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Joined 11 months ago
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Cake day: August 14th, 2023

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  • I worked for an MSP that merged with a copier company. Copiers got more and more capable, and so of course people wanted to use their “advanced” features, hence the merger with an IT company.

    When they sold a copier, they would sell limited IT engagements. Things like handing information and help to customer IT, or if they lacked IT, limited help like placing it on the network, installing the drivers to use it as a printer, setting up scanning to network. This was done remotely by a level one technician, Joe this time.

    Well, install day came, and after Joe helped out the customer claimed that some computers could print, some couldn’t. And some computers couldn’t access anything else on the network. They hired a local IT guy that threw Joe under the bus, and the customer yelled at my boss. As one of the level 2 techs, I was told to “fix what Joe fucked up” right in front of Joe. Shit boss, different story.

    I travel out there, look at their problem, but was told I couldn’t touch anything until their IT guy showed up. So I used the time to ask questions, and tour around since I had a hunch.

    Local IT guy strides in 15 minutes late, smug as hell. I talk and lead him to the basement, following the signal strength of a weirdly named wifi signal, and get a solid full strength connection in front of a locked closet. I ask them to unlock it, and ask about the router I see on the shelf, and point out that I believe it’s their issue.

    Local IT guy installed a router as an access point, and did it so wrong that it was acting as a 2nd DHCP server on their network, handing out different addresses. In layman’s, their computers had 2 bosses with differing orders. Therefore local IT guy broke it, and blamed Joe cause he didn’t understand what he did.

    I praised Joe from that day for being the first technician I knew capable of physically installing gear remotely. He was an excellent tech, and a good colleague.



  • There’s potentially a much more bleak explanation that could be the case since this reminded me of a moment in my childhood.

    McDonald’s management doesn’t sound lucrative enough of a gig for childcare on top of the cost of survival with 2 kids, this could simply be a way for them to watch their kid and continue earning a living. I spent a few days “helping” at a grocery store for that reason when I was 8 or 9ish, though during the day and not at 2am, and my mom got in trouble for doing that too I think, because then I just stayed home alone for the summer after that.

    Doesn’t make it much better, it would just turn it into bad parent/child abuse, because of exploitation of the labor class.






  • Somehow only almost every other first world nation has figured it out, must be that American exceptionalism preventing us from figuring it out.

    Also, I think you misunderstood my increase statement. I don’t mean a 10% increase of the federal taxes, I mean a 10% additional tax on total income which is about 10x that. Even using that figure, you’re really telling me that it would take a 24% increase to pay for this, and I’d love to see your sources for that.

    And, this is fun, even with your tax increase requirement numbers, $18,000-$27,000 is 24%-37.5% of the median household income in America. Turns out, even if it were as absurdly expensive as you say, it’s literally a bargain for your average family. I now make more than the median, and it’s only 20%-30% of my income, so still a bargain but not as good of one.



  • Wow, this one got me. Top tier unpopular opinion.

    You lay out pretty good points, mostly in terms of specificity.

    And then you continue pointing out that there’s likely no choice for a pedophile, and that they’re not abusers until they abuse someone. And hey, I can get on board with that.

    But man, if you really think that there shouldn’t be a severe social stigma attached to pedophilia, then I really gotta disagree with you there. This should be something a person should only feel comfortable talking about with their doctor, close loved ones, or anonymously like you’re doing here. There should be no stigma attached to getting help, but this isn’t fun facts about yourself you should share with others.

    If this is you, get help. And if you are getting help, I am honestly glad for you. But please don’t ever think that anyone outside of professionals, loved ones, and other pedophiles is ever going to not have a visceral reaction to the revelation that you are attracted to kids. It is an appropriate defense mechanism meant to attempt to separate potential victims from their potential abusers.


  • The country is probably America, and the state is likely a red one. And you’re right about lawless hellscape. We have states that don’t collect income tax, 9 of them as a matter of fact. But they still pay federal income tax, which is the lions share of taxes.

    I’m not even in one of those states, and for the majority of my working life my withholding has been about 15%. But, I wish I could pay 5-10% more in taxes for some universal healthcare. My employer pays about $10,000 a year per head for our premiums, which is very kind of them because they don’t have to pay 100% of the premiums. And that wonderful healthcare plan is a “zero deductible”, but not like you’re thinking. No, the plan pays absolutely none of your medical bills or visits or prescriptions until you hit your yearly out of pocket, which is $9,000 in network, double that for out of network. What percent of my income do you think $19,000-$27,000 is? I’ll give you a hint, it’s more than 10% haha.

    Oh, the cherry on top… The only urgent care facilities in my area that are in network are owned by one hospital group. They stopped doing walk in visits. You have to schedule “urgent” care days in advance or go to one of their “standing emergency room” clinics that are minimum $1000. They invented a new, more expensive tier of urgency in between urgent and emergency. I think this is what they mean when they say capitalism breeds innovation.




  • I’ll bite. Besides the 5 minute plot device intro that is never referenced again in the entire movie, what message does it have? I could see maybe a vague anti corporate message, but all of the movie seems tongue in cheek, including the intro.

    And if eugenics is the only political message you can think of, at least we can both be glad it failed and that this comedy movie has only been taken as a joke.


  • As you said, friction would introduce more wear and maintenance. This gentleman’s idea is to attach a windmill to drive the rotary induction wheel, which would essentially be “free” heat energy, and an interesting hobby contraption. Entertainment and a sense of accomplishment is probably his main goal.

    Its not a brand new idea, just a different application of the principle. Induction generators already exist, and they can indeed be used with windmills, but to generate AC current versus heat energy.

    More power to this fun and crazy inventor. Maybe he can find practical and reproducible use for this effect. If not, he’s gonna have the most unique water heater ever invented. With this he could make a fully mechanical hot water heater that burns no fuel and uses no electricity. He would just have to make a mechanism to disengage a clutch at the top temperature.


  • You remember businesses calling everyone who worked a low appreciation job heroes? CNAs got the shittiest end of the stick on that I think.

    Giant banners calling you heroes greet you as you drive on the lot of the nursing home, and you look at them knowing you’re going to get physically shit on by the patients, and proverbially shit on by the higher level nurses, the administration that now works remote, the family of the patients, and of course the patients again as well. For $12/hr. And you’re extra short staffed because anyone that could find travel work did. Brutal shit for them.