Excellent analysis. I often remind people that every economy that has allowed the wealthy to rule unrestrained for long enough has undergone a socialist revolution, which resulted in horrible conditions. The only exception was England, which adopted a new economy invented by Smith (capitalism, the most misunderstood/misrepresented economic concept on the planet right now). We don’t have capitalism in the US, we have slid back to what it replaced, which is a class system ruled by autocracy and oligarchy.

I think people often fail to understand just what they are asking the wealthy to give up. Yes, they should give it up, and never should have gotten it. But they have the power to prevent the government from taking it away from them, and that blinds them to the dangers of revolt. For them those changes would feel similar to how the average person would feel about inviting a random homeless person into their home. Sure, most of us could make that work. We probably have the room even if it is a squeeze, and it might even benefit us if they help around the house (my parents used to take in homeless people and give them off jobs in the hotel I grew up in. They usually stayed for a few weeks to a couple of months. They paid for their room and board, gave them free meals at the restaurant next door, and an hourly wage). But most of us will never do that (including me) for a number of reasons. Same with the wealthy. They could give up their profits, they definitely have enough to never need another dime. But the concept is so abhorrent to them they will never even consider it.

I would suggest considering completing the licensing before moving. I have seen just way too many times when people jumped the line in similar ways and it ended up biting them in the rear eventually.

You may end up wanting to return in a couple of decades. Or it could streamline something if you move again to another country. Or you could end up being needed while traveling. Or being offered a position that needs that license for some online work without ever moving back. You could have a death or illness in the family that forces you to return. Or any of a million other reasons that you would want that, and not getting it now could mean eliminating options in the future. I knew a guy who’s wife was a doctor in another Mexico for years before immigrating to the US, and she had to start over from scratch. Just something to consider.

I think they need to update the laws regarding light placement. Right now they have to be placed at the top corners of the hood. So trucks and SUVs are forced to have their headlights positioned at eye level with many smaller cars. It’s absolutely bonkers.

As a dad I can say you better think twice kids!

It can construed as a side step around the protected classes. Which means it could open up the opportunity to be sued. Since there are so very many lawsuits on the books about this, there is a likelihood that there is a precedent that would hurt someone who tried to use this side stepping idea. So most (wise) employers would avoid doing this to avoid the risk. It isn’t black and white.

For me, deciding that everyone around me is an incompetent imbecile has been quite freeing. I don’t care what anyone thinks of me. I am always pleasantly surprised when they do a good job. And I am extra vigilant, take responsibility for the safety of those around me at all times.

Hate me all you want. I’ll burn your eye sockets out with my high beams.

I spent an extreme amount of time aligning my low beams so they don’t point up into people’s eyes. And I drive a fairly low to the ground Hyundai Elantra. I am very careful with those high beams.

I have no idea. It may have even be n a false claim. But I do believe the government can pay claim to a patent if it wants to. Like, if you invented a new kind of bomb, like say you figured out how to make a device that could create a decent amount of antimatter in a second row two, specifically loaded into a warhead, I’m pretty sure the government would take that from you and all your research. And it would be illegal to publish the design.

But I’m no lawyer and am merely guessing.

I knew of someone who had a patent for a device that attached to a forklift to aid in large scale floor remodeling (scraped up old vinyl flooring). The US military used Eminent Domain to steal that patent and use it for military operations (still just remodeling old floors, not even for combat operations).

I don’t know any more specifics about it. (I have a feeling there were more details that would have made that more understandable). Just that they can take a patent if they feel they need to.

I think it is more accurate to fear the transition. Economically speaking, there will be turbulence. We have already seen some companies try to eliminate all their employees and replace them with AI. But we have already been here before. I work in railroading, and in the 80s they all got rid of huge portions of their employees by replacing them with computers. Those people found new jobs, and some of them fell on hard times, while some made out better. There are whole industries that were completely transformed due to technology changes in the past forty years. But it wasn’t the end of the world. It was just turbulent for some.

So for me, I’m not worried, but I am weary. I welcome AI as a new tool for humans to use. I just don’t welcome poor decision making from shareholders and shitty management.

I am religious, and for me he’ll is sort of where we already are. Like, heaven is more a concept of achievement, like being healthy and balanced. Hell is the regret for what could have been, and was always open to you.

As far as the political Christianity that has overtaken republican politics, I think most of it is what Jesus was talking about when He said nothing angers God more than claiming you are a follower of Christ for the vanity. They (the Republican party) do not represent the teachings of Christ in any way at all. Not one part of their platform was taught or encouraged by Christ. (Except a very misunderstood adaptation of race politics that ignores Christ’s actual words regarding it).

Long story. But basically I took a few of my friend’s friends out on rented snowmobiles at night and we all shared a bottle of jägermeister. My friend was a 30 year old mother of two with a husband in jail for violating a restraining order she had on him. Her two friend had recently had a threesome with her. (I chose not to have sex with her months before despite her throwing herself at my 18 yo self). This resulted in them getting into an argument, and I decided we should all leave. On the way back, mistakes were made (the two stopped suddenly in the middle of the trail to argue and I overcorrected to avoid them) and she fell off and hit her head. The two dicks sped off leaving me alone in the woods with an unconscious woman, who’s brain resorted to animalistic screams and flailing arms, holding her head/neck at an angle so she didn’t stop breathing. Some time later we were found, then the cops and paramedics arrived. I was sober by then, so didn’t go to jail. But she got life flighted half a state away and spent a month in the hospital.

I sort of changed my life after this. I don’t really think of this as the moment it all changed. Rather it is other events (finding a belief in God and wanting to become a better person as a result) that precipitated those changes. But truth be told, I probably would have continued to go downhill if not for this incident. Typing that all out made me realize just how messed up my life was back then.

A very long time ago I was a stupid young man. I got a little drunk and ended up putting my friend into a coma for a week (on snowmobiles). That was the last drop I ever drank. It’s been over 25 years, but I will never forget how invincible I felt, and how foolish that feeling feels every time I think back on it. Don’t mess around with this shit. Like ever.