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Pretty good hour-long interview with QT.
posted to FanFare by starman at 12:14 PM on January 5, 2016

PinkMoose: “My favourite Tarintino is Death Proof. I have found that in later years, his move from genuine conversations about race to a liberal racism, is almost unexcusable. I think that the racial politics of this were unexcusable.”

Phew. So – to respond to some of your comment – and there's a lot to respond to, largely because I might disagree with you on particulars but might agree on the larger situation of this movie... [more]
posted to FanFare by koeselitz at 12:12 AM on January 2, 2016

Awww, no. I always liked knowing that somewhere out there Lemmy was still being Lemmy. One of the many wonderful things about him is how he keeps showing up in random people's random anecdotes. My favorite comes courtesy of Neil Gaiman: The party was I think for either PJ O Rourke or Tama Janowitz, and I think it was PJ O'Rourke -- every Pan publishing party of that vintage took place in the same room upstairs in the Groucho Club, anyway -- and when the party ended I wandered downstairs with the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Kattullus at 5:25 PM on December 28, 2015

^^^^^ THIS. This is the comment I've been wanting to make but couldn't find the words.

It's one of the best LEGAL movies I've seen - that is, a movie about the nature of justice, the philosophy of law and jurisprudence, and how it has evolved (or not evolved at all, actually), and how various competing groups use it or are abused by it. It's a systematic deconstruction of the civilized veneer of the justice system.
posted to FanFare by naju at 1:45 PM on December 28, 2015

YES KOESLITZ.

That mobray soliloquy was the KEY POINT OF THE MOVIE. The entire movie is based on the subtext of the rules of justice, and about the fact that all violent (state or civil or mob) retributive justice is bullshit. AND it is a comment on extra-judicial justice committed by the police of today. (Goggin's character is the son of anti-Reconstructionist, just as law enforcement was based on slave patrols, and modern policing is... well we know what modern... [more]
posted to FanFare by stratastar at 12:16 PM on December 28, 2015

It's taken me since Friday to catch up with this thread!

I acknowledge some of the flaws and nitpicks/fanwanks as they may be. No, it's not the near-perfect sui generis thing that Star Wars was in 1977. (I still remember the width my eyes opened to months before the release when some older kids in study hall dumped a Scholastic magazine article about the film on my desk, dismissively snorting that I would probably like it. It had the production still, among others, of... [more]
posted to FanFare by dhartung at 11:31 PM on December 24, 2015

My goal is to be to be a person to those around me and not a G mixed into a shifting, distancing politicized generalizing initialism. I'm not "a" gay or "a" G—I'm Joe. Nice to meet you.

My T friends include Rachel, and Kris, and I understand far more about the issues of T from knowing Rachel and Kris than I ever got from the drumbeat of academic reductive mass inclusion. My S friends, if you take the alphabet soup more broadly,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by sonascope at 1:52 PM on December 23, 2015

I think the more our culture treats politics as being about about who we are as people--our personal identities, rather than about ideas, reasoning, or facts--the more we treat it like it's a team sport where the main point isn't the policies and the outcomes of those policies, but only winning, with our political commitments all bound up with our social identities, the less coherent our political views will keep getting. But I don't know the solution because the issues often are deeply personal.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by saulgoodman at 5:57 PM on December 22, 2015

Congrats! This is splendid news! I'm glad that we had so many good applicants to choose among, and I'm really pleased to see our new pick! Welcome!

And I'm with jessamyn; MeFi has historically been not-always-that-great to new female mods, so I'm hoping that Eyebrows' considerable personality and history of being a sensible and compassionate voice influence people to treat her kindly. I trust her to make decisions that will make this community better, and I'm delighted I... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by sciatrix at 4:17 PM on December 23, 2015

It's funny, I guess, because I used to think that way when I was an arrogant young fucker, and then I spent a couple of decades thinking 'hey, maybe people aren't so dumb after all', but at this point, I'm right back where I started, pretty much.

It's like Mark Twain famously said:

"When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by rorgy at 2:32 AM on December 23, 2015

There's a lot of confusion about this, so here's my attempt to clear it up:

Ordinary users know passwords as the sequence of characters that you type into login forms. And whenever Hollywood shows someone breaking into a computer system, they almost always show a cracker guessing a password.

So it's natural to assume that real-world crackers discover passwords by making multiple login attempts, using a randomly chosen password each time, until... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by escape from the potato planet at 10:26 AM on December 15, 2015

I wish people would understand that for many of us complaining about these movies, it's not about fear of change and it's not because we can't enjoy bad movies or fun action-packed spectacles. It's because of the particular direction of this change, and the fact that there are hundreds of dumb action-packed spectacles already. Star Trek played a unique role in SF that has not been replaced by other narratives, much less augmented by reboots of other franchises that change them in the Star Trek... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by chortly at 4:54 PM on December 14, 2015

That's something I would very much like to see.

If you can imagine it, it is so!
posted to MetaFilter by Strange Interlude at 6:14 AM on December 14, 2015

Well, if it is, you will too. If you're still here. (and I hope you are)
posted to MetaFilter by yesster at 8:14 PM on December 10, 2015

I loved it, stav.
posted to MetaTalk by jonmc at 5:59 PM on December 8, 2015

Ted Cruz is a billion squirming grubs in a skinsuit.

Ted Cruz is a soft pink machine weeping poisoned honey.

Ted Cruz is the howling void at the heart of madness, with better hair.

Ted Cruz is a walking, talking, sniveling block of pure unadulterated evil.

No politician, up to and including Ronald Reagan, George Wallace, and Dan Quayle has ever scared me like Ted Cruz scares me. He is an... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by BitterOldPunk at 4:35 AM on December 6, 2015

Are you smarter than an 8th grader?

is a different question from

Do you know the specific bits of information that students hoping to attend an Ontario private high school are expected to know for their SSATs (Secondary School Admission Tests), in a specific, rigid form in which those test administrators will expect to see it?

But the shorter one definitely makes a better headline, so whatever.
posted to MetaFilter by Wolfdog at 1:32 PM on December 5, 2015

To quote my pal Martha, "this is a very good thing." MFC is great. Video games are great. Giving to charity is great. Doing for good is great. Thinking about doing good is great.

It is agreed that not everyone can throw in dough for charity. Everyone's got to take care of themselves, their family, and their friends. Do what you can, without thought of any goals. I'm from the street, cousin. I know the drill. We might be nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by herrdoktor at 11:06 AM on December 2, 2015

The idea that there is a religious component to this attack that can be traced back to Biblical principles as described in the Bible and as interpreted by Christian institutional practice over the millennia is more or less wrong. The doctrine among American Protestants that abortion is murder is only slightly older than I am — as always, Slacktivist is an excellent source for documentation of this forgotten shift in Protestant practice. As Slacktivist argues (and I believe, even though I... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by You Can't Tip a Buick at 12:48 PM on November 28, 2015

We should send poor stavros a turkey.
posted to MetaFilter by wierdo at 9:36 PM on November 23, 2015

> Relitigating the war is silly, but I question the notion that, because the highly-biased commenters on MetaFilter decided something is false, it would be self-evident to a savvy politician that it was false.

At the time, the UN had weapons inspectors in Iraq. These were men of unimpeachable integrity who had done this job successfully numerous times in the past. They released long, detailed reports showing that none of these weapons of mass destruction existed... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by lupus_yonderboy at 2:16 PM on November 21, 2015

modernnomad: "A second point seems to have emerged through this discussion, however, notably in the case of Jessamyn's comments. Is the culture of MeFi changing so that even a longtime user/former mod with basically unimpeachable credentials on "thinking shit through in a considered way" can be jumped upon for failing to agree (or rather, failing to agree in the right way) with the premise currently on the table as the "right thinking view"?... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Eyebrows McGee at 8:20 AM on November 17, 2015

I also think it would be a mistake to close the thread at this point, because it may be diverging in important ways.

The thread first seemed to be about whether the puppy thread was an example of failure to respect women's modes of expression. Early responses seemed to say "no", but then that was interpreted as saying that the problem doesn't exist AT ALL, rather than that the problem was not evident in the thread in question. Most of the community seems to,... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by modernnomad at 7:43 AM on November 17, 2015

I'm starting to get to the point where I feel like Metafilter is too moderated for me

My take is more that there are people who like to talk about these issues a lot more than I do and while I think moderation is mostly where it's been, the conversations on these topics that happen in MeTa are longer and bumpier than they used to be. And as someone who used to hang out here a lot to talk about policy (and, well, because it was my job) it's less fun... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by jessamyn at 11:33 AM on November 16, 2015

This MeTa is really depressing me.

Yeah. Yeah, they do that.
posted to MetaTalk by DirtyOldTown at 11:16 AM on November 16, 2015

Goddamnit, what an awesome drummer Philthy was.

Sincerely, everyone should hear Overkill at once in their lives – such a brilliant illustration of a machine-like drummer who doesn't ever fucking stop, just keeps coming back faster and harder, until they finally just have to fade it out. He's just so insanely good. And on the album – Motorhead's best – it leads directly into the smashing opening fill of one of my favorite of their songs, Stay Clean.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by koeselitz at 6:31 PM on November 12, 2015

If you want to be in the space business at all, you pretty much have to sell to the government. Just like the companies who build highways, there's really one one customer that matters. So, the logic is that no one should ever start a company to build rockets? Or that it's hypocritical to see value in what his companies accomplish because some random Musk fans who work for SV startups are libertarians?

You said above: I think we DO need to solve some real,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by bonehead at 2:02 PM on November 12, 2015

How much of Musk's success has been underwritten by government money?

The LA Times says about $4.5 Billion. That's a big number, but: it's spread out over three companies (Tesla, Space-X and Solar City) in three sectors (automotive, aerospace and green power); it includes both commercial contracts to the government as well as tax breaks; and is a total, for all support over the last decade and the decade to come, not year on year spending.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by bonehead at 9:25 AM on November 12, 2015

As he tells it, he got into spaceflight because of the Mars Society, not the other way around. I haven't heard a dissenting source.

Sure. The logic behind this is explained in the last part. Musk has goals. He prioritizes things based on what is possible, and where he feels he can be effective. He doesn't do stuff related to his five big goals where he feels he can't do better than what's already being done.

He is motivated... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by bonehead at 6:46 PM on November 10, 2015

I don't see where anybody, jedicus included, was expecting anyone else to fawn over or otherwise reward jedicus for his apology. You brought that reading here yourself, Conspire, and it strikes me as a singularly uncharitable reading.

My mother taught me that when I've done wrong, I should apologize. It's the right thing to do in that circumstance; it promotes healing. The apology should be sincere, concise, complete, and unconditional. The wronged party may choose to... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 2:16 PM on November 9, 2015

I'm really surprised that you decided to make a Metatalk to do so

Further in-thread discussion would have perpetuated the derail. MeMail was not well-received and isn't a practical (or even possible) medium for apologizing to everyone whom I offended.

I actually talked about exactly this type of thing

I took care to avoid "explaining all of the reasons you were doing that... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by jedicus at 10:51 AM on November 9, 2015

But it's fairly crapulent to seize on this to snark at LDS people in general--including and maybe even particularly the ones who strongly oppose this move--on the grounds that, LOL, of course this happened, your religion sucks and is stupid, what did you expect, etc.

But the religion is the problem. It always is.

The leaders aren't some aliens who have descended upon the rest of the Mormons, they have power because their... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Sangermaine at 9:47 AM on November 6, 2015

Before I put my two cents in here about why the South is so confusing to outsiders--and you are outsiders, even those who move in and live there for decades--I will preface this with the fact that I am white grown preacher's daughter from Georgia who has lived in rural, urban, and suburban parts of Georgia, spread across its different geographies, and who has now spent many years in the Pacific Northwest and New York City. I write this on the cusp on going home for a while, and much has been on... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by whimsicalnymph at 7:38 AM on November 8, 2015

If the study holds water, then it's a pretty devastating reflection on how the economic aquifer has been diverted over the course of these people's lives, mostly to benefit the very richest. (We heard again this week about the hollowed middle in consumer products: it's either artisanal single-origin chocolate or crappy sub-Hersheys stuff.)

A large chunk of American social policy in the 20th century was devoted to converting poor white people (especially 'white ethnic'... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by holgate at 10:29 PM on November 2, 2015

Lower white middle class voters are experiencing what it means to be left behind, holding onto the failed promises of the American dream and various fraudulent religious contracts to be elevated for their devotion. So they try to cope, then surrender to addictions. This is also evident in their voting patterns, where they tend to support Republicans out of a sentimental ideology, because they can't understand, let alone admit, that they are second-class citizens in an economic serfdom. Adopting... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Brian B. at 9:25 PM on November 2, 2015

Just saw you've been picked up here.
posted to MetaFilter Projects by LobsterMitten at 11:53 AM on October 30, 2015

you said "shit out of" about a thing that said ass

for more tips see my blog, Get Rich The Never Stopping Thinking About Butt Jokes Way
posted to MetaTalk by cortex at 10:42 AM on October 27, 2015

Hideo Kojima is the Philip K. Dick of computer games.

This is a way better analogy, thank you.

There are some points of contact between Kojima and Franzen, but I don't think it's gonna go like the linked dweeb thinks.

Both of them are hugely successful commercial artists, but I think Kojima tends to lead tastes and Franzen tends to follow. Franzen set out to imitate the Oprah book club picks when he... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by grobstein at 3:11 PM on October 25, 2015

. Trudeau's also extended an offer to Green leader Elizabeth May (and Mulcair) to join the UN Climate Summit. He's very quickly establishing that he is a different leader from Harper. It's not saying much, but it's a refreshing change.

What Trudeau does or doesn't do on climate change is pretty much a make it or break it for me. It's the biggest elephant in the room that will have a societal effect on every other issue. I do hope he will be one of... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Jalliah at 8:15 AM on October 25, 2015

I know it's just joking around, but I reckon it's a big part of being Canadian (the Canada many of us want, that has nearly been choked out in the last decade) not to give shit where people were born.

Absolutely, stav, and one of the things I'm dreading is a return to the old "East vs. West" media narratives, which I'm feeling are already stirring. I'm seeing some comments by Conservatives here in AB that Ontario "betrayed" them... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by nubs at 4:02 PM on October 20, 2015

22 Minutes says Goodbye Steve.
posted to MetaFilter by clawsoon at 3:19 PM on October 20, 2015

champagneminimalist: It's like an old, familiar friend has returned.

As a non-Canadian who's always had warm feelings towards Canada, it's a bit like an old, familiar friend has left the weird cult they've been a member of for the last ten years, where they worshiped guns and oil and hated people who were different.
posted to MetaFilter by Kattullus at 4:53 AM on October 20, 2015

Can't sleep :/ My overwhelming emotion is relief (and slight disorientation as I recover from a ten-year dissonance between how I thought reality was and ought to be and how it was actually unfolding). It's really over. We don't have to worry about the absolute worst of the worst anymore. We don't have to despair. I'm so glad Harper didn't succeed in fundamentally distorting the character of our nation that people like Tommy Douglas and Trudeau senior... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by cotton dress sock at 12:30 AM on October 20, 2015

Oh no, I liked it, it's refreshing to see that level of unabashed patriotism feel earnest and gentle rather than faintly horrifying
posted to MetaFilter by theodolite at 6:16 PM on October 19, 2015

Balance, moderation and consensus seeking are fine Canadian ideals

Let's get some peace, order and good government all up in this motherfucker.
posted to MetaFilter by mandolin conspiracy at 5:30 PM on October 19, 2015

I am frankly terrified for Canada at this point, and even if Harper and his gang of shithammers are finally -- finally! -- shown the door, I feel like it may be too late to reverse the damage they've done.

Never fear, there are a lot of good people in Canada who care about the country. As the great man said, "Courage my friends, 'tis not too late to build a better world."
posted to MetaFilter by Nevin at 6:32 PM on October 18, 2015

>>If you want to be more depressed, read the imperfect but fascinating article "Sheldon Adelson is Ready to Buy the Presidency"

>If you want to be slightly less depressed, know that he "bought" the presidency last cycle, too, and lost.

The thing is, to a degree it doesn't matter that you lost. You have a good point that the fact that you can't just take $100 million or a $1 billion and throw it... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by flug at 8:38 PM on October 11, 2015

we copiously bewail all your expectancies.
posted to MetaFilter by quonsar II: smock fishpants and the temple of foon at 1:12 PM on September 28, 2015

British Constitutional Law 401: Death of the Monarch

Upon the occasion of the utterly unthinkable and tragic demise of the Monarch, British Constitutional Law mandates the following procedures to be followed precisely and absolutely, on pain of the Monarch's death being ruled void.

1. The alleged Monarchic corpse is ritually inspected by the High Chamber of the Privy Notary, a body consisting of the Royal Colonel of the Order of St. Duran, the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by the quidnunc kid at 1:43 PM on September 21, 2015

Every time I see the small text saying things have been deleted, I don't like it. I have to trust they were really bad. Sometimes I have seen the posts, and I think, hmph that didn't seem that bad to me, but maybe the mods have a sense for what's going to go south.

This time, it was my ox. So I made this post. I was mad at the time, so I framed it perfunctorily. But it's a general thing, too. A general vote for less deletions. That is what I wanted and want the... [more]
posted to MetaTalk by Trochanter at 1:20 PM on September 19, 2015