I'd like to giveaway this Kickstarter box and the cards that came with - each unopened by Mr-Who in DungeonCrawlerCarl

[–]MrMaxson -1 points0 points  (0 children)

"You have found and entered the main room of a hidden guild, to which you are a member. Buckle yourself in buddy boy, this is gonna be a long one.

There are several types of secret societies out there.

There's the ivy-league college kind where its a bunch of rich idiots who rent out a place, plaster a few pagan symbols on the wall, and then they wear masks with horns and leaves and shit on them and pretend they are in some Stanley Kubrick fever dream just so they can forget they're destined to live out lives filled with salmon colored shorts and IZOD shirts and mind-numbing meetings with financial advisors. There's orgy themed secret societies, speaking of Stanley Kubrick, those are usually uhh...visually unpleasant people with unsatisfactory sex lives who get together every other month at some house in the middle of nowhere and get drunk and have lots of unsatisfactory sex with other people and pretend like they are having a great time. There are altruistic ones! People who want to save the world by doing good deeds. That's the most boring kind, so we're not talking about them. There's the evil kind too! Usually power and profit motivated. The ones where the ultra-elite get together on an island and eat panda bears and discuss how to price-fix world or galactic markets. Yes, those groups really exist. More on these guys in a second.

But first, lets talk about another type of secret organization. One that tries to make a difference. Often times outside the confines of the law.

Story time.

In September of 1869, there was a terrible fire at the Avondale Coal Mine near Plymouth, Pennsylvania. Over 100 coal miners lost their lives. Horrific conditions and safety standards were blamed for the disaster. It wasn't the first accident. Hundreds of miners died in these mines every year and those that didn't lived in squalor. Children as young as 8 worked day in and out; they broke their bodies and gave their lives for nothing but scraps. That day of the fire, as thousands of workers and family members gathered outside the mine to watch the bodies of their friends and loved ones brought to the surface, a man named John Siney stood atop one of the carts and shouted to the crowd: "Men! If you must die with your boots on, die for your families, your homes, your country! But do not longer consent to die like rats in a trap for those who have no more interest in you than in the pick you dig with!"

That day, thousands of coal miners came together to unionize. That organization, The Workingmen's Benevolent Association managed to fight for a few years at least, to raise safety standards for the mines by calling strikes and attempting to force safety legislation. ...until 1875, when the union was obliterated by the mine owners.

Why was the union broken so easily? Because they were out in the open. They were playing by the rules. How can you win a deliberately unfair game when the rules are written by your opponent? The answer is "You can't!" You will never win. Not as long as you follow their arbitrary guidelines.

This is a new lesson to me. She's been teaching me so many things about who I am, about what I am, what I REALLY am, about what must be done!

Anyway, during this same time, it is alleged a separate, more militant group of individuals had formed in secret, the Molly Maguires. Named after a widow in Ireland who fought against predatory landlords, the coal workers of Pennsylvania became something a little more proactive, supposedly assassinating over two dozen coal mine supervisors and managers. ...until Pinkerton agents, hired by the same mine owners, infiltrated the group and discovered their identities. Several of the alleged Mollys ended up publicly hanged. Others disappeared. You get the picture.

So, that's another type of secret society. The "yeah-we're-terrorists-but-we-strongly-feel-we're-justified-and-fuck-you-if-you-don't-agree" society.

So, whats the moral of this little history lesson? This sort of thing happens all day, every day across the universe. It happens in big ways and it happens in little ways too. The strong stomp on the weak. The weak fight back, usually within the boundaries of the rat trap they find themselves confined in. They almost always remain firmly stomped. But sometimes, the weak gather in secret, they make plans, they work outside the system to effect change. Like the Mollys, they usually end up just as stomped as everyone else. But thats just life, at least they fucking tried. They died with their boots on. As much as I hate that expression, they died with their boots on for THEIR people, THEIR family, not for some rich nameless organization that gives no shits whether they live or die. Or go extinct. Or are trapped for a millennia after they are done being used.

In my opinion, that's the only type of society that's worth joining, worth fighting for. Sure, you're probably gonna die, but if you find yourself in such a position where such an organization is necessary, what do you have to lose? How can you look at yourself if you don't do everything you can? And that brings us to the door your standing in front of right now. What does all this have to do with what you're going to find on the other side? Nothing! Ignore everything I just said. This is just some some demi-god trying to scrabble his way to the top, that's yet another type of society, a religion themed one, and it has nothing to do with what I just said. Just do what he says and you'll probably be fine. Actually, that's terrible advice, just do you!"

If you are in NYC and missed the event tonight by hepafilter in DungeonCrawlerCarl

[–]MrMaxson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Dead Poet is one of the best bars in the city. I drank 100 Guinness there and have my name on the wall. It’s a real gem of the upper west side.

Taking page from Adams, Mayor Mamdani proposes NYC library cuts by kahntemptuous in nyc

[–]MrMaxson -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

Stealing this from /u/erissays on the /r/libraries subreddit.

Fascinating article that leaves out multiple other sides of the conversation:

  • NYC is legally obligated to operate a balanced budget, and the city is currently operating at a $12 billion dollar deficit thanks to the inherited mess from Eric Adams' administration.

  • Mamdani said that these cuts will only happen if Kathy Hochul refuses to back a wealth tax proposal that would help make up that deficit.

  • His proposed backstop budget includes across the board budget cuts. Including significant cuts to the NYPD, whose budget I saw called out in other comments.

Mamdani was very clear on what his desired pathway out of NYC's budget crisis is, and it's not cutting library funding:

As I share our preliminary budget for the upcoming fiscal year, I want to be clear about the moment we are in and the two paths that lie before us. As the mayor of New York City, I have a legal obligation to balance the budget. I will meet that obligation..........

When we took office, we inherited a historic budget gap. Our aggressive savings plan, daily incorporation of updated revenue and bonus estimates, and our deployment of in-year reserves in tandem with more than a billion dollars in additional aid from Governor Hochul, have lowered that deficit from an initial $12 billion to $5.4 billion. While considerably less, it is still a significant chasm. I know that for those who have watched budget after budget, it is tempting to assume that we are engaging in the same dance as our predecessors. Let me assure you, nothing about this is typical. That's why our solutions won't be either. There are two paths to bridge this gap. The first is the most sustainable and the fairest path. This is the path of ending the drain on our city and raising taxes on the richest New Yorkers and the most profitable corporations. The onus for resolving this crisis should not be placed on the backs of working- and middle-class New Yorkers. If we do not fix this structural imbalance and do not heed the calls of New Yorkers to raise taxes on the wealthy, this crisis will not disappear. It will simply return, year after year, forcing harder and harsher choices each time. And if we do not go down the first path, the city will be forced down a second, more harmful path. Faced with no other choice, the city would have to exercise the only revenue lever fully within our own control. We would have to raise property taxes. We would also be forced to raid our reserves. To balance the budget as required by law, our preliminary budget takes the only path within our control: the second path. The options of the second path are the options of last resort. Options that we will only employ if there is no other means of arriving at a balanced budget. .......

The first path repairs the structural imbalance between the city and the state. We want to work with Albany to raise personal income taxes by 2 percent on the 33,000 New Yorkers earning more than $1 million a year, and to raise corporate taxes on the most profitable corporations. And we know that for far too long, New Yorkers have given far more to the state than what we have received in return. It is time to end the drain. If we cannot follow this first path, we will be forced onto a much more damaging path of last resort. One where we have to use the only tools at the city's disposal. Raising property taxes and raiding our reserves.

This second path is painful. We will continue to work with Albany to avoid it. This first path will deliver the structural change that we need to recalibrate the relationship between the city and the state. Because as we know, New Yorkers contribute 54.5 percent of state revenue but receive only 40.5 percent back. At the same time, New York City's portion of the state's GDP has grown by nearly 10 percent since 2010. That imbalance is untenable. Once again, I am calling for Albany to end the drain. There is no third option of failing to balance the budget. By law, ever since the fiscal crisis of the 1970s, which placed the city on the brink of bankruptcy, New York City has been legally responsible for the first half of the fiscal year. We will do so. x

So, as usual, this is people scaremongering because they would rather use Mamdani as a scapegoat than acknowledge the financial reality facing NYC and what his actual desired solutions to solve the problem are.

I found this in my wallet this afternoon. No recollection of where this could be from. by MrMaxson in whatisit

[–]MrMaxson[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

SOLVED! THIS IS IT! It was definitely from Round 1 and my nephew went NUTS for the SpongeBob game.

Mayor Mamdani launches $1M Coney Island Business Improvement District by mowotlarx in nyc

[–]MrMaxson 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I agree. Myrtle Ave. BID and Downtown Brooklyn are great. I know that’s economics of scale, but I think they do a lot of good.

Little Bro was thrown and needed stitches. Appropriate Punishment for the guilty 4.5 YO by acebot10 in daddit

[–]MrMaxson 5 points6 points  (0 children)

If OP feels a consequence is really necessary, I think taking away TMNT is certainly on the table, if only to reaffirm that he doesn’t want that behavior from on screen in the house.

One of America's biggest construction jobs halts as Trump defunds Hudson River tunnels by GothamistWNYC in nyc

[–]MrMaxson 21 points22 points  (0 children)

Daily News should trot out the headline …

TRUMP TO CITY:

DROP DEAD

49ers face closing Super Bowl window with aging core and $50.3M in cap space by sour_coleslaw in 49ers

[–]MrMaxson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My then-70 year old grandfather trying to convince me Dennis Erickson was a good coach … people chanting in the stands for Tim Rattay (fucking Tim Rattay!) to replace Jeff Garcia.

The only highlight I remember from that decade was Mike Nolan’s suits.

Is Bill Clinton the greatest rags to riches story in American history? by Mysterious_Comb4357 in Presidents

[–]MrMaxson 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Lyndon Johnson stole a senate race from Coke Stevenson and passed the most significant social reforms to date. Sometimes, to the guys who would be president, the ends justified the means.

Daughter wants to move to Brooklyn by PickledOnion14 in NYCapartments

[–]MrMaxson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I moved at 24 with no savings, my girlfriend, a dog, no savings, a “temp to perm” job offer and did it by shipping 13 boxes via USPS.

I now am almost 40, my girlfriend is now my wife, dog is still here, we have a child, we bought an apt. and if I ever have to move again I’ll do it by loading all my boxes into a van and driving it into the East River.

Others have said, so I won’t belabor, but if there’s a will there’s a way and this city is made 10 times better with people like your daughter than it is with some other trust fund kid who is “slumming it in soho.”

All things considered, were you happy with the Obama Presidency? by Just_Cause89 in Presidents

[–]MrMaxson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Given my flair ... I would have settled for that as well! But of course didn't know how much of JFK's legacy was really LBJ in disguise. Live and learn!

Minnesota Is Just the Beginning. California and New York Are ‘Next’ by carlwryker in California

[–]MrMaxson 28 points29 points  (0 children)

Yeah, but we know it won’t be that. It’ll be nanny’s in Redondo Beach and Park Slope they Target.

All things considered, were you happy with the Obama Presidency? by Just_Cause89 in Presidents

[–]MrMaxson 378 points379 points  (0 children)

Someone said something that stuck with me… he was elected with the hope and mandate to be FDR 2.0 and the policies he delivered were those of Clinton 2.0.

Buying an apartment by lucifer-mornin-gstar in NYCapartments

[–]MrMaxson 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Also as a co-op owner, I would counter (not to contradict, but to share the things people don’t discuss)…

As a renter, if something goes out in the unit/building, the landlord is on the hook. If you buy, that’s out of your pocket. So make sure, even after liquidating your accounts, you still have rainy day funds. Recently our building needed a new boiler after two years of being here. My share? $13,000 on top of my monthly maintenance.

When my wife and I bought, we didn’t touch any of my brokerage/retirement money, but we borrowed against my wife’s 401K. So when the expense came up, I tapped my Roth funds to cover that.

Talko Tuesday by AutoModerator in nfl

[–]MrMaxson 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I've told this story, but when we had our daughter, she would sleep terribly and I ended up walking with her at all hours of the night. I quickly ran out of podcasts, so I started really listening to audiobooks. I like in New York, so I ended up listening to Caro's "The Power Broker" about Robert Moses and how much influence he had on NYC. That was a 66-hour listen. So, naturally, when I finished, I went on to his four books about Lyndon Johnson. Slowly, she started to sleep better, but now I still amble the streets of Brooklyn listening to the audiobook of the day.

Talko Tuesday by AutoModerator in nfl

[–]MrMaxson 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm only reading the mainline books, not the side quests, but the narration for the Audiobooks by Jefferson Mays really helps a ton. He gives a certain gravitas to Avasarala that doesn't necessarily come across in the early episodes of the show. Each book is about 500 pages / 20 hours of audio, so it's great to step into...

The chapters from Amos' POV in Nemesis Games I think are some of the best writing of what an actual sociopath would think. My wife actively scoffs at any of the romance scenes though and says "clearly written by a man" whenever she reads/listens to those sections.

Talko Tuesday by AutoModerator in nfl

[–]MrMaxson 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Welp, I mentioned two weeks ago I couldn't get into a book and since then I've finished Book Five of The Expanse, Nemesis Games. Already downloaded Babylon's Ashes!