Junkdrawer
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Sat Feb-13-10 09:05 PM
Response to Original message |
| 92. SB Nation has been all over this story from the start... |
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....
These are all sensible changes. But, for me, the most frustrating thing has been the way Olympic officials have shunted any blame for Friday's tragedy off of themselves. Beyond their probe that found "no deficiencies" in the track, they described their decision to move the men's starting position as due to the "emotional component" of the lugers' psyches, rather than as a simple safety precaution.
It's just so disingenuous. Yes, luge is a risky sport. If you throw yourself at speeds of 70-90 MPH on a glorified sled down a windy track, you know that bad things can happen. But just because luge is a risky sport, that doesn't absolve officials of any responsibility to make sure that the conditions are safe. And Whistler's clearly weren't: the athletes knew it, as did the officials.
Indeed, if Whistler wasn't an unsafe risk, why did Olympic officials tell track designers in Sochi not to make a course as fast as the one in Vancouver? Consider this tidbit from a piece on CTVOlympics.ca from last week:
Early in the planning for the 2014 Sochi Games, the Russian hosts were told flatly by the sport's governing bodies: those speeds at the Whistler Sliding Centre? Don't even dream of trying to match them.
So these types of speeds were safe for Vancouver but not for Sochi? Of course not. Organizers knew they were pushing the limit with Whistler and didn't want to replicate that mistake four years from now. They just didn't have the will to fix the problems at Whistler before tragedy struck. And in doing nothing, they acted recklessly.
http://www.sbnation.com/2010/2/12/1307975/luge-crash-wi... BTW: That article in CTVOlympics.ca published a week BEFORE the accident is a must-read... http://www.ctvolympics.ca/news-centre/newsid=39462.html |
| -Local news reported that the Olympic Luge accident was result of human error. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:11 PM |
#0 |
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Well some human made an error |
taterguy |
Feb-13-10 05:12 PM |
#1 |
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Not to mention the fact that the men are now starting further down |
XemaSab |
Feb-13-10 05:15 PM |
#2 |
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So you think it was deliberate? n/t |
Fumesucker |
Feb-13-10 05:18 PM |
#3 |
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I didn't mention or suggest anything about it being deliberate. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:21 PM |
#7 |
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You certainly implied it wasn't an error.. |
Fumesucker |
Feb-13-10 05:25 PM |
#10 |
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The human error I was referring to and the report on the local news |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:44 PM |
#22 |
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That wasn't what you said in the OP.. |
Fumesucker |
Feb-13-10 05:49 PM |
#25 |
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Did you read the very last sentence of that post? |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:54 PM |
#28 |
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I think they deliberately intended to create a fast and dangerous luge, yes. |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 05:55 PM |
#31 |
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You think they designed it specifically to be dangerous? |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 05:59 PM |
#35 |
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I think they designed it to get viewers by making it extremely fast and decided to ignore safety |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 06:11 PM |
#38 |
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You can bet they had someone saying "it's going to be dangerous." |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:19 PM |
#44 |
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I shudder to think where we would be if the "that is dangerous" naysayers had had their way |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:31 PM |
#54 |
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Then you easily shudder, and for no good reason. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:34 PM |
#57 |
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You're free to be completely wrong. I really don't appreciate being compared to K. Rove, |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 07:04 PM |
#68 |
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Where on this thread do you have a different opinion than Rove would? |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 07:06 PM |
#69 |
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Sorry, that's BS that comes from irrational hatred of companies. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:23 PM |
#45 |
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You do not seem to be aware of the history of product liability. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:27 PM |
#50 |
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You're claiming they are willing to kill their customers. I find that an astonishing |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:32 PM |
#55 |
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Not just claiming it. That's a fact. Toyota. Firestone. Ford. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:37 PM |
#58 |
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Whatever you say. I agree with anything you have ever said or thought |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:39 PM |
#60 |
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*cough* |
Wilms |
Feb-13-10 07:04 PM |
#67 |
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Philip Morris and Marlboros? How do we use them safely? |
jtuck004 |
Feb-13-10 07:17 PM |
#74 |
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What does "safely" mean? With zero risk? You can't do anything that "safely" |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 07:42 PM |
#80 |
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You are hilarious. Oh, and since you are supposedly an aeronautics engineer- |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 06:33 PM |
#56 |
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You just pasted in a disconnected and unreadable bunch of unattributed nonsense. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:38 PM |
#59 |
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self delete |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:54 PM |
#64 |
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Wow...how about tobacco companies, phamraceuticals... |
rasputin1952 |
Feb-13-10 07:13 PM |
#72 |
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I love how "wow" so subtly substitutes for "you're a dumbfuck" |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 07:35 PM |
#78 |
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First things first... |
rasputin1952 |
Feb-13-10 08:16 PM |
#87 |
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I really don't disagree with much you said right there... |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 09:00 PM |
#91 |
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In the case of your friend... |
rasputin1952 |
Feb-13-10 09:23 PM |
#101 |
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You make a most excellent point, with which I agree wholeheartedly. You may have heard |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 09:46 PM |
#104 |
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The designers are not human? |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 05:19 PM |
#4 |
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I think they were trying to blame the sledder. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:23 PM |
#9 |
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Well, if you had said that in the OP, it would have saved a lot of electrons. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 05:55 PM |
#29 |
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it looked to me like something broke or came off of the sled. |
Lint Head |
Feb-13-10 05:19 PM |
#5 |
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They're worried about liability after touting the track's speed so much. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 05:20 PM |
#6 |
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Exactly. And they could had avoided that by various methods. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:22 PM |
#8 |
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Any point with exposed beams should have been padded. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 05:35 PM |
#15 |
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At a minimum. It would had help immensely if they had moved the beams further back. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:38 PM |
#18 |
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Where the hell were you guys when they built the Titanic and the Concorde? |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:17 PM |
#43 |
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Common sense would not put structures near high activity. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-14-10 01:23 PM |
#109 |
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Why don't we all just call this an accident? |
hayu_lol |
Feb-13-10 05:25 PM |
#11 |
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Why don't we call this a preventable death? |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 05:33 PM |
#14 |
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Every accident is preventable with 20-20 foresight or a Magic Eight Ball. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 05:56 PM |
#32 |
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This accident was preventable if proper accommodations had been made during the design process |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 05:58 PM |
#34 |
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Sorry, "accomodations" has no meaning for me as a part of design criteria. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:14 PM |
#40 |
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you apparently live in a bubble. You want a prime example? Look up SUV's and roll-overs. |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 06:27 PM |
#49 |
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This accident was preventable by design and construction. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:00 PM |
#36 |
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Really? I've been an aeronautical engineer for nearly 40 years. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:11 PM |
#39 |
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Vague idea is right. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:24 PM |
#46 |
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Any asshole can sue anyone in the country for any reason or excuse. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 07:08 PM |
#70 |
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Getting past a motion to dismiss isn't so easy. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 07:50 PM |
#81 |
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I bet they won't |
northzax |
Feb-13-10 09:07 PM |
#94 |
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Then it's a bet. His family has a lay down case worth millions. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 09:17 PM |
#97 |
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Then say goodbye to the olympics |
northzax |
Feb-13-10 09:39 PM |
#103 |
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Nonsense. That's why they carry insurance. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 09:47 PM |
#105 |
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Here's another thing I don't understand. Unless the track was off-limits to the entrants |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 09:19 PM |
#99 |
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They're olympians |
northzax |
Feb-13-10 09:49 PM |
#106 |
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Because the luge was engineered. It was designed. Intentionally. By professionals |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 05:57 PM |
#33 |
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Ah...now I see. You demand perfection. Do you actually expect it? |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:15 PM |
#42 |
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The death was preventable by better design that didn't require significant additional work. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:31 PM |
#53 |
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I don't think protection on those beams would have saved him at 90 mph |
DrDan |
Feb-13-10 05:42 PM |
#21 |
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In my view, there is liability for either design or construction. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 05:52 PM |
#26 |
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that seems quite obvious to me - the guy left the track and hit a beam |
DrDan |
Feb-13-10 06:08 PM |
#37 |
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If they simply put up a wall of plywood to create a long, flat surface. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 06:42 PM |
#62 |
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I agree - seems like such a simple solution - particularly in areas that |
DrDan |
Feb-14-10 07:14 AM |
#107 |
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Did everyone who practiced on that track die? |
Kurt_and_Hunter |
Feb-13-10 05:26 PM |
#12 |
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Is that what you it think it takes to establish the track is dangerous? |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 05:36 PM |
#16 |
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They reported that the participants were vocally concerned about the track. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:40 PM |
#19 |
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dangerous conditions magnify the effects of human error |
Kurt_and_Hunter |
Feb-13-10 07:38 PM |
#79 |
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Well, "did not adequately compensate for the possibility of human error" |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 07:52 PM |
#82 |
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It depends on the objective |
Kurt_and_Hunter |
Feb-13-10 08:03 PM |
#86 |
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You have distilled the truth in a concise way: amusement park rides have safety |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 08:30 PM |
#89 |
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I agree with your conclusion. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 07:52 PM |
#83 |
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Did you see the track and the beams? |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-14-10 01:08 PM |
#108 |
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I shall now call you Doctor Royce Worthington |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:26 PM |
#48 |
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Nodar lifted his head. His error. nt |
LLStarks |
Feb-13-10 05:28 PM |
#13 |
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He didn't create the defectively designed track. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 05:37 PM |
#17 |
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Gee... yet they made the starting point of the track the same as the womens. |
LiberalFighter |
Feb-13-10 05:42 PM |
#20 |
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I just feel horrible about the entire thing. Let's not lay blame, let's just fix it so it doesn't |
jesus_of_suburbia |
Feb-13-10 05:45 PM |
#23 |
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Why not just put a big ole safey-netting thing over the top? |
SoCalDem |
Feb-13-10 05:48 PM |
#24 |
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Sounds like a great idea to me. |
jesus_of_suburbia |
Feb-13-10 05:53 PM |
#27 |
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They go so fast you can't really see them anyway:) |
SoCalDem |
Feb-13-10 05:55 PM |
#30 |
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According to the IOC and the Luge Federation |
Earth_First |
Feb-13-10 06:14 PM |
#41 |
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Fortunately, they're not the people who decide such things. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 07:01 PM |
#66 |
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Actually looking at that video I think it was human error |
MadHound |
Feb-13-10 06:25 PM |
#47 |
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Impossible. A thing like that can only result from criminal corporate negligence. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:28 PM |
#51 |
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About the only thing I can fault the builders of this course on |
MadHound |
Feb-13-10 06:30 PM |
#52 |
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They should have called me, I could have made it safe at minimum cost! |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 06:41 PM |
#61 |
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Shit happens. |
Blue-Jay |
Feb-13-10 06:48 PM |
#63 |
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I said that list night and was beaten severely about the head and shoulders. |
farmout rightarm |
Feb-13-10 07:01 PM |
#65 |
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when there are design flaws and absent safety measures it damned well is someone's fault. |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 07:08 PM |
#71 |
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Who is at fault? |
Blue-Jay |
Feb-13-10 07:16 PM |
#73 |
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It's a dangerous sport. Can you name how many other lugers died? Since it's so dangerous? |
KittyWampus |
Feb-13-10 07:17 PM |
#75 |
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So, there's no danger involved? |
Blue-Jay |
Feb-13-10 07:20 PM |
#77 |
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Probably several entities and individuals. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 07:56 PM |
#85 |
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Maybe more than that, given the prior warnings- particularly the very public one by the Aussie |
depakid |
Feb-13-10 08:21 PM |
#88 |
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Had not read that. She really nails them on it. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 08:44 PM |
#90 |
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Having had a look at parts of the track (admittedly from a lay perspective) |
depakid |
Feb-13-10 09:17 PM |
#98 |
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All such boards circle the wagons, close ranks, and move in lock step. |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 09:23 PM |
#100 |
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I said this Friday: "That whooshing sound you hear isn't from the luge track... " |
Junkdrawer |
Feb-13-10 09:24 PM |
#102 |
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Deleted message |
Name removed |
Feb-13-10 07:18 PM |
#76 |
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negligence happens too. |
JVS |
Feb-13-10 09:07 PM |
#93 |
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Good thing we have you on the case |
Joe the Revelator |
Feb-13-10 07:56 PM |
#84 |
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SB Nation has been all over this story from the start... |
Junkdrawer |
Feb-13-10 09:05 PM |
#92 |
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co-sign |
TexasObserver |
Feb-13-10 09:08 PM |
#95 |
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Several mistakes were made |
Kalun D |
Feb-13-10 09:10 PM |
#96 |
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