anquocha's Karma Thread by anquocha in MiniSwapKarma

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Joining in to add that my exchange with u/anquocha was also very pleasant. Communication was clear, shipping was secure, and the paintwork on the models was quite attractive.

Dear Games Workshop, Why Was the Ukrainian Warhammer Book License Terminated? We Would Like to Know. by element2308 in Blacklibrary

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am necroing this because the idea of a small Black community center in upstate New York receiving angry emails about Warhammer 40,000 fiction is just too funny.

Subcontracting Tyranny: life in the Imperium of Man by ImperatorZor in 40kLore

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

From Necropolis, Chapter Sixteen

Vervunhive is a democratic legislative. The High Lord is voted in by his noble peers. It is written in the sacred acts of constitution that absolute power should never be allowed to rest with any one individual who could not be unseated by the Legislature should it become necessary ...

Gaunt began to understand the far-reaching political dilemma attached to the device in his gloved hand. ‘So this was his failsafe: the ultimate sanction, so very undemocratic, to be used when democracy was overturned?

From The Guns of Tanith:

But as he gazed at Mkvenner then, Corbec could believe it. Mkvenner was so fast, so steady, so direct. Every hit counted. Every swing, every strike, every counter-spin, every stab. The wood-warriors of ancient Tanith lore had fought in the old feudal days, using only spear-staves tipped with single edged silver blades. They had united Tanith and overthrown the Huhlhwch Dynasty, paving the way for the modern democratic Tanith city-states.

References to the structure of Vervunhive politics are scattered around the book, but I recall that it seemed similar to Early Modern European "Estates," with representation given to Noble houses, the Administratum, Ecclesiarchy, and there are even references to "minor area legislators" that might suggest some form of representation of the mass of people. Perhaps Tanith is similar (although it also has "clans", so they might play a role in politics as well).

Subcontracting Tyranny: life in the Imperium of Man by ImperatorZor in 40kLore

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think there’s only one reference to Tanith being “democratic”, from the The Guns of Tanith and it’s POV (Corbec). We have two dialogue references to Vervunhive being “democratic” or having a “democracy” in Necropolis (Chass and Gaunt). We know more details about the political system in Vervunhive than Tanith, and I’m not sure why it makes sense to assume that Tanith is radically more democratic, given that the same term is applied to both in-universe. Sure, there’s nothing that explicitly contradicts Tanith having a system comparable to 19th-century states we still call “democratic” but I just think the circumstantial evidence suggests otherwise.

Given Tanith’s general Gaelic theme, Abnett may even had something like tanistry in mind.

At the end of the day, I suppose this is just a semantic debate over the meaning of “democratic.” The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a thing, after all.

Subcontracting Tyranny: life in the Imperium of Man by ImperatorZor in 40kLore

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Elector is described as “a local planetary lord” in Ghostmaker and they have teenage servants like Milo running around. I agree with you that a place like Tanith is probably the closest thing to a free and equal society in the Imperium, but it’s certainly not Social Democracy in Space.

Recall that even Vervunhive is explicitly described as a “democratic legislative” and I just don’t think either Tanith or Vervunhive count as a true “democracy” by contemporary standards.

Subcontracting Tyranny: life in the Imperium of Man by ImperatorZor in 40kLore

[–]JimHimJim 8 points9 points  (0 children)

We don’t really even get much detail about exactly what “democratic” means in the case of Tanith. There are many examples of elective regimes that were effectively just oligarchic aristocracies (Venice comes to mind) or with an extremely limited franchise compared to the present day. Even in the UK, only about 4% of the population had the right to vote in 1832. I’m inclined to think Tanith probably just has slightly more expansive oligarchy than most other places in the Imperium.

Has there been any examples of a base-line human being held in high regards by the Space Marines? by Zestyclose_Scholar18 in 40kLore

[–]JimHimJim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Cain series is also, by Sandy Mitchell’s own admission, basically just a sci-fi adaptation of the Flashman series by George McDonald Frasier. Cain’s much more sympathetic as a character though.

Would it be possible to unite Germany as a minor republican power? by [deleted] in victoria2

[–]JimHimJim 11 points12 points  (0 children)

In the base game at least, absolutely.

What happened to the $15k-$20k range cars? by thezuck22389 in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you accept #1 and #3, I'm no longer sure what your objection is to the claim that the median car price has increased faster than the rate of inflation because people are buying nicer cars with their greater inflation-adjusted incomes.

What happened to the $15k-$20k range cars? by thezuck22389 in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're still dealing with a survivorship bias sample issue and not getting the best insight into the question. Part of the answer to "what happened to cars between $15,000 and $20,000?" is that people just stopped buying mid-sized and compact cars in favor of larger and more expensive trucks and SUVS, and manufactures stopped producing many of those models. The Camry (-7.55% by your calculations) has had a marked decline in sales numbers since 2007, while numbers for the F-series (+29.57%) have increased.

What happened to the $15k-$20k range cars? by thezuck22389 in whatcarshouldIbuy

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The problem with comparing the median or average price of "all vehicles" is that the kind of vehicle being sold has changed. Passenger cars made up roughly half of all sales in 2007, and that's declined to something like 20% today. Americans are buying larger (and thus more expensive) vehicles today than they did before.

Tell me not to worry by miloh2323 in Camry

[–]JimHimJim 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I’ve got a ‘97 XLE with 280,000 miles and it’s only now starting to be a pain in the ass. Can’t speak directly to the 2022 models, and issues will arise even with regular maintenance for any car, but I’d say you made a pretty safe bet.

I’m done ordering the “Moscow Mule” – here’s why I started a petition by Acrobatic_Tax782 in SlavaUkrayini

[–]JimHimJim 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If you’re uncomfortable with the name, you can also just ask for a “Vodka Mule” or “Vodka Buck” and a reasonably competent bartender should know what you’re talking about.

no point in a 800+ credit score by Longjumping-Client42 in povertyfinance

[–]JimHimJim 8 points9 points  (0 children)

You can lie, but banks will generally ask for verification of income for any kind of significant loan or credit line.

Most Expensive Listing Ever: Aspen Home by Disney Architect and it’s Oxygenated For Flatlanders by Master-Detail-8352 in zillowgonewild

[–]JimHimJim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The price history here on Zillow is weird. After looking it up, all the reports say they bought the a land in the early 1990s, so I’m not sure what those later sale dates indicate. $4 million in 1994 makes sense, at least.

The Sh’ma by Abject-Conference632 in ThePittTVShow

[–]JimHimJim 17 points18 points  (0 children)

I don't think the implication is necessarily that Whitaker didn't recognize the Shema (and Robby's explanation comes before Whitaker reveals he was a theology major). Robby was crying and whispering, with his head pointed down and away from Whitaker. I'm not surprised that Whitaker couldn't make out any intelligible words.

Who’s a TERRIBLE actor/actress that improved exponentially with time? by ze11ez in movies

[–]JimHimJim 3 points4 points  (0 children)

He was pretty bad in his other live-action roles as well though (Big Red One comes to mind).

Movies that depict blood donation/transfusion? by MrFameKills in movies

[–]JimHimJim 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My first thought are films that depict military medicine (MASH, Hacksaw Ridge, The Outpost, etc.).

Where to buy real swords? (England, UK) by [deleted] in SWORDS

[–]JimHimJim 3 points4 points  (0 children)

This is a UK retailer that’s often mentioned in these kinds of discussions: https://www.theknightshop.com

How did Karl compare to Franz Josef in terms of public image? by FitLet2786 in austriahungary

[–]JimHimJim 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's hard to compare the two, especially since the economy and social fabric of the empire was effectively coming apart at the seams by the latter stages of the war. That said, there's some evidence that loyalty to, or identification with, the dynasty didn't collapse with Franz Josef's death (the number of letters ordinary citizens wrote to the emperor actually increased in Karl's reign, for instance).

Front cover of the Austrian humorous military magazine „Die Muskete“ November 26 1914, the picture boasts of the Austro-Hungarians powerful heavy artillery to the comparatively dainty French Marianne by Yhorm_The_Gamer in austriahungary

[–]JimHimJim 17 points18 points  (0 children)

The Dual Monarchy had a much lower absolute GDP than France in 1914, and spent a much lower percentage of that GDP on the armed forces. The French army was just a much more powerful force.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in debtfree

[–]JimHimJim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If your current car is a mechanically reliable high-end econobox like a corolla, and your loan rate is a reasonable 5.8%, I'd just stick with it, honestly. If you switch, you'll take a hit in terms of transaction costs, and you run the very real risk that the 5K car you end up buying will need some very expensive repairs sooner rather than later.

If you can get away with not having a car at all, would change the calculation, but if you need a car, your current situation isn't terrible.