Random thoughts

[kel]

Some people do. I offered two examples. The problem is, we've incentivized paying employees like shit over the past 40+ years. So it's likely you'll be outcompeted by shitbags.

It's a vicious cycle, because everyone is payed so poorly, everyone wants a bargain or for their food and the stuff they buy to be cheaper... which drives competition, which encourages abusive work practices... blah blah...

I think the world would be a much better place if we could all just stop trying to get money off each other!

 

[florduh]

It's a vicious cycle, because everyone is payed so poorly, everyone wants a bargain or for their food and the stuff they buy to be cheaper... which drives competition, which encourages abusive work practices... blah blah...

That was the deal we made when the neoliberal era started in the 70's. Yes, your factory job is going overseas. Yes, you're probably gonna make less money and have less security. BUT... you will get cheap treats from China.

That's why the supply chain problems are so scary. The Treats Must Flow. It's the one thing that keeps people pacified.

 

[shredder]

That's why the supply chain problems are so scary.

Not if you grow your own food and can make things.

 

[kel]

I switched up my treats.... now a treat for me is being able to spend the time picking brambles and turning them into jelly, and then spending the next 6 months enjoying, quite literally, the fruits of my labour!

I came back that day, tired, scratched, bloody, fingers stained purple, caught a little sun, said hello to a few folk as they passed by.... and started making the jelly that evening and finished it up the next day:

Food Pics That Make Ya Drool !!!

fuckcombustion.com

This is my idea of a damn good time!!! All it cost was a bag of sugar

 

[florduh]

Not if you grow your own food and can make things.

Oh I agree. But most Americans are absolutely addicted to Treats. And by "treats" I mean, TV's, video games, toys, gadgets etc. Shit, even vaporizers. "Like sure, my job sucks, it's harder to make ends meet every year, I'm totally alienated from most of my fellow humans... but at least I have my Treats!"

I worry what happens when access to Treats becomes tenuous. Shit could start popping off.

 

[BabyFacedFinster]

I came back that day, tired, scratched, bloody, fingers stained purple, caught a little sun, said hello to a few folk as they passed by.... and started making the jelly that evening and finished it up the next day

This is my idea of a damn good time!!! All it cost was a bag of sugar

We love picking berries too. It's a mid august thing in this neck of the woods. The dog gets all the low hanging ones. I've heard of bramble, but we say blackberries and puckerbrush here. Although I'm told they are really black raspberries. Supposedly, the way you can tell a true blackberry from a black raspberry is by cooking them. I've not compared, but they say black raspberries turn bright red when cooked, but blackberries keep the darker color.

Do you use a foley mill to get all the seeds and bits out? I ran a batch through an electric juicing machine but it made a big mess. That shit stains. The biggest ones never make it to jam. They get eaten at the point of contact.

 

[Ramahs]

Honestly, I can't understand why the American workforce stood for this treatment for so many years. I mean, 2 weeks annual leave a year is a disgrace, and it's far from uncommon to my understanding. After organising family visits during the holiday season(s), how is one able to go abroad for any meaningful length of time to see family that maybe don't live in the same country?

I'm not saying that you're wrong, because I think that you're right...but this still makes me laugh, as I couldn't imagine getting two weeks of vacation a year. That would be awesome!

And being able to afford to travel abroad? That's out of the question. That's rich people stuff!

 

[kel]

We love picking berries too. It's a mid august thing in this neck of the woods. The dog gets all the low hanging ones. I've heard of bramble, but we say blackberries and puckerbrush here. Although I'm told they are really black raspberries. Supposedly, the way you can tell a true blackberry from a black raspberry is by cooking them. I've not compared, but they say black raspberries turn bright red when cooked, but blackberries keep the darker color.

Do you use a foley mill to get all the seeds and bits out? I ran a batch through an electric juicing machine but it made a big mess. That shit stains. The biggest ones never make it to jam. They get eaten at the point of contact.

Yes, these are blackberries and they definitely keep the dark colour! Brambles is a generic term for that kind of fruit, but especially blackberries.

The trick is to boil them up with an equal quantity of cooking apples (for the pectin) until the fruit is all soft then let the resulting mush drip through muslin cloth overnight so you end up with a pure juice with no bits which are left in the muslin cloth - never ever squeeze or press the remaining mush and definitely don't 'juice' them as this will just make it murky and I am guessing bitter... Then add your sugar to the strained liquid and boil it up to jam concentration!

Enjoy

 

[BrianTL]

This inflation thing is fun, breakfast for 2 at a DINER over the weekend cost me $70 including tip... coffees, orange juices, chocolate chip pancakes, french toast (with some fancy bread though), and a bowl of fruit (10 bucks by itself). No booze or nothin.

 

[shredder]

This inflation thing is fun, breakfast for 2 at a DINER over the weekend cost me $70 including tip... coffees, orange juices, chocolate chip pancakes, french toast (with some fancy bread though), and a bowl of fruit (10 bucks by itself). No booze or nothin.

$65 to fill up my truck last time.

 

[BrianTL]

$65 to fill up my truck last time.

$137 for a full tank in mine last time, a couple weeks back.

My fuel light is on, I'll have to fill today and report back lol

 

[shredder]

$137 for a full tank in mine last time, a couple weeks back.

My fuel light is on, I'll have to fill today and report back lol

Oh man! Where do you live? I'm in northern Michigan.

I think it was $3.24 at my last fill up. The price locally now is higher. I seen $3.39 yesterday.

 

[invertedisdead]

This inflation thing is fun, breakfast for 2 at a DINER over the weekend cost me $70 including tip... coffees, orange juices, chocolate chip pancakes, french toast (with some fancy bread though), and a bowl of fruit (10 bucks by itself). No booze or nothin.

I haven’t seen gas prices this high, since the last time Brandon was in the Whyte House, Circa 2012

Last time, I had to quit my job when it hit $5 a gallon as it was no longer worth it.

 

[Cheebsy]

Cheapest fuel near me is £1.39.9 a liter, that's £5.32 a us gallon, which according to xe is $7.30

 

[kel]

Cheapest fuel for me is probably rice and dhal - works out a few pence per portion and can get me a surprisingly long way.... although I have to admit most of the time this is considerably slower then fossil fuelled modes of transport - except when I am walking at snail pace past the queues of traffic secretly laughing at all the car drivers who are effectively paying to park in the middle of the road, as all pedestrians secretly do in this situation - but hey - at least I am not destroying the environment!

Hehehe - don't take me too seriously

Except I really don't have a car or truck any more and haven't for years! All part of the sustainable living on a pittance approach to life I enjoy so much!

 

[florduh]

Cheapest fuel near me is £1.39.9 a liter, that's £5.32 a us gallon, which according to xe is $7.30

I remember seeing that the only countries with cheaper gas than the US were Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

That fun fact doesn't make me feel any better at the pump though. $3.25, which is crazy for Floriduh. Now gas prices, rent, and traffic are all almost at the same level I experienced in LA two years ago.

 

[BrianTL]

Just actually had to run an errand and subsequently needed to fill up

Hot off the pumps!

Oh man! Where do you live? I'm in northern Michigan.

I think it was $3.24 at my last fill up. The price locally now is higher. I seen $3.39 yesterday.

Granted my truck has a 36 gallon tank so it takes a lot to fill lol... but I'm in the southern part of NY, just outside of NYC.

I haven’t seen gas prices this high, since the last time Brandon was in the Whyte House, Circa 2012

Last time, I had to quit my job when it hit $5 a gallon as it was no longer worth it.

I know, it's been a while. Guess he's back to his old antics. I remember that when it $5 a gallon, I kept threatening to buy a segway and ride that to work. That's how long ago it was... segways were popular

Cheapest fuel near me is £1.39.9 a liter, that's £5.32 a us gallon, which according to xe is $7.30

Yup... frequent some automotive forums and I know some guys out your way are paying approx 10 USD for a gallon of premium fuel. That is fucking bonkers.

 

[Cheebsy]

Yeah it is fucking bonkers! Just for fun I did another calculation based on your truck @BrianTL if I were to have that transaction at my local supermarket fuel station it would cost me $240.49 ... diesel is a bit more expensive than unleaded by a penny or two per litre.

 

[invertedisdead]

Cheapest fuel near me is £1.39.9 a liter, that's £5.32 a us gallon, which according to xe is $7.30

Holy cowabunga! At that rate I’d have to become a professional skateboarder just to get around town!

I kept threatening to buy a segway and ride that to work. That's how long ago it was... segways were popular

That’s what the California Highway Patrol should be driving, instead of all those gas guzzlers.

Notice how it’s always some guy with a private jet or 300 ft yacht ranting about carbon footprints.

Here’s another random thought.
It’s raining right now. I told my buddy it was going to rain, because I looked out the window. He assured me it would be fine, because he opened the weather app on his phone. That’s what happens when you trust the science more than your own eyes,
which is ironic, considering science was based on observation - hence the famous apple falling from the tree on poor Newton’s head.

 

[BrianTL]

That’s what the California Highway Patrol should be driving, instead of all those gas guzzlers.

Notice how it’s always some guy with a private jet or 300 ft yacht ranting about carbon footprints.

NYPD highway is rolling around in Teslas, considering that they're so broke and defunded, they must have found a nice chunk of change somewhere.

But yeah, biggest preachers about climate change and carbon footprints, typically, are the biggest hypocrites. Not your average day to day person, who in my experience follows their own word by doing what they can to reduce their own footprint, which I respect. That said, I have no respect for the hypocritical ones though and everything they say I just disregard entirely.

Please, tell me more about how I should be mowing my tiny little lawn with electric mowers and trimming my hedges with electric trimmers... while you look down from your private jet to see your crew of 25+ landscapers maintaining your mega mansion with commercial grade equipment

Here’s another random thought.
It’s raining right now. I told my buddy it was going to rain, because I looked out the window. He assured me it would be fine, because he opened the weather app on his phone. That’s what happens when you trust the science more than your own eyes,
which is ironic, considering science was based on observation - hence the famous apple falling from the tree on poor Newton’s head.

Science, did you say? Science has never been wrong in the history of history

 

[florduh]

Telling some average working person to "reduce their carbon footprint" is mostly bullshit anyway. 90 corporations are responsible for 70% of global carbon emissions. Riding a bike to reduce carbon emissions is pissing into the wind.

 

[kel]

I struggle with the idea that so many people just 'trust science' - science is done by hoooomans...

Hooooomans are fallible, corrupt, opinionated and downright ridiculous some, if not most of the time.

So while *some* science is truly awesome and outstanding, *some* science is out and out bollocks and *some* of it falls anywhere in-between on an infinite scale of awesomeness to ourightbollocksness! Some of it, actually a significant portion of it, is done to satisfy the expected outcomes of the people who funded it!!!

However we get some folk who are 100% certain that science is right and we should all just trust it without question and we have absolutely no right whatsoever to have doubt or uncertainty because if we do we are being idiots and god knows what else.

Or the other extreme, others will say that people who listen unquestioningly to the science are sheeple who are incapable of having a thought for themselves and science is the new religion... etc.

The truth is sometimes science gets it right, sometimes science gets it wrong... and the more time passes, the more likely it is that strongly held scientifically based beliefs will turn out to be just plain wrong! A simple search for something like "science gets it wrong" will turn up countless examples.

God help you if you present a logical argument that challenges a commonly held scientific view point - that's a call to lynch time for some people!

The most ridiculous thing about this is that questions like this are a huge part of how science is actually done in the real world. It's like we have this political propaganda driven meme fest that's designed to create future generations of people who are intimidated into not asking any questions ever... "err.. because science!"

Mike Judge is starting to look like a prophet!

 

[invertedisdead]

Science, did you say? Science has never been wrong in the history of history

As someone who occasionally reads PhD thesis's for personal perusal, this classic movie clip is as close as it gets to modern academia

 

[kel]

Hehe spot on!! Not for all academia of course, but there's a lot of this for sure...

I have lost jobs because I put a spanner in the works by asking awkward questions that could possibly be a threat to funding on more than one occasion.... they never cited that as the reason of course, but attitudes changed, smiles disappeared and disparaging frowns manifested on the brows of the suckers who value their wage packets more than the truth!

p.s. I also read PhD thesis sometimes too, invariably because a friend is doing their PhD and they want someone who isn't part of the study, discipline, etc. to check it for logical consistency, errors, spelling, grammar etc.

 

[florduh]

The truth is sometimes science gets it right, sometimes science gets it wrong... and the more time passes, the more likely it is that strongly held scientifically based beliefs will turn out to be just plain wrong! A simple search for something like "science gets it wrong" will turn up countless examples.

Right, but how do we find out that a particular scientific theory is wrong? More science. Science isn't a set of beliefs. It's a problem solving process that helps us understand reality.

Now, that process is done by fallible humans with biases. But scientific methods demand peer review and repeatability of experiments. Eventually, the bullshit comes out in the wash.

I think a lot of the "trust science" shit comes not from scientists, but from journalists and talking heads who don't know what the fuck they're talking about.

If You Say 'Science Is Right,' You're Wrong

It can’t supply absolute truths about the world, but it brings us steadily closer

www.scientificamerican.com

Science is a process of learning and discovery, and sometimes we learn that what we thought was right is wrong. Science can also be understood as an institution (or better, a set of institutions) that facilitates this work. To say that science is “true” or “permanent” is like saying that “marriage is permanent.” At best, it's a bit off-key. Marriage today is very different from what it was in the 16th or 18th century, and so are most of our “laws” of nature.