Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[mnementh]

Hmm, in Chesterfield. We could probably afford to get some ne'er-do-well from one of the nearby chav districts to go and 'remonstrate' with the perpetrator.

"Greetings" from here as well.     

Seek out the tools he was using. They should find application.

I'm partial to testicular application of a weed-eater followed by liberal dousing of affected region with Sriracha. 

But... I understand that Avo is rated to 1KV... seems to me a lot of room for mischief there as well. 

mnem
tzzzt.

[Saskia]

@ Saskia Well that puts a new slant on things and conflicts with what I have always been told. Goes to show, that we can all learn something new every day

I am not condoning everything my Country has done post WW2 but I do know this.....someone had to play world traffic cop and by default we were elected. And when you're the cop you're going to make enemies. And do dumb things. There's a whole bucket list of dumb things. But I do know this...if it weren't for a little incident in a certain harbor on a certain Pacific island you all would be speaking Deutsch today.

We're still talking about the actions of a relative few religious fundamentalist wingnuts as opposed to the actions and ideology of most of the Muslim population of the world; blaming all of the peoples of these regions for these atrocities is the equivalent of assuming that everybody in the US is a Christian religious fundamentalist wingnut who believes and acts as the KKK does, FFS. 

The reason we have this constant game of whack-a-mole is not because the hate is everywhere over there, but rather because we keep stirring shit up in someplace new over and over again over there. *SMH*

There's a huge difference between WWI/WWII and what the US government has done repeatedly in the middle East since then. Ever since the UN division of Israel & Palestine in the 50s (spearheaded by Western business interests), we have stuck our dick in their internal affairs time and time again, keeping shit stirred up for most of a century; in just the course of my lifetime it has become an obsession, as this new bogeyman justifies the incessant exponential military expansion we as a society have been chained to since we "left" VietNam.

Even as Nixon was being run out of town on a rail, we were laying the groundwork with "Charlie Wilson's War", since then, every time some semblance of order has started to emerge, we've found some new fucking pretense to go in there and stir shit up with new military incursions. Our "Endless War" over there is in fact the ends, not the means; it is the business of war and oil that matters, not a single thing more.

Bottom line is the one thing we (the West) cannot allow is for them to ever truly stand united again; the last time that happened we had the Oil Embargo, and American big oil suddenly lost the raging river of cash flow that represented. Which of course really was the end of the fucking world, because it hurt the only people who mattered. 

mnem
But hey... it opened the doors for oil drilling here in the US; and a special exemption for big oil from the Clean Air & Water Act. What could possibly go wrong...?

I do tend to disagree. Look at the role of Arabs in WW2, the various fatwas regarding harbi and the treatment of infidels, plus what I hear day to day from turks and Arabs over here.

I can send you that text via pm, this is getting too off topic.

It is my strong belief that everybody should be able to believe in any deity he or she wants  without fear of repercussions or prosecution. Nobody should enforce his or her views on anybody else.

[mnementh]

I have collected mine from a combination of HAM swap meets and estate sales.  They are very handy for old GR equipment, which I still have many examples of.   

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Really should ought'ter beg him for a SMA as well, buddy; get the begging done in one shot. 

mnem
You know I'm right.

[mnementh]

@ Saskia Well that puts a new slant on things and conflicts with what I have always been told. Goes to show, that we can all learn something new every day

I am not condoning everything my Country has done post WW2 but I do know this.....someone had to play world traffic cop and by default we were elected. And when you're the cop you're going to make enemies. And do dumb things. There's a whole bucket list of dumb things. But I do know this...if it weren't for a little incident in a certain harbor on a certain Pacific island you all would be speaking Deutsch today.

We're still talking about the actions of a relative few religious fundamentalist wingnuts as opposed to the actions and ideology of most of the Muslim population of the world; blaming all of the peoples of these regions for these atrocities is the equivalent of assuming that everybody in the US is a Christian religious fundamentalist wingnut who believes and acts as the KKK does, FFS. 

The reason we have this constant game of whack-a-mole is not because the hate is everywhere over there, but rather because we keep stirring shit up in someplace new over and over again over there. *SMH*

There's a huge difference between WWI/WWII and what the US government has done repeatedly in the middle East since then. Ever since the UN division of Israel & Palestine in the 50s (spearheaded by Western business interests), we have stuck our dick in their internal affairs time and time again, keeping shit stirred up for most of a century; in just the course of my lifetime it has become an obsession, as this new bogeyman justifies the incessant exponential military expansion we as a society have been chained to since we "left" VietNam.

Even as Nixon was being run out of town on a rail, we were laying the groundwork with "Charlie Wilson's War", since then, every time some semblance of order has started to emerge, we've found some new fucking pretense to go in there and stir shit up with new military incursions. Our "Endless War" over there is in fact the ends, not the means; it is the business of war and oil that matters, not a single thing more.

Bottom line is the one thing we (the West) cannot allow is for them to ever truly stand united again; the last time that happened we had the Oil Embargo, and American big oil suddenly lost the raging river of cash flow that represented. Which of course really was the end of the fucking world, because it hurt the only people who mattered. 

mnem
But hey... it opened the doors for oil drilling here in the US; and a special exemption for big oil from the Clean Air & Water Act. What could possibly go wrong...?

I do tend to disagree. Look at the role of Arabs in WW2, the various fatwas regarding harbi and the treatment of infidels, plus what I hear day to day from turks and Arabs over here.

I can send you that text via on, this is getting too off topic.

It is my strong belief that everybody should be able to believe in any deity he or she wants  without fear of repercussions or prosecution. Nobody should enforihis or her views on anybody else.

[EDIT for clarity: What you're describing here is the age-old argument between the right to freedom of religion vs the equally valid right to freedom from religion. The Western powers can hardly consider themselves a paragon of virtue in that regard either.]

I fail to see where this is different from the US and western powers trying to force the white anglo-saxon protestant vision of paradise on them at gunpoint; the only difference is our guns are big enough we can do it from the comfort of our ivory towers whereas they have to take a more hands-on approach.

Whether directly or not; we as a people kill a lot more of them than they do of us. Not exactly surprised that some of them hate us.

I'm done now. I've used up my box of soap for the day.

mnem
 

[BU508A]

I'm done now. I've used up my box of soap for the day.

Go and read a book, could be a lot of fun.     

[Mr. Scram]

34401a for 330 ... ok or not ? VFD ok, no leads.

If the condition is decent 330 is fair enough. Good ones seem to fetch well over 400 nowadays.

[Mr. Scram]

For the 34401A, as a rule of thumb:

be careful, could have the old and unobtanium display drivers (all input jacks are red)


good, newer model, has the new display drivers (input jacks are red and black)


If the label is saying Agilent or Keysight, then you are definitly safe in this respect.

Apparently there's a thin slice of models with red jacks and an updated display and driver, though I'm not entirely sure some people haven't been dicking with their 34401As. It's hard to tell at this point.

[med6753]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

[mnementh]

Donkeys years ago three of us stayed in a wine importers hotel near Bracknell. Before one of us found bedbugs, the importer said the only generally true statement about wine is "the more you drink, the better it tastes".

That made me think of Bernard Black:   

Awww... Moran was still young and adorbs then; almost like a slightly pervy Paul McCartney. When he cracked he got downright dissolute almost overnight... Still miss that acid wit. I understand he's been working on a new show... has that materialized?

mnem
 

[Robert763]

Not sure I'd take a chance on a 34401A at €330 on ebay when you can get one from a dealer for around £350 (including UK VAT) with a warranty.

[mnementh]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Speaking of ass-rape from New Jersey... I just got a fucking bill from FEDEX to the tune of CAD$44.32 for tariffs on my 54645 from All-Test. After paying for eBay Global Shipping up front, which already includes a hefty estimate thereof and promises none of this shit right in the transaction.

A phone call to the US eBay customer support number (which used to just take 5-25 minutes to get you to a person) now tells you to visit their utterly fucking useless help pages; if you press 0 for operator it hangs up on you immediately.

mnem

[Mr. Scram]

Speaking of ass-rape from New Jersey... I just got a fucking bill from FEDEX to the tune of CAD$44.32 for tariffs on my 54645 from All-Test. After paying for eBay Global Shipping up front, which already includes a hefty estimate thereof and promises none of this shit right in the transaction.

A phone call to the US eBay customer support number (which used to just take 5-25 minutes to get you to a person) now tells you to visit their utterly fucking useless help pages; if you press 0 for operator it hangs up on you immediately.

mnem

I've asked sellers to ship at a higher cost to avoid the GSP. That rarely seems to end well.

[tautech]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Now worries Mike but it won't be very much at all. When I sent that magic eye tube to Neo it was under $10 US.
Just sing out if you want it as it already has your name on it for now. 

[med6753]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Speaking of ass-rape from New Jersey... I just got a fucking bill from FEDEX to the tune of CAD$44.32 for tariffs on my 54645 from All-Test. After paying for eBay Global Shipping up front, which already includes a hefty estimate thereof and promises none of this shit right in the transaction.

A phone call to the US eBay customer support number (which used to just take 5-25 minutes to get you to a person) now tells you to visit their utterly fucking useless help pages; if you press 0 for operator it hangs up on you immediately.

mnem

I've heard of this happening before when it involves Fed Ex and Canadian customers. Sounds like total BS to me but apparently there isn't much you can do about it. Good luck. 

[med6753]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Now worries Mike but it won't be very much at all. When I sent that magic eye tube to Neo it was under $10 US.
Just sing out if you want it as it already has your name on it for now. 

OK, I'll PM you.

[tautech]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Now worries Mike but it won't be very much at all. When I sent that magic eye tube to Neo it was under $10 US.
Just sing out if you want it as it already has your name on it for now. 

OK, I'll PM you.

PM's, emails and pics exchanged so to be sure it's the one you want.

And it is ! 

[Kosmic]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Speaking of ass-rape from New Jersey... I just got a fucking bill from FEDEX to the tune of CAD$44.32 for tariffs on my 54645 from All-Test. After paying for eBay Global Shipping up front, which already includes a hefty estimate thereof and promises none of this shit right in the transaction.

A phone call to the US eBay customer support number (which used to just take 5-25 minutes to get you to a person) now tells you to visit their utterly fucking useless help pages; if you press 0 for operator it hangs up on you immediately.

mnem

I've heard of this happening before when it involves Fed Ex and Canadian customers. Sounds like total BS to me but apparently there isn't much you can do about it. Good luck. 

Weird, you're sure it actually went through Pitney Bowes ? Normally they don't use Fedex. Maybe Alltest did a mistake and shipped it directly to you with Fedex.

[Specmaster]

Wanna sell me one GR to BNC female? I need one more and I'm good.

Not the male like the 6 in the LH compartment ?
Got 1 that beanflying sent me in a goodies hamper you can have as I'll never use it.

I appreciate the offer but by the time you add up shipping charges from NZ to here I'll be in ass rape territory like the one coming from NJ. 

Speaking of ass-rape from New Jersey... I just got a fucking bill from FEDEX to the tune of CAD$44.32 for tariffs on my 54645 from All-Test. After paying for eBay Global Shipping up front, which already includes a hefty estimate thereof and promises none of this shit right in the transaction.

A phone call to the US eBay customer support number (which used to just take 5-25 minutes to get you to a person) now tells you to visit their utterly fucking useless help pages; if you press 0 for operator it hangs up on you immediately.

mnem

I've heard of this happening before when it involves Fed Ex and Canadian customers. Sounds like total BS to me but apparently there isn't much you can do about it. Good luck. 

Weird, you're sure it actually went through Pitney Bowes ? Normally they don't use Fedex. Maybe Alltest did a mistake and shipped it directly to you with Fedex.

I've never had a problem with the GSP, as a buyer or a seller, it takes the hassle factor out as far as I'm concerned.

[vk6zgo]

@ Saskia Well that puts a new slant on things and conflicts with what I have always been told. Goes to show, that we can all learn something new every day

I am condoning everything my Country has done post WW2 but I do know this.....someone had to play world traffic cop and by default we were elected. And when you're the cop you're going to make enemies. And do dumb things. There's a whole bucket list of dumb things. But I do know this...if it weren't for a little incident in a certain harbor on a certain Pacific island you all would be speaking Deutsch today.

Where and when was this election, and who voted in it?

You really need to read up on the US and British interference in the affairs of the Middle East starting from the beginning of last century, our combined actions in that part of the world were nothing to do with policing or keeping the peace and all about our respective nation's self interests. One cannot claim that British military intervention to build a British Middle Eastern empire that endured from 1914 to 1956 was a 'police action'. Similarly one cannot claim that overthrowing regimes that are not to your own country's taste, often democratically elected ones, as 'police actions', vis Americas actions that led to the overthrow of the democratic government in Iran to be replaced with the autocratic regime of the Shah, a country that, when neutral in WWII was the subject of an Anglo-Soviet invasion in 1941. (And people wonder why Iranians are pissed off at the west.)

Britain's part in the Middle East is often downplayed in the history we're taught, because it suits us to conveniently forget how big a hand we had in the mess that the Middle East became. Britain formally ruled:
    Egypt from 1882 to 1956
    Iraq from 1921 to 1932
    Palestine from 1920 to 1948 (occupied since 1917)
and occupied, by military force, many other bits on and off over the years.

There's lots of scope there for legitimate resentment to build up, and none of it is to do with 'policing' wrongdoers.

Oh, and isn't the 'We won WWII' line getting a little thin? WWII started in 1939 and you lot, despite many invitations, didn't turn up until Dec 8th 1941, rather more than a day late and a dollar short. My father had been fighting for over two years and got seriously wounded (and back into the fight) before a single American soldier picked up a weapon. By then the British had fought and won the Battle of Britain, been fighting in North Africa for a year and a half, and the Russians had been at it since the summer. So, yes, you helped, but it wasn't just your lot who won it.

By the same token, it is a charming conceit amongst Brits, that they "stood alone".
The Commonwealth countries may well say:-"What are we, chopped liver?"

A general rule to go by with "the Mother Country" is that we all regarded as "British" when there is something particularly nasty going for Brits.
Other times, we are "Someone they don't know well, think they made the coffee, or something."

[mnementh]

Speaking of ass-rape from New Jersey... I just got a fucking bill from FEDEX to the tune of CAD$44.32 for tariffs on my HP 54645 from All-Test. After paying for eBay Global Shipping up front, which already includes a hefty estimate thereof and promises none of this shit right in the transaction.

A phone call to the US eBay customer support number (which used to just take 5-25 minutes to get you to a person) now tells you to visit their utterly fucking useless help pages; if you press 0 for operator it hangs up on you immediately.

mnem

I've heard of this happening before when it involves Fed Ex and Canadian customers. Sounds like total BS to me but apparently there isn't much you can do about it. Good luck. 

Weird, you're sure it actually went through Pitney Bowes ? Normally they don't use Fedex. Maybe Alltest did a mistake and shipped it directly to you with Fedex.

I've never had a problem with the GSP, as a buyer or a seller, it takes the hassle factor out as far as I'm concerned.

My only gripe with fleaBay GSP is the cost because you wind up paying for two shipments; one to their processing center and then from there on to you. Well, and the added 2-6 days that costs. You do at least get to take advantage of their volume shipping rates to make it two shipments at a lower rate than you or I could ever get.

I'm 99% positive this is exactly what happened; it took 2 days to get to me once sent. That is why I was trying to call eBay Customer Support; a problem like this would take but a jiffy with someone on the phone as their records should show I paid for eBay GSP but didn't get it. They may or may not even involve the seller in a dispute process as a result.

But since January, every coprolite entity in the world has been taking advantage of the COVID fustercluck to eviscerate customer service; I guess I should not be surprised at this development.

Since fleaBay is playing absentee landlord here, I guess I'm going to have to go to PayPal and climb their support structure; they probably still have a direct line to fleaBay support. Hopefully PP still has people on the phones.

mnem

[med6753]

I'm 99% positive this is exactly what happened; it took 2 days to get to me once sent. That is why I was trying to call eBay Customer Support; a problem like this would take but a jiffy with someone on the phone as their records should show I paid for eBay GSP but didn't get it. They may or may not even involve the seller in a dispute process as a result.

But since January, every coprolite entity in the world has been taking advantage of the COVID fustercluck to eviscerate customer service; I guess I should not be surprised at this development.

Since fleaBay is playing absentee landlord here, I guess I'm going to have to go to PayPal and climb their support structure; they probably still have a direct line to fleaBay support. Hopefully PP still has people on the phones.

mnem

"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop

 

[mnementh]

Bitch, imo break my foot off in yo ass if you jinx me. 

mnem
 

[med6753]

Bitch, imo break my foot off in yo ass if you jinx me. 

mnem
 

Gotta catch me first. 

[mnementh]

I'm 99% positive this is exactly what happened; it took 2 days to get to me once sent. That is why I was trying to call eBay Customer Support; a problem like this would take but a jiffy with someone on the phone as their records should show I paid for eBay GSP but didn't get it. They may or may not even involve the seller in a dispute process as a result.

But since January, every coprolite entity in the world has been taking advantage of the COVID fustercluck to eviscerate customer service; I guess I should not be surprised at this development.

Since fleaBay is playing absentee landlord here, I guess I'm going to have to go to PayPal and climb their support structure; they probably still have a direct line to fleaBay support. Hopefully PP still has people on the phones.

mnem

"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop
"This is PayPal support, how may I help you?"....skip....pop

 

I decided to try the     first; I've messaged AllTest a scan of the FEDEX invoice, explained politely that I already paid for eBay GSP which includes all duty and tariffs, and and asked him to make it right.

We'll see what happens next.

mnem
 

[mnementh]

Bitch, imo break my foot off in yo ass if you jinx me. 

mnem
 

Gotta catch me first. 

Never mind. I have cousin Imogene in my contacts; I'll just IM her your contact card. 

mnem
*toddles off to ded*