination... 8. Its a simple game....to follow. And there is continuous action making it fun to follow. And there are high scoring games and there are low scoring games, each with their own excitement. Im not talking about game 45-50 in the middle of the season which happens to be in January or February after the holidays where the games SEEM to not mean as much because even the players are holiday fatigued, and Football seems to get all the attention, because of the Superbowl and usually the NHL all star game is around the corner even the players are bored with that...so in January and February, the games tend to be boring because their is no passion being displayed...but when passion and emotions are involved, especially a nice rivalry game or in the play offs...hockey is just out of this world fun.

@dfelt I wasnt offended. It came out that way. I decided to start a thread, just so we dont derail the other thread. And it may be an interesting topic for everyone to discuss. Not in particular order 1. I watch sports because I played sports when I was a kid. I was quite good at playing sports and I loved the competition from playing, so I continued enjoying that passion while watching professionals play on TV or live at a sporting event. 2. I also watched sports as a kid, just to get pointers and ideas and strategies on how I could improve my game. 3. Its drama. Its comedy. Its a thriller. Its action. Its romance. (A different type of romance but love is definitely there.) Its a storyline. Its history. Its heroics. Its heroic. (two different things) Its passion. Its glory. Its gory. Its pain. Its humanity. Its the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Its the original reality TV. And its REAL... Its difficult but rewarding. And many more.... PS: as an athlete and as a spectator. This photo below, not even 24 hours ago...is EXACTLY what Im talking about... 4. As an athlete, that I once was, playing sports pushed my limits physically, mentally, spiritually. I learned how to push myself to get better. I learned my strengths, my weaknesses. I learned who I was. I got to know myself and I learned to love myself no matter what. On the flip side, I learned to work with others to reach a common goal. I learned to listen to others' advice concerning me, not easy to take advice when others critique you. I learned to teach and be taught. I learned how to lose and how to get better and more importantly, I learned how to win. How to compete. How to win...(yes I said it twice. How to win gracefully.) I learned that the agony of defeat could be as sweet as the thrill of victory. Its sucks losing, especially in the moment, but as time goes by, those losing moments are cherished by me as much as those glorious wins. I learned how to work in a team as a team. I learned about brotherhood. I learned to love others. To respect others. 5. Watching sports now, all those things I said, all those emotions come flooding back to me and I feel the athletes agony of defeat, or happiness, or pain when they get hurt. In other words, I can relate. 6. Watching a spectacular play, knowing how hard it is to achieve through my own personal experiences, I have a profound respect for it and I find it extremely entertaining seeing it happen, and I always envision myself in that particular spectacular situation and I question my abilities and my former team's abilities if we and I could have replicated that. 7. That adrenaline rush. By pushing myself. By competing. By playing. By losing and winning. Those butterflies in my stomach just before an important game. That feeling not wanting to lose to a particular team. That feeling WANTING to WIN against a particular team. (two different feelings. Similar, but quite different.) Those feeling get transferred by watching my favorite team on TV 8. Losing. Yes losing. I hated losing. But its with losing that I got to be a strong minded, strong character person. I miss that sentiment when I lost a game. Because that sentiment pushed me to be better the next time around. Its that fire after the loss that I miss. That competitive nature. And so I craved playing sports all the time. Because I craved that inner fire I had. And so watching sports, watching all the in-game and out-game scenes brings me back to when I was competing. Like I said, its the original reality TV and its the honest to goodness truth about it! 9. Winning. I loved winning. There are a few things in life that rival that feeling you get when you win a big game. If you live in St Louis, and it does not matter if you watch hockey or not, what a feeling it is today!!! Same for Toronto...maybe...hopefully!!! These are some reasons why I watch sports and why I used to play sports.

Discuss all the reason why we may watch sports. Or why we may not watch sports...