I’m not saying that I always ran 15.45 in practice, that was my BEST time ever (and it happened to be in practice). You are missing the forest for the trees. The point is that I almost always ran faster in practice, than I did in actual competition usually by an increment that was very significant. I don’t even think that this is something that is very uncommon. In fact, some people are just the opposite. The guy who was number one on the team (usually running in the mid 15’s during meets) was a real slacker in practice. I ran “year round” and he was lucky to start a month before season, BUT he had great “natural talent” where as I had flat feet, and ran with a lack of coordination. In fact today my feet are so messed up ( big bunions, bad ankles from multiple sprains) that I can’t even run fifty feet. I probably would have been much better off had I played golf in HS rather than trying to run cross country.
Also, the guy who was second on the team (running in the low 16’s during meets) was a SMOKER (don’t know how much).
Flat feet don’t make you slow. I have flat feet.
A person with natural talent can slack off in practice and run 15 whatever in a meet. That is in no way proof that someone can run 15:45 in practice and never break 17 in a meet. I got your point; it was a pretty easy one to get. I was just struck with the words “Bulllll Shittttt” when I read your post, and if we were talking in person, I’d ask you to back it up. 15:45 is in such a different class than 17 minutes, that on a crappy day you should be able to walk your way through a 16:30 if you’ve developed your muscles enough to run sub 5:15 pace.
Who knows, maybe you are some weird exception.
Either way, I think it is you who missed my point. In order to make a relevant example, you used numbers that don’t match up. This does 2 things.
1 it makes you look like the type of person I said you looked like; someone who wants to point to himself and say look, I epitomize your point AND I was once capable of a really impressive XC time.
2 It detracts from the OP, because you are (in this case) supporting an argument with false numbers, which doesn’t help anyone.
I guess we will have to agree to disagree. The numbers themselves are not what’s important anyway. My point is that I was seldom if ever as fast in the actual track meets as I was in practice. If you would prefer let’s say I ran twenty minutes in practice, and twenty two minutes in the meets (that’s not the case, but if it keeps you on point then I’ll gladly stipulate to those facts). Also, flat feet in my opinion (and my Coache’s at the time) detract from the efficiency of your stride. More of the energy is “lost” to the ground (and transmitted to your foot) as opposed to having an arch. The difference may not be vast, but it is multiplied with every stride.
I would also add that this “profile” was not uncommon in my experience. I would wager that at least ten percent of the people I played various sports with were much the same way (doing better in practice than competition). Although, I was only occasionally a varsity wreastler, I “felt” (it’s harder to quantify in wreastling since your opponents are always changing) that I also did better in practice than in the actual events.
By the way the high 15’s EVEN IF I had been able to pull it off in cross country meets wouldn’t even have made me the best runner on my team. To be in State around here you need to run in the LOW fifteen’s under competition conditions (and that was back in the late 1980’s it’s probably even faster now).
You were “only occasionally a varsity wreastler”?
How does one participate in a varsity sport only “occasionally”?
And how on earth would someone who does so misspell the word?
Where I went to highschool you had to “compete” for the varsity team each and every match (there were a few exceptions, but most weight classes had more wreastlers than spots). About once every three matches or so I was successful in “winning” a varsity position. Sometimes, that meant getting several starts if there were back to back matches scheduled (or matches after school holidays). What does my spelling have to do with the issue? What is your opinion regarding the thesis THAT is what matters. I dare say that there are many people out there who could report similar personal experiences (either regarding themselves or those they have witnessed). If you disagree fine. However, it’s not necessary to be an ass.
I’m not meaning to be an ass. I merely am beginning to suspect that you’re full of shit. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, as there’s nothing worse than an honest member being driven out of here simply because they have an open (and almost child-like) desire to learn.
I just find it hard to believe certain things you are writing. But frankly, I’m not willing to spend five pages finding out. It’s just not worth it.
But I do hope you enjoy yourself here.
Look, if it was up to me this thread wouldn’t even exist (for that matter this whole Pit forum wouldn’t exist). I would vastly just prefer to ask my questions, and any follow up questions that posed themselves. If I had my way and people didn’t like a thread that I posted, they would simply ignore and move on to one they found to be more pleasing. That’s why I joined this place to ask questions, and hopefully get some answers (and pass the time in the dead of night while I study). In almost ten years online I’ve never started a thread complaining about anyone. Therefore, I expect that others should behave the same way and focus in ideas not people.
The best thing you could learn right now is right here in this thread.
Fair enough.
I would suggest, then, that you just give up on this thread and go about your business. Obviously keep in mind what the mods have said, but otherwise ignore the rabble-rousing and question away. But please remember that there are people behind these posts, and some of them are merely trying to help you “get along” better, be less obtrusive, and understand some of the ways this little experiment “works”.
If you’re sincere in your desire to learn, and always remember that this is a community of people, then I’m sure you’ll be fine.
Good luck!
ROLAND HAS LEFT THE BUILDING?
All is quiet here on the Eastern front. No posts from our controversial friend in the last few days.
Okay…whose taking credit for this? :dubious:
Sorry! I know the spelling nazis lurk…
WHO IS or WHO’S
:smack:
ltfire I just noticed your address is Yankee Stadium. That’s pretty funny
Yeah, well, he’s back, hoo-fucking-ray. I mean, what the fucking fuckity fuck kind of question is this?
Um, yeah. Here’s where most normal people would have, say, WAITED A FEW MINUTES before letting the words fall out of their mouths like candy from a gumball machine.
Roland, did you even READ any of the posts in this thread, like the ones about thinking for two seconds about the appropriateness of your questions (and the proper forum locations thereof) before starting a new topic? I know the SDMB is all about quelling ignorance and gaining knowledge and all, but there’s also such a thing as showing some goddamned respect, not to mention appropriate timing.
Jesus fucking Christ. You are one scary mofo. Please tell me you don’t have pets on whom you can research, putting some of these speculations into action?
:eek: Is it me, or is this guy putting a wee bit too much thought into this?
HOW THE HELL IS THIS A “GENERAL FACTUAL QUESTION”??? Do you think we have some terrorist board members who’ll provide the Straight Dope on torture and execution methods? Or maybe some Doper’s had his head chopped off and is willing to share? (Too bad you didn’t notice the hugely popular MPSIMS thread, “Ask the Decapitated Guy.”)
Nice try, but I don’t think you really feel any such emotion. How sad could you be? So sad that you rushed to watch the video, took careful note of the gruesome details, and hastened to regurgitate your vomitous first impressions over the SDMB?
Y’know, looking over your history of strange post subjects, I think your wife is wrong. You don’t have Asperger’s. You’re just a tasteless idiot with a somewhat frightening, creepy morbid anti-social streak. The idea that you’re in nursing somehow is even scarier.
Now, I’m not saying that you’re a sociopath, the kinda guy who breaks laws because they don’t apply to him or tortures animals out of “curiosity,” all the while secretly believing he’s superior to others because he’s not bothered by pesky things like “feelings.”
Nope, I’m definitely not saying you’re that guy.
But for some reason, that guy comes to mind when I read your posts.
You don’t ever flicker your tongue at women and whisper “Clareeeeece,” do you?
Roland…Roland …Roland… 
I want to defend you. But I’m at a complete loss for words.
My God Man…
I think you have forgotten the face of your father.
Yea, well my mother and father have both reached the clearing at the end of the path and if I have forgotten their face then that to is ka (and I will probably get around to asking clinically detached questions pertaining to their demise eventually). In any case, I posed the questions and comments about Berg because I thought they were relevent and might lead to some interesting insights. However, not everything that I post will be provacative or fascinating despite my best efforts to achieve that goal. I am trying to be on the cutting edge of intellectaul exploration sometimes that involves questions about an expanding universe, and other times it means touching upon execution videos. Futhermore, I am offended at the concept of “talking heads” telling me what is on a video and deciding that I shouldn’t see it myself (as the American media did with this by and large the AP sent them the video, but few if any made it available to their audience). Indeed, I wonder how many people who were offended at my exploration of this subject also subscribe to the notion of “abortion on demand” a practice that many such as myself believe to be nothing short of baby killing. I refuse to be “PC” or practice taking “selective offense” at the intellectual ideas and questions of others. So far as I am concerned any question, sincerely posed without obvious, deliberate obscenity is appropriate. The fact that I consider my behavior to be a “law unto itself” is probably another aspect of my sociopathic tendencies. In fact, I am considering becoming not just a sociopath, but an evangelical sociopath. Then again the Republican party might sue me for copyright/trademark violation if I took that path.
If it’s so awful being you, be someone else.
Regardless of what you post, at least be nice and post in the right forums. There is no hard and fast factual answer to your questions regarding Nicholas Berg, so they don’t belong in General Questions. There are indeed forums other than GQ and the Pit - and yours, if it must find a home at all, would be better suited for something like IMHO.
Okay, I will agree that we can’t answer the question to the extent of metaphysical certainty. However, I dis-agree that factual answers cannot be given for this question:
a. Medical science has done a good deal of research into pain, and into the effects that shock (even the type of shock such as hypovolumic shock) can have upon pain. Thus, we can (or more appropriately SOMEONE) can potentially provide an informed opinion on the issue.
b. It recently came out that Daniel Pearl was probably offered (and refused) paid medication before his execution. It is not unreasonable to draw conclusions as it relates to this execution given that it was largely the same MO/ and same group involved.
c. The followup questions about “what to do if something like this happens to you” probably do have answers that reflect the “best available” thinking on the issue. In other words I’m fairly confident that CIA agents are trained on how to maximize their chances of survival if they find themselves in a hostage situation. I’m hoping to get some of that advice into the mainstream.
d. My questions/comments regarding the distribution of the film (also followup in nature) also have factual answers (although no one here may be in a position to provide them, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t ask). In other words the AP DID transmit the video to most of its subscribers. However, few or none actually provided a link for their audience. This raises fundamental questions about the role of the media with regard to “filtering” information which many might like to see.
Perhaps, IMHO would have been a better venue. However, IMHO General Questions was also an appropriate place for the question.