Miscellaneous Discussion Thread

Quote: MrV

Subway had some good coupons until recently: three foot long subs for less than $20.00.
link to original post

Is that nominally three sandwiches or one sandwich?
(I'm assuming that either way, they will be portioned into fractional sandwiches.)

The Western States have been hiring goat herds to eat the shrubs that can accelerate forest fires. It's much cheaper than even using convicts to clear the land.
Most goat herds are supervised by a single goat herder, who lives in a company-supplied trailer and typically has all his food provided by the company. Last year, California raised the minimum these guys could be paid from $2,000 to about $3500.
Under a new law, goat herds will need to be paid at least $14,000 a month as they are on call 24-7. Many of the municipalities using the contracted herds are balking at the increase and will now not use the services, increasing the possibility of wider spread fires.
Homeowners can expect a rise in insurance rates, as a result.

Quote: Dieter

Quote: MrV

Subway had some good coupons until recently: three foot long subs for less than $20.00.
link to original post

Is that nominally three sandwiches or one sandwich?
(I'm assuming that either way, they will be portioned into fractional sandwiches.)
link to original post

Their regular 11-inch subs are called footlongs, so I'd assume it is three sandwiches. it wasn't that long ago they were 3/$10.
I recently bought one and got one for half price using their app but it still cost $16.

Did State Farm pull out of California?
State Farm is stopping new home insurance sales in California, citing wildfire risks and skyrocketing construction costs, the company announced Friday. The insurance giant stopped accepting applications for all business and personal lines property and casualty insurance in California on May 27. - 2 days ago

Just in time for a state-wide riot.

Quote: billryan

Quote: Dieter

Quote: MrV

Subway had some good coupons until recently: three foot long subs for less than $20.00.
link to original post

Is that nominally three sandwiches or one sandwich?
(I'm assuming that either way, they will be portioned into fractional sandwiches.)
link to original post

Their regular 11-inch subs are called footlongs, so I'd assume it is three sandwiches. it wasn't that long ago they were 3/$10.
I recently bought one and got one for half price using their app but it still cost $16.
link to original post

I know it comes off as "Dieter being dense", but some sandwich shops do offer longer options.
A yard long sandwich doesn't seem like an unreasonable thing (likely for a group, rather than an individual).

(Now I've got a hankering for muffaletta, but nobody else in the house likes olives, and there's no shop that makes a decent one "nearby" (by my loose standards). C'est la guerre.)

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Canada will soon be putting the strongest warnings ever on individual cigarettes including "Poison in Every Puff"
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https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/31/world/canada/canada-cigarette-warnings.html#:~:text=Tobacco%20companies%20must%20soon%20label,is%20calling%20a%20global%20first.&text=As%20a%20subscriber%2C%20you%20have,articles%20to%20give%20each%20month.

Quote: lilredrooster

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Canada will soon be putting the strongest warnings ever on individual cigarettes including "Poison in Every Puff"
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https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/31/world/canada/canada-cigarette-warnings.html#:~:text=Tobacco%20companies%20must%20soon%20label,is%20calling%20a%20global%20first.&text=As%20a%20subscriber%2C%20you%20have,articles%20to%20give%20each%20month.
link to original post

I am not sure this will create the desired effect.
https://youtu.be/ELV5HV6-koI
(Denis Leary video - coarse language)

The writing is probably a carcinogen.

Quote: lilredrooster

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Canada will soon be putting the strongest warnings ever on individual cigarettes including "Poison in Every Puff"
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https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/31/world/canada/canada-cigarette-warnings.html#:~:text=Tobacco%20companies%20must%20soon%20label,is%20calling%20a%20global%20first.&text=As%20a%20subscriber%2C%20you%20have,articles%20to%20give%20each%20month.
link to original post

I think that is great and I am a smoker. If it causes one person to smoke less then I think it has accomplished its mission.

I noticed a lot fewer smokers in NY than I normally see in Arizona. As most demographics are fairly similar, I think the price has a lot to do with that. At $12 a pack, you eliminate a lot of new people getting started., and the two-pack-a-day smoker has gone the way of the Dodo.

Too bad they're just beginning this. Years ago, I would have gotten a good laugh seeing guys in pick-up style bars with a cigarette that says, "Smoking causes Impotence"

Quote: billryan

I noticed a lot fewer smokers in NY than I normally see in Arizona. As most demographics are fairly similar, I think the price has a lot to do with that. At $12 a pack, you eliminate a lot of new people getting started., and the two-pack-a-day smoker has gone the way of the Dodo.
link to original post

billryan,

"has gone the way of the Dodo" = hunted to extinction?

;-)

Dog Hand

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Al Pacino is about to become a Father again at age 83

when he's 94 he can teach the little tyke how to swing a bat and how to shoot jump shots

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/parenting/health-risks-babies-older-fathers-al-pacino-expecting-child-rcna87237

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a cow made a desperate bolt to find freedom
it got got onto an interstate highway
a Cowboy got him with a lasso

yippee yiyo cay yay





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Is it possible that Jimmy Carter has already passed away and nobody noticed?

I would say very unlikely. This article mentions Rosalyn recently being diagnosed with dementia. They will be celebrating their 77th anniversary July 5

Quote: Dieter

Quote: MrV

Subway had some good coupons until recently: three foot long subs for less than $20.00.
link to original post

Is that nominally three sandwiches or one sandwich?
(I'm assuming that either way, they will be portioned into fractional sandwiches.)
link to original post

It is for three separate sandwiches, each one being one foot in length.

Need not be the same type, i.e. can have an Italian, a club, etc.

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fascinating - to me anyway
the Zodiac killer of the 60s is the most famous unsolved murder mystery in American history
he is known to have killed 5 but claims to have killed 37
after the killings he sent taunting, cryptic messages to newspapers
and claimed he was collecting victims to be slaves in the afterlife

this is a composite sketch based on eyewitness accounts:





this is the cryptogram he sent to newspapers:





https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zodiac_Killer

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Space aliens have landed in Vegas. Hopefully they're just here to catch a show, score some blow and get jiggy with some hookers.

Of course no one took a picture.

Quote: vegas

Of course no one took a picture.
link to original post

it's pretty obvious why - they tried to snap a pic but the aliens disabled their phones - by sending electromagnetic impulses thru the air - about 99% of aliens can do that

after the aliens had safely escaped they re-enabled the phones by the same method - and the owners of the phones couldn't figure out what happened

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Quote: lilredrooster

Quote: vegas

Of course no one took a picture.
link to original post

it's pretty obvious why - they tried to snap a pic but the aliens disabled their phones - by sending electromagnetic impulses thru the air - about 99% of aliens can do that

after the aliens had safely escaped they re-enabled the phones by the same method - and the owners of the phones didn't couldn't figure out what happened

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link to original post

yeah, but if they looked at their clocks they'd see that time had stopped for several minutes

Quote: odiousgambit

Quote: lilredrooster

Quote: vegas

Of course no one took a picture.
link to original post

it's pretty obvious why - they tried to snap a pic but the aliens disabled their phones - by sending electromagnetic impulses thru the air - about 99% of aliens can do that

after the aliens had safely escaped they re-enabled the phones by the same method - and the owners of the phones didn't couldn't figure out what happened

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link to original post

yeah, but if they looked at their clocks they'd see that time had stopped for several minutes
link to original post

when the aliens re-enabled the phones they also reset the clocks to the correct time - electromagnetically

the aliens covered all their bases - most of them are pretty smart

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Has there ever been a tv show where two different alien races are competing against each other to enslave the Earth both impersonating fake humans? I can think of short episodes maybe along that line. Not anything popular like a long running show.

Three in a room.
"You are Zorbor"
"I am human. You are Gorbot."
Human "What's going on????"
"He is mine"
"I will kick you Zorbor butt face,"
"Come closer, I will squish you like a timbot fly"

I keep waiting to hear that cliché from the best police reports:

Quote:

Alcohol was believed to be a contributing factor.

Quote: rxwine

Has there ever been a tv show where two different alien races are competing against each other to enslave the Earth both impersonating fake humans? I can think of short episodes maybe along that line. Not anything popular like a long running show.

Three in a room.
"You are Zorbor"
"I am human. You are Gorbot."
Human "What's going on????"
"He is mine"
"I will kick you Zorbor butt face,"
"Come closer, I will squish you like a timbot fly"
link to original post

An old Twilight Zone episode about a bus crash has two competing alien races in it.

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as you might guess the U.S. has been studying the possibility of alien contact for decades
linked is an intelligently written article
NASA has an ongoing "UAP" study which focuses on "unidentified anomalous phenomena"

the most interesting claim is this:

"the recovery of partial fragments and up to intact vehicles has been made for decades"

"Analysis has determined that the objects are of exotic origin (non-human intelligence whether extraterrestrial or unknown origin) based on material science testing and the possession of unique atomic arrangements and radiological signatures"


https://thedebrief.org/intelligence-officials-say-u-s-has-retrieved-non-human-craft/

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Reasonable travel across vast distances in space is the most serious obstacle to us becoming the visiting aliens.’

There’s not that many other advancements we need to make, but that’s such a serious one, there’s not much possibility without it first. I would say, impossible, but never say never. I think it takes 4 years just to send a message to the next nearest star. Then you have to wait 4 years for the response even if anyone is there. Not very promising without some as yet unknown breakthrough.

Of course, maybe the starry sky is just a fancy version of one of those Vegas casino ceilings of a fake sky.

Quote: rxwine

Reasonable travel across vast distances in space is the most serious obstacle to us becoming the visiting aliens.’

There’s not that many other advancements we need to make, but that’s such a serious one, there’s not much possibility without it first. I would say, impossible, but never say never. I think it takes 4 years just to send a message to the next nearest star. Then you have to wait 4 years for the response even if anyone is there. Not very promising without some as yet unknown breakthrough.
link to original post

It's 1850. Trying to do business in China seems impossible, as it takes a year to get a message there and another to get an answer back. It's not very promising without some as-yet-unknown break thru.

Quote: billryan

Quote: rxwine

Reasonable travel across vast distances in space is the most serious obstacle to us becoming the visiting aliens.’

There’s not that many other advancements we need to make, but that’s such a serious one, there’s not much possibility without it first. I would say, impossible, but never say never. I think it takes 4 years just to send a message to the next nearest star. Then you have to wait 4 years for the response even if anyone is there. Not very promising without some as yet unknown breakthrough.
link to original post

It's 1850. Trying to do business in China seems impossible, as it takes a year to get a message there and another to get an answer back. It's not very promising without some as-yet-unknown break thru.
link to original post

In 1866 it took 99 days to sail from China to England, about 14,000 nautical miles. And Europe's been trading with China in one form or another since antiquity. As for as-for-yet-unknown breakthrus, we've laways kniwn they were possible based on our knowledge of the laws of physics and science. We've always put our best engineers to work designing and building faster ships of sail, then steam powered vessels and transoceanic speed records constantly being broken. We've also known heavier-than-air flight was possible, since we've had birds and bats to watch and marvel, then we invented rockets and then dirigibles, then airplanes and then it's off to the races. We know of no breakthru that allows for interstellar travel under our current understanding of the laws of physics and the natural sciences.

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NASA has an ongoing "UAP" study which focuses on "unidentified anomalous phenomena"
the most interesting claim is this:
"the recovery of partial fragments and up to intact vehicles has been made for decades"
"Analysis has determined that the objects are of exotic origin (non-human intelligence whether extraterrestrial or unknown origin) based on material science testing and the possession of unique atomic arrangements and radiological signatures"


to me, it is a great source of frustration that there are so many things about this world and other worlds that we will go to our graves without ever knowing the truth about

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this attractive woman - Angela Nikolau - got her 15 minutes of fame with death defying selfies - pretty cool
















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FYI. Maybe I’m not the only one who just found this out.

for junk mail you never signed up for, like credit card or insurance offers, the Federal Trade Commission recommends using the website www.optoutprescreen.com to prevent a deluge of letters for up to five years or permanently.

Quote: rxwine

FYI. Maybe I’m not the only one who just found this out.

for junk mail you never signed up for, like credit card or insurance offers, the Federal Trade Commission recommends using the website www.optoutprescreen.com to prevent a deluge of letters for up to five years or permanently.
link to original post

I am probably one of the few people that likes getting junk mail.

I had my mail stopped from May 3rd thru June 5th. When I picked it up, I had eight pieces of first-class mail and five junk mail flyers.
I used to get that in a couple of days.

Quote: DRich

Quote: rxwine

FYI. Maybe I’m not the only one who just found this out.

for junk mail you never signed up for, like credit card or insurance offers, the Federal Trade Commission recommends using the website www.optoutprescreen.com to prevent a deluge of letters for up to five years or permanently.
link to original post

I am probably one of the few people that likes getting junk mail.
link to original post

I used to.
Then, about 20 years ago, someone with a grudge and twisted sense of humor called the toll-free numbers for no obligation information packets about lift chairs, motorized folder-upper beds, mobility scooters, and incontinence supplies, offering my name and address.
I think he may have suggested my possible interest to the AARP as well - those folks are relentless.

There are only so many of these mailings I can use to start fireplaces.

Quote: DRich

Quote: rxwine

FYI. Maybe I’m not the only one who just found this out.

for junk mail you never signed up for, like credit card or insurance offers, the Federal Trade Commission recommends using the website www.optoutprescreen.com to prevent a deluge of letters for up to five years or permanently.
link to original post

I am probably one of the few people that likes getting junk mail.
link to original post

NOPE! I'm a big fan of junk mail. You never know what goodies you might find. Imagine $200+ in EV per coupon times 100+. They had 6 locations. Actually, one place had $5 denominations, so it was worth about $500 in EV. You had to go easy on that. Here are some leftover coupons I have from back in the day.

That reminds me, I need to sign up for a few that no longer mass-mail everyone.

Looks like they’ve taken legislative action to stop junk fees when you buy tickets (like ticket master and others).

Now they will have to include it all in the price up front. Unfortunately no one apparently advocated for resort fees shenanigans to be addressed. But I guess we’re not dangerous rabid Taylor Swiftie fans. Just regular folk.

Swifties are paying four and five figures for their tickets, so an extra hundred for ticket fees seems like percentage scalp.
I like my phone bill, there's no taxes listed.

Although 2.4 miles is an incredible depth, when you think you can pretty much see 2.4 miles with a little elevation on a clear day it gives a different perspective. Titanic is 2.4 miles down.

Has anyone driven through the Apache National Forest? It is, by far, the scariest road I have ever driven. I drove up to see the Painted Desert, the Petrified Forest, and Hang on The Corner in Winslow, and was told 191 was an amazing drive. It actually starts near my house and then runs some 500 miles up to Utah, without ever hitting a medium-sized town. It is the least traveled Federal Highway, and once was part of the original Devils Highway, Route 666.
I picked it up off of US 40, a few miles east of Holbrook, and for the first 75 miles, it was scenic but not spectacular. This area is sparsely populated and the road is mostly one lane in each direction. The most remarkable thing I found on this part of the trip was The Witching Well Tavern, right smack in the absolute middle of nowhere. It's a nasty road, that isn't patrolled at night, and there can't be 500 people living within ten miles of the joint, but the bar has been there since the mid-1950s. I tried to stop in but they only operate a to go window in the afternoons.
I'd been warned to get out of the forest by dusk, but it was barely 1 pm so I wasn't concerned. I've also learned to fill my car whenever I can, as gas stations can be quite scarce out in the backcountry. I'm 229 miles from my destination and my GPS is saying it will take almost seven hours to get there. I'm puzzled but still not realizing what awaits me.
I get to the town of Alpine, and the landscape changes drastically. What had been the high desert turns into a scene out of Heidi, as a lush green meadow is surrounded by majestic mountains. I had no idea I'd be seeing this meadow from all the various mountaintops for the next few hours. The road begins to climb and I see hundreds of dead trees. This whole are has been the scene of multiple huge fires, ranging from a 20,000-acre fire last year to a half a million-acre fire about twenty years ago. I pass a sign that warns of falling trees.
It seems gust above 19 miles an hour can cause the dead trees to fall and gusts that day were above 45 MPH.
The single-lane road is winding up the mountain at a steep angle and soon we are doing hairpin turns at 15MPH, with no shoulder or guard rail. The view is spectacular, but there is no shoulder to pull over, and no guard rails. I get to the top and then the ride down was equally hairly as my car wanted to embrace gravity and race down the mountain. There is a picnic area near the bottom, and I take a break there. A bulletin board map shows the road through the Forest climbs thirteen peaks, with the one I just crossed being one of the smaller ones.
I thought about turning around but decided to soldier on.

I thought this story was a joke, but it's true. Evidently, if you want to get money from a casino you simply call the cage on your phone, tell them you're the owner and you need lots of money to pay the fire department, and then they'll meet you at a gas station to give you hundreds of thousands in cash.

Quote: Gialmere

I thought this story was a joke, but it's true. Evidently, if you want to get money from a casino you simply call the cage on your phone, tell them you're the owner and you need lots of money to pay the fire department, and then they'll meet you at a gas station to give you hundreds of thousands in cash.

link to original post

A lie so bold, no one thinks to disbelieve it?

Quote: rxwine

Quote: Gialmere

I thought this story was a joke, but it's true. Evidently, if you want to get money from a casino you simply call the cage on your phone, tell them you're the owner and you need lots of money to pay the fire department, and then they'll meet you at a gas station to give you hundreds of thousands in cash.

link to original post

A lie so bold, no one thinks to disbelieve it?
link to original post

First item on next month's ongoing training:
The Fire Department will take a check.

SO the local casino-Encore Boston-just reached 11th hour agreements with their unions, narrowly averting strikes that would have crippled operations. This got me thinking: how are labor-management relations between the Vegas casinos and their unions. Are things harmonious, contentious, one-sided in favor of one side or the other?

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I just got an email (I don't know why they have my email address) from my County Executive indicating that marijuana is now legal in my County

all of these things, marijuana, alcohol and gambling are potentially harmful
maybe it is a small % of users who are harmed

you don't hear much talk about alcoholism
according to N.I.H. 10.6% of the population over the age of 12 had AUD (alcohol use disorder) in the past year

Government authorities know that all of this stuff can be harmful

but they can't move against it - there are just too many people who want to partake

the huge increase in the availability of legal gambling is shocking

no politician wants to take a strong stand against things that are very, very popular

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Quote: lilredrooster

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Government authorities know that all of this stuff
no politician wants to take a strong stand against things that are very, very popular

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link to original post

But then they might be asked to actually address the problems or reasons that cause the widespread use….

Yeah, easiest to just say consenting adults.

While I’m at it, how is a Siberian husky in a 600 square foot apartment for 20+ hours a day not considered animal abuse?

I'm sure the national stats for pot use among seniors and juniors nationwide while I was in high school was around 50%. Because of police crack downs on dealers and users over the next decade and a severe dry-up of supply, that number dropped significantly to like 15% to 25% (mostly rich kids). Now who is gonna enforce the driving while high laws and with what?

Quote: ChumpChange

Now who is gonna enforce the driving while high laws and with what?

it's very difficult to enforce these laws re marijuana and driving

the link gives an excellent discussion of this

https://www.thehirschfirm.com/articles/why-dui-laws-for-marijuana-are-so-difficult-to-enforce/

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