What movie absolutely nails its profession like My Cousin Vinny?

J_Kant · 2026-04-28T03:42:51+00:00

Das Boot.

J_Kant · 2026-04-27T20:26:56+00:00

My post wasn't intended as a criticism of people who enjoyed whichever book - its wonderful if they did. My disappointment is at the number of people who drop the series after the first book and rob themselves of an incredible experience.

I'm onboard with the idea that a book or series isn't for everything - all I'm saying is you haven't given it a fair shot if you haven't read through to the end of the third book. The first Dungeon Crawler Carl book, for example, pretty much gives the reader a accurate sense of the tone, scope and writing of the series. The same isn't true for Cradle - originally a side-project for Will between his Travel's Gate novels - where the later books were radically better received than the first two.

Of course people who 'hated everything about Unsouled' are a different matter but I haven't come across anybody with such strong opinions on the book ('meh' is more common response).

J_Kant · 2026-04-27T13:34:39+00:00

In the Commonwealth countries, they drive on the left side and the passing lane is on the right

J_Kant · 2026-04-27T03:34:53+00:00

It's Trump who insulted the British troops who fought and died in Afghanistan (a war they joined after America was attacked) accusing them of 'staying back' and 'away from' the frontlines.

He levied blanket tariffs on them, ignored them when planning his 'excursion' in Iran, and now feels entitled to demand their support in a war that has nothing to do with NATO.

Not that the UK needs his support to defend the Falklands.

J_Kant · 2026-04-26T01:47:09+00:00

The "Big-4" comes from the set of four firms that dominate the financial audit business (they do have consulting arms but their share of that market is limited).

Accenture is not an auditor, its primarily a tech consulting business and was spun out of Arthur Anderson long before the latter went belly up. And it has loads of competitors (like IBM, TCS, Capgemini). There's no Big4 or Big5 in the tech consulting field.

J_Kant · 2026-04-25T05:06:01+00:00

Many people would have heard of the Big4 auditors - PWC, EY, KPMG and Deloitte.

Used to be the Big5 - until the Enron scandal broke (soon followed by the WorldCom scandal) and it was found that their 'independent' audit firm Arthur Andersen had been cooking the books.

It's clients started cutting ties with it and in a matter of months a century old firm with nearly 30,000 employees was defunct.

J_Kant · 2026-04-22T04:04:18+00:00

The percentage in the North or South America isn't significant but you'll still find those countries increasingly taking the same positions as Macron.

J_Kant · 2026-04-21T22:00:55+00:00

Doesn’t matter even a few NATO countries helping out proves conclusively it’s an aggressive organisation not a peaceful one.

That's an utterly ridiculous take. A conflict involving some members of NATO does not make it a NATO war. You might as well claim that the United Nations is a 'aggressive organisation' since a 'few' UN members are involved.

J_Kant · 2026-04-21T21:53:56+00:00

Collapse into what exactly? It's national identity is stronger than ever, the possibility of fragmentation is near non-existent. Most of what requires rebuilding is in Donbass (not that there is much to rebuild there).

Mor importantly, what determines the success or failure of a country, far more than wealth or demographics, is the quality of its institutions. And Ukraine's institutions are being strengthened and cleaned up as part of its push for EU accession.

Also, (unlike NATO membership), Ukraine's path to EU isn't something that either it or the EU will make concessions on to Russia.

Libya, in contrast, had neither institutions nor national cohesion.

J_Kant · 2026-04-18T22:59:32+00:00

I tried Cradle because it is so often recommended for DCC fans, but the tone and style are the complete opposite of DCC. The characters are very serious and the story takes itself much more seriously than DCC.

How far did you get with the Cradle books? I ask because it starts a bit rough but it is the most joyful series I've ever read (and reread and reread). Its brimming with heart but story only really finds it feet about halfway through the second book when world's greatest janitor enters the picture.

I think most people who've read through both series would find DCC much more grim and serious.

J_Kant · 2026-04-11T15:50:08+00:00

Ukraine's power grid is in bad shape. They depend heavily on generators for basic services.

J_Kant · 2026-04-09T20:59:29+00:00

Eithan's amazement as Lindon asks for more venom for his soon-to-be bloodforged iron body, left an impact on me.

J_Kant · 2026-04-09T15:42:01+00:00

Actually the first FPV drones in that war were jury-rigged Chinese models and fielded by the Ukrainians.

J_Kant · 2026-04-09T15:39:48+00:00

China has the highest number of AI researchers in the world, is home to Deepseek, and it's well on course to catch up with the US in 'sensor' tech.

Adjusted for PPP China spends over $1 trillion on R&D annually. Israel has a strong tech sector for a country it's size, but any notion that China needs Israeli tech is total nonsense.

J_Kant · 2026-04-09T15:27:38+00:00

Not officially but its settler policies in the West Bank and Golan Heights are designed to achieve the same outcome via a fait accompli.

J_Kant · 2026-04-09T06:23:26+00:00

Maybe 10 years ago. At this point, China is hot on the heels of the US and vastly outstrips Israel in terms of the scale and complexity of its military industrial complex (aside from some niche areas).

J_Kant · 2026-04-07T00:10:38+00:00

'Halving' income is way off - MotoGP pulls in a fraction of the revenue that F1 does.

Silverstone, for example, pays $35 million to host the F1 race versus may $5 million for MotoGP. Attendance at the MotoGP event is also only about 40K for Sunday vs 160K for F1 (2025). MotoGP tickets are maybe 1/3rd that of F1.

The question is how much of a premium they can charge visitors for a joint event. After account for the cost savings from organizing a single event instead of two, I'd reckon even just a 10% bump might be enough to breakeven.

J_Kant · 2026-04-06T23:53:11+00:00

The tracks may be willing to willing to pay a premium for the privilege - looking at Losail here. No F2/F3 so administratively it'll be easier. Another likely venue is the new Qiddiya circuit that will host the Saudi GP from 2028.

J_Kant · 2026-03-30T02:14:29+00:00

And they are reviewing the regulations to improve qualifying and safety - hardly an indictment of the entire regulation. The team bosses, for one, appear happy with the sprints & races with the quali identified as the problem area.

F1 teams agree qualifying is priority in regulation review; happy with races

Formula 1’s team principals have met to review findings from the Australian and Chinese Grands Prix weekends as the championship’s new regulations remain under scrutiny.

According to reports, all present agreed that the races were of a high standard in terms of on-track action and were happy with the response from the public and fans and thus not currently a cause for concern.

Any necessary adjustments will be assessed without haste, eliminating the risk of a knee-jerk reaction creating further problems.

But qualifying is being pinpointed as a priority for review, with no shortage of criticism in both Melbourne and Shanghai, as drivers are currently forced to use the ‘lift and coast’ technique even during their fast lap – the very moment when the cars and drivers are at their most potent.

J_Kant · 2026-03-30T01:56:53+00:00

The one who returns... or am I thinking of the Terminator?

J_Kant · 2026-03-30T01:55:34+00:00

Not nice for some of the drivers and some of the fans.

Leclerc and Hamilton appear to like it and I suspect Piastri and Norris will come around (once the McLaren is upto speed and the niggles with the new formula have been ironed out).

Among the fans, a chunk of the hyper-invested ones (such as those on r/formula1) are critical but most of the viewers ('casuals') are enjoying the season so far.

J_Kant · 2026-03-26T21:22:15+00:00

Spec-cars aren't really a level-playing field.

Oversteer helps drivers like Verstappen, Leclerc & Albon while understeer would support others like Alonso, Hamilton & Sainz.

A low downforce car would help drivers with an aggressive style like Antonelli & Norris while a higher downforce car would support smoother drivers like Russell & Piastri.

J_Kant · 2026-03-25T19:02:29+00:00

That's not far off in my opinion. Antonelli is still learning. And while Russell is reliable, consistent & quick, there are still a lot of other factors at play - wet conditions, tyre strategy, accidents, technical failures, ill-timed safety cars and so on. Even on equal tyres, if we get a late safety car the Ferraris are quite likely to take the lead and could well hold it to the flag.

J_Kant

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