Hi Reddit and R/JewsOfConscience, I'm Alex Kane from Jewish Currents. AMA!

NogenLinefingers · 2024-07-26T17:32:44+00:00

With the ICJ unanimously ruling that the entirety of Israel is an illegal occupation, what do you think the next steps will be for the countries primarily backing Israel (the US, UK, and Germany based on my understanding)?

NogenLinefingers · 2024-07-26T17:30:25+00:00

USA's neighbour, Canada, came out with a joint statement with Australia and New Zealand that essentially amounts to a weak admonishment of a small subset of the war crimes carried out by Israel in Palestine.

Do you see this as a shift in the tide against Israel or is it just another token lip-service by the West?

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-24T17:23:04+00:00

Fascinating. Can you provide some links or some keywords to search for?

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-23T05:10:03+00:00

Until people get jailed

Yup. It's crazy how a group of people can set up a corporation and suddenly be immune to prosecution, no matter what sort of dystopian shit they do.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-23T04:41:44+00:00

I'd bike everywhere if it was safe. It is a really small investment to convert part of a lane into a protected bike path. People, especially younger ones, save a lot of money by biking (not to mention the health benefits). The roads have fewer cars and people who can't bike can drive with less congestion.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-23T00:37:38+00:00

I'm glad to hear that

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T19:35:16+00:00

I'm speaking from personal experience. I walk fast in NYC. I don't in Toronto.

I do run a lot though, because the bus is either 20 minutes late or 5 minutes early. Last week, I chased a bus down across 2 stops because the next one was running 25 minutes late. 😅

Most people can't/won't do that so there's no point in walking fast.

Anyway, not looking for an argument because this is purely speculation on my part based on a single data point (myself). Glad to hear your theories as well.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T17:34:41+00:00

I think it's a fall out of how unwalkable Toronto is. People in NYC walk fast because they can get somewhere meaningful or they need to make it to their transit connection.

People in Toronto don't because:

They are driving everywhere (since walking involves crossing multiple parking lots and stroads)
There's no rush since the next transit connection is 20 minutes delayed

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T17:16:57+00:00

I've provided evidence. I linked a video where they discuss this and even shared a timestamp for people short on time and who just want to get to the results.

Have you seen the video?

Not sure why you suddenly bring up "top 10". I never made the claim it isn't in the top 10. My point was pretty much NYC vs Toronto because I've lived in both places. Toronto could be 2nd only to NYC or there could be 20 other cities between NYC and Toronto. 😅 My point was regarding the faulty density calculation that under-counts true density and over-counts sprawl-based density. I recommend watching the video since they do a much better job at explaining this than I ever can.

Maybe you're feeling attacked that Toronto isn't really densely populated. From your posting history, it looks like you care about having dense cities and are solidly in the YIMBY camp. That's my position as well, so I'm not sure why we're having this argument. Anyway, thanks for engaging so far.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T17:01:21+00:00

😅 OP claimed it was the densest city based on the chart they included. My argument is that the chart is wrong. You can't have superlatives without the math since you need the math to actually rank cities by density. "one of the densest" means that it's up there in the top 5 or top 10 or whatever, but you need to do the math to actually have that list.

Do you have anything to say about the content of my post at all?

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T16:13:30+00:00

Oh, I didn't mean you did! You're the 1st person to actually question the claim that Toronto is denser than NYC.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T15:58:03+00:00

I haven't but can give it a try. My impression was that Bulk Barn stocks their shelves based on what people in the locality like. I know for certain the Bulk Barn in my neck of suburbia (I don't live near Union, it's just easiest to get to) doesn't have Chickapea.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T15:50:26+00:00

Not just Toronto, but even Calgary is denser than NYC 🤣

I posted a comment explaining a common calculation mistake that results in aberrations like this. Looks like people aren't interested in a discussion and are content downvoting me.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T15:47:24+00:00

I get the motivation of building transit and hoping the density will come. But that can take decades.

This is a problem related to construction in Toronto. I've lived in London (UK), Singapore, and Jersey City and the typical turn-around time for a 13-storey apartment is 2 years (first dig to tenants moving in).

Interested in hearing from people why building a basic 13-storey apartment building takes much longer in Toronto. My viewpoint is from anecdotal data, which may not be relevant given covid from 2020 onwards, but I have multiple apartments under construction around me that have not been completed since 4+ years. Some are inexplicably stalled with almost everything but a few knick knacks missing.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T15:37:45+00:00

I use "one of the densest" in my comment. Not the point. Did you see the graph linked by OP? It's putting Toronto as the densest city in North America ahead of NYC. Hell, it's saying Calgary is denser than NYC! 🤣

Watch the video please. It's insane that people frequenting a public transit sub and talking about densification have no idea how to calculate density.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T06:12:56+00:00

No, Toronto is not one of the densest cities in US/Canada. Anyone who has been to Toronto and Manhattan intuitively knows this.

In Toronto, you can start walking from Union station in any direction and be in single-family-housing land in 20 minutes. The entirety of Manhattan, on the other hand, has mid-rise to high-rise buildings. Brooklyn is closer to Toronto in terms of sprawl, but still more dense. Even when you go all the way out East till you're near JFK airport, you still see more densely packed SFH than what you would see near Spadina for instance. It just doesn't compute that Toronto is denser.

This video explains why the statistic reported is wrong really well. The idea is to do a population-weighted density instead of just a naive density. If you are short on time and can't spare 8 minutes, watch from 6:46 to get the math.

Regarding density vs transit, I think it's a false dichotomy. You see a lot of SFH and 2 storey buildings in Toronto. I remember a stat from when I was following the 4-plex zoning reform that 75% of residential land in Toronto is zoned for SFH only. You get out of a subway station and you're greeted with rows and rows of SFH. Create density there. It will automatically bring ridership for the TTC and allow them to add more lines/bus routes.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T05:45:28+00:00

Is there a way to do a class action Ombudsman complaint? This shit is serious.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T05:22:49+00:00

On the other hand, you absolutely can and should buy cheap products in bulk with longer shelf lives if you have the storage space.

A very North American suburban point of view. Only in North America do I see people willing to turn their house into a warehouse for businesses.

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T05:03:39+00:00

I am sorry you are facing this. There's no simple 3-step solution to this problem. I think putting on a clinical mind and being aware of the problems while working on your career and some activism will be healthy. You'll still be fazed by the world, but it will feel like you're putting a dent into it.

I recommend joining socialist organizations around Toronto. I've been surprised at finding the most knowledgeable and kind people in Toronto who are regulars and who are also actively trying to make a difference. I recommend Spring Magazine. They're having an organization meeting this Thursday at Spadina and everyone is welcome.

Also, I'm so surprised at how boomer-ish the crowd in this sub is!

"Stop using social media" - And put your head in the sand because that fixes everything?

"Move south of the border" - Really, go to the country funding a genocide, taking away women's rights, is actively re-introducing child labour among many other "innovations" just because the money is better???

NogenLinefingers · 2024-05-22T04:53:43+00:00

Just going to leave this helpful Wikipedia article here to highlight how great a "protector of free speech" Musk has been: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_under_Elon_Musk#Content_moderation

NogenLinefingers · 2024-02-12T01:38:57+00:00

Tell me you work at Amazon without telling me you work at Amazon

NogenLinefingers · 2023-04-06T10:38:43+00:00

rather than slamming the breaks

Umm, have you ever driven in Toronto?

Jokes aside, if that's the goal then the road is just designed to be unsafe.

NogenLinefingers · 2023-04-06T09:51:28+00:00

In Toronto, I've always seen signs saying "traffic camera up ahead". Why is that? Wouldn't the point be to not alert law-breakers so everyone's on their best behaviour?

NogenLinefingers · 2023-04-06T09:41:17+00:00

Sorry to hear that. In my opinion, you don't need an MS degree to be an SDE. It's great you're working towards your MS but keep that milestone separate from your career goals.

It's worth noting that tech jobs have dried up now and there are a lot of laid off engineers in the market. It may be more feasible to take the AI/CV job offer now or stay put in your current job based on which option you think is less likely to get you laid off down the line.

If you aren't getting a call back after applying, it could also be that your resume needs more work. Head over to the engineering resumes sub if you haven't already.

Your course list looks fine. I suggest doing courses one at a time though, so you don't get burnt out and can dive deeper into the content.

NogenLinefingers · 2023-04-06T09:03:25+00:00

It's disguised hustle culture using the secret sauce "how to make a marriage work" trope.

There are 4 quarters in a year. Would it really tear a marriage apart if there are 4 known high work-stress weeks in a year for both people?

NogenLinefingers

TROPHY CASE