UConn James

I'm not sure. As Faraday said, Desmond is a special case. His memory happens in real time. I'm not sure how it all works. And I'm not sure that I should get so caught up in understanding time theory, as Carlton Cuse advised. It'll probably give me a nosebleed.

Vinny Testaverde. Ramius, gaming the Franchise Tag system is exactly what the Pats* are doing. You know it, I know it... my paperweight knows it. You make a good point, tho --- the rest of the times this has happened, an eventual deal is close to what the tag would've earned. But ultimately, I don't think they'll raise much of a stink.

When Sayid was in the jungle after meeting Rousseau, there were whispers and no Others appeared. Sawyer heard them as well (if you remember, he asked Sayid about that experience but then when Sayid asked what Sawyer heard he said, "Nothin'", no Others appeared. Shannon heard whispers a few times, Walt appeared --- in the tent, in the jungle and then just before the Tailies came and she was shot. I also believe there were whispers in the scene where Eko was attacked by the smoke monster. Just b/c there were whispers in some instances where the Others appeared, don't fall into the assumption that it is the Others, it may be false cause. The whispers might more accurately be described as warnings of danger ahead; and that could only be known by someone who knows the future.

Yep. That was maybe the biggest thing of the ep. Looked like Juliet nailed one of them with the M1. That time-flash was to the future, the tents on the beach were abandoned and weather-beaten. Looks like there may be a new group that came to the island. And I'm getting the feeling that Eloise is so specific about the 70 hours b/c that may be the last instance of there being a future-flash (remember, the Oceanic 6 are in 2007; they need to get back to 2004, so it will be a precise jump they need to do) before the island stops 'skipping' and/or something happens to deserve her "God help us all." That's what I was thinking when Sawyer was eavesdropping there. Pondering, but I don't really know how Walt would fit in this phenomenon (e.g. when he appeared to Shannon, Shannon & Sayid) or if his apparition isn't related to the space-time-shifting. I'm fairly certain that his appearance to Locke in the Dharma pit happens during a time-flash, tho. No, they didn't. The lawyer said that the guy outside of the mental institution was killed before Hurley escaped. I don't know how he expects to explain away the photos of Hurley at the balcony of a room where two people are dead, holding the gun and covered with red liquid (ketchup). What remains to be seen is how they get Walt and also if Sun needs to bring her baby (my guess is yes). The 'Jin didn't die' plotline didn't surprise me. I never thought he did... b/c the island doesn't let you die until your role is through. Another hint by Daniel that Miles has been on the island before which puts some steam behind speculation that he's Halliwax's son shown in the first minutes of the season premiere. (That scene may be Daniel trying to input a constant for Miles). However, that Juliet is getting 'temporal displacement' after she'd been fine for three years previous, I think is an indication that it won't matter if you have a constant b/c the time-shifts are becoming more and more violent... all "Because You Left" in a way that violated the Rules. And it's for that reason that it's not enough for the Oceanic 6 to come back whenever --- they need to come back at a precise point. Does coming back c. 2004 mean that none of what happened to them after they were rescued will happen? Or, as I posited before, does it just create a "Back to the Future" instance where there are 4 Martys in the mall parking lot? B/c when Sawyer was watching Kate and Claire, you'd have to think there was still a past-Sawyer at the beach.

Do you wear that where I think you do? Does it come in clear... or at least 'nude' color? I need a 3-year supply.

I wasn't talking about the scientific process. The drugs they use and dosages are well calculated and administered to make the death peaceful. His went much quicker than that, the sedative and the barbiturate, one after the other. His state was already progressed, they had him on a strong dose of morphine. He had been biting at his front paws --- vet said that was similar to how if you have a headache, hitting your head (say, against a desk, gently) distracts the aching, throbbing pain with a new easier-to-take pain in another spot. No doubt in my mind that it was the right thing, and it ended his suffering. It's just the being there and the finality of seeing them go. He's gone, crossed over the thin line b/w life and death, no coming back. It creates memories that you can't take back, and it will be your last memory of your pet. Some people can take it fine, for others, seeing it actually happen is difficult to deal with. Affects us all in different ways. For sure, it's not the only memory, but the final memory stays with me strong and for a while --- and when I think back on it --- just wrecks me. I've had a hard time of it, and get a new depth of meaning for Frost's "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening." I think we may be getting a pup in the spring.

We had two German Shorthaired Pointers, a father and a son from a litter. The father, at 13 years old in late June 2007, had had swollen joints from a combination of arthritis and Lyme (in CT, dogs (and people) pretty much will get Lyme. Read a little about Plum Island, what they research/experiment there, what Lyme disease does, and draw your own conclusions) as well as bumpy tumors all along his back and chest. Many times when he was on his haunches and wanted to move and just couldn't, with his head bobbing side to side, and on one long episode and when he was having trouble with steps and really wasn't eating for a couple of weeks, we took him to the vet to give him his dignity. Although I wanted to, we didn't stay. Came back and got him and buried him on acreage across town. I selected a nice natural stone and had a guy we know do an engraving with those Yeats lines about his dog that really fit ours. He was a gentle giant, a bit like a non-violent version of George in "Of Mice and Men" but loyal, listened (when you clapped, he turned on a dime: he did this in front of Paul Newman at his camp for kids once, who said, "What a beautiful dog!"), and was a great friend. We had to put down his son, who was nominally my dog, this past late June, come to find that it turned out to be exactly a year to the very hour. This was not the slow progression. We had went out to WNY for my grandfather's funeral (whose own dogs' name from when he was in Holland, I named my dog) and we took him with us --- very bad experience at the only time we had used a kennel during my brother's wedding. It went fine for the trip, apart from a reluctance to eat which I thought might be the trip --- he'd been a little reluctant for a while at home, which was not like him, but he was gobbling down cookies. We walked all the fields at the farm and he seemed fine as ever. Got home, he laid down on his bed and hardly got up again. It was painful; at 3 a.m. before I had an appointment next morning, I woke to a loud whimper/howling. Vet diagnosed a large tumor in his abdomen and said it would be best to put him down; he probably wouldn't survive surgery that probably wouldn't do much at that stage anyway. This time we stayed, I was determined to not let him go alone (tho the vet knew both of our dogs well and had a good rapport), said goodbye, I opened his eyes, and I hope he heard or smelled me through his shivering and hibernation-like state. It was such a rapid onset, but a day in the life of a dog is like a week to our bodies. Add in that they have pretty high pain thresholds; they feel it, but don't show it. Movinon, I would keep that in mind. stuckincincy, I would agree that it's honorable and important to be there so they have a friend to the very end. But being there was so much harder to take. Even now, just conjuring these memories I'm getting all sobby and drainy. But many of the variables are changed --- expectation of the father vs. shock for the son, having had the son to cushion the first loss probably was big. Johnny, I would've actually preferred them going peacefully in their sleep. It relieves you of any burden of guilt/selfishness. I felt like that for the father. Was it too soon? Should we have waited another day? Another week? Another month? That it came a year to the hour, exactly, gave me a little solace / 'sign' that it was the right decision. The chest paint that accompanies grief dissipated only about last month; really felt like I had a weight pressing down on my upper chest. He really was my best friend, and at times, especially in recent years, he was my only friend. We've now gotten another stone carved for the son's grave, right near his dad. It's sitting on the hearth, waiting for some of the snow to melt a little or a chance to get over there and put it there and we'll place in in the spring. Movinon, I'd suggest some kind of ritual, especially if you have children, if/when you decide. Having a burial, have a photo enlarged and framed, having a stone made, etc. And for anyone who says "it's just a dog" --- you erase them from your Rolodex b/c you don't want people who think like that in your life.

Bitteresbeergizehdt! I call that swill "Moose Piss."

Actually, the funds for expired coupons has been recycled toward new coupons being issued. That's been happening since they started being issued. Then again, the mechanism of delivery/playback for 8-tracks or cassettes was not publicly-owned airwaves. In order for this switch to happen, Congress, acting as the people's representatives, had to authorize the spectrum auction. And to make it politically palatable to force OTA-only households to stop using airwaves that belong to everyone and no one, the coupon program was created. Essentially, it's like "Brewster's Millions" --- the federal govt spends ~$1.5 billion so they can collect ~$19 billion. It was found money if they just took a few steps. Simultaneously, they upgrade teevee signals for most people, give local first responders more efficient communications systems, and hopefully create some new business technology for improved cell coverage / wireless Internet / etc. The switch is a win-win scenario if ever there was such a thing.

Doing some reading on Lostpedia and yeah. Also, her allegiance is disputed. For one, her suspected son, Daniel is working for Widmore. She is seen talking to Ben. What gives? Well, as someone suggests and from reading what Lindelof/Cuse have said about her after she first appeared, Lindelof called her a "temporal policeman." E.g. She is tasked with keeping the timeline in order. (To wit, she tells Ben that he has 70 hours to get to the island.) Perhaps she does not favor any side, but is merely an information officer dealing with time / physics and making sure the universe's course is correct... that 'the rules' are not broken, that what happened is what happens.

That's what I was wondering about as well, especially when remembering when Sayid said the last time he'd seen so much concrete, etc was Chernobyl. I don't know, but pretty likely. I was thinking also that it might have been stored in the Tempest, which Daniel 'rendered inert' but that may only have been the gas that was used in the Purge. Might also fit with how the Swan fail-safe key set off an electromagnetic burst/pulse consistent with such a detonation. But then, watches, the sonogram machine, the computer in the Tempest, etc. still worked so it doesn't seem to've released an EMP b/c everything like that would've gone dead. Also, there was no real extensive damage that you might expect from an H-bomb. If it was 'Jughead' that powered the Swan (and that the Swan's code being input every 108 min. ... what did that do? Vent something? Gradually release magnetic buildup?), it's unclear what the fail-safe did. Unless Jughead wasn't an H-bomb.

Another thought on Faraday proclaiming his love for Charlotte.... He may be trying to establish just such a 'deep connection' that is, as he said, required for a 'constant.' Love for Penny worked for Desmond.... I think Faraday thinks if he can then establish a link between himself and Charlotte thru Desmond, the seizure / aneurysm can be stopped. He seems to have at least stabilized the Theresa woman in the hospital bed (for which he was kicked out of Oxford)... she still has the flashes thru time, but she's alive.

1) I believe that Ben took over leadership of the Others c. 1992 with the Purge. That timeline for any ousting of Widmore wouldn't be right if Widmore raised Penny back in England; she's mid-late-20s back in 1996. That doesn't mean that Penny wasn't born on the island, but we have no evidence of that... yet. Ben simply stands in his way of getting back / getting control of the island... I think Widmore's original beef is probably with Richard (that strain was expressed last night, with Richard having to push the gun away that was pointed at Locke) and what the Others came to be and what they were doing. 2) That's what I was thinking, actually. And I think they're subtly suggesting that with the similarity of hairstyle. Her name is __?__ Hawkins, as bubbled during the repeat. 3) I can dig that, maybe a fraternal twin to Penny? We've never had info about Penny's mother. Wouldn't be surprised about any of that. Don't know when the fertility issues started on the island, however, we did see Candle/Halliwax with the baby in the season premiere (with speculation that it is Miles). There does seem to be a litany of disagreements among couples about habitation on the island. Whether to stay or go (or come back). Rose and Bernard. Jin and Sun (assuming that she's going to return... which, as everything is building toward them all having to return for it to work, seems pretty certain, we just have to see how it happens). Kate and Jack. Adding Widmore and Hawkins (with the additional element of them seeming to be on competing sides for control of the island) would be fitting. And, hell, you might even be able to add "Adam and Eve" as Locke called them... we still have no clue who they were.

Also, the lady on the computer at Oxford is none other than the Oceanic clerk at the terminal that let Hurley on the plane. Her name was 'Ginny' then, don't think she gave it here. I would guess that she's in the Other off-island network, like the woman in the butcher shop.... What does that portend about this all being planned, or at least foretold (e.g. the psychic) and guided along its way.

Well, it seems to 've been answered last night. Richard travels to see young Locke in the 50s. No time travel on his part to get there. Question is, might the scene play differently now since Richard gave Locke the compass and implanted that memory into his consciousness --- in other words, will Locke be able to experience 'the fullness of time' similar to how Desmond has had that ability (see the bolded section above of my posts last week). You know, I wish they would start giving Sawyer things to say other than "Son of a B word!" three times per show. That's getting played out pretty fast. Charles Widmore seems to be an original Hostile/Other. Yet Widmore's uniform says "Jones." There may be Brits among them, but they aren't British troops. Looks like they just took the American soldiers' uniforms. Widmore, speaking to Desmond, emphasized "many, many, many years ago" and my guess is he's not saying the half of it. Could the use of Latin be connected with that broken leg statue / an Atlantis tie-in? "Jughead"... appears to be what was in the Tempest. They followed what Faraday said and "buried it" (and in 2004, Faraday 'renders it inert.' Evidently, this is something that Goodwin was working on, hence his 'chemical burn' treatment that started his affair with Juliet. But the way that woman with the gun said something like 'You again' to Faraday was odd, and Faraday said she looked familiar. May be something deeper here. At this point, can only guess that he had appeared before this time in a flash (that may have happened already or, oddly, may be yet to come). Would anyone be able to confirm who the girl in the hospital bed is? Looked like the girl in the broken picture at Oxford. Why would I not be surprised if her last name is Lewis? Also noticed that the wrist-tie stayed with Charlotte thru the jump. So, they can carry things across time... looks like they need to be holding/touching them.

Maybe the only good thing is that it's not mandatory. Stations that don't have any technical limitations can still switch off analog if they decide to. Two stations in my viewing area (which is composed of three DMAs --- Providence, Boston and Hartford) have already gone dark on analog. However, it's going to present problems for certain other stations. I'll just point out one case... WPRI (CBS) in Providence broadcasts analog on channel 12, digital on channel 13. WNAC (FOX), also out of Providence, is currently broadcasting analog on 64, digital on 54... but they had contracted to move the digital signal to channel 12 on 17 Feb. Now, they won't be able to do that unless and until the WPRI analog vacates that '12' slot. To further confound things, I know of situations around the country where it's like this, and then involves a third station that had planned to move to the channel that the second was vacating. As I wrote, this is going to create an even bigger cluster---- than the original plan. What do we even have a government for? They just gilbride everything they touch.

I've written about this in other threads on the digital conversion, that delaying would only create twice the cluster----. And as the article explains with a small cross-section, the delay would totally gum up the works of 'Channel 7 is broadcasting digital on 45 right now, but will go back to 7 post-switch, but they can't start putting up that antenna until blah blah blah seventeen other things happen that depended on keeping the 17 Feb. date. Other problems too... I don't need to repeat them b/c it's there in the article. But also, how about for those people that are supposedly being "helped" by this delay (elderly and non-English-speaking) who on 18 Feb. say, "What was all that cockamamie for the past year about teevee not working anymore? I have a fine signal, so I must be all set. Digital my ass!" Delay is only going to create more confusion and reward procrastinators (and further teach people that all they have to do is do nothing and the govt will come hold their hand).

1) We just don't know why. 2) Since when has Ben told the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? Another thing, we also don't know what's in the box that Ben took out of that hotel duct.

1) Entirely possible. Also possible that the initial theory still stands that since the ship was carrying so much metal, the island's magnetic forces violently brought it in, and that it was so far inland is telling of how strong that force is/was? Desmond not pushing the button pulled 815 off course (no way of knowing how much of the thousand miles it might have been responsible for). Then again, how could the logbook have been "recovered by pirates" and kept by that family (I forget- was it the Hansos?) for so long before auctioning it? Unless it was stolen previous to an entrapping time-jump... just seems an odd thing to purposefully steal. Then, the Hansos auctioning it so that Widmore would buy it and use coordinates to find the island. This begs the question of whether things that landed on the island would move with the island. Why would they not just sink after the island disappears?... but actually, that may have been covered by the raft not disappearing. Hmmm. 2) We just don't have enough to go on to even guess, at this point. Personally, I think it relates to the 'Dahli Lama' test that he gives to young Locke. Everything about how this show operates tells me that scene will be revisited. I think it kind of plays in with Desmond. A new 'memory' delivered real-time to Desmond post-2001 is now going to influence his actions in 2007, but Faraday expects, due to Desmond's 'unique characteristics' that the knowledge he gains in 2007 will be known to him through the spectrum of his life (remember how Des smiled in 1996, knowing that the phone call works out in 2004). B/c Faraday can't predict with any certainty what time they're going to jump to next. Likewise, I think the compass will deliver (or, Richard expects/hopes it will deliver) a window of this ability to see the whole spectrum for Locke. It again goes back to Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five" along with being 'slightly unstuck in time'... that the aliens in that book are aware of the fullness of time but are powerless to change anything. For them, things are as they always have been and always will be --- to wit, they cannot stop the destruction of their planet by something they created --- and the concept of ever-advancing time doesn't exist --- it's all one time. 3) I don't know what to think about that. My gut tells me no. The producers/writers did try to make JD look younger and his mannerisms in that 1996 flashback were different from his personality of the present that suggests aging. Also, if he were one of the original Hostiles, that would make him part of Richard's group, which would make him part of Ben's group, so why would he be joining a mission to capture Ben and inert one of Ben's weapons in the Tempest? I think Richard already knows very well what's happening to the island. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

I was going to jump in and then I saw your post. This transition has been in the works for a long time. First the broadcasters dragged their feet and received an extension, and now everyday people get to drag their feet and will receive an extension. Fair is fair, n'est pas? Over in the consumer forum and OTW, I've made several posts on this subject, how I got a tuner and upgraded our antenna system (we are OTA-only on the outer cusps of three teevee markets). We've been waiting for the "date certain" (Could govts please stop ^%$&ing using this term?!!? B/c it's never certain when govt gets involved, the only certainty is delay) for a while b/c many things are were riding on that date. Now, everything looks like it'll get f--ked up, contracts will have to be redrawn, teevee stations are going to be spending more serious coin to power and upkeep an analog signal (~$100K per month for WGBH in Boston), the auction-winners won't be able to use something they paid $19B for another several months, frequencies will have to be reallocated/rejiggered by the FCC making their job unnecessarily harder and taking away from real problems.... all because pols are worried that people who have to be dragged off their dead asses to do anything, little old grandmas and Jose won't have teevee on the 17th. This was a clusterf--k already, and now delaying it is literally only going to create 20 times the clusterf--k. And it sends the message to one and all that all you need to do is pretend like you don't 'get it' and the govt will cave to your failure to prepare despite 3 ads every hour telling you that analog is ending and come hold your hand. I'll believe that when I see it. On 1 June, he's going to be concerned that midgets have been unfairly treated by the digital transition and seek a delay to 4 June 2023.

Your first sentence nails the situation with Ralph's spending habits/personality, which have been long chronicled. As the saying goes --- and it's doubly fitting here --- he pinches a nickel 'til the buffalo sh--s. For most everything else on what I think, read my sig. And aside from that... and despite how he was on the proper side of the CBA (false cause as for why he voted again't it)... I think Ralph has officially started to 'lose his intellectual grasp.' Going along with several other posters and their fiscal/tax reasoning, plus Ralph's own words, the team will not be sold until after his death. It's a little silly that this board gets caught up in this topic time and again. Now, despite all the crap I've flung in Ralph's direction (and hey, I'm just flinging it back at him) the stars may be aligning favorably toward the team remaining in Buffalo. In this economic climate, where the big cheeses say we haven't struck bottom yet, it's going to be more difficult for companies to afford/defend buying luxury suites. And to this end, the Buffalo franchise is perhaps uniquely positioned for the next several years, as RWS doesn't have very many. But it all depends how long this recession lasts. If Ralph were to die before the upswing (if there is an end in sight to the recession ), the price may be a little deflated --- especially when a new owner factored in moving and all that entails--- which could give some leverage to local ownership or Jim Kelly's group.

Wonders never cease.

Richard did this for a pretty good reason, I guess. Past-flash Ethan shot him and didn't believe Word One of what Locke was saying. No doubt Richard would have had to play it safe, too, and even if they didn't kill Locke, they'd lose all kinds of time that they don't have to spare. Then again, that last position of mine might be flat-wrong. Thinking about the time-line, from what point did Richard originally go back to check on younger versions of Locke? We were only shown the flashback and we had no context. Did Richard see him back then w/o time travel? Did he time-travel there either when the Others first learned about Locke and his miraculous recovery... or time-travel when it first became apparent that Locke would be playing a major role in the group/taking over (in "The Man From Tallahassee")? Or does Richard go back after this point where he gave Locke the compass (b/c the Orchid would still be intact at the time of that flash point)? It depends on that answer whether Richard giving Locke the compass would change anything from his past... such as young Locke having a link b/w 195_ and 2004, similar to what Desmond had b/w 1996 and 2004 in "The Constant" and this time choosing the compass in the test. Or was the test flashback what happens proceeding Richard giving Locke the compass and Richard being so disappointed? I guess we'll see.

That's a little harsh. When we had to put my 12 y.o. german shorthaired pointer down this past summer, I wrote an email to let friends and relatives know. Among dogs, he and his father who we had to put down exactly a year earlier --- to the day --- were the best I've known. Writing always helps me to sort my thoughts, to gain a little control over them, and gives a little catharsis. It's been a little over six months and the grief chest pain has only recently started to lessen, and I now only 'cry like a baby' ~ once every couple of weeks. If he feels just a little better after writing that, who are you to give him sh--? Don't read it, then. Back to the topic, having another dog settled in at the time really softens a blow like that. When the father passed after a long progression of cancer/arthritis/Lyme, it was sad and we also we more prepared and knew it was coming, then let him go with dignity... which you may not think is important, and it's weird, but if he could have talked, dignity is what he would have wanted. He was like that, a staid, gentle giant of a fellow. This summer, tho, we were knocked over with his son's cancer, even tho he was 12, b/c there was no real sign of it until the day before we put him down. And it was just devastating for me losing my best friend, the shock of it. Had been thinking of getting another before, so the old man could show him the ropes --- I thought I had more time. Now, it's going to be hard to start all over again, and we've decided we need a break from dogs for a while. (However, we are currently fostering my brother's sh--head Weimaraner, who is nicknamed, "Spawn." We have weaned him off tranquilizers and Xanex they had him on... tho at times I question whether that's the right move. Weims are fairly closely related to the GSPs, but they are nothing like GSPs in everything that counts, for me. I have absolutely no use for a dog that is "fiercely independent" as the texts read and my experiences with this breed have proved.)

Miles actually intimated this last season when they were debating whether to go back to the freighter on the raft... something like 'Why would you go now when you've spent your whole life trying to get back?' Charlotte didn't dispute it.