Hijack This Thread

[AndyinPA]

[Rolodex]

This is kind of amazing. Activism that actually worked. Kudos to this group for persistence and knowing how to attack.

Last week, the nation’s largest prison and jail telecom corporation, Securus, effectively defaulted on more than a billion dollars of debt. After decades of preying on incarcerated people and their loved ones with exploitative call rates and other predatory practices that have driven millions of families into debt, Securus is being crushed under the weight of its own. In March, the company’s creditors gave the corporation an eight-month extension to pay up, urging its sale to a new owner to stave off an otherwise imminent bankruptcy.

Securus is one of two corporations that dominate roughly 80 percent of the U.S. prison telecom industry, forming an effective duopoly that thrives on the captive markets found inside the nation’s lockups. Both companies are owned by private-equity firms: Securus, by Platinum Equity, and ViaPath (previously Global Tel Link), by American Securities.

The slow death of the largest player in this space is not accidental. It follows six years of intense advocacy to expose the vulnerability of the prison telecom industry’s business model on both ethical and economic grounds. Organizers have waged a strategic war against Securus, educating investors and the public about the company’s predatory practices while successfully advocating for legislation and regulation to rein them in.

https://theappeal.org/securus-bankruptc ... -industry/

[bill_g]

The bird chip in the windscreen is pretty great!

Poll:
Which is better - to have been 20 in the 70's, or 70 in the 20's?

I'm thinking each had it's benefits.

[MN-Skeptic]

My niece gave birth to identical twin girls on Wednesday. My sister-in-law has been posting photos, which is great. But I love this modern era... they have video feeds on the sleeping units for each baby which are accessible through an app so anyone given access can watch the babies. That's so cool! Right now both babies are sleeping together in one of the sleeping units. That is just so sweet.

[Volkonski]

My niece gave birth to identical twin girls on Wednesday. My sister-in-law has been posting photos, which is great. But I love this modern era... they have video feeds on the sleeping units for each baby which are accessible through an app so anyone given access can watch the babies. That's so cool! Right now both babies are sleeping together in one of the sleeping units. That is just so sweet.

[bill_g]

You're Grand MN!

[MN-Skeptic]

You're Grand MN!

My nieces once extrapolated that if their father's mother is their grand-mother, then their father's sister is their grand-sister. I thought that was smart!

[bill_g]

You're Grand MN!

My nieces once extrapolated that if their father's mother is their grand-mother, then their father's sister is their grand-sister. I thought that was smart!

Wait until you're Great!!

[raison de arizona]

All gender restrooms! Heavens to Betsy! She must not get out much.

Conservatives: Liberals are a bunch of snowflakes who can’t handle the real world.

Meanwhile conservatives in the real world

Welcome to Kansas City where they have ALL GENDER bathrooms…I hate this.

There are also single gender restrooms available. Nobody is forced to use the all-gender restroom, it is merely an option. flykc.com/terminal-maps

[bill_g]

Every all gender restroom I've visited was a single seater. Kinda like at home. Seemed to work at home. Should be fine at the airport. Or not. Just like at home. You have to wonder just how sanitary your kid is.

[noblepa]

The bird chip in the windscreen is pretty great!

Poll:
Which is better - to have been 20 in the 70's, or 70 in the 20's?

I'm thinking each had it's benefits.

I turned 20 in 1971 and 70 in 2021.

I had more fun and was more confident about the future when I was 20.

[MsDaisy 2]

My niece gave birth to identical twin girls on Wednesday. My sister-in-law has been posting photos, which is great. But I love this modern era... they have video feeds on the sleeping units for each baby which are accessible through an app so anyone given access can watch the babies. That's so cool! Right now both babies are sleeping together in one of the sleeping units. That is just so sweet.

Congratulations!

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

[Lani]

My niece gave birth to identical twin girls on Wednesday. My sister-in-law has been posting photos, which is great. But I love this modern era... they have video feeds on the sleeping units for each baby which are accessible through an app so anyone given access can watch the babies. That's so cool! Right now both babies are sleeping together in one of the sleeping units. That is just so sweet.

That's wonderful!

[RTH10260]

After years of trying, the U.S. government may finally mandate safer table saws

APRIL 2, 20245:00 AM ET
Scott Neuman, Chris Arnold

One day about 20 years ago, Tom Noffsinger experienced every woodworker's worst nightmare: One final cut on his table saw before knocking off for the day turned into a trip to the emergency room. It was afternoon, and he'd been in his shop since morning.

"I was a little tired. I should've quit," Noffsinger says. "I ran my hand right into the blade and nearly cut my thumb off."

Table saws are widely considered the most dangerous power tool, and approximately 30,000 blade-contact injuries require medical treatment each year in the United States. About 4,000 result in amputations that can be career-ending for some professional carpenters and contractors. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says that when a person is hospitalized, the societal cost per table saw injury exceeds $500,000 when you also factor in loss of income and pain and suffering.

Noffsinger was lucky by comparison. Although he needed 14 stitches, doctors at a hospital near his home in Raleigh, N.C., were able to save his thumb. Reconstructive surgery followed. Even so, all these years later, he says he still has recurring pain.

Woodworking has been a nearly lifelong passion for Noffsinger, and he was no stranger to power tools. Back before his accident, he'd seen a demonstration of a new and much safer type of table saw at a local woodworking store. Marketed under the name SawStop, it was designed to stop and retract the spinning blade within a few milliseconds of making contact with flesh — fast enough to turn a potentially life-changing injury into little more than a scratch. Noffsinger's table saw wasn't equipped with the high-tech safety feature because manufacturers aren't required to include it.

But that may be about to change. The federal Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) appears poised to mandate a SawStop-type safety brake on all new table saws sold in the United States. The move would follow years of failed efforts and false starts by the agency to impose such a standard.

Manufacturers have consistently fought a new rule, saying it would raise the price of table saws for consumers. Safety advocates liken it to air bags in cars and argue that the benefits outweigh the costs.




https://www.npr.org/2024/04/02/12411485 ... wstop-cpsc

[zekeb]

More people have been killed by guns than have had fingers cut off by table saws.

[Shizzle Popped]

Picked up the new car on March 8. Driven it an amazing 70 miles so far. But I'm very much liking it. I believe the car has named itself Imogene. That is the name that pops in my head when I'm driving. So, on to Imogene.

For those that don't remember, I turned in my 16-1/2 year old Chevy Cobalt for a 2024 Subarau Impreza RS. I am loving this car. Cars have changed a bit since I last bought one. Such as there is pretty much a freaking iPad in the middle of my console now. There is no CD player. Everything is digital through this touch screen. Which is cool, I'll give you that. I was able to connect my Sirrus XM app account to the car, so I can now listen to my music, news, etc. through that. The radio stations kind of suck in Dayton, except for the classical station.

A few other things that I have noticed in the little driving I do:

• The backup camera is very helpful. I have depth perception issues, and this helps me when I'm backing up.
• There are small lights on my side mirrors that will light up when there is a car next to me in my blind spot.
• If I have my cruise control on (yes, took Imogene out on the highway for a short run), I have the option of lane drift control. It will actually lightly move the steering wheel to keep me between the lines if I start to drift a bit.
• There are two levels of heat on the butt warmer.
• Calls are crystal clear through the bluetooth connection on my phone.
• The review mirror will automatically dim if there are cars with headlights on behind me at night.

I'm still discovering things every time I run down to the store, or something. I don't drive much, but I'm starting to think I may just drive a bit more now.

Running a little behind here...

Have you setup Android Auto (if you have an Android phone) or CarPlay (if you have an iPhone)?

You should also have Adaptive Cruise Control on that car, which automatically lowers your speed to hold a set distance behind the car in front of you if it's going slower than you are. Probably half of the 44,000 miles on my Outback have been on I-70 between here and St. Louis and not having to cancel the cruise control every time I'm waiting for faster traffic to go around me turns out to be one of my favorite features.

There's a forum for the 6th generation Impreza that might be useful. The 6th generation is so new that the forum is still in its fledgling state but it's growing. It would be a good place to look if you have questions. They'll also probably start tracking when software updates come out for all the electronic systems, though you should have fewer than I've had. The system in your car is a derivative of the one they started with new in my 2020 Outback so it's mostly been debugged at this point. Anyway, the forum is:

https://www.impreza6.com/forums/

[Shizzle Popped]

I've had a SawStop for years and won't look at anything else until there are competing systems with similar safety features. When I started doing woodworking again my wife pretty much insisted I get one. Besides the safety systems it also happens to be a great saw. I still use the blade guard, push sticks, feather boards and everything I used to do without the SawStop technology. I've never heard of it failing to work properly but I don't want to be that one guy where it didn't. It doesn't resolve all the safety issues with a saw but I've had enough close calls with various tools over the years that I'll take every safety feature they can give me. I once had a board kickback that narrowly missed me and embedded itself in the wall 20' behind me. It was my fault. I was tired and wasn't thinking properly and made a mistake. It happens. I'm better about working when I'm tired now but I still do it.

Years ago, before I bought my saw, I was talking to an old time woodworker. He was bitching about the SawStop and said he didn't need any "nanny" technology looking out for him. Dude was missing part of two fingers on his left hand from, you can guess, a table saw accident.

[pipistrelle]

More people have been killed by guns than have had fingers cut off by table saws.

Likely, but it's good to be safer from both.

Edit: An acquaintance's dad cut off his thumb with a saw, but I gather the surgeon was able to reattach it. Months later after he was healed, he removed the safety features behind his wife's back and soon had an accident, although not as bad.

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

Imogene.

[Flatpoint High]

Rootles needs an intervention

Rudy Giuliani has said "the communist states are getting earthquakes" and suggested this means "somebody's sending us a message" after a rare 4.8 magnitude earthquake hit the New York City tri-state area on Friday.

Giuliani, a former New York City mayor and a close Donald Trump ally, made these comments during Friday's edition of his America's Mayor Live show which was broadcast on YouTube and X. He later said his remarks would lead "Marxist automatons" who "don't have a sense of humor" to conclude he was a conspiracy theorist.

For the rest of the story:
https://www.newsweek.com/rudy-giuliani- ... es-1887603

[Uninformed]

An entertaining (?) overview of how lucky we are to not have been vaporised. (Why do people say “nucular”?)

[Rolodex]

Rootles needs an intervention

Rudy Giuliani has said "the communist states are getting earthquakes" and suggested this means "somebody's sending us a message" after a rare 4.8 magnitude earthquake hit the New York City tri-state area on Friday.

Giuliani, a former New York City mayor and a close Donald Trump ally, made these comments during Friday's edition of his America's Mayor Live show which was broadcast on YouTube and X. He later said his remarks would lead "Marxist automatons" who "don't have a sense of humor" to conclude he was a conspiracy theorist.

For the rest of the story:
https://www.newsweek.com/rudy-giuliani- ... es-1887603

Dear Rudy,
Please explain massive sinkholes in Florida. Please explain deadly tornadoes in Alabama.

Love,
Us Normal People

[MsDaisy 2]

Vertigo is a royal pain in the ass, I fell to the floor yesterday and today my head is still swishing. I have to stand up very slowly and hold on to something solid and remember NOT turn my head to the side

[bill_g]

Vertigo is a royal pain in the ass, I fell to the floor yesterday and today my head is still swishing. I have to stand up very slowly and hold on to something solid and remember NOT turn my head to the side

Meclizine and water work for me.