#178129 - 07/09/2003 17:04
Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of...
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31600
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Well fuck.
The're using laser in Oregon now.
Fuck fuck fuck.
Watch yourselves in the mountainous sections of Douglas County south of Eugene.
Shit shit shit.
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#178130 - 07/09/2003 17:12
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of...
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 15/08/2000
Posts: 4859
Loc: New Jersey, USA
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Uh, using laser for what?
Edit: Duh. Nevermind. My mind is just working a bit slowly in preparation for a return to the office tomorrow.
Edited by pgrzelak (07/09/2003 17:13)
_________________________
Paul Grzelak
200GB with 48MB RAM, Illuminated Buttons and Digital Outputs
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#178131 - 07/09/2003 17:13
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: pgrzelak]
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enthusiast
Registered: 08/03/2001
Posts: 202
Loc: Denver, CO
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Speed Traps?
How big was the ticket Tony?
_________________________
- Damien
- Mk2a 24G Blue SN: 120001043
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#178133 - 07/09/2003 18:43
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of...
[Re: tfabris]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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holy tony
such language. im scared to even ask how big the ticket is
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#178134 - 07/09/2003 21:26
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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Total speeding ticket bill for the trip to QCon, $395
I'm done driving on roadtrips.
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#178135 - 07/09/2003 21:38
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: drakino]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31600
Loc: Seattle, WA
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I think the worst part about it is that I still have to drive back... Argh.
At least I have the empeg to keep me entertained on what is now going to be an interminably long journey...
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#178136 - 07/09/2003 22:00
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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I got both of mine going to QCon as well, so I had the drive back ahead of me.
The first one I fully admit I was doing the speed he got me at. The second one, I really think the guy tagged the car in front of me, then pulled me over. I was in the left lane, moved to the right when I saw his lights, and he pulled right behind me. The part that really sucks is that where it happened, it would take me about 9 hours to drive there again to fight it. If I had the GPS logs off my Garmin, I'd consider it, but the track log was cleared from when I drove back.
Highways in this country suck.
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#178137 - 07/09/2003 22:14
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: drakino]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 23/09/2000
Posts: 3608
Loc: Minnetonka, MN
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It's your tax dollars at work 
_________________________
Matt
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#178138 - 07/09/2003 22:24
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: msaeger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31600
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Insult to injury, it's not my tax dollars.
Unless you consider the speeding fine a tax, then yeah.
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#178139 - 08/09/2003 04:25
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 17/01/2002
Posts: 3996
Loc: Manchester UK
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Do you get endorsements on your licence in America? Over in the UK it's not the fine I worry about, it's the points. If I got caught speeding twice this year I'd probably have to sell my new car as the insurance would probably double.
Having my new car has almost taken the fun out of driving it, as soon as I have a nice straight piece of road instead of booting it and having some fun I find myself looking out for Gatsos, Truvelos, Specs, policemen hiding behind trees, etc. scared shitless I could get caught for doing 33 in a 30. Even worse you could drive down a long stretch of road doing 33 and go from having a clean license to being banned, as systems like the truvelo don't even tell you they've caught you!
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Cheers,
Andy M
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#178140 - 08/09/2003 06:08
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andym]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 23/08/2000
Posts: 3826
Loc: SLC, UT, USA
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I just ordered my Valentine One detector, due to almost getting tagged on the way home the other night. Thank god for the Camero doing 110 in front of me! Most of the CHP up in Marin where most of my commute is use the pacing method, so it's easy to avoid a ticket if you are aware of your surroundings, which you damn well better be if you are going over the speed limit.
But with Laser... you're pretty much screwed. If you heard the laser blip on your detector, you can pretty much assume you are about to be pulled over.
Sorry to hear it Tony. With the speeds i've witnessed you going... i bet it was a biggy. =\
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#178141 - 08/09/2003 06:39
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andym]
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old hand
Registered: 14/04/2002
Posts: 1172
Loc: Hants, UK
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Or even worse for new drivers in the UK is that you have a six point limit for the first two years of driving. That means TWO speeding tickets and you are a gonner. In some parts of the country you could easily get this in a single short journey. As soon as you get six or more points you lose your licence and have to start from scratch again - apply for your provisional licence (several weeks), get a test date (6 weeks+ unless you phone around to get a cancellation) etc.
I was pretty scared for my "probationary" period but luckily I didn't get any. If I had got one I would have been damn careful until my two years were up!
Gareth
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#178142 - 08/09/2003 06:51
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: g_attrill]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 17/01/2002
Posts: 3996
Loc: Manchester UK
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It's almost as if the government doesn't want people to use their cars! Don't get me started on the whole satellite monitoring stuff, we could be here all day!
_________________________
Cheers,
Andy M
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#178143 - 08/09/2003 07:04
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: g_attrill]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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I was pretty scared for my "probationary" period but luckily I didn't get any.
My neither. My 2 years just ran out, so I can worry less about getting done for speeding. There have been a couple of times that I've been hammering along the M11 and, in my mirror, seen a police car screaming up behind me, siren going, lights flashing, which has been a little worrying. Obviously, I frantically pull over to the inside lane and shed about 40mph in speed.
Fortunately, both times they were in a hurry to get somewhere else, and I'm not sure that they noticed how fast I was going -- I was keeping up with the flow of traffic, anyway  .
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-- roger
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#178144 - 08/09/2003 08:55
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andym]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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Do you get endorsements on your licence in America? Yes, although they're not called that; they're just points.
One thing I've noticed in posts you Brits have made about auto insurance is that you seem to understand it. In the US, it's all kind of a mystery. You just kind of have to try around and see what rates different companies will give you and then choose one and hope that their lack of physical presence is outweighed by the price or that their price is outweighed by the (vaguely) good service. And there doesn't seem to be any direct correlation between license points and rates. Or between anything and rates. I just got a new Volvo S60R to replace my 1987 BMW 325. For now, both cars are on my insurance. When I got the new car, my rates went down. I'm actually paying less by getting a new car. It makes no sense whatsoever.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
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#178145 - 08/09/2003 10:13
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andym]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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Do you get endorsements on your licence in America? Over in the UK it's not the fine I worry about, it's the points. Depends on the state here. In Colorado, we have a point system, but only Colorado tickets will impact my points. Texas is aparently implementing a points system here shortly.
Also, points here are assigned based on age. 16-18, 18-21 then 21 and over have different amounts of points.
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#178146 - 08/09/2003 10:31
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: drakino]
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addict
Registered: 24/07/2003
Posts: 500
Loc: Colorado, N.A.
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points here are assigned based on age. 16-18, 18-21 then 21 and over have different amounts of points. You've got to be making that up! Can that really be true? And how do you explain me living here and not knowing that, other than brain damage?
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-- DLF
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#178147 - 08/09/2003 10:36
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: wfaulk]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 10/06/1999
Posts: 5916
Loc: Wivenhoe, Essex, UK
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I'd say that the UK car insurance market is just as confused as the US. I have and MX5 (Miata). I know plenty of other people who are:
- younger than me
- have more valuable MX5s than me
- live in more "risky" areas
Yet for some reason they get lower insurance quotes than me. It makes no sense.
_________________________
Remind me to change my signature to something more interesting someday
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#178148 - 08/09/2003 11:11
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: DLF]
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old hand
Registered: 15/07/2002
Posts: 828
Loc: Texas, USA
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I believe points are assigned the same for all ages but suspension occurs at a lower level based on age.
6. Point System.
I. Point Accumulation. A driver's license is subject to suspension if they accumulate either 12 points within 12 consecutive months or 18 points with 24 consecutive months. For provisional drivers, suspension would occur if they accumulate either 9 points within 12 consecutive months, 12 points within any 24 consecutive months or 14 points from the time the provisional license was issued. In the case of minor drivers, suspension would occur if they accumulate either 5 points within 12 consecutive months or 6 points from the time the license was issued. For chauffeurs, suspension would occur if they accumulate (while in the course of employment) either 16 points in 1 year, 24 points in 2 years or 28 points in 4 years. §42-2-127(1)(a)
II. Point Schedule. The following points are assigned for speeding violations. Three (3) points for going 5 to 9 MPH over either the reasonable and prudent speed or the 75 MPH maximum limit. Four (4) points for going 10 to 19 MPH over either the reasonable and prudent speed or the 75 MPH maximum limit. Six (6) points for going 20 MPH or more over either the reasonable and prudent speed or the 75 MPH maximum limit. Three (3) points are assessed for a failure to reduce speed when a special hazard exists. And, 3 points are assessed for other moving violations. No points are assessed for going 1 to 4 MPH over either the reasonable and prudent speed or the 75 MPH maximum limit. §42-2-127(5)(f) & (r) Important. No points can be assessed against a person's driving record if the original citation was issued via an "automated vehicle identification system." §§42-2-127(5.5) & 42-4-110.4(3)
http://199.79.179.45/people/injury/enforce/stspdlaw98/COspeed.htm
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#178149 - 08/09/2003 11:24
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andy]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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Yet for some reason they get lower insurance quotes than me. And, even though I strayed from it, my real thesis was that you seem to have some idea about how many tickets/points will get you how much of an increase. Just, in general, the fact that you can speak intelligently about it in posts while not being an insurance professional puts you head-and-shoulders above Americans.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
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#178150 - 08/09/2003 12:21
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: wfaulk]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 30/04/2000
Posts: 3810
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I just got a new Volvo S60R to replace my 1987 BMW 325. For now, both cars are on my insurance. When I got the new car, my rates went down. I'm actually paying less by getting a new car.
One possible explanation might be related to how often they need to pay claims on Volvos versus BMWs. Insurance people play all kinds of statistical games to determine how likely you (married? with children? how old?) are to wreck your car (what kind? how often wrecked?) given where you live and what wrecks tend to cost there.
Of course, the actuarial tables they use are proprietary, and if there's a bug in there, it's not like they're going to let you challenge it. Your only recourse is to buy insurance from somebody else. In wfaulk's case, it looks like he wins because they see his car as a Volvo (safe, boring) rather than a balls-to-the-walls extreme sportscar (to which I can personally attest... thanks Bitt!). I know that, back when I spent some time on one of the BMW chat boards, a common thread was that somebody moved to BMW from a cheaper Japanese sportscar and observed their rates drop. BMW drivers, one might infer, tend to wreck their cars less often than owners of cheap Japanese sportscars.
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#178151 - 08/09/2003 12:31
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: DWallach]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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But the point you miss is that I had two cars on my insurance. I deleted neither and added a brand new car (as opposed to fifteen years old for the other two cars) and the rates went down. So I had the exact same insurance as before, plus some, and it costs less.
That's equivalent to going to the store to buy two hamburgers for $5 and being told that if you also purchase this filet mignon, you can get all three for $4.
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Bitt Faulk
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#178152 - 08/09/2003 12:36
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: wfaulk]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 14/01/2002
Posts: 2858
Loc: Atlanta, GA
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That's equivalent to going to the store to buy two hamburgers for $5 and being told that if you also purchase this filet mignon, you can get all three for $4. With the difference being that you might be able to eat both hamburgers and the filet (depending on how much you can pack down in a sitting). You can't drive more than one car at a time. Still seems strange though.
_________________________
-Jeff
Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings; they did it by killing all those who opposed them.
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#178153 - 08/09/2003 13:45
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: Roger]
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addict
Registered: 24/07/2002
Posts: 618
Loc: South London
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..hehe..they're probably hurrying their way down to cambridge services on the A14 for a mcdonalds...my mate was going to work in huntingdon and he saw these 2 cop cars with lights flashing flying down the A14, he was quite suprised when he got to mcdonalds for a breakfast and saw the coppers in the queue....that really takes the p1ss.....
Adrian
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#178154 - 08/09/2003 13:53
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: wfaulk]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 10/06/1999
Posts: 5916
Loc: Wivenhoe, Essex, UK
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So I had the exact same insurance as before, plus some, and it costs less.
In the UK you can get the case where if you are a bloke and add your wife/female partner as a second driver can lower your premium.
_________________________
Remind me to change my signature to something more interesting someday
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#178155 - 08/09/2003 14:04
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: sn00p]
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Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 08/02/2002
Posts: 3411
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LOL. That reminded me of something I saw the other day - 2 cars blatently blew through a red light, right in front of 2 state troopers who were waiting in a left turn lane on the other side of the road. I was chuckling to myself about just how busted they were until I realised where the cops were going.
On my right was the Dunking Donuts. (This is the same DD where I've previously seen _seven_ cop cars sat outside at the same time)
_________________________
Mk2a 60GB Blue. Serial 030102962
sig.mp3: File Format not Valid.
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#178156 - 08/09/2003 14:11
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andy]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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if you are a bloke and add your wife/female partner as a second driver can lower your premium Nope. Everything else exactly the same.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
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#178157 - 08/09/2003 14:21
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: wfaulk]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 10/06/1999
Posts: 5916
Loc: Wivenhoe, Essex, UK
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You misunderstand me Bitt, I wasn't suggesting a change that you hadn't told us about had effected your premium. I was giving example of another at oddity that can come about when you are seemingly adding more risk to the policy.
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Remind me to change my signature to something more interesting someday
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#178158 - 08/09/2003 14:23
Re: Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of.
[Re: andy]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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Sorry. I understood that, even if my response didn't reflect it. Just clarifying that that wasn't the case for me.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
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