# Stars Earn Stripes whole-season thread (spoilers)



## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

Anybody else watching the new show on NBC, Stars Earn Stripes?

Dean Cain, Laila Ali, and a bunch of other celebrities team up with special ops guys and law enforcement and do military exercises. They are competing to win money for various charities that help families of service members or first responders.

So it's like _Dancing with the Stars_, kinda sorta, only with Green Berets and Navy Seals and Swat team leaders as the 'professional partners', and instead of the Samba, and the Viennese Waltz and movie-themed dances with props, we get military exercises, which in episode one includes jumping out of helicopters, and blowing stuff up.



> ...their first mission: an amphibious assault. Working in teams of four, the squads will drop from a helicopter into water, take Zodiacs to shore, then blow up a tower, shoot out targets, haul ammo into a shack, plant explosives and then trigger the explosives while flying away hanging below the helicopter. Each squad will be timed for how long it takes them to complete the mission successfully.


General Wesley Clark is our host, and (I'm not making this up you know) Samantha Harris is the co-host.

The show is very respectful, and the intent is to give people a clue about the dangerous crap our service members and first responders have to do in their line of work, plus give some publicity to the charities that the celebs are competing for.

http://www.nbc.com/stars-earn-stripes/about/charities/

Main show page is at: http://www.nbc.com/stars-earn-stripes/

I don't know if anybody else will watch this but me, but I couldn't resist. Because where else are you going to see celebrities learning how to blow stuff up with a grenade launcher for real?

It was great to see the girls kick butt in episode one. I'm rooting for Picabo Street. :up:

Episode one is available online until: 09/16/2012

Edited to add: Some people are upset because they don't want to see military stuff "made into a game". I can see where they are coming from, but let's get real. People who are in the military have exercises like this as part of their training. If there are four squads in training together and they're doing exercises, somebody somewhere is keeping track of who performed better or more poorly. The trainers will, because they'll need to be able to give correction to the service members who need help, and the trainees will, because they'll want bragging rights.

The only difference here is that 1) the experienced operatives are training civilians, not soldiers, and 2) they have a civilian audience -- we get to watch. And 3) the charity tie-in.

At least here (unlike video games) maybe if people get to know the service members, and know the celebrities, they'll stop and think that yes, real people have to undertake all these tasks, and run the risk of getting killed, just so the rest of us can sit on our sorry asses and watch TV and play video games and post on forums like this here at home.

So if you've served, and you are reading this post, I say, just like General Clark does on the show:

Thank you for your service.


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## appleye1 (Jan 26, 2002)

I'm watching it. It looks like it's a retread of an earlier Mark Burnett show called CombatMissions"Having seen the new one now I'd have to say I liked the earlier show better. It seemed more authentic, and I really dislike shows that have celebrity contestants.


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## loubob57 (Mar 19, 2001)

I liked it and will keep watching.

I liked how they adapted as they had two contestants (on different squads) not complete the first mission so it seemed fair they should have to compete head-to-head with each other leaving their partners in the game. The two most muscular guys failed at the swimming with gear part, even though all the women managed to do it. Those muscles turned into a liability in that scenario.


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## tiams (Apr 19, 2004)

loubob57 said:


> The two most muscular guys failed at the swimming with gear part, even though all the women managed to do it. Those muscles turned into a liability in that scenario.


I couldn't help but remember the stereotype I heard as a kid as if it were fact : "Black folks can't swim".

Sharon Osborne is very pissed because the show rejected her son as a contestant for physical reasons (he has multiple sclerosis). She claims it is discrimination. She even threatened to leave AGT in protest. But really, I heard she wasn't planning on returning to that show anyway and if she was really that incensed, wouldn't she quit immediately?

Desmond Tutu and other Nobel Peace Prize Laureates are protesting the show:

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/desmond-...ates-call-for-end-to-nbcs-stars-earn-stripes/

I liked the other, similar show mentioned above, but the difference is that one didn't have celebrities. I won't be watching any more episodes of this one. Just didn't tickle my fancy.


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## tiams (Apr 19, 2004)

The sniper guy bragged on national, primetime TV about killing 160 people. I mean just stop and think about that for a minute. This guy took 160 lives. And now he is glorified on a gameshow like his kills were nothing more than a videogame score. I'm sure many middle-school aged boys are watching this show and it seems to me that warfare killings should feel more profound and regretable. Like an evil that is sometimes necessary but that should be avoided if possible, not sought after like a good sports statistic.


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

tiams said:


> I'm sure many middle-school aged boys are watching this show and it seems to me that warfare killings should feel more profound and regretable. Like an evil that is sometimes necessary but that should be avoided if possible, not sought after like a good sports statistic.


I hear you, but I also heard one of the celebs ask their partner about how many people he had killed, and got the response "we don't talk about that".

And I agree that warfare killings should feel more profound and regrettable, but it is not necessarily the _middle-school_ aged boys that need to get that lesson. A lot of the guys on Capitol Hill need it also.


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

loubob57 said:


> I liked it and will keep watching.
> 
> I liked how they adapted as they had two contestants (on different squads) not complete the first mission so it seemed fair they should have to compete head-to-head with each other leaving their partners in the game. The two most muscular guys failed at the swimming with gear part, even though all the women managed to do it. Those muscles turned into a liability in that scenario.


I feel for those guys. I grew up on the beach, but I'm not a strong swimmer. I know that I should relax and float on my back and let myself be towed, but I've never been in the position where I needed to have someone do it.

I'm used to being underwater, and I used to deliberately stay under and see how long I could hold my breath, but not while I was loaded up with gear and charged up with adrenaline. So I don't know how I would have reacted in the same situation.

I agree with the op who praised his celeb for going ahead with the jump, knowing he couldn't swim worth crap. That did take guts.


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## DougF (Mar 18, 2003)

I don't generally like to thread-crap, but the topic has been brought up so...here goes.

While I haven't watched it, I find the title to be an insult to anyone who ever served. You don't earn stripes by being a pampered celebrity who plays war games for a few hours, resting in your trailer between takes and having production assistants tend to your every need. 

You earn stripes by being shot at over Vietnam. You earn stripes by removing bodies from a plane crash. You earn stripes by being deployed far away from your family for a year or more at a time. You earn stripes by going to work at 6:00 AM and not getting home until 7:00 PM or even later. You earn stripes by missing pretty much everything your children do in school and hearing about it at night as your try to eat something before falling asleep from exhaustion. You earn stripes by being on alert for three straight days (not going home at all) and making sure your bomber is ready to take off at a moment's notice and defend our country. You earn stripes while doing your job well through all that and getting paid squat for it.

Here's the part where I pause while someone looks for the "Lighten up, Francis" image... 

I know, it's just a TV show. And again, I haven't seen it, so I can't speak to the content. I just think the title was very poorly chosen.


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

DougF said:


> While I haven't watched it, I find the title to be an insult to anyone who ever served. You don't earn stripes by being a pampered celebrity who plays war games for a few hours, resting in your trailer between takes and having production assistants tend to your every need.


I'm not really offended by the title. Maybe they could have chosen a better one.

But the show is not trying to pass it off that they are earning anything more than money for the charities that they are playing for. The "stripes" in question are basically just $10,000 ticker marks for how much money the military charity they are playing for gets at the end.


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## DreadPirateRob (Nov 12, 2002)

tiams said:


> The sniper guy bragged on national, primetime TV about killing 160 people. I mean just stop and think about that for a minute. This guy took 160 lives. And now he is glorified on a gameshow like his kills were nothing more than a videogame score. I'm sure many middle-school aged boys are watching this show and it seems to me that warfare killings should feel more profound and regretable. Like an evil that is sometimes necessary but that should be avoided if possible, not sought after like a good sports statistic.


Disclaimer: haven't seen the show, and I don't know if "bragged" is an accurate descriptor.

Snipers are trained to kill people. That's their job. Their job is not to question whether the person they are shooting at deserves to die, and they are certainly not trained to regret having to do so. If they were, they wouldn't be a very good sniper, and they would probably get a lot of their fellow soldiers killed while they weighed the moral implications of their assigned task.


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## tiellv (Nov 11, 2002)

This show didn't get very good reviews but I quite enjoyed it and I'll keep watching it. 
It certainly humbled some of those cocky actors :up:


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## LoadStar (Jul 24, 2001)

laria said:


> I'm not really offended by the title. Maybe they could have chosen a better one.
> 
> But the show is not trying to pass it off that they are earning anything more than money for the charities that they are playing for. The "stripes" in question are basically just $10,000 ticker marks for how much money the military charity they are playing for gets at the end.


In addition, the title is a bit of a pun on "stars and stripes," while making an oblique reference to the military use of the word "stripes."

I missed the first part of the show, but what I saw was entertaining enough, and somewhat educational in that it provides even a small hint to what the military is like.


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## tiams (Apr 19, 2004)

DreadPirateRob said:


> Disclaimer: haven't seen the show, and I don't know if "bragged" is an accurate descriptor.
> 
> Snipers are trained to kill people. That's their job. Their job is not to question whether the person they are shooting at deserves to die, and they are certainly not trained to regret having to do so. If they were, they wouldn't be a very good sniper, and they would probably get a lot of their fellow soldiers killed while they weighed the moral implications of their assigned task.


Bragged is accurate. He even wrote a book.
Snipers are just doing their job. (Heard that before). 
I myself was a sniper on a Prison Emergency Response Team. But I never had to kill someone and if I had I can't imagine being proud of it.


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

Yeah, he was a little braggy. He was giving a one-on-one camera introduction and mentioned that he had 160 confirmed kills and that it was like the most ever, or something like that. I remember thinking it was kind of a weird thing to highlight, even if it is his "thing".


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

tiams said:


> I couldn't help but remember the stereotype I heard as a kid as if it were fact : "Black folks can't swim".


Yikes.. That did pop into my mind too. There have been a few bad swimmers on Survivor too.

It's awful to have these ridiculous stereotypes (redundant) reinforced.

BTW, wow, "Celebrity Boot Camp" was 10 years ago.. that's what I thought of when first hearing about this.

I don't think Jack Osborne would have done well.. When two big huge dudes failed.


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

tiams said:


> Sharon Osborne is very pissed because the show rejected her son as a contestant for physical reasons (he has multiple sclerosis). She claims it is discrimination. She even threatened to leave AGT in protest. But really, I heard she wasn't planning on returning to that show anyway and if she was really that incensed, wouldn't she quit immediately?


Contract infringement suit, duhhh


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

Stephen Colbert's take on the show. 

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-co...t-14-2012/-stars-earn-stripes--reality-series


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## Waldorf (Oct 4, 2002)

laria said:


> Yeah, he was a little braggy. He was giving a one-on-one camera introduction and mentioned that he had 160 confirmed kills and that it was like the most ever, or something like that. I remember thinking it was kind of a weird thing to highlight, even if it is his "thing".


It's been a "thing" as long as I can remember...









(12 confirmed kills)


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

Waldorf said:


> It's been a "thing" as long as I can remember...


Yes, I know... I'm not saying it's something new. I am just saying it is something weird to highlight on tv.


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## Waldorf (Oct 4, 2002)

laria said:


> Yes, I know... I'm not saying it's something new. I am just saying it is something weird to highlight on tv.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_snipers

Chris Kyle, a retired US Navy SEAL who holds the record for the most confirmed kills in U.S. military history, with 160 kills in the Iraq War

Had a ways to go before he caught up with:

Lyudmila Pavlichenko (1916-1974), was the greatest female sniper. She served the Soviet army and has 309 confirmed kills.

In any case, snipers are usually rated by kills and/or longest shot, so I didn't think anything of it.

disclaimer: Navy brat, so I may be desensitized to this sort of thing.


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## sieglinde (Aug 11, 2002)

I have to agree with Waldorf's post. I enjoyed the military talk and the attempt to create military missions. I hope this gives the audience some idea of how harsh the conditions are, especially since the gun fire is usually aimed at them. The "gun fire" was squibs or some other tiny explosives going off on the set. 

As for blacks not being able to swim, I thought it was ironic the the two non-swimmers were black. We have blacks on our Olympic swim team. Of course other countries do also. I think the stereotype actually comes from blacks living in the cities with little or no opportunity to swim. Anybody who has ever watched that famous surf movie that was made in the 60's or 70's where the surfers are going around the world to seek the perfect wave saw the part about South Africa and the people who lived on the beach. They were natural swimmers and swam their entire lives. And they were black Africans.


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

I think you mean "The Endless Summer" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060371/

I'm pretty sure I saw the 90s followup.


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## tiams (Apr 19, 2004)

sieglinde said:


> As for blacks not being able to swim, I thought it was ironic the the two non-swimmers were black. We have blacks on our Olympic swim team. Of course other countries do also. I think the stereotype actually comes from blacks living in the cities with little or no opportunity to swim. Anybody who has ever watched that famous surf movie that was made in the 60's or 70's where the surfers are going around the world to seek the perfect wave saw the part about South Africa and the people who lived on the beach. They were natural swimmers and swam their entire lives. And they were black Africans.


I only remember the U.S. having one black swimmer this year, Cullen Jones. He almost drowned when he was 5. He has made it his mission to teach blacks to swim because it is actually true, not just a stereotype:

"A study by the University of Memphis and the USA Swimming organization showed that around 70 percent of African-American children don't know how to swim, compared to about 40 percent of white children. African-American children between the ages of five and 14 are three times more likely than other children to drown, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "
http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news...-drowning-deaths-among-african-americans?lite


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## loubob57 (Mar 19, 2001)

I think the fact the two guys that had to get pulled out were body-builders had more to do with their swimming difficulty than the fact they were black. Leila Ali didn't seem to have too much of a problem with it.


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## sieglinde (Aug 11, 2002)

It is not a physical problem for blacks just a thing they don't have an opportunity to learn. Leila Ali may have taken swim lessons as a kid.


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

I don't know whether or not the older ex-football guy knew how to swim or not... it seemed like he was just too heavy/too muscular. But there was something last season on The Biggest Loser about Dolvett not being able to swim, so I am not surprised he had to get fished out of the water.

I am always surprised at people who are adults that don't learn to swim before they go on a tv show where they might be put in a position where they have to do so.


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## stellie93 (Feb 25, 2006)

I liked the show. Why didn't they practice the jump just like they did the shooting?

If you've killed a bunch of sniper targets you've probably saved a lot of innocent lives. They tend to be bad guys....


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## jamesl (Jul 12, 2012)

stellie93 said:


> I liked the show. Why didn't they practice the jump just like they did the shooting?
> 
> If you've killed a bunch of sniper targets you've probably saved a lot of innocent lives. They tend to be bad guys....


it was a good show 
I really liked it

I also like that they didn't practice the jump

some things need to be done with an element of surprise and the unknown; sure, this is fake combat, but real combat is full of surprises

these stars need to experience stress, panic and fear in order to simulate it as close as possible

and I think its great the sniper is bragging about the number of kills he made; 
good for him

there's plenty of shows in The History Channel and Discovery Channel where this kind of stuff is discussed

The Discovery Channel did a series called "Surviving the Cut", 
where they profile different training schools: Ranger School, Green Beret School, Sniper School, Marine Recon, US Air Force Pararescue

its a pretty awesome documentary series

1:52 of Special Forces training is pretty funny
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR5H6KBzoUw&feature=relmfu[/media]

Sniper School 
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbnDvis8n5c&feature=related[/media]

US Air Force Pararescue 
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3UlAzD5d0E[/media]

Ranger School 
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AT1xh3yQ0iI[/media]


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

So Picabo Street isn't afraid to rappel. What a surprise. 

Leila's partner was funny. "My bad, don't punch me." 

Terry Crews is an Army Brat, and did the show to honor his dad.


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## loubob57 (Mar 19, 2001)

Was Nick Lachey really going to refuse to jump or was he "acting"? I think they trump up some of these things for drama's sake. Kinda obvious I guess. 

Not surprisingly Todd Palin is a really good shot.

I also loved the "don't punch me" line.


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## RGM1138 (Oct 6, 1999)

I've only seen a little of this show, but I like it. Hell, I wanna be on it. Access to weapons you'd never otherwise have and blowing stuff up. What's not to like?


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## DancnDude (Feb 7, 2001)

It was a fairly entertaining episode. I can believe that Nick was scared. Todd really did look like he was out of control on the drop. 

I too thought that was funny, starting with the "there's no crying in battle" line


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

RGM1138 said:


> I've only seen a little of this show, but I like it. Hell, I wanna be on it. Access to weapons you'd never otherwise have and blowing stuff up. What's not to like?


And earning money for charities.


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## RGM1138 (Oct 6, 1999)

murgatroyd said:


> And earning money for charities.


Yes, that would be a nice bonus.


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

RGM1138 said:


> Yes, that would be a nice bonus.


To me the blowing stuff up is a bonus.

This must be a tremendous experience. You've got the camaraderie of the small group of celebs, all of whom have a purpose to be there and who want to be there. You've got one-on-one teaching from really good teachers. You've got the team spirit where the job has to get done -- nobody gets left behind, and if one person falters, the others step up and get things done.

I look back at my own life, where working in groups is kinda like this season of Project Runway (this is only a mild spoiler, so I'm not tagging it), where a lot of the designers only want to do their own thing, everybody says "oh I hate working in groups", and instead of figuring out the strengths and weaknesses of the group and playing to the strength of all the members, everybody works hard at figuring how to cover their own asses.

If we could bring the mindset that I see on this show to our educational system, and our workplaces, then this country could kick serious ass.


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## loubob57 (Mar 19, 2001)

It was fun seeing how Eve Torres' operator was so turned on by her ability to rack the M2 on the first try.


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## markz (Oct 22, 2002)

I just watched the first 2 episodes over the last couple of days and am really enjoying it.

I spent 3 years in the Army, and would totally love to go on this show. The only thing that I don't know for a fact I could do is the swimming with all the gear part. I wouldn't hesitate to try though. The rappelling from the helicopter and building is a breeze. Have done it many times. Shooting the grenade launcher and guns, also a breeze.

I will continue watching.


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## bobino (Jul 24, 2002)

markz said:


> The only thing that I don't know for a fact I could do is the swimming with all the gear part. I wouldn't hesitate to try though.


It's hard to imagine that they jump into the water without some sort of Buoyancy Control Device (BCD). Even SCUBA divers have this and they have ability to drop their weights very easily. They can also drop their tank, but probably loose the BCD when they do it. It doesn't appear to me on this show that the soldiers can release their equipment easily.

Do soldiers that do this have some sort of BCD?



markz said:


> The rappelling from the helicopter and building is a breeze. Have done it many times. Shooting the grenade launcher and guns, also a breeze.


That certainly looks fun!

-Bob


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

Didn't get a chance to see episode #4 last night -- it's in the queue for tonight's viewing. Just wanted to leave a place marker for later on.


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## loubob57 (Mar 19, 2001)

Anyone watch the finale?

I was surprised that Todd Palin lost in the shootout with Picabo.


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## markz (Oct 22, 2002)

Crap, I missed it when I was switching to the Hopper from my other DVR. Better go d/l it somewhere.


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## Waldorf (Oct 4, 2002)

loubob57 said:


> Anyone watch the finale?
> 
> I was surprised that Todd Palin lost in the shootout with Picabo.


Hard to tell with the way these shows are edited, but it seemed he missed his first sniper shot and she landed her first as he was about to take his second.

The targeting systems they used on the boat (and I guess in other missions) would have been frustrating as Dean Cain pointed out - it seemed the weapons shot blanks while simultaneously releasing a laser pulse  to trigger the explosive target. So if you were slightly off, you had no indication if you were off to the left, right, below, or above. I wonder if the official MILES system has this drawback as well.

Some behind the scenes pics from Eve on her site:

http://evetorres.com/blog/2012/09/03/the-stars-earn-stripes-season-finale/

The "Team Torres" hair and makeup team pose cracks me up.


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## stellie93 (Feb 25, 2006)

Women rule! I never saw either one of them before, but they kicked butt!

I was surprised too that Todd Palin lost in the shoot out. 

Good show, and they really gave away a lot of money for a summer replacement show. I wonder if they can write it off twice since it's an expense and a charitable donation?


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

Both Eve and Picabo have been awesome shooters all season. Todd was strong except with a handgun, so I wasn't surprised to see him get beaten in the shootout.


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

I hope Grady can get another show of his own. 

Maybe one where he just reads the phone book without his shirt on.


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## markz (Oct 22, 2002)

I had never heard of Eva Torres, but man was I impressed by her. Same for Picabo, though I had heard if her. Didn't expect that final 3. I really liked some of the operatives too.


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## Waldorf (Oct 4, 2002)

laria said:


> I hope Grady can get another show of his own.
> 
> Maybe one where he just reads the phone book without his shirt on.


I'm guessing you visited his twitter page?


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

Waldorf said:


> I'm guessing you visited his twitter page?


 :up: :up: :up:


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## laria (Sep 7, 2000)

Chris Kyle (Dean Cain's operative) was shot and killed yesterday at a gun range, where he was helping some veterans with PTSD. 

http://blog.zap2it.com/pop2it/2013/...-nbcs-stars-earn-stripes-killed-in-texas.html


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

This country sucks, you know? We send guys off to war, and once they come home (assuming they even make it home), we don't give a rat's ass about their quality of life afterwards. 

But I guess it's all of a piece with the general suckitude of how we treat all our citizens who have any kind of mental illness.


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## bareyb (Dec 1, 2000)

Can't believe some of the comments people made on that site. :down:


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## murgatroyd (Jan 6, 2002)

People said stupid **** on Facebook, too.

One of our fellow Americans is dead, leaving behind a wife and two kids and presumably other friends and family who will miss him. And he was killed at a charity event while trying to help other people. I don't care about politics at times like this. It's sad - full stop.


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## sieglinde (Aug 11, 2002)

What a shock. Surviving all that danger in Afghanistan and being killed on a gun range. I suspect one of the rarer places to be killed by an intentional gunshot is a gun range.


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## bareyb (Dec 1, 2000)

sieglinde said:


> What a shock. Surviving all that danger in Afghanistan and being killed on a gun range. I suspect one of the rarer places to be killed by an intentional gunshot is a gun range.


The Gun Range my son and I go to has safety measures up the wazoo, but I guess there's no stopping "crazy" no matter how many precautions you take.


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## loubob57 (Mar 19, 2001)

The latest stories I've read made it sound like it was just the 3 of them on the range at the time.


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