Language is a tool for manipulation. Sure it is used for communication with people considered “equals”. But primarily people use it to get what they want from people they can outmaneuver and/or manipulate verbally and legally (both are an extension of language).
Language’s roots are in trade and survival. Therefore manipulation of others for the speakers benefit has ALWAYS been the primary purpose.
You are of course welcome to administer this site as you wish. However: This site hasn’t represented balanced discourse or intellectual debate in at least a decade.
I’ve watched it become just yet another Ivy League and big tech echo chamber as YC has pursued its existing investments over its stated goals and creative ideals.
I was so fortunate to get in at a startup paying $90k/y usd in 2004.
Now I’m poorly paid compared to the people I “mentor” at $160k + bonuses with no RSU. But at least I’m working on stuff I care about.
I hear these fresh college grads getting $300k offer that have the right university on their meaningless tech degree they drank 24/7 to achieve, and I just want to scream. In three years I’ll be rejecting them for positions writing the software that makes their current employer run.
I’ve nixed so many Amazon and Facebook employees in the interview process that couldn’t answer anything about basic programming skills. Their answers were just “I’d use this off the shelf solution”. Well sorry, but we create that off the shelf solution or an alternative. So you actually have to know how to use binary arithmetic. Bye bye brat.
Reading through papers on cholangiocarcinoma: most of them ARE falsified. And I want to harm people for it. Only three new drugs in 29 years. And I can’t help but think it’s partially due to this.
Mother has stage 4 intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.
Not downvoting personally. But the charging situation on the ground in Texas is hit or miss. If you’re along major interstates and major metropolitan areas you’re fine. You might have to wait for an hour for an open spot but you’ll get charged eventually.
But once you start going to many of the smaller cities you have to start taking longer routes to get to chargers and make weird detours and backtrack from chargers to get to your route.
Same with many tourist destinations outside the major cities.
Friends that tried to go pure EV and didn’t live their lives entirely in one city have inevitably had to buy a second gas car or truck. Because those “occasional” issues show up a lot in Texas.
My personal main concern is the emergency situations where the grid is down or there are mass evacuations. After hurricanes entire highly populated of the state can be without power for weeks. The area I live in now to be near my ailing parents regularly has power issues. I can bring in gas from outside the area to last a while but I can’t bring in a high voltage source.
Yeah. But I can still fill an ICE car manually with a can or hand pump.
Also hurricane evacuation with mass electric adoption is going to be an interesting situation to observe. It may be better than with an ICE. We’ll see.
Seriously. Just give me a NORMAL car with a modern electric drivetrain and I’ll be happy. I have my 4Runner for longer trips and “electric grid down because Texas is a 3rd world island in a 1st world country” situations.
These electric cars are going for full gimmickry and just look like a giant long term ownership nightmare. Built to be disposable status symbols for your average American trying to appear wealthier than they are instead of practical vehicles for the mass market.
Language’s roots are in trade and survival. Therefore manipulation of others for the speakers benefit has ALWAYS been the primary purpose.