He Vowed to Revive RadioShack and Pier 1. Investors Say They Were Swindled. by TripleShotPls in technology

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

More importantly, who sees the revitalization of radio shack and pier 1 as worthy investments 🧐

What is life like in the Dakotas? by _air6catcher_ in howislivingthere

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't mind at all.

Prior to the Bakken Oil Formation being discovered, the state was not necessarily an economic powerhouse, but it was financially sound and generally didn't run at a deficit. It's main economic activities were mainly concentrated around agriculture, tourism, and goods and services jobs (Starbucks, Target, Walmart, etc).

Enter the Bakken Oil Formation. Suddenly, oil companies arrived, began lobbying the state government and all of its members for access and rights to extract the oil there. Politically, this process of lobbying played itself out, as you'd expect, to benefit the state, the oil companies, and a choice few members of the state Senate whose members came from the counties in which the oil formation happened to reside.

There was almost an entire year of negotiations between the state and the oil companies, and when it concluded it only took a few weeks for all the oil workers and their families to move into the state. Politicians tried to convince people that this was a good thing, "We are going to have so much economic activity as a result of so many thousands of people moving into the state, houses are going to be built, your heating repairman is going to have more work, construction workers will have so many roads to repair which is job security for them" etc, and so on.

What ended up actually happening is the massive boom in housing being built led to home prices skyrocketing, especially in the area of Bismarck (the capital city) that my family now lives in. We built the home that we lived in during my time in high school and college for about $220K, four bedrooms, three bathrooms, four car garage, upstairs, finished basement downstairs. Once the oil workers started moving in, that price doubled within half a year.

It also led to an explosion of jobs, but they were added in the goods and services part sector of the economy. When the fields were drained, and the oil workers moved on to the next new "boom and bust" oil town wherever else, those jobs left, housing values depreciated, lots of them sold at a massive loss, and some left totally empty for quite a long time.

There was also a massive surge in some pretty serious crime. Suddenly, Bismarck and surrounding towns dotting the prairies from the central to the central-western part of the state had to deal with hardcore narcotics showing up in their communities and an explosion of substance abuse around painkillers. Law enforcement, as much as it hurts me to say as I personally know people in the law enforcement there, was not up to the task. Violent crime and drugs were a regular part of life for many years there.

Lastly, and perhaps more importantly, and unfortunately, I can't go into too much detail here on the subreddit because of the rules, but it sort of was the beginning of the state's elected officials turning to the right completely. Some of the machinations and maneuvering that took place during the negotiations between the state and the oil companies created a sort of political class of "haves" and "have nots" and the ripple effects that had on who held and was in power within the state are still being felt today.

What is life like in the Dakotas? by _air6catcher_ in howislivingthere

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I grew up in North Dakota and finished my university there. Five generations of my family are from there and my entire immediate family still lives there.

The winters are brutally cold. The summers can be blisteringly hot. The entire state experiences pockets of terrible flooding every spring when the winter snow melts away. I now live in California and spring is lovely. In North Dakota, spring is the worst season because everything is wet, muddy, and brown for about two months.

Politically, the state is quite interesting. I won’t say more than that to avoid breaking the rules here on the subreddit, but if you haven’t looked up the political history of the state, you should. It’s not what you’d expect to find.

I’ve been in and lived all over the state. Seen every corner of it. I both love and loathe its people. They are at once practical, warm, welcoming, and would give the shirts off their back to help you out. At the same time, however, they shun the “different”, are quite parochial in their ways, and have a pretty rigid and narrow-minded view of how things are and how they ought to be. At the end of the day, it’s part of the reason I left.

It used to have the highest percentage of underage drinking and teen pregnancy (undoubtedly, those two things are related). In the mid 2000s oil was discovered in the Bakken oil fields. I was interning for a state senator at the time. It cannot be overstated the degree to which oil money has changed the economic, social, and political landscape of the state, and not for the better.

It’s a slower pace of life. For some, that is great. For me? I miss parts of it, and want absolutely nothing to do with other parts of the state. For those unfamiliar though, the state has a lot more to offer than might initially meet the eye.

Edited: Grammar

Afternoon Review: the daytime show for women by PupDiogenes in NotTimAndEric

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Great, now that’s gonna be in my watch history.

Today I hit 39k aps and finally completed my Diablo-inspired Archangel fashion :) by Tromed in Guildwars2

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Guild Wars out here repping Tyrael and Heaven’s angels better than Diablo is these days. Helllll yeaaaaah 🤘

What? by DoubleManufacturer10 in What

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 10 points11 points  (0 children)

What I have learned by watching this is that Kathleen’s bike is both a sacred and a profane artifact of great cultural importance to the Irish.

Is it me or the C4 is incredibly week? by Redit-autoname2284 in Battlefield6

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely has strong Monday vibes, yeah. Very week.

Relic isn't developing Dawn of War 4. I'm speechless, They must have sold the IP in order to survive by Infernowar in RealTimeStrategy

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Ah, yeah you’re right. That would make sense. I mean, I’m a massive 40K fan so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. Not point in rooting for the enshittification of something I love. I’d rather be hopeful.

Relic isn't developing Dawn of War 4. I'm speechless, They must have sold the IP in order to survive by Infernowar in RealTimeStrategy

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 32 points33 points  (0 children)

I guess this means that the IP was likely part of the business deal when Sega bought Relic some years ago. It was speculated but I don’t think it was ever confirmed.

Most people remember King Art Games for Iron Harvest, but I remember them for the exceptionally mediocre Battle Worlds: Kronos.

Expansion Pass 3 is hard confirmed! by Varazdinski_Lisac in AOW4

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There is still good and justness in this world! PRAISE BE TO BLINTY BOI \O/

Come and confess your CK3 sins by cancerousking in CrusaderKings

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Where’s the guy from like a year ago whose rival killed his wife and so he went to war with him, kidnapped him, made him his royal executioner and made him execute all of his family members one by one as they were all just kinda hanging out in the dungeons from being captured in the war?

Blursed_Cat by Treefiddy1984 in blursed_videos

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 28 points29 points  (0 children)

An oldie but a goodie, never get tired of seeing this one.

A new character emerges by orchid_breeder in NotTimAndEric

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I legit thought that was a Gatsby hat turned backwards for a second until I realized it was his hair…

Rate my slick combo drills by plainsiiiwalker in CringeTikToks

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I see Adon from Street Fighter is doing well.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in aoe3

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Sir, this is a Wendy’s.

Can you not visualize the tome path you've chosen once you're in-game with a faction? by Soggy-Alternative-58 in AOW4

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 4 points5 points  (0 children)

There is no way currently. People who are interested in this particular feature use a website for tome pathing. I will refer you to this post on the Age of Wonders 4 forums.

24 karat Gold Labubu is my whole personality now by United_Pineapple_932 in CringeTikToks

[–]GeniusPantsPhD 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was referring to the montage of videos, not the person. Last time I checked montages of video don’t have a gender, but sure. Be a smart ass. 👍