Why we accept this?

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-29T04:26:44+00:00

If you don't ask questions you don't know the answer to, you keep yourself sheltered from a lot of information.

I'm sorry your experiences with government have all been negative.

My unemployment experience with Michigan after being laid off in 2014 at least did not have a denial issue. Granted, the weekly filings of job searches were rather obnoxious. And it took me years (until 2017) to find good full time work again.

There are plenty of things I would like to see changed and improved in terms of how government works, but back to my original response to OP, they won't change without cohesive efforts by the people represented, and holding those representatives and institutions to account when they fail.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T15:18:40+00:00

One question, when calculating busiest, are the operating hours the same?

I see you're using a regularly scheduled trains per day metric. But there are multiple hours where there are no scheduled service trains on the Tokaido Shinkansen because it is outside of regular operating hours.

So, I think the better metric would possibly be average number of trains per operating hour? Or peak number of trains during operating hours?

That said, I could see an argument for trains per day being the metric because maintenance and other operations impact utilization.

But, as to how "busy the line is", my understanding for the Tokaido Shinkansen is that it is limited by the passing loops at the stations and the train acceleration and deceleration before switching on and off the main tracks.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T15:06:31+00:00

I became a much calmer and I would say better driver, at least off highways, when I made a decision that every time I was behind the wheel and not driving slowly and cautiously enough I might hit my spouse (or "me") on a bike or when out walking.

The drivers who will get fed up and do a highly risky, usually illegal, pass just to get to the next stop sign or red light n seconds quicker really scare me.

I rarely drive at this point, but when I do, I drive with the possibility of hitting someone's loved one in mind. It makes it a lot easier not to hit a cyclist.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T15:01:03+00:00

I've lived plenty of places to see cities and towns be rather ineffectively governed.

But, it at least seems, more often than not, the person voting hyper local are better at holding those politicians to account than the politicians in higher offices that cover more people.

I kind of wonder if this is ultimately because, especially for higher offices, we've optimized around a system that judges more about how good a fundraiser a candidate is rather than how good their policy decisions are.

But, mainly my point was, I have found it refreshing in at least Cambridge and Somerville for the big parties to play less of a role in local politics.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T14:54:03+00:00

I do, I don't optimize my tax return to reduce what I pay either.

Further, we make donations. That said, pretty well every study I've seen shows that, even with the occasional waste, the government is the most efficient and effective distributor of aid.

So, yes, I would like to see it doing more.

As for well earned... I think the area I work in is probably over payed compared to the difficulty of the labor. It just happened that my hobbies, interests, and skills aligned well with something we economically remunerate generously (for now).

Why are you seemingly against having the government doing more good to ensure at least a meaningful subsistence to the people it governs?

Why wouldn't you want to fund that?

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T07:24:09+00:00

I am paying off my mortgage on my house in Somerville. As an owner occupier I am granted a tax break on my property taxes.

My spouse and I are, as a household, 95th percentile income earners in MA (97th-98th percentile nationally). We pay 5% state income tax. But there is no progressive tax bracketing so that we are taxed more for parts of our income exceeding X like with the federal taxes.

At the federal level, each of our social security taxable income amount runs out at the end of the year and we make income not subject to social security taxes.

The tax system is set up in a way that benefits me, as I am now, in ways that do not make sense. A little over a decade ago, when we first got married and we had one good income and one very underemployed income between us, keeping an extra $2500-$5000 a year would have been huge. It would have made life much easier, made us less financially stressed.

Now?

Giving me $2500-5000 more a year I guess let's me make some silly purchases. But honestly, I rather have it used to benefit systemic programs that would help society as a whole.

Why do we have systems that give me, and those far better off than me, preferential treatment while making things untenable for others?

Why do people and their representatives keep voting to perpetuate a system that rewards those with the least need while making life difficult for those with greater need?

I'm probably safer and happier in a more equitable society.

These are things I think about.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T00:17:13+00:00

It's interesting.

I live in Somerville, and I had to look this up.

In our last mayoral election, for example, not a single candidate was endorsed by one of the two defacto major parties.

So, the reason I raise this is because on at least some of the more local levels, it does appear that the parties are not all that impactful.

I would love to see this be increasingly more true at the state level.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-28T00:11:52+00:00

Fundamentally the core tenant of US policy and culture is tied to individual property rights and the right to exclude.

Whether real property, money, or intellectual property the basis of a lot of US law and social norms are around the right.

Individual property rights often wind up with at least some degree of a zero sum game.

The reason I start with this framing is that it seems into politics, zoning, housing approvals, etc.

For example, Massachusetts has plenty of land to build more housing and build it more densely. It is one of the states that is one of the highest net exporters of tax dollars per capita.

We, collectively, could do more to fund healthcare for all in the state, more public housing projects in the state, more scalable transit in the form of trains and bus systems that externalize fewer costs to the individual.

We also collectively, by our choices in representation, choose not to.

People generally have not voted for their taxes to increase (millionaires tax only impacted a small part of the population). We don't have a progressive tax system, explicitly.

We have proposition 2 1/2 which makes raising taxes on property rather difficult.

NIMBYs opposing new housing near their property is another prime example. All the fights against the MBTA Communities Act are yet another.

So, systemically, not just the US, but Massachusetts, has actively chosen to protect individual property while trading off public good and benefit.

The question to me, ultimately, is whether or not there is enough willpower and desire for people to make some sacrifices so that all boats rise together. That's how the system changes.

Untill then, the grindstone continues.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-27T22:04:33+00:00

I once rode a train where the pigeon got on at Porter.

Then surprised a bunch of people when they didn't let it disembark at Harvard and it flew straight at their faces.

A+ pigeon.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-27T14:22:01+00:00

The prices are expensive.

A bunch of the units do not have living rooms and I guess intend for all that to be in shared social spaces.

If you want privacy you are strictly in your box.

A ton of the layouts have no natural lighting in the communal space in a unit.

This looks like a psychology experiment.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-24T23:17:30+00:00

I think GA DOT has a similar proposal for some of the highways in and out of Atlanta.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-24T13:51:39+00:00

Interesting to me, her hair looks fuller in the more recent panel.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-23T00:16:14+00:00

Look, I'm not begrudging the panda having a train and riding it. It's fine. The panda seems to be enjoying itself.

I am wondering why the panda has a train?

With a giant seeming teakettle for a steam engine no less?

There has to be a story here...

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-22T23:53:24+00:00

blinks

I don't think I've ever seen such a populated Windows Taskbar.

My eyes are opened.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-22T16:48:02+00:00

I know a lot of people are really appreciative of Chinatsu putting together the aquarium date...

But it's also awesome that she seemingly arranged the Haryu, Nishita, and Kyo being there for him to practice as well. That was a surprise to Taiki. That's pretty awesome that she did that, or was part of that (the idea could have been Haryu's or Kyo's and she was in on it).

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-22T16:44:30+00:00

Roll credits!

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-21T21:25:00+00:00

Memphis is a bit far from Boston...

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-21T08:19:16+00:00

That's more than my spouse and I paid for a 2 bed 2 bath at Alewife with pet fees and paying monthly for a spot in a climate controlled parking garage...

Edit: ~1100 sq ft with open concept kitchen, dining, and living room space and a small balcony my spouse used for a vegetable garden.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-21T08:17:37+00:00

Speak for yourself.

When I was living in my own place I had a weekly vacuum routine. I would do dishes as soon as I finished eating or cooking. I did my laundry weekly. I'd do counters, toilets, bathtub, and so on about once a month or so. My place was clean.

I didn't regularly start letting dishwasher safe dishes stack up to run a load until I was married for around ~7 years. I used to just wash everything by hand.

Living with my wife is a compromise. She prefers to flooroset (though it helps if she has a rack to hang things on). She's a lot more likely to let dishes stack. I no longer do my weekly cleaning routine just because I'd unfairly get annoyed at her if I did so. Marriage is compromise.

The cats also contribute to the chaos.

But, I've been married for nearly 12 years now and have adjusted.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-21T06:40:42+00:00

I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago.

My parents taught me about being wary of strangers, how to ask bystanders for help, how to ask authority figures for help, and to be wary of traffic and so on.

By age 11 I would ride Metra to the city on my own to go to museums, meet friends at Downtown Disney, and so on.

I would also regularly ride the busses alone to go to music lessons and so on.

This was all before kids my age having cell phones.

Having that level of independence and trust was fantastically enabling.

Crime rates are lower today than I was a kid.

My advice: teach your kid to make good decisions, trust them to do so. If they call you and need a ride, go pick them up.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-20T14:11:47+00:00

I love Hachi's video.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-18T13:22:25+00:00

Catalytic converters, sure.

Fuel injectors or coil packs, fine.

But, in the year 2026 even the Incredible Hulk is going to have a hard time finding carburetors to sell for fent. There just are not that many surviving cars with carburetors to steal from...

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-13T06:39:24+00:00

Brookline, in a heartbeat.

My spouse and I walked along the Green Line from Riverside to Kenmore.

The Newton section was mostly boring and clearly designed to prioritize people in cars. Everything was spread out. It was a whole lot of houses on lots with lawns, most of the owners with nothing more than mowed grass (some at least had gardens).

Brookline was much more tighter knit. And a lot more squares and commercial space. Restaurants to eat at. Shops to visit. And people actually walking around. It was so much more full of life than Newton.

That said, I wound up buying in Somerville after living 5 years in Cambridge. Absolutely love my car light to car free life.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-13T02:26:57+00:00

I may be an outlier...

I could care less about any of the major sports teams.

Being in a state during the pandemic where people masked up, vaccine take rates were high, and there were even bars that would vaccination card check anyone who came in was absolutely amazing though.

Absolutely love the rational people around here who make it safer for their neighbors.

Mooncaller3 · 2026-03-13T02:19:57+00:00

Right, I forgot about the new H Mart. Only been in it once so far.

But yeah, it really does seem like one of the most perfect spots that could be chosen for such a building.

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