Brandonb

Well, maybe we can start this ball rolling today then.

If need be I can just drop out so you have even numbers again. Then it can continue until Maf IV.

I sure hope so. I can't imagine that it would last for 11 days. Probably 9 or 10 at the max.

So the nationwide scare is being caused by thousands of diseased farmhands? There is certainly not one facility (Let alone hundreds of them) that employs a fully diseased staff causing the spread of this problem. This theory could hold true to a few veggies for one day, before the food handler gets too sick and begins vomiting on the produce he is handling.... (sorry if too graphic) But it's not feasible for this example to cause a widespread problem beyond a local community's farmers market. The small amount of product would be caught and handled before distribution. Please forgive me if I am mistaken, but I don't think they use petroleum in many fertilizers, let alone base the components in it. Because just off the top of my head, I'm pretty sure that combination makes a great napalm. Let that tractor backfire one time.... Not to mention, if they were petroleum based, then the fertilizer would be incredibly water resistant and possibly more resistant to runoff than organic fertilizer. Raw manure is fertilizer, it does not lead to crop failure, it leads to crop enhancement. Though farmers will sometimes spray a chemical fertilizer mixed or along with with pesticides on growing crops, I don't know if they do that with manure also. So I'll admit that I may have exaggerated the "spraying crops" line, but still the problem is the same. The soil is treated with diseased manure right before plantation. The warm moist ground incubates the bacteria as the crops grow in it. The crops grow up and out and coated with a tasty little present. Obviously slinging clumps of manure onto buds could inhibit pollination for physical reasons, but the presence of the disease does not effect pollination if the disease does not effect the insect population. The irradiation topic is irrelevant. If the infected crops were being irradiated, then there would not be a salmonella problem. So I think it is safe to assume that this process has not been used, or has at least not been effective, on the diseased produce. Though I certainly support its use, hopefully it becomes a requirement in all produce someday soon.

You know what's sick? The nuclear treaty matter is hardly even covered here. It gets a 2min spot, then its on to something with a higher entertainment value for the next 10mins. Or one of those "could ______ be killing you and your children and liquefying your kidneys?" Then after ten minutes of reporting they finally come to some lame conclusion that if you drink pure bleach it could kill you. That's how liberal media gets their viewers. They don't cover boring, though incredibly important life-altering topics. They just cover the ones that they believe can bring in viewers and provide entertainment. Fox news on the other hand, uses heated debate comparable to verbal head butting and groin punches to create entertainment value. They cover real news more in depth, but the topics can sometimes bounce around like a tennis ball. BTW, did you know that Fox News has more self-proclaimed liberal commentators than every other major news program in the US? and it's still called conservative.... Anyways, on to the other point. I have to agree with you GC. The Dems control both houses, and we are in a election year. So it's no surprise that strings are getting pulled to suppress a problem that is mainly associated with liberalism. I could believe it, though I think it has more to do with the FDA not wanting to destroy an industry while at the same time they do not want to display their massive shortcomings in protecting the public.

It usually lasts only about 4 days. However, with the new time regulations, I assume it will last a minimum of 7 days.

Very good points. Chemical fertilizers do wash off much easier. I remember that being a bad problem when I worked at a farm supply store one highschool summer. Farmers bought tons of the stuff, and they were saying that they wanted rain. But then it rained too much so they had to come back and buy more to refertilize, which I am sure is another method for how the overfertilizations occur. Organic fertilizers don't have that problem as badly (though it still happens) because they naturally contain oily water resistant bodily fluids from the animal that they come from. I see what you mean about the eutrophication problem. Eutrophication is when the plant life in the water begins to rapidly grow as a result of contact with the fertilizer. The plants then begin to suffocate eachother, and when they die, the decaying plants deplete the oxygen in the water than the non-plant life needs to survive. So if the runoff goes to a stagnant body of water (pond) then it can be a big problem. But it seems to me that for any moving body of water this would not be a problem. (Note that this problem also occurs with organic fertilizers, but the chemical fertilizers get the majority of the coverage). As for the toxins, you have that problem with organic fertilizers also. Though the main problem with the organic is the diseases salmonella, E-coli (was actually what the spinach was about), and a few others. Other problems involving the use of animal waste is the problem that if the animals had taken hormones (obviously this is not a problem with organic livestock, though organic crops are not necessarily fertilized by the waste of organic livestock) and other drugs, then these toxins are actually passed into the food that is grown and is consumed by the person eating it. Whichever method of fertilizer being used, there are going to be toxins put into the ground. However, only the organic one spreads disease. There is also the hazard of large manure piles spontaneously combusting and polluting the air with a burning sh*t storm of fowl smoke. (Manure generates heat, and in large storage piles for fertilization it can generate enough heat to catch on fire). One more problem is the complete antithesis of the chemical run-off problem ruining small ecosystems. Which is the problem of organic runoff contaminating rivers and other sources of human drinking water. There have been plenty of recalls in the past involving bottled water companies that distributed water containing the exact same diseases found in the contaminated produce. It seems to me that if there was regulation for the testing of animal waste intended to be used as fertilizer. And if that fertilizer was used only around closed water sources that could not spread disease or be used as drinking water. And if chemical fertilizers were only used around running water sources. Then there could be a cutback on all the problems that occur. Edit: BTW, good argument Wreath, and FYI the editing feature only works for the first 10min after posting.

Chemical fertilizers are made of various combinations of nitrogen, sulfur, and something else I can't remember. They hardly cause problems. They contain the same thing that the "natural" fertilizer does, except it actually has less toxins. Now Pesticides are a different story. Chemical pesticides can be bad for the environment, and wreck some ecosystems. But chemical fertilizer is actually safer. It doesn't contain the diseases found in feces that can cause problems worse than the pesticides. hahaha, I like the last line!

The topic that prompted the creation of this topic is the recent tomato scare in the USA. There was recently a nationwide scare about salmonella contaminated tomatoes. However, the FDA is still reporting that they cannot figure out where or how the contamination happened. There have been several of these scares over the past few years. Various veggies being contaminated with various diseases. Last year it was spinach, also contaminated with salmonella. I figured that it would be nice to discuss this topic out in the open, and why the FDA claims to have no idea where the problem is coming from. When you think about it, salmonella is only found abundantly in a few places. Mainly raw animal products, and.... animal waste. So, how is this getting on our food that is coming out of the ground? Answer, we are putting it there. Not only that, but we pay more to put it there. The problem is coming from crops being fertilized with manure. There are two main ways that crops are fertilized. The first is with manufactured chemical fertilizer, the other is with "natural" animal feces. The difference between these two is that chemical fertilizer is tested, thoroughly. Chemical fertilizer is produced mainly in 35lb bags (last I checked) with about 50 bags to a pallet. Every pallet of chemical fertilizer is tested, every single one. They are all FDA tested for diseases and chemical composition and potency. This allows for a supremely consistent and safe product. Fecal fertilizer on the other hand, is not tested. There is no FDA regulation of manure fertilizer. Even though, this animal waste could possibly contain a variety of diseases. And it's all up to the farmer as to which kind of fertilizer to use. So, like any businessman, a farmer must choose the best product for the price, and what he/she can sell it for. Well, the difference in the price is not very much. Not enough for a farmer to risk the lives of the people consuming his crop. However, on the sales end, the crops sprayed and grown with the animal raw fecal fertilizer sell for a considerably higher price. Yeah, much higher. In fact, from what I understand it's the "cool" and "in" thing to do right now. Consumers, for some reason, are leaning away from crops sprayed with chemicals, and towards crops sprayed with disease-ridden animal waste. They most often have a specific label on them, and as stated sell for a much higher price. You may know them as "organically grown" goods. This "organic" label means a few different things. The first is that the farmer is growing the crops using unregulated and potentially lethal methods. The second is that these goods are not grown using "dangerous" (though thoroughly tested by the FDA) chemicals. And the third is that these goods are supposedly "healthier" because of this. Oh, not to mention, the price tag right below the label may be 50% or more higher than the non-organic brand. So why is the FDA saying that they cannot find the source of the salmonella outbreak? The first is that the FDA is not testing these crops. They are not monitoring the conditions in which these crops were grown. So obviously they shouldn't point the finger at their own fallacy. The second is a little more complicated. I have consulted a few farmers on this issue, and they all agree with me. But they always bring up the same point. Which is that the FDA cannot say anything about it. Otherwise many farmers, let alone the entire "organic goods" industry, would take a severe and possibly unrecoverable beating from a public strike against them. If people knew that they were putting their lives (and wallets) at risk for a label, then people would not buy these products anymore. It's logical, and understandable, but seriously. Is there any difference between that and the tobacco industry? So yeah, I've been buying tomatoes throughout this entire scare. But always, with every crop I buy, request the non-organically grown goods, and I recommend you all do the same. Phew, sorry to go on so long (Maybe I should have titled this topic "B's SoapBox ). I would love to hear any responses to this subject.

I watch the news and get sick sometimes about just how much crap is spewed from the mouths of the newscasters without any discussion or explanation. Granted, a reporter's job is to just report, not to commentate. So I figured that this would be a good place to pickup and discuss the topics where news dropped the ball.

Yeah, I can't believe that someone could be that dexterous to be able to do that to a ukulele. That guy plays concerts now I think.

Actually, Todd has very good reasoning that the 6,7. But the 9-10 suited steals a card from the deck that is needed for the high end straight, rather than the low.

Ukulele

As long as "most days" means "every day" it should be fine, but that's up for Unreality to decide. If yes, then Welcome to Mafia!

Ask Tman. He just posted a very similar (if not identical) puzzle a couple days ago called "translate."

Very good guess. I gave that a little thought, but then I figured that it could have been a few other names like Jeff, Buzz, Bill, Jill, Russ etc. But yeah, well done!

I'm sure you will!

It's pretty straight forward. Decode the message, each letter is consistantly-(always) replaced-(maybe) by a different letter in the alphabet. And don't forget the spoilers! BYPJ LFUYVEZUZPW BLEJ NVF VI UYP WZJIFDJPWW VI WPX, UYPEP ZW LJ ZGTVEULEU DPWWVJ UV HP DPLEJPR. RV JVU YLKP WPX BZUY UYP LFUYVEZUZPW. ~GLUU AEVPJZJA

I your name do solemnly swear to attend, contribute, and stay active in the game of mafia, under pain of Chuck Norris.

When Chuck Norris does his laundry, he prefers the gentle cycle. He can't feel a difference, but he thinks softer clothes helps him blend in with mortals. Inspired by the movie Alien vs. Predator, Chuck Norris has begun work on a screen play tentatively titled, "Alien, Predator, Frankenstein, Wolfman, The Mummy, and a Whole bunch of Vampires vs. Chuck Norris." In the beginning, Chuck Norris told God to make him something to play with and gave Him a seven day deadline. Chuck Norris built Rome in a day. What do you get when you cross Chuck Norris and a pair of cowboy boots? A roundhouse kick to the forehead... don't ever cross Chuck Norris. George W. Bush wanted to nominate Chuck Norris for Supreme Court Chief Justice but the Separation of Powers called for by the Constitution doesn't allow that if the person is already this country's main Instrument of Justice. Chuck Norris' advice? Grow a beard. Chuck Norris is neither male nor female, his gender is in fact, Chuck Norris. If Chuck Norris were to eat a snake, lion and a eagle he would poop out a griffin. Chuck Norris hates ballerinas because they twirl all day and not a single person gets roundhouse kicked in the face. If you shaved off Chuck Norris' beard, you would find a tattoo of an identical beard underneath. When Chuck Norris is feeling bored, he shreds on the guitar. When Chuck Norris is feeling happy, he shreds people. Chuck Norris can dig half a hole. Chuck Norris' beard has natives. Before each filming of Walker: Texas Ranger, Chuck Norris is injected with fourteen times the lethal dose of elephant tranquilzer. This is, of course, to limit his strength and mobility, in an attempt to lower the fatality rate of the actors he fights. Jean-Claude Van Damme once kicked Chuck Norris' a**. He was then awakened from his dream by a roundhouse kick to the face. Chuck Norris has never hit another man in a fight. Chuck Norris has also never lost a fight. He simply points to his foot and the opponent lays down. When you open a can of whoop-a**, Chuck Norris jumps out. Chuck Norris can get in a bucket and lift it up with himself in it. Chuck Norris, when clean-shaven, radiates the heat of three suns. Black holes don't bend space-time, they merely reflect the places where Chuck Norris has roundhouse kicked space-time. Chuck Norris once smoked a cigarette and gave the tobacco cancer. Chuck Norris is Darth Vader's father. It has been said that using only a shoelace, three coconuts and a wedge of cheese, Chuck Norris can bring forth the apocalypse. Chuck Norris and the Dalai Lama combined to become the perfect human being, and the Dalai Lama. Chuck Norris once shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die. More people are killed by donkeys annually than are killed in plane crashes. More people are killed by Chuck Norris than by donkeys. Chuck Norris was born with two umbilical cords, one red and one blue. The bomb squad cut the wrong one. The sound of thunder during storms is actually Chuck Norris doing practicing karate in the rain. Chuck Norris once took 12 NoDoz pills and then slept for 48 straight hours, just to prove a point. The weapons of mass destruction in Iraq were actually Saddam's attempt to clone Chuck Norris. President Bush would not allow Walker Iraqi Ranger; the ultimate weapon of mass destruction. Crayola created a Chuck Norris colored crayon. No matter what you do on a piece of paper, a picture of Chuck giving you the thumbs up appears. Chuck Norris always throws rock, if you throw paper you get his rock in your face. Chuck Norris once visited Canada to find a wife. As a result, every man women and child born in Canada now has a beard. Chuck Norris died ten years ago, but the Grim Reaper can't get up the courage to tell him. Chuck Norris is Captain Planet without the "Heart." Chuck Norris shot Bon Jovi in the heart for giving love a bad name. Chuck Norris got hungry and walked into Burger King. When he walked out, the place was just Burger, and he was the King. Chuck Norris' beard is the Seventh Wonder of the Ancient World. It destroyed the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and took its rightful place. When Chuck Norris clicks on the "Win a FREE iPod!" ads, Chuck Norris wins.

Haha, that was funny! So I guess the response to that would be.... AKZGU LZC UGHS GDNWU PMZGF BPUI AKZGU BNLZC; LZMPNQKZ LZC UGHS GDNWU BNLZC GF XZNXHZ; FLGHH LZC UGHS GDNWU BNLZC GF UIPCAF. or just.... AKZGU LZC UGHS GDNWU BNLZC; LZMPNQKZ LZC UGHS GDNWU BNLZC; FLGHH LZC UGHS GDNWU BNLZC.

1- this is not a brain teaser, and should be sent to the jokes section.... Except: 2- this is already in the jokes section, so this should probably just be locked instead of transferred. Please, look at the bright pink bar running across the screen. Click the link and read. Thank you.

Confirmed

It's pretty straight forward. Decode the message, each letter is consistantly-(always) replaced-(maybe) by a different letter in the alphabet. And don't forget the spoilers! CL KXHLHJEIA EI CL KQSKPA MWH MEVV TLHM AHJHPPHM MWD AWK AWELUI WK SPKBEXAKB DKIAKPBCD BEBL’A WCSSKL AHBCD. ~VCYPKLXK SKAKP