San Diego is basically where I spent half my childhood, easily one of my favorite spots, honestly a place I could totally see myself settling down in forever. Grandpa didn't say much about how things were right after the war, all I know is they stripped him of everything he owned, so he actually sank his own boat himself and just swam back just to make sure those thieves didn't get their hands on it.
It’s the exact same story over in Trieste. You’ve got a city absolutely packed with Chinese people, yet nobody’s actually died out there. They’ve basically staged a takeover of all the local shops and they just keep expanding, which isn't even surprising when you consider how disloyal they are as competitors. When you start letting foreigners into the country, you really ought to get a handle on their habits first instead of sitting around crying about it later, but now all that multicultural nonsense is finally blowing up in their faces.
Melissa Rivera5 said:It’s what they call DNA testing. If we set aside people with borderline IQs—you know, those who can actually function in society—we’re left with people who are, honestly, just total waste. Yeah, you heard me right. Absolute waste. I mean, someone with an IQ under 50 definitely isn't capable of looking after themselves or doing anything useful in any capacity. Personally, I wouldn't let that happen to me, and if there was ever even a tiny chance, I'd choose to euthanize a child like that. I've seen plenty of situations where kids like that end up causing way more psychological issues than they're worth; maybe some people here could deal with it, but I don't think I could ever accept a child like that. I just wanted to point out that this kind of artificial selection could easily be justified by natural selection. Honestly, the only reason so many of these people are still around today is because of modern technology. Just imagine how things were back in the day? People used to be much stronger and more resilient simply because the weak members didn't make it. I guess I'm basically suggesting a sort of mild eugenics, which I know is still a pretty controversial topic.
Don't sweat it. God wouldn't be bold enough to hand a kid like that to someone like you.
Pat Martino 😍 , guitar 😍 Jonathan Morales79 😘 I was honestly in such a foul mood earlier, but there’s really no point in staying pissed off when things turn out like this, so thanks.🙂
I can. And honestly, don't go giving me any guilt trips because there’s just no reason for it. If I'm able to step in and help out, I definitely will—though let's be real, that depends entirely on who's asking since helping someone out with a quick favor is a whole different ballgame than committing my entire life to some massive project—but if for whatever reason I decide it's a no or I just can't swing it, I'll simply say "sorry, I can't make it work" and leave it at that without feeling the need to give a whole lecture on why.
Edward Green said:Yeah, and honestly, the worst part is that even the people skipping deodorant and bras entirely are gonna kick the bucket too.
tough luck.
but hey, at least we won't be stinking up the place while we're still breathing, so I'll take that win.
😁 The best part about all those "natural" types who refuse to use deodorant is that they’ll probably check out way sooner anyway, because let's face it, life expectancy isn't exactly hitting 40 years in Africa like it is when you're living in a polluted corner of Europe where everyone's coasting toward 75.🤔 😁
What kind of black liquid are we even talking about here? How can you be so sure it’s actually a "liquid"? For all we know, someone could play dumb and tell you to go take a leak just to mess with you.
Honestly, this whole thing is written so vaguely it's hard to follow.
I have a close friend who deals with major water retention issues, and it isn't even like she's getting localized edema or anything—she just wakes up and finds out she's gained like nine pounds by the evening. I've seen it happen with my own eyes. It's not like she has these weird swollen spots; she just looks significantly heavier from her face down to her toes by the end of the day. She went to see doctors and everything came back perfectly normal on the tests. To make matters worse, her symptoms get way more intense during her PMS, making her feel twice her actual size. It's not even real weight gain because it just vanishes by morning, just like it appeared the night before. The poor woman is incredibly frustrated by the whole ordeal, which is totally understandable, but right now she's just fighting a losing battle against it.
She claimed he was the one educating her and handing her books. Just try to wrap your head around being a ten-year-old girl locked away in some basement. You have no clue what day it is, you have no idea what time it is, you’re just totally alone. Your kidnapper is also the only person providing water and food—basically the only reason you’re still breathing. Can you even begin to fathom what goes through your mind when you're starving and parched, wondering if he’s ever coming back or if you're just going to die in that cellar? Would you even be happy to see him when he finally showed up? There are a million ways to break someone's spirit, and honestly, only an idiot thinks they're somehow immune to it. Then, as you grow up with absolutely nothing to occupy your mind except obsessing over your captor, you realize there's a way to manipulate the situation. Suddenly, you aren't starving or thirsty anymore, and you might even get some books. And then people actually blame you for that. Because you figured out how to survive. Then you read in the news about how you "confessed" to this or that. What exactly is a victim supposed to confess to? For the love of God.
I think you’re hitting the nail on the head there, John Hill. In a nightmare scenario like that, you have to assume the victim is basically tethered to their captor, trying to suss out his weaknesses just to gain some leverage over her situation. So what, we’re supposed to blame her? For developing survival instincts or getting good at manipulation? That guy absolutely wrecked her psyche. People love to play armchair detective and ask why she didn't just run. But honestly, I want to flip the script and ask them if they think a woman trapped in an abusive marriage—someone who works, has her own money, and can move around freely—is suddenly "stupid" just because she stays with her abuser. This girl didn't have anyone else; he was her entire universe. Look, I'm no psychologist, but it's pretty clear most people have a totally warped perception of what a victim actually goes through. If she ended up becoming somewhat manipulative, isn't that just a direct consequence of what he did to her? She had to play that game just to survive or to minimize the damage.
shadowowl9 I don't buy her story for a second, honestly—I’m convinced the whole thing is full of holes and probably isn't even hers. That said, I'm not questioning whether she was a victim, because being kidnapped at ten years old makes you a victim, period. Maybe he was actually "nice" to her, maybe there wasn't any physical abuse or assault, but isn't stripping away a child's freedom bad enough? For instance, I can never wrap my head around why an educated adult woman would ever just let her husband beat her; to me, that's completely nonsensical, though I wouldn't dare claim she wasn't his victim. Everyone likes to pretend they know exactly how they’d react in her shoes, but I think we’re all full of it. I consider myself pretty sharp and resourceful, yet I remember one time where fear hit me so hard I reacted in a way that totally caught me off guard. My legs went numb, my heart started racing, and I was basically frozen like a deer in headlights. That’s why I don't think anyone can truly claim they know what "logical" looks like in an illogical situation, and if her story sounds sketchy, well, that's just the truth.
So how exactly would you even attempt to escape a windowless, locked room? The truth is, it’s terrifying how many grown women endure abusers for years, and the second anyone suggests they might bear some responsibility, people immediately start screaming that you don't know what you're talking about. Since when is a ten-year-old girl expected to be some kind of Xena warrior princess? That fact that she knew right away she was stronger—that conviction is probably the one thing that kept her going. She likely had chances to run later on, but by the time he actually gave her an opening, her brain was probably so completely washed that she was totally dependent on him. He was the only person she talked to, so to her, he was basically God. It's like how some women in the Middle East actually believe those bars on their windows are there for their own protection. To me, a cage is a cage, plain and simple.
I’m really not one to throw around accusations like that because, honestly, I haven't the slightest clue how anyone is even supposed to act after surviving a nightmare like that. And frankly, I hope none of us ever have to find out firsthand. I just can't get past the fact that she was only ten years old when she was snatched, so hearing people drone on about some ten-year-old manipulating an adult over several years sounds way too much like those creepy excuses pedophiles use when they claim their victims provoked them. As far as I'm concerned, there's absolutely no way a ten-year-old child could be held responsible for anything in that situation. I don't claim to be any kind of psychology expert, but it feels to me like people are just judging her because she actually acts and speaks like a normal human being.
shadowowl9 If she was kidnapped at an older age, sure, maybe—but a ten-year-old? No way. Kids are wired to be chaotic, to run wild, hang out with their friends, and slam doors just to drive their parents crazy. I’m just not buying it. And honestly, if her story feels off, it’s probably for the exact reason Harold Adams5 pointed out: it isn't even her own story, it's just a script she was coached to recite. She acts all calm and composed, but look at how hard she's clenching her fists until her knuckles turn white.
shadowowl9 What are you even doubting here? That she wasn't kidnapped? You really think a ten-year-old kid cooked up some master plan to pull this off? The whole media circus surrounding this is honestly nauseating because they just turn a tragedy into a spectacle to sell more papers. It's obvious the girl is smart, but what's there to criticize—the fact that she actually survived? I don't think anyone can truly wrap their head around being in her shoes, but it makes total sense that someone in that situation would eventually "bond" with their kidnapper just to stay sane. When you ask why she didn't leave a note or some kind of signal, you're asking from the perspective of someone who grew up in a totally normal environment. For her, that monster was the only person she had to talk to, so obviously he brainwashed her, and I bet he was extremely careful to make sure she didn't say anything that could compromise him back home. I get why you're skeptical, and I'm sure she probably had chances to run away before, but when you spend years as a child interacting with nothing but one single person, your survival instincts work differently. I saw this segment on Fox about some maniac who kidnapped women where one victim just sat in the car while he murdered another woman in the woods. Everyone asks why she didn't bolt, but I can totally see how someone could be too paralyzed by fear to even attempt an escape.
Arthur Ruiz2 Look, they’re obviously entitled to their own opinions, just like I’m entitled to think they’re nothing but uneducated idiots, regardless of what degree they're waving around. It’s honestly like if I flew out to Venice, took one quick glance at the sights for a single afternoon, and then had the nerve to claim there’s absolutely nothing worth seeing; even spending three days straight hanging out in Times Square wouldn't be enough for me to get the full picture. And honestly, you were better off not engaging with them because there's really no point in trying to reason with people like that—it’s exactly like when someone tries to tell me that Verdi was a bad composer, and frankly, I have zero interest in debating music with someone like that.
Tyler Grant76👍 I mean, honestly? A friend of mine is a doctor working over in Rome, and during one visit from some American colleagues after they’d been out touring the ancient ruins, the guys actually had the nerve to say the whole place looks half-ruined and wondered what there was even worth seeing there.🤣 🤣 It’s just like that guy who moved back from America and claimed we should just tear down the Peristyle to make room for a shopping mall—now that would be what you call modern architecture, right?😬
I am definitely not going to be the one to tell you that there are numbers way beyond 21 😍 😳 😁
😲 Word on the street is there's even a Yeti out there, and while people say only a handful have actually laid eyes on him, that's the legend floating around 😬
Before my first kid, my period cramps were pretty much mid, but honestly, while I was on the pill, everything was smooth sailing since the pill is basically 🙏 for me, but man, once I stopped taking them, it was absolute chaos. It’s always that second day that hits me like a freight train, just pure misery, though I found that keeping my stomach warm and getting into a kneeling position—head down, hips up, with my man's hand resting on my belly—really helped 😍. On those days, I also make sure to eat way less than usual because that actually made the biggest difference for me. I'm breastfeeding right now so my cycle hasn't returned yet, but I am seriously curious to see how it's going to go this time around. I've never dealt with PMS at all, I'm totally chill before my period, no bloating or anything, but that second day of the actual cycle is just 😱