The guy was a fuckwit, but that looked like a rough way to go. Has to be hard for relatives, knowing that the video is out there.

I’m not on any side, merely stating the arguments used.

In general, I agree with you. If that region chooses to separate, they should be allowed to do so. Much like the Brexit.

But like Brexit has shown, separation also brings some complex issues. And we are talking about something that impacts at least the 8 million people living there, a lot of whom don’t WANT to separate.

There really should be an independent, internationally monitored referendum to settle this matter and let the people decide what they want, without interference from outside the region.

Catalonia is a Spanish region, but there’s a movement that really wants the region to be independent. To basically become its own country.

There have been numerous referendums, protests and all manner of political intrigue.

Now, some people will of course be very much against this region separating from Spain for any number of reasons. It would create economic uncertainty, and adds new barriers. Even within the region not everyone is a fan of independence.

So yeah, that poster might feel particularly strongly about wanting to keep that region, or just a particular dislike for them.

Clearly this individual shouldn’t have access to them. We don’t know the guy’s history, but there certainly have been cases where people had known mental issues and still retained access to guns. That’s definitely a particularly scary thought.

It absolutely does happen here. Like this one for example: guy chases young girl with an axe after messing with his doorbell.

https://nos.nl/artikel/2438126-man-wordt-boos-om-belletje-trekken-en-verwondt-man-met-bijl

Don’t mess with the wrong people. You never know what’s going to push them over the edge.

There’s always someone way crazier than you think, right in your own neighbourhood. And you never know what tiny thing will push them over the edge to do something like that.

So yeah, parents really need to teach their kids not to do annoying things like that. It can get them seriously hurt - or worse - messing with the wrong people. Us adults know that, children need to be taught that.

Vegas never really recovered properly from covid, but the current economic situation and the political climate aren’t helping either.

Vegas prices went through the roof post-covid, since people had extra money and were spend-happy. This caused price increases across the board, but it also drew the wrong people to Vegas, increasing crime and other problems.

And with the economy being what it is now, people aren’t willing to spend that much in Vegas. And international tourists are actively avoiding the US. Pre-pandemic, 20 percent of Vegas tourism was international tourists.

Vegas needs to cut prices so deeply that international tourists go ‘fuck it, we’ll go anyway’.

Personally, I’m a really long form guy :D Particularly on technical subjects and/or disasters. For example, ‘Well there’s your problem’ tends to run at least 2, usually closer to 3 hours. And ‘Brick Immortar’ recently put out a 3+ hour video on the SS Marine Electric disaster.

That’s the stuff that really makes me excited. So I definitely support loooong form creators where possible.

You’re not wrong on that thought. But it’s even worse: with TikTok and YouTube Shorts, people aren’t even really seeing proper YouTube videos, just short snippets. God only knows what that’s doing to people’s attention spans, but I doubt it’s good.

I feel like I’m a dying breed: people who can enjoy long form content without needing a dopamine hit every five seconds.

Yeah, we can tell…

Unfortunately it’s not just a US problem. It’s more of a general issue. People ‘read’ a lot, but generally the wrong things. Like social media. And it’s causing people to lose their ‘reading muscles’ so to speak.

When I first got online in 1995, forum posts were much longer and more insightful. These days you see a lot of ‘tl;dr’ attitudes.

In my opinion, reading is a fundamental part of the human experience and important in people’s general development. Reading needs to be encouraged if possible, enforced if necessary. But there’s a lot of resistance to that.

God yes. I absolutely LOVE a well written manual.

Even if you THINK you know how a thing works, it’s always good to find out the quirks and gotchas, not to mention functionality that might not be obvious at first glance.

In fact, I read the manuals before buying an item or piece of software. They tend to be much more enlightening about a product’s limitations than the marketing material is.

Conversely, it really annoys the fuck out of me when people come on forums and ask a really basic question that’s answered on page 2 of the manual. It shows that someone is incredibly lazy and incapable of basic problem solving. And they have the audacity to get offended when you tell them it’s covered in the manual.

You’re welcome, enjoy your odd new fact :D

Stuff like this is why I really enjoy The West Wing. It often has interesting real world arguments that it plays out smartly. A bit too optimistic in our current political climate, but still fun to watch.

We absolutely, positively, one hundred percent need adult only spaces as well. Especially when the goal is to relax.

A lot of parents simply aren’t doing proper parenting. As a child, I was taught not to be a nuisance to others. And those others would also correct said behaviour in kids. But these days? Kids apparently have the right to be as annoying as they can be, and god forbid you tell them to knock it off… the parent actually gets offended!

So parents are really doing this to themselves. And that’s not even mentioning the fact that we have a TON of actual child friendly vacation options. Let the adults have a proper place as well.

And if child free vacationing being on the rise bothers you? Maybe look at your parenting style.

It was very much a real discussion back then as well. The writers didn’t invent this argument.

People have been complaining about maps in general since we first started making them. The Gall-Peters projection that they mentioned traces its origins back to 1855 when James Gall first introduced the concept.

In the 1970’s, Arno Peters made this projection well known. He specifically argued the point the show makes: other maps distort our perception of the world and it fosters problems with how we treat some countries.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gall–Peters_projection

Geez, when the highlight of your career is a TV show you did for four years back in the ‘90’s… I can understand a career change is in order :D

People always get confused by this.

The ‘Miranda rights’ are actually called the ‘Miranda warning’. Their purpose is to prevent people from self-incrimination: you have the right to remain silent and talk to a lawyer before answering questions. It also warns that anything you DO say can be used against you.

Now, the thing that people get wrong is: these warnings only apply when an officer starts asking you questions related to a potential crime. You still are legally required to cooperate and to give your name and personal details regardless.

So, an officer can legally arrest you without reading the Miranda warning. But if say, a detective will question you later, they still need to give you those warnings. Basically, the only reason most cops read them while arresting is so it’s covered in case they or anyone down the line DOES ask questions.

Not having your ‘Miranda rights’ read is not a get out of jail free card. At best, it could render some evidence inadmissible in court.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miranda_warning

I’m a bit of an aviation nut. While it’s not a new plane, it’s certainly not the oldest one flying by far.

Aircraft have a rigorous maintenance schedule. Some components are replaced based on hours used, others are on a calendar schedule: replace it regardless of hours. There are also so-called C- and D-checks: the plane basically gets completely taken apart every 6 to 10 years.

IF DONE CORRECTLY - this means the aircraft will be in excellent condition, even if it reaches that age.

Now, this being Russia in wartime, I wouldn’t be surprised that proper maintenance wasn’t performed. Especially since the AN-24 has an excellent reputation as a rugged, dependable plane. They probably used those resources elsewhere.

Of course, even the best maintained planes can crash. We’ll see what any investigation reveals.

Well… the satanists I’ve met definitely seemed like a Linux crowd, so it’s not the worst suggestion prior to sacrificing a goat or something of that nature.

Well, I deal professionally with people involved in politics, as well as voters. I can assure you the average adult voter is just about as poorly informed as the average 16 year old, if not more so. At least a 16 year old will have had a recent lesson on politics and civics in general.

Frankly, there should be an actual test before you should be allowed to vote. Some people are so completely misinformed about the process that they do far more harm than good.

You’d think that would be eye opening and somewhat concerning to folks. But I’ve found what tends to happen is ‘record fatigue’.

We’ve had ‘record high’ temperatures here in the Netherlands frequently the past few years. Meaning, the news will report ‘it’s the hottest july 1st since the start of the measurements’ and that ‘the previously hottest july 1st was in 2017’

Basically, it’s telling you two things:

• it’s a record high temperature
• the time between these records is decreasing.

Which obviously means things are getting worse. But most people just shrug and go ‘Gee, another record high temperature, how boring, those happen so often’.

Same thing with other types of problematic weather. At least stuff like record rainfall or flooding is hard to ignore.