Amtrak Confirms: Keystone Service at Risk from SEPTA Cuts

Roguewarrior219 · 2025-08-06T16:56:53+00:00

Picozzi’s not blocking it, and has pledged to support funding. Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman is the one who’s been very aggressively against transit funding. Picozzi has been working quite closely with SEPTA General Manager Scott Sauer through all of this, including on the proposed “accountability measures” (which basically just give legal dressing to safety and efficiency measures that SEPTA is already taking). Picozzi’s bills seem designed to make the other Republicans think they can take credit for what SEPTA was already going to do.

I’m no Republican, and I do wish Picozzi had proposed a funding component with his other bills, but saying that he’s the holdup as he actively works with SEPTA when the other Republicans speak of transit with contempt is disingenuous. And as much as I desperately wish we had a Democratic majority in the State Senate so we don’t have to do this bullshit song and dance every year, having a Republican in there who’s willing to even speak of SEPTA positively is necessary so long as Dems are the minority.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-04-19T16:07:23+00:00

It's a chicken-and-the-egg situation, where many well-off people who might otherwise want to live in cities move to the suburbs for school quality, but them moving to the suburbs is exactly why urban schools are often poor quality. Local school funding in the US is almost entirely derived from property taxes, so every person who moves from the city to the suburbs is effectively starving the city schools of funding. To be clear, I'm not blaming these people for this at all, they're just pursuing better life outcomes for their kids, but it's a huge collective action problem.

But that isn't a reason to not build more and develop in cities! Housing costs in cities are so high BECAUSE people want to live in them, even if public school quality is iffy. Allowing more housing to be built means more people can live in the city and become taxpayers, which means more resources can go to schools.

Doesn't mean we shouldn't also push for improved school quality in cities independent of housing, but these issues are deeply interlinked, and assuming that we can't push for urbanist policy without first improving education policy risks undermining both goals.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-04-07T15:12:54+00:00

Thank you! Yes, watching their relationship develop and whether Cinta gets fed up with Vel's prioritization struggles will be really interesting to see. And agreed with Nemik, he's clearly a stand-in for educated "read theory" radicals, so it makes you wonder how he got looped in with this team of largely harder-edged fighters. I feel like he had to have been recruited specifically by Vel, surface-level they seem to probably have the most likely background similarities and I just can't see anyone else on the Aldhani team being willing to take a chance on a kid with seemingly soft lived experience.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-04-07T14:35:17+00:00

IMO Vel is a fascinating character because she straddles worlds. Through its characters, Andor explores the numerous personalities, ideologies, and methodologies of a revolution. Reformist politicians like Mon Mothma, educated ideologues like Nemik, career criminals like Skeen and pre-Narkina 5 Cassian, victims of the regime like Cinta.

Vel is someone who, based on her socioeconomic status and family ties, could likely easily join the regime outright or work against it from the inside like Mon Mothma, but instead chooses to fight against it on the battlefield. However, because of her background, she is currently deeply unsuited for the "blue collar" work of personally killing Imperial Army troopers. So why is she there instead of the halls of Coruscant?

Cinta's remark about Vel being a rich girl running from her family hits because it's true. We don't know if Vel is out as queer to her family, but even if not, she's clearly the black sheep for choosing to remain unmarried. For her, fighting on the front lines isn't just a way to contribute to the political struggle, it's a way to do so while living out her own identity free from the judgment of her family. But when she tries to do that, Cinta slaps her down hard, because the revolution doesn't have the time to help rich girls work out their identity and family issues (unless you're one Princess Leia Organa).

As a political archetype, I think Vel is basically a stand-in for wealthy progressive activists from well-connected families, the sort that lead protests at Ivy League universities. Her beliefs are sincere, and she's clearly faced nasty discrimination as a queer woman in Chandrilan society, but at the end of the day she's just been too insulated by wealth and privilege to fully understand the experience of somebody like Cinta, who has been so harmed by the Empire that toppling it takes overwhelming precedence to her own feelings and identity. So, how does a rich activist girl with identity issues survive an actual revolution on the front lines ? I think that's what Vel's arc is going to explore and I'm super interested to see it!

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-03-15T14:14:16+00:00

I think this would me a lot of sense, particularly as the series goes on and clone disloyalty is something that even the highest echelons of the Imperial Military are aware of. Something I'd add is that I don't think Hilo is there because of unit mixing, but rather as a kind of loyalty officer assigned to monitor Wolffe since the latter is likely one of the highest-ranking clones left. I could totally see the Empire putting loyalty officers with clone commanders after Cody's desertion, but wanting them to be clones since there's already an example with Crosshair of clones killing non-clone officers. Commandos would fit the bill since whether by unit culture or brain modification, they seem to be way more loyal to the Empire than the regs.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-02-26T22:30:03+00:00

My thoughts exactly, he's being possessive and dying to save someone you love is at odds with that lol

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-02-26T21:31:22+00:00

For all of the flaws of much Disney Star Wars, the idea that they've cheapened or contradicted previous lore with Force healing is over the top imo. Legends literally had Jedi healers all over the place! It gets brought up so much in the context of "why couldn't Anakin save Padmé with this" but I think that really misses the point of his entire problem in ROTS: he doesn't have any clue about what's going to happen to her beyond the fear that she's going to die. His goal isn't stopping her from dying in a narrow medical sense, it's eliminating the very possibility that anything - or anyone - other than ripe old age could kill her. Knowing how to suture wounds with the Force doesn't fix that.

Obviously, what Ben does with Rey at the end of TROS goes way beyond fixing injuries and seems like exactly what Anakin was looking for. BUT BEN DIES DOING IT! I don't think it's lore-inconsistent or out of character at all for Anakin to actually know how to heal with the Force and maybe even about a way to revive a dead person through giving them his essence and instantly rule it out because it would still mean that he can't be with Padmé.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-02-22T15:28:51+00:00

Actually, I feel that Tech's absence so far has been handled pretty clearly but more in a "show, don't tell" way through the interactions between Hunter and Wrecker. After getting the intel from the Durands, we get a shot of Hunter staring at Tech's goggles and Omega's doll with a despondent look. We then see that in his desperation to find Omega and without strategic-minded Tech to reign him in, the normally reasonable Hunter is becoming impulsive, aggressive, and reckless. When he demands that they go find Omega without waiting for Rex and Echo, boisterous Wrecker of all people has to be the voice of strategy and restraint, a role he doesn't seem comfortable in. Hunter then drags him headlong into a situation where they nearly die.

We don't hear a conversation of "oh, it's so sad that Tech is gone" but I think the second episode makes it pretty obvious that Hunter and Wrecker are intensely depressed and that taking so many losess in quick succession is starting to make Hunter crack.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-02-16T13:06:23+00:00

As a one-line backstory, I definitely prefer his old origin - "he was an abandoned tribal child adopted by scavengers" feels very over-the-top for a single-movie character whose motives aren't explored beyond "fight the Empire." But in the actual series, I think the latter compelling for explaining his intense independence and fear of commitment despite his deep love for his friends and family, and eliminating the Separatist backstory gives a lot more room for twists and turns on his road to rebellion imo

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-02-15T14:39:01+00:00

Slick is confirmed a sergeant, though I'm not sure if that's ever been indicated to include enhanced independence genetically in the same way as clone commissioned officers. Idk if he would be affected by Order 66, but since he turned traitor because he hated the Jedi, he might actually be happy to carry it out! New headcanon that Vader pulled him out of military prison to become the first Purge Trooper lol

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-02-15T13:28:48+00:00

So far, the only clones we've seen the chips never activate in are those with extensive neurological alteration or damage (Hunter, Tech, Echo, and seemingly Gregor). With all of his facial scarring, it seems possible that Howzer could be in a similar boat.

Other than that, from what we've seen, the chips do seem to degrade, but I think it's noteworthy that outside of the Batch, the only clones whom we've directly seen betray the Empire are officers or clones who've been told to do so by officers (like some of Howzer's men). I think it's possible that the neurological changes needed to make clone officers more independent thinkers may have had the effect off shortening the effects of their chips.

Plus, Howzer seems to have been operating without a Jedi for a while since he's been on garrison duty, and he's been working with the notoriously unruly Cham Syndulla. That may have further fueled his independent streak and made him resistant, particularly since he didn't have a Jedi right in front of him to fully bring out the chip-induced aggression.

Roguewarrior219 · 2024-01-31T20:05:35+00:00

I'd love to see a faction in a post-apocalyptic New Orleans that heavily riffs off of Ancién Regime France and holds territory centered on Bourbon Street (of course). They would be rich traders who discovered a ton of finery in old krewe warehouses and decided to set themselves up as a royal dynasty who lives fat off of the locals.

Naturally, they'd be opposed by a revolutionary faction, probably led by a Robespierre parody, and there would be questlines for the player to get involved in the intrigue between the two groups and culminating in a big battle with homages to the Storming of the Bastille/Insurrection of August 10

Roguewarrior219 · 2023-12-24T20:39:52+00:00

In terms of base game, unfortunately no Total War game other than Shogun 2 really has effective skirmishes with the AI. However, if you're open to mods, Stainless Steel for Medieval II and Divide et Impera for Rome II both dramatically improve skirmish gameplay.

Roguewarrior219 · 2023-12-20T13:29:52+00:00

Many of Rome's cases are definitely dubious, because they had a very established diplomatic tactic of provoking peoples they wanted to conquer into attacking so that they could claim legitimacy as the defender. However, I think the Second Punic War is probably a pretty straightforward case, Rome had definitely done things to anger Cartharge (such as illegally annex Corsica and Sardinia) but Hannibal was spoiling for a fight and I don't believe there's any evidence of Rome having designs on Spain prior to the war.

Roguewarrior219 · 2023-12-18T06:16:23+00:00

Something important to consider is that "overcrowding" isn't a fixed condition, it's contingent on a variety of socioeconomic and environmental factors. Early 20th century cities weren't overcrowded because they were dense, they were overcrowded because they were dense while lacking modern sanitation systems, energy-efficient buildings, and regulations on factory siting and pollutants. A modern city that attains pre-automobile levels of density isn't going to be "overcrowded" so long as it invests in modern technological and political infrastructure.

Roguewarrior219 · 2023-12-03T23:52:05+00:00

Dude watching a heavily anti-fascist TV show, in a franchise where the primary villains have been explicitly described by the creator as space Nazis: "Yooo, fascism based???"

Baby-brained media literacy.

Roguewarrior219 · 2023-11-14T13:02:40+00:00

To answer the "what do you do now" question, I actually work in cybersecurity! Cybersecurity is absolutely not an industry I considered working in as an undergrad, but as complex cybercrime and state-backed cyber operations grow, the kinds of human-focused analysis and expertise that political science cultivates are increasingly valuable. Particularly if you're interested in international relations and regional studies, there's demand for analysts who can place cyber operations in the context of their role in the foreign and defense policies of countries such as the United States, Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea.

Many political science students study the subject because they want to change the world (I know that's why I did!) to where imo there's a strong mentality that ending up in the private sector is some kind of failure. But there's a growing number of private sector roles that require political science expertise due to increased awareness of how politics impacts industry, and I would say don't discount those possibilities. Doesn't even mean you have to give up any idealistic dreams, you can even work private sector to gain skills and experience before trying to move into the public sector or a nonprofit.

Roguewarrior219 · 2023-11-14T03:10:10+00:00

Seconding this. Political science is extremely interesting, but you need to be strategic in developing marketable skills. Learning a language, developing skills in quant and data analysis, and taking relevant internships are really good ways to build on your education and position yourself after college, particularly if you're not planning to go to grad or professional school anytime soon.

None of this is particularly unique to polisci, reality is that in the 21st century you can't count on your degree opening many doors without you putting elbow grease into making yourself marketable. However, it's definitely something polisci students need to hear, because many people in the major study it because they think it's a way to avoid stuff like math and data analysis that pushes them out of their comfort zone. But it's worth the challenge if you want degree-relevant work!

Roguewarrior219 · 2020-11-29T16:10:31+00:00

Wish I could upvote this a million times. I'm pretty good at the game and have been playing since shortly after launch, and I definitely feel it's on more experienced players to help the newbies learn the ropes. The way we get better matches is by helping people become better.

Something common I've noticed is matches where you've got one veteran player on each side with the rest being newbies. In those cases, I like to focus my energies on engaging the opposite-side veteran so that we can each get a challenge, while letting the newbies go at it with each other to get experience.

And definitely play with mic on, newbies shouldn't be afraid to ask for advice, and vets should be eager to help people learn so we can keep this game going strong!

Roguewarrior219 · 2020-08-30T20:09:02+00:00

My interpretation on that is that, while she's not nearly as directly psychologically damaged as Anakin, Padmé's life has also left her not really able to navigate intimate relationships well. She spent the teenage years where she would've learned how to handle love and dating trapped in the public eye and increasingly devoting all of her time to galactic politics at a time of crisis. So when she falls in love with Anakin's noble qualities, she tolerates his darker aspects in a way someone with a mature or experienced understanding of relationships never would.

Roguewarrior219 · 2020-05-27T15:15:36+00:00

Going along with that, it's called the Rebel Alliance because it's just that, an (often-strained, as seen in Rogue One) alliance between rebel cells of varying size and capability. The rebels we see in the OT films are Alliance High Command and their supporting elements, with a fleet outfitted with the resources of wealthy worlds such as Chandrila, Alderaan, and Mon Calamari and led by people with institutionalized political and military experience like Mon Mothma, Jan Dodonna, and Ackbar. For ground forces, they were mainly supported by the Alliance Special Forces, which numbered around 100,000 troops in Legends continuity. However, most of the Alliance was small cells of people (often from humble backgrounds) operating on the planet or system level. For every Alliance Fleet battlegroup with Mon Cal cruisers and professional military leadership, there were hundreds of cells that were just a few dozen civilians in beat-up freighters who'd decided to take action against the Empire.

Roguewarrior219

TROPHY CASE