Posts by Lisa Chase3

@nimbletiger4 😉

Cool vintage stash, though I'm leaning towards that second one—the .38 nickel-plated with the mother-of-pearl grips (purely for looks, I guess);

...This you can trust!

dustymarlin10 said:Yeah.
You want to know what the real kicker is?
The fact that most people are just sheep, cheering this on and practically begging for even more restrictions on their rights.
And then there's my neighbor, who spends her entire day hovering by the window, waiting to see who steps outside just so she can call the cops on them—it's unbelievable.
The virus is definitely the smaller problem here.

So they aren't just urban legends. 🤦

I "love" neighbors who (mostly "who" ) "know everything, hear everything, see everything," whose door handles are greasy from constant spying, and who crack the door open just a millimeter when someone walks by, then snap it shut.

As for "bans"—that’s a super slippery slope. Rules gotta be clearly defined and, like, LOGICAL, applied to everyone equally, not just "some people" who have connections or know how to play the system. And obviously, "everything according to the Constitution and the Law and all those amendments," which basically change every five minutes anyway. One amendment works yesterday, another one hits tomorrow, and suddenly everything is "legal." But what kind of values are we even using in these totally insane emergency situations? (Is this an emergency, or just crazy?) Laws aren't carved in stone, and if heaven forbid some total apocalypse actually hits, you won't even have time to read them...☕

Bottom line is—I don't know how much the "higher-ups" or whoever was involved prepared for all this, but most people didn't even think this scenario was possible until recently. I guess there's gonna be discrepancies. If they "knew," and they were the ones who could have "known," then they started acting too late. And honestly, patrols between houses don't do squat. People are out walking, biking, acting like it's a beautiful spring day. ☕

#getoutside - #stayhome = unless I'm crazy, I'm losing it (my favorite catchphrase for certain jobs, or basically any job dealing with people and all the daily life nonsense we deal with.)

Elizabeth Lewis10 said:This isn't exactly on-topic for this thread, I know, but does anyone actually know what the drill is when it comes to heading to the ER?
My aunt has been dealing with these absolutely unbearable pains in her leg for two days now, but she keeps repeating this whole mantra about how you can't just show up at the emergency room whenever you feel like it... Honestly, I'm halfway tempted to just shove her in the car and drive us straight to the hospital.
We live in the same city, and neither of us is showing any COVID symptoms or anything like that. Can I just pull up with her without calling ahead or following some specific protocol, or is there more to it?
Thanks

If you can get a hold of them directly, maybe just ask? Explain the situation and they'll tell you what to do, hopefully. If you can't reach them, just show up with her and try to see "what can be done" on the spot. I don't really know what the rules are right now, just speaking generally.

Joseph Taylor11 said:I'm not being sarcastic. 🙂 🙂
If you look back at my previous posts, you'll see where my head is at... but this whole situation with how they're issuing tickets? That takes the absurdity to a whole new level.

I saw the "direction," but honestly, if you're skimming or if too many posts just melt together in your brain, you lose track of what you were even thinking. 🙂

Joseph Taylor11 said:It's not about what they did, it's about what they *might* do... or even just the possibility that they *could*... 🙄

I was just reading the first part of what @Lisa Chase3 wrote... honestly, she hit the nail right on the head. This is exactly the kind of thing the mainstream media needs to be broadcasting! ☕

Gonna ask carefully here—you being sarcastic or what? 🙂 Honestly, I don't even know anymore. With all this absolute madness going on, I guess nobody even knows what anyone else is thinking.

velvetstag5 said:This is an excellent drill for a much more serious situation down the road.

Viruses are constantly mutating.

My heart goes out to those affected, but honestly, this barely touches anyone here.

...

It’s actually a solid lesson and a chance for society to hit the reset button.

People haven't really stepped foot outside their bubbles for quite a while now.

Most folks have gotten way too caught up in soap opera drama.

Worrying about relationship issues or

stock market fluctuations while sipping whiskey in a suit.

Spot on. Everything’s just one big consumerist rat race now, like some mindless fever dream where nobody cares about the cost. Now people are finally starting to wonder—since they're panicking over flour, yeast, or rolls of TP, or even hand sanitizer (because apparently everyone just realized they actually need to wash their hands, and now the shelves at CVS are totally empty). I don't have any masks, obviously—couldn't find any, or maybe I just forgot to ask at the Walgreens when I heard they had a shipment (which probably got snatched up instantly anyway). Every time I went looking, it was a no from everyone, so that's why I said they *need* to distribute them to anyone without them! But not these useless little scraps... honestly, those could just be used as rags for my own laundry. We need actual professional-grade masks.

Melissa Collins3 said:But seriously, why even bother with all that logistics? There's absolutely no need to be out there delivering anything. We should just lock ourselves away with maybe 40 pounds of flour and a massive stack of toilet paper. Don't open the windows, don't step onto the porch. Give it a few months and that virus will definitely be gone. If someone doesn't make it through the interim, well, that's on them—they clearly didn't stock up on enough flour. And if they don't survive after that? Honestly, what can you do? At least the virus is dead. We can just do it all over again come autumn.

Is anyone here actually thinking straight?

Back in 2020, in a supposedly democratic nation, we were practically writing formal petitions just to be (re)permitted to buy groceries, to drop off food for struggling parents, to show up for work, or to pick up prescriptions at the pharmacy... It feels like the virus ended up being one of our smaller concerns along the way..

Nah, or maybe just a few people, but honestly? Everyone’s just making up their own rules anyway. Nothing you can even do about it. It’s just whoever's holding all the cards who calls the shots.

Matthew Jackson2 said:To be perfectly honest, I can't quite tell if you're actually pushing for tighter government oversight or if you're just advocating for basic non-discrimination and consistency in how rules are applied.

In any case, if one truly wanted to account for every single factor, the only logical solution would be a total, nationwide lockdown—the kind where only essential services remain active to triage critical cases and distribute food and medicine. But even then, we run right back into the same issue of fragmented thinking, because you still have to ask whether those very workers can actually maintain safety protocols without becoming super-spreaders themselves through constant contact with the public. Furthermore, while a concept like that might work for a localized outbreak of a disease with a short incubation period, it's frankly an impossible strategy when dealing with a global pandemic characterized by a long incubation window.

So, yes, we are forced to deal with some level of fragmentation. However, any such measures ought to be rooted in what yields the maximum impact with the absolute minimum of collateral damage, and in my estimation, this current measure has been a complete failure, especially given how it was rolled out—a sentiment I know is shared by many leading epidemiologists over in Europe.

If you're asking me—idk, maybe both? I guess we were way too slow with the "emergency measures" (not that anyone actually declared a state of emergency! Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think even the President said there was "no need" for an official declaration after the initial scare), like, we should've started around March 1st or 5th at the absolute latest. By the 15th, everyone knew things were getting real globally. If we’d gone full lockdown mode—you know, quarantines, curfews, strictly staying home, hitting people with fines immediately if they were out when they shouldn't be—we might have actually done something. This is just my take, though. I don't really know what the perfect move was from the jump. I mean, we just heard on the news that this thing can kill healthy young people too, and apparently, Boris Johnson is in the ICU, which is wild. Some neighboring countries, especially with politicians acting all nonchalant—looking at you, Italy—totally missed the memo, and by the time they finally snapped out of it and tried to react, it was already too late. And even where they did pull the trigger fast on restrictions, it didn't even stop the spread. Whatever. I don't know enough about this stuff to be sure, but honestly, no matter how you look at it, it's a mess.

I mean, I'd actually prefer some answers to the real questions—like, WHY NOW? Why this year, or late last year? Like, why this specific virus, where did it come from, what's the actual goal, and what kind of mess is being cooked up behind the scenes while the virus just ends up being "collateral damage."

I mean, honestly, the only way to actually handle all this is a total lockdown, I guess.I guess essential services should be the ones grabbing critical cases and hauling food or meds around, but then you hit that wall where maybe they can't even guarantee they won't just spread the virus since they're touching everyone. Like, sure, that kind of setup works for a local outbreak with a short incubation period, but for a global pandemic with a long incubation? Probably not really doable.

Look, we gotta have some kind of budget, I guess. But it should be based on what actually works without causing a total mess. This whole plan feels like a massive fail to me, especially how they're rolling it out—and even those experts over in Poland seem to think it's a joke.

Smart points, I guess, but honestly? Just a ton of questions and guessing, zero actual answers. They should've just gone full lockdown when... I don't even know... maybe? They knew what was coming when it was still just happening "somewhere far away." I guess. Maybe.

fadedbear92 said:How on earth can they ban us from seeing our own families—which is just heartbreaking, really—while simultaneously letting in people from high-risk countries?!? Shouldn't we be tightening the borders instead? I thought they explicitly promised there wouldn't be any travel at all!

I thought we weren't supposed to be moving across borders at all, like, in any direction. But yeah, some people already went and blew their chances by getting hitched, so everything's basically trashed now. Some wanted this, some wanted that... Whatever. I guess we should just try to stay positive, though. Better days will come for whoever actually makes it through. It’s not like losing one damn season matters much if you're fighting for the "greater good," which is really just barely staying alive. ☕

I just hope there aren't more of those "signing off" posts popping up... I saw some recently deep in the forum archives, and honestly, it hit me pretty hard even though I didn't really know the people involved. Just following certain threads, you know?

nimblescout50 said:We might as well just make it easy and allow people to leave the country entirely at this point.
Out there, folks can travel across the states without much of a headache, but here—well, who actually knows when these blockades are going to clear up?
And even if they do finally budge, who’s to say how long we'll be stuck waiting through the aftermath?🥱

I mean, sure, because everyone has their "valid reasons," especially the ones who’d jump at the chance to get out if they could. But if you’re stuck in quarantine or isolation trying to enter another state, and everything is locked down or your movement is restricted... it’s not exactly a vacation. Still, for some, just seeing a loved one would mean the world—even for these couples who are only 20 minutes apart in different counties but can't meet up. Some people can handle being alone for ages, others can't, and then relationships just fall apart. Everyone’s wired differently, I guess.

No moving, but maybe a TOTAL shutdown instead.

nimbleharbor10 said:It is truly pathetic to witness how Americans react with such intense hostility toward anyone perceived as a potential threat to their safety or their way of life, showing zero foresight regarding the fact that they could easily find themselves in that exact same position. There is this irrational mindset where if someone is deemed "infected," they must be crushed, eliminated, or completely destroyed, yet when the tide turns and they fall ill themselves, they will be the ones whimpering for help.

They would go as far as trying to shut down borders—not just national ones, but state lines and county lines too. They’d try to prevent fellow citizens from even returning home. People would spend all their energy spinning conspiracy theories about who infected whom, using those lies to justify violence against the very people they’ve branded as the source of the contagion. All while, quite ironically, they let their children out to play in the local parks with other kids.

A bit contradictory, I guess, but hey, we’re all a little messy like that. 🙂

Talking about Americans and this kind of hatred? It’s a given. It’s like saying skin and nails go together.

Nobody here is actually trying to police anything, but we can definitely point out the nonsense in this whole situation. One thing is allowed, another isn't; one person gets a pass, another doesn't (even though they're both just as much of a risk for spreading the virus).

vividranger8 said:I mean, if it’s actually true that they pumped out half a million passes, then the whole idea of these permits is basically just one big, giant joke.

Whatever. They should just settle up already, I guess. Just wrap it all up.

Matthew Jackson2 said:First off, there’s no such thing as a "proof of being uninfected." All you can actually verify is whether someone has been ordered into self-isolation, which is what’s currently being enforced.

Second, what’s the actual difference between driving to the next town over, the neighboring state, or just walking to the corner grocery store? There are infected people and people in quarantine in every single state and almost every municipality. Someone isn't going to suddenly drop a virus into a place where it doesn't exist, because frankly, it's already everywhere. The whole point is to reduce the general number of people we come into contact with; in that light, the risk is arguably lower if you're heading out to a field on the other side of the country than if you're trekking down to the local shop where you might bump into half the neighborhood.

The only way this level of monitoring makes any sense is if they're trying to trace the source of an outbreak when new cases pop up, but even that's debatable since the virus might already be circulating asymptomatically in that area anyway.

That’s exactly the point—if it doesn't exist, you gotta make it happen. If someone's thinking ten steps ahead, I’m already at twenty, or maybe even a hundred... just throwing out ideas, even if they're totally nuts or actually smart, whatever. Like, if some jerk tells you to jump out a window, you don't just do it because they said so. But if you come up with the idea yourself? That's a whole different story, I guess.

If people get a pass just because they checked some random boxes—some of which aren't even vital, like having a "merit" permit or knowing a guy—that's straight-up discrimination against everyone else. Plus, you're risking spreading the virus from one state to another since there’s zero proof anyone's actually clean. I mean, honestly, we gotta think about the big picture here instead of just patching holes.

off: Three Americans—one single party. The U.S.—countless counties, cities, towns, suburbs, little outposts... you get the idea. And every single one has its own "boss," plus deputies, plus assistants, plus assistants to the assistants, plus secretaries, plus deputy secretaries... all of them need a paycheck. They get their direct deposits like clockwork, plus holiday bonuses, New Year’s perks, Easter money, this benefit, that benefit... at least, that’s how it’s worked in plenty of places so far. I didn't just make up the term "make-work job"—there's always going to be some position created for the "well-connected" or the "loyal." There are all these agencies with names so long you can't even say them without reading them off a list, plus all these nonprofits... you just have to know whose pockets to line. Honestly, I’m surprised we haven't started putting checkpoints at state lines yet just to increase the bureaucratic bloat. Any resemblance to actual reality is purely coincidental, I guess.

Also, what's even the point? Like, does it actually matter if you drove to the next town over, hit up the county seat, or just popped down to the local CVS? I guess it's all the same, maybe. I mean, there are infected people and folks in quarantine in basically every county and most areas anyway. It’s not like someone’s gonna carry the virus to some place that hasn't seen it yet, since it's pretty much everywhere now. I guess the whole point is just to cut down on how many people we're bumping into... so maybe it's less risky to drive out to a farm halfway across the country than to walk to the corner store.

The Bolden part—that's exactly what I've been saying this whole time. Like, what's even the difference?

So, if you're driving through another state or maybe seeing someone from a distance for some "legit reasons"—keeping all the safety rules in check—what’s even the big deal? I mean, how is that any different from meeting someone who drove in from out of state to hit up a local grocery store or a Shell station, following all the protocols, no hugging, no kissing, none of that "forbidden" stuff? It's basically the same thing, I guess. 🙄?

So, like, if you drive solo through Area A, you're safe from everyone and everything, right? But if you do that exact same thing in Area B or C where you actually need a permit—suddenly you're a danger to yourself and everybody else? Makes zero sense.

The only way this checkpoint makes any sense is if they're trying to trace where an outbreak started, but even that’s kinda iffy since the virus might already be floating around there asymptomatically anyway.

Everything's iffy, I guess. Look, I'm not some medical expert, so I won't sit here guessing how the virus spreads or what kills it instantly, even though we've all heard bits and pieces about it.

I'm not just arguing for the sake of arguing, hope that's clear. I get your point, I really do. It's just that I'm seeing these massive loopholes that nobody can explain, and nobody seems to be doing anything to fix them.

I'm done talking about these half-baked rules. We'll just have to see how things play out. Good luck to us all, especially with the next few months coming up.

darkotter35 said:Man, I just found out they’re handing out passes like candy—basically free rein—to anyone who owns a cabin out in the sticks specifically for farm work.
So, since they won't cut me any slack with a pass to actually go get some work done, I guess I'll just pivot and apply for one under the guise of "relaxing."
I mean, look, I’ve got the cabin, so technically, I’ve checked every single box required to grab one of those passes.

Good luck with that, though I guess people everywhere just nitpick over this stuff. Honestly, it’s gotten totally out of hand. I almost posted a huge rant yesterday but just... nah, I don't feel like repeating myself. It's basically discrimination at this point—passes being handed out based on who you know, or whatever. If what I heard is true, then fine, I'm just passing on the word! Some "VIP" citizens don't even need passes; they just flash some specific ID or badge and everyone just waves them through. Maybe they earned it, maybe they're just lucky, but if you've got the right paperwork, the cops just wave you off. Who cares about tests or masks or all that junk? Apparently, one person's excuse is way better than another's. Total joke. And like, what difference does it make driving from downtown to the suburbs ten times versus just crossing a county line? Does the virus suddenly turn into Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde depending on which town you're in? Makes zero sense. If we're actually supposed to follow whatever the big shots in D.C. command, then why is it such a mess? 🙄

hollowfox3 said:And honestly, why even bother dropping down to the county level? Given everything we're seeing, it wouldn't even matter. People follow the rules wherever they happen to be, and since the rules are pretty much identical everywhere, nobody's driving three counties over just to grab a coffee. Besides, let's be real—with that many passes floating around, anyone who actually wants to break the rules will find a way regardless.

Exactly. Unless the news or someone I actually trust is feeding me total garbage, these passes are just one giant blur. Plus, way too many people are still out and about, moving wherever they want with those passes like it's nothing.

dustymarlin10 said:Oh, they definitely pull you over.

And they don't even stop those pedestrians who use all sorts of shady shortcuts just to get from one county to another. I mean, you could swim across a river or find some little boat to do it. On an island? Good grief, you just grab a rowboat and paddle to the nearest grocery store—could take half a day or more if you're trekking around the whole island. In a better scenario, maybe you've got a motorboat so you aren't rowing, which saves some energy, sure, but then you gotta deal with fuel or whatever else it needs, which you also have to go buy somewhere. Because people seriously don't get that what feels like a minute's walk for one person might be a total mission for someone else just trying to run a basic errand or "pop to the pharmacy," especially when looking for a 24-hour spot! Who’s even monitoring this? Nobody. Like we can see, there's basically zero oversight for certain things since there's NO patrol anywhere. I'm reporting this to the authorities. 🙄

Amanda Richardson7 said:Weather wasn't cooperating, so plans changed.
Chicago-Indianapolis-Columbus-Cincinnati-Louisville-Chicago

There are always those little birds hovering near the checkpoints. I could have just cruised home without stopping, but I detoured through Indianapolis specifically to see what they had to say...
They asked where I was coming from, and once I gave them the route, they just laughed and wished me luck.

Right as I pulled up, some guy heading the opposite way—toward the Indy entrance—tried to pass without a permit. They checked his ID and let him right through.

Read above.
If you show up at a checkpoint without a permit, they’ll log you in some internal registry—God knows what for—and if things go south, they’ll ban you from passing further...
Just give them a polite nod, turn around, and find an alternative route. 😉

They exist, I guess. But just like anything else, you gotta actually find one—not everyone's looking to drop their "insider" info for free. lol

Must be nice for you. I guess it’s easier when you’re zipping around on something way faster and stronger than a bike... like how you can just blow past all those jerks in cars way more easily. 😉

Amanda Richardson7 said:It’s the exact same scenario I witnessed firsthand. 👍
This trend isn't slowing down. I know four guys who burned through $200-186 miles on their bikes this past Saturday alone. No permits, no nothing.
Not a single one of us got slapped with a fine.
And believe me, we all got pulled over and ID'd at least once...

Oh, and nobody was even told to turn back. We all just cruised right along our planned routes after the cops finished checking our IDs.

We weren't riding in a pack, either. Just swapped stories once we were off the road. 👍

And then some idiot’s gonna tell me the authorities handled this perfectly. They didn't. And some people have their "valid reasons," I guess—reasons they shouldn't even have to explain, let alone write down on some stupid memo or email. Like, seriously, look at this, "Maybe they're coming back... I guess like 50,000 Americans heading back to the States? Could be.I mean, I don't get it. You can't even drive five minutes into another county without some kind of permit—unless you've got connections, I guess. And that's just in a closed car on the highway. You could basically move from Germany to the States and nothing would even change. 🙄 But you can't even cross into the next county, I guess. Even if you're totally wrapped up, sanitized a million times, and watching every single little thing... nothing.

Kenneth Jones70 said:Checkpoints are thinning out.

Honestly, there's basically nothing left.

Thursday—driving through NYC, Westchester, and New Jersey.

Nothing until you hit NJ. Once you cross over, there’s one spot, but one cop was fast asleep and the other guy was just scrolling on his phone.

Coming back yesterday—hit three different spots—zero action. Everyone was just cruising in their cars.

🤦

Look, I’ve got my permanent address right here, so they could technically come after me if they wanted to.

But I also know people who use the "elderly care" excuse—they list an aunt or a cousin from another state and sail right through without a hitch.

From what I can tell—even if you have an aunt in a different state, and she says you're coming to help her—nobody can touch you.

There isn't even a rule specifying which relative you have to be caring for. You could literally get a pass just for driving someone to pick up a prescription—because legally, they have no grounds to deny you.
As long as you're on that route, you're good.

If this were a real epidemic—like Ebola or something—it would be a totally different story. 🤣

It's super uneven and honestly just a sloppy job. Like, it's either total control everywhere or zero control anywhere... I guess. People aren't even moving around much anyway—walking, biking, driving, tractors, whatever—they're all staying put and being careful about the small stuff. Maybe.

I guess I'll just be tossing around like an empty bag in the wind. Maybe. I guess I'll wait forever unless someone actually proves there's zero risk when some guy from another state rolls in with a "valid permit" and starts...

It doesn't even mess with the locals living in that other county that isn't technically their "official" home, I guess. Especially if there's zero proof you aren't contagious or, I don't know, don't need to just stay home and isolate.I mean, who even knows what kind of junk someone's hauling on their roof, I guess. 🙄 How exactly does his arrival threaten me? Or how does my tiny little existence—or anyone else’s for that matter—threaten him in his own county? If he "has to work," then I guess my bad, but those jobs could totally be filled by locals who are out of work while we're dealing with this "emergency"—even if it hasn't been officially declared yet. Correct me if I'm wrong, though.

2. If they aren't fully covered by PROF, then they're basically screwed from head to toe. I guess.I mean, he had the best mask out there, plus the hazmat suit, gloves, and all that extra gear included in the "asset." It’s like, maybe he actually protected himself and everyone else since he basically had no choice—he absolutely had to head over to the next county.

So, I was at the grocery store the other day, right? And this guy walks in totally unprepared—no mask, no gloves, nothing to show he actually gives a damn about anyone else's health. I bet you $20 he didn't even use the sanitizer at the door. But then, get this, the dude has the nerve to lecture everyone else about "social distancing." Like, sorry man, if we need three feet of space, maybe you should follow that too instead of acting like an expert just because your own ego is bruised. The place was packed, honestly. People were following the rules—masks, gloves, whatever—but this one "genius" starts preaching to the room. And honestly, most of these people lecturing others should probably just be staying home in the suburbs anyway, right? I mean, how can you call yourself a carrier—not even talking about COVID, just generally being a walking germ factory—and still try to give everyone else a sermon? Really?! 🙄

So, I guess I'll just play dumb until someone actually proves my point from earlier. These "measures" are a total joke, honestly.

Lockdown for everyone, not just select groups—and honestly, whatever it costs, it costs. I guess some people just don't get how messed up things are because everything’s basically at a standstill right now. But hey, I won't whine too much, at least while we're still relatively "alive and kicking." I mean, I could probably handle being stuck in some remote cabin or totally isolated for a year if I had to—that’s not even my main gripe. I'm looking at the bigger picture here. Still, not being able to even drive to the nearest big city... man, nobody can really justify that to me, especially now that all the usual ways to get around are basically choked off. From what I can tell, the U.S. hasn't even officially declared a state of emergency or a full quarantine yet, and we don't exactly have a curfew like they do in some other countries. So, what's the deal? What exactly are we supposed to be protecting ourselves from?

Drew Johnson2 said:Small Town on the island of Maui—just a little settlement without its own grocery stores or pharmacies... they all fall under the jurisdiction of Old Town, which is where they have their 3.7 miles. Now, Old Town doesn't even have a gas station, so people actually have to drive out to Key West or Maui itself just to fuel up. They even need a permit to get through. And yet, someone has the audacity to ask what kind of use anyone would have for fuel in Small Town... as if that were the primary concern. Honestly, how do they even manage to get to the grocery store in Old Town in the first place?

I guess maybe walking? I mean, look at folks in North Korea who trek for hours from their village to Pyongyang and back because nobody even owns a bike. (Sad irony, but true—unless fake news is real and everything we've seen about South Korea is just some photo montage and propaganda, which I've heard people say more than once, unless you've actually been there yourself), though honestly, people used to walk everywhere all the time and it was fine. Now, you basically need a car just to hit the local corner store for a paper, smokes, gum, or whatever else lol—this isn't meant to dismiss your point, I totally get what you're saying, but besides that, you really should always have gas in the tank. Do I even need to list all the people who can't just walk for an hour or two, or when you might suddenly need a ride and it's not just some scenic cruise?

Sure, maybe people need it less now, but plenty still need a car and a way to drive. Even if it sits for days, you gotta start it up occasionally just to keep it running, and you need gas for that (plus, prices dropped a bit 😵). Is that even worth explaining? What happens to a car sitting perfectly still like a tree for days, weeks, months?

wiredsailor51 said:The communications team is running a total disaster of a project.

What kills me most is seeing them getting praised in the media for being such great communicators. I mean, seriously, people usually head to grad school to study communication if they actually want to be good at it... but these guys? They couldn't communicate their way out of a paper bag. I guess they finally realized they were failing and scaled back to just one press conference a day once the journalists started grilling them relentlessly... well, at least they figured *something* out.

p.s.
The absolute highlight for me is how they slapped parking tickets on the volunteers in Washington, D.C., and those mountain climbers who spend their own time and risking their health to clear chimneys and fix roof tiles... even though they had official decals on their cars!

Or better yet, those fines for car owners who, lucky them, managed to drive through the earthquake unscathed and just parked temporarily—you know, during those first couple of days before moving them somewhere "safe"—right near the Mosque, only to get hit with a ticket 🙄 — because apparently, the rule of law still applies during an emergency. I mean, suddenly everyone's obsessed with following the rules without any mercy; honestly, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it!

Susan Barrett2 said:Quick question for everyone on this thread. Has anyone actually tried to bypass a checkpoint without a pass and had the cops turn them away? Looking for real, confirmed cases here—not just "he said, she said" rumors.

Right at the start—one side (mine) let me go, but they told me the folks on the other side would definitely send me back, while the other side just pointed out where I could pull a U-turn. 😁

What’s weird is how the patrols aren't evenly spread out. I heard that—since I'm not, like, staking out every single checkpoint every day lol—from an employee who travels in from another county. She has a pass, obviously, but she said some days the patrol is only working her specific county.

Like I said, just having a negative test result and full protective gear makes the pass make sense; anything else isn't even worth talking about. You can move around without testing at location A, but you can't stay five minutes at location B. Either you can go nowhere at all, or it's totally random.

Gerald Kern77 said:Could you please cite the specific regulation stating that a community ceases to exist after a year of separation?

Hmm, if we go by that logic, some people in my own family should've stopped being called a "couple" or "married" ages ago. They basically "survived" until retirement living and working in totally different cities—sure, they saw each other regularly, had kids, and now they're finally together every day 😁 since the kids have all flown the coop to different parts of the country. (It wasn't perfect, but hey, life happens, right?)

Once a marriage is official—whether it's civil, religious, or both—it's a marriage. Period. Until it gets legally dissolved through the proper channels.

By that logic, every sailor's wife and their husband would be considered "divorced" and the marriage "invalid" after being apart for a few months, plus a million other examples. Or even those "commuter marriages" where couples live apart because of work or whatever.

What actually defines a relationship—whether it’s romantic, sexual, or a marriage—isn't just living under one roof (which can be heaven or hell, depending on who you ask). It’s about the benefits that come with it—like legal rights, for instance. Hint: look at how domestic partnerships eventually get treated like marriages once they prove they've been sharing an address for a certain amount of time.

Grace Edwards said:From the article:

To ensure greater citizen safety during the coronavirus epidemic, FEMA – the FEMA Regional Office Osijek, has implemented a centralized aerial surveillance system using drones to monitor compliance with National Emergency Management Center measures in the fight against COVID-19.

That’s how every single dictatorship justifies itself.
It’s honestly sad how most people just swallow stories like "it's for their own good."
How far would people actually go with these ridiculous slogans? Like, "neutralizing national security violators with specially equipped drones—all for the greater safety of our citizens"—I guess people would probably buy that too.

Grlić-Radman says we gotta look out for our people living abroad. I guess.

Then again, once they get back, they're gonna have to be in (just) isolation anyway, I guess.

How much of a "safety net" is traveling actually? And what’s even the point of isolating there versus just staying put here? I mean, I get one difference—it’s like how nothing beats a home-cooked meal from your mom; it’s warm, it’s real, and honestly, it just hits different when the memories start flooding in.

Forget about exchange students for a second. Now, America (and all its neighbors) has suddenly become this warm, safe haven that people were actually fleeing headfirst just a little while ago. And it wasn't even because there weren't jobs—there were plenty—it was more like, "I'm not working for those peanuts" in this decaying America. People would just say, "last one out, turn off the lights." It’s wild how the sun is suddenly shining on this rotten place now that the whole world has gone completely insane. 🙄

hollowviper said:I'm not entirely sure if you guys have checked out the e-proposals—you know, those specific reasons you can select there. For instance, I personally need to list property maintenance, but I don't see that option listed anywhere.

I haven't really dug into everything yet, just skimming whatever news I catch or stuff I read real quick; feels like a ton of details are missing, and honestly, people probably only care about it for their own selfish reasons anyway.

As for drones and all that surveillance crap—bye-bye, privacy, if you even had any to begin with. And those people with zero conscience who've been making headlines for days (you know, the ones who show up looking "suspicious" or testing positive for COVID-19 even though they aren't actually sick, but they're still out there wandering around)? There aren't even going to be any fines to make them behave, because the whole system is broken. It’s like one of those news segments about speeding on the interstate; some businessman gets a little too eager to make a meeting, so he just keeps a stack of cash ready to pay the ticket on the spot. He doesn't give a damn. That's just not how you fix anything.

Winona Ryder was born in 1971.
Richard Dreyfuss - 1947.

I get the issue.

It’d be sick if there was some kind of tool that could, I don't know, detect and auto-delete any quotes from a deleted post without messing up the actual thread it's in.

thanks for the reply, @Tyler Vaughn7, I don't know all the fine print regarding the rules, so asking is probably best. with quotes/multi-quotes you can't really tell if he's being "accurate" beforehand, so maybe it's better to just leave the bolded sentence alone (though nothing guarantees that'll stick), or just add a standalone comment without quoting him at all.

thanks again.

Hey everyone!

I decided to pop in here after thinking about it for a second because I need some clarity; basically, a few days ago in that thread talking about Hillary Clinton

my post—the one numbered #4749—got nuked.

I always try to watch what I say, and looking at how others are posting, I honestly don't get why it was deleted. I mean, a couple months back I had a post wiped on this same thread too, but since it was off-topic (like a weird typo/slang thing), I kind of figured out why then.

But now? No clue. I’d really appreciate it if someone could tell me where I messed up so I don't do it again later. All I can see is that I listed a bunch of multi-quotes (7 total) that I wasn't actually replying to individually; I just grouped them to make my point clearer.

I've got screenshots of the post if anyone needs to see them, I can post those later.

thanks in advance.

Elizabeth Cruz said:We say, "Time is passing." But have we ever actually seen it pass? Where does it go? Does it drift down a street? Float through the air? Where is it? I don't see it. All I see is kids growing up, people getting old, and things shifting around. Life just happens. I see clock hands spinning, sure. But I don't see time.
Time is this abstract concept we use to explain all the changes we witness, whether it's the movement of a clock hand or the lines appearing on a face. But here’s the thing: those changes aren't caused by time itself. They happen because of various physical mechanisms that trigger change.
Clock hands stop when the gears break. If they stop, would you honestly say time has stopped? Of course not. It's obvious the hands aren't measuring time—if they were, they'd never stop as long as time was moving. It's the same with wrinkles. They come from biological processes inside the body, and they hit some people faster than others. If time were actually pulling the strings, we'd all be aging at the exact same rate.
So, who's really creating time?
Maybe someone will argue, "Okay, fine, I can't see it, but I feel it. I feel time passing." What exactly is that feeling? Think about it. What is that sensation, really? Can you actually feel time?

Nice post.

I always say—imagine if there was no day and night cycle (like how things are here in the States), just eternal night or constant daylight. Imagine never sleeping, being awake forever without calendars or clocks. Then we'd realize everything is just one single moment, one long stretch. No clocks, no dates, no years. Just infinite, at least in a big-picture sense, even if it doesn't apply to our physical life on Earth.

But honestly, looking at it more simply—I feel like my days fly by way too fast. I wish they lasted like 50 of these imaginary hours 🙂 which wasn't really the case back when I was a kid...

For me, a lot of stuff feels like it happened just yesterday or the day before, but then it hits me that it was actually 2006 or earlier, even though I could've sworn it was 2010 or later. Weird.

Sometimes I'm totally spot on with my past (dates, years, locations), but other times I have to really think about it, especially if things start blurring together because they seem so similar (like with work stuff).

just watched The Shack. honestly, the cinematography was gorgeous... killer visuals. the lead guy felt a bit off though, maybe just not that convincing, but hey, at least he’s hot 🙂 Octavia Spencer was incredible as the Father 👍

I gotta admit, after reading through all these posts, I think I finally get what the whole point was—especially regarding Lazar Ristovski's role. I saw the movie in theaters last year and caught it on TV recently, but I was always super confused about Žark. Like, who was Lazar actually supposed to be? That missing piece was honestly kind of bugging me since I couldn't wrap my head around why I was missing the subtext. 🙂

Ogrest's style is pretty much what you'd expect from him; he’s not really the type of director who wins you over instantly. You have to actually put in some work to "get" it. I remember back in the days of washed-out memories, a buddy from college—who actually studied film at USC—was trying to explain Ogrest's vibe and his message to me. Back then, I don't think I bought it. I was just looking for something more flashy, you know? Something with scenes that hit you right away.

Anyway, I totally agree that the story has way more potential and a series could be really gripping.

Raymond Walker5 said:To truly grasp what’s happening, you first have to understand human psychology, which—if we're being honest—is actually quite simple.
I don't really feel like diving into a massive deep dive right now (though I probably will eventually), but unfortunately, so many people never bother to build any actual character of their own. From a very young age, there's this deep-seated urge and necessity to belong to something. Because of that, people flock to all sorts of cliques and groups just to feel like they possess some inherent value or are part of something "bigger" than themselves.
So, you see some people joining extremist political factions, others joining a local pottery club, some diving headfirst into religion, and others signing up for a specific political party. They do all of this primarily so they can feel superior to everyone else by association. They base their entire self-worth on how much others validate them. If that external validation disappears, their whole ego just collapses into pure agony.

Of course, most people are conditioned from childhood to nurture social stereotypes and conformity. In our society, losing your innocence early—both socially and sexually—is often seen as a way to gain "status." You’re expected to be born, go through school, get a job, find a partner, reproduce, work, earn money, and then die. It’s almost like we're programmed like praying mantises; once the mating is done, the male is essentially expendable.

Society has trained us to accept a lot of nonsense as "normal," treating certain milestones as things that must be achieved at any cost. For instance, if you were in Japan and you lost your job or got laid off, you might feel like committing harakiri out of sheer shame, because to society, if you aren't materially useful or productive anymore, you basically cease to exist in your own eyes and everyone else's.

In other words, conformism is just an extended version of the herd mentality. Rising above it and saying "NO" to the status quo is incredibly difficult because most people suffer from a sort of "follower" mindset, easily swayed by either those with more power or simply by whoever happens to be in the majority.

Generally speaking, we live in a culture that believes the majority is always right, which is absolute nonsense. The majority is frequently quite foolish. Independent thought is rarely given any real value here.
A huge portion of the evil in this world stems from the fear of being cast out, which has led to people following ideologies and conforming to extremes for the sake of survival.

I know plenty of people from smaller towns in California who have told me straight up that if you haven't landed a career, found a spouse, and started a family by the time you hit 20, you're considered a total failure.
We are a primitive species that measures its worth through material success. When we fail to meet the arbitrary standards imposed on us by society, we view ourselves as failures.

One of the biggest absurdities was something like forcing young people to serve in the military—which, thank God, has been abolished—and framing it as a "duty." The idea that we owe anything to anyone simply because we were born is total idiocy, and we have to say NO to it if we ever want society to actually progress.

Early on in my life, I learned to expect absolutely nothing from anyone, and because of that, the close relationships I do have tend to be very healthy. I surround myself with intelligent people, people who are critical of society, empathetic toward the marginalized, and supportive of those whom society has rejected.

People ask, "Why do people give in to the pressure?" It's because they lack character. It's because they believe everything their parents or authority figures told them is the ultimate truth. People are trained like animals by religions, societies, and institutions using subtle blackmail and fears instilled from birth. If you won't behave, you'll be punished... if you don't have the latest sneakers, kids at school will mock you... if you don't get straight A's, you'll end up doing manual labor... if you don't serve your military term, you'll end up in prison... if you don't kiss up to your boss at work, you'll get fired... if you don't believe in religious nonsense, you'll go to hell... if you don't make a killing, you're a loser...

And that is how you create a deeply psychologically damaged society. Some will argue, "Well, that's just life; it's cruel and you have to fight to survive." They'll cling to that supposed "survival of the fittest" nonsense. But it's actually the exact opposite. It's like this because you all *decided* to make it this way and chose to make life difficult. Evolution doesn't care about the "stronger" individual surviving; if that were the case, the strong would just spend all their time devouring the weak. Evolution cares about moving forward, regardless of everything—even if it means moving forward without humans entirely. Life wouldn't fail if humans disappeared. We aren't the only ones on this planet, nor are we the center of the universe.

We’re still such an underdeveloped species, honestly. We constantly find ourselves expecting things from everyone else, yet we struggle to offer even a shred of positivity to ourselves, let alone to anyone else.

To build on what you were saying, here’s a pretty cliché example from my own life back when I used to go out more often. I had this friend who constantly expected me to get up and dance. But why on earth would I dance if I wasn't actually having fun? Why should I do something that doesn't suit me just to satisfy her specific idea of a "successful night out"?

We have this fundamental inability to accept that what works for us might be completely wrong for someone else. Just because it feels normal to us to wake up at 4 AM, commute three hours to work, pull twelve-hour shifts every single day including weekends, and essentially reduce our entire existence to mere survival—that doesn't mean it's normal for anyone else.
Personally, I don't believe that life has to be lived at any cost. Because of that, I certainly don't feel obligated to survive at any cost just to fuel those social structures that seem to crave nothing but self-sacrificing slaves. I don't see any reason to play along with anyone's conformist illusions; everything we've built around us is just an illusion that we can walk away from whenever we choose.

I lost the need to be accepted or loved by others a long time ago. In my younger years, that was my heaviest burden—this massive illusion that I actually needed to have friends, much less that I needed to cater to the whims of people who are even bigger idiots than I am.
By being born, we didn't sign some cosmic contract stating that we owe anything to anyone, least of all to people who blindly follow and suck up to every social norm and stereotype out there.

As Bukowski roughly put it: "I don't like people, nor do I want to be near them, but I need them just so I can eat." And that really is the only condition we should agree to: reducing our relationship with this unwanted social system to the bare minimum required to sustain us and provide the basic necessities of life with as little hassle as possible.

Straight facts.

I guess some people actually pull off living totally solo, away from everyone, and I lowkey respect that, especially if they chose to ditch civilization on purpose.

And maybe, adding to that Bukowski thing about food, there's also that need for physical, sexual contact—not just all that "emotional connection" stuff. Anyone who can actually find that? They're probably chill.

yeah, it’s been days already...

Raymond Walker5 said:Another layer to this is that so many people struggle to offer genuine love—not even to themselves, let alone others. We carry these endless expectations of one another, finding it nearly impossible to accept people for who they truly are. Honestly, it’s one of the biggest systemic issues in our society today.
We constantly try to bend others to fit our own needs and desires. We want to control, manipulate, or demand things, ranking a person's worth as a human being based purely on how useful they are to us, simply because that's the pattern we've seen others use on us.
It starts with parents, continues through society, and manifests in our romantic relationships.

Sometimes, it isn't just about a lack of guidance from parents or social structures; it's also about the individual's inability to reach a level of maturity where they can finally think for themselves. It takes immense strength to break away from those heavy societal expectations and rigid stereotypes.
In the end, most people walk around believing they have a unique "personality," completely unaware that who they are is largely a byproduct of their environment. Their thoughts aren't truly theirs, and their worldview isn't something they built—it was programmed into them.

Too many people enter relationships for one singular reason: to satisfy their own lowest impulses through another person, whether they realize they're doing it or not. Of course, that's fundamentally wrong, but it's how the world operates. I truly believe we need to learn to let other beings exist as they are, helping them flourish in their own truth rather than demanding they become something else to suit us. Unfortunately, driven by insecurity and narrow mindsets, we tend to expect others to be the vessels for our own unfulfilled wants.

If every single person made just one small gesture toward someone else each day—purely out of love and goodwill, rather than selfishness, fear, or insecurity—the world would be a completely different place.

Raymond Walker5, your posts are killer!

As a teaser or trailer, it honestly sounded pretty promising.

I just picked it out from whatever else was playing at the local AMC, but now I’m thinking I probably should’ve just skipped it. It’s based on a true story—yeah, sure—but it’s nowhere near a great movie, despite how hard they tried with the acting and everything.