BabaYaga

Every person on social media "should" understand how these algorithms work as their "feed" is in the end result of all this AI data.

The crux of most of the argument

Frisco gun range has a ton of options you can rent and try out. Including a .50 Desert Eagle for $4/round. Last time I was pistol shopping I took the wife and rented a .380 PPK that she loved. Depending on inventory, they have new and used options for sale as well. Nice place.

See my point about good people working at Lehmans or AIG. When I say "evert facet" I'm not literally talking about every person. I mean it's flowing down from DC into almost all facets of state and local government to some extent. So do you root out all the bad actors and hope the next crop are "better", or do you make systemic changes so future bad actors can't hide?

This seems like a self-licking ice cream cone. As for punishing the behavior, that's kind of my point. We have a system in place that allows for the worst actors to try and get away with this. I agreed with you that CU has been a shit-show. What's a bigger threat, a candidate allegedly demanding a billion dollars, or a system that allows for this kind of nepotism? Both are shit. One is a bad actor. The other allows for bad actors to flourish unchallenged.

I'm not normalizing it. Maybe I could have clarified what par for the course meant - that it seems to have permeated every facet of our political charade and is being weaponized (back to the original point) against the lower/younger classes to be benefit of a select few.

We tap dancing on a pinhead and talking specifically about O&G and a specific numerical amount of a billion?

It's not how many people come to your birthday, it's how many come to your funeral.

To clarify, it was a WAPO article that described the private conversation at M.Lago, citing "unidentified sources familiar with the meeting". Do I think it happened - 100%. Do I also think this is now par for the course in modern, American politics - 100%

I've come around on CU. If we want to devolve into platitudes, my favorite is still that sunlight is the best disinfectant. The ability to "buy" influence through perfectly legal channels can't continue.

Which is a big fucking problem. I was referring to businesses, which was the point of the conversation at the time (barriers to entry, wealth hoarding, etc.), but this holds equally true

He just said the quiet part out loud. This happens up and down the line. But you also can't ignore a structure that facilitates this....filled with great people, but still allows for perverse incentives such as those listed or taken advantage of by bad actors. Lots of great people worked at Lehmans as well. People are the problem and the solution. Structures that allow for shitty people to use to their own advantage need to be evaluated. That's the whole concept of risk & governance.

Of course. But let's not mistake societal safe-guards such as regulation with a select group of officials picking winners and losers based upon nepotism and back room deals.

And of them above board and totally not into NY shenanigan's of any kind. RE and stocks. I think ISIS has a higher moral ground than that group.

I'll talk to this "society" guy and get his take on this since every post has devolved into sweeping generalizations and hyperbole. So then we can't include basically anyone in government then. That's a good start. Seriously, you are railing not against capitalism, but crony-capitalism. And we all know who has the power to pick winners and losers. To erect or tear down barriers to entry with a swipe of the pen. To allow the entire charade to march forward that benefit a select few and ride over the backs of most everyone else.

Let's also tell the whole story. Post WWII the rest of the developed world was bombed to shit. We were the only game in town and took full advantage of it. It took decades before Europe and Asia caught back up (and then quickly surpassed us). The unleashed manufacturing power (Arsenal of Democracy) pivoted pre-war to tanks and trucks, then post-war simply pivoted back to the private sector and very, very other developed countries could keep up because of wartime destruction. It's a $200 cardboard box. Sure. Let's do it. It's a sentimental carry-over from a bygone era. You really think that works here or other countries? We'll draft the bill immediately. Or faster, by exec order. We're less shitty than all the other shittiness

Swallowed the whole fucking hook. Good job Jesus man, I've been there too. Two summers ago. Also Sweden and Denmark. The baby box is a carry-over from a time when such a sparsely populated country had severed issues with infant mortality and indigent mothers. If you see it as a "they love their kids more than everyone else", that's on you. Again, a solution to a sparsely populated country that has less people than the metroplex. And again, how do we replicate this? How do we scale it?

This. You can also make the standardization of federal student loans and their higher rates, but that's not the whole story.

Huh? Finland has a shit ton of mining and forestry resources. Are you thinking O&G resources? As for the rest of your post - are you referring to trying to make America great again......;)

We see this example often. A small, ethnically homogeneous country sitting on massive amounts of natural resources and a VERY low population density. How do you replicate this? How do you scale it? Their happiness peers? Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, etc. Same same.

Yes, look at it. Bitching about billionaires with an avatar (assuming ironically) of Steve Jobs. All the other billionaires under 30 inherited their wealth. Take it up with their parents if you have a problem with it. As for everyone else being "fucked", I disagree to an extent. There are a myriad of other paths that you can take. I posted one of them. Colleges have morphed into businesses now. We all know that. Let's get some professors on here and get their take on what options they think are viable.

Said it before and I'll say it again - the word "privilege" might be thrown around a little too much these days, but the real privilege is being born to good parents who take an active role in raising and supporting a child. Kids also emulate their environment. You are spastic and anxious all the damn time, guess what....your kids probably will be as well. You lose your shit in traffic or watching right/left-wing media all the time, they're watching. You tell them to get their shit together while you're on the coach drinking a beer and looking like 200lbs of chewed bubble gum. They're watching.

Yep. Few of the kids from HS went UTD and DBU to play soccer and it's just a few miles from their homes. We checked both out and both kids want to "go" off to college, not down the street. If you are in STEM fields, go to UTD for grad school later. It's a damn good school for certain majors.

I don't think either extremes are accurate - nobody is near what CA has. That doesn't mean our system is complete dogshit, and we're not sprinting into the abyss either. There's also out of state kids swelling the CA system ranks. Last I saw the percentage was in the high teens. Texas is single digits. You could both argue that the system is so attractive that it garners more interest, but also at a cost to in-state kids that are bumped. That's why there is a "can't get into UT" thread about Surly kids. They've made it so GD hard to get into now that your options are limited save for Rice, SMU, or the 3 private Presbyterian schools. As stated, TX is at the same capacity it was back in the late 80's, so they just tightened the admission requirements like a mother, and they physically can grow - but at 50K+ kids, how big would they want to get? I'd argue this is the same for everyone. I've hired so many people, I don't even look at the education part of the resume anymore. They've been in the workforce long enough to let their experience speak for itself. Right out of college, sure, but now it's as it should be: your personal relationships and network that you cultivate are all that matter. If you want a "big" name, go back to grad school (esp true with MBAs).

Tell me it isn't so.....;) Kidding. If you ignore all the BS, it's not a bad school, especially the business and vet schools. We visited. Just too damn big. Also visited OU. It was more like a pep-rally. Had the dude dressed as a horse walking around high fiving everyone. After the second or third time that the band played boomer-sooner, wife texted me and said I can't take this shit anymore and they left early.