I think it is part of making government agencies ineffective to prove their ideology that these agencies should be abolished and replaced with private companies (or not at all). That way, they can say come election time, “See? Government can’t do these things well. We should eliminate these agencies.” Many people will forget they are also the reason the agencies are shitty.

They have tried this with underfunding them in the past mostly. This is a much more direct approach.

It really depends. One tenant could have an ant problem because another adjacent tenant is attracting them, which the landlord needs to address. If the structure has decaying wood, that can attract carpenter ants which is a landlord issue. Some ants like humid environments, so a poorly ventilated structure (like one with mold) could be the cause–also the landlord’s problem.

Matt Walsh read this comment and is crying and throwing up as a result.

Judging by how many numerical fields on mobile websites still give me the full keyboard, maybe not.

The article is using as a source a 4chan post that had a docket number that didn’t check out. I’m pretty sure this is a joke someone took seriously because they needed to publish something today.

This would get almost immediately dismissed by any judge.

The shareholders in question suing are a public employee retirement fund. I wouldn’t exactly consider retired sanitation workers and bureaucrats societal leeches, but to each their own I guess.

Frankly for short haul flights it makes sense. Would it be worth paying double or triple for a three hour flight just to get a full meal? Anyone who truly wants a taste of old time flying can get that with a first class ticket, both in terms of cost and quality.

I forget the specifics and who came up with it, but: pick an amount you haven’t written before. Then, write that much without looking back. If you can set your word processor to only keep your current line visible, even better. Once you’ve written that many paragraphs or pages, do a fast edit. Use a timer so you can’t linger. Then write that much again with the same strategy. After 3-5 times, do a more thorough edit of the whole thing.

It’s not necessarily how you always want to write, but it can help getting over that initial confidence block as an exercise.

I’m not quite sure how you’ve turned “we should have the option” into “we should buy everything foreign.” I think you’re having an argument you want to have rather than addressing the point I was making.

Great, and where local is the best choice they should do that. But nobody can seriously argue that reducing the ability of government to shop around for the best cost/quality balance is a good thing. It’s not like the only options are buy everything American or everything from China. I’d like qualified experts making that decision, not legislators.

You create bad incentives if you artificially reduce competition like this. Not every good or service will have tons of American choices, so you end up with a handful of companies who know the government has no other choice.

I feel like all this is going to do is raise government costs and line the pockets of selected contractors. We aren’t always going to be the relative best producers in cost/quality balance for every product and service.

If we’re going to subsidize any industry, it should be done directly and explicitly. Otherwise, it becomes another example of “inefficient” government that should be privatized.

It has either gotten better or just improved its suggestions for me over time. I basically never get right wing content anymore. There’s plenty of garbage, but it’s stupid garbage rather than dangerous garbage.

This is a notoriously difficult thing to prove out either way in data, and I’m sure it varies situationally.

The Mariel Boatlift natural experiment did not demonstrate a decrease in wages or increase in unemployment. It makes sense: immigrants both work and consume (i.e., create demand). Unless every immigrant happens to work in the same industry/union, the sum total of immigrants may create demand for labor equal to or greater than they fill.

It also may have the impact you’re suggesting. But it doesn’t have to be zero sum. And, understandably, people only remember when they lost a job potentially tied to immigrant labor. Nobody asks if the job they’re applying to was created due to demand immigrants added to the economy (and how could a company know that?).

Part of good writing is being able to have characters say things that match their personality. This is quintessential Cass.

It really depends on your taste. If you enjoy pop, 1989 is a good entree. If you enjoy moodier stuff, folklore is not a bad choice. If you enjoy country, try Fearless. You could also just sample some hits and, when you find one that’s ok, try the album it’s on. If you really want to run the gamut, going in chronological order is a good way to see the evolution of her sound and songwriting. The Taylor’s Version albums are worth listening to instead of the originals, though you can skip the bonus tracks if you’re not a huge fan.

That being said, you could justifiably come out on the other side still not liking her stuff. But I hope you’d at least have an appreciation for the artistry.

She may not be your cup of tea, which is totally fine. No music is for everyone. But to say her music is not creative or good like Michael Jackson and Madonna is silly. It definitely reveals an unfamiliarity with her catalog. While I like Madonna, she has not competently covered as much ground as Taylor Swift has been able to.

I used to not really like Taylor Swift until I actually sat down and gave her music a real listen, then I got what all the hubbub was about. She has a lot of albums for her age, and there’s relatively little filler on them (some have none in my opinion).

Very rarely. Physical intimacy in movies or TV is like a strong seasoning. In the right place, it can accentuate the flavor and bring it to another level. Otherwise, you’re just adding curry powder to a cherry danish.