ginzo

Actually, there was. It was just in a very primitive form and only used by academics.

^Well, the extra hours were 2 hours long and I noticed that the crowds started to pick up in the 2nd hour of the extra magic hours. Also, there wasn't all that much open during that time, so if you were staying for multiple days you really didn't need all that time. Too bad they opened crappy Space Mountain early instead of Big Thunder Mountain.

Nice stuff Guy, but where are the puppets? I agree with you though. Raven is still #1 at Holiday World. It's one of the most consistent coasters I know of. And those night rides are difficult to beat. We haven't actually made it out to HW this year and probably won't. Too many credits to get elsewhere.

The same can be said for half the other parks in the chain... including both California parks, SFKK, SFM, and Great Escape... Magic Mountain is in the process of getting Q-Bots.

Generally speaking, if you're trying to make a point, you should strive not to counter your own point in the very next sentence.

^That's all well and good, Scott. But how do we know these aren't all empty campaign promises? How do we know you won't hog all the PMW to yourself after your inauguration?

Yeah, I'd rather pay for Kennywood's cheese and bacon fries than get Cedar Point "food" for free.

I agree. That was an epic fail. I think it was not only Bush that tried that, but also Cheney. But, I'm not sure, because, as usual, I'm only half paying attention. Anyway, digression over. I'm still waiting to hear from Scott about military tribunals for parks that install Vekoma rides.

Because they allowed us to establish bases and mount an invasion from their own country. That gives them a "say." The Saudis are a complicated bunch. They produced Osama bin Laden and contribute to Al Quaida, yet we're their number-one customers when it comes to oil. To me, it just seems like they left us holding a big bag of shit for no reason. And Daddy Bush's overly chummy relationship with the Saudis didn't help matters.

Why do they get to dictate how it's done if they're not doing it themselves? It's not like the US would have handed Iraq over to Iran at that point, eliminating the Saudis' precious buffer zone. I just don't see how there's logic in leaving a guy in power who was shooting Scuds at Israel, a country capable of a nuclear response. (Thanks France!) Of course, 9/11 itself was funded and carried out largely by our "friends" from Saudi.

The Saudis would have had very little recourse against us at that point. And the Arab nations are going to hate us no matter what. I still think that was the optimal time to do it with Saddam's military already crushed. The UN sanctions were dumb and just tightened Saddam's choke hold over Iraq.

Aye, I think the real mistake was not invading Iraq back in 1991. It seemed really dumb to let him stay in power after trying to take over Kuwait. And the international community wouldn't have said a damn thing if we did it then.

I very well could be wrong, but my recollection is that the liberation aspect was tacked on at the 11th hour before the "shock 'n awe" by Bush after he started to realize that they probably weren't going to find anything in Iraq. I just looked through Colin Powell's UN speech that he gave about a month before we went into Iraq and couldn't find any mention of liberation as a reason to invade Iraq. Everything seems to be related to weapons and disarming Iraq. Powell mentions Saddam's cruelty to his citizens as evidence of how dangerous he is, but I can't find a mention of liberation as a reason to go in. Everything seems really centered on weapons and a threat to the US and other UN members. http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/02/05/sprj.irq.powell.transcript/index.html I'm far too lazy to go digging through the various transcripts of the few months that led up to the war. But, if you can find something that references liberation before, say, March 2003, I'd love to see it.

I used to be a HUGE Roman History nerd. And, yeah, this idea does seem a bit strange. Why go to a recreation of the Pantheon when you can see the real thing across town? I dunno. The attractions would have to be very cleverly done to get my interest.

So, how much did Miss "Hot For Big Mike" charge you per hour?

Dear Scott, How would you deal with amusement parks that commit the crime of installing Vekoma coasters? Also, what about parks that trim their rides or run obnoxiously short cycles on their flat rides for no apparent reason? Sincerely, Ginzo

^I don't really understand how Intamin isn't as experimental when they're currently marketing 17 different coaster types: http://www.intaminworldwide.com/iag/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=22&Itemid=32 While B&M is only marketing 7 different coaster types: http://www.bolliger-mabillard.com/products/products_en.aspx I think most people would consider B&M to be the more conservative firm.

#300 - Leap the Dips @ Lakemont Park

Phoenix at Knoebels last Saturday night. They really move that seemingly long line like nobody else. What looked like a solid 30 minute line was much closer to 10.

Ha. I can't hear that word without thinking of this gem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMMklhX74_w

Bush has been trying to combat teen pregnancy by funding abstinence education at the federal level. So, I don't really think this example illustrates a distinct difference between the parties.

Awful? That seems a bit harsh. Maybe you're just a poor shot.

Favorite parks in no particular order: Knoebels Disneyland Efteling Bobbejaanland Phantasialand Heide Park Indiana Beach Great Adventure Kings Dominion (much better than Disney!)

Not really my area, sorry. I remember reading that France pays physicians quite poorly and also that Canada does pretty well in compensation. I think I read that the UK does well also. Salary surveys tend to exagerrate the figures a bit. Since they're basically a form of bragging, the higher paid people are more likely to respond. All I know is we have to take several thousand foreign medical graduates each year to fill all the primary care residency seats. Medical salaries can also vary drastically depending on where you live. Less desirable locales, like rural areas far away from exciting cities, tend to pay a lot better because they have to pay well to recruit anyone at all. And, yeah, there are still plenty of radiologists, dermatologists, anesthesologists, etc. cleaning up in the pay dept. But not everyone gets to be a dermatologist.

The high pay thing is no longer true for primary care doctors who make up the majority of physicians. 120k/yr for a pediatrician might seem like a ton of money to some people. However, it's not great when you factor in the INSANE cost of medical school (about 250k for a private school including living expenses) along with the opportunity cost involved with making no money for 4 years of medical school and crappy money for 4 years of sleep-deprived residency. The pay becomes especially mediocre when you consider that there are other careers that pay that much that are much less rigorous to get into and require far less years of schooling. It'll work out fine for him. He's young and most likely won't have to actually use the health care system. These types are often the most ardent supporters of government-run care: The young healthy people that don't really use it.