Somebody give that baby a hug!

Not World News, removed.

Number one way to piss people off is screw with their pensions… Good piece on the reasoning, not just reporting on the strike!

I was going to say “books” as I have my own library, a little free library for donations, and a comic book room.

But it’s really any physical media. Books, DVD, Blu Ray, UHD, Video Games.

Really the only gap is music, I’ve never been much of a music guy, but for what I LIKE, I go whole hog and get the discography. Beatles, Pink Floyd, Chris Smither, Kelly Hogan, Cake.

Like the above user says, start with the macro settings on your phone, take a BUNCH of pictures, then figure out what the limits are and invest in the gear that gets you over those particular humps.

It’s hard for anyone else to guess at what makes you satisfied or not, but if you’re happy with the macro settings on your phone, you can invest in data storage, tripods, bi-pods, etc. for the camera you already have.

https://amateurphotographer.com/buying-advice/best-smartphones-for-macro/

Magic isn’t real.

It’s not “Islam at large”, look at Iran pre-revolution, or Iraq under Saddam Hussein. They had a multitude of problems, but Islamic fundamentalism wasn’t one of them.

If you’re into retro-gaming, Starflight and Starflight II were both excellent.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starflight

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starflight_2:_Trade_Routes_of_the_Cloud_Nebula

^ This - Plus “nature photography” is a WIDE category. You need a totally different setup for landscape photography than you do for close up macro photography.

This:

vs. This:

Are both “nature photography” but need different gear and settings.

Figure out what you want to do, then figure out where your current technology limits you.

There is no doubt Hamas committed atrocities during the October 7th attack, but at the same time there has been no compelling evidence of systematic rapes.

That notion comes from purely racist and propagandist sources.

The policy IS more targeted at certain communities who ban people left and right for little reason or no reason at all.

Böömen

It’s weird to me what people tolerate in red states that we absolutely do not here in Oregon.

Random sobriety checkpoints were found to be unconstitutional here. You can’t just decide to close a road and pull everyone over.

Red states apparently love that shit.

https://romanolawpc.com/oregon-dui-checkpoints/

“Before government officials can embark on a search or seizure for evidence to be used for this purpose, they must have individualized suspicion of wrongdoing. Further, unless they can show to a court’s satisfaction, after the fact, that they did not have time to obtain a warrant, the authorities must have judicial authorization, in the form of a warrant, before the search or seizure.

Defendant was seized when his vehicle was stopped. His vehicle is, like other possessions, an “effect” in which he is entitled to be “secure against unreasonable search, or seizure.” Or. Const. Art. I, § 9. His person and documents were searched and the evidence obtained was used to convict him of a crime.

These acts occurred in the absence of any belief that he had committed an offense. The officers did not comply with the constitutional standards for searches and seizures. Or. Const. Art. I, § 9. The evidence must be suppressed.”

I wonder if this was reported by someone or if it’s another case of modding by AI? Not that it’s excusable by any standard. Would be nice to know if the bias is human or machine.

I’m demonstrating the problem. :)

The thing is, what is or is not a “mental illness” isn’t defined by you, or by me, it’s defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, written and published by the American Psychiatric Association.

Homosexuality USED to be defined as a mental illness in the DSM III published in 1980, it was maintained in the DSM III R in 1987, and the DSM IV in 1994 and DSM IV TR in 2000.

It was wholly removed from the DSM V in 2013, and frankly we should be ashamed it took that long.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homosexuality_in_the_DSM

Calling it a mental illness now, in 2025, is at best “quaint”, and at worst materially and factually wrong.

I love Babylon 5 and she loves what she has seen of Londo and G’Kar, but she hasn’t seen a lot of it.

She says: “Oh? You mean DS9?”

In the World community, I am not shy about removing comments and banning users pushing outright propaganda, such that the Ukrainians are Nazis, Gaza is not undergoing a genocide and Chinas persecution of the Uyghurs is at best just a wacky misunderstanding and at worst Western propaganda against the wise, benevolent CCP.

But when I do that, I cite my sources.

“Business” also exists. If it’s news about the business, not the technology, it should go to Business.

I am firmly Star Wars, my wife is Star Trek. It’s a mixed marriage. We both love Firefly and Doctor Who.

I have not yet shown her Battlestar Galactica.