btq96r

  How does the President come into this?  College students have been protesting for dumb reasons since at least your generation.  What we're seeing today isn't something new when you break it down.       I can tell you. :)   You have to look at the scope of things to understand how the revenue vs. expenditures thing goes.  I'm more familiar with MTSU since I go here and work here, but since you talked about UT, we'll stay there.  Thing to remember about UT is it's the entire system, not just Knoxville.  For budgeting purposes, they break out the different schools, but have a total budget number.   With athletics, the money is coming in, no doubt...but it's also going out at roughly an equal rate.  The biggest thing they want is for the athletic program to at least pay for itself, and that means the whole athletic department, not just football.  Problem is, the schools have all the different sports programs, and let's face it, only football and basketball are money makers for college athletics.  That means they are subsidizing soccer, track, tennis, golf, and all the other sports the schools operate at a net loss for men and women, because of Title IX.   So, this is UT's proposed budget for FY 2016, realistically, we have to look at the data for FY 2014 since that's the only year in the document that has been audited.  Skip to page 33 in the .pdf/ page 30 in the document, and you will see the layout for athletics.  Very easy to see that UT Knoxville is was slightly in the red for FY 2014, but only by what amounts to a rounding error in the overall budget when you remember that for UT, their annual budget is in the $1.2/1.3 Billion with a B, dollar range.  Not out of the norm for large budgets that run in a three year cycle like that.    As to what else is at play here...   1)  There is a somewhat funny "color of money" shell game being played for tuition.  The school actually factors in the money coming from the athletes as they would for any other tuition/enrollment under the line item for that early in the budget, but since the athletes are on some form of scholarship (football is allowed 85 players out of 105 roster slots being on full scholarship, to include room, board, and food...not sure about the other sports) that money comes out of the athletic department's budget, and as you can see, the item marked "Student Aid" comes out to  ~15% being gone just so those kids can go to class (when the do...lol) and have a dorm room.  But I find it funny because it's the university paying the university in the end in a circular method.   2)  Salaries and Benefits:  I know people will look at that and scream bloody murder about coaches salaries and those are a noticeable chunk of that part.  But that line item is also the paycheck, health insurance, Social Security/Medicare contributions that UT is on the hook for as an employer.  Take that and compare it against all the people that make up the entire athletic department from the equipment staff, to the trainers, to the administrative people who work in the compliance office (paperwork with the NCAA), and all the rest.  A lot of employees you never see on game day contribute to getting it done, and as most people in business know, salaries and benefits are always a large part of the budget.   3)  Travel seems high until you realize that is the airfare (chartered flights), hotel rooms, per diem (for employees), and cost to move all the team equipment from point A to point B and back for away games (usually an 18 wheeler truck).  Also, the team "travels" for home games, bringing everybody suiting up on game day to a hotel the afternoon before so they can make sure they eat the proper nutritional meals, get enough sleep, and are ready to play the next day.  So, even home games have a travel budget.   So, that's where the money goes...crazy, huh?

That puts the whole story in perspective.

  Just to wrap up this loose end, we can hope that all criminals or potential terrorists are this dumb... http://www.wcvb.com/news/man-arrested-in-worcester-armory-weapons-theft/36539670?utm_campaign=WCVB%20Channel%205%20Boston&utm_medium=FBPAGE&utm_source=Social

I'm very glad the judge went above the plea deal cap (Fogle agreed to 5yrs minimum, the prosecution agreed to seek 12.5yrs max) by giving him 15yrs, 8 months, and saying that he isn't even eligible for release for good behavior until at least 13yrs have been served.

  Yeah, that's my takeaway as well. 

The universities can't afford to alienate their students, because the students represent revenue.  Both in tuition, and as an overall number (attending or graduation rates by state) which determines how much aid they get from the state if they are a public school.

  They don't even need to use Black Friday to get the intended results.  Pick a random weekend in the first three weeks of December, and any place like Opry Mills is packed with slow moving, baggage laden targets practically herding themselves into kill zones within the stores.

I pretty much look at it as what threats are we under all of a sudden that we haven't been under for almost two decades?  It's just fresh in our minds after recent events.   I'm going to continue my normal personal security measures, but I'm not letting the possibility of a random event happening around me dictate my life.  I'll carry on (literally and metaphorically) react to contact as needed.

Anonymous is also trying to make themselves a force in the protest scene, as seen with their OpFerguson efforts.  Essentially, they want to stir things up, then watch what burns in some kind of anarchy theory.  While their results are so-so, their ability to help push information or disinformation as you see it is through social media is legit.

This is the best trolling job I've seen in a good bit.

I'm probably going to get a .300BLK upper someday to do this with.  Can I go lower in overall size, meaning paperwork says 10.5" 5.56, I want to have a 8-9" .300BLK?

Hoping for the best outcome left.  Kids should be able to play without something like this happening. 

Pete was nice enough to show me this gun and let me fondle it.  The pics are great, but looking at it, and holding it in your hand (the sumbeach has some heft!) are two completely different things.  Small piece of history right here.

  What's wrong with this picture is you have your facts wrong...The first air strikes against Afghanistan started on 7 October 2001, so we took less than a month to retaliate and strike back like France did, and reading history about that time frame, the only reason it took so long was the military wanted to make sure that Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) was set up and ready in case a pilot had to eject over Afghanistan.  It also took time to set up a target deck.    The CIA had a team in Afghanistan before the end of September, and the Army's Special Forces a few weeks after that.  On 14 November, Kabul fell to the Nothern Alliance (who we supported with airstrikes and SF support), which was two months after 9/11.  In late January, a brigade from Fort Campbell started moving into Kandahar (I was among them) four months after 9/11 for combat operations.  So, where were you getting that six month number from?   France on the other hand already had jets in the region at a base in the UAE, and was surely working under US logistical support for in air re-fueling, targeting, CSAR, and everything except flying the planes and dropping the bombs.

  The problem with the mass punishment option is that when group 1 feels the pain, they become more susceptible to join groups 2 & 3.  The Muslim solution isn't going to come from individuals, since they are the human equivalent of sheep. Their leaders need to get them in gear, and that's when I look at Saudi Arabia and the religious figures, wondering when they're going to get at it.  It's not likely to happen without pressure on them, and that ain't happening so long as someone else is protecting them.  Currently the US is their buffer keeping things safe, and we're stupid enough to wave back as they wave us into the fray and let us pick up the associated tabs for it.   As to my three group theory inside the US, I look at group 1 and don't see any issues there.  Group w bears watching, but there isn't a Constitutional way to do much to them.  People who follow the law should be left alone.  What we need to do is find legal ways to identify and isolate group three.  Barring that, I default to my be ready to kill them when they pop up stance.  I'm doing my part to be ready, and I know most here are as well, along with others in the state and across the country, but it's probably not enough.   Bombing and droning has its uses, but there is no way to "kill 'em all"...not unless we want to fight Genghis Khan style.  I think it's fair to say that option isn't even allowable for debate to the powers that be.

  We used to joke that Arab courage is directly proportional to the size of the group they are in.

  Don't look at me, I'm paid up until March if memory serves. :P   For real though, I think this needs some time to gauge effectiveness. I have a feeling there are a few who will use it when their renewal comes up as I plan to.

  Some of the northern African countries where refugees were first coming out of when the Arab Spring have French speakers; Tunisia and Algeria come to mind.  This article about Tunisian refugees if from over four years ago, but it's easy enough to realize that for all the ones they rounded up, there were probably a lot more that the net didn't catch.   Not saying you're wrong, just saying either or is possible based on migration trends.

  Already on my list.  I get about a month and a half break from work and school coming up in Dec/Jan, and I intend to knock it out then.

  I'll put it in my queue for watching...but it sounds like you would really like the Netflix series Narcos as well.

For those of you who would like to see some reporting on this incident, but from a better source than you'll find on it than the US networks, Sky News has a free stream online. http://news.sky.com/watch-live

This type of attack has the consequences of open borders written all over it.  Like TMF said, too well planned, coordinated, and executed.  The bottom line is that France is a soft target, and that's why they've had these attacks lately.   Per POTUS' comment on ISIS being "contained"...that applies to their land grab in Iraq & Syria, which is what the White House, Pentagon, ect, are using as the benchmark.  If ISIS can't take any more land outright, they'll ramp up tactics like this.  They're low cost, only require a handful of personnel to leave the Levant, and the results are far more expansive than the body count, which they depend on for propaganda and fear mongering purposes.  Think Hamas & Hezbollah's activities against Israel, but with an amplification in fanaticism, and a much easier population to target in Europe.   But that's in Europe, where they are being flooded/invaded by refugees, who represent the perfect recruiting pool for this kind of thing.  What about America?  First things first, this isn't justification for any type of PatriotAct, wiretapping, any civil liberty or civil rights restrictions. Like everyone else, Muslims fall into three categories: 1)  apathetic followers, meaning they just want to live their life, enjoy their family, and could care less what others do; 2) people who may believe in the extremist cause, but don't have the nuts to go past talking a good game; and 3) the extremists who are ready to fight and die.  I'm only worried about the third group, but nothing from them represents the kind of threat that justifies any kind of relaxing of the Constitution.  I know it's popular to think that "all Muslims are the enemy" but lets think logically.  If that were true, and they were all so devout at wanting to kill the infidels, by numbers alone, we'd see attacks in America a lot more often.  There just aren't enough of group 3 to worry me.  As for groups 1 & 2, if they leave me alone, I'll leave them alone.    That said, I'm not an idiot.  When I go about my business, I'll be carrying my gun, ready to defend myself if needs be.  The enemy is out there, so just be prepared to react to contact and protect yourself if it happens in your immediate area.  We get enough people doing that, and like a proper defense perimeter, we'll have overlapping coverage.  All we'll need are citizens "scanning their lane" not a government solution that comes at the cost of our freedoms.

Looks like a win for the home team.  I don't expect CMP to have them for sale next week, but this was the biggest hurdle as far as I can tell.

Thanks to all the vets on here who went before me and built the legacy I hope I lived up to during my time.   Toady was "business as usual" for me event wise, but one unique aspect was that I had a chance to visit the Boys & Girls Club here in Murfreesboro for some schoolwork.  I don't usually get too retrospective, but seeing those kids running around, and interviewing such a dedicated staff of people willing to help their community, I couldn't help by realize I was standing in the very type of environment that I had fought to keep safe.    Happy Veterans folks. 

US Army Basic & AIT: Aug 2000 - Feb 2001 Fort Campbell: March 2001 - April 2009 Afghanistan: Jan - July 2002 Iraq: March 2003 (initial invasion) - Feb 2004 Iraq: October 2005 - September 2006 Iraq: October 2007 - November 2008