CharlesWT trolls by day, presumably because he's busy thinking serious Libertarian(TM) thoughts at night. Thoughts like Antifa(TM) Headquarters being a hotbed of "activists" dedicated to overthrowing the Libertarian(TM) and other pro-fascist parties.
Or maybe CharlesWT has inside dope (and I use the word advisedly) that Portland is in fact a violent hellscape at night. If I could be sure of that I might turn pro-fascist myself. Not libertarian, though; that would be a bit too much.
USA Fencing (the national governing body for sport fencing in the US) starts Veteran categories at age 40. They keep adding higher age categories, recognizing that 60-year-olds can't generally keep up with 40-year-olds. At this year's national tournament, there was a Vet-80 category. There are online videos of the finals bouts in Vet-80. Some of the age-related health problems -- eg, many forms of cancer -- just come with the territory as things wear out at the cell level. More of the elderly health care problems are related to people just going sedentary at some point.
I recall visiting a club where one of the members was an 84-year-old who won a silver in epee at the Olympics in the 1950s. All of the local members seemed to be ignoring him despite his being dressed out, so I made a point of asking him to fence. He couldn't move and fence both, so he stayed in one place. But his eye was sharp, his wrist was quick and strong, and if you left any sort of opening on your weapon arm, he hit it. The club owner thanked me later for taking the time. I never did find out how an 84-year-old Eastern European fencer ended up living in Lincoln, NE.
For some reason, there are no fencing clubs within a reasonable driving distance of Fort Collins. This strikes me as particularly odd since it's a university town. I miss it.
Pretty much every developed country is looking at a shrinking population -- absent immigration, which seems like a rather temporary solution. Given that, over time, development (at least that feature of development) is spreading.
Now reducing the total world population may well be a good thing. But working out how to manage the transition seems to be an imperative.
Every time someone argues against citizenship for anyone except those whose parents are citizens, I feel moved to ask a couple questions. First, what of those who have one parent who is a citizen and the other not? Or one (or three) grandparents citizens and the others not?
Second, how many generations back do you go in demanding parents' citizenship? And how do you justify that number? Because, of course, everybody (even Steven Miller) has ancestors at some remove who were immigrants.
The reality, of course, is that those people don't care about parents being citizens. They care about race. (Occasionally ethnicity as well, i.e. nobody from Eastern and/or Southern Europe.). If they finally admit it, ask a) are you advocating going back to the "one drop" standard? And b) if so, what genetic criteria do you propose to establish that? Because there aren't (written) records to establish an answer.
A's for those planning to outsource to AI, perhaps they ought to consider just how much of the stuff on the Internet (where most LLMs are trained) are basically spam from bots set up to push either an ideology or the foreign policy of one group or another. A's contributions to thoughtful discussion they are useless.
I propose the Dynamit Nobel Piece Prize consisting of a gilded bottle of nitroglycerine and a bundle of dynamite sticks ornated with Swarovski crystals in a carrying bag woven from gun cotton with a printed inscription in garish lettering about "booming again with bursting energy". [Of course it will not actually contain chemical explosives]
That's a pretty evergreen topic for me, and there's a lot to discuss on that. Is it going to be a crash, or a controlled belly landing? Opinions differ.
I'll put together a post of youtube links for people to watch today or tomorrow.
Pro Bono: the war between Armenia and Cambodia was a particular worry. And that was before he told hundreds of generals today that their troops would soon be carrying out an "internal war" in Chicago, San Francisco, LA (and I think also NYC), using those cities as "training grounds". How can the Nobel Peace Prize be far off?
Japan is headed for a population crash. Without immigration, maybe AI and robots can make up some of the difference. In any case, there will be a rough patch while the numbers of the old and young rebalance and the population shrinks over time.
Many countries are headed in the same direction, faster or slower, sooner or later.
– announced on social media that he’s sending troops into Portland, Oregon, which he described as “war-ravaged”. The city itself, which filmed reports show as boringly peaceful, doesn’t want them.
Boringly peaceful by day, while Antifa and other activists are home sleeping off the night before.
On a more serious note, I know some WP, but mostly things related to attaching odd bits of PHP to the standard hooks in various ways. For pulling stuff out of the database -- eg, some subset of comments -- I only know things that have PHP shorthand calls, not SQL. I know about get_comments(), but nothing about the underlying database calls.
I'm a long-timer Perl programmer, so I just think of PHP as Perl with a lot of the useful stuff stripped out.
Throughout my tech career, I always said that I was glad there were people who seemed to be interested in database design, because it meant I didn't have to worry about it.
I'm happy to tinker, and I would like it to be usable. I'm trying to figure out what I need to do to make it more smartphone friendly and wondering how many posts should be on the front page. After things settle down with classes, I should have time to try some more things.
I'd note that Bill Kristol wrote an internal memorandum for the Republican party essentially saying that passing health care under Clinton would mean the end of the Republican party. The memorandum is here
"The President's health care proposal is the most important domestic political event of his presidency. Its defeat is the most important immediate goal of the Republican party. It will revive the reputation of the party that spends and regulates, the Democrats, as the generous protector of middle-class interests. And it will at the same time strike a punishing blow against Republican claims to defend the middle class by restraining government.
So it was shitty that Obama undercut Clinton, but Republican opposition was pretty much a constant, so one could argue that it wasn't a policy choice, it was what Obama had to do to undercut Republican opposition. This isn't to give Obama a pass, it is just to acknowledge that these policy arguments were not playing out on a blank slate.
IIRC correctly, Obama made an attack point of HRC's insurance 'mandate', during the primaries. Then, when he actually came to try to pass the ACA, the wonks explained to him that it was necessary, so he adopted it after all. I was a supporter of Obama, but I was deeply unimpressed.
In the end, the Rs torpedoed the 'mandate' as part of their performance theatre of opposing ACA while not being willing to take the electoral consequences of abolishing it. But they protected the insurance companies with restrictive enrolment periods instead, which turns out to be an inferior but workable solution.
(I think it wise to review how things have worked out after the row has died down. One might sometimes learn something.)
Ha, I've only just parsed PB's last comment properly (I think) to see that he is throwing shade at Obama for torpedoing HRC's mandatory health care proposal in the cause of realpolitik. Now, I was a supporter of HRC, and (obviously) of that proposal, but on the other hand the US electorate wasn't (for various infinite mirror variations of reasons), and Obama managed to pass at least a watered down version of the ACA. So, incremental progress as a result of realpolitik, or a failure? Very hard to say in my opinion.
On “Where are the 5 words?”
CharlesWT trolls by day, presumably because he's busy thinking serious Libertarian(TM) thoughts at night. Thoughts like Antifa(TM) Headquarters being a hotbed of "activists" dedicated to overthrowing the Libertarian(TM) and other pro-fascist parties.
Or maybe CharlesWT has inside dope (and I use the word advisedly) that Portland is in fact a violent hellscape at night. If I could be sure of that I might turn pro-fascist myself. Not libertarian, though; that would be a bit too much.
--TP
On “Japan unleashed”
USA Fencing (the national governing body for sport fencing in the US) starts Veteran categories at age 40. They keep adding higher age categories, recognizing that 60-year-olds can't generally keep up with 40-year-olds. At this year's national tournament, there was a Vet-80 category. There are online videos of the finals bouts in Vet-80. Some of the age-related health problems -- eg, many forms of cancer -- just come with the territory as things wear out at the cell level. More of the elderly health care problems are related to people just going sedentary at some point.
I recall visiting a club where one of the members was an 84-year-old who won a silver in epee at the Olympics in the 1950s. All of the local members seemed to be ignoring him despite his being dressed out, so I made a point of asking him to fence. He couldn't move and fence both, so he stayed in one place. But his eye was sharp, his wrist was quick and strong, and if you left any sort of opening on your weapon arm, he hit it. The club owner thanked me later for taking the time. I never did find out how an 84-year-old Eastern European fencer ended up living in Lincoln, NE.
For some reason, there are no fencing clubs within a reasonable driving distance of Fort Collins. This strikes me as particularly odd since it's a university town. I miss it.
"
Pretty much every developed country is looking at a shrinking population -- absent immigration, which seems like a rather temporary solution. Given that, over time, development (at least that feature of development) is spreading.
Now reducing the total world population may well be a good thing. But working out how to manage the transition seems to be an imperative.
On “Citizenship”
Every time someone argues against citizenship for anyone except those whose parents are citizens, I feel moved to ask a couple questions. First, what of those who have one parent who is a citizen and the other not? Or one (or three) grandparents citizens and the others not?
Second, how many generations back do you go in demanding parents' citizenship? And how do you justify that number? Because, of course, everybody (even Steven Miller) has ancestors at some remove who were immigrants.
The reality, of course, is that those people don't care about parents being citizens. They care about race. (Occasionally ethnicity as well, i.e. nobody from Eastern and/or Southern Europe.). If they finally admit it, ask a) are you advocating going back to the "one drop" standard? And b) if so, what genetic criteria do you propose to establish that? Because there aren't (written) records to establish an answer.
On “Ad futurum”
A's for those planning to outsource to AI, perhaps they ought to consider just how much of the stuff on the Internet (where most LLMs are trained) are basically spam from bots set up to push either an ideology or the foreign policy of one group or another. A's contributions to thoughtful discussion they are useless.
"
I can't speak for others, but this is working just fine on my phone.
On “Where are the 5 words?”
I propose the Dynamit Nobel Piece Prize consisting of a gilded bottle of nitroglycerine and a bundle of dynamite sticks ornated with Swarovski crystals in a carrying bag woven from gun cotton with a printed inscription in garish lettering about "booming again with bursting energy". [Of course it will not actually contain chemical explosives]
On “Citizenship”
That's a pretty evergreen topic for me, and there's a lot to discuss on that. Is it going to be a crash, or a controlled belly landing? Opinions differ.
I'll put together a post of youtube links for people to watch today or tomorrow.
On “Where are the 5 words?”
Pro Bono: the war between Armenia and Cambodia was a particular worry. And that was before he told hundreds of generals today that their troops would soon be carrying out an "internal war" in Chicago, San Francisco, LA (and I think also NYC), using those cities as "training grounds". How can the Nobel Peace Prize be far off?
On “Citizenship”
Japan is headed for a population crash. Without immigration, maybe AI and robots can make up some of the difference. In any case, there will be a rough patch while the numbers of the old and young rebalance and the population shrinks over time.
Many countries are headed in the same direction, faster or slower, sooner or later.
On “Ad futurum”
cleek, you are as much of a mensch as ever!
On “Where are the 5 words?”
– announced on social media that he’s sending troops into Portland, Oregon, which he described as “war-ravaged”. The city itself, which filmed reports show as boringly peaceful, doesn’t want them.
Boringly peaceful by day, while Antifa and other activists are home sleeping off the night before.
On “Ad futurum”
On a more serious note, I know some WP, but mostly things related to attaching odd bits of PHP to the standard hooks in various ways. For pulling stuff out of the database -- eg, some subset of comments -- I only know things that have PHP shorthand calls, not SQL. I know about get_comments(), but nothing about the underlying database calls.
I'm a long-timer Perl programmer, so I just think of PHP as Perl with a lot of the useful stuff stripped out.
"
I wrote something in FORTRAN about 38 years ago. Is that good?
Seriously, though, thank you for your efforts, lj.
"
i have WP programming experience, and MySQL.
i can't promise i have enough of either to be of use. but if you think you might need me, give a shout.
"
Are there any folks with WordPress experience, or some knowledge of mySQL?
Grok volunteers... :)
Other LLMs might be helpful too.
MySQL Assistance: Queries, Design, Optimization
"
I'm 25+ years out-of-date and out of practice with SQL, and am more of a danger than a help at this point.
"
...or some knowledge of mySQL?
Throughout my tech career, I always said that I was glad there were people who seemed to be interested in database design, because it meant I didn't have to worry about it.
"
I'm happy to tinker, and I would like it to be usable. I'm trying to figure out what I need to do to make it more smartphone friendly and wondering how many posts should be on the front page. After things settle down with classes, I should have time to try some more things.
On “Ezra Coates DESTROYS Ta-Nehisi Klein!!!”
I'd note that Bill Kristol wrote an internal memorandum for the Republican party essentially saying that passing health care under Clinton would mean the end of the Republican party. The memorandum is here
"The President's health care proposal is the most important domestic political event of his presidency. Its defeat is the most important immediate goal of the Republican party. It will revive the reputation of the party that spends and regulates, the Democrats, as the generous protector of middle-class interests. And it will at the same time strike a punishing blow against Republican claims to defend the middle class by restraining government.
So it was shitty that Obama undercut Clinton, but Republican opposition was pretty much a constant, so one could argue that it wasn't a policy choice, it was what Obama had to do to undercut Republican opposition. This isn't to give Obama a pass, it is just to acknowledge that these policy arguments were not playing out on a blank slate.
"
IIRC correctly, Obama made an attack point of HRC's insurance 'mandate', during the primaries. Then, when he actually came to try to pass the ACA, the wonks explained to him that it was necessary, so he adopted it after all. I was a supporter of Obama, but I was deeply unimpressed.
In the end, the Rs torpedoed the 'mandate' as part of their performance theatre of opposing ACA while not being willing to take the electoral consequences of abolishing it. But they protected the insurance companies with restrictive enrolment periods instead, which turns out to be an inferior but workable solution.
(I think it wise to review how things have worked out after the row has died down. One might sometimes learn something.)
On “Ad futurum”
What Tony P said, in both comments!
On “Ezra Coates DESTROYS Ta-Nehisi Klein!!!”
Ha, I've only just parsed PB's last comment properly (I think) to see that he is throwing shade at Obama for torpedoing HRC's mandatory health care proposal in the cause of realpolitik. Now, I was a supporter of HRC, and (obviously) of that proposal, but on the other hand the US electorate wasn't (for various infinite mirror variations of reasons), and Obama managed to pass at least a watered down version of the ACA. So, incremental progress as a result of realpolitik, or a failure? Very hard to say in my opinion.
On “Ad futurum”
lj,
My vote is: keep the current layout and save yourself some ... fun(?) And thanks again!
--TP
"
nooneithinkisinmytree,
It's great to see you again! I hope you're doing well despite the fact that most of what you warned us about for years has come to pass.
--TP
*Comment archive for non-registered commenters assembled by email address as provided.