OT. This is rec.boats, not wrecked.boats.

********************

Indeed. Did my comment about turning the Pope's funeral into a photo-op
wreck your ability to enjoy your boat? What compelled you to waste your
time reading a thread that was labeled "off topic" and titled "Bush
Booed at Pope's Funeral"...(or some such)

We could use a few more boaters participating in the On-topic threads.
I know several of us will look forward to your useful contributions
there- but I'd suggest you switch your handle. :-)

Meanwhile, if you don't want to read the OT stuff- don't open an OT
thread.

There are two kinds of OT posts here. One starts off OT, and is usually
clearly labeled.
That's the kind that is plainly advertised for what it is. I don't know
about you, but if I'm walking down the street and I pass a theater
advertising, " Bare Breasted Biker Bitches Going Down, Down, Down,
XXXXXX rated, absolutely adults only!" I don't need to buy a ticket to
figure out what kind of movie is playing there. If I want to see busty
biker bitches, (going down, down, down) I'll go in and get my money's
worth. Otherwise I'll pass. If I wandered into the theater anyway, I
don't think I would stand up and complain that there are naked people
on the screen commiting some acts that are usually reserved for more
private and discreet circumstances.

The other kind of OT post is a little more insidious. A thread starts
off "Questions about Repairing an XYZ Outboard." About three of four
posts into the thread, somebody decides to take a shot at another
poster with some crap like "You claim you invented a new type outboard,
and you're a liar!" (or) "You claim your great uncle crossed the
Atlantic on a bamboo raft powered only by a 3 HP FICHT and did it on 5
gallons of gas, and you're a socialist MF'er!" Those are pretty tough.
That's like paying for admission to a theater with
"Bambi", "Dead Poets Society", or "Unforgiven" on the marquee-and being
shown the busty biker bitches instead. I agree with you, it's a shame
when an on-topic thread gets put into the crapper by personal
animosities.