I am owned by several dogs and cats. I have been playing non-computer roleplaying games for almost five decades. I am interested in all kinds of gadgets, particularly multitools, knives, flashlights, and pens.

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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: July 2nd, 2023

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  • First, get them out of the situation. If they don’t have somewhere to go that the abuser doesn’t know about, see if you have a local women’s shelter. Leaving the area entirely, at least temporarily, may be a good option.

    Second, help them take action about the abuse. Contact the police or find a lawyer to help with the process. There are lawyers who will work cases like this without charging. There may also be local government agencies that are specifically tasked with investigating abuse.

    Third, get them to seek help in recovering. There are likely to be local organizations that provide counseling and other resources. This is not going to be a short or easy process, but working at it will make a world of difference over the rest of their life.

    I’ve been through this with more than one friend. Every bit of it is tough. Having your support will make a big difference. Abusers try to make their victims feel powerless and alone. Having a friend who will help works against that, as well as providing comfort.

    I wish you both all the best!


  • I live in an urban area where the cost are slightly above average, but not by much.

    Depending on whose statistics you accept, somewhere between 55% and 62% of the country are living paycheck to paycheck with little or no savings. That is a literal majority of Americans. It really is that bad and it’s getting steadily worse. I was quite comfortable 20 years ago and reasonably so ten years ago. The dividing line passed me about five years back.


  • Consider me as a data point. My salary is in the low six figures. I have a reasonable mortgage and car loan. I also live paycheck to paycheck and have trouble paying my bills every month. I am currently in default on several thousand dollars of medical debt, that I am trying to pay off gradually, but I’m not always keeping ahead of my new medical debt.

    Part of my income goes to helping out some relatives and friends who are in much worse shape, but even without that, I would have trouble breaking even.

    I am just barely short of being in the top 10% of US incomes. The income inequality in this country has left the vast majority of the population struggling. Many can no longer afford enough food or housing.




  • Same here. The author did a good job of laying out there position right up front. And their position is based on ridiculous assumptions. There are some genuine concerns with the way the Ukraine government is suppressing opposition voices, but they destroyed their credibility completely before they even got to that point.

    Personally, I think the declaration of martial law and the subsequent moves to limit opposition are probably justified when faced with an existential threat like the Russian invasion.


  • I don’t know if this will help, but I’ve been using Plex to manage my music and other audio for more than a decade. It pulls in metadata from online sources and allows me to search or apply filters. That is a lot more versatile than anything I could do directly with the files.

    If you aren’t interested in running your own server, look at some of the more sophisticated player apps. Many of them can provide similar metadata features. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about how the files are physically organized.




  • It’s nice to see someone arguing the nurture side of things. Breed does have a significant influence, but how a dog is treated makes far more difference to their eventual personality.

    I have always talked to my dogs the way I would talk to a human. I don’t use babytalk or even adjust my vocabulary. Not only does it seem to give them a startlingly good understanding of human language, it also makes them more inquisitive and more interactive. If you treat them like people they behave more like people.

    I have had dogs that were smarter than others, but the average has been far higher than people generally assume.