Patrick

Voting is now closed. Thank you to everyone who voted. Results will be announced soon. Thanks again, Patrick

Thanks Greg. Patrick

Hey Pacificshore. Great to see you!

I just wanted to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who celebrates it! I hope that you have a great day. Patrick

Thank you to everyone who has voted thus far. If you haven't done so already, please take a moment to look in the ballots and vote for the members or article that you feel is most deserving! I really appreciate it. Thanks, Patrick

The voting ballots close on November 27 at 8 PM ET. If you haven't voted yet, please do!

The voting ballots close on November 27 at 8 PM ET. If you haven't voted yet, please do!

The voting ballots close on November 27 at 8 PM ET. If you haven't voted yet, please do!

Thanks all. I really appreciate the replies and kind words. Thank you for being a part of it and a part of what makes it great. This means a lot to me; this is what we strive for. Thank you. Patrick

Mandatory or automatic gratuities are fairly normal at the level of a basically nice restaurant or higher. Generally, it'll be something like an automatic 18% for parties of 6 or more. It's more rare for it to be automatic regardless of party size, but it happens. Saying it's a service charge is confusing in it's own right because then you wonder who it goes to. Gratuities go to servers, service charges go to... so, that opens up it's own can of worms, too. Patrick

Hey all, Celebrating our half birthday is sort of a tradition here at KarateForums.com and that day is today as we turn 8 and 1/2 years old! We launched on May 21, 2001. I don't know where all the time went, but it does give me an opportunity to thank everyone who has positively contributed to this community. I love what we are and I love the atmosphere we have here - one of kind, respectful martial arts discussion. It means a great deal to me. Thank you to my staff, who helps me to maintain this atmosphere: Heidi, Brian, Danielle, Ed, Alex, Brenda, Jennifer and Dave. I appreciate everything that you do. Thank you for reading and for visiting KarateForums.com. Sincerely, Patrick

Once again, thanks to everyone who has participated thus far. If you haven't yet, please consider doing so. It doesn't take much time, but is a great way to honor some of the great contributors within our community! Thanks again, Patrick

A mandatory gratuity is a mandatory gratuity and they should have paid it. That said, calling the police was a bit of an overreaction, I feel. if you want to tell them they aren't welcome at the establishment, cool. But, calling the cops is just a bad business move.

Thanks for sharing. Interesting link. Patrick

No problem. Ricky had a good game, definitely. I don't know if it's a turnaround, kind of what we were doing on the ground, already. But, there is still hope.

Yes, I'd say so.

Thank you to everyone who has voted so far! Please keep the votes coming! Thanks, Patrick

Great news, congrats Rusty!

Congrats on the success.

I'm definitely a fan of hot chocolate.

Yeah, it wasn't a very convincing win for the Dolphins, but a win is a win. One week at a time. Looks like we're going to miss Ronnie Brown for at least one game, which is awful...

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. You may have heard, but if you haven't... the 2009 edition of our annual KarateForums.com Awards program is now underway and the voting ballots are open in categories like Member of the Year, New Member of the Year, Article of the Year and more. If you have already voted, thank you. If you haven't, I would definitely appreciate it if you considered doing so. It only takes a few moments and it is a great way to recognize some of the members that help to make this community great. For more information and links to the ballots, please check out: http://www.karateforums.com/karateforums-com-awards-2009-vote-now-vt37508.html Thank you for reading and for being a part of this community! Sincerely, Patrick

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. You may have heard, but if you haven't... the 2009 edition of our annual KarateForums.com Awards program is now underway and the voting ballots are open in categories like Member of the Year, New Member of the Year, Article of the Year and more. If you have already voted, thank you. If you haven't, I would definitely appreciate it if you considered doing so. It only takes a few moments and it is a great way to recognize some of the members that help to make this community great. For more information and links to the ballots, please check out: http://www.karateforums.com/karateforums-com-awards-2009-vote-now-vt37508.html Thank you for reading and for being a part of this community! Sincerely, Patrick

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. You may have heard, but if you haven't... the 2009 edition of our annual KarateForums.com Awards program is now underway and the voting ballots are open in categories like Member of the Year, New Member of the Year, Article of the Year and more. If you have already voted, thank you. If you haven't, I would definitely appreciate it if you considered doing so. It only takes a few moments and it is a great way to recognize some of the members that help to make this community great. For more information and links to the ballots, please check out: http://www.karateforums.com/karateforums-com-awards-2009-vote-now-vt37508.html Thank you for reading and for being a part of this community! Sincerely, Patrick

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. You may have heard, but if you haven't... the 2009 edition of our annual KarateForums.com Awards program is now underway and the voting ballots are open in categories like Member of the Year, New Member of the Year, Article of the Year and more. If you have already voted, thank you. If you haven't, I would definitely appreciate it if you considered doing so. It only takes a few moments and it is a great way to recognize some of the members that help to make this community great. For more information and links to the ballots, please check out: http://www.karateforums.com/karateforums-com-awards-2009-vote-now-vt37508.html Thank you for reading and for being a part of this community! Sincerely, Patrick