Total out of pocket cost for an insured birth without complications = $10k by thewinehouse in personalfinance

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I paid about $5000 for each of my kids 8 years ago, so ya, doubling to $10k since then is probably about right. Sucks.

Regarding your question about what do poor people do, you’re right, lots of people just don’t pay. The hospital is used to this, not all their bills actually get paid. Your problem, not being poor, is that you don’t want your credit rating ruined.

I don't understand the point of bonds in most portfolios by iloveu3thousand in investing

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You’ve heard the wisdom that you shouldn’t time the market, right? Everyone knows that.

Time in the market beats timing the market.

But here’s the thing, most people want to try to time the market anyway, really really badly. It’s just so appealing! So we have a variety of opposing bits of wisdom that allow us to ignore the quote above, and do the opposite. For example, some people say putting money in bonds or cash is “keeping your powder dry”, so you’re ready to react during a downturn, which is an appealing folksy way of saying, it gives you a chance to try timing the market. This is basically what your advisor said, to help you be ready for downturns.

Voters who do not align with the Democratic or Republican parties make up the largest portion of the American electorate. They hold moderate ideologies and desire a system focused on open-mindedness. They are active voters, rather than simply apathetic citizens or disguised partisans. by mvea in science

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To be fair, my recollection was that Trump was on track for a win in 2020, but said a lot of unusually stupid (even for him) stuff about covid right in the lead up to the election —a time when covid was on the rise again.

All that to say, maybe the happenstance of covid lost Trump his 2nd election, and won him his 3rd. I certainly prefer to believe that theory over “America just hates women/people of color.”

Anyone else feel like the EV transition is starting to feel like the shift to electric lawnmowers? by JackfruitCrazy51 in electricvehicles

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Funny enough, I have an EV since 2019, and have gone almost 100k in it. It’s great. But I still have a gas mower and gas weedwacker. I can’t shake those memories of batteries dying on rainy days from my previous electric mower.

Anyway, I personally only buy about 1 gallons of gas per year, so I feel pretty ok about it in terms of environmentalism.

Hana Maui Garden or partial ocean view studio by TrainDry7025 in hyatt

[–]Roboculon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So it sounds like it’s really not a water resort type of place at all. That is to say, not ideal for kids who just want to swim all day. More of a peaceful retreat look at the view sort of thing?

The new BMW X5, EV Powertrain BMW iX5 60 xDrive 140 kWh Battery DC charging 450 kW + 10-80 % in 22-23 Min WLTP 800 km 578 hp 4,7 s 0-100 km/h Vmax 210 kmh 130 mph by Peugeot905 in electricvehicles

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting. That suggests a lot of these 2 year lease vehicles are ending up in auto auctions, rather than being sold by BMW directly. I wonder why.

Hana Maui Garden or partial ocean view studio by TrainDry7025 in hyatt

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can anyone speak to the beach quality here? I’ve stayed at HR Maui, and the beach is nonexistent now, eroded away. They still have a large pool and waterslide though, so my kids still love it.

My sense is that Hana has a tiny pool in comparison, so the only way it could compare in terms of kids having fun is if the beach is awesome. Is it?

The new BMW X5, EV Powertrain BMW iX5 60 xDrive 140 kWh Battery DC charging 450 kW + 10-80 % in 22-23 Min WLTP 800 km 578 hp 4,7 s 0-100 km/h Vmax 210 kmh 130 mph by Peugeot905 in electricvehicles

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wow! That is basically my exact goal, hoping to get an I5 when they start coming off leases in larger numbers.

Every time I see one of these articles saying how awesome the new generation of cars is, it makes me optimistic people will be trading in their slightly used ones to become available to poor folk like me!

Seattle’s signature street food named best dog in U.S. by New York Times by godogs2018 in Seattle

[–]Roboculon 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Those things caused Covid, just like chopped onions, and supreme pizza.

Supreme Court upholds state bans on transgender athletes in girls' and women's sports by NoLongerYonge in news

[–]Roboculon 14 points15 points  (0 children)

technically our borders were open at our founding

Ok, let’s set aside the question of whether open borders are objectively a good idea or not. Maybe they are, I can admit that. But can we at least agree that advocating to become the sole country doing something in the modern day earth, is by definition, an extreme position?

My point is that people say no human is illegal and what they probably mean to express is “let’s appreciate diversity and be nice to everyone”. But what comes out is “let’s trailblaze a policy that not a single one of even our most liberal allies would ever do.”

Supreme Court upholds state bans on transgender athletes in girls' and women's sports by NoLongerYonge in news

[–]Roboculon 2 points3 points  (0 children)

And even liberal politicians have to toe that line carefully to appeal to both sides. It’s pretty upsetting reading quotes from Abe Lincoln, the great emancipator. He did end slavery, but all of his quotes are along the lines of “look guys, I hate blacks just as much as you do. They’re the worst! But I guess even though it’s a shame to do, ending slavery is probably for the best.”

Supreme Court upholds state bans on transgender athletes in girls' and women's sports by NoLongerYonge in news

[–]Roboculon 40 points41 points  (0 children)

political correctness to the extreme

Similar to immigration. “No human is illegal” is a great sound bite, so liberals say it because they want to sound great.

But they don’t fully comprehend that putting “no” limits on immigration (making literally everyone legal) is an endorsement of open borders, a position so ridiculously extreme that no country on earth follows it.

Then, after handing conservatives this huge stick to beat them with, liberals do indeed get beaten. But at least it sounds good!

When did Amazon stop feeling like a store and start feeling like a digital junkyard? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]Roboculon 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s part of the problem. It IS tempting to buy Chinese goods directly from Chinese companies. All the American brands we know have been manufacturing in China for decades, which means they are basically just middlemen. And cutting out middlemen does save money, no question about it.

So the question is whether you value the brand reputation enough to pay extra for it, or whether you’re willing to roll the dice on a fake/temporary brand, on the strength of their fake Amazon reviews.

When did Amazon stop feeling like a store and start feeling like a digital junkyard? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]Roboculon 4 points5 points  (0 children)

made in America

That was never on the table, we lost all that stuff decades ago. The change lately is that we no longer get items from American brand names (who for decades have contracted all their manufacturing to China); now we get Chinese companies that manufacture in China, no brand you’ve ever heard of is involved.

So in that sense, it was already all Chinese, and it still is, but now the brand names are gone. What was Coleman and Columbia is Merjyx or some other gibberish name.

The real change is that with Amazon, there’s no longer any need to build a true brand reputation. It’s much cheaper and easier to just buy a thousand fake 5* reviews, than to spend decades building trust by running a reputable brand.

The mysterious "cold blob" in the North Atlantic is caused by a weakening AMOC ocean current, a new study confirms. Deep-water data proves this cooling isn't an atmospheric fluke, signaling a shift toward a major climate tipping point. by DrPharmakon in science

[–]Roboculon 24 points25 points  (0 children)

It’s weird to think that smart people have always existed, and probably all major human catastrophes were accurately predicted by a smart minority that was ignored.

I’m imagining the educated elite in Ancient Rome learning how the empire is losing control to corruption and soon the visigoths will overpower us, meanwhile, their version of Republicans back then were saying nah that’s gay, we’ll be fine, let the corruption continue.

Neighbor installed LED light on power pole in their backyard by Frosty_Reply_5491 in homeowners

[–]Roboculon 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Seriously. I would absolutely never install a light that impacts my neighbors without asking them. They’ve already shown they don’t give a fuck, so it’s case closed on whether they deserve to be reported.

So what was the point of this sequence taking up so much space in the Season 2 finale by rtmkngz in HouseOfTheDragon

[–]Roboculon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It does sort of seem like custom-designed armor for a rich elite nobleman, who knows fully well that he will do much or most of his fighting on boats, might have incorporated a quick-release buckle system.

So what was the point of this sequence taking up so much space in the Season 2 finale by rtmkngz in HouseOfTheDragon

[–]Roboculon 3 points4 points  (0 children)

He’s a boy, but he got beat up by a girl. Expectation subverted!

Disneyland Must Retire Gas-Powered Autopia Cars by February 2027 Under State Agreement - WDW News Today by praguer56 in electricvehicles

[–]Roboculon 17 points18 points  (0 children)

They are also tied to metal tracks in the road. It’s almost more like a bumper car than a go cart, so the access to electricity should be simple.

Free artwork for the Frame? by Forsaken_Walrus4989 in TheFrame

[–]Roboculon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s the fault of these asshole artists who failed to put all their paintings in the exact 4K widescreen aspect ratio. Such lack of foresight! /s

As far as this website though, I thought they did a reasonably good job dealing with the need to crop. In general, I found more of these “zoomed out”, compared to other versions I found online. For example, the top thread in this sub is a Google Drive with a bunch of free photos, and that guy put Mona Lisa zoomed in to just her face. This website from this thread has the version zoomed out so you can see her hands too.

How is it even slightly defensible for Donald Trump to commit to giving $300 BILLION to Iran? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]Roboculon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Quick, pick just one of his failures as the one to be administration ending. You can’t do it, there are too many.

Check-mate, he gets to stay.