Fnord

Yup. Made ya feel like grabbing a large two-handed weapon to go pillage the village, all sorts of ready for blood and fornication. Despite my disappointment at what I did not hear, they did absolutely play a killer set. Their discography is just too big and varied to cram into one performance.

I think way too many people are ignoring what might be the biggest factor in rising prices and lack of availability Many factors have influenced this unusual housing market, of course. But one that affects the housing shortage in particular is institutional real estate investment. Redfin reports that real estate investors purchased about 44,000 homes in the U.S. during the first quarter of 2024 — that’s close to 19 percent of all U.S. homes sold during that time frame. The share of lower-priced homes bought by investors was even higher at 26.1 percent. These large investment companies are exacerbating the home inventory shortage by buying up the most affordable properties and renting them out, making it even harder for individuals and families, especially first-time homebuyers, to get themselves onto the housing ladder.

I didn't check this thread at all last night, just getting caught up. Great debate. I think based on debate points, Vance won. He is much more polished and poised in a public speaking environment. But it was a lot closer than I expected going into the debate, especially after the early stupidity regarding the Tianenmen square lie. Walz nailed him to the wallz on accepting election results. Obviously I think Walz' policy ideas are way better, so on content, he was the clear winner, IMHO. I will say that today, RIGHT NOW, I would vote for a Walz/Vance ticket over the choices we have. These two are both superior to their running mates in decency, intelligence, and grasp of policy. While vastly different in approach, they both have more inherent leadership qualities than Harris or Trump (duh). I knew what I was getting with Walz, since I live in MN and voted for him, but came away really impressed with JD Vance the person/politician. If he could just dump the Trump/ MAGA insanity, he could be a decent president.

IMO the self-proclaimed experts are those that refuse to listen to the credentialled experts. Common sense solutions are great if you're trying to figure out a more efficient way to clean something, or move crap from one place to another. They are less helpful when dealing with huge, complex issues like supply chain disruptions or the ME erupting into an inferno of missile exchanges.

I haven't caught up on this thread and haven't followed the VP debate thread. I am watching it as I type. I would vote for a Walz/Vance ticket right now. These guys are killing their running mates with their poise and intelligence.

Heathen

Holy shlt, he isn't the governor of Minnesota? WHO DID I VOTE FOR THEN??!??

Nice. I haven't seen them for 30 years, but they were great!

Thanks. Priest was great. I'd never heard Sabaton before and they absolutely shredded as an opener. Everyone I've talked to that went was knocked on their asses by their performance. I was a little disappointed just because there were so many songs I wanted to hear but didn't; they only had so much time. I won't ruin the setlist if you dont already know it. Halford is really old but gets around pretty good. Assuming they weren't using a ton of backing tracks, he still sounds monstrously great. Consumate metal singer and the rest of the band was sharp too. I did make the mistake of drinking 8% beers at a brew pub before the show. I realized after I'd knocked back a couple more at the arena that I was pretty hammered. Then because of some skullduggery earlier in the day my trip home involved walking, bicycling, and driving. Next morning being to work at 6:30 was not enjoyable. It was worth it.

That's why I said no US dates have been announced. Good to know I'm not the only blind focker here.

I struggle with it because I know a lot of people in the trades that love their unions and what they provide. I am completely on board with the concept and when a shop votes to become union they have good reasons. But godam if they don't suck sweaty hairy balls to deal with from the management side. From my perspective, they absolutely are not always working in their member's best interests. In an established, good company, they are a labor albatross directly inhibiting productivity and worker satisfaction.

Awesome! I was trying to update your thread but couldn't find it. Am I blind or is it gone?

My tween son and I have started watching some classic horror films. I'm surprised by how well he takes most of them, and he’s seen some pretty scary stuff. The two that frightened him the most, ironically, are the original Night of the Living Dead and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The old ones that look grimy and more real.

Is any of this false? Trump absolutely provoked Muslims in that region, especially with the Jerusalem decision. Is CNN blaming him for it, or pointing these things out in a broader context?

Yeah. "Son, use protection." Because if he's willing to do that, she's putting out, or will be very soon.

Already done in my mind.

We disagree about a lot, Jerry. But I will never, and I mean NEVER mean this statement more than I do right now: GO F*CK YOURSELF

Yup. Ultimately those companies are going to do whatever they have to in order to maintain profits, and automation will be the answer.

This is SOP for union negotiations, I'm finding. @Hawkeye21 was right, it's a negotiating tactic. It's doubtful that they have any intention of realistically getting close to that number. This is one of the things I hate about unions.

Yeah, I think I hopped into a conversation you and Mooney were having and changed the subject to suit my complaints. Trump sucks. Carry on!

I don't know who, if anyone, should have that power. I wouldn't want it myself. I don't trust politicians to have it, nor do I trust corporations to self enforce. It's hard when you see yourself as a person of integrity and morality (go ahead with the jokes, I'm pretty much asking for it) to understand those that have none and work exclusively in their own self interest. This is not a problem I have the ability to solve, and I don't have any good answers.

Who gets the authority once you've stripped it from government? Also, you can substitute Large Corporations for Government in all of the above statements and they'd also be true.

Well done. I chuckled.

If the "foreign invaders" were holding guns, or even another type of weapon, and/or physically threatening border agents, sure, go ahead and shoot them. But your typical "invader" isn't invading shlt. He's coming here because there's promise of a better life. And yes, I'm sure some of those coming into the country are the worst kinds of people. But most aren't, and we have plenty of the worst kind of people here already. We're not advocating for them to be shot. Yet. The solution there seems to be better enforcement at the border, not erecting a fence and killing intruders on sight.

It's not a strawman. Real people are being threatened due to the garbage coming from the GOP campaign. Also, I'm guessing the FBI would not assess the threats as credible if they were all coming from "foreign sources" like many MAGA would like you to believe.