nigel99

Yup, jakees spirit animal is a British bulldog

Cool, so some Canadians apparently travel to the US. Well most of us in the west are pretty happy with our medical systems and not going bankrupt to pay medical bills. I’ve yet to meet a non American who admires the US healthcare system. In general it’s held up as a bad example of how to do things.

I’m not offended, I’ve got great respect for the people who have stood by their convictions- even if I vehemently disagree (Ron is probably the person I disagree with the most). My recollection of interactions with you is that you won’t stand by your arguments or answer direct questions, it makes it difficult to take your arguments seriously. Admittedly I don’t keep track and personally won’t keep hammering away to get someone to follow through so that may be an unfair portrayal.

With about a week to go, I’m bumping this up. One of the things I’ve really enjoyed about SC is a space to air controversial views and discussions without ruining friendships. There are lots of online friendships that we’ve probably all shared along the way and SC can’t be replaced and in many ways it has run its course. I’m surprised how quickly the PA’s escalated once Bill and Wendy took a more hands off approach, and I certainly won’t miss trolls and PA’s, but would like to continue having a space to disagree and discuss.

I love the whole America is the only free country delusion. Over the years in SC there have been so many instances of ill informed people claiming that Europe and elsewhere don’t have ‘freedom’ Yet the US has a lousy healthcare system, women are rapidly joining the ranks of other oppressed women in theocracies, but yay freedom because we can elect a felon and illegal immigrant.

Actually there are people who have different views to the majority and are not trolls. They are sincere in their beliefs and disagree strongly while still being able to hold a rational conversation and make a point (people like Bigun etc). The childish trolling adds no value and is frankly not entertaining after you’ve left kindergarten.

It’s a zoo. Crazy to watch

This is as an interesting picture from reddit. The police detail for guy who killed a billionaire versus guy who killed 4 college students

You should have caught up for a drink! It’s not all bad, it’s 7am and already 29C (about 85F) and a high of 42C (107F) so spending the day drinking home brew whisky in the pool.

True that quality of life here is good, doesn’t stop the politicians from sucking though! Thankfullly a good proportion of people ignore the idiotic laws (including most sensible cops)

Australia is a nanny state and WA takes the crown. Our politicians are power hungry arseholes. In the last few years we have had a surge in intrusive laws. 1. Being banned from ALL facilities serving alcohol across the state if you’re deemed to be a trouble causer. A female friend was banned for 6 months because she swore at a policeman who wouldn’t let her get her jacket that had been left in a club. 2. Gun laws have been tightened up. Contrary to popular belief Aussie has pretty reasonable gun laws and quite high ownership for hunting, sport shooting and vermin control. If you live in the city and aren’t a member of a shooting club, you need a letter from a farmer/property owner giving you permission to shoot on their property. Government cancelled the letters earlier this year and made people reapply (apparently they had lost thousands of letters). 3. it’s illegal to own a still over 5l and you’re supposed to get a permit from the tax office to distill your own alcohol. 4. This weeks gift from the government is sweeping powers and what they are proudly presenting as some of the strictest knife laws in the world. Police have been issued portable body scanners and are scanning people at the shops. Bear in mind fishing is a major hobby here, as well as having diving knives for snorkelling etc. it can land you with 3 years in jail. They have literally been stopping and scanning old ladies at the shops and going through their handbags. 5. Last month it was made illegal for anyone under 16 to access social media (of course when it comes to enforcing it, it will probably mean you have to use government issued ID to access websites which is being touted as the proposed solution) That’s just the tip of the iceberg, from e-bikes and scooters being limited to 25km/hour (about 15 miles) through to insanely low speed limits and god knows what else.

I agree, the mods have done a lot and it’s been good.

JD Vance is a liberal? Funny how they ignore his statement regarding Trump

You’ll be annexed by Russia before then The art of the deal and a few Tesla sales, no need for war

Remote work has its downsides, and there is a definite shift in people’s social skills and how much people isolate themselves. But there is a flip side to the argument and one that companies bear the blame for - the rise of open plan offices. My day job is design engineering, and if my train of thought is broken it takes ages to get back on track. Most of my life I’ve been in offices and this company has crammed into quite a small open plan office. What’s worse is we share with LOUD sales guys who are always on calls/teams meetings. The end result is I end up staring at my screen and getting anxiety from all the activity around me, and I can’t use headphones as music distracts me just as much. I’ve always had adhd and been unmedicated, but had to go onto meds to cope in that environment. I hate the amphetamines as they stuff your heart and affect your sleep. Effectively I’m medicating for a bad work environment. Luckily my direct manager is pretty chilled out (and disillusioned) and so I get to work from home 4 days a week - against company policy. There are other sides to it as well. I’ve got a dog that always had people around and after covid he really doesn’t like being left alone and as a husky then cries all day and drives the neighbours nuts.

Even shitting his pants is a deliberate tactic to distract his adversaries

Except innocent people who voted against Trump are being hurt. The news cycle has moved on from the hurricane impact, yet people are still dealing with the aftermath.

Why does an AR15 magazine hold 30 rounds? Because that’s the average number of kids in a classroom.

I’d forgotten how bad the Trump chaos was. Seems like Musc is going to make it even worse. Imagine a government run like Twitter?

Illegal’s can’t access welfare and generally have to work to pay their bills, as fact that’s lost on you it seems. Seems your one billionaire is doing a bloody good job of putting stress on 800 000 federal workers though, but he’s rich and white so it’s ok.

I believe you’re strongly against illegal immigrants? Are you ok with an illegal immigrant dictating your countries policies? Or is Elon exempt and if he is why?

You’re already down the path of dictatorships and authoritarian rule, just nationalise them and seize control. There is probably a legitimate national security concern, that could be justified (if you had an independent judiciary)

Can you explain a bit more?

It’s interesting how Trump wants Biden to be the one to take the hit for the debt ceiling. To Jakee’s point on corruption. I wish that Biden would take a stand against Musk. Even if it as small a step as suspending all government contracts with his companies until it is clear that there is no conflict of interest in his new role.

Interesting following the news how Musk led Trump by 12 hours in calling for the funding bill changes etc. If US government shutdown ATC are affected and it may not be such a happy holiday season for many