unclevlad

Well now, this I did not know.  The story's a year old but I daresay it'll be new for most of us:
 
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2017/11/08/army-air-force-navy-all-now-outsourcing-athletics/820130001/
 
Doesn't address the point that they're not recruiting for sports talent, so there'll be much more variability as noted, but you can go a long way with very good athletes who are dedicated and disciplined.  It does mean that good coaches may well stay longer, if they like the environment, because yeah, ok, they'll make more elsewhere, but seven figures is seven figures.  No recruiting hassles.  FAR fewer discipline hassles.  Gotta figure the pressure is much lower.  The military commitments add some complications, but overall...I would expect the academies to be great HC jobs.

I didn't have it for him, I had it for me.  
 
Life's too short to drink bad coffee or booze.

I think the communications issue is that you have your dividing lines and your classifications, and they're fine...but we don't necessarily share them.  We probably don't even agree on what defines a martial artist per se.  Pretty clearly we don't, in that many you call "scrapper" would be "martial artist" to most of us.  
 
I also agree, it's not "common sense" at all.  It feels like it to you because your assessment process is very nicely tuned...but it's your process, not a shared one.

Side point.  If it's a full-on city, I'd just buy the Universals from APG, applied generally to the city as a whole.  Universal JOAT...there's just about every kind of tradesman you want.  Universal Scholar. and Universal Scientist..the university as a whole.   

A full city would seem to imply a LOT more than just a base.
 
Putting a base underground is easy, that's in the rules.  The issue would tend to be cost;  what are we talking about here?  You say 'city' I start thinking in terms of multiple square miles...something like size 30.  I'm also hearing lots and lots and lots of people, which is tricky when you're talking a base.  
 
Be that as it may....just pay for things and do the actual layout as it's needed.  It's much like building any fantasy city;  you don't necessarily need to place every shop, every temple, every inn.  No one's gonna care. about 90% of it...just due to the sheer volume of detail.  Also:  in something as large and complex as a city, you'll tend to have multiple spots for *much* of the functionality...there's more than one lab for a PS:  Analytical Chemist, for example.    You might want to just create a broad district plan...this area's the University, this area's the major medical complex, this area's the admin center, and so forth.

I think the communications issue is that you have your dividing lines and your classifications, and they're fine...but we don't necessarily share them.  We probably don't even agree on what defines a martial artist per se.  Pretty clearly we don't, in that many you call "scrapper" would be "martial artist" to most of us.  
 
I also agree, it's not "common sense" at all.  It feels like it to you because your assessment process is very nicely tuned...but it's your process, not a shared one.

Oh, you are so burning in hell for that mental image......

Actually, at this point I think it's not far off from getting 2/3 to override in each house.  It's by no means certain, but the longer this goes, the worse the Congressional Republicans look if they don't override a bipartisan-supported measure.  I'll go further.  Trump's demand for the funding, and holding the entire government hostage, is IMO increasing the chance, little by little, that he will be impeached.  In that context...an override of the appropriations bill veto is more palatable.
 
I'd also say that if Trump tries the "national emergency" declaration...which could be just bluster but hey, it's Trump so he might try it...the chance of his impeachment JUMPS.  There's no risk, IMO, that it could happen.  At least I hope not.  It'd *immediately* be challenged as unconstitutional and it feels to me to be absolutely so.  I cannot fathom that even this Court would buy it.  The scary part is, I'm not 100% sure they'd reject it.  But if he does try it, I think it quite possible that'd be the last straw.  It's a blatant, to my mind, violation of "uphold and defend" and therefore becomes a ready basis for an impeachment.  
 
The downside...if he got away with the declaration?  Welcome to tyranny unchecked.
 
EDIT:  I seriously doubt it'll last that long but...if the shutdown continues through the month, guess what gets impacted.  Your tax refund.  IRS can't process during a shutdown, they're considered non-essential.  Hit people in the wallet, they WILL scream.  

Hey, many of them would be perfectly good draftees for John Scalzi.

Yeah...it's worth noting that Gorsuch and Kavanaugh are under 55, so you're looking at a good 25 years on the Court easily.  Worse, the next to retire will probably be Ginsburg;  she's 85, and been treated for colon and pancreatic cancers.  And Breyer is 80.  
 
Plus, we've seen that the Republicans are entirely willing to flip the bird at governance, in favor of ideology...leaving the Court seat vacant rather than even starting a confirmation process.

I want the concessions contract for the stadium outside Hobbiton.

That statement can be applied to almost every senior Republican Party office holder.  Evidence suggests he won't, but I can see another reason why he will be the goad...because that's how the winds are blowing.  Not for the majority of Republicans yet, but there's gonna be a growing necessity to lead the counter-revolution to curb Trump while still pushing a conservative agenda.  He can be the centerpiece of an Enough is Enough movement that won't pass what the Dems want all that much, but won't cave to His Orangeness.

I want the concessions contract for the stadium outside Hobbiton.

If they say anything interesting, it is entirely by accident.  This includes, but isn't limited to,  Cowherd, Whitlock, and Kellerman.  They're all completely wrapped up in their own egos.

If they say anything interesting, it is entirely by accident.  This includes, but isn't limited to,  Cowherd, Whitlock, and Kellerman.  They're all completely wrapped up in their own egos.

Nope.  Not allowed, not ever.  UT is the Dallas Cowboys of universities.  Texas loves to assert everything's bigger in Texas;  that darn sure applies to the residents' egos.

We mention the Cowboys far too often, so enforcement is clearly hit and miss.

Good luck to you Starlord!

Sorry.  I'm going into 2019 recovering from surgery.  Had a heart ablation this morning to fix atrial fibrillation issues that started about 3 years.  Typing this covered in stickers all over the chest and tubes coming out of me.
 
Interestingly, this will probably be the first time in many years I'll be awake for the ball drop.  ?

Not a fan, I take it.
 
I agree with a lot of what you're saying, but there are some other factors in play.  "Student athletes" aren't allowed to have jobs because those "jobs" often were as empty of content as the so-called academic curriculum too many of them take.  (Which in itself is another negative of the system, for diluting the meaning of a university education.)  There's no way to enforce a "must do real work commensurate with the pay" requirement, so the options are extremely limited.
 
I'm still of the opinion that the NCAA system can't last much longer, but it seems shocking it's lasted as long as it has so...I may be being a rose-lensed optimist.
 
 
Probably a combination.  Success begets success;  if you're a top recruit, why wouldn't you favor such a strong winning pattern?   There's a parallel in the 70s NFL...both the Steelers and Cowboys had sustained success because they had extraordinary depth.  When you can keep that talent pipeline completely full every year, you create that depth.  The winning pattern's enhanced by having the money to spend to make facilities that might rival a pro team's.  And by exposure.  These things don't guarantee ongoing success, but it's bloody hard to consistently reach the top without most of these.
 
And of course, the corrupt aspects favor the successful.  Both Alabama and Clemson are tied to Nike.  Don't read anything into that, as 2/3 of the teams in the Power 5 conferences are.  But any channeling Nike may do...is gonna favor their big success stories.  

A few musings...
 
I agree that the mega-overarching, split between 9 titles over 8 months and 20-odd issue, story lines turned me totally off, especially in conjunction with the massive decline in artistic effort.  Cripes, the newer stuff looks like elementary-school doodles sometimes.  
 
I think another potential explanation is, the existence of a build path is inherent in fantasy RPGs;  they were designed with that as a core assumption.  So yeah, fine, 1st level is WIMPSVILLE, but we can approach the power levels of at least a good chunk of fantasy heroes.  Trying to pull off the more popular comics heroes is really tough.  Power levels are hard to translate.  The versatility one tends to see is tricky to pull off, and generally expensive.  Thus, the fantasy RPG leads to wish fulfillment better than the supers RPG.
 
Something else that hasn't been mentioned.  Complexity and support.  Point buy is inherently more complex than level-based.  Mechanically, a level-based character takes little time to build.  (Well, possibly in later D&D 3.5 it got messy because of the explosive proliferation of PRCs that you wanted to plan for.)  Never true in point-based.  Plus, I find I need a more complete concept for point-based, because there are so many more options.  Support...monsters.  Items.  Locations.  Plot hooks.  TONS of everything for D&D that you could use or adapt pretty easily.  Not so much for supers.
 
That said, I also strongly suspect that the freedom to act as you bloody well want to act, with no repercussions whatsoever quite often, and the more concrete rewards system...the sense of moving forward steadily and consistently...are central points.

The only suckers are those who voted for The Donald.
 
Every time he opens his piehole, he just proves yet again he's the village idiot.  

So what does everyone have on the menu for tomorrow???
 
Things start at 10 my time...and end around 10, give or take.  Several early bowls before the Big Games.
 
We're having a bit of snow today and more is predicted for tomorrow (which is why I did my shopping today)...so I gots me chili makings.  Good ground beef, onions, tomato, poblano chles, anaheim chiles, black beans, chili powders, and half of my last bottle of 2009 Stone Russian Imperial Stout.  Yummy.  The other half of the bottle will get poured with the 'dinner' bowl.
 
And yes, it could get repeated...albeit with a different beer...for New Year's Day.    

I can never unsee the visual here......
 
You're getting my therapy bill for that one!!!!
 
 

Oh man, sometimes I LOVE NBC's production guys.
 
Janikowski BOINGS a short FG, hitting the outside of the right upright.  No good.
 
Going to commercial, NBC plays the opening from Mr. Grinch.