@jlscott: OK, fair enough. So who makes Athens the 'bizarro' part?

@davidxto: You know what's interesting? If you substitute the words 'Left' and 'liberals' with 'Westerners' and 'infidels' your post would fit right in on a radical Islamist board. My beef is with radicals--I don't give a crap about what their excuse to act like idiots is. I lump radical Islamists with fanatical left wingers who think Bush caused everything up to an including the eventual heat death of the universe, and also with the right wing idiots who blame Obama for everything under the sun. That boiling rage you feel every time you post against 'liberals' or 'the Left' is the same rage the Islamists feel when they post about 'the West'. You may want to consider that.

@Lady of the Lake: Sadly, I think you and pevaguy are right.

@mpd0.59: Makes a dangerous amount of sense, seeing as drones are cheaper and more lethal than a huge metal tank/target. And that goes X100 for our aircraft carriers (unless we load them full of drones).

@jlscott: Tell us where you live so I can compare it to Athens. I've lived lots of places, and by far the worst were the ones where everything seemed 'normal' (whatever that is) on the surface. Goes for people too.

Crazy thought: how's about we let the Army decide how to spend its budget? Since they're, you know, hopefully the experts on this sort of thing. I know, I know, it had to be said if only to elicit chuckles from the audience.

Just goes to show you that the best protection you can get is simply not being a fool. Guns won't protect fools (although they can certainly protect smart people from fools).

I think she should be forced to look at pictures and videos of that kid who her sons blew apart in Boston for the rest of her natural days. See if that makes an impression on her.

@Allie Jackson: Thanks! Interesting stuff...

@kaleidoscope.junkie: Yea, I think they appreciate our freedoms and opportunities more than many who grew up here.

@Minion: Your statement is ironic, because you're also using fear in it (although you do have a point that statistically we are in more danger from a local crazy homeless guy than a religious extremist). In general I'd say don't rely on the authorities for your safety, and just be aware like the article said. More importantly though, if you see something odd going on *take responsibility to fix it*! Even if fixing it only involves telling a cop...

Edited to make the comment a bit more constructive/less attacking.

In general, never trust a fella who thinks with his little brain rather than the big one (especially when he says he's changed--talk is cheap after all). Having said that, sounds like this new job of his is perfect for him, as it appears to require a lot of sleazy hobnobbing. Hope it works out for his kids and wife, as I don't really give a crap about him.

@McCarthy: The guy in Colorado who was the head of their prison system was killed by a white supremacist. The media (because they suck at analysis, especially when they lack all the facts) thought the four killings might be related but it turns out the 3 in Texas were the result of that disgruntled ex-Justice of the Peace.

edited because I don't know the difference between 'where' and 'were'.

@Tewise: They're originally from Chechnya apparently although like I said the only demographic information about them that I think matters is that they're idiots.

RIP Officer Collier--his death allowed authorities to focus on the general area that the two idiots that bombed the marathon were operating in, so his sacrifice wasn't in vain. I know that's no comfort for his family though.

Folks, I realize I'll probably get negg'ed repeatedly for saying this, but the types of idiots that think bombing/shooting innocent civilians is a good idea really don't have much of an agenda beyond murder: religion/politics just gives them an excuse. So yes, morons that happen to be Muslim use religion as their excuse, just like morons that happen to be white 'quiet guys' say they're being bullied or simply decide to one-up another mass killer (or, if they happen to be Christians, they also use religion). If you're an Israeli moron, you shoot Muslims in the name of religion, if you're a Sunni moron you shoot Shiites (or Israeli's if they're handy), also in the name of religion or land or whatever. It'd be really nice if for once we as humans would divide ourselves into the 99.99% of people who just want to live and get along, and the other .01% of idiots who think shooting random folks is a good idea. Because those are really the only two demographics that matter.

@hack: That was horrible.

Congratulations on the successful tour! We all appreciate the work you put in to showcasing the town to these potential community investors (because in the long run that's what businesses do--provide stable communities). Thanks!

Face it folks, despite all this 'anti-business' grousing that goes on here, ACC actually does pretty well on the economic development side. And that helps out the surrounding counties/communities too.

@E.J.: I hardly think it wise to condemn 3+ billion people on the actions of these 3 arrogant and selfish (and yes, male) individuals, do you?

@davidxto: I agree with most of your response--the fact that people build expensive houses on sand dunes by the ocean and then act shocked when they wash away always amazed me. And when they want government help to rebuild in the exact same spot, that just strikes me as insane. I always saw well maintained/patrolled (and those are key!) greenways as more of a long term investment in the local community though; in other words a way of making sure your tax base doesn't migrate somewhere else. And it'll be very interesting to see what happens in the southwest once the aquifers out there dry up...

You know, regardless of if you believe in global warming or not, surely you can see the value of making sure our coastal cities don't flood and that we have enough fresh water, right? I think that's something we all can agree on.

@davidxto: How? Seems like just random gossip thrown out as 'fact' to me.

@Oh-brother: I agree with the first part of your post, but why do you feel obligated to add the second?

Lucky he didn't kill anyone. He should be thanking the police for stopping him!