MetaFilter

In re evictions: If someone is starting from scratch after being evicted, this is a starter pack for what they need:

Tent, ideally three or four person because tents are small - ~$50 at Walmart
Tarp - $3 - $5
Sleeping bag - $35
Camping lantern and batteries - $5 - $7
Blanket or blankets - price is all over the map
Pillow - price all over the map
Buddy heater and propane - the... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Frowner at 10:06 AM on January 31, 2023

It really is true that every time an encampment is broken up, the fragile network of services fail.

It has ripple effects too, such as having to resort to inadequate shelter in dangerous weather. Here in Winnipeg we've had a large spike in people that don't fit into the shelter system taking refuge in uninsulated bus shacks, porta-potties, or makeshift lean-tos. This week we're facing an extended cold snap with evening temps feeling like -36 (at... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Hardcore Poser at 9:32 AM on January 31, 2023

That's always been the weirdest part to me, that we are willing to spend more in order to be punative, rather than spending less and being supportive

Very similar to the abortion debate: birth control is incredibly cheap next to unwanted pregnancy, but then you'd be "letting them get away with it "

I suspect also that people worried about not being able to pay their mortgage feel jealousy at the idea that someone would get free housing.
posted to MetaFilter by emjaybee at 9:04 AM on January 31, 2023

I wish that the average housed person understood that we are all closer to living in a tent than we are to being millionaires.

If I ever end up old enough, and in Canada, that will almost certainly be me.
posted to MetaFilter by Meatbomb at 8:58 AM on January 31, 2023

That's always been the weirdest part to me, that we are willing to spend more in order to be punative, rather than spending less and being supportive.
I’m convinced that the attitude of “nobody is going to get something ‘extra,’ ever, for any reason” is rooted in people needing some kind of help in early life, but not getting it. People fear, on some level, that if help goes to people who need it, either their own struggle will be invalidated, they won’t be... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by corey flood at 7:22 AM on January 31, 2023

I still maintain a little corner of hope that there's a plurality of housed people who just don't know that encampments are better than scattering people and that enough publicity will at least create a critical mass on this.

It really is true that every time an encampment is broken up, the fragile network of services fail. If Canada is the least like the US in this regard, a lot of the services are either volunteers (including many formerly unhoused... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Frowner at 6:04 AM on January 31, 2023

This is a huge ruling amongst my circles, and feels like a tipping point that could go either way. The big worry is if the region appeals and wins it's going to embolden the cop-lovers to bulldoze every tent they find. However, if it stands, or even better if the region appeals and then a higher court rules similarly, it will change how homelessness is handled in this country which FUCK YES. It's about time that people without homes were treated as people and not litter to... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by seanmpuckett at 5:54 AM on January 31, 2023

I can walk to a bakery, 3 different supermarkets, several doctors, a hand full of restaurants and other services in less than 5 mins. If I am willing to walk 10 mins, I get three more supermarkets, one of which is a discounter, countless restaurants and a lot more services, doctors, dentists as well as a DIY shop.

This comment points to a related aspect of penalizing the less fortunate: the actual costs. The FPA talks about isolation and choice,... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Dashy at 7:43 AM on January 29, 2023

I left Atlanta around the time the Beltline development was really starting to pick up, and even I knew then that it was only a matter of time more poor residents would be forced out due to the vision Atlanta had of the Beltline's potential. The last time I was there was late 2016 and even in seven years, the places I loved best around the city were unrecognizable. So much tech money came in! Midtown appeared super shiny and skyscrapery, the Ponce Market hadn't even been started yet when I left... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Kitteh at 5:05 AM on January 29, 2023

That night I bought the mouse was actually Halloween. I was waiting at a pedestrian crossing when I decided to open the pocky. A woman next to me was wearing a blood-stained bridal gown, and she said 'is that strawberry pocky'? Sure, I shared the candy with her and she told me that the blood on her dress was actually strawberry ice cream syrup. She offered me a taste. Why not? So I licked her dress. It was strawberry.

We were going in the same direction so she asked me... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by adept256 at 1:40 AM on January 29, 2023

A have a pic somewhere, pulled from a Québec-oriented group dedicated to mistranslations, that shows a garment label that reads FABRIQUE EN DINDE. I do dig it up and re-post it around every November.
posted to MetaFilter by gimonca at 11:41 AM on January 27, 2023

it seems as though that part of the world has animal identification problems

Contrary to our modern understanding, the ancient Byzantines referred to themselves as Romans. So there's that.
posted to MetaFilter by Apocryphon at 10:50 AM on January 27, 2023

What's next? We start calling . . . Ireland Éire?
Please don't, unless the rest of your sentence is in Irish. From the constitution:
ARTICLE 4
The name of the State is Éire, or, in the English language, Ireland.
Ironically, the preamble of the same constitution has "We, the people of Éire, humbly acknowledging all our obligations to our Divine Lord, Jesus Christ, . . ." which... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by BobTheScientist at 9:36 AM on January 27, 2023

> most people who don't have some familiarity with continental Germanic languages have no idea how to pronounce any sort of ü.


When we came up with the name, we didn’t even know what umlauts were. I can remember it like it was yesterday. We were drinking Löwenbräu, and when we decided to call ourselves Mötley Crüe, we put some umlauts in there because we thought it made us look European. We had no idea that it was a pronunciation... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by automatronic at 11:22 AM on January 27, 2023

No.
I don't say "Zhongguo," and I don't say "Deutschland" when I'm speaking English. But being a reasonable person, I will use "Türkiye" when Erdogan acknowledges "genocide."
posted to MetaFilter by the sobsister at 9:20 AM on January 27, 2023

When I finally visited Munich, all I could think of was that I have been to New York, London, Paris and Munich.

My company is based in New York and we're opening an office in Munich. Getting this song stuck in my head has become a legitimate occupational hazard.
posted to MetaFilter by EmpressCallipygos at 10:08 AM on January 26, 2023

I was also a grad student with him, and one of those mefites at Pole. One of the things we bonded over was metafilter, actually. Happy to hear he made an impression on this community; he was such a kind and quirky character. Going to miss him.
posted to MetaTalk by hal incandenza at 11:58 PM on January 26, 2023

Oh no! I’ve known him a long time, since before either of us was on metafilter; we were grad students together. Seeing his comments was a reminder of some the good people I met there, and a reminder that brilliant people can be good people too. (He was both in large measures). A loss for the metafilter community for sure.

And of course a deeper one for his family and friends. My sincerest condolences.
posted to MetaTalk by nat at 11:11 PM on January 26, 2023

Out here one of the main reasons gas is prepay is because the police told stores they were no longer going to respond to calls for gas drive-offs. Too many of those calls and the cops had other things to bother with besides people stealing ten bucks worth of gas

This is actually another interesting concept that's been tested here... stealing gas, or shoplifting, if you squint a bit... can be seen as being covered under civil law - breach of contract... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by xdvesper at 1:57 AM on January 26, 2023

Another example of why system requirements and unions matter!!!
posted to MetaFilter by Fizz at 12:38 PM on January 26, 2023

Accept it as a gift rather than payment, and dispose of it however you like.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Tell Me No Lies at 7:11 AM on January 26, 2023

Robert Palmer, "Johnny and Mary"
posted to MetaFilter by kirkaracha at 7:35 AM on January 25, 2023

Slightly off-topic, someone pointed out that the knight moves three spaces and changes direction in each move. The knight waltzes.
posted to MetaFilter by Multicellular Exothermic at 3:54 PM on January 25, 2023

So an actual tamagotchi slave then. I love this timeline.
posted to MetaFilter by hippybear at 3:25 PM on January 25, 2023

Did not expect a Vanna White factoid.
posted to MetaFilter by Don.Kinsayder at 7:37 AM on April 25, 2021

If I understand correctly, those are the ones who manage to both take all "our" jobs and simultaneously leech off the welfare system
Blaming immigrants for both unemployment of individuals and high welfare costs seems to be a pretty universal view around the world, even for countries like Australia, New Zealand and the US that are literally built on immigration over the entirety of their history. I often hear people that are immigrants themselves (but... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by dg at 2:04 PM on June 15, 2022

I am successfully recovering from my brain surgery last month, but just found out that I will need to have another ablation procedure (my 3rd in the last dozen years) to treat my cardiomyopathy.

Even though I'm bummed about my heart function decreasing and the many thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses, I'm just grateful to be alive and not facing anything more serious. I told Mrs. Guy the other day that all of these medical experiences makes me think of all... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by BigHeartedGuy at 9:16 AM on January 23, 2023

The 80s started in 1979. We also got:

Blondie Atomic
The Clash London Calling
Talking Heads Life During Wartime
The Knack My Sharona
The Flying Lizards Money
Tubeway Army Are Friends Electric?
Gary Numan Cars
The Specials A Message to You, Rudy
and tonnes of the best Devo, including Wiggly... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Meatbomb at 11:37 PM on January 24, 2023

I mean, there have been six Bugs Bunny voice actors since Mel Blanc, and it's not like Bugs Bunny became unrecognizable.

I do not believe that replacing Justin Roiland as Rick and Morty presents a higher match-the-voice/equal-the-artistry challenge as succeeding Mel frigging Blanc as Bugs.
posted to MetaFilter by DirtyOldTown at 7:12 AM on January 25, 2023

Apparently he also faces potentially seven years in prison.

I can only imagine what a nightmare it must be to have an abusive partner who also has huge legions of fans. I'm glad she's been able to preserve her anonymity, and hope it sticks.
posted to MetaFilter by nightcoast at 6:22 AM on January 25, 2023

Here's a cartoon from The New Yorker
posted to MetaFilter by Harvey Kilobit at 10:55 PM on January 24, 2023

It's a great movie, but 889% approval seems a tad excessive.
posted to FanFare by Saxon Kane at 1:05 PM on January 24, 2023

Had this 45 as a kid. When I finally visited Munich, all I could think of was that I have been to New York, London, Paris and Munich. And I visited them in that order! This song was going through my head a lot during that trip. Great tune.
posted to MetaFilter by SoberHighland at 4:04 PM on January 24, 2023

Any time I see or hear a list of cities, my mind takes me to this song and doesn't let me leave.
posted to MetaFilter by PlusDistance at 2:13 PM on January 24, 2023

I strongly suspect that most of the working and middle classes are pretty much in agreement about being anti-shoplifting.

Then you don’t know us very well.
posted to MetaFilter by aspersioncast at 10:40 AM on January 24, 2023

This used to be a thing in the US as well (and elsewhere). I think there's one in O Brother Where Art Thou?

It was that way until Piggly Wiggly invented the self-service grocery store. Memphis' Pink Palace Museum (built in the unfinished mansion of Clarence Saunders, founder of Piggly Wiggly) has a reproduction of their original grocery store in the museum--it's about the size of an average American convenience store--and the store has little signs... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by Halloween Jack at 8:42 AM on January 24, 2023

Normally I'm pretty chill about letting retail workers do their performative bullshit to satisfy their bosses, but the combination of having to both check my receipt AND inspect the bag was just too much, and I appealed. "You just watched me buy this! The cashier handed me the bag! We made eye contact! You smiled!" but of course it was no use. "Store policy".

Just as an FYI no store has the right to search your bag on exit ever.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by srboisvert at 8:21 AM on January 24, 2023

2022, the Prosecutors Alliance of California estimated that $500 billion worth of stolen or counterfeit goods changes hands online annually.

That's 0.5% of worldwide GDP. Seems a bit high.
posted to MetaFilter by Mitheral at 6:45 PM on January 23, 2023

. . . in the UK this summer. Were hitting Dublin . . .
Ahem, a word: dEUblIEn
posted to MetaFilter by BobTheScientist at 1:34 PM on January 21, 2023

"This is the state of modern Britain. This is where the nation actually is. The government tells off Holocaust survivors, to cheers and applause."
posted to MetaFilter by Wordshore at 10:16 AM on January 21, 2023

Brexit looks like a worse and worse decision all the time. It isn't causing all the problems listed above by any means, but it isn't helping, either.

Brexit was never intended to "help". Brexit was intended shelter the oligarchy storing their wealth in Britain from the EU's disclosure and taxation rules that were to came into effect just weeks after the Brexit vote happened, and it was a rousing success. The well being of the British people... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by mhoye at 6:35 AM on January 21, 2023

Expanding on the 'no, it's worse': the numbers alone don't give the feeling of sickness and malaise, the disenchantment and cynicism, the feeling that everything is tawdry, broken, tainted, that we live in a grubby and corrupted state, and that collectively we - or rather most of us - are living in a country on an inexorable slide downwards.

This article from The Times about Blyth, a town in my region of the UK, gives a flavour.

Shoppers look... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by reynir at 6:09 AM on January 21, 2023

That's some high quality thinking for themselves right there.
posted to MetaFilter by flabdablet at 10:57 PM on January 20, 2023

I have also lost some faith in people.

Having been a curmudgeon-in-training for many decades, and having finally attained the age of 60 and therefore being granted my official curmudgeoning licence, I can assure you that you're better off without it.

Individual persons are often pretty OK, and I think it's fine to maintain a bit of faith in those, but people are just fucked.... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by flabdablet at 9:51 PM on January 20, 2023

--- and I’ve had COVID exactly once.
posted by rhymedirective at 7:35 PM on January 20
You’ve had COVID exactly once that you know of. It's awfully big of you to not give a damn about the possibility you're giving it to other people as you walk around so arrogantly (R).
posted to MetaFilter by dancestoblue at 6:00 PM on January 20, 2023

Honeybee, the irony is that the people who respect you and appreciate you the most are doing our best to avoid you.

I promise we're still out here.
posted to MetaFilter by Dashy at 5:25 PM on January 20, 2023

I made it 985 days (Nov 21, 2022). I was really cautious because I know have a wet tissue paper immune system. My slip was riding the L train to Evanston to see the winter lights at the Chicago Botanical Garden (they were amazingly wonderful) with what seemed like an awful lot of clearly sick people, being briefly unmasked at Northwestern University's student center (they had a vax mandate and weekly testing of students) and dinning indoors at a restaurant with only one other table occupied in... [more]
posted to MetaFilter by srboisvert at 3:43 PM on January 20, 2023

And yet most people have just moved on, including those in our government who are supposed to know better...

Not billionaires! "Moving on" is only for us working class proles:

World Economic Forum: Here Are All The Covid-19 Precautions At Davos 2022 (Jan 2023)
posted to MetaFilter by meowzilla at 3:15 PM on January 20, 2023

So...please don't do that. You are talking about human lives.

The loss is significant.
posted to MetaFilter by tiny frying pan at 2:17 PM on January 20, 2023

One of the earlier 'eyeroll/kill me now' rejoinders from future antivaxx/disbeliever patients was "oh I'm pretty sure I had it last year" (i.e. 2019) despite any number of reassurances that Covid was nowhere in sight in 2019 in the US. So much time has passed and yet the understanding and awareness of what this virus is capable of is about at the level of a middle schoolers understanding of birth control.
posted to MetaFilter by docpops at 1:50 PM on January 20, 2023