Posts by Jonathan Smith12

crimsonranger3 said:Goddammit. I am not infected. There have been three cases in my city—one recovered, so that leaves two. I have a contact at the hospital, so I know for a fact there are only two active cases in a city of 50,000. And because of this, I can't even get in my car and drive out to some village 6.2 miles further out to enjoy nature, go for a walk, or ride my bike. Why? Because of a couple of Infected Washington, D.C. residents who lost their minds over an earthquake and falling facades and decided to flee? To hell with the Government and all of you supporting this. Restricting the ENTIRE country just because of a few specialists in Washington, D.C.? Give me a break.

And it won't be two weeks; this nonsense is going to drag on for two months. Since last Monday, I haven't been around people because I respect the rules. I haven't hung out with friends because I respect the rules. And frankly, I'm losing my mind because I am not some antisocial cactus that can survive two weeks without human contact. Even if I could manage two weeks, it wouldn't stop at two. You'll see what happens when people snap due to these restrictions being rolled out en masse just for Washington, D.C. They're isolating the whole country because of them. Absolute bullshit.

I followed the measures as they were introduced, even though I thought they were excessive. Now, it has reached the point where I am physically sick with anxiety over whether I will catch the virus and die, versus the desperate need to just leave the house and be with other PEOPLE. Humans are SOCIAL beings, not moles.

The virus will pass, but this behavior? This will never end.🙏🙏

This guy claims he has "inside info" and knows there are only two cases in a city of 50,000... well, you've certainly earned my deepest 🙏

Why don't you check the official stats and tell me how many people are actually infected in my town? 🙏

Joseph Taylor11 said:... which is definitely not going to happen just by moving around WITHIN your own city....

☕

But honestly, let it happen! If the virus isn't spreading because of it, then I suppose that’s the whole point, right? ☕☕☕☕

Anyway, I realize I'm drifting quite far off the main topic here, but I truly feel that anyone with even a shred of common sense has already grasped the situation, and frankly, those who haven't probably never will.

Anthony Jackson2 said:But that’s exactly the point—you can wander through Washington, D.C. and pass ten thousand strangers without a single interaction, yet someone from Ann Arbor can't even commute to work or run errands for their grandparents in Washington, D.C. or Columbus without everything falling apart.

What's the actual point then?

Please, let's not talk nonsense; any legitimate employer who isn't operating under the table could have secured passes for their staff without any trouble at all...

The issue is that certain isolated incidents have completely broken the system, because honestly, who has the time to spend hours verifying whether Matt, Steve, or Josephine are telling the truth when people's very livelihoods depend on those passes?

Regarding that gentleman from the potato farm and his supposed ten thousand visits—look, I live in the city, and I certainly wouldn't just open my door to anyone, but life in the countryside is different; the gates stay open and whoever wants to walk in, walks in....

I truly feel that if I actually have to sit here and explain this logic to you, then we've reached a point where there's really no point in continuing the conversation.

wearypilot34 said:I agree, this whole thing is pointless. They aren't even cracking down on people violating self-isolation or huge crowds, yet they're slapping bans on law-abiding citizens.

I honestly don't understand how it isn't obvious to you by now that, at this stage, every single one of us is technically a violator of isolation,
how there isn't a soul left who can say for certain whether they are carrying the virus
and the reality is that everyone simply has to act as though they are infected

Jose Scott3 said:Oh sure, you'll just guarantee everyone else behaves—like someone heading out to their ranch or a cabin won't stop by the ExxonMobil station, then hit the grocery store, then swing by cousin number one's place, then maybe cousin number two's...

The whole point is to kill off any kind of social contact, not just restrict walking around. There’s zero guarantee that someone actually out and about isn't going to grab an opportunity to hang out.

And being a "responsible individual" doesn't mean squat. The last two weeks have already proven there are way too many people who couldn't care less.

Well, we’ve gone ahead and provided our response to that as well, haven't we?
I honestly find myself struggling to wrap my head around just how profoundly disconnected so many people are from reality lately; it’s truly staggering, isn't it?
It honestly baffles me how some people will fixate on one tiny, insignificant little detail—something almost microscopic in the grand scheme of things—and just absolutely lose their minds over it. They’ll latch onto that one minor point with such intensity, refusing to let it go, and they just keep circling back to it like it’s the most important thing in the world, completely ignoring the actual breadth and scope of the entire situation. It's like they develop this total tunnel vision where nothing else matters anymore, and they just won't budge.

nimbleharbor10 said:Exactly. What kind of threat does a man pose just by digging in his own dirt out in a rural area? It is sheer idiocy to prevent him from doing that.
My take is this: someone drafted this in an incredibly poor and imprecise manner. They are banning far too much, and the language is vague and lacks any legitimate justification. You should regulate gatherings, not basic movement.

And what about our gentleman farmer? Is he supposed to drive out to a neighbor's place in the rural area to pick up organic fertilizer, or buy seedlings from a local nursery, or maybe even drop off some supplies to his relatives...

Oh, don't make things more complicated than they need to be; honestly, just stay home for a couple of weeks, read your books, eat, drink, enjoy yourself... whenever these ridiculous thoughts start spinning in your head, just remember that there are people on the front lines right now, risking their lives through their selfless work.

Joseph Taylor11 said:A bit? 😉

If they’re going to restrict movement, they need to be crystal clear about it: why, how, and for how long.

Does anyone actually have an answer to any of those questions?

I'm still sitting here waiting to hear or read exactly how long this measure is supposed to last.

☕

Honestly, my grandmother is asking the exact same thing, wondering when we'll finally see the end of this.

You might as well just call up FEMA and ask them directly, because let's be real, they aren't exactly doing much anyway. 🍿

Quincy:

Patrick Cook As if I could ever say enough about this particular subject without wandering off into a dozen different side quests, but here we go again! It’s funny, really, how certain things just stick in your mind like a catchy song you can't shake, even when you know you should probably be focusing on something more productive, though my productivity levels have always been a bit... let's call them "subjective." Anyway, what was I getting at? Oh, right—what was being said. I mean, honestly, why is everyone acting so shocked by this? Over the last thirty years, they’ve been churning out laws and regulations at such a relentless pace that you can practically hear the ink drying, all designed so that anyone can interpret them however they damn well please just to ensure the government maintains an even tighter grip on everything than it already does. Now that we’ve found ourselves staring down the barrel of a genuine crisis, where we desperately need someone to step up and draft some clear, precise, and actually functional regulations, I can't help but feel a profound sense of skepticism because, frankly, it seems like there isn't a single soul left with the actual competence required to pull off such a monumental task.

Well, if you ask me, we’d probably need something like four million police officers to keep pace with four million citizens—though, heaven help us, it would only work if they were actually honest people, which feels like quite the tall order these days. If we could somehow manage to recruit a force that wasn't looking for a kickback at every turn, then maybe, just maybe, our regulations wouldn't be such a complete and utter mess.

It’s been about twenty days of this crisis now, and honestly, the way they’ve rolled out the measures has been somewhat manageable, allowing us all to adjust gradually without losing our minds entirely. Most employers and government agencies have handled the transitions quite smoothly, which is a relief, really. But, oh boy, there’s just one glaring issue that the decision-makers in Washington, D.C. seem to completely overlook in their grand calculations. They act as if life just pauses perfectly when a new mandate drops, failing to realize that on the very first day a regulation hits, Matthew might be stuck driving his sick mother all the way to Chicago, or perhaps Steve suddenly finds himself without a babysitter for the kids, or even Mary has to scramble because she already committed to a wedding date months ago. Life doesn't just stop being complicated just because a new rule is signed into law.

I honestly feel like people just had nothing better to do during the lockdown, because the second that official mandate dropped, everyone absolutely lost their minds. It was like a stampede toward the local CVS or Target, with folks frantically scrambling to hoard everything from face masks and hand sanitizer to those little portable spray bottles, all because they suddenly had far too much free time on their hands.

Joseph Taylor11 said:So—is it the FEMA headquarters? Or is it something else entirely?

Well, you see, it usually works like this—every local sheriff or department head basically picks their own command center, which ends up being run by a doctor, or perhaps a firefighter, or just some official from the city hall... honestly, there are so many different theories floating around out there, you can hardly keep track of them all.🙏

I mean, you have people out there actually hunting down paperwork to try and claim some plot of land out in the rural area that doesn't even exist, when they could probably be doing something much more productive, like planting potatoes or whatever, or maybe just telling a landlord, "Look, my spouse and I are both working, so could we just get a verification for my aunt who’s coming over to help us watch the kids..."

Honestly, what kind of people are we dealing with? It’s a miracle the government hasn't completely lost its mind yet given this behavior.

tessaa said:Over at the CZ (well, at least where I am...), they’ve actually halted the issuance of permits and certifications altogether... apparently, some new directives are trickling down from above.

It is just—honestly, it's mind-boggling.

The issue isn't that the CZ issues those certificates, but rather that they're handled by the local emergency management headquarters that every single town and municipality is required to maintain.🤔

Nicholas Watson said:Well, you'll finally find out today exactly what those NFL Ultras were attempting to pull down in Savannah.
I’ve been sitting here thinking about the whole ordeal—this ongoing, somewhat desperate attempt to pull our people out from under the heavy thumb of the police. It’s a heavy thing to carry, really, and I find myself wandering through these thoughts quite often lately, wondering if we’re actually making any headway or if we’re just shouting into a void while they tighten their grip. There is something profoundly unsettling about seeing folks caught in that machinery, and my heart truly goes out to them; it feels like we are all collectively trying to navigate this labyrinthine struggle to secure their release and restore some semblance of justice. 🙏
Well, I have to say, hats off to you—truly, a job well done. It really makes you wonder, though, what the Code would have to say about a move like this? 🤷

I’m honestly not entirely certain, though if I recall correctly, the Code itself suggests that one shouldn't bother answering questions about the Code when they come from people who clearly lack the capacity to understand it, so you likely won't be getting an answer from me. 🤔

The solution to how we fund nonprofits and religious institutions is actually quite straightforward, if you think about it,
it would be to pass a law allowing every single worker in the United States to decide for themselves which specific charity or church receives a portion of their tax dollars intended for such purposes.

Once that kind of legislation is finally on the books, I suspect we’ll see the revenue for the Catholic Church skyrocket,
while those constant agitators—groups like GONG, Documenta, and Facing the Past—will simply vanish from the scene, likely driven out by the influence of Fekal tribun and the coverage on stations like WNYC.😍

Paul Young5 said:Those little critters—muskrats, nutria, or whatever you want to call those river rodents—they dig these tunnels, and let me tell you, those tunnels are the absolute worst enemy for levees; once the water gets a hold of them, it's game over. For a levee to actually work properly, it needs time to settle and compact, which takes quite a while, so instead of just dumping loose dirt in front of the water, you really ought to be using sandbags. Honestly, anyone who genuinely believes you can just "defend one side of a river" with nothing but an excavator—and please, don't take this personally, I'm just speaking my mind—is sorely mistaken. And if you actually want to defend anything effectively, you need to understand hydrology, because by the time a river starts overflowing its banks, it’s already far too late.

Now, look, I know exactly what I'm talking about here,
those tunnels created by rodents have to have an outlet that runs from the river through the levee to the dry side, and that's where the water flows through, widening the hole via erosion. Once that hole gets wide enough, the whole damn dam just erodes away—it breaches.
If we had focused on protecting the levee—that is to say, preventing those erosion holes from expanding—the levee would still be standing.
I do agree with part of what you said, though, regarding the fact that once a breach actually occurs, there's no saving it, because at that point, nobody can stop the sheer pressure of the water. All you can really do is use excavators to dig diversion channels so the incoming floodwater flows into the areas you've designated to be flooded, which might eventually help mitigate the overall damage.

The holes dug by mice or crayfish are actually the most dangerous things for a dam, and that's precisely why they sometimes have to treat the water in reservoirs—like that one near the old site—specifically to prevent crayfish from digging those channels right into the levee structure.
That particular dam is made of clay, which is basically a playground for creatures looking to dig holes, making the situation incredibly precarious. Back when those insurgents mined the dam, they actually managed to prevent massive erosion because crews were able to immediately get in there with excavators and dump trucks to fill in the eroded areas.
So, you see, it actually *is* possible to save a dam with an excavator if you act fast enough.☕

Alexander Miller14 said:Now, please understand, I’m not trying to play defense for anyone here—I have absolutely nothing to do with American Water, nor the dam authorities, nor the government, or any of those folks... but let's not be naive and fall into that classic, old-fashioned American trap where, whenever a disaster strikes, we just start pointing fingers at everyone we think might be responsible. Do you really believe this all happened by pure accident, like some stroke of bad luck? To be honest, these levees were engineered based on average water levels from the last hundred years... but what we are seeing right now is anything but average:

"The river reached flows of three to four thousand cubic meters per second, while the other tributary hit two to three, and eventually, the Mississippi River downstream from the city reached a flow of six thousand cubic meters per second—which is actually fifty percent higher than the highest recorded flow since the turn of the 20th century,"

At this point, there isn't much else to do but pull together and help out however we can, whether it's personally showing up, making phone calls, or donating food; simply sitting around pointing fingers isn't going to fix a single thing.

Well, why don't you try explaining to me how the Mississippi River went through the levee instead of over it?

In all honesty,
how is it that you seem so incredibly well-informed about all these specific flow rates, yet you remain completely oblivious to the most crucial fact of all: how this flood actually started?

How much longer is it going to be in America before someone is actually held accountable for anything?

Then, if you're so sure, explain to me why there are 1,000 Special Forces troops hovering around Yankee Stadium with helicopters just three hours after the levee breached—unless, of course, their actual job was just to protect certain corrupt officials and US Soccer from being heckled by angry crowds?
Wouldn't it have been a bit more logical if they had been guarding the levee instead?

Gregory Hill3 said:thank goodness there isn't a massive group of Americans living on the right side of the Mississippi River who fought for both sides during the war :rolleyes

Well, clearly, we’re expecting some local contractor to just show up with a backhoe and a shovel, see that things are flooding near Unknown, pull out a green card, head straight to the border, and suddenly start defending Unknown and Unknown instead...
I just can't wrap my head around how on earth a random contractor would manage to sort out all the transport permits and work visas for another country in just three days...☕
Or do you honestly believe a guy with a backhoe and a shovel would just sneak across the border into Canada through some open field on the black market?😉

Bradley Davis69 said:It’s just one of those things about this country—when we actually need to be issuing warnings and getting people ready for massive flooding, the headlines are all about "hooligans" being the main story because they caused a match to get suspended... (of course, you also have the news about some socialite making a comment...) then suddenly this morning, the front pages are overflowing with flood news, talking about how a thousand people are stuck on rooftops waiting for rescue... the actual game gets pushed aside, and instead, the focus shifts to how much we lack the manpower to defend against the floods... yet, right now, we’re supposed to bring the football back into the spotlight and ask ourselves why on earth a thousand police officers are assigned to secure a single soccer match, while by tomorrow morning, that same number of people could be fearing for their lives... (that’s just in one town, and I can only imagine where else people are at risk, not to mention their families worrying about them...) what is the government even doing? They publish the number you can call to donate to $2.00, and they were so thorough they even made sure to include sales tax in the price (thanks a lot, guys)... yes, sales tax... I truly wonder if any of those officials were standing on a rooftop this morning; I'd love to know what the sales tax would look like when it comes to saving a politician's life.
Why do fans always get the blame for stopping games? Why are they the ones filling up the headlines? Why are a thousand cops guarding a stadium for one person, while in the Midwest we're short on people? And then there’s these folks charging sales tax on humanitarian aid...
And who is going to help the people in the Midwest? It’ll be regular people from all over America, sending money; the hooligans are actually the ones publicly calling for food and supply drives, and some have even had the guts to volunteer personally to go out and provide aid to the Midwest (though they’ll probably want to run a background check on them before letting them on the bus)...
We’ll push through this somehow; we'll get through it, and people will rise up. And just when they think they’ve finally stood on their feet, these "Sales Tax Scammers" will hit them with something else entirely, and they won't even see it coming... but before that happens, let's talk about the hooligans—what exactly are they supposed to go to the Midwest to help with if the state isn't helping... and then people scream at them! Fine, next time, let's send 2000 police officers instead... let's see if the West Side of Yankee Stadium doesn't erupt even harder when the militia starts marching.

Our beautiful, broken silhouette

If I try to build on what you said, I'll just end up looking like a know-it-all again...

Flooding has already been hitting Canada for two or three days now; even middle schoolers learn that the rivers in Canada flow north into the Mississippi River...
And now, you're telling me we couldn't prepare in three days and defend just the left bank of the Mississippi River (since the right bank is in Canada)...
So, essentially, we were only supposed to defend one side of the river, and we couldn't even manage that.....

Poor country, and God knows who is leading you. ☕

What if, just for the final round, everyone decided to stand together on the bleachers and then walk out as one single unit after a few minutes... would anyone even have the guts to censor a story like that?☕

Is there actually a single journalist left in this entire country with enough backbone to look the Police Commissioner, the head of security at Madison Square Garden, and the leader of the Democratic Party right in the eye and ask: "Why is it that you're only tightening the screws and checking IDs on the East Side? Why aren't we seeing the same level of scrutiny, the same sweeps, and the same arrests over on the West Side, the South Side, or up North to see who's actually sitting where?"🤷

vividorca10 said:The whole fan culture here in America is just fading away by the second, and yet, here you all are, latching onto five different threads just to pick a fight with some Mexican who’ll probably go grab a coffee later and brag to his buddies about how he totally owned the patriots on this forum. Honestly, bravo to you all!! ☕

So, what exactly is your grand solution then? Are we supposed to organize a charity drive or just put out a press release? 🤷

Jeremy Ramirez55 said:You’re being incredibly naive—just a plain old dreamer. Calling the Republican Party "nation-builders"? That’s a stretch. Honestly, if it hadn't been for that aggressive Mexican policy built on the foundations of SANU and that psychopath Slobodan Milošević, who knows what would have become of our former state. This country was forged by those who actually fought and bled for it, and the Republican Party was simply a consequence, a necessary evil we had to deal with on the path toward establishing our own sovereign nation. By the way, I really wonder what America would look like today if Babić and Martić had just rolled over and accepted the Republican Z4 plan. We would have ended up with a Mexican state within a state. So, please, save those fairy tales about the Republican Party being the architects of the nation for your children.

So, according to this logic, the credit for the American state goes to SANU, Milošević, and aggressive Mexican policy, rather than the political movement that was actually leading the country at the time.
When are you all going to come out from under that rock? ☕

Think about it: which came first, the Republican Party or the American state itself?

The primary architect and most consistent advocate for the Z-4 plan was actually the American ambassador, Peter Galbraith. And since when was he a member of the Republican Party?😍

As far as I am aware, the representatives of the Republican Party were the ones who voted in the US Congress to declare an independent America, while others refused to cast their vote—unless, of course, you happen to have some secret information I haven't heard yet?

And from what I recall, alongside the very first police officers, the first armed citizens who stood on the front lines to defend the American border—mostly reserve police—were largely members of the Republican Party. Or perhaps you know something different?

Just so there is absolutely no confusion here, the Republican Party as it exists today is light-years away from the Reagan-era GOP.