Well said.

Unless you are celebrating birthday number

1-13
16
18
21
anything divisible by 5
anything with more than two digits

I just don't get it.

Well, this is just fantastic--I knew the Ricochetti would come through in a major way.

John, I'm so sorry I missed your post in February (and Roberto, thank you for mentioning it)! I shall check out the whole writeup on your Fourmilab site. That's an interesting point about skipping the Drake Passage, as most of the operators I found so far do indeed make the sea crossing.

Susan, what a kind offer. I will definitely be in touch.

Tim, I've never heard of the Dry Valleys and will add them to my "to-research" list.

I've got four of the seven continents so far, so this would be a huge "get". :-)

Thanks to all for your lovely and helpful comments (and if anyone else would like to chime in, by all means!).

Combination of 3 and 4.

Why don't prominent conservative politicians ever say, in response to accusations of "climate denial":

1. What is the optimum global climate and how is it determined?

and/or

2. Disagreement on the appropriate policy response to climate change does not make someone "anti-science" or a "denier".

Made it! Whew! *wipes brow*

Also, I was told there would be ice cream. 1204 comments, and yet I still have no ice cream.

Well, he did this three or four years ago, so maybe that's still bringing in a few bucks a month.

You stay classy, Levi.

Which is worse, ignorance or apathy?

I don't know and I don't care.

(That never gets old.)

Sigh.

Sorry. What?

The only acceptable answer to this question is Fletch.

Whiskey Sam and tabula rasa are with me on this one, I assure you.

Nobody is anymore, much. Pity.

Thanks for the response.

Joining in a bit late, although this conversation has the potential to break 500, so maybe not.

Full disclosure: I'm a secular "get the government out of marriage" libertarian-ish conservative. I don't much care what consenting adults do together behind closed doors, but I have a strong preference for people of any sexual orientation to live chastely until marriage (or civil union, or life commitment, or whatever), and then to live faithfully after marriage. (I hope it's not bigoted to say that.)

Now that that's out of the way, I have one question for GayFreedomLover, and I ask it out of sincere curiosity:

Why does your Ricochet handle mention that you are gay?

TerMend, I think you might just be my new best friend.

:-)

I knew it!!!

What a load of crap.

However you'd like to incorporate it.

Ricochet actually hasn't had a knock-down-drag-out Sarah Palin-palooza in a really long time...are we due?

The only thing missing is a reference to evolution.