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Comment Re:How about getting rid of the first past the pos (Score 1) 110

All the problems stem from the fact that FPTP encourages people to not 'waste their vote' and vote for a candidate that's more likely to win, rather than the candidate they like the most.

Most of the people I've talked to vote for the candidate they view as "the lesser of two evils". When I point out that they're still voting for evil, they tell me it's better than wasting their vote by voting for someone that has no chance of winning, or worse, not voting at all.

Personally, I think voting for anyone I consider unfit for office is a bigger waste than voting for a 3rd party candidate or not voting at all. Yes, I know - "People like you are why Trump won." Of course, I live in a state that hasn't been carried by a Republican since Reagan, so my "protest" is lost in the clutter. I would prefer to be offered a choice between (or better, among) qualified candidates whose differences revolve around policy. Fat chance, but I keep hoping.

Trump or Hillary? Hillary had two things going for her: it was "her turn"; and "I'm not Trump". Trump had two things: "I'm an asshole, like you!" and "Lock her up!" Enough assholes and Hillary haters turned out to elect Trump.

Trump or Biden? Biden had two thing going for him: "I've been doing this stuff for my entire adult life", and "I'm not Trump". Trump had one thing: "I'm an asshole, like you!" Not enough people hated Biden to keep him from winning despite a huge turnout of assholes who would spend the rest of their lives chanting "It was rigged!"

Trump or Harris? Neither of them could speak coherently for 60 seconds without a teleprompter. Harris had one thing going for her: "I'm not Trump". Trump had one thing: "I'm an asshole, like you!" So the people who thought Harris was even more incoherent than Trump teamed up with the assholes to elect him to his second term.

Comment Re: poor lifestyle or bad choices? (Score 1) 83

How come that philosophy applied to allergens resulted in a rise in peanut allergies, and now official guidance has reversed itself?

Exposure to allergens and exposure to "the brutal horrors of reality" do have something in common -- exposure at an early age reduces sensitivity. For allergens, that's a good thing. For overt brutality, perhaps not so great.

Comment Re:Antivirus? (Score 1) 49

A "literal antivirus monitoring system" should literally monitor antiviruses, shouldn't it? Ok, there's an alternative parse where it should monitor literal antiviruses. Either way, CO2 isn't an antivirus.

Thanks, Captain Pedantic. It was a hacker conference, so the use of "literal antivirus" was just a bit of computer related humor with respect to antivirus software. And as numerous slashdotters mentioned, CO2 levels are a fairly good proxy for airborne pathogens.

Comment Re:banks have deposits to have outflows? (Score 1) 79

I have not kept more than 2 months worth of cash in my bank for 15 years. I find it hard to believe many people keep significant amounts of cash in banks anymore. Are there even balances that could outflow to stablecoins? Who keeps piles of cash in a bank while you could hold stocks, mutual funds, bitcoin etc. Stablecoins aren't a threat at all, unless a new kind of bank appears that replaces trad banks in utility by using a stable coin.

That's nice, but if you think you're typical you're wrong. Most people can't seem to keep that much cash in the bank. The median transaction account balance (savings, checking, and money market accounts combined) is $8,000. The average is much, much higher, which means that the values below median are pretty small, and about 59% of Americans couldn’t cover a $1,000 emergency expense from their savings in 2025. Someone who can't come up with a kilobuck for an emergency isn't going to be playing the stock market or speculating in cryptocurrencies, or taking fancy vacations.

You appear to be doing pretty well, but "2 months of cash" doesn't sound very liquid. Tell me what you do if you want to take a nice expensive vacation like a European river cruise, where air fare, hotels (for the 3-night pre- or post-cruise stay), the cruise itself, and incidental expenses for a couple can easily top $20,000. Do you sell off some investments? If the market's down, do you postpone?

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