• 6 Posts
  • 95 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
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Cake day: June 9th, 2023

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  • This is getting off topic from the original post, but I did hear an interview on NPR of a few ways to lift the 2 party system. The only one that I can remember now is that each state would need to pass a law to allow the state to split theIR electoral votes. IIRC, Maine and Oklahoma(?) do this. The result is that if a state has 5 electoral votes, they would split the electoral votes amongst the candidates. If I remember the example right, Maine sent 2 votes for Trump, 2 for Harris and 1for someone else.

    Initially, this would weaken the state’s country-wide impact, but as more states vote in such a system, it would allow independent candidates to secure a foothold. I imagine that if all states did this, the net effect would be to have the 2 parties that we currently have soften their stance on things in order to secure votes that would normally have been lost to the independent.


  • I very much enjoy online shopping and am not nostalgic for driving all over town to find a part or thing only to settle for something that’s a partial match for what I want and much more than I wanted to spend. If a local retailer happens to have what I am looking for, I’m more than happy to purchase it in store, but almost always know exactly where it is in the store and how many are in stock.











  • I think your comment is the key. Many others tell what to do, but yours addresses the core in that you won’t be happy unless you decide or allow yourself to be happy (perception).

    I used to mock those people who would say things like “smile in the mirror and tell yourself that it’s going to be a great day”. Later in life, I figured out that that’s what they needed to do, so good for them. For me, it’s something else. I need to be around nature to ground my feelings. Other times, it’s physical cardiac exertion, like a bike ride.

    Medication can help if there’s a real medical problem, like depression. Self medicating can be dangerous.


  • I’ve done this same thing. My dad lived on the other side of the country and it was a way for me to “take him out to eat” at a restaurant that he loved but was too expe dive for his tastes. Another time, I bought him a round of golf at a nice golf course that he would not treat himself to. He did not “believe” in gift cards wither, but on both occasions he mentioned that it was as if I took him to eat/golf and it was a nice gift for the guy who has everything.






  • I’ve been doing street complete for over a year now and didn’t know how much I would enjoy it. It’s also doing something for the community of people who use open street map data (usually hobbyists or folks looking for an alternative to the privacy violating giants). I feel proud of my work when I see my contributions on OSMAnd+ or when I post a picture of a place and somebody can use that data to contribute to the map.


  • This has been happening for a while. Most starter homes in the US are townhomes, detached townhomes or small single family homes in a denser neighborhood. Through the years, the building code has changed bit by bit to make those homes unaffordable. It’s similar to how you can pay half the price for a car in Mexico; there are much less mandated safety features. In houses, there are new energy codes (good for the environment) additional safety features like fire sprinklers and other similar things. Additionally, labor is more expensive, appliances and building materials are more expansive.

    On the other side, you have people who have lived in their house for decades. The house (actually land) value has increased steadily and maybe they’ve kept it up, remodeling or putting in an addition. Now their kids are all moved out, they’ve retired and they’re ready to downsize, but the house they bought so long ago has appreciated and selling it to downsize would trigger a huge tax event on the appreciated value. They’re better off (financially) to keep it, pushing new buyers to look elsewhere.

    It’s a complex problem intermixed with policy and also all the corporations mentioned elsewhere who have learned to profit from the broken system.