[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 2 points 5 days ago

I like the mnemonics of c (copy), v (get in there), x (snip-snip), and z (bad idea) as much as I like the similar ones for bold and italics.

text you've already typed and change the format. Control (shift) + F3 used to do that in MS word. Highlight your text and Toggle Through The POSSIBILITIES.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 5 points 5 days ago

I'm not sure this is true. Current US federal food and drug law has been in effect since the 1970s (for specifics, I'm thinking 21 CFR 211, which was codified 1979-ish) and it hasn't really been repealed so much as it was never very explicit and rarely enforced, in part because of the difficulty of enforcing something so vague.

Example: The law clearly says, "you must have a written procedure in place to prevent contamination," But it leaves it up to the manufacturer to determine what that procedure should be. In contrast, some of the EU legislation (EUDRALEX) is much more prescriptive: "you must do X, Y, and Z to prevent contamination in a multi-purpose facility."

What little legislation was in place as US law before 21 CFR 211 was worse.

It's also worth noting that much of the US's regulation via agencies like the FDA is actually released as "guidance for industry." Or to paraphrase, "don't be a freaking idiot about things, but we can't legally prosecute you for it if you don't." That's a big loophole.

Consider the legal fiasco that was the trial of the owners and "quality manager" of that peanut company that caused multiple salmonella deaths about 10-15 years ago. Their QA manager's legal defense was literally: I'm not qualified to do my job and should never been hired. 21 CFR says that "employees should be qualified to perform their jobs." What does that mean? Should she have a degree in biology or chemistry? A degree in early childhood learning and k-12 education? On the job training on the day to day of the peanut factory and what to do if you have in infestation of birds? Beyond that, who is in charge of making sure she's qualified? The regulations are unclear, and in the system that's been in place for 40 years, all of those questions will be hammered out in the randomness of court and in the worst way possible. Like so.

https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2020/02/ill-fated-quality-control-officer-for-peanut-corp-of-america-freed-from-federal-custody/#google_vignette

I'm sorry - I could write a whole freaking book about this.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 3 points 5 days ago
[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 8 points 5 days ago

Honest question from someone who has never owned either, but who once went camping with someone with an AWD Subaru and who, in turn, managed to get us stuck as fuck. Isn't the difference not so much the drive as it is the clearance of the vehicle? The Subaru was a glorified station wagon and just wasn't built to go through rugged terrain, regardless of how the wheels worked.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 18 points 6 days ago

That looks amazing.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 1 points 6 days ago

Just to add... Jerry Springer was an incredibly popular politician and mayor of Cincinnati. Dude had his finger on the pulse of America.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 3 points 6 days ago

I was just thinking about "quirky" because my sister-in-law recently used it to describe her daughter. Her contrasting word (for her son) was "straightforward."

Personally, I fit the former even though I've learned to "pass for normal." NOT my words. That was a direct quote and it was meant as a compliment. Weird is definitely meant as an insult in the US Midwest.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 2 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

I thought there was a tangential reference to that recent question about whether there's a critical mass of water to corpses that people find objectionable.

The example: There are plenty of corpses in the ocean, but people will swim in it. If there were one corpse in a pool, most people would decline the invite that particular pool party.

Mixed with that very recognizable graphic of Saddam in his hiding hole. And balls, for reasons that escape me.

edit: my friend is also a little confused.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 6 points 6 days ago

Internment was a bit complicated, but my understanding is that the US army wouldn't turn away young Japanese-American men who were willing to fight in Europe.

There was also a secret program where second generation men served as translators for US naval intelligence in the Pacific. They translated intercepted messages and assisted with prisoner interrogations. They were also in very real danger of being mistaken by the enemy by US or allied troops. The existence of this program was only revealed in the 1980s. If anyone is interested, google "Nisei linguists" or check out these references

https://www.nps.gov/goga/blogs/nisei-linguists-in-world-war-ii.htm

https://history.army.mil/html/books/nisei_linguists/CMH_70-99-1.pdf

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 50 points 2 months ago

If you watch enough old scifi and adventure movies, you'll learn to welcome the "so that's where Lucas took that idea from" feeling as an old friend. He lifted a lot.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 31 points 4 months ago

Oh, my parents take the prize.

To pick just one thing, I remember a disagreement about how to re-arrange the furniture my bedroom. I remember saying (and with regret as the words were leaving my mouth), "well, it is my room." Instant shitshow. She announced that since she wasn't needed she would be Running Away From Home.

Even at 5 or 6, I knew that this was the stupidest thing ever, but that she also wouldn't back down unless I cried and chased her and begged her to stay. She got out the front door and slowly walked towards the street, stopping every few feet to look back. She had nowhere to go, obviously. If this were going to be a battle of wills, I held all the cards. I was also six. If I had been 16, I might have thought to lock the front door behind her. In any case, even at that age I knew that if I somehow won this, things could only get worse.

Yeah, I whipped up some tears and ran after her. But she never tried that one again and I like to think that it was because she got all the way to the street before she got her intended outcome.

[-] ArtieShaw@fedia.io 43 points 4 months ago

7:07am. Milan.

I'm woken by two texts from my coworker. "Thought we were meeting in the lobby at 7:00. Heading to the train station."

The train leaves at 7:20. "Well I can't...." or can I?

Clothes on. Glasses on. All toiletries swept into purse. I run like hell.

There's a pedestrian underpass, but I Frogger across the road and through the square. I'm in the station with a minute to spare and I'm still somehow running. My shoes are shabby Converse and the floor is polished marble. And I'm 45.

Things are going as ok as any of that can be until I have that out of body moment when I know my foot to forward motion ratio is incompatible with staying upright.

I lunged into the fall, made an extremely satisfying "splat" sound, and skidded several horizontal meters on the marble floor. Two or more nicely dressed Italians look at me in horror, but I'm not physically hurt. Big smile. I thought about Mary Catherine Gallagher-ing it with a victory pose, but just got up and kept running.

Made the train as it was pulling out, brushed hair/teeth once i caught my breath. Moved to the correct train car at the next stop, and met up with my colleague.

We had a nice day trip and the waiter was horrified at how much wine we drank at lunch.

view more: next ›

ArtieShaw

joined 5 months ago