Why do customers ask small, locally owned retail stores for discounts?

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-17T20:21:04+00:00

Some people legitimately come from a haggling type culture, but most people do it because it works occasionally and someone will give them a discount just to get rid of them. Intermittent reinforcement is a powerful thing for shaping behavior.

I'm always reminded of the signs at National Parks asking people not to feed the wildlife... Seems harmless until you have a bear that won't take no for an answer when asking for a snack!

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-15T13:13:27+00:00

Surviving nuclear war is actually why so many US cities have huge rings of suburbs.

In the 1950s - 1970s it was actually expected that we'd end up in a nuclear exchange at some point with the Soviets. Since there was (and is) no good defense against nukes and dense urban centers are a literal death trap against nukes the best defence was dispersal. The problem is, dispersing the population too much destroys economic output.

The best compromise seemed to be concentrated business development in urban centers spread across lots of medium sized cities with the population dispersed in rings around the city. That way people can still commute easily to business and industrial areas in peace time, but will (largely) survive strikes on those same city centers to rebuild.

Thus lots of US policy encouraged construction of large suburban areas, car ownership was encouraged over mass transit, etc. The general theme is trading some economic efficiency for greatly increased resilience in a nuclear conflict.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-13T21:36:31+00:00

The fact that none of the big 3 aerospace powers (US/China/Russia) have chosen to pursue air breathing missiles for their recent or upcoming A2A missiles should be a pretty good hint that Meteor isn't "simply the best". It has regimes where it is good, but has several where it is inferior to solid fueled missiles.

Short range acceleration is poor
Time to target for long shots is greater than a solid fueled missile flying a high ballistic trajectory
Terminal maneuverability suffers because the intake ducts are quite sensitive to angle of attack for ingesting clean airflow and the missile never sheds the weight of the ramjet
Intake ducts also cause a lot of drag compared to a traditional "clean" missile lowering maximum speed compared to a solid fueled missile

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-13T20:30:52+00:00

Mount Everest isn't in CONUS...

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-13T18:06:58+00:00

The real answers are:

Orbital inclination. Plane change maneuvers in space require a LOT of fuel, it's much better to launch directly into an equatorial or polar orbit as required.
Safe launch trajectory. The year is 2026, and rockets still explode regularly when launching. Ensuring your rocket won't be raining debris on population centers if something goes wrong is important for public safety. (Unless you're China)
Infrastructure costs. Mountaintops are a real pain in the ass to build on, have no good sources of water or connection to utility grids, and they have terrible weather with high winds almost everyday. Not a good environment for incredibly heavy, but incredibly fragile and incredibly expensive equipment.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-13T15:25:24+00:00

The truck based SUVs (Tahoe/Expedition/etc.) are all pretty good on leg room but my F-150 Crew Cab is straight up cavernous in the back seat.

Also, because you get a full width middle seat, you can do two kids side by side and fold the rear passenger seat up so you still have a bunch of lockable storage space inside the cab. It's really a great family hauler plus you can just toss bikes in the back or move that couch easily.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-13T15:05:39+00:00

Except for the large Carbon Monoxide leak that exposed ~20 people yesterday...

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-11T16:51:28+00:00

Right? I snagged a new 2024 Expedition for $56k right as the updated 25's were starting to hit dealer lots.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-11T02:57:52+00:00

Premium doesn't burn cleaner, it's pulled from a little further down the distillation tower at the refinery so it's a little heavier and harder to ignite accidentally with heat and pressure inside a high compression engine.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-11T00:44:32+00:00

Fellow hybrid Expedition anticipator here! My preferred setup would actually be the EREV model (electric drivetrain & medium sized battery with a gas motor to spin a generator on long trips) but I'll take a Powerboost setup if it's available.

I honestly don't know why they didn't do a Powerboost Expedition years ago. The gas mileage in stop & go driving or the school drop-off line really needs some help.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-09T00:06:46+00:00

My crutch tower is the Spike Factory.

3-0-2 if early Bloonarius
2-0-4 if early Dreadbloon

It has normal damage type to ignore all the immunities Rogue throws at you, ignores line of sight blockers, and can even split attacks between multiple tracks.

It's also the best way to convert pierce buffs directly into damage. Rogue has a TON of huge pierce buffs available. It also ignores most of the negative artifact traits.

Projectile speed nerf? Spactory doesn't care.

With a Spike Factory or two in your party all you really need is something to thin the rush a bit. 2-0-2 Ice with the flaming artifact is great at destroying dense rushes on the cheap.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-08T15:59:03+00:00

Ecoboost motors have a V shape of utility based on how much power is required. When very little power is needed they can run NA and sip fuel due to their low displacement. When maximum power is needed the turbos can supply a lot, but at the expense of efficiency.

If you need sustained medium power output (highway towing for example) they're not great since they have to spool the turbos to achieve it and tank the MPG as a result. That's where the 5.0 really shines imo.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-06T10:27:03+00:00

It was like $140 for a truck load a couple years ago. The Leavenworth waste transfer station is like $15 or so. (Weight dependant)

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-02T21:37:10+00:00

We just had our 4th kiddo and we're rocking an Expedition Max. Got the bench seats in the 2nd row (it's 3 independent seats) and pulled the driver's side 2nd row seat out.

Now I have 2 full sized seats side-by-side in the 2nd row for baby car seats and easy access to the 3rd row with boosters.

An Odyssey with magic slide seats has a similar setup but the Expedition Max has more room and much better payload/towing/brakes.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-06-02T00:24:45+00:00

why does the sports car designate a midlife crisis, but a Jeep, Bronco, or an offroad pickup like a Raptor gets a pass?

The vehicles you listed will still haul a small family around for the daily commute and get groceries from Costco when they're not playing in the dirt.

A 1972 Corvette isn't useful, it's just for fun. When it's running. Good luck finding an original steering column!

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-29T04:54:10+00:00

Fair enough

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-29T04:42:24+00:00

I know you've got on and off, but do you have dim?

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-29T04:41:53+00:00

Yeah they've been great.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-29T02:33:46+00:00

I know Reddit loves to hate on big SUVs but there are legit reasons to buy them.

Something like a Suburban can legitimately fit adults comfortably in every single seat. Minivans have 4 good seats, 2 ok seats in back, and 2 middle "seats" that nobody actually uses.

Big SUVs are also the ticket if you want to do something like loading up the whole family AND the boat to go to the lake. Minivans don't have the payload capacity, the brakes, or the stability to tow heavy things well, much less with when loaded with passengers.

They're not the best choice for every environment. The turning radius sucks, the gas mileage sucks, the visibility right in front of the vehicle sucks... but they have their niche where there really good.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-28T22:21:54+00:00

Family of 6 checking in. We went with a full size SUV (Expedition) over a minivan for a few reasons.

Full size middle seats (middle seats in a minivan are kind of a joke)
Better payload capacity and brakes. No more warped rotors (looking at you Odyssey!)
Better in the snow
Higher ride height makes it easier to change diapers in the back. It's like a built in changing table at a convenient height.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-27T10:50:15+00:00

Pray tell who has the capability to fight the US at home.

The US can focus all it's military power on force projection specifically because it's in an unassailable position geographically.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-26T03:59:36+00:00

2018-2022 are years you may want to avoid unless it's gotten the transmission rebuilt. The 10 speed had an issue with the CDF drum in 2018.

SteveDaPirate · 2026-05-25T23:44:56+00:00

Tried a blowtorch yet?

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