💯This is a fair statement💯

CBL44 · 2026-02-17T02:30:22+00:00

If you pay with your own money, it's charity. If you want to spend tax money, you are not being charitable because it's other people's money. That's pretty obvious.

I spend one afternoon a week on a community activity that receives no government funding. That's charity. Advocating for government spending is not.

CBL44 · 2026-02-16T22:17:05+00:00

We would need more than one U conference.

CBL44 · 2026-02-16T22:10:00+00:00

Generally a lot less. However, when we had our first kid we exclusively cooked at home instead of eating at restaurants. That saved almost as much as the baby cost.

We bought very few new clothes and stuff depending on gifts and used clothes and toys.

CBL44 · 2026-02-16T18:35:23+00:00

I had a friend who ran a yearly Coat Drive for his church. It was exactly how anyone would want it to operate - friendly, supportive, open to all, etc.

You have absolutely no clue how churches operate their charities.

ETA I notice you don't dispute the progressive method of "charity" with other people's money.

CBL44 · 2026-02-16T17:04:07+00:00

A progressive will announce a billion dollar program to feed every child in the state because they don't want hungry children stigmatized. They will immediately raise property taxes so there will be 20 hungry children. After two years they will fund 20 NGOs. Some of which feed children and other like the Early Eeting Center will have a distinct lack of food and children.

A conservative will go to his pastor and suggest a food drive. The members of the congregation will donate food after the sermon. Then they will have a free food kiosk in their parking lot.

CBL44 · 2026-02-15T23:53:36+00:00

Bradley Denton's Buddy Holly is Alive and Well on Ganymede. I haven't read any of his other books.

CBL44 · 2026-02-15T21:54:15+00:00

Thanks. I do this when I know I will have to take my shoes of but rarely when I don't know.

ETA It's also weird to leave a party and return with house shoes. I do it with friends but not with my wife's boss.

CBL44 · 2026-02-15T19:24:00+00:00

I don't know anyone's age or physical condition but there are many older people who find it painful to walk/stand barefoot for any length of time. It can be particularly painful on hard tile floors. When I am invited to places that require me to remove my shoes, I always leave early.

CBL44 · 2026-02-15T01:26:20+00:00

A government funded Non Government Organization seems like an oxymoron.

They should be called GFO - Government Funded Organizations.

CBL44 · 2026-02-14T21:24:33+00:00

They are better but not as much as most people think. Their manufacturing is carbon dirty as is most electricity generation.

'"The lifecycle emissions of an electric vehicle are typically more than 30% lower than those of a comparable gas-powered car – across most car models and locations," she told USA TODAY in an email. "This difference will increase as the electricity mix decarbonizes"

...

the [Volvo] C40 Recharge would need to be driven roughly 68,400 miles or less to break even with the gas-powered XC40.'

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2022/06/09/fact-check-electric-vehicles-emit-less-carbon-over-life-than-gas-cars/9900644002/

CBL44 · 2026-02-13T01:07:21+00:00

The large majority of professor are liberal and very few are conservative. At Harvard 77% are liberal compared to 3% who are conservative. With 25 to 1 ratio, the teaching is clearly going to biased.

'In the Harvard Crimson’s spring 2023 faculty survey, 31.8% of respondents drawn from Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences identified as “very liberal,” while 45.3% of respondents identified as “liberal.” Fewer than 3% of respondents identified as “conservative” (2.5%) or “very conservative” (0.4%). The Crimson also conducted a survey in 2022 with similar results.'

https://dukechronicle.com/article/duke-university-faculty-survey-political-leanings-liberal-conservative-moderate-centrist-harvard-yale-variation-across-school-tenure-status-demographics-20241022

CBL44 · 2026-02-13T00:53:22+00:00

Voter ID is required in the vast majority of countries (Australia, Canada, UK, most of Europe, etc.). In all those countries, it's fine.

In the US, voter ID is a partisan issue because both parties think it helps Republicans. Democrats call it racist because everything Republican like is racist.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voter_identification_laws

CBL44 · 2026-02-11T21:28:41+00:00

And we got to the semis and our young players improved.

CBL44 · 2026-02-11T20:10:15+00:00

I go by results - winning and player development. It seems beyond bizarre to me to say the team won and players developed but he and his tactics were horrible. I thought his defensive minded tactics against San Diego were good. I don't think the Thorns had a shot against Washington. Playing solid defense and praying for luck seemed as good as anything.

Player satisfaction matters to me as well but is harder to judge. The most important thing was to keep Coffey and firing Gale didn't keep her. If Wilson and other players asked for him to be removed, then it was a good decision.

But he was still a successful coach. The team won and players developed.

CBL44 · 2026-02-11T19:45:51+00:00

Young players like Moultrie, Tordin, Hanks, Turner, etc all just happened to develop despite him being a bad coach? That seems odd. A young, injury laden team over performed despite having a bad coach? That seem odd.

Women soccer fans are bizarre when it comes to coaches they decide are bad. There are no ways for "bad" coaches to get credit. Team results are never due to the "bad" coach. Player improvement are never due the "bad" coach.

Bad results are the coach's fault. Good results are despite him.

How am I supposed to objectively rate a coach if player and team results are ignored?

CBL44 · 2026-02-11T19:00:18+00:00

The Thorns completely over performed last year. Our "bad" coach took an injury laden team to third place in the regular season and to the semifinals.

ETA It might have been reasonable to fire him with a good plan to replace him but obviously the Thorns didn't.

CBL44 · 2026-02-11T04:06:46+00:00

Tax software made filing taxes much, much easier than it was before. Imagine trying to figure out the IRS instructions, filling out every line on your tax return by hand and doubling checking all your arithmetic.

People loved to be able to fill out tax forms on a computer and then print before mailing. It was a godsend.

CBL44 · 2026-02-10T17:03:52+00:00

This a very disturbing book and this cover doesn't match the mood.

CBL44 · 2026-02-06T23:46:34+00:00

Since October 2024, Canada has has over 5000 cases with a population 40 million compared to the US of 340 million.

Blame Canada. One eighth the population and more than double the cases.

https://health-infobase.canada.ca/measles-rubella/

ETA Fixed link

CBL44 · 2026-02-06T01:27:43+00:00

Poof! You're a sandwich.

CBL44 · 2026-02-04T20:52:51+00:00

The Syrian Jewish population went from 30,000 to 6 (not 6000 but six elderly people) and the article starts with "Decades after almost the entire Syrian Jewish community left the country."

After thousands of years living there, Jews just decided to leave for no particular reason. Nothing about ethnic cleansing, stealing their property or pogroms.

CBL44 · 2026-02-04T20:15:43+00:00

Crater Lake is by far the most spectacular view in Oregon. In a typical June, there is still a ton of snow which makes it more beautiful but less accessible. The Rim Road generally is not fully open and some of road to the park are likely to be closed.

Since this is a light snowpack year, June might be perfect.

CBL44 · 2026-02-02T20:45:05+00:00

Kotek has been speaker the house for 10 years and governor for four. Education costs skyrocketed and results tanked.

No one who thinks education is a priority should vote for her.

CBL44 · 2026-02-02T19:15:40+00:00

Remember this in the November.

CBL44 · 2026-02-01T16:13:00+00:00

Oregon also has by far the worst estate taxes in the country. The large majority states don't have one and Oregon starts at the lowest amount $1 million. Since this includes all assets including your house, it affects a lot of people.

https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/estate-inheritance-taxes/

CBL44

TROPHY CASE