iNow

I think you shouldn’t be allowed to be president if you don’t sleep well because cognitive function declines when tired. Also, presidents can’t be allowed to drink camomile tea or take melatonin for the same reason. Oh, and no turkey. Even though it’s been debunked, it has tryptophan so you’re not eligible now either. 

I saw your joke and also corrected your premise. Those aren’t mutually exclusive.

2 hours ago, Sensei said:

Trying to cram several unconnected things into one bill is an impure and increasingly common political practice.."

It’s a way to camouflage unpopular parts of legislation with their base. In a big bill there are (as you already know) many different items. Some are popular. Some are unpopular. When politicians go home to speak with constituents, they can claim they really hated PartA but decided the benefit of PartB was worth it. It provides them with some cover among a group of voters who are rabid and ready to attack / vote for someone else at any moment. 

23 hours ago, J.C.MacSwell said:

How do Trump's current actions, which seems to control the GOP's current actions, make those open to voting either way look more favourably on Trump or the GOP than they would otherwise?

“Donald Trump is a poor man's idea of a rich man, a weak man's idea of a strong man, and a stupid man's idea of a smart man.”

He’s a Rorschach test where everyone sees whatever they want inside the blob. 

7 hours ago, MigL said:

until male and female are, either eliminated from common usage, or take on a different meaning, society will still have a generalized idea of what a male, and what a female, is.

Transformations are hard, and we’re in the middle of one right now. We are experiencing (and in some cases advocating) the change. 

The sad part is it will never be as hard for us to adjust how we apply our words and alter our language during the transition as it is for people trying desperately to be authentic with who they are within a society who hates and so often wants to hurt them and strip away their rights merely for doing so. 

20 hours ago, CharonY said:

Entrepreneurship is difficult if you have no assets to leverage or if taking risks means to be be living on the streets. 

Which is why Andrew Yangs popularization of Universal Basic Income was so appealing to so many. If we guarantee a minimum basic floor for all citizens then we can tap into enormous potential growth. 

8 hours ago, MigL said:

Don't autistics have a laser-like focus on the subject they are interested in ?

You know what they say, “If you've met one individual with autism, you've met one individual with autism.”

To the thread title, I never think of Islam and it only enters my thoughts when I see threads about it like this one. It’s a nice change of pace after all the stereotyping and bigotry and marginalization we saw after 9/11

5 hours ago, StringJunky said:

Your brain papers over the sensory gaps.

It uses heuristics ✌️

4 hours ago, StringJunky said:

Just spotted this

A political gift to MAGA and nightmare for Biden’s already bad optics. 

He needs to just own it with a joke. A political commentator recently suggested Biden say, “Sure, yeah. Okay. I’m old, but he’s old AND crazy” then move back on topic 

3 hours ago, TheVat said:

because I know his choices of veep, cabinet and support staff are sound and informed by decades of political experience. 

I’ve raised this with several people expressing concerns over Biden. He’s had decades as a senator learning about these issues and forming strong relationships with key players and experts, many of whom are part of his inner circle. 

Indeed. Some people have multiple boots with laces all lined up neatly on a dedicated shelf in their closets so it’s far easier for them to lift themselves up by their bootstraps than for those born barefoot to do so. 

Reminds me of this one 

I believe your intended point is that you’re actually more socialistic and not libertarian. Is that a correct read of your facepalm reference?

25 minutes ago, swansont said:

Citation still needed.

Quibbling is a certainty with how one defines self made, but your request is is entirely fair and valid and aligned with site gestalt 

https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/2871-how-most-millionaires-got-rich.html#

Quote

Most of today’s millionaires weren’t born into their wealth, research shows. A study published by Wealth-X found that around 68 percent of those with a net worth of $30 million or more made it themselves. Further, a second study by Fidelity Investments found that 88 percent of all millionaires are self-made, meaning they did not inherit their wealth.

Here’s another take, though, and I find it to be a relevant counter to my previous claim (the above was from Fidelity, the below is from Bank of America):
 

https://www.fool.com/the-ascent/personal-finance/articles/heres-how-many-multimillionaires-are-really-self-made/

Quote

Bank of America Private Bank surveyed people with household investable assets of more than $3 million and over the age of 21. Here's what it found when investigating how those multimillionaires built their wealth:

* 28% are legacy wealth. They had an affluent upbringing and an inheritance. On average, 20% of their assets came from inheritance.

• 46% got a head start. This includes people who had an affluent upbringing with no inheritance, and people with a middle-class upbringing plus some inheritance. Those in the latter group got an average of 12% of their assets from inheritance.
•  
• 27% are self-made. They had a middle-class or poor upbringing and no inheritance.

One of the main observations of the study was that "wealth is often, but not always, connected to prior generations." It also noted that most of the younger respondents between 21 and 42 are legacy wealth, not self-made.

17 minutes ago, Sensei said:

am surprised, and actually shocked, to see such a way of arguing

I imagine you’re far more libertarian than most regulars here. We all benefit from shared governance and infrastructure

3 hours ago, MigL said:

it is society that's changed, is it not ?
The general usage, and possibly definitions, have changed for society

Only for some. For others, there are active efforts to legislate against these changes and even make them criminal. In other non-US countries, it even results in death

32 minutes ago, TheVat said:

in many elections, registered Democrats just didn't get to the polls in the same numbers

Turnout has been at record highs, actually. Problem is he only needs to win by a few hundred votes in one or two small counties in Wisconsin and Michigan. Pretty much every other location is already decided today based on gerrymandered districts and nano-targeted ads and social feed infusion

https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2023/07/12/voter-turnout-2018-2022/

Quote

Adults who voted in at least one election during the period divide evenly between Democrats and independents who lean toward the Democratic Party or Republicans and Republican-leaning independents in their current party affiliation (48% each). The subset who voted in all three elections are similarly divided (49% Democrats, 50% Republicans). Citizens who did not vote in any of the three tilt Republican by 46% to 41%.

Democrats outnumbered Republicans among the 8% of adult citizens who voted in 2018 and 2020 but not 2022 (55% Democratic, 40% Republican). A similar-sized group (8%) voted in 2020 and 2022 but not 2018, and this group’s composition tilts Republican (57%, vs. 40% Democratic). The 12% who voted in 2020 and opted out of both the 2018 and 2022 midterms were roughly evenly divided among Democrats (46%) and Republicans (43%).

Approximately 70% of those considered wealthy are self-made according to multiple analyses, but they tend not to give credit to market returns (aka: luck) where that’s clearly a relevant factor. 

53 minutes ago, J.C.MacSwell said:

How dumb does he expect the voters to be?

Just the right amount. 

53 minutes ago, MigL said:

INow is threatening a copyright infringement lawsuit

quit being such a snowflake lol

54 minutes ago, MigL said:

the word they may choose to describe themselves with, is chosen by society.

What if society chooses to call them nigger or kike? Maybe retard or dego?

Surely "society" is often wrong and their choices must be minimized... Surely we all should strive to get better and pursue more inclusive paths, no?

Same mannequin, different wig

3 hours ago, MigL said:

you might have a reading comprehension problem.
Should I write my next post to you in crayon ?

Back off, buddy. That’s my line! (and it’s Fat crayon) 🖍️ 

7 hours ago, TheVat said:

Why were these LLMs so eager to nuke each other?

Strange game. The goal was Peace.

Can safely assume any Peace would be long lasting among survivors of a nuclear holocaust since nobody would wish to repeat such horrors… and peace would be stable… until food ran out, that is. 
 

I believe the staff would've said quit acting like an unsufferable stuck up asshole with a giant chip on his shoulder who can't seem to play well with others or acknowledge valid feedback and criticism or counterpoints, but in an ultimate tl;dr just simplified it with: Stop trolling

I may be wrong, though. It happened to me once before. Interestingly, that was also a leap year. 

Maybe you can clarify what you wish to discuss then

8 minutes ago, Phi for All said:

The CEO is God, and everyone else is below them.

It’s more militaristic with a very clear top-down control mechanism, lots of underlings fighting and back biting, jockeying for position, clawing to get ahead etc. 

While we agree on the thrust of your point, will just point out that even the CEO must follow the whims and wishes of their Board of Directors, and they would further pass the buck by arguing they’re following the demands of shareholders. 

But the CEO is certainly the face of all that and again certainly nobody below them can refuse to follow their orders without risk of dismissal. 

23 minutes ago, StringJunky said:

he probably has less than normal insight into other peoples thinking

It’s a bit like being deaf to a very specific note, but still hearing the rest of the music. 

6 hours ago, MigL said:

You're not J Lennon, either.

“You don’t need anybody to tell you who you are or what you are. You are what you are!”

43 minutes ago, TheVat said:

Would it be more accurate to say that being trans is the cure rather than the syndrome? 

I prefer not using the syndrome / abnormal framing and to instead just allow people to be authentically who they are openly and transparently. So long as they’re not harming others, then others should not seek to harm them.

Nothing prevents us from acknowledging this is just another path through life and it’s one we can actively seek to acknowledge without judgmental valance, cultural taboo, or desire to legislatively strip away civil rights and protections.

Some people they may call me a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.