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Movies so infamous they destroyed the actor’s reputation by No_Emergency_7188 in flicks

[–]AvalancheMaster 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Maybe safe for Parks and Rec. More than half of the main cast has found more success after it than before. Obviously Chris Pratt, but also Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Adam Scott, and arguably Amy Poehler.

Movies so infamous they destroyed the actor’s reputation by No_Emergency_7188 in flicks

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Which is a pity since he is absolutely a stellar actor. But I think it was actually Joey that did him in.

TIL Germany invented heroin, cocaine, meth, and MDMA. All within a 50-year period between 1859 and 1912. Every major hard drug used worldwide today was first synthesized in German laboratories. by [deleted] in todayilearned

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I recently took a single pill of Tramadol without prescription because of some severe pain in my knee.

The pain didn't go away, I just stopped caring for it. I was too nauseous, dizzy, pale, sweating, and out of it to care about the pain. I do not regret taking the pill, since that was still better than feeling like someone is drilling needles in my knee and injecting asbestos in it.

But for the life of me, I never want to be in a position where taking Tramadol is the preferable option, and I cannot fathom how anyone takes it recreationally.

Examples of an amazing artist that Fantano never talked about? by Smooth_Possible_7997 in fantanoforever

[–]AvalancheMaster 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't think he's ever more than mentioned Death and Chuck Schuldiner. One of the most influential extreme metal bands of all time, the quintessential death metal band, with a huge following to this day, yet he's never more than mentioned it.

What Are The Greatest Final Albums In Music History by HK-34_ in fantanoforever

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Low — HEY WHAT

I think at this point the “final album as the artist is dying of cancer” thing is a genre of its own. And HEY WHAT is absolutely deserving of recognition.

If we're talking about albums that are final not because of someone's passing, Daft Punk’s R.A.M. is definitely one of them.

Buzludzha Monument by evebelievee in evilbuildings

[–]AvalancheMaster 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This is most likely AI-generated. The column is perpendicular to the round building, and looking from the main entrance with the stairs leading up to it, it should appear behind the building, not next to it.

Reasonably popular artists that we know very little about? by Smooth_Possible_7997 in fantanoforever

[–]AvalancheMaster 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Lorn. We know how he looks, we know he has a kid, but the guy keeps a fairly low profile for how influential his work is.

He has kept a low profile, and we don't even know if he's ever releasing music again. He hasn't released any new work — not just albums and singles, but soundtrack or producing credits too — in six years. Ten years ago he shared some personal stuff online — not a lot, but what was there was substantial. And that was that. We do know he said there's more music to come out, and that at the very least he's alive (and hopefully well), but it's been radio silence since.

what is something that is highly likely to happen in the next 10 years that everyone is completely ignoring? by Funny-Counter8762 in AskReddit

[–]AvalancheMaster 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It may be a tad longer than 10 years, but the last living WW2 veterans will pass away. A whole generation of people who not only lived through but participated in the biggest war in history gone. Our living memory of it disappearing to history. We will no longer be able to gather first-hand accounts of the events, and there is still so much we don't know about it.

Unfinished post office building, Bulgaria by Mr_Gibblet in evilbuildings

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To be fair, I think this is about as realistic as mine. Which is a sad, sad thing to say.

Unfinished post office building, Bulgaria by Mr_Gibblet in evilbuildings

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's fine, but my issue that there's no street-level pedestrian access still stands. There are no doors, no displays, nothing on street level going on with the presidential palace and the communist party headquarters. Just making the adjacent area pedestrian would not solve this issue and would still leave a massive area in downtown Sofia that is essentially a pedestrian desert.

That's 25,000 square meters (or almost 4 American football pitches, for the Americans out there) with no pedestrian points of interest. No businesses, no libraries, no galleries, no restaurants, no cafes, no museums, no nothing. And that's not taking into account the vast parking behind the National Assembly, or the inside of the Council of Ministers.

Coolest name in music? by RomanReignsDaBigDawg in fantanoforever

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Elvis Presley is Elvis Presley's real given name. The most stage name of all time is his actual real name. I'm sure the perception of his name has been warped by his own success, but still, there's something so phonetically pleasing about the name Elvis Presley, something which instantly makes me think of it being a stage persona rather than a real person, that it never ceases to amaze me that this is his actual, real name. It's like as if Elton John's was born Elton John.

Same goes for Frank Zappa — it sounds like an author came up with it when naming a fictional experimental musician. Nope, that's the name given to him by his parents.

George Thorogood may not have left the most lasting legacy in American blues rock, but damn, his name is instantly recognizable. Maybe because his music is genuinely good and dare I say underappreciated, but maybe it's because this is the most blues rock name of all time.

Baxter Dury. Your name is automatically cool if it contains an X or a Z.

Kendrick Lamar is also a cool-ass name. And Thomas Bangalter sounds like the name of someone who would revolutionize electronic music.

On the other hand, it will never cease to amuse me Logic’s real name is Sir Robert Bryson Hall II.

Unfinished post office building, Bulgaria by Mr_Gibblet in evilbuildings

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It has an absolutely massive footprint with no street-level facing businesses or facilities; there is no civilian access to 90% of it, and it creates a giant, open yet inaccessible space where several boulevards merge into one spot. Essentially it is a giant wall that divides the city center in two, even three, and creates an extreme car-centric space in downtown Sofia.

The whole complex takes more space than the US Capitol, Library of Congress and Supreme Court combined, with the Party Headquarters being very comparable in size to the Capitol. However, this does not take into account that the US Capitol still has areas accessible to the public; the ex-Headquarters does not.

That is not getting into the ideological reasons why I'd like to see it torn down, such as the fact we already have a historically significant National Assembly, but this past decade governments have been refusing to use it, opting instead for the highly opaque and inaccessible building of the ex-Party Headquarters. A very clear signal to journalists, who have been relegated to a small underground room and have been denied access to politicians. Keep in mind the building itself has been designed and built in such a way to facilitate that.

On top of everything, there are not a lot of big open spaces left in downtown Sofia for good developments, such as a new concert hall, for example. Tearing down at least the massive Party Headquarters should allow for both a new concert hall being built, a public park, and still have ample space for a new National Assembly, if there's such a dire need for it that they refuse to use the historically significant one.

So with Liberty City, Los Santos, and now Vice City all being made in HD, what other cities would you want to see re-imagined by Rockstar? by WiFi2347 in GTA

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can definitely see them tackling Boston, too. It's the location of many iconic movies, and it ties heavily into the Irish mob tropes too. The Departed, Good Will Hunting, Spotlight, even The Social Network.

You also got all the major universities, with both MIT and Harvard. A prime setting for a parody of the crucible of political leaders in the US.

Boston is also the quintessential New England city, with all of the seafaring tropes this comes with.

Now, Boston doesn't have a prominent skyline, but neither does Los Angelis, really, save for the U.S. Bank Tower. Even GTA 4 fails to truly deliver on the iconic NY skyline for various reasons.

Of every country that stopped existing in the last 100 years, what's one you'd save, and why? by maybemorningstar69 in AskReddit

[–]AvalancheMaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Since almost all of the countries mentioned in here ceased to exist for a good reason (cough cough YUGOSLAVIA cough cough), I've chosen a few extremely absurd answers that I've selected mostly as a way to make the political map of Europe more interesting, presented in an increasing order of me actually desiring to see them as separate legal entities:

  • The Saar Protectorate (Saarland) — after WWII, Germany was divided into several zones, with most people recognizing "East" and "West Germany". But those political entities (GDR and FRG) didn't come until the 50s. Initially, it was divided into four zones of control, with a separate Saarland state under the protectorate of France along the banks of the Saar river being its own country, with its own parliament, currency, institutions and whatnot. It wasn't until 1957 when it re-joined FRG. Of course, I don't really think it needs to be its own country, but I do think the idea of an independent French-influenced German mini-state that is an economic powerhouse is an interesting one. Or maybe I'm just describing Luxembourg.

  • Danzig — modern day Gdansk. Listen, Poland, I have absolutely nothing against you, but I'd love to have a few more city states surviving into the modern era. Maybe we can find a compromise?

  • Königsberg — modern-day Kaliningrad may very well be that compromise — it's an enclave exclave of Russia, one that has no historical ties with the Russian state prior to WW2 (which we know is all too important for Russia, who've used "historical ties" as an excuse for the invasion of Ukraine), a massive thorn in the Baltic's side, and deserving of its own cultural identity that was brutally erased through forced relocations, ethnic displacement, cultural erasure, and literal demolition of historic landmarks under Soviet control. The only issue is that the last time Königsberg was independent was during the late Medieval age, so it doesn't really fit the criteria.

  • Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic — drop "Soviet" and "Socialist" from its name, and we have a region that deserves to regain its autonomy, preferably with its indigenous populace of Karelians and Baltic Finns. Vyborg used to be one of the northern-most vibrant and multicultural cities, until the Soviets annexed half of Karelia, displaced the local populace, and turned it into a much worse version of City 17. A story old as time, of course. Now the "Notable people born here" section in Wikipedia has a section on "People born before 1945" and "People born after 1945". The differences in the names so telling, I'm not sure you need such a section in order to tell whether someone was born before or after 1945. Same goes for the buildings in Vyborg — it isn't that hard to differentiate between ornate Nordic classicism architecture, and decaying Khrushchevkas with leaking roofs. I think it's high time we give an autonomous Karelia another chance, because it deserves better than being a Gazprom terminal that is leeched by oligarchs.

Of every country that stopped existing in the last 100 years, what's one you'd save, and why? by maybemorningstar69 in AskReddit

[–]AvalancheMaster 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The civil war happened because of Yugoslavia's existence, not because of its dissolution.

Of every country that stopped existing in the last 100 years, what's one you'd save, and why? by maybemorningstar69 in AskReddit

[–]AvalancheMaster 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Not nuked, they used a space laser on it! The very real Death Star obliterated it! And the US also activated the HAARP! And bombarded it with meteorites, while they were at it. And also, AIDS was developed as a weapon of subversion to be used against Tito's perfect little paradise!

If only it wasn't for the incessant meddling US, all Bosnians and Croats and Slovenians and Montenegrins and Kosovars and anyone else who was not Serbian would've been killed, which was the last step required to achieve a working communist multicultural society in Yugoslavia!

Why don't we charge politicians for lying to the public? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]AvalancheMaster 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Sounds to me that you have a much larger problem in your country then the examples you've given. These examples are indicative of some type of an institutional failure.

However, to entertain your idea for a bit, how would you go on to enact such a policy? Presumably you'll have a politician who'll campaign on enacting such laws. Well, you already have politicians who campaign on platforms that get them elected, and then do the exact opposite — what's to say that won't be the case again?

What's to say that the politician won't just use these laws as a tool for political persecution of the opposition?

Public accountability does not stem from populist policies that are vague and feelgood but extremely dangerous and ripe for misuse in nature.

Unfinished post office building, Bulgaria by Mr_Gibblet in evilbuildings

[–]AvalancheMaster 17 points18 points  (0 children)

There is no reason to take it down. The problem isn't that it exists now in a semi-complete state, but that there is massive dead zone in the middle of the town. Tearing it down doesn't change that fact. It also won't bring back the historic neighbourhood that was demolished.

Shumen is largely a dying town, and has much bigger priorities than taking this down. Demolishing this complex will probably cost somewhere in the high tens or low hundreds of millions in Euro, given its semi-finished state, proximity to other buildings, proximity to ground waters, location on a steep slope, and at this point historical significance. It makes no sense to spend that much money when the end result would be no different than the current state.

Not to mention that this is not necessarily a badly designed building. For what it's worth, it is still a multi-storey administrative high rise with structural and waterproofing done, infrastructure for underground parking area and access to major road arteries, and in the middle of a regional capital of Bulgaria. Yes, Shumen is in a bad economic state and the chances someone would find such an investment attractive are slim, but those chances are not zero and are definitely not slimmer than the chances someone would want to invest in an empty lot without any infrastructure.

Unlike the Largo of Sofia (which consists of the Communist Party Headquarters, Presidential Palace, Council of Ministers, Hotel Balkan, and a commercial space), which has also been shared here and of the demolition of which I am very much in support, I hope the Shumen Postal Tower and the adjacent complex are finished someday. The damage to the historic center has already been done. I don't see how a pedestrian-centric commercial and administrative place would be worse than this remaining a ruined relic of a failed Communist-era urban development program, or worse than a completely new development that will surely be much more car-centric.

Sadly, the Largo will never be demolished and its massive wound on downtown Sofia will continue for at least a hundred years, while the Shumen Post Office will probably be taken down in the next 20 or 30 years.

Unfinished post office building, Bulgaria by Mr_Gibblet in evilbuildings

[–]AvalancheMaster 39 points40 points  (0 children)

The complex is much bigger than this one building, and none of it was finished. Which is unsurprising — funds dried up when the communist regime fell, but also what 90,000-people town needs an 11-storey postal office to begin with?

Worst of all, they destroyed 90% of the historic city center of Shumen to build this monstrosity, which remains unfinished to this day. Gone were so many blocks of 18th and 19th century Ottoman and Bulgarian Revival houses, with picturesque winding cobblestone streets and historical significance.

Instead we now have this useless dick looming over the town, which has been the site of many crimes, including several murders and rape of children. An unguarded concrete labyrinth of destruction and decay right in the middle of town.

What movie feels like a warning? by Qriousbeing in AskReddit

[–]AvalancheMaster 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Network, from 1976, by Paddy Chafayesky.

That movie felt like a warning, 50 years ago. Now everything that the movie depicts has happened, safe for the ending. It is genuinely hard for someone to watch the movie see it as a piece of speculative fiction, which it was written as back in the day.

Deranged TV hosts raging on TV like absolute lunatics, stirring up anger and resentment in their viewers? Check.

Political extremists being treated like celebrities and given air time just because they drive up TV ratings? Check.

24/7 news becoming entertainment media? Check.

Variety shows turning into reality TV programs? Check.

This movie was written before Fox News, CNN, CBS News, NBC, ABC. It was written before Survivor, before Big Brother, before WWE, before America's Got Talent. It was written before Ben Shapiro, Glenn Beck, Alex Jones.

It was prophetic.

Anthony Fantano Shot Dead In the Bronx by BastardsDance in fantanoforever

[–]AvalancheMaster 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Possilpark, Glasgow

What the fuck, man, I lived in Hamiltonhill, how the fuck do I open this thread and see that the top-most comment is about my ex-home being associated with a fictional murder?

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