Snowflake's Forum

In these days of government of, by and for brass knuckles capitalism and elite capitalists, consumers generally get a kick in the 🥜 instead of protection from government. But once in a while, the government sneaks a little treat in between the kicks to the groin area. Ars Technica writes about an unexpected little consumer victory:  The Federal Communications Commission yesterday rejected requests to eliminate an upcoming requirement that Internet service providers list all of their monthly fees. Five major trade groups representing US broadband providers petitioned the FCC in January to scrap the requirement before it takes effect. In June, Comcast told the FCC that the listing-every-fee rule "impose[s] significant administrative burdens and unnecessary complexity in complying with the broadband label requirements." The five trade groups kept up the pressure earlier this month in a meeting with FCC officials and in a filing that complained that listing every fee is too ...

 Did a similar thread on Germaine's channel. This one will have a different focus though. While visiting, my brother and I tried to avoid talking politics. Nevertheless we did get into a bit of it. On his 2nd last day visiting we discussed how different - and similar - our homes have become. A year ago I moved from a mid-size town in Minnesota to a mid-size city in Canada. We were amused, but also struck, how similar some things are yet other things so different, between the two locations. Does it say something about the mindset of Canadians vs Americans, or is it just all a coincidence, or a matter of priorities? You judge: We have EV stations popping up all over this city I live in now, whereas my brother tells me that back in my home town there is so far ONLY one EV station and seldom any cars using them. Instead, big trucks and big SUVs are still the primary source of transportation.  Here, in my Canadian home, we see gay pride signs and posters everywhere. My brother tell...

Link to larger map. Our Cape Town, South Africa blogger, Peter Taylor, wants us to talk about how wages should be distributed.  Peter Taylor   Which system is better: Minimum wage or supply and demand? In my country there was once no minimum wage. It was a free labour market system. You earned what someone was prepared to pay you. Then the government introduce a minimum wage. Employers were not permitted to pay below that minimum. We went from almost full employment to something like 40% unemployment. Small businesses closed by the hundreds. Fewer and fewer employed people earned more and more. The government has been trying to fix the mess ever since by giving exemptions to small businesses. That was what I meant: Is minimum wage really a good idea? To embellish on this idea a bit, in the U.S., I believe it’s called “hourly” versus “salary” wages.   Talk about your feelings on how employers should pay people.   Have you been both an hourly and salaried emp...

… and by extension, our future selves. We all would agree that kids need the basics in life: food, clothing, shelter, health care, education, and feelings of security (mental and physical).   Those things, and the variations on them (types, amounts, etc.) are “givens” if you are to have a chance at raising a well-adjusted child.   Still, there are no guarantees.   Many things can and do “go wrong” to mess up your kids. Question: So, other than the basics, what do you see as the most important element/factor in producing a well-adjusted child?   What must there also be to achieve that? (by PrimalSoup)

Are religion and science compatible*? Why or why not? Additional thoughts to consider: Are there any ways to reconcile the two?   Give example(s). Should attempts to reconcile the two even be made? If you see them as incompatible , what key factors keep science and religion separate from each other? We are here to discuss and Disqus.   So “one liners” won’t cut it.   Give your best in depth arguments for this profound question. *ADJECTIVE 1.       (of two things) able to exist or occur together without conflict (by PrimalSoup)

 Damn, it's a good thing I have other authors. Especially Susan. I notice things have really been popping since I have been absent. First things first. Bro leaves Wednesday, and not a moment too soon. ANY OF YOU have any interesting sibling stories? Here is mine: Damn, he is irritating. Love him to pieces, but still............. he has a motor mouth, never stops talking.  So wherever we have gone, if he runs into someone he proclaims in a big voice that he is my  younger brother and that he is visiting me from Minnesota, and that we never get to spend enough time together anymore, and then goes on to talk about what we are doing. Like strangers really care? Next: I am exhausted. We have gone on hikes, drove miles to explore small towns and far away places. Up early, out the door, back just in time for dinner. AND OMG, have we eaten!! I bet I gained a few pounds. Anyway, my laptop always with me, I have been keeping an eye on things here and I am grinning ear to ear seeing...

How lucky can you get?   The Knowledge gods have granted you one answer to those burning questions of humanity.   Some possible questions might be: Does "that other God" exist? Why is there something rather than nothing? Are we alone in the universe? Are there other universes? Is there life after death? Are Heaven and Hell real? What is the solution to the GUT of physics? Is free will real? Is the whole shebang just a simulation? What is ultimate reality? Will science and technology come through on global warming? Are ghosts real? Is anything real? Will humanity eventually destroy itself? (and for the less serious minded 😉 ) What are next week’s Powerball numbers? Will the Yankees win the World Series? Just how much wood would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chunk wood? [Your burning question here]? So, what is the one thing you’d like to know the answer to (or, to which you’d like to know the answer, to be grammatically correct) 😁 ? Anybody got any inside...

Germaine   Movie scenes a person likes. e_monster Literary or cinematic scenes & events you considered memorable. Post some of your favorite scenes. (Posted for e_monster and Germaine by PrimalSoup)

  Something nice for a change:  Golden Retriever befriends a new kitten .

This is an oldie, written about three years ago, but I couldn't resist dusting it off and putting it on this board.  I originally wrote these remarks in response to one of those white suburban church-lady types, who fluted and prattled on about how minorities should go about seeking justice after police shootings and other flagrant abuses.  She withdrew all of her remarks, but the responses of a number of other guests on the blog can be found on this  thread on Religion Prof .  I've decided to withdraw her name. Jennifer A. Nolan to ✋✋✋: "Let me help you out with this: white suspects are about twice as likely as black ones to be shot to death by police, as shown by Statista: 'People Shot to Death by U.S. Police by Race,' July 1, 2020, online. Here are the numbers by year for whites, blacks, and Hispanics: 2017: 457 Wte, 223 Blk, 179 Hsp; 2018: 399 Wte, 209 Blk; 148 Hsp; 2019: 370 Wte; 235 Blk; 158 Hsp; 2020: 204 Wte, 105 Blk, 66 Hsp. "These numbers really s...

T his one grows out of a really stupid argument on another page, where I made the mistake of thinking other people might have a sense of humor. Playing on Robert Heinlein's old coinage TANSTAAFL ("There Ain't No Such Thing as a Free Lunch"), I pointed out space elevators have the potential to provide a "free launch."   O, well, so much for assuming people are capable of yoks on a political page. A space elevator lifts things into orbit, rather than shooting them up there.  Purely theoretical right now, but it got me to thinking.  What IS free these days?   Not lunch, certainly, but some things are.  For example.... Entertainment!  No, not movies or television.  Everyday entertainment!  Just go down to the corner watering hole and watch the idiots at play!  (Alternatively, you can simply visit a political debate page on the internet.  But I digress.) Go to the library and check out a book.  They don't even have fines ...

A few days ago, we asked everyone to take a trip back through time. ( Link. ) Today, I’m asking you to take a trip into the future. To be specific, fast forward to the date Nov 5, 2024, National Election Day in the United States. It's true that no one can know for certain what the future holds.  Even Annie can’t prove conclusively that “the sun will come out tomorrow.” 🎶 But…   Assuming Trump manages to beat all the pending legal charges against him, consider this scenario: What happens if DJT loses the presidential election in 2024? What does he do? False premise.  He will be in jail by that date He repeats/recreates the events of Nov 3 2020.  (It's deja vu all over again) He accepts the results and fades back into the woodwork Impossible that he loses. He and his cohorts will have rigged the election  He flees the country in  humiliation He commits suicide because he can’t take losing… again [Other] How do you see a 2024 DJT presidential loss pan...

  ...or a Ponzi scheme. In addition to jacked-up tuition costs, would-be students should think about what working conditions they have to look forward to in the academic environment, as the  "Worthless Professor"   says in his video. Posted by Jennifer A. Nolan

Here’s something heavy to start off the new week. Can we understand good without evil? First define both, then give your argument(s). (by PrimalSoup)

 AND apparently she is a leader. A 13-Year-Old Girl Is Apparently the New Leader of the JFK-QAnon Cult “Tiny Teflon,” whose mother is also in the cult, has announced her plan to indoctrinate more children into it. https://www.vice.com/en/article/7kxw9z/qanon-jfk-tiny-teflon-13-year-old-girl Is this what the Right means by Grooming?  

Just_Drew  says: How about putting these old brains to work and ask how many times have you moved since you left the family nest. Drew’s right.   That’s gonna take a lotta reflection.   Think hard and start hash-marking them. The word "favorite" can mean a lot of things.  In this context, it means "had the most/least favorable aspects."  So, my follow up questions are: What was your most favorite place to live?   Why?  What were the favorable aspects? What was your least favorite place to live?   Why?  What were the least favorable aspects? (Posted for Just Drew by PrimalSoup)

  Yet another letter appeared on  Dear Abby on uexpress  a couple of weeks ago, describing voice or text mail messages from grandchildren trying to sell candy for school band or sports.  I've said it before, and I'll say it again: this is not the kids' responsibility.  Either the grownups can come up with the funds, or we can dream up less costly programs.   Here is the way I put it on that thread: " I think children should be taken out of these sales and fundraising processes altogether unless they WANT to get involved. Every once in a while, some youngster will want to answer the call of local stray kittens or hungry unemployed neighbors. Fine. Help this kid out and connect them with the relevant organization. But roping them into these Amway-style sales and begging jobs is demeaning and unnecessary. Either organize for better school funding, or dream up less-costly activities."

 Today, I will let you good folks carry the ball by answering a few simple straight-forward questions. You can illuminate on the questions asked or simply just answer them, your choice.  1. If the court appearance for Trump's arraigment is televised, will you be watching? 2. Will you watch the RNC debate on Fox on Wednesday? 3. Who will win the World Cup on Sunday? Do you care?  4. What is for dinner tonight? 5. Do you volunteer? Where? 6. Is there anything on TV right now that has gotten you hooked? 7. Do you still drink Bud Light? Have you ever? 8. What do you think of this video........... https://twitter.com/waltermasterson/status/1692518852746265002 9. Which is more dangerous to our survival RIGHT NOW - climate or MAGA or potential war with Russia?  10. Where is Waldo? 11. Have you vacationed this year? Where? 12. What are your friendship rules? Do you have restrictions on who can or can not be a friend? Their religion or politics or personal grooming? 13. Do yo...

 Yup, another idea I stole from another site. It was meant to be tongue in cheek, but I will expand the idea to include politics, the entertainment world, or just about ANYONE on the planet. It works like this:  What is the one word that pops into your head when thinking of someone? And yes you have to keep it to ONE word. Sorry, them thar is the rules. Example: What is the one word that pops into your head when you are thinking of: Biden Trump Putin The Pope Kim Kardashian Your next door neighbor A Canadian Snowflake Well, you get the idea. Name ANYONE and tell us what word best describes your feelings or thoughts about them. Even one of your friends here on Disqus if you want to. Have fun and be creative.

  Some further remarks of mine from Freelance Christianity:  "Is Tolerance a Luxury or a Virtue?" "May I say that "teaching tolerance" has gone too far in U.S. "liberal" and "left-wing" circles? Lessons in tolerance are for those who can afford to be forbearing. If a man "tolerates" a female colleague or partner of equal or similar talent or other merit, it's because he can afford to give some ground to her. If a white woman carefully thinks through her presumptions and learns to work amicably with one or two black men, it's because the free passes and protections she enjoys as a "Karen" give her the space she needs to make those small concessions. (Why are we so afraid of these guys, anyway?!) And even among downtrodden non-whites, cis-het men can acknowledge that the civil-dignity claims of the women and GLBT's in their neighborhoods are based almost entirely on the Gospel, the Bill of Rights, and the sermon...

 IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T HEARD......... MADONNA turned 65 today. https://www.nationalworld.com/culture/music/madonna-65-birthday-a-look-back-at-the-music-icons-eras-tours-4255839 https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/madonna-at-65-celebrating-a-musical-legend-fashion-icon-and-iconoclast-626108 https://www.vogue.co.uk/beauty/article/madonna-beauty-looks https://globalnews.ca/video/9899656/madonna-turns-65-a-stylish-journey-through-the-de cades https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/this-day-history-august-16-1958-pop-sensation-madonna-born-michigan https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/pictures-madonna-years-she-celebrates-113150706.html I will turn 70 on my next birthday. Will I get this much media coverage??

Would you kill ten people to save one? Yes, we all know of the trolley car conundrum and throwing the switch to “save the many, vs the one.”   I think many here, actually many universally, probably see that resolution the same way, regarding these hypothetical strangers.   We’d do it, save the many instead of the one. But let’s complicate/rethink Spock's dilemma of the "needs of the many outweighing the needs of the few, or the one."    What if that ONE needing saved was a loved one?   Would you still kill the ONE (e.g., your spouse/significant other, child, mom, dad, etc.) to save ten strangers?   Does the situation/calculation change now for you??  Does love overpower reason?  Explain. (by PrimalSoup)

A rather long bit of discussion, drawn from  Freelance Christianity , on the need to be careful who we preach tolerance to.  I'm sure I've covered this theme before, but I don't think we can repeat it too often! 👀👀👀  Absolution ("formal release from guilt, obligation, or punishment") denies the lessons learned from making errors. We get stronger only when we tear our muscle tissues without fully separating our muscle tissue. Jesus did not lose His scars after resurrection. We do not lose our scars from carrying our cross as His students (disciples). We grow from them. There is no magic (slight of hand erasing what has happened) to living life as God has done without beginning, and will survive without end. Children of God from Man have a beginning, as Christ did as the Son of Man, who are offered no end with one, and only one, condition. They must hate human traditions of ignorance, me and mine before all others, so much to accept only one Father, one Teacher ...

 I will keep this thread short and brief, but knowing how verbose I can be, maybe it won't be. The news broke this morning of another indictment against Trump, but overnight we recorded the World Cup game between Sweden and Spain. We chose to watch the game. Not run to CNN. For us it was a nice distraction. I have heard it said by a few of you that having this channel, where many of our treads are non-political, provides a nice relief from all the angst and anxiety of political argument. Distractions come in many forms and have many uses. Stressed from work, you don't want to bring work "home with you." You need a distraction. Whether it be a hobby or being online. Same with day to day worries, best to get away from it all - that is why they invented GOLF - isn't it? 😏 Two part question: 1. What do you find you need distractions from ? Might be a bit of a personal question but feel free to answer if you are inclined. Need to get away from politics? Get away from ...

  "Poodlegirl" is/was a frequent visitor to uexpress via Disqus.  A few year ago, she left this comment on Dear Abby regarding how to teach children discipline and patience without breaking their spirits.  I figured this might be a handy piece of advice for the parents and grandparents reading this blog, too.  The OP is entitled "Teacher Is Appalled by Mom Texting Throughout Conference;" unfortunately, to dig out Poodlegirl's comment from the original, I would have to go back through almost four years of comments to reach the link!  Here's the  original letter , anyway. Poodlegirl on Dear Abby: Letter # , December 8 th , 2019: Watching a bored little boy sitting in the grocery cart with a sad look on his face while his Mom talked on the phone caught my attention. He tried to stand up and she swatted him on the butt without missing a beat on her phone. It brought back memories of the fun games I played with my kids at the store. Learning colors, shapes and...

There’s an old saying, “A man chases a woman until she catches him.” Ah, sweet romance; the never ending “art of the dance” pursuit.  We all know how that feels.  😍   But things don’t always work out for the best; i.e., wind up as “happily ever afters.”   Things may not go as smoothly as hoped or planned. Here are today’s questions:  Can a woman mess up a man? If you are a man, has a woman ever messed you up? If you are a woman, have you ever messed up a man? How did that all turn out for you (good/bad/other)?  E.g., resulted in marriage 💍 or divorce 😡;  thoughts of suicide 💊 or murder 🔪 (think O.J. and Nicole Brown Simpson 😮 ); heartbreak 💔 ; “happily ever after” true love 🥰;  all that’s left now are the painful memories 💭;  it caused me to change my sexual identity 👨‍❤️‍👨👩‍❤️‍👩;  etc.  Tell us the story.  (by PrimalSoup) ——- *messed up: psychologically confused feelings, in particul...