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When you create a problem then use the problem to scare people 14 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Hey popsy. Lol. I could see it looking that way. No- I agree with you. Unless and until we live in some sort of utopian harmonious world we can’t just put borders on the honor system. But it’s such a messed up debate that this country keeps having. It’s the same debate that went on after 9/11 about a boat load of security measures and funding that was allocated to “anti terrorism.” People whipped into a frenzy and were all aboard for anything they were told would make things “safer,” even as credible experts told them it was bunk. Fast forward to all the exposes about misalocation and use of these funds, about Mayberry PD biting tanks and NBC gear... of all the many ways to secure American borders- a wall is a shite plan...
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Let's go Dutch 17 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Lol. I’m doing alright. My longest was maybe 15 years or so, and I’ve not gone more than a year or two in between relationships as single before my current long term relationship which is heading to somewhere serious by the looks of things. Of course in my current relationship she is the more cold logical one and I am the more emotional one- in most cases.
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No wages for Congress 27 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
I’m no gawd damn communist and Bernie Sanders was a sweet old nut job who would run the greatest local ice cream shop kids ever knew- but I do t want him running my country. Capitalism does beat the other alternatives the same way a Douglas DC5 beats a plasma drive faster than light space cruiser. One of those two things actually exists in a functional way if clunky- the other only exists as a theory or maybe in some distant and alien future- and outside a lab isn’t feasible. Well guided ethical capitalism has the potential to be the greatest system the world has ever known. It also doesn’t exist. Tell people to “go make money” and not tell them they have to do it ethically and cybernetically- and more than likely the winner won’t be the “best” but the “worst” attributes and examples of humanity- somewhat defeating the noble intentions of high minded capitalism vs just letting people murder each other for money.
I hate people that do this 9 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Ever have a job that you just didn’t fit in? Maybe it was the coworkers or the corporate culture or whatever. Have you ever left and gone for a job in the same field but loved that one more? It wasn’t that you didn’t like what you were doing or the way the business worked- those were fine. You just didn’t like those parts of it. Or- maybe you loved most everything about it- but you had to move or had a kid or whatever so you change jobs based on your new circumstances. And maybe you like the new job less and wish t was like the old one? Or maybe the new job is great but there are a few things you wish were the same? Bagels on Friday, happy hour after work, longer lunch? So maybe the people didn’t leave because they didn’t like a socialist country. Maybe they left for other reasons and liked that part just fine. Maybe- the US is a democracy and if enough people want socialism that’s how democracy works? Or maybe- we are surrounded by hidden socialism already and like to pretend not.
When you create a problem then use the problem to scare people 14 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
... we could have avoided many problems of the 20th and 21st century. Well said @guest. Hopefully we learn our lesson and don’t leave even more problems for our children and theirs by building some sort of metaphorical wall between us.
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When you create a problem then use the problem to scare people 14 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
You make a good point. Deportation didn’t make the problem. When thousands of Salvadoran refugees were neglected by the court system and not processed as refugees but instead labeled as undocumented migrants, it created a climate where large groups had no legal rights. When the prejudices and exploitation towards undocumented and documented Latinos in Los Angeles led the youth to become frustrated and reject trying to fit in to a system that didn’t want them, and live in fear- they did what most anyone would do and tried to defend themselves. That effort became a notorious gang. The recognition and granting of legal status to refugees from El Salvador in the early 90’s helped but was too little too late. guest is right. Had refugee status been granted earlier, and had these immigrants been welcomed into society and treated decently- we likely could have avoided the whole thing. So yes- by reforming immigration laws and society to integrate immigrants instead of making them criminals...
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Is this wrong? 15 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
They likely picked it out because they thought that it was age and peer group appropriate- even if that does mean they are out of touch a bit, they had nothing but good intentions and the well being of their child in mind. The parent who goes out of their way to make a child behave in a way they know will likely cause controversy is using their child. Being at the foreground of progressive thought usually assumes risk and burden of social ramifications. A person knowingly accepting these for their beliefs can shoulder those burdens. A person unwilling or unkowingnof what the potential ramifications are to being an agent of social chane being forced to be its instrument is being used and unfairly put to suffer. The choice has to be theirs or not at all.
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Is this wrong? 15 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Well now- yes and no. Let’s look at this from another direction. Parents buy kids their clothes right? Some parents let their kids wear whatever they want, some parents set guidelines and let the child express their style within those lines, and some pick all their kids clothes for them. So let’s chane the script a little: “I sent my kid to school in a Power rangers Onsie and now they say they don’t want to go back....” While no one wants to be that kid, and most don’t want to be that parent, most people wouldn’t throw the contempt or hate at that parent this receives. So what is the difference? Politics. It’s real simple. Your politics will undoubtedly influence your child’s development- but using your child as a political tool is just plain wrong. Sending them to school inna dress isn’t itself wrong- sending them to satisfy your own personal political experiment is. The parent who sends their kid in a power ranger onesie is likely unaware that other children will react negatively.
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He's right 13 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
to sum up- McDonald’s corporation steers people to obesity, and you wouldn’t have as many alcoholics without alchohol companies, or as much pollution without car companies. The idea and the entity itself isn’t inherently bad. Peoples use of the thing causes a problem, and the companies themselves are profit motivated to encourage and supply unhealthy or harmful use of their product. So we can’t blame McDonald’s even if we can look at them as a large contributor. The question to ask ourselves is how we structured a society so that our core functioning is one where harmful behaviors are the most profitable, where profit is the greatest arbitrator of how we are expected to behave, and if that’s the way we want things to be. Focusing on McDonald’s as an entity is a narrow focus that solves one specific instance of a larger general problem and just lets someone else take their place or figure out another way to “game” the system.
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He's right 13 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
There’s truth to what you say. But it’s important to separate the two things. What is the SINGLE cause of basically every type of vehicle crash? Excessive speed. Period. Take two planes, two cars, two motorcycles, boats- whatever. Now- sit them still a mile apart on the moon. Will either crash? Likely not. So see? Speed is the cause! But.... that’s true yet not true isn’t it? If that drunk driver were going 0mph- they’d be perfectly safe to drive wouldn’t they, so the cause isn’t being drunk- it is moving. McDonald’s is culpable in obesity. Their business practices and profit model not only fly far outside the bounds of healthy nutrition, but are designed to psychologically influence unhealthy eating. But- as an entity- McDonald’s is no more responsible than truck companies are for delivering the stuff, or cooks for making it, cities for paving roads or granting business licenses...
title 11 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Thank you @alekazam. I respect your opinions and it makes me feel good to receive praise from a person I think highly of.
Poor santa 9 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
However- to your point- broad tolerance has an inherent intolerance to it. That is that in the defense and preservation of tolerance- one can only be tolerant of that which is not intolerant. This is especially so on democracy or government by the people, where by definition the sentiments of the majority dictate policy. In other words- an entity that holds freedom as its core value but can be molded by the will of the people most impose upon people in ways that would prevent those people from taking away the freedom of others. Paradoxical in theology, more straight forward if not sometimes murky in reality. No freedom is absolute, and one has a responsibility to exercise their freedoms responsibly. Those limits are imposed by social zeitgeist and law.
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Poor santa 9 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Hyperbolic yes, extreme example yes. False equivalent? Why? Because you say it is? You can’t really have a discussion where people simply dictate their thoughts as facts without any sort of backing either. It’s the equivalent responding to a debate with: “you’re wrong. Case closed.” The burden of proof is on you to prove a false equivalent was made- notnon me to defend against the accusation. A common tactic made to derail a discussion. Accuse your opponent of a faux pas of the rules of debate, or latch on to an article of minutia to deflect the obvious point- compounded by a lack of supporting evidence to the statement. I’m to take your word? How does a discussion work where one party is given de facto absolute authority to dictate and the other party is simply to take their judgments as gospel? I’m pretty sure by the rules of debate the moderator isn’t involved in the debate if we want to get formal.
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No wages for Congress 27 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
It is a recent creation. Oddly- some might say coincidentally- the appearance of these shit downs coincides with the approximate time frame that massive deregulation in the name of free market capitalism began to appear- which also coincides oddly with an unprecedented in the modern developed world wealth gap and consolidation of most of the worlds wealth.... oddly.... it overlaps the tax cuts made in the highest income brackets.... also of note and odd.... before that- we built massive public works and most of our decaying infrastructure was erected, and since then, such projects have stagnated and said infrastructure has decayed.... its almost as if there is some odd link between all these things. As though.... the inevitable eventualities of a system which facilitated and encourages corruption and self serving behavior over civics and a sense of communal investment would be increasingly bold politicians who know they can push the boundaries further and further and get away with it..
He's right 13 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
This is actually a case where the logic is sound. The appetite for drugs is such that even if there were no narcotics trafficking- people will grow or make their own. Sailors used to drink torpedo fuel to get buzzed even after toxic chemicals were added to make you sick. They developed a purification process. Guys deployed in Muslim countries used to drink wood alcohol even though it can blind you and kill you. People who can’t figure out a lap top make meth- and somewhere someone is huffing paint or aeresol, or trying to make “jenkum.” The domestic use versus exportation of drugs like Cocaine or Heroine tend to be much lower in the countries that produce and traffic them than the ones importing them. Drug lords live like presidents in palaces bough off American drug use. It’s like blaming McDonald’s for obesity. They sell the stuff, but if people didn’t buy so much they wouldn’t exist- and as long as people keep buying if it isn’t them- someone else will supply it.
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Let's go Dutch 17 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Men aren’t obligated to pay for anything save that which they have agreed to pay, or have created a responsibility to pay (you’re obligated to pay for children you make, to pay for damage you cause, etc.) Who lays for what in a relationship is between the parties in that relationship. If you tacitly or explicitly agree to pay for certain things- you take that responsibility- however paying for a friends lunch 1,000 times doesn’t obligate you to pay the 1,001 time. So you aren’t obligated to pay, and they aren’t obligated to agree with who you fee should pay. That’s compromise and communication- cornerstones of any relationship.
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Good job, PETA 16 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
That’s one of the major flaws I see in veganism. It’s an all or nothing proposition that essentially treats and considers a person the same wether they Eat a bathtub full of chicken wings for dinner very night or they occasionally use lard in their cookies. It’s a hardline fundamentalism that persecutes instead of trying to elevate. Human nature already tends to make people defensive when they feel condescended to or their values and ethics are questioned or outright vilified- and modern vegan culture tends to go out of its way to embrace that and project a smug and superior attitude which is likely (as it often is) to be met with hostility, resentment, and resistance. Instead of looking to play “all or nothing” I’d say the smart move is to compromise in moderation and stop trying to be “outsiders” playing “us vs them” and instead assimilate and absorb the values that underpin veganism into mainstream society. If the values are there, the practices naturally follow to some degree.
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Good job, PETA 16 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Or other products. Some of that is economy of scale yes. But not all. The idea of wanting to do better for yourself, the planet, and animals is noble. But any noble idea taken to extremes can become at best a joke and at worst a curse. If everyone on earth made small concessions they barely noticed it would be a huge impact compared to a minority making huge ones. Over time as a society we could build on that. It’s easier to ask a person to have one less beer when they drink than to give up drinking, but over a life time those one less beers equal hundreds or thousands of gallons. From there you can ask them or the next generation to only drink Friday- Weekend once the change has become the norm. From there you can get to having one beer on the weekend. From one beer to no beers is much easier to ask than from 4 a day to 0 ever.
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Good job, PETA 16 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
... on the subject of leather, motorcyclists wear leather for protection as the primary reason. Given the choice of losing their own skin or that of a cow or kangaroo or goat- most will choose themselves- vegan or not. Modern synthetic materials have come along which finally rival leather in performance, but leather is still one of the overall best choices in protective gear. It tends to cost less for the same level of protection as more exoctic materials, it lasts longer, is easier to care for, tends to be more comfortable, more versatile, and is the de facto standard for a reason. Bikers are certainly the wrong crowd to advocate this to. Think of it this way- if you’re driving your car, and you have the choice to hit a goat, or drive off of a 1,000 foot cliff- do you kill the goat, or dive off the cliff? I want to go home, and to be honest- my life means more to me than the goat. As you say as well- vegan options are often out of a persons price range wether or be food or clothing..
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Good job, PETA 16 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
I agree in many respects. Take the metaphorical need some have to “jump off a cliff” and go to extremes. If you want to lose or weight, get in shape, learn a new skill... the approach that is going to work best for most people most of the time is to make slow and steady change. Huge jarring changes are not only more unpleasant and potentially disastrous, but they also tend to be less sustainable. By introducing positive changes by doing “a little better” than before, and adding to that over time- you can build real change and avoid much of the unpelasantless of sudden and drastic change. For instance- people do tend to eat more meat that is needed or healthy. From a vegan moral perspective- any meat is too much. But advocating a global “cold turkey” on meat has made veganism very unpopular with a majority. Advocating subtle change- reductions in consumption- would be met with less resistance and more cooperation- provided it be done without moralizing and sermonizing....
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Who is older and by how long? SWBL points 4 winner in comments 7 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
The first baby out is older biologically and chronologically. The time is preserved using UTC regardless- but if you are not using UTC the time must be correctly given in a form denoting ST or DST to compare the two events on the same date. Regardless of how you slice it- the first on earth out is “older” unless you get into esoteric arguments over how to categorize age and time and blah blah. The time of birth however isn’t generally exact. It’s USUALLY measured once the entire baby has emerged from the vagina, usually by someone on staff, and usually they just look at whatever clock is handy- so the “time of birth” may be significant off based on complications delaying looking at the clock, inaccuracies with the particular clock, differences in time or criteria for recording the “time of birth” etc.
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Poor santa 9 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
1. True. But... Many “Santa” legends are based on St. Nicholas- patron saint of children. However- the modern commercial Santa is non secular and whatever the roots may be, has changed greatly. The character “Ripley” from aliens was written as a male part and character originally too, but changed to a woman through creative process. Likewise the particulars of “Santa” change based on local culture world wide- meaning that there isn’t any particular part of Santa that can’t change.
2. You’re mixing up the logic. Defending your right to make Santa whatever you want doesn’t mean defending your right to dictate to others what Santa should be. It’s a thin line- but I’d say that a good indicator we have crossed it is when Santa has a gun to someone’s head and a pillow over their face for suggesting defending the gender neutrality of Santa clause. It’s sort of like asking: “If you’ll defend my freedom to do as I like in a capitalist economy- why won’t you defend my right to own slaves...”
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*hip-hop music stops* 7 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Talk to enough people and before long you’ll start hearing how thankful they were some terrible thing happened, or things like “Them cheating on me..” “my divorce...” “being fired...” “was the best thing that ever happened to me.” When Steve Jobs was ousted from Apple it probably really sucked for him. But- it gave him and us Pixar. Each experience in life can change us in subtle ways, and often through hardship we discover how strong we are, figure out what matters to us, learn hard lessons about doing things different we would otherwise be too stubborn to learn, and so on. People like to smugly ask why an all powerful and good God allows bad things- as though they could understand the plans of an omnipotent being... but the simple fact is that some version of free will seems to be inherent to our universe. Here by design or evolution, and to eliminate all “bad” would be to deny that free will and defeat whatever purpose it may serve.
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OP getting ready to suck d 5 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Weird flex, but ok birb.
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I'm lost 6 comments
guest_ · 5 years ago
Dwemer ruins have been the shiz since at least morrowind if not arguably earlier. Sweet swag, great atmosphere and lore, and usually have enemies and traps that can still be challenging when mostly everything else in the game has stoppped making you even slightly worried to barge right in.
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