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Wasn't meant to be a juxtaposition.  

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.
by poemless on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:01:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Why does it matter that they are not rodents?

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith
by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:04:33 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Because a lot of people think they are, like rats.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.
by poemless on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:11:04 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Apparently they are more closely related to cats and dogs than they are to rodents or primates.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith
by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:12:24 PM EST
[ Parent ]
And they are NOT rodents.  Bats are mammals.  Flying mammals.  They're practically primates.

Interestingly, the Placental Mammals subdivide into 4 superorders, one of which contains Bats and another one Primates, and Rodents happen to belong to the same one as Primates.

So you could say bats are NOT rodents: rodents are practically mammals but bats aren't.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:11:24 PM EST
[ Parent ]
rodents are practically mammals but bats aren't?

No, I couldn't say that.  What the hell is your problem?

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:18:27 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I mean practically primates.

Ugh.

I shouldn't PN when I'm tired, is my problem.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:20:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]
You should not go around de-railing people's posts is what you should not do.  Seriously, I actually put some effort into that comment (link, picture, text, commentary) and now, for what?  Meanwhile someone asks for a cat picture and gets uprated.  No wonder people leave here.  The bias is nothing short of amazing.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.
by poemless on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 04:37:05 PM EST
[ Parent ]
[ET Moderation Technology™]

You may object to Migeru's comments, but they are quite anodyne and don't call for downratings.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 04:58:15 PM EST
[ Parent ]
They were baiting.  

And I don't need your [ET Moderation TechnologyTM] .  You've already gotten me kicked off the FP.  Not enough of a power trip for you, afew?  

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 05:16:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]
That is a vicious and false personal accusation, as you well know. You were not "kicked off", you resigned as a front-pager, and I had nothing to do with it.

But let your comment stand, I don't object to people seeing it.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 05:21:02 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Disappointing. Will not give you the 0 this post genuinely deserves.

Worth a public apology to afew when you've cooled off. Which is what I sincerely hope you're doing. Get some fresh air, take stock of what's good, then come back.

by Nomad on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 07:23:17 PM EST
[ Parent ]
"Will not give you the 0 this post genuinely deserves?"  Lack of nerve or what?  

Don't even hold your breath waiting for that apology to afew, who has almost single-handedly led the fight to keep me off the fp!

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 12:19:11 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Well, in this case I am going to give you a 0!
by Fran (fran at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 12:28:18 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Your own behaviour keeps you off the FP.

It also keeps other people from wanting to engage with you on here, because despite your often excellent diaries and writing, the way you react to comments can be so unpredictable and aggressive at times that people don't know if they are going to end up in the firing line.

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 03:02:18 PM EST
[ Parent ]
That's not even TRUE.  

But you know that.  

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.

by poemless on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 03:14:48 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Sounds true to me.
by Colman (colman at eurotrib.com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 03:24:02 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Zero-rating FPers is sort of funny/pathetic, otherwise I'd zap all your ratings and suspend your ability to make them for repeated abusive ratings.

You should know better.

by Colman (colman at eurotrib.com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 03:27:38 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Your own behaviour keeps you off the FP

Again, I haven't seen a single suggestion to bring poemless into the FP team over the past year, so I don't know that that's true.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 03:36:03 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I've been an FPer for a year and I have no idea what the fight to keep me off the fp refers to.

As far as I'm concerned it's ancient history, assuming it is not ancient myth.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 03:35:14 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I always attempt to make clear my ratings motivation. Severe personal attacks are in my book the worst kind in a community that's tightly knit. I detest 1 & 0 rating long-term and valuable contributors, especially if I think there's a chance to bring them back to reason. My mistake then.

I honestly don't understand what's gotten into you.  

by Nomad on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 05:12:40 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Surely "deserving a 0 rating" was hyperbole on your part...

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith
by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 05:18:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]
poemless:
And I don't need your [ET Moderation TechnologyTM] .  You've already gotten me kicked off the FP.  Not enough of a power trip for you, afew?  

Groundless accusation & personal attack.

I always see red when this happens. Deserves a zero in my book.

Here: http://xkcd.com/438/

by Nomad on Wed Aug 27th, 2008 at 05:35:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]
xkcd good.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Thu Aug 28th, 2008 at 03:38:35 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Ratings below 1 lead to hidden comments. Certainly it wasn't offensive enough to the rest of the planet to warrant hiding?

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith
by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Aug 28th, 2008 at 05:32:34 AM EST
[ Parent ]
you underestimate how severely I feel about personal assaults. We can discuss this rationally. I rate empathically.
by Nomad on Thu Aug 28th, 2008 at 06:26:17 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Fair enough.

Still, in order to decide whether the attack was groundless we'd have to ask poemless and afew to air whatever dirty laundry poemless claims they have but afew denies and I'm not interested in that, are you?

Which probably means that, since the laundry can't be aired, it was unwise for poemless to make the accusation in public in the first place.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Thu Aug 28th, 2008 at 06:36:20 AM EST
[ Parent ]
My reply was at the level of seriousness of your commentary.

And I did reply on the substance of the story, too.

Plus we learned that bats are closer relatives of cats than of mice (or people).

I don't know what you're complaining about.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 07:22:38 PM EST
[ Parent ]
You are obviously trying to distract from the story, which is about bats being killed by windfarms, since it is a no-no to say anything bad about windfarms here.  Classy.

"Pretending that you already know the answer when you don't is not actually very helpful." ~Migeru.
by poemless on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:20:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I'd have said it was more like recreational PNing.
by Colman (colman at eurotrib.com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:21:39 PM EST
[ Parent ]
It's an open thread, and after 5pm!

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith
by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:24:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]
There are many reasons to claim that such and such species (or genus) is the coolest on the planet, but cladistics is not one of them.

Now, the deadly pressure drop thing is supercool in my opinion (I'm a physicist by training after all) so I am not claiming you shouldn't have posted the news item.

A vivid image of what should exist acts as a surrogate for reality. Pursuit of the image then prevents pursuit of the reality -- John K. Galbraith

by Migeru (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:23:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]
No, I don't think it's a no-no to discuss possible drawbacks of windfarms. However, Mig's suggestion of ultrasonics is reasonable, probably quick, cheap and effective.

I must admit that I never read the article cos I just thought it was the usual nit-picking stuff you see too much of in the UK press. So far we've had migrating birds, birds of prey, low flying fighter planes, RAF over the horizon radar, subsonic vibrations. I admit I've been waiting for a correlation with bee colony collapse syndrome.

So sometimes the first reaction is to dismiss. But if there's an issue, I trust it's something we'll have the care to resolve quickly.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 12:56:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

since it is a no-no to say anything bad about windfarms here.  

Do you actually believe that? Do you?

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Tue Aug 26th, 2008 at 06:59:57 PM EST
[ Parent ]

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