thereticent's recent activity

  1. Comment on Drinking two-three cups of coffee a day tied to lower dementia risk in ~health.mental

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    Well, no. There's no "they" who would have a monied interest in coffee sales. Harvard/Mass Gen Brigham certainly wouldn't.

    Well, no. There's no "they" who would have a monied interest in coffee sales. Harvard/Mass Gen Brigham certainly wouldn't.

    2 votes

  2. Comment on In a blind test, audiophiles couldn't tell the difference between audio signals sent through copper wire, a banana, or wet mud in ~tech

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I admire your dedication! I really just meant that I have plenty of poorly mastered/compressed (often popular) music that I wouldn't want to start disliking. If a declipper were in my skill set,...

    I admire your dedication! I really just meant that I have plenty of poorly mastered/compressed (often popular) music that I wouldn't want to start disliking. If a declipper were in my skill set, who knows?

    2 votes

  3. Comment on The ten best and ten worst US foreign policy decisions in ~humanities.history

  4. Comment on E-ink tablet recommendations for note taking in ~tech

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I think I got lucky with my Boox (same model). I couldn't stand it for the first year because updates were broken and the OS was buggy. Eventually, they fixed something (server-side I imagine),...

    I think I got lucky with my Boox (same model). I couldn't stand it for the first year because updates were broken and the OS was buggy. Eventually, they fixed something (server-side I imagine), and I got a bunch of updates that made it work as intended. I haven't had hardware problems, thankfully. I enjoy using it as a reader, but I never fit the note taking into my workflow. Despite my original intentions, ha!

  5. Comment on Joy of sharing a creation replaced by a longing sadness in ~talk

    thereticent
    Link
    I hate this for you. I remember the joy on my son's face when a major creator simply commented a compliment on a level he made for Geometry Dash. Unfortunately, the internet disruption is working...

    I hate this for you. I remember the joy on my son's face when a major creator simply commented a compliment on a level he made for Geometry Dash.

    Unfortunately, the internet disruption is working as intended, but the intentions are poor. Love to you from across the globe. I hope you keep making levels!

    23 votes

  6. Comment on The tiny details in Red Dead Redemption 2 you weren't meant to notice in ~games

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    Rats. I was here because I thought it said RJD2.

    Rats. I was here because I thought it said RJD2.

    3 votes

  7. Comment on In a blind test, audiophiles couldn't tell the difference between audio signals sent through copper wire, a banana, or wet mud in ~tech

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    Sounds like a bug, not a feature!

    you really do start hearing when something is a bad recording much more with good quality audio.

    Sounds like a bug, not a feature!

    4 votes

  8. Comment on The ten best and ten worst US foreign policy decisions in ~humanities.history

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I think you nailed it with this list! Maybe not Eisenhower as much, though the "military-industrial complex" speech definitely stuck early for me. My kids said Obama is already of mythic...

    I think you nailed it with this list! Maybe not Eisenhower as much, though the "military-industrial complex" speech definitely stuck early for me.

    My kids said Obama is already of mythic proportions but only have begun to give a sneer at Reagan as they've gotten older.

    2 votes

  9. Comment on The ten best and ten worst US foreign policy decisions in ~humanities.history

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I get the point, but then why do anything at all, or care about international relations at all, or protest anything at all? Can't know, so "Do as thou wilt" shall be the a whole of the law!

    I get the point, but then why do anything at all, or care about international relations at all, or protest anything at all?

    Can't know, so "Do as thou wilt" shall be the a whole of the law!

  10. Comment on The ten best and ten worst US foreign policy decisions in ~humanities.history

    thereticent
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    My take: The presumptions are that the existence and success of the US as a nation is a good thing, and that the US should act morally and reliably. The Louisiana Purchase was a massive boon for...

    My take: The presumptions are that the existence and success of the US as a nation is a good thing, and that the US should act morally and reliably.

    The Louisiana Purchase was a massive boon for US existence and success, and the Trail of Tears was a genocidal march of original inhabitants, on foot, out of their homes, and demonstrated a lack of national integrity when resources are on the line. The LP did give the US sovereignty internationally over indigenous land, but that was back when the idea was to live peacefully side by side.

    I personally regard the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings as morally reprehensible. War is ugly, yes, but mass killing of civilians is just not okay. The argument that more lives would have been lost elsewise is weak, based only on speculation, and either way the calculus is that these non-combatant civilian lives are worth less than combatant soldiers' lives. Keep in mind that it is incumbent on the leaders of the invaders to keep it a "clean" war, and rules of engagement do not look kindly on murder of civilians (collateral damage, yes, but this is just murder). As for Nagasaki...the message had been sent! Sure, the effectiveness of adding a bombing until you get your way is plausible, but I already shared my stance on civilian murder, so my view is that the question of whether the incremental value of that second bomb was worth it is moot. "Let's just murder another 40 thou because that might help."

    When I think of our being under a deranged US administration that could provoke a world war at any moment, the thought that my city of 100,000 could be wiped out and irradiated for a fully justified reason is ridiculous and horrific. Just a bunch of non-combatants, many of whom are even now hoping people everywhere stop dying to war.

    6 votes

  11. Comment on Disney’s Beauty and the Beast [1991] vs Jean Cocteau’s La Belle et la Bête [1946] (2015) in ~movies

    thereticent
    Link
    The plot holes in the Disney version are funny, but: The feather duster house maid does indeed have a French accent, bringing the total up to 2 characters. Chip isn't exactly allowed to leave the...

    The plot holes in the Disney version are funny, but:

    The feather duster house maid does indeed have a French accent, bringing the total up to 2 characters.

    Chip isn't exactly allowed to leave the cupboard. He sneaks out and is presumably allowed to stay out with a gentle chiding once he sees the spectacle.

    Keep in mind I haven't seen it in almost 30 years.

    More seriously, I'd say I like both versions about equally, with the Disney version holding the slight advantage of being really fun through much of my childhood.

    2 votes

  12. Comment on What are your food aversions? in ~food

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    Fifteen-ish years ago, my wife labeled our cumin container as "I'm only cumin" with a goofy innocent face, and that has allowed me to forgive some of the pungency. :) We have to be careful with...

    Fifteen-ish years ago, my wife labeled our cumin container as "I'm only cumin" with a goofy innocent face, and that has allowed me to forgive some of the pungency. :) We have to be careful with it, though.

    1 vote

  13. Comment on What are your food aversions? in ~food

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    Turns out, most sushi fish in the US and EU are required to be flash-frozen to kill parasites. In Japan, many of the finer fish are eaten fresh. I had no idea until maybe a year ago.

    Turns out, most sushi fish in the US and EU are required to be flash-frozen to kill parasites. In Japan, many of the finer fish are eaten fresh. I had no idea until maybe a year ago.

    3 votes

  14. Comment on What are your food aversions? in ~food

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I don't hate raisins, but I do hate sun-dried tomatoes. All the texture of raisins with a sugary tomato flavor. Yuck!

    I don't hate raisins, but I do hate sun-dried tomatoes. All the texture of raisins with a sugary tomato flavor. Yuck!

    1 vote

  15. Comment on What are your food aversions? in ~food

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    It makes sense to me. Beets taste like soil smells. Turns out I really like that taste, especially with a citrus sauce or quick pickling marinade.

    It makes sense to me. Beets taste like soil smells. Turns out I really like that taste, especially with a citrus sauce or quick pickling marinade.

    4 votes

  16. Comment on What are your food aversions? in ~food

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    King snakes do feed on other snakes!

    King snakes do feed on other snakes!

    2 votes

  18. Comment on Matt Damon says Netflix wants movies to restate the 'plot three or four times in the dialogue' because viewers are on 'their phones while they're watching' in ~movies

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I might pull a muscle from rolling my eyes if we start to get "Wait wait, let me get this straight" scenes in every movie. Perhaps they'll freeze the action scenes and let the main character do a...

    I might pull a muscle from rolling my eyes if we start to get "Wait wait, let me get this straight" scenes in every movie. Perhaps they'll freeze the action scenes and let the main character do a voiceover: "Pause! Now, I know what you're thinking..."

    As an aside from Netflix, I did go through a very long Below Deck phase (on Bravo), and there are recaps and previews of the same episode at every ad break, sometimes even as part of the episode itself. It's like it was made for watching while driving, checking a phone, and being blitzed out of your mind.

    9 votes

  19. Comment on A global explosion of absurdly spicy foods in ~food

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    I grew up in Indianapolis, kind of the prototypical large-but-not-mega Midwestern US city, and we had all these as well. Now I feel lucky, too.

    I grew up in Indianapolis, kind of the prototypical large-but-not-mega Midwestern US city, and we had all these as well. Now I feel lucky, too.

    3 votes

  20. Comment on Recommendations needed: Favorite “comfort” movies in ~movies

    thereticent
    Link Parent
    Your bonus hint confirms that I had it despite not getting the A Christmas Carol tie-in! I had the exact same reaction. It's not often I laugh heartily after a show without having lost it while...

    Your bonus hint confirms that I had it despite not getting the A Christmas Carol tie-in! I had the exact same reaction. It's not often I laugh heartily after a show without having lost it while watching.

    E: Oh hell I just remembered the Xmas Carol thing! Gah!

    1 vote