How does this square with the whole libertarian bend?

Not going to go into details due to confidentiality, but I recently was involved in an initiative to utilize AI to scan education databases and identify students who may be at risk of dropping out, with the goal of having an early safety net for these folks. And also raising the schools retention rates, thus better outcomes overall.

So yes, AI can absolutely be used for good.

Right? I get that some of middle America feels slighted, and I’m all for preventing the hollowing out of small town America, but I don’t see lying xenophobic scapegoating being the answer here. That’s how you get nationalist parties and paramilitary “cultural enforcement” groups.

Instead, I see a need to foster and fund community organizations and civil engagement. Improved infrastructure and green spaces. More affordable housing - bring people back into the towns rather than the outskirts of it. But unfortunately, oddly, for some reason, that’s not as easy of a sell as the “people be eating your pets” trope.

TIL, thanks. Makes a bit more sense now why the band chose the name.

Could have done the right thing one last time for people who actually experienced it.

Instead, it’ll remain a black mark on the state and now doubly so. We’ll have to wait for the epilogue 100 years from now.

But I suppose you couldn’t have expected much more from a folk who takes pride in stealing land, and doubling down by cheating when doing so.

I don't visit Twitter, how do I stop hearing about every little toxic bullshit line Elon has to say?

And childless cat ladies everywhere rejoice.

I disagree with your having kids sentiment. I didn’t find the right woman until I was 33 and didn’t have kids til 39. I worked hard, got promoted and accumulated wealth before then. I started from nearly nothing. Now, my kid (hopefully) won’t have to struggle as much as I did.

And I chase that kid for 30 minutes until she gets worn out.

…

My advice, in your 20s: travel, make friends, make mistakes.

Get a job that has growth potential or become a rockstar in a small pond.

Find some hobbies, work out. Even better, find a hobby that also is a workout. Sock away 5% of your income towards retirement if you can handle it. Volunteer. Habits are formative in your 20s, you’ll find them easier to maintain (or avoid) in your 40s.

Don’t spend all of your time chasing tail or trying to find a mate. That’s a trap. instead, open yourself up to experiences, events and places where those things can naturally happen. And make memories along the way so you have fun things to share with that person when you do find them.

Get out of your comfort zone, get off of your comfort phone. Read a bit, learn to weld or sculpt or play an instrument. Take a dancing class, even if you go alone, there are usually people around to partner up.

Learn 5 or 10 jokes. Don’t be embarrassed to tell them often. Anyone from politicians to public speakers to hey, even comedians, will tell the same jokes over and over and over.

Get an Education, even if it’s a community college or a few professional certifications. It will demonstrate that you can learn. Absorb as much as you can while you’re young, because it’s true, learning does get harder as you age.

Take a course or two in psychology. Avoid people who bring you down, find people who build you up but are honest enough to keep you grounded when you need it.

Don’t live for anyone else, live for you. That isn’t to say be selfish, you’ll need people in your corner. But know that, no one else can experience how can experience. No one else lives through your eyes; no one else loves through your heart; no one else dreams how you dream. We have so few precious years on this tiny rock, so make them tell the story of you.

There’s a saying, around here people know it…some people over there may know it too… the enemy of my friend is my enemy, the enemy of my enemy is my contractually non-binding Diplomacy partner.

They used to say that about Ohio. …before that Florida …before that Iowa …before that California ….way before that, Pennsylvania

Queue that XKCD.

Soon it’s going to be Georgia or Arizona And then Texas

I for one, can’t wait for the chili cook offs, and when all the candidates start wearing cowboy hats. The y’all’s will truly have it!

Yea but this is grade A in the same way that school lunch ketchup is grade A.

I visited Panama for an agricultural trip about a decade ago where we focused on coffee agriculture and production. Coincidentally, there are some coffees that blend in beans or peanuts to mellow the flavor. This is usually done for cheaper coffees that use robusto beans instead of arabica. It’s also to relieve some of the acrid taste that can develop during the drying out process if the beans are dried around animal droppings.

If you’re interested in what a mellowed coffee would taste like, I think chock full of nuts is a brand you can try in the states.

Edit: ok so I did some more research and it appears that chock full o nuts likely no longer does this, they just have typical coffee nowadays. I’ll leave it to you other internet sleuths to find a brand that does.

I don’t have your same concern about carry-ons. When I traveled for work a week at a time, it was nice that I could pack 5 days worth of clothes and take them with me without (usually) having to wait for 30+ minutes at the check in line and the bag carousel thereafter. The last thing you want to do when you are nearly back home after a long week of work and travel is to have to wait yet once more.

What I do take issue with is the people who queue all the way out into the hallway when boarding. Especially when they’re in the last groups and the first groups are just being called. It’s definitely worse in some airports (looking at you, CLT and ATL).

Or, all the people who immediately stand in the aisle when deboarding. Let those people who need to make their connections get up and out first.

The way people handle themselves around airline travel (particularly in the US) is one of the only places that makes me lose faith in humanity.

He’s player one. All of the rest of us are just NPCs.

It still bewilders me why we are even having this conversation. The guy tried to overthrow our government. The government of the people, in accordance of our constitution. If that’s not the definition of treason I don’t know what is.

Right? Why do civilizations fight wars anyway? If not flat out colonialism and dick measuring, then It’s usually for resources, maybe protection for cultural exclaves if it serves the nation’s geopolitical interest.

All that is to say, Russians are not Chinese. And I don’t think many Eastern Russians would welcome the switch. So, China would be instigating a lot of strife for minimal gains.

Taiwan on the other hand, I can at least understand. I don’t agree with the stance, not in the least, primarily because I believe democracy is superior to communism. Nevertheless, if I had my adversaries 100 miles off my border and their existence hampered me economically and militarily, then I absolutely would subjugate them in any way possible.

I’d donate a few dollars a month. Newgrounds is a great content creation space. I still play games there from time to time. The Mario 63 game is off the wall. Dead Estate is also a fantastic retro style shooter like the ones I remember from my childhood. I think places like this need to survive.

A drizzle, about as much I’d apply as chocolate sauce to vanilla ice cream.

Looks like a country that could use some Freedom™.

There’s a brand called Fage that is kinda expensive but super thick. It’s not runny like other yogurts seem to be. It’s my go to when I have a bit of extra funds. Add some granola, strawberries, maybe some honey or walnuts, cinnamon, vanilla, whatever to your hearts content.

One other thing I should emphasize. A combination of yogurt and honey is fucking delicious.

I think you’d find that Fage doesn’t give that same slimy yuck factor that other yogurts do. It’s denser than Chobani or Stoneybrook (maybe equivalent to Skyr?) In any case, I think it more so has the texture of whipped topping.

I don’t get it all the time, because it is expensive, but when I do, it’s a treat.