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Geek Culture / 2010 Winter Olympics thread

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Jeku
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 19:50
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Hey all, is anyone going to be following this year's Olympics? The opening ceremony is tonight, and people here are just going crazy. I'm not a big fan of hosting the Olympics but I'll definitely be watching all the Hockey events


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zeroSlave
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 20:08
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Quote: "I'm not a big fan of hosting the Olympics"

Good luck with the traffic!

I'll probably scope out the names of people that get medals and check out the records that are broken, but I doubt I'll actually watch them doing it. My wife is an uber fan of it all, so we'll probably end up creating an olympic sport called 'Who can get the TV remote the fastest!'

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Jeku
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 20:24 Edited at: 12th Feb 2010 20:24
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I'm looking forward to seeing who the final torch bearer is at the opening ceremony tonight. My money is on Wayne Gretzky


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Oolite
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 20:28
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I'm up at half 1 for work so i'll manage to catch some of the opening ceremony when it's shown here. I'm more excited for it this year than i have before, maybe its because its had far more advertising than it has in previous years, but yeah, i'll probably try and keep up with it.

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Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 20:45 Edited at: 12th Feb 2010 20:56
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i'm looking forward to the games and will be watching; sharing the same timezone helps that a lot.

Quote: "
My money is on Wayne Gretzky
"

i'll take that bet. local news is reporting its doubtful because he didn't win gold (or medal at all?) in '98.
if it was up to me, he would. but, since it's not, i'll bet my 3 Amiga™ hockey sticks () it will be someone else.

add sidenote: i rarely watch international hockey... it's just not as exciting as NHL.

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MSon
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 21:29
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i just had the news on, and it said someone died in the training run for the winter olympics.

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Sid Sinister
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 21:41
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I hope they have enough snow!

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zeroSlave
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 21:44
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Quote: "I hope they have enough snow!"

I just stepped outside my office, and heard a few people saying that they didn't have enough and they were having to bring some in.

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puppyofkosh
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 21:58
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I look forward to watching it.
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Lemonade
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 21:59
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I'll be watching the opening ceremony for sure. It's on at 6:00PM PST for those who are wondering.

I like the summer Olympics more, though.
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Jeku
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Posted: 12th Feb 2010 22:46
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Quote: "i'll take that bet. local news is reporting its doubtful because he didn't win gold (or medal at all?) in '98."


Yah that's true, but some stranger people have been suggested Still, Gretzky is the greatest hockey player to have ever lived, and he was coach of Team Canada men's hockey for several times, including their 2002 Gold medal win, so I wouldn't be surprised!

Quote: " just had the news on, and it said someone died in the training run for the winter olympics."


Yah I saw that on the news, poor guy and his family. I don't think they should be showing his crash all over the place.


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Vent
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 03:43
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Watching the ceremony now


Go Canada Go!




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Lemonade
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 03:45
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Wait, I thought the ceremony was at 6:00? NBC just stated that coverage would begin live at 7:30...

So...how are you watching it Vent?
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Vent
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 03:51
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Well, its 6:52 and its on TV...


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Lemonade
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 03:54
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What channel?
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Vent
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 03:56
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Channel 46 & 9


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Lemonade
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 03:59
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That's why...we didn't include TV without our internet\phone package.
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 04:02 Edited at: 13th Feb 2010 04:03
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http://www.justin.tv/jeffreytvhd

Live


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Jeku
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 04:55
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Just finished the fiddle section... Ashley MacIsaac is insane! The music was great!


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Lemonade
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 09:32
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Quote: "I'm looking forward to seeing who the final torch bearer is at the opening ceremony tonight. My money is on Wayne Gretzky "


Well, you were right. Sort of. You both win.

It's kinda funny how they messed up at the very end.
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Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 09:42 Edited at: 13th Feb 2010 09:49
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talk about a rough start to an olympics! alas, if kumaritashvili's georgian teammates can push on and wayne can stand there, sweating profusely for an extra 5 minutes (why was he holding it kinda close to his face instead of extending his arm fully, keeping the flame away from his face, like the others?), i'm committed to enjoying the games nonetheless. with that:

very nice ceremony; loved the visuals and music, especially k d lang (old vid. noone's posted tonight's version yet?). she was amazing.

and, here you go, jeku <<< . i don't know who was more prophetic... you for calling gretzky or me for only offering 3 of my 4 hockey sticks. i was gonna offer 4 but 1 got stuck in the floor... (i hope someone gets that (bad) joke )

meanwhile....go USA! and, go GEORGIA!

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Jeku
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Posted: 13th Feb 2010 10:03
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Yah, kd lang did a great rendition of Hallelujah. Really powerful.


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Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 18th Feb 2010 09:54 Edited at: 18th Feb 2010 09:55
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ok, so i gave hockey a chance and the czech/slovakia game was great! generally a bit "rougher" than most olympic matches i've seen (good rivialry here) and i just realized this year's rinks are standard north american, which i appreciate (were prior canadian-held olympics intl or nhl sized?). still strange to watch with different rules in place (no 2-line pass?), different icing, etc. i know NHL, like many "u.s." sports (and, yeah, i know there are candian teams ), like to stop the clock a lot so they can get one more commercial in, so it was refreshing to watch in that aspect.

this is also the first winter olympics i've bothered to watch curling... and now i wish i'd been watching all along. heh. i dig the subtlties and strategy involved. ie, it's a bit more than "a couple guys sweeping ice"

lotsa short track excitement, decent skiing and snowboarding, drama in the luge... i've definitely got the bug and am enjoying the events thus far. my only gripe is the amount of "flubs" in most all events. lotsa basics blown, mistakes, etc, which i attribute to the atheletes trying too hard and a bit of less-than-ideal snow/ice conditions.

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Jeku
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Posted: 18th Feb 2010 19:24
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Yah, the men's hockey games are great so far, especially Canada's 8-0 victory over Norway I'm looking forward to tonight's game, and then on the weekend when Canada faces off against the US. Russia will be a tough team to beat, in my opinion.

They are playing in GM Place (renamed to Canada Hockey Place for the Olympics) which is where the Canucks play, so the ice is NHL standard as you say. As far as I know the rules are still Olympic rules (i.e. icing).

The games are going great so far, and the overall feeling of the city is non-stop partying and awesome vibes.

It's a shame that the British press are targeting us and being so vile and harsh (calling Canada "cheaters", for one thing), blaming Vancouver for the tragic luge death. What they fail to mention is all the tracks and courses are regulated and approved the the IOC, and this luge track was used in a former world tournament. I understand that the worse they make Vancouver look, the better they will look in 2012, or at least that's their aim. Asinine.


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DrewG
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Posted: 19th Feb 2010 04:11
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Quote: "It's a shame that the British press are targeting us and being so vile and harsh (calling Canada "cheaters", for one thing), blaming Vancouver for the tragic luge death. What they fail to mention is all the tracks and courses are regulated and approved the the IOC, and this luge track was used in a former world tournament. I understand that the worse they make Vancouver look, the better they will look in 2012, or at least that's their aim. Asinine."


Agreed completely. While tragic, it obviously isn't the fault of Canada.
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MSon
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Posted: 19th Feb 2010 05:05 Edited at: 19th Feb 2010 07:22
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Quote: "It's a shame that the British press are targeting us and being so vile and harsh (calling Canada "cheaters", for one thing), blaming Vancouver for the tragic luge death. What they fail to mention is all the tracks and courses are regulated and approved the the IOC, and this luge track was used in a former world tournament. I understand that the worse they make Vancouver look, the better they will look in 2012, or at least that's their aim. Asinine"

Media does have a tendency to overstate at times, I dont know how true it was, but on TV over here today they said that they limited access to non Canadian contenders to the bare minimum before the Olympics to allow maximum training on the actual tracks, ect to canadian athletes only, but i cant blaim them, we will proberbley try something like that in 2012, Although im sure we can count on the airports here loosing our opponents bag and equipment, that should help us

Also, isnt the UK doing badley in medals, that would probably be why the media is a bit bitter

I think its going pritty well, except whenever i turn it on, theres no gb teams, i assume there getting knocked out

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Lemonade
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Posted: 19th Feb 2010 08:42
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Quote: " Media does have a tendency to overstate at times"


More than a tendency.

They also have a bad habit of being incredibly biased. At least in the US.
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Seppuku Arts
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Posted: 19th Feb 2010 10:56
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Same in the UK for some media - though it tends to be sensationalist media and tabloids. Hence academics prefer if you're going to quote the news, quote something reputable.

I can't imagine that, yes, the British media will be bitter, as they often are. Hence I'll never become a newspaper journalist. I'm too happy of a person.

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29 games
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Posted: 21st Feb 2010 21:01
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Don't pay too much attention to the british tabloid press. They'll probably rip apart the 2012 olympics as well.

On a brighter note, the BBC have an awsome animation for the winter olympics:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JAqz-Kn2KE
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MSon
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Posted: 21st Feb 2010 21:53 Edited at: 21st Feb 2010 22:43
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that ad looked pretty good, i've been watching some of the olympics, but i just have to turn over whenever the figure-skating comes on, just feels wrong watching it

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RUCCUS
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 02:47
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Canada vs US on right now baby! Its a pretty good game so far, tied at 2.
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Jeku
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 05:00
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They need to get rid of Brodeur for Tuesday's game against Germany.


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Phaelax
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 05:35
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America beats Canada!

1-1 within the first minute of the game. Canada jumps up another point minutes later and the Americans answer back within seconds. Good game! Final score, 5-3


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Lemonade
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 05:48
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I just read that this is the first time the US has beaten Canada since 1960! What's funny is that most Americans (like me) don't care about hockey, while a lot of Canadians are crazy about it.
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Virtual Nomad
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 05:49 Edited at: 22nd Feb 2010 05:59
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i missed the first period (out buying my first laptop ) but the rest was intense. so many defensive flubs by the u.s. in the second period = so lucky they ended up winning. alas, a win's a win, and we'll take it

Quote: "most americans don't care about hockey"

depends where you live, i guess. here we have the sharks and there are plenty of fans (plus ducks and kigs to the south). get up north and east and there are tons. if you're in, say, oklahoma, well... you might have to look for awhile before you find one

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RUCCUS
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 06:05 Edited at: 22nd Feb 2010 06:06
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Ugh, so disappointed. Yeah hockey in Canada is like football in America. I could hear people down my block screaming when we lost.

Jeku, I dont know what Brodeur's problem was. He had such a high save count before this game, something like 2 goals in the last 29 shots on him. I had to take a double check when I saw him leave the net, bat the puck mid-air like it was a baseball right back to the US, only to have it hit right back into our net. Pretty sure crosby and the rest of them had no idea where the puck even was when the whole thing went down so quickly.

But WOW did Canada ever try hard in the last 2 minutes. They must have thrown in like 12 shots within a 1 minute time span. But, they pulled their goaly to try and get the game tied up and it backfired majorly... anyways good effort, congrats US, always exciting seeing the two face off, just a major downer when your country loses at what apparently is "our game". Even though technically lacross is our national sport xD.
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Lemonade
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 06:15
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Quote: "depends where you live, i guess. here we have the sharks and there are plenty of fans (plus ducks and kigs to the south). get up north and east and there are tons. if you're in, say, oklahoma, well... you might have to look for awhile before you find one "


Maybe so. I live in Oregon, and have yet to come across one hockey fan.

I do enjoy playing NHL on the Xbox though.
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Jeku
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 06:18 Edited at: 22nd Feb 2010 06:19
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Guys, it doesn't matter that Canada lost tonight's game. This was just the prelim rounds. Yes, it means they have to win 4 games to get gold instead of 3, but they're not out yet. It's technically still anyone's gold.

I'm fairly certain Luongo will be in net the next game


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RUCCUS
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 06:20 Edited at: 22nd Feb 2010 06:21
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I know, its just the whole US vs Canada rivalry thing. For some reason whenever the US beats us it hits home harder than losing to any of the other teams. Probably because the US beats us at everything else , Hockey is one of the last things we have.

There was some controversy in the whole extra game thing. People are saying whoever lost now has one more game to practice and get familiar with the team before the gold game. I think its stupid.
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Jeku
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 06:54
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Well the problem with that argument is it's not an extra practice game--- the next 4 games are all sudden death! Canada plays Germany on Tuesday, and then Russia in the quarter-finals. Russia has a scary team!


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RUCCUS
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 07:13
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I meant assuming they win the next four games. Thats what they've been arguing about over the TV.
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Jeku
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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 07:21
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Hehe well I'm sure most teams would trade a 4-game gold for a 3-game gold anyways People always find things to complain about nowadays.


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Posted: 22nd Feb 2010 20:44
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my dad used to snowboard with shaun white...

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Very Close... But Good Game


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AlanC
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I have been happy to see Sweden do good.

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Jeku
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Posted: 1st Mar 2010 02:36
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That hockey game was great Just watching the closing ceremony now.


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Shadowtroid
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I still think that Russian Plushinko who says his medal was stolen is being a crybaby. You can say it was unfairly given, but don't say you got a platinum medal on your site. I mean, really.

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Jeku
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Posted: 1st Mar 2010 03:57
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Neil Young! Awesome!


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