> saying they found 'signs' of alien life, and it never is.

Until we get samples back to Earth labs, we can't really tell. It's just speculation at this point.

The arguments over the meteorite AH-84001 are certainly interesting, but we need "fresher" samples.

since the 1970's Viking missions. Nobody will really know until we get samples back on Earth. (I hope we have immunity if a lab leak.)

The Viking landers detected what look like circadian rhythms, where organisms have an internal clock to optimize metabolism to fit daily temperature swings. The pattern of the rhythm fading over time when kept a constant temperature, and after being baked fit the pattern of certain Earth microbes. But "funny chemistry" can't be ruled out. Mars is a tease.

> Large cars, have been around for a long damn time

The big 70's-and-earlier cars were mostly sedans. While it was hard to see short people directly in front, the side-angle view was better than the SUV boats because sedans are lower to the ground. I used to drive a big sedan (not by choice). Thus, not really comparable.

I think you mean Detroit & Big Oil lobbied & bribed the gov't to make fuel rules that favor building big vehicles to keep foreign SUV competition out.

It's called "crony capitalism".

My 4-cylinder SUV has a big blind-spot at the edges of the front window, almost a foot wide. I realize it needs a thick roll-bar there, but such a bar shouldn't be any wider than say 3 inches, 3.5 with a cover over it. Part of the clutter is devoted to the side mirrors, but many cars put the stem lower than the mirror itself; not this car. Dumb design.

As far as tall hoods, it's probably a macho esthetics thing. People are dying for male vanity. 'Murica!

Agreed. Also, nice to see another 3-digit UID user still on here!

[reaches for walker to stand up]

Trump = "Undemocratic Socialist"

I had one breakthrough DMT experience where I saw 'the machine elves' (I just saw what I describe as fast-moving fractals that I 'felt' were beckoning to me); but, we have matching experiences w/the other primary psychedelics: I only had relatively minor on-top visual distortions with even the largest doses of LSD (1500+ mcg) or mushrooms.

That said, everyone is different. I know that some of my friends absolutely lost their fucking minds on a few tabs of LSD and, purportedly, experienced wild hallucinations that I have to trust were real to them but haven't ever experienced myself.

Big-Brother-NIMBYism: "Spy on those other people*, not ME!"

* Who have less political bribing power

After the buses return to the depot, the transportation authority would archive the regular video footage on a local server for up to five years.

Why the hell five years?

It's not mutually exclusive. They fluff each other.

and die for Bibi

lets the other side control when to turn it off. If they flake or go rogue, you are left holding the bag.

Here is a version that used floppy drives, hard drives, and flatbed scanners:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

I would say "Mein Leben!", but in this case, it should be "Sein Leben!"