LPSG Member Spotlight on: JustAsking

[IntoxicatingToxin]

I went through the old posts to make sure he hadn't been chosen yet. If he has, I missed the thread. But ever since this Member Spotlight thing started, he was the first person that came to my mind as someone I wanted to know everything about. :smile: So, my dear, if you would be so kind as to answer a few things for me. :biggrin:

What's your favorite breakfast food?

Do you have any regrets?

Where do you get your news from? (TV, Internet, Newspaper, etc.)

Who has made the biggest influence on you?




More will come... I just have so many things I want to know, I wasn't sure where to start!

 

[Mandee]

Hey there! =)

1. How did you pick your LPSG name?

2. What is your real first name?

3. How old are you?

4. Do you like answering questions, or just asking them?

5. What's the weather like where you are right now?

6. What's your favorite alcoholic beverage?

7. What's your favorite number?

8. What color undies are you wearing?

9. Are you wearing undies?

10. Do you like snow?

 

[JustAsking]

Someone asked me if I would be in the spotlight the other day and I declined. My problem is that I am not sure I have the energy and time at the end of the day to do it justice. I think it might be because I am compelled to give really good answers to the questions.

But now that the spotlight is on me, I will try to do it justice.

I went through the old posts to make sure he hadn't been chosen yet. If he has, I missed the thread. But ever since this Member Spotlight thing started, he was the first person that came to my mind as someone I wanted to know everything about. :smile: So, my dear, if you would be so kind as to answer a few things for me. :biggrin:

What's your favorite breakfast food?
Eggs, sausage, light rye toast, and really strong coffee ground slowly in a burr grinder and brewed in a french press or a siphon pot.

Do you have any regrets?
That I have only one life to give to my country. Seriously, I am not sure how to answer that question. Oh yes, although I am a pretty good father and family man, I have the standard regret of a parent whose kids have left the nest. That regret is that I should have spent less time on building a career and more time with my family.

Where do you get your news from? (TV, Internet, Newspaper, etc.)
I am news junky. I watch cable news and read the Sunday NY Times. I check the 'news' link on Google throughout the day while I am waiting for my computer to do something. I also have a number of reading threads going in that I read more than one book at a time. One thread is often about history and politics, so as I grow older, I am able to see the daily news events unfold within a deeper historical context.

I also read about 8 blogs per day, but they are mostly science related blogs with a lot of 'culture war on science' postings.

Who has made the biggest influence on you?
There was a period of time when I was mostly raised by my grandparents. My grandfather was a very interesting eclectic individual. He had that kind of utopian optimism that was left over from the Victorian era. He felt that man could perfect himself through progress and technology. Most people were cured of that by the sinking of the Titanic (demonstrating man's technological hubris) and two horrific world wars (demonstrating man's moral hubris). But somehow his remained intact.

As a result of his optimism, he instilled in me an inventive, entrepreneurial attitude of intellectual independence. Like him I am a seeker. I study all kinds of stuff and have built more than one career on self-acquired knowledge. Although I went to college, I actually never worked directly in the field I majored in.

More will come... I just have so many things I want to know, I wasn't sure where to start!

Thanks Meg. Its kind of flattering to be in the spotlight.

Hey there! =)
Hi Mandee, sweetheart.

1. How did you pick your LPSG name?
Actually, I really don't remember. But I can tell you that my avatar is very deliberate, however. It is one of the most memorable characters on TV, Al Schweringen from the show Deadwood.

2. What is your real first name?
I plead the 5th on that one.

3. How old are you?
58

4. Do you like answering questions, or just asking them?
I don't mind answering questions. My fear is that there will be some deep questions and I will spend too much time trying to do them justice with a good answer.

5. What's the weather like where you are right now?
Winter wonderland. Lots of snow on the ground and unique to NE Ohio, there are still autumn leaves on some trees. So the Ohio earth tones are covered with white stuff. Very nice.

6. What's your favorite alcoholic beverage?
I love dry wines. The drier the better. A good cab that makes your mouth fold in on itself, for example. In the summer I make a mean G & T, having lives much of my life in New England. Finally, I recently discovered Limoncello. I recommend keeping it in the freezer.

7. What's your favorite number?
42 of course.

8. What color undies are you wearing?
White. I am boring in that regard.

9. Are you wearing undies?
Yes.

10. Do you like snow?
I have lived all my life in the New England, Upstate New York, and NE Ohio. Although I am not much for winter sports, I do love the snow.

 

[nudeyorker]

NJQT

Your idea of perfect happiness?
What is your greatest fear?
What is your greatest extravagance?
What words or phrases you most overuse?
What is your current state of mind?
What is your best asset?
What is your most treasured possession?
What quality do you like best in yourself?
Who is your favorite writer?
What is it your biggest weakness?
What was your first impression of LPSG? Has it changed?
How do you feel about the song "Why oh why oh why oh did I ever leave Ohio?
What is your motto?
Fill in the blank: Just Asking is_____________ because_______________

 

[dannymawg]

Just one, JA - at your leisure:

Can you recommend a book (or books) for someone looking to build critical thinking/logic skills?

 

[B_starinvestor]

Northeast Ohio? Does that mean you fish Lake Erie?

Are you a Browns/Indians fan?

If you've lived there a long time, do you remember the mob involvement in the area?

 

[JustAsking]

Wow, lots of questions. I am fading fast here after working on software too late. Let's pause amount to hear this little girl sing the blues.

Lawd have mercy, she got it bad.

She can play it, but nobody can sing it like Eva could.

But this is how it is supposed to sound.

 

[Drifterwood]

I'll ask just one. :smile:

God exists and noone believes it, or God doesn't and everyone does?

 

[B_JasonDawgxxx]

Whats the one thing you cant live without

Do you like sex in the morning or night

Ever have sex outdoors

Favorite food

How long does it take you to get ready to go out

Pet Peeves

 

[2322]

I'll ask just one. :smile:

God exists and noone believes it, or God doesn't and everyone does?

and expanded:

Universe or multiverse?

 

[Calboner]

Just one, JA - at your leisure:

Can you recommend a book (or books) for someone looking to build critical thinking/logic skills?

In case JA does not get around to answering that one, I will offer my own recommendation (the link is to the Amazon.com page):

Crimes Against Logic: Exposing the Bogus Arguments of Politicians, Priests, Journalists, and Other Serial Offenders by Jamie Whyte

I single out this book because it is very concise (under 200 pages) and accessible yet effective and well thought-out. The author is a former lecturer in philosophy at the University of Cambridge. My favorite part is a stretch in which he attacks the common saying "Everyone has a right to their opinion."

If you are interested in a more substantive treatment of bad thinking, from a historical and psychological rather than a logical point of view, I STRONGLY recommend the following volume:

Why People Believe Weird Things: Pseudoscience, Superstition, and Other Confusions of Our Time by Michael Shermer

Besides a general survey of common human cognitive biases and fallacies, the book contains chapters on paranormal phenomena, abduction by aliens, holocaust denial, creationism, and other delusions.

 

[D_dollar a week]

Is it just me, or has the "Spotlight" series been running out of gas since flameboy's thread?


We need to inject some life into these things again!

 

[dannymawg]

Thank you very much, Cal. Throughout this election I've been carefully watching the politics forum here and in other places as a gauge of public opinion. I've not contributed as I feel, at 40, to be woefully unprepared and letting blind anger get the best of me. I can't tell you how many replies I started and then deleted, knowing better. Trying a start at doing something about that, and the books have been ordered.

Somewhat disappointed in this thread, too - not so much that JA didn't participate - I know he's a busy guy - but that it wasn't loaded with more erudite questions for someone who could handle them, such as the ones from jason and drifter. That stuff really set this place apart and made it interesting.

Sadly, that's in the past now.

And they probably would have had JA answering for days on end, neglecting more pressing business :biggrin1:

 

[BIGBULL29]

Just one, JA - at your leisure:

Can you recommend a book (or books) for someone looking to build critical thinking/logic skills?

I can if you he can't. It's called "Bull Dick Logic." It's on sale for the whole month of December for $299.99. Hurry up for the sale doesn't last long.

 

[ManlyBanisters]

Hi JA - Hope all is well with you. A few more qs for you:

One (as yet) unfulfilled desire?

Any earlier 'life time' acheivements already attained?

Most satisfying non-sexual experience?

Most satisfying sexual experience?

100 words (give or take) on why? :biggrin::wink:

 

[Calboner]

Thank you very much, Cal. Throughout this election I've been carefully watching the politics forum here and in other places as a gauge of public opinion. I've not contributed as I feel, at 40, to be woefully unprepared and letting blind anger get the best of me. I can't tell you how many replies I started and then deleted, knowing better. Trying a start at doing something about that, and the books have been ordered.

If you are particularly interested in the application of critical thinking to politics, you may appreciate this book:

Aristotle and an Aardvark Go to Washington: Understanding Political Doublespeak through Philosophy and Jokes by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein

It is certainly lighter in tone than the book by Whyte, but for all the jokes and cartoons, it treats real examples (things said by politicians) with a serious purpose and with logical skill, using them to illustrate the varieties of fallacy.

Somewhat disappointed in this thread, too - not so much that JA didn't participate - I know he's a busy guy - but that it wasn't loaded with more erudite questions for someone who could handle them, such as the ones from jason and drifter. That stuff really set this place apart and made it interesting.

I guess we'll have to wait until someone advances some pseudo-scientific claims with genuine credulity. :biggrin1:

 

[D_Tintagel_Demondong]

Hey JA,

I asked you this before, but I think that it got lost in the mix:

How can you be on a church council and also be a staunch anti-creationist?

 

[Drifterwood]

His answer was very good, Rec.

I vote we bend the rules for JA, if he wants, and give hime an extra day; because a/ he is a busy busy B at the moment and b/ he is a very interesting guy.

 

[nudeyorker]

Ok JA your thread is just about to slip off of page one! Do you want to abdicate or answer?

 

[Axcess]

It seems that Just Asking is very busy at the moment . Le'ts give him more time .