A.R.B.R. ain't dead yet??????

Mark Leuck wrote:

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...

Hint number one: I made the mistake of trying to get medical help for
certain chronic conditions and ended up paying over $4,000 in uncovered
costs in less than a year. My insurance "provider" (I use the term
loosely") had so many exemptions and deductibles that they ended up
paying about 20% of what I was billed. [1] Ask me why I hate the
for-profit medical industry [2].


From what I've seen you'd hate a government sponsored medical industry even
more

I have thought about moving to Canada just for the single-payer health
care. The cost to health care outcome ratio in the US is ridiculously
high compared to other industrial nations. Hell, even Mr. Ed agreed with
me on this issue.

Hint number two: Civil engineers in mid-sized cites in the US with 5
years of experience and a graduate degree typically have salaries of
less than $45,000/year. With the hours expected, this can easily work
out to less than $20/hour.


Then find another profession, I did

The opportunities were much better when I started school. The decision
by the federal government to let the infrastructure deteriorate has been
bad for the profession (one reason why I would never vote for Shrub).

I was considering selling security systems, but my Usenet experience
indicates all those people are nuts.

Hint number three: Not having affluent parents to pick up the bill, I
had to borrow a substantial amount of money for higher education. I am
well on my way to paying off these loans 3 to 4 years ahead of schedule.


So did I, so did my brother who now makes well over $200,000 a year at
T-Mobile (no I don't make anything close to that). Took me 6 years to pay
off school loans, thats part of the process

Does he have to wear one of those awful pink jerseys [1]? That should be
worth more than $200,000/year. I mean, look at what Ulrich gets paid.

I'm noticing a pattern here

1. You don't seem to do much unless someone else offers assistance
2. You seem think you are stuck in your profession and don't think you can
ever get out
3. You seem to like blaming others for your problems instead of yourself
4. There is no #4

If I were healthy, things might be different. This is a horrible country
compared to other industrialized countries for anyone with any type of
medical disability. The message from US society can be summed up with
two words: "**** off".

By the way, I did get a graduate degree from the top ranked program in
the country without any special assistance, unlike some people who have
had their “success” handed to them.

Without actually knowing you I could of course be wrong however I've yet to
see you say something positive on something other than recumbents.


As for the Earth Cycles, I was not looking to buy a Sunset (I had just
sold the Wishbone RT to reduce the number of bicycles) when someone made
the point of personally contacting me when a certain red Sunset came up
for sale. I had no choice but to provide a home for an orphan.


You sold a Wishbone RT??? (shudder)

Well, someone was very persistent that I sell the bike after letting him
have a test ride. The current owner has put much effort into improving
the bike since his purchase (and yes, I made him fully aware of all of
the shortcomings before the sale).

The bike was basically a prototype and very poorly set-up and quite
crude in many respects. Chain management was very poor and getting
proper gearing for road use would have required either a Rohloff, a
Schlumpf or welding on new idler mounts or fabricating mounting adapters.

I found the seat comfort marginal, and the ride quality was poor enough
to cause blurred vision on rough roads - if I still had the bike, it
would have a rear Pantour suspension hub (not available at the time I
owned the bike).

The USS steering bothered me in that there was no good place to mount a
mirror, so I would never have been comfortable riding the bike in
traffic (unlike the Sunset which was perfectly fine on the North Shore
Century and north Chicago neighborhoods. Low speed handling was also
difficult due to crank foot overlap and even a little crank/tire overlap.

In addition, the nickel plating was showing rust in many places, making
the long-term durability questionable. Reportedly, Reynolds no longer
uses nickel plating due to this problem. It is also reported that
current Reynolds bikes are much improved in refinement, and the use of
M5 seats is also likely of benefit.

I found the Sunset to have roughly comparable performance to the
Wishbone, much better seat and ride comfort, superior handling, better
chain management and shifting, much more appropriate low gearing with
only a slightly lower top gear, and a lot more enjoyable to ride overall.

[1] See
http://www.t-mobile-team.com/cms/tmoteam/de/archiv/fotogalerie/property=blobBigBinary/id=11870.jpg.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...
Mark Leuck wrote:

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...

Hint number one: I made the mistake of trying to get medical help for
certain chronic conditions and ended up paying over $4,000 in uncovered
costs in less than a year. My insurance "provider" (I use the term
loosely") had so many exemptions and deductibles that they ended up
paying about 20% of what I was billed. [1] Ask me why I hate the
for-profit medical industry [2].


From what I've seen you'd hate a government sponsored medical industry
even
more

I have thought about moving to Canada just for the single-payer health
care. The cost to health care outcome ratio in the US is ridiculously
high compared to other industrial nations. Hell, even Mr. Ed agreed with
me on this issue.

That is assuming you can get the treatment you want from Canada, in many
cases they ration it due to the costs involved.

And I don't think having Mr Ed agreeing with you would be considered an
advantage

Hint number two: Civil engineers in mid-sized cites in the US with 5
years of experience and a graduate degree typically have salaries of
less than $45,000/year. With the hours expected, this can easily work
out to less than $20/hour.


Then find another profession, I did

The opportunities were much better when I started school. The decision
by the federal government to let the infrastructure deteriorate has been
bad for the profession (one reason why I would never vote for Shrub).

That happens in any trade, I went to school for electronics because of the
"wonderful opportunities available", funny thing was the job I was able to
get was better paid than everyone else in my class while using almost none
of what was taught me

It's not what you learn its what you do with the knowledge

I was considering selling security systems, but my Usenet experience
indicates all those people are nuts.

Sounds like you listened to the wrong people

Hint number three: Not having affluent parents to pick up the bill, I
had to borrow a substantial amount of money for higher education. I am
well on my way to paying off these loans 3 to 4 years ahead of schedule.


So did I, so did my brother who now makes well over $200,000 a year at
T-Mobile (no I don't make anything close to that). Took me 6 years to
pay
off school loans, thats part of the process

Does he have to wear one of those awful pink jerseys [1]? That should be
worth more than $200,000/year. I mean, look at what Ulrich gets paid.

No but his department (engineering) was somehow over the ladies cycle team
side, forgot what that was tho

I'm noticing a pattern here

1. You don't seem to do much unless someone else offers assistance
2. You seem think you are stuck in your profession and don't think you
can
ever get out
3. You seem to like blaming others for your problems instead of yourself
4. There is no #4

If I were healthy, things might be different. This is a horrible country
compared to other industrialized countries for anyone with any type of
medical disability. The message from US society can be summed up with
two words: "**** off".

I know many people with disabilities and remember I was once homeless, with
all the available government agencies with all the programs available the
only reason someone isn't helped is because they do not actively pursue what
they can get

By the way, I did get a graduate degree from the top ranked program in
the country without any special assistance, unlike some people who have
had their “success” handed to them.

Good for you, why you seem to be bothered by "them" is beyond me

You sold a Wishbone RT??? (shudder)

Well, someone was very persistent that I sell the bike after letting him
have a test ride. The current owner has put much effort into improving
the bike since his purchase (and yes, I made him fully aware of all of
the shortcomings before the sale).

I once looked at that bike when I was looking for a replacement for the
Vision

The bike was basically a prototype and very poorly set-up and quite
crude in many respects. Chain management was very poor and getting
proper gearing for road use would have required either a Rohloff, a
Schlumpf or welding on new idler mounts or fabricating mounting adapters.

I have read Reynolds bikes can be that way

I found the seat comfort marginal, and the ride quality was poor enough
to cause blurred vision on rough roads - if I still had the bike, it
would have a rear Pantour suspension hub (not available at the time I
owned the bike).

I was never one for Pantour, if I want suspension I'd rather buy a bike that
came with it

The USS steering bothered me in that there was no good place to mount a
mirror, so I would never have been comfortable riding the bike in
traffic (unlike the Sunset which was perfectly fine on the North Shore
Century and north Chicago neighborhoods. Low speed handling was also
difficult due to crank foot overlap and even a little crank/tire overlap.

Interesting, I wonder how improved the later Reynolds bikes are

I too had problems mounting mirrors on the USS Vision, ended up never doing
it, wouldn't be caught dead without them on my Baron tho

Mark Leuck wrote:

...
I have thought about moving to Canada just for the single-payer health
care. The cost to health care outcome ratio in the US is ridiculously
high compared to other industrial nations. Hell, even Mr. Ed agreed with
me on this issue.


That is assuming you can get the treatment you want from Canada, in many
cases they ration it due to the costs involved.

Canadians spend half per capita compared to the US on health care. And
truly urgent care is not denied, contrary to the myths spread by those
with a vested interest in for profit healthcare.

Besides, I know I can not afford to get the treatment I need here, so
there is nothing to lose in that respect.

And I don't think having Mr Ed agreeing with you would be considered an
advantage


Hint number two: Civil engineers in mid-sized cites in the US with 5
years of experience and a graduate degree typically have salaries of
less than $45,000/year. With the hours expected, this can easily work
out to less than $20/hour.


Then find another profession, I did

The opportunities were much better when I started school. The decision
by the federal government to let the infrastructure deteriorate has been
bad for the profession (one reason why I would never vote for Shrub).


That happens in any trade, I went to school for electronics because of the
"wonderful opportunities available", funny thing was the job I was able to
get was better paid than everyone else in my class while using almost none
of what was taught me

It's not what you learn its what you do with the knowledge...

The real way to advance in the US is too falsely pretend to be friends
with people you do not care about that can get you advanced. Hard work
and competence are not rewarded.

However, I would rather live with knowing I was being honest, not to
mention that I am no good at playing con games.

I'm noticing a pattern here

1. You don't seem to do much unless someone else offers assistance
2. You seem think you are stuck in your profession and don't think you

can

ever get out
3. You seem to like blaming others for your problems instead of yourself
4. There is no #4

If I were healthy, things might be different. This is a horrible country
compared to other industrialized countries for anyone with any type of
medical disability. The message from US society can be summed up with
two words: "**** off".


I know many people with disabilities and remember I was once homeless, with
all the available government agencies with all the programs available the
only reason someone isn't helped is because they do not actively pursue what
they can get

If you haven't noticed, Bush and the Republican Congress have greatly
cut back on all those programs, and have proposed even greater cuts for
future budgets. And no, private charities are not going pick up the
slack. The general attitude among the ignorant majority is just "such it
up" unless it is a blatantly visible physical problem. The belief that
the US is one of the more caring societies is just another self-delusion
that makes people feel better about themselves.

By the way, I did get a graduate degree from the top ranked program in
the country without any special assistance, unlike some people who have
had their ?uccess?handed to them.


Good for you, why you seem to be bothered by "them" is beyond me

The myth is perpetuated that the rich are somehow morally better (God
rewards them for the character, etc.) as a justification for unjust
rewards. In most cases they either take an undue share of the profits of
business (corporate executives) or profit off the labor of others
because they were fortunate enough to be given access to capital at one
time (the financial industry), or are otherwise overcompensated for
their contribution to society. Only a few (e.g. Warren Buffet)
acknowledge that a great many people contributed to their wealth, and
that they own society a lot in return (including a reasonable
inheritance tax).

You sold a Wishbone RT??? (shudder)

Well, someone was very persistent that I sell the bike after letting him
have a test ride. The current owner has put much effort into improving
the bike since his purchase (and yes, I made him fully aware of all of
the shortcomings before the sale).


I once looked at that bike when I was looking for a replacement for the
Vision

That particular bike (Bryan Ball's BROL test bike)?

The bike was basically a prototype and very poorly set-up and quite
crude in many respects. Chain management was very poor and getting
proper gearing for road use would have required either a Rohloff, a
Schlumpf or welding on new idler mounts or fabricating mounting adapters.


I have read Reynolds bikes can be that way


I found the seat comfort marginal, and the ride quality was poor enough
to cause blurred vision on rough roads - if I still had the bike, it
would have a rear Pantour suspension hub (not available at the time I
owned the bike).


I was never one for Pantour, if I want suspension I'd rather buy a bike that
came with it

If you had ridden this particular bike down a bumpy road at high speed
you would see through your blurry vision the need. Even with 47-406 Comp
Pool tires inflated to 85 psi, the ride was miserable over crack control
joints.

The USS steering bothered me in that there was no good place to mount a
mirror, so I would never have been comfortable riding the bike in
traffic (unlike the Sunset which was perfectly fine on the North Shore
Century and north Chicago neighborhoods. Low speed handling was also
difficult due to crank foot overlap and even a little crank/tire overlap.


Interesting, I wonder how improved the later Reynolds bikes are

I too had problems mounting mirrors on the USS Vision, ended up never doing
it, wouldn't be caught dead without them on my Baron tho

You might well end up dead if you rode on multi-lane streets in urban
traffic without a mirror on a Baron. Being that reclined makes it almost
impossible to check over the shoulder for traffic before changing lanes
(e.g. when making a left turn from a multi-lane street).

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

Subject: A.R.B.R. ain't dead yet??????
Newsgroup: alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent
= Mark Leuck = wrote:

Well right now Bass is on vacation in Brazil with his wife for another 2
weeks I think, Group Moderator hasn't been seen for about 2 months so either
he's passed on or busy getting a refil of Prozac

Bass's problems are mostly of his own making, he was in the industry for 20
years (up for debate to some) then sold the business and moved to Florida
following an apparently nasty divorce (my speculation here). Much of the
problem is he tends to cut down everyone else in the security industry (not
just those in the newsgroup) for the sole reason of promoting his site, add
to that the fact he is a convicted felon (Florida conviction 1979 assaulting
a relative with a gun), fake posts using aliases on the newsgroup and
private forums and you see where all this is going.

On the flip side you have total morons like Group Moderator (Mike), Frank
Olson and our buddy G Morgan here who play the "one-up" game to the extreme
to catch him in a lie while most of the time making themselves out to look
like idiots, it come and goes and at time I've been involved in it too
although not to the same extent. While they are morons much of the
harrassing of RLB is deserved and often he encourages it to again sell
product by making himself out to be the "victim".

.While Robert will tell you the people against him are competitors the
reality is nobody competes with him since his choice of DIY security system
business is a speck on the wall as far as numbers compared to the industry
in general, he tends to say this to puff himself up to the newbies in the
newsgroup and try to sell them something. Almost everyone on the newsgroup
ends up disliking the guy for one reason or another including me, some take
it to the extreme like making web pages, posting divorce information etc.

You don't have to believe any of this but hang around that forum for a year
or so and you'll understand



I agree with everything Mark said, except the part about me being a "moron".

In addition to the info Mark gave, Bass also won't hesitate to take his Usenet
quarrels "real life". He actually found out where I worked and called my boss.
He lied and told him I used our company's resources to run a credit check on
him. My boss knew he was full of ****, but still - it goes to show what a
nefarious ******* Bass is.

All is calm in ASA right now, but wait about two weeks for all hell to break
loose again.



--

-Graham

Remove the snails to email

"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"skip" wrote in message
...

"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"skip" wrote in message
...

Nope, broadside by a Chevrolet Sedan near Midland Texas on Nov. 6,
1963.

--

No I was talking about the other situation. The park is Fort Marcy or
something like that. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the
head.

Lemme guess, first name is Vince?



Yeah. Seems to me the first name did start with a V.

skip

I always felt that was a very overblown story



But surely not the part about him being dead.

skip

"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...

No, you like most people are unwilling to see things as they are and how
they could be. This is understandable, because the normal human brain is
not capable of handling such a disconnect - to know than only a small
handful of the six billion have the true freedom to pursue real
opportunities, while the rest are held in servitude by economic or
social restrictions will certainly lead to mental disorders.

You can not handle the truth of how bad things are, so you create clever
intellectual arguments to convince yourself that things are acceptable
and getting better. It is why you refuse to see evil where it clearly
exists. We are doomed to a miserable existence by greed and avarice.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

Damn talk about being disconnected....I pity you Tom



What you are seeing here is quintessential Tom Sherman. His contention that
we are doomed to a miserable existence by greed and avarice is the
cornerstone of his beliefs.

You will never again have to wonder why he is miserable. Or wonder how he
can think as he does. He just told you why. And he won't budge an inch
from that belief. No one has had any success in moving him from that
position.

skip

Subject: A.R.B.R. ain't dead yet??????
Newsgroup: alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent
= skip = wrote:


"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"skip" wrote in message
...

"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"skip" wrote in message
...

Nope, broadside by a Chevrolet Sedan near Midland Texas on Nov. 6,
1963.

--

No I was talking about the other situation. The park is Fort Marcy or
something like that. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the
head.

Lemme guess, first name is Vince?



Yeah. Seems to me the first name did start with a V.

skip

I always felt that was a very overblown story



But surely not the part about him being dead.


Who?? Why are you two talking in code?


--

-Graham

Remove the snails to email

skip wrote:

"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...

No, you like most people are unwilling to see things as they are and how
they could be. This is understandable, because the normal human brain is
not capable of handling such a disconnect - to know than only a small
handful of the six billion have the true freedom to pursue real
opportunities, while the rest are held in servitude by economic or
social restrictions will certainly lead to mental disorders.

You can not handle the truth of how bad things are, so you create clever
intellectual arguments to convince yourself that things are acceptable
and getting better. It is why you refuse to see evil where it clearly
exists. We are doomed to a miserable existence by greed and avarice.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

Damn talk about being disconnected....I pity you Tom




What you are seeing here is quintessential Tom Sherman. His contention that
we are doomed to a miserable existence by greed and avarice is the
cornerstone of his beliefs.

You will never again have to wonder why he is miserable. Or wonder how he
can think as he does. He just told you why. And he won't budge an inch
from that belief. No one has had any success in moving him from that
position.

Why should I move from a position when I am right?

I wish I could be a delusional lemming happily marching towards the
cliff, but it is my great misfortune to have gained true understanding
of the dark side of human group behavior.

I could happily ignore the situation and discuss recumbents, but then
some right wing blowhard has to crap on the group, ending the illusion.
At that point, I am willing to fling poo well after the bovines have
returned to their agricultural structure abode.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

G. Morgan wrote:

Subject: A.R.B.R. ain't dead yet??????
Newsgroup: alt.rec.bicycles.recumbent
= skip = wrote:


"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"skip" wrote in message
...

"Mark Leuck" wrote in message
...

"skip" wrote in message
...

Nope, broadside by a Chevrolet Sedan near Midland Texas on Nov. 6,
1963.

--

No I was talking about the other situation. The park is Fort Marcy or
something like that. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the

head.

Lemme guess, first name is Vince?




Yeah. Seems to me the first name did start with a V.

skip

I always felt that was a very overblown story



But surely not the part about him being dead.



Who?? Why are you two talking in code?

Google "Vince Foster".

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

"Tom Sherman" wrote in message
...

You might well end up dead if you rode on multi-lane streets in urban
traffic without a mirror on a Baron. Being that reclined makes it almost
impossible to check over the shoulder for traffic before changing lanes
(e.g. when making a left turn from a multi-lane street).

--
Tom Sherman - Earth

Very true, bought some B&M's for the Baron immediately after I purchased it