SmashMouth

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. Dude had to be looking for the hereafter.

37 minutes ago, thetragichippy said:

I could of drove nicer vehicles and my son could have went without.......but that is not what good people do, especially if they are receiving benefits 

No doubt. We grew up poor as church mice after my parents divorced. My Mom refused food stamps, or housing assistance. She said as long as we could get by getting clothes from the Treasure house (donated clothing) and grow a garden and things of that nature, she would never consider assistance. And she never did. We had very little, but we got summer & after school jobs to help out my Mom with bills and buy our own school lunches. I've always thought that made us a stronger family and us kids stronger individuals. Even though she's gone now, I still thank her for that lesson all the time.

I have no issue with assistance for those that need it. Emphasis on the last 5 words of that sentence...

16 minutes ago, DCT said:

He is truly a Con man at his best.  🍿 sit back and watch the fireworks 🎆.   They are turning on one another.  We now know why the Epstein files will not be released. ⭐️ baby king Con.

You’re missing the point. They’re ALL con men/women. 

This is unfortunate. The real story isn’t Musk’s indignation or the poor way Trump is handling the situation though. That’s just the side show to keep us from focusing on the real issue.
 

And it’s bipartisan.

Our politicians from the bottom to the top are a group of thieving, lying grifters who do what they want and when they want without genuine regard for the general population. It friggin sickening. 
 

These spending bills are a joke along with the process with which they are contrived. 
 

Just bend over and take it and be happy about it.

1 hour ago, Big girl said:

I knew this was going to happen

I doubt that. 

8 hours ago, OlDawg said:

That’s an understandable response. I’m not posting to advocate for the Amendment. Only to tell my wife’s story if asked, and to let people know the Amendment will be on the ballot. It will be up to the voters as it should.

I only found out about the legislation from an email today. So, I haven’t read it yet. Only the email I attached, and a few news blurbs later today.

I will point out that the government spends over $10 billion/year for cancer research, and treatments are coming quicker than ever with AI. Universities do not research without grants & they charge an average overhead of 30%. Perhaps the authors thought the taxpayers would get more bang for their buck with a mandated 5% cap if they were going to fund research studies anyway. Attract some of the talent away from other places (Texas Universities —where our tax dollars already go—and elsewhere). I don’t know. None of this will probably be in time for my wife of 36–almost 37–years.

I will say this:

My tax dollars are spent to provide family restrooms at SOME Texas restaurants stops. I never really thought they were necessary, or even thought much about them at all, because the men’s and women’s restrooms had changing boards. Then, my wife was diagnosed with corticobasal degeneration—which is a very cruel combination of Altzheimers, Palsy, and Parkinson’s. When she became unable to use her entire right side, unable to dress, eat, speak clearly, brush her teeth or hair, bathe, walk, sit, stand, or use the bathroom by herself, I realized that I had never thought about our aging population, and the number of people with dementia and/or Altzheimer’s that have to have assistance in the restroom. I’ve also seen more and more disabled vets who require assistance. Handicap facilities do not help these folks.

There are far too few family restrooms, and—like handicap parking—someone is always using them who has no need.

I have found that most men are generally okay with me bringing her into the men’s room if I holler at them first. The women don’t allow me to come in with her at all, and they don’t usually volunteer to help. So, she comes in with me.

Just one of the things we have to plan for when I take her to DFW area to see our grandkids—who don’t understand what’s wrong with Nanny.

The private sector will only fund research when they can make a profit. Big Pharma will always be Big Pharma. The Texas Medical Center is focused on diagnosis & treatment. Not research.

My sincere prayers for your wife, your family and you. I have seen the devastation to the individual and the families these diseases bring, though not nearly as closely as you. I’m sorry for that.
 

I don’t trust our government to do the right thing most of the time. Especially when it comes to spending money. Nor do I trust politicians as a whole. Especially when it comes to finding a way to line their pockets with our money. This is more big government and bureaucracy in the making. I hope when it passes, and it will, that at least some good comes from it. 

It's a VERY worthy cause for a horribly debilitating disease. It took my Father in law 2 years ago after about 5 years of pain and suffering for the whole family.

I said that to say this:

It's a $3 billion initial cost from the Texas General Revenue Fund, PLUS $300 million in annual grants for the next 10 years or so unless it gets renewed. It also competes with priorities like education (has anyone heard of the new voucher handout, btw), and infrastructure. Mostly it is taking OUR tax dollars - a lot of them - to handle what is already being handled by the private sector. Texas is already home to world-class research institutions and medical centers, funded through private investment, universities, nonprofits and the like. But God love 'em - politicians including so-called "fiscal conservatives" can't help but stick their noses and OUR money where it doesn't belong.

No matter how worthy the cause is, I'm not in favor of this bill. Let the research happen without government overreach.

Late to the party, but amen to all comments above. 

Shoulda got out of the baseline. 🤭

9 minutes ago, Big girl said:

People make bad decisions, doesnt mean they don't deserve health insurance.

Sometimes it does. 

12 minutes ago, CardinalBacker said:

I don’t remember him campaigning on adding $30 trillion in new debt over the next ten years. 

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*our current debt is 37 trillion- it’ll hit 67 trillion in ten years according to some estimates. 
 

If it was good for the economy, Wall Street would be celebrating, right? Bid drop yesterday, flat today… bond market is cratering, Moody’s downgraded us because of our debt. Then we cut taxes further.

It’s literally trying to borrow our way out of debt. 
 

But your guy won the election, and that’s all that matters.  

Honestly - your guy, my guy, their guy, any guy... It doesn't matter who won the election. No one is getting us out of debt. Not in our lifetime anyway.

13 minutes ago, Big girl said:

I dont like using AI for medical things like charting. The medical professional doesn't have to think critically. I do my own care plans.

Using AI to post videos about what people are supposedly saying, that is incorrect.

Sometimes answers that you get from AI are wrong.

 

Not exactly clear on what you're saying, but my doctor at MD Anderson told me the research they do relies heavily on AI and is one of the reasons that treatment and cures for all sorts of maladies, not just cancer related, are being developed so quickly and so successfully in this modern age. Diagnostics and imaging play a huge role too. She told me that a program  that came out in 2023 (Google's AI platform, I think) detected lung cancers with higher accuracy than human doctors. While I don't have lung cancer, I can see where that would be a huge benefit to mankind in general.  I like having the human element be the "final check" for anything AI, but to discount it totally would be foolish.

2 hours ago, baddog said:

All good points and AI is great technology. I wonder if anyone else has experienced this. My wife and I were discussing how we had heard that Siri was eavesdropping. 1. We started talking about generators and she noticed later on, when she was on an internet page, the border ads were about generators. We thought that was too weird to be coincidental. Try it sometime. It may not be instantaneous, but it happens. 2. My biggest problem is that great inventions seem to invite evil applications ie….card scanners invite criminals to use them to steal identities. This has happened to me.

1. I have no doubt this has happened to me, if not with Siri then with Alexa.

2. Very good point - totally agree

On 5/15/2025 at 7:56 PM, Big girl said:

I actually agree. I dont like AI

Just for reference, it would be beneficial to say what you don't like about AI tempered by what you do like about AI.

Have you ever asked Siri for directions or a phone number? That's AI.

You ever use Google Maps or a similar navigation tool? That's AI.

Do you ever look at a weather forecast whether it be from a weather app or even a live broadcast from Greg Bostwick? Yep, AI again.

These examples should speak to you @Big girl: Medical Image Analysis, Diagnosis, Personalized Treatment Plans, Drug Discovery and Development, Robotics in Surgery and a host of life-saving clinical & practical research methods - all of these enhanced immensely by AI.

Before you blanketly say, "I dont (sic) like AI", you should quantify your dislikes or even fears. Because in many instances above and more, you DO LIKE AI!

Common fears and concerns are :

Many of us fear technology taking our jobs. We fear government surveillance by machines. We also fear “fake news” on steroids, as programmers with questionable agendas lead masses astray with politically charged deep fakes. We fear AI weapons, drones and robots that hunt and kill with superhuman force without human intervention - an Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminator type super human force that can destroy the world...

The concerns are real, but so are the benefits.

Saying "I don't like AI" is more like saying "I don't understand AI, and I fear things I don't understand". It's a fair and more truthful statement.

15 hours ago, Big girl said:

He is really stupid

You elected him.

47 minutes ago, baddog said:

From what I understand, the beach they were allowed to drive on was one-way only. I also hear that locals who rent their cabins, allowed officers to stay rent free to put them in the scene 24 hours. This info is from my wife’s Facebook (I don’t do FB) so there is a +/- factor.

Yep. It's my understanding too. I'm just wondering if other parts of the beach were available, why the jeepers, partiers, etc. weren't just diverting their little operation to those unrestricted areas. 

23 minutes ago, LumRaiderFan said:

Agree, the main takeaway here is more proof that Comey is a partisan hack that was unfit for the job.

Agreed

If I'm being honest, I think it's trivial at best. To me, the term to "86" something or someone means simply to get rid of or replace it - not necessarily through death or violence. I can't stand Comey, but this is a ridiculous non-event that shouldn't be wasting valuable time or resources. 

Move on, nothing to see here...

I hope it's treatable, and he makes a full recovery. For his sake and his family's sake.

Excuse my ignorance, but were there any parts of the beach that weren't a part of the Jeep weekend and weren't shut down?

I'll hold my narrative 'til I know the answer...

@thetragichippy @bullets13 @baddog

23 hours ago, tvc184 said:

We had a murder over a bologna sandwich. 🥪

Now, was it a fried bologna sandwich with mustard & cheese? Cuz I can see that.

19 hours ago, CardinalBacker said:

You’ll then need to ask for a hearing by the Appraisal Review Board-they’re independent citizens that mediate disputes between the CAD appraisers and the taxpayers.

Yep, you're correct on that process to a tee. You have to be careful though. Sometimes your home is under appraised, but you are pointing out a minor flaw in their appraisal to get your tax burden lowered. It could result in a larger appraisal by the next year at the latest. Gotta be smart and pick your battles wisely.

4 minutes ago, baddog said:

Replacing Joe Biden with Kamala Harris is like changing your shirt because you crapped your pants.

I love it!

1 minute ago, CardinalBacker said:

I don’t disagree with your driveway scenario, but like they said-the value of paving  isn’t considered as a part of your CAD appraisal. Two mostly identical houses…Should somebody with a long driveway pay more than somebody with a short one? 

Yep. But what they fail to address is that without a decent driveway, no way in hell am I getting the appraised value for my house and property.

40 minutes ago, bullets13 said:

Do you know what "perseverating" means? That's what you're doing. We're talking about something happening right now, and your only response is to (repeatedly) bring up something from 40 years ago. The irony is you keep asking this question but won't address why it was okay for Obama to deport so many people. 

WAAAY off topic, but your comment reminds me of a joke:

"You know the problem with female referees in the NFL? They keep bringing up stuff you did like 3 games ago..."

🤣