What goes up....
dirthawker0
They want to knock CA down because it's a wealthy, successful state with mostly Democrats, but they don't think far enough to realize if they succeed in damaging CA's economy then CA can't contribute as much to their red welfare state.
Think about the technology we have now - a lot of it was inspired by Star Trek technology. Communicators -> smartphones/watches, shuttle -> Rovers, non invasive medical diagnosis, large screens, video calls. And that's just from TOS. And I'm pretty sure people are still working on creating Transporters.
He's fun reading, though being a woman I also find his stuff kinda sexist. It's basically cowboys in space.
"And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God."
Man, you and I are kitchen twins. Love my toaster oven (roasting broccoli is probably my main use for it), silicon spoonulae & spatulae. I use the enamel dutch oven for stews (and winter is when I love making stews), soups, and no-knead bread. Use silicone mats for a lot of stuff (though increasingly using parchment paper) and have a heavy duty blender (not a Vitamix but a Cleanblend).
I like that. "This is the Madison sheriff's department. Your grandson Chris has been arrested and needs bail. We'll accept payment in the form of a gift card."
Also 1M to the inauguration. It's a shakedown IMO, though FWIW 1M is pennies to these guys.
They've had almost 3 years now practicing those skills. Videos from early in the war have a lot less accuracy. I have no idea what the weather was like that day but I'm sure that less wind, and targets that aren't moving around so much because of darkness, are going to make for better accuracy.
During the pandemic I can see why these services blossomed, but I have only used them once or twice - and only in NYC where I didn't have a car, and even if I did, getting around by car and parking is more challenging anyway. (Delivery drivers in NYC get around by scooter which they drive anywhere they want (street, sidewalk, wrong way on the street, they do not care. They'd probably get on the elevator if they could).
To me the service charges and tips are higher than I want to pay and I'll just pick up the stuff myself. It'll probably be hotter anyway since there aren't other deliveries that need to be made before mine. The one exception is pizza where they already have their own delivery people.
Chinese manufacturers build according to budget. They are perfectly capable of making high quality products, and do. The problem is a lot of companies (looking at you, Walmart) demand their Chinese manufacturers build products for a pittance -- the manufacturers won't say no, but they'll find a profit for themselves by using lower cost materials. (ETA: also less quality control and cheaper labor)
Ask yourself -- if you were a woodworker and someone offered you $250 to build a small stand out of wenge, you'll probably do a good job of it. If someone offered you $30 to build the same stand, and you really needed that $30, you'd make it with pine and just paint or stain it to look like wenge. Chinese manufacturers are no different.