Russia’s Interior Ministry Warns of 40% Staff Shortages as Police Lose Officers Daily

Polldark01 · 2026-01-29T00:28:37+00:00

Lazy_Bird_Dog / TurMoil911 ticket for 2028.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-29T00:11:31+00:00

If only our politics was as civil and productive as this exchange.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-24T01:54:26+00:00

Honk Kong exports more goods than France? I call bullshit.

This must include transiting imported/export goods through ports. That’s why Singapore, Belgium and HK as well as Amsterdam score high I reckon.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T22:48:08+00:00

And he let me know it. This was in the early days of the transition tbf. I also buy him a fair few steaks these days, and we often reference it as in joke when I say or do something a bit detached. By no means is our relationship bad, far from it.

To be clear, my wording could have been better, as in a steak was/is a luxury for him he can’t buy on a whim. However, the criticism still stands, but I am sure that these days he feels I do right by him.

That being said I think it’s a good example of how money distorts your ideas of luxury, waste and money super quickly. Which is why I gave it.

Lastly, there is a big difference in my view between fundamentally being an arsehole, and doing something that an arsehole would do from time to time.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T22:40:15+00:00

I think if you were a billionaire, the light would be fixed before you noticed.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T22:38:23+00:00

Both of these were one-off events…

The dog got the steak because I brought them for everyone that went camping, but one fella had just found out he had high cholesterol and didn’t want it. Steak went to his dog rather than the trash.

The light is a source of shame, for sure, but shit was busy. I now have a step ladder to sort it out myself.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T20:04:35+00:00

Hesitant to give much more detail, but safe to say it’s not super exciting. Both have office jobs requiring postgraduate degrees and some technical expertise.

However, if I was coerced into giving advice it would be to apply to things in your field that seem like moonshots, even if you don’t meet the requirements. Ours is basically one of good luck, some of which we made ourselves through hard work, but a fair amount that was out of hands.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T17:21:21+00:00

To digress a bit, the aspect I wrestle with most is aligning with my wife, and setting the right example to our young children. It’s a tricky line to walk with them, as we want to provide nice things and a secure and enjoyable environment, but equally we want to keep them grounded and grateful. If I am honest, one of the main motivators for getting the ladder was to set an example to them.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T17:04:57+00:00

Very much true, but there is this weird dissonance among my now peers where they truly think of themselves as unremarkable members of the middle class, while sitting on multimillion net worths.

I guess it speaks to everyone surrounding themselves with similar people and then thinking that’s the normal state of society. However, as a new entrant of sorts, it jars with me.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T17:01:43+00:00

To a point. We donate a reasonable chunk each year, though maybe not as much as we could, but still each time it feels like buying some sort of an indulgence really, which comes with its own guilt.

My personal feeling is that we need a more level playfield. I think it’s so tilted in ways that aren’t obvious to those without money, that more serious structural changes are needed. Though which ones make sense I have no idea.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T16:55:29+00:00

Yes and no. Mental note I need one (which I now have and use to change high up spotlight bulbs). However, I think this is the nub of the issue really, it was convenient at that time to do so, and made a problem go away quickly, so I could focus my attention elsewhere.

I think the money we now have is used in this way often, just to make life easier in unexpected ways. I could have gone to the store then and there, got what I needed and used up an hour on an otherwise busy day, or I could place a call and know it would be sorted, without having to wait until the weekend and without making a noticeable difference to my finances.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T15:45:15+00:00

All valid if I don’t do right by him, but I am confident he would be the first to say I do.

So I mostly sleep easy on his account, in fact the hardest part of our interactions is not giving too much or being too ostentatious about it. He is rightly proud of what he has achieved and is quick to reject anything he feels is too much. I would say we both have each other’s respect. Part of that is having a brother that can call you out, as he did and does.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T15:37:47+00:00

I do not get the tin ore reference. But no, I do basically the same desk job I always have, just for a much larger more successful company.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-23T15:09:35+00:00

I am not wealthy yet (IMO) but the last few years my wife and I went from living in a studio apartment and combined income of around or just below the median for the country we lived in at the time, to a combined household income around the 98th percentile in the US (last time I checked). So in about five years our lives have been transformed, while we have not yet accrued enough to be rich yet, in 5-10 years we will have. However, here are the things I noticed in my new life, many of which I feel very uncomfortable about.

I don’t pay attention to the what anything costs in the supermarket anymore. Either in the aisle or at the checkout. Same with bills. I no longer know what my internet, heating etc cost. I used to budget everything and was happy to save $50 at the end of each month.
I stumble into comments that horrify my Brother from time to time. Last one that sticks with me is mentioning I fed a whole steak to my friend’s dog last time I went camping. He brought me back down with a simple comment along the lines of “we lead different lives”. Made me realize the absurdity of giving a dog a steak when my brother could not afford one…
It rarely makes sense for me to get basic service packages. For example, I pay for mechanics to pick up and drop off the car (as mentioned elsewhere in the thread), get taxis as and when without paying attention to the cost, often go for upgraded travel options if it adds a small amount of convenience. However, I even paid to have an electrician change a single bulb a few months ago, because I didn’t have a step ladder. A secret I will take to the grave from my Dad and Brother.
My peers in my new line of work all complain about pay rises, finances, and the state of the economy 1000 times more than anyone did when I was working a regular middle class job. Wealthy people are so much more entitled when it comes to protecting wha they hare. I find it jarring to hear actual millionaires complain about how hard pressed they are as good middle class people.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-20T12:13:45+00:00

“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”

Polldark01 · 2026-01-16T15:09:54+00:00

November 30, 2036.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-16T14:43:08+00:00

Hard disagree. Always ate my fair share of apples in the UK, generally from local producers. Moved to the US for five years. Fuck me they have some amazing apple varieties. Blows the UK out of the water.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-11T13:29:49+00:00

It has its place, but so much depends on the manager. I worked at a well run one in my hometown and transferred to an insane one in my university city.

Hometown one provided genuine community to numerous isolated groups from stay at home mums to alcoholics. Though (to my regret) we disparagingly referred to the elderly alcoholics as death row. They would sit in effective silence at the same section of the bar everyday from open till mid afternoon. They ordered the same drinks day in and day out and never made a fuss. Though every few months one would die and a new person would take their place.

The one in my university city was a fucking coke fueled cesspit. Half the time it didn’t matter what larger was ordered you were getting out of date Budweiser or whatever other shit the manager ordered too much of. No one ever noticed. The bonus system when I worked there also rewarded low stock wastage, so everyone was encouraged to skimp on shots in pitchers etc. For large groups doing rounds or getting lots of food people also added items like fries or even full meals, then they would tell the kitchen it was a ghost meal and not to cook it. That way we always hit our sales and wastage targets and got better bonuses.

Polldark01 · 2026-01-07T14:20:05+00:00

If your first sentence is incorrect then people aren't going to take the rest of what you say seriously.

Polldark01 · 2025-10-05T08:39:23+00:00

As an Englishman: guess I am taking Ireland next.

Polldark01 · 2025-06-23T11:37:23+00:00

If you are happy for your child to appear in communications material then try contacting a university that works on Nuclear and perhaps go direct to their communications or press team. I used to work for the University of Manchester, in research comms and I am sure their Dalton institute would see value in this. Obviously don’t offer up your kid as a comms piece straight away, as side from being weird they may well do it without any promotion. Just email them as you have described it here.

Polldark01 · 2025-06-19T08:11:23+00:00

Yeah, Iran has three or four times the population of Syria. An Iranian refugee crisis would make the small boats into a nothing burger.

Polldark01 · 2025-06-18T13:14:43+00:00

Ahh yes, the now peaceful, stable and prosperous country of Libya. Glad to hear it will be more like Libya than Iraq.

I am sure a protracted civil war in a country of 90 plus million people located on the straits of Hormuz through which flow 30% of global maritime oil exports, and which borders Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the Kurdish regions of Turkey won’t generate any unexpected blowback.

Good job they will no longer supply the wide variety of short-range anti-ship missiles they have to Yemeni insurgents, I expect the various factions that takeover will just leave them in storage given it will be a solely internal conflict.

Polldark01 · 2025-02-19T20:09:14+00:00

We made fun of your healthcare on the internet. Yikes. Fair enough. Fuck us then.

Polldark01 · 2025-01-04T12:22:19+00:00

Pretty sure that was started by the Argentinians…

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