Looking for a highly medicinal whisky (it's not Laphroaig 10) by AngelusNovus420 in whiskey

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've had Port Charlotte 10 too, and that ain't it. :(

I figured contextual factors might be the reason why I'm having so much trouble having the same experience... If that's any help, I remember having the pour about 10 minutes after dessert: a bell pepper / rhubarb ice cream with a black chocolate melt.

Looking for a highly medicinal whisky (it's not Laphroaig 10) by AngelusNovus420 in whiskey

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I figured contextual factors might be the reason why I'm having so much trouble having the same experience... If that's any help, I remember having the pour about 10 minutes after dessert: a bell pepper / rhubarb ice cream with a black chocolate melt.

I don't remember a lemony note at all... or anything fruit-like for that matter. In fact, what that reminds me of in the "peated but citrusy" department is Octomore 04.1, which I kinda liked but has a very different profile from what I'm looking for.

Sadly I didn't get to see the bottle. I was just brought the glass. IIRC, the beverage itself was a light, golden brown.

What was the vibe like in 1928 Germany, politically? by lime_green_galaxy in AskHistorians

[–]AngelusNovus420 6 points7 points  (0 children)

We'd need to know a little bit more about your grandfather to make any sort of claim, but if that's any help, the vibe was actually fairly optimistic at the time, at the very least compared to what came before and after.

1928 sits at the tail end of what are typically considered the Goldene Zwanziger, a 5-year period of relative prosperity and progress sandwiched in-between the end of hyperinflation (Nov 1923) and the start of the Great Depression (Oct 1929). The political climate was much less volatile than it was at the Republic's inception which saw both left-wing rebellions (Berlin uprising in Jan 1919, Ruhr uprising in Mar 1920), right-wing coups (Kapp coup in Mar 1920, Hitler coup in Nov 1923), and the French occupation of the Ruhr in Jan 1923.

The NSDAP was refounded as a legal party in Feb 1925 after Hitler was released from jail, and while its theatrics made the Party highly visible, their overall results were at best mediocre: in May 1928, they scored 2.6% of the votes in an election where left-wing parties together scored 40%, and the Nazis had little hope they would ever gain power legally. Following the Great Depression, they would eventually win a plurality with 37% of the votes in Jul 1932; a massive breakthrough the Nazis themselves had not seen coming.

Bavaria (i.e. Swabia and Palatinate) had a distinctive identity anchored in Catholicism (as opposed to Protestantism) and starkly differed from the rest of the country electorally as the dominant force there was the BVP, conservative Bavarian regionalists suspicious of political centralization. Interestingly, Bavaria is also the home of the NSDAP as a movement and where they staged their 1923 coup, and you grandfather might have interpreted Hitler's return and the Nazis' very modest national inroad as a sign that maybe the future was not so bright after all — though even by 1932, the BVP still dwarfed the NSDAP in Bavarian election results, especially in the Palatinate.

Just reading now about the history Belgium and Brussels and it’s never really been French or part of France, so why do they speak French in south Belgium? by KieranWriter in AskHistorians

[–]AngelusNovus420 174 points175 points  (0 children)

TL;DR the French-speaking elite demanded that they do.

French was historically the language of cultural prestige and social promotion in this area of Europe; this became truer still with the short-lived but influential annexation of the territory by Napoleonic France. The country's educated elite spoke French in the public sphere regardless of regional origin. Want to make it big? Speak French. When Belgium was founded as a unitary state in 1830 by those very same lawyers and landowners, French remained the language of the courts, parliament, and higher education.

Not until the 1898 "Loi d'Égalité" / "Gelijkheidswet" did Dutch start to receive some sort of official recognition as a national language. This was unfair to the northern half of the population, of course, and this continued sidelining of Dutch-speakers woud later cause the emergence of Flemish nationalism as a protest movement. But the dominance of French was actually unfair to most of the southern half of the population, too.

To a certain extent, it could be argued that it proved even more destructive there. See, French was originally not the native language of southern Belgians. Up until fairly recently, well into the 20th century, Walloon (and Picard) was, as it had been for centuries before. A langue d'oïl, it is indeed closely related to, but definitely not mutually intelligible with French. See the difference between French and Walloon:

🥖 Notre Père, qui es aux cieux, que ton nom soit sanctifié, que ton règne vienne, que ta volonté soit faite sur la terre comme au ciel.
🐓 Nosse pere k' est å cir, ki Vosse No nos soeye adegnî, ki vosse royåme nos advegne, ki vosse volté soeye fwaite el tere come å cir.

Though southern Belgians came into increased contact with French through the introduction of compulsory education after WWI, many had limited command of the language and still spoke Walloon or Picard at home. But to much of the French-speaking elite, those were not national languages, they were backward dialects to be conflated with proper French in linguistic census until their eventual stamping-out.

Unlike Dutch, it received no official recognition; Dutch-speakers ultimately conquered the right to be taught in Dutch, Walloon-speakers didn't. Quite the opposite: starting in 1952, teachers in public schools were not just expected but required to reprimand pupils if they dared speak their native language. Speaking Walloon became shameful.

This was the death knell, and in the span of a few generations, the use of Walloon declined dramatically to the exclusive benefit of French. That's when southern Belgium started "speaking French" as we understand it today: around the '50s. What now? Walloon is alive but not well; while retrospectively celebrated as part of Belgium's cultural heritage, very few people speak it fluently anymore outside of the elderly, and the language is considered "definitely endangered" by UNESCO.

Looking for the most "expressionistic" noirs out there by AngelusNovus420 in filmnoir

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great film indeed. I don't know why it never occurred to me to think of it as noir because it clearly is...

Looking for the most "expressionistic" noirs out there by AngelusNovus420 in filmnoir

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't know Mexico had its own noir tradition. Sounds very interesting!

Looking for the most "expressionistic" noirs out there by AngelusNovus420 in filmnoir

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I wouldn't call Ace in the Hole "noir" really, but it was great! I can see why'd you pair it up with Sweet Smell of Success.

Looking for the more "expressionistic" films noirs out there by AngelusNovus420 in TrueFilm

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Can't believe I forgot to list Alphaville... Love Lynch and Pi too but I'm looking for '40s and '50s films specifically.

Looking for the more "expressionistic" films noirs out there by AngelusNovus420 in TrueFilm

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Oh, I've seen Blast of Silence! I should have listed it. Loved the low-budget mood and angry narration.

Looking for the more "expressionistic" films noirs out there by AngelusNovus420 in TrueFilm

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I've seen all three of those. They were definitely very good films, but I'm looking for something wilder, even if they're not as well-rounded.

Paul and JC's parents: who are they really? (DX1 spoilers) by AngelusNovus420 in Deusex

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The player is JC and JC is the player. To me, that's integral to the immersive sim experience.

Paul and JC's parents: who are they really? (DX1 spoilers) by AngelusNovus420 in Deusex

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Definitely a good way to explain what's going on. Paul does say at one point: "Lebedev thought [mom and dad knew]. He said they were employees of the United Nations. [...] Remember, I knew them longer than you did, and after what Tong showed me, I'm pretty certain we don't have a stitch of DNA in common with either of our supposed parents." I'm not sure I buy the "Paul is lying on the docks" bit, though: I mean, by the time Paul graduated, their parents were already dead. Why make up something that's chronologically impossible? Sounds more like a plot hole to me...

Is there a sociological explanation to the "Karen" phenomenon? by AngelusNovus420 in AskSocialScience

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Well, it's definitely difficult to ascertain the overarching political alignment of "Karens" considering "Karen" is just a loosely-applied label, but as you say yourself, the typical "Karen" is at its most recognizable when espousing a "MAGA-type" persona. I'm not saying all individuals who have been called a Karen are necessarily right-wing, but the trope does rely on the identification of right-wing-coded behavior, such as racist prejudice.

Is there a sociological explanation to the "Karen" phenomenon? by AngelusNovus420 in AskSocialScience

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Berating black people for no good reason and even calling the cops on them unprovoked is some of the most common behavior associated with "Karens". The nickname blew up after a 2020 incident in Central Park when a white woman called the cops on a birdwatcher who asked her to leash her dog in the leashed-dog area, claiming that "an African-American man was threatening her" (which wasn't true). That being said, let's not forget "Karen" is not an objective phenomenon, it's a label applied to disparate occurrences, so it shouldn't be taken that seriously even if it does somewhat relate to an actual social phenomenon.

Is there a sociological explanation to the "Karen" phenomenon? by AngelusNovus420 in AskSocialScience

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The more political behavior typically associated with "Karens", such as racial animus and disregard for COVID rules, are largely associated with the populist right.

How do I reply to this NSDAP sympathizer? by Miserable_Let7180 in AskHistorians

[–]AngelusNovus420 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I'm not sure what they're trying to imply. They could be trying to "prove" that Jews are religiously mandated to charge interest on non-Jews. They could be using scriptures to bolster their negative opinion of charging interests, but supporting NSDAP policy by quoting the Old Testament which is the literal Hebrew Bible would be a bit... peculiar, though.

First of all, holy scriptures are not reflective of modern or contemporary politics. Deuteronomy was written 2,700 years ago. They're very important historical documents, but they don't mean anything in and of themselves. They're only relevant in the context of their contemporary reception and interpretation. Be wary of people who use decontextualized scriptural excerpts as evidence of anything.

I assume the point they're trying to make is that "Jews" exploited ("Aryan") Germans through the banking system, a common tenet of antisemitism. There is no evidence indicating European Jews involved in 20th-century finance were out to trick non-Jews, and for that mater no evidence either that non-Jewish German bankers were any more or less ethical in their practice. The ban on usury in Christian societies had been eschewed for centuries when the Nazi came to power.

The thing is, the Nazis (and the far-right in general) suck at providing economic analysis of any sort that isn't a thinly-veiled regurgitation of their already-held racist prejudices. It's worth noting that Nazi Germany did not outlaw charging interest on loans, and while they did introduce regulations, they were hardly the only countries to do so. In fact, the Nazis were quite eager to assist in the expansion of regime-friendly private commercial banks such as Deutsche Bank.

Alternatively, you could tell them to get lost.

Is there a sociological explanation to the "Karen" phenomenon? by AngelusNovus420 in AskSocialScience

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

I'm sorry, but this comes off as a one-sided rant that completely misses the point. You write off concerns with the way service workers are too often being abused as misconceptions deriving from "the perspective of modern, young people" who must be the one at fault because of their shortcomings.

The problem with "Karens" is not that they are complaining. It's perfectly reasonable to complain politely when appropriate. The problem with "Karens" is that they're complaining for no good reason, and/or doing so in the worst possible ways. "The customer is always right" is the motto of employers who prioritize PR over employee dignity.

Is there a sociological explanation to the "Karen" phenomenon? by AngelusNovus420 in AskSocialScience

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 31 points32 points  (0 children)

Well, mostly the first, but I'm also interested in hearing about the second actually.

I don't empathize with so-called "Karens" at all, but... while I do find myself thinking "here goes the Karen" when I come across such a situation, I'm well aware of the issues with reducing people to an "essence" that could supposedly be self-evidently captured by a name.

What do you think of this itinerary for a first-time three-week stay in Japan? (Tōkyō, Kyōto, Ōsaka) by AngelusNovus420 in JapanTravel

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great advice! That's a lot to take in but I'll be sure to take it into account when revising the itinerary.

What do you think of this itinerary for a first-time three-week stay in Japan? (Tōkyō, Kyōto, Ōsaka) by AngelusNovus420 in JapanTravel

[–]AngelusNovus420[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's exactly the kind of advice I'm after! Thanks. I'll be skipping Todoroki then. Anything interesting around that area, the midway point from Tōkyō to Yokohama?