Vanity - Post your predictions for 2014

[Perdogg]

Off topic, I am at the ‘Helm Deep” chapter of LOTR.

[SunkenCiv]

I really enjoyed the sequel, “Matt Helm’s Deep”. ;’) I haven’t read that in years, but I reread it ahead of the release of the first movie, and enjoyed revisiting it — Legolas and Gimli’s competition, and visualizing the layout of the fort, the attackers’ ladders, etc. Gandalf’s just showing up after having been “dead” for months, then verbally b-slapping one of the Hobbits, while multi-tasking the comprehensive defeat of Saruman and uprooting and repair of all the damage he’d caused, and Treebeard acting all lah-dee-dah as he was waiting for the G man, having been in on the entire thing and kept quiet about it. I really love that whole post-Breaking part of the trilogy.

I grew up in the country but never wanted a horse, wouldn’t have been able to get one if I had. But I wanted my own Shadowfax, and who wouldn’t, eh? Gandalf and Pippin are riding to Gondor, and a nazgul is overhead, he asks for more speed, and Shadowfax suddenly accelerates like he was wondering what took him so long to ask.

I’ve said it before, many times, if they’d effed up the Siege of Gondor, I’d have been done with those movies. I can’t even think of the stand at the gate — Gandalf and Shadowfax refuse to budge in the face of the Lord of the Nazgul, “you shall not pass”, the cock crows, and the Rohirrim arrive blowing horns — without getting in touch with my feminine side, as it were. I’m doing it now, aamof.

Seriously, Gandalf was a little put out when he had to hold the bridge in Moria against a balrog, but he kicked the ever-lovin’ crap of it, then froze his ass on a mountain, got carried for hundreds of miles by eagles, and those claws can’t be all that comfortable, has a shower and a protein shake, and hits the road again. There must have been chunks of Morgoth in that guy’s stool.

[SunkenCiv]

i hunted up some other prediction threads and added a keyword, making sure this one is at the head of the list.

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/2014predictions/index

[Perdogg]

I saw The Hobbit in December and I bought the LOTR and started to read the first chapter and then realize I should read The Hobbit first. I saw the 1977 NBC cartoon when I was a kid, but I did see any of the LOTR, not even the movies when they came out in 2001. I liked the movies, but I liked the music from the movie even more.

I really love the book. I cannot get enough of the works of Tolkien.

[SunkenCiv]

The Hobbit is much more fun than LOTR; a friend found it when we were both in 7th grade, in the fairly tiny school library, and he claimed to read it, I really did. :’) Fellowship was around in Ballantine’s paperback edition, one of those student ones, we used to get weekly or monthly lists of cheap priced editions. Eventually I discovered that the rest of the trilogy was around, same edition basically, in the box. I spent my 13 year old summer reading it a couple times, and I think I reread the Hobbit in between. It had a profound influence on me, I wanted to live in a Hobbit house dug into one of the hillsides around here. I would have done it too, if it hadn’t been for the building codes and the whole you-have-to-work-for-a-living thing. (’:

[CPT Clay]

Good one on #5

[SunkenCiv]

Just got to crow a little. Off-topic ping to all lists.

Thanks Perdogg:

1. David Cameron, UK Prime Minister
   • will repair his reputation in 2014
   • will lead the Tories to an outright victory in 2015
   • many will scoff at these particular predictions

I'm happy to say that Murphy's Law paid off, and the Tigers did NOT miss the playoffs in 2014. :') For that matter, the Lions ALSO made the playoffs, and won 11 games, their second best season record in my lifetime I believe. Nice job!

The rapid collapse of crude prices in the second half came as a big surprise, and the slower, earlier slide had an impact on #6 and #18.

As predicted, Israel didn't fight a war in 2014, or attack Iran in 2014.

Assad wasn't assassinated, which is too bad, but Syria has continued to fragment and its civil war -- the one started by Assad -- continues.

I'm glad to report that Iran and India haven't formally aligned to deal with Pakistan; the recent Paki elections came out a bit weird, I plan to look for FR topics about it, see if it has been discussed.

There was no big plane crash in April.

[bajabaja]

OK, accolades to you. Now how can you help me win some money?

[SunkenCiv]

Your special number for today is “4”.

[bajabaja]

I’ll run with that inside scoop and let you know what happens. You’re tops in my book.

[SunkenCiv]

I just noticed my error — it’s the Roman numeral “IV”, which could mean a hospital visit...

[bajabaja]

No, that’s my whiskey ingestion method.

No worries.

[gleeaikin]

A Turkish official has announced that they and Saudi Arabia are going to work together to get rid of Assad, apparently because Obama isn’t doing enough. Good, let them spend their blood and treasure for their own security.

[Perdogg]

“2. Dave Cameron will survive the May election, but UKIP will have made major gains in all three parties ridings.”

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3239881/posts?page=29#29

[SunkenCiv]

:’)

[SunkenCiv]

thanks glee’.

Turkey, Saudi Arabia form pact to help anti-Assad rebels
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/article20413182.html

FRchives:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3285923/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3286174/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3286062/posts

[caww]

.....”A Turkish official has announced that they and Saudi Arabia are going to work together to get rid of Assad, apparently because Obama isn’t doing enough”......

Well if that is so then Russia has given it’s approval or they’d not be doing so.

[AdmSmith]

You nailed the UK election almost 1.5 years in advance. Well done.

[SunkenCiv]

:’) Thanks!

[gleeaikin]

If what you say is true, I wonder if the Russians have decided that Assad has destabilized the region entirely too much and it’s time for him to go.