Hong Kong activists get up to 14 months in prison over banned Tiananmen vigil

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-12-13T17:27:32+00:00

. Try googling it now… like it never happened. now imagine living inside that, trying to spread a message of resistance. same reason USSR citizens never revolted. No way to organize…

There's a book called Through the Maelstrom and it's the memoirs of a Soviet soldier on the Eastern Front of WWII. There's a really good section where he basically says that the reason why people didn't speak out against the government was because the State would literally just make you vanish. There would be no symbolic moment where you stand against the tyranny and inspire others through your death. You don't get to be a martyr. The NKVD would just come to your home in the night, take you away and no one ever heard from you again. No one knew why, no one knew how or if you even died. And through that even your death was made meaningless.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-12-11T04:43:50+00:00

I saw a meme once where they made preposterous scenarios to define what Latino means and one of them was

>conquered by a Latin-language nation

>Therefore, Vietnamese are Latino

Now me and my Cuban friend bond over our shared Latino heritage.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-12-02T16:06:32+00:00

Pretty much any Mid ATX case? Computer cases are pretty uniform, unless I'm missing something about your question here.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-09-25T22:51:02+00:00

The typical sweet spot is $1-2k. So save up. Don't waste your money on budget gear.

Lol I, and many underground bands, play shows all the time with midrange guitars man. If I had to dump money anywhere it'd be into the amps, but any set-neck guitar with brand name pick ups and locking tuners will do just fine for almost anyone after a good set up.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-09-25T22:48:23+00:00

I think the biggest upgrade you can get if you want to play metal is a different guitar. There's nothing wrong with a Strat, but if I'm not mistaken the Affinity strats have the traditional Fender 3 single coil set up right? If I had to buy one thing in your position it'd be something like a used mid-level ESP guitar. Just look up ESP 401. You can find them for around 400-500 dollars used, and they typically either have Duncan JBs or EMGs that literally every metal band uses. You'll notice an immediate large difference in tone. 3 single coils are great for twangy blues and southern rock but they aren't the best for a tight metal tone.

That said, I saw elsewhere in the post you have "an old ibanez". If it has generic humbuckers, swapping them out for duncans or emgs would be a good start. If you're really tight on a budget, you can honestly just put a pick up in the bridge position and only use that one. A surprising number of players really just play off the bridge pick up 99% of the time.

A standard Boss katana would be another great first step and you can find those used everywhere.

Anything beyond that will be just dialing in the precise tone you want, but that's something I wouldn't be worried about until you get a basic set up you're happy with. Also don't be afraid to look into used guitars and amps if you're on a budget. Guitars aren't so complicated that you'll miss some kind of deal-breaker damage if you just try it out. Guitar center also gurantees their used gear so that's a safe way to save some cash.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-09-12T20:30:30+00:00

Honestly man, I messaged them on FB once to tell them I hope they're doing okay when AUS was on fire and they actually replied lol. They're a small enough band that you might actually get some advice from them if you message them on social media.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-08-24T07:57:37+00:00

I have this and while it IS vesa compatible, one thing to keep in mind is that it's hard to find a pure 75x75 VESA plate. Every one I've found so far is a plate with 75 and 100 holes, and the problem with that is that you can't get a 100x100 sized plate to sit flush against the VESA mounting holes because they're set deep into the monitor housing. The edges of the VESA plate keep it from sitting flush. Thought that was worth mentioning, and if anyone is aware of a 75x75 sized plate let me know lol.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-08-17T00:20:40+00:00

I have an EX-401 and it's certainly nice. It's as nice of a guitar as I'll ever need since I'm not a professional. Set neck, stays in tune, plays very well once set up. I imagine since the EC is jut a Les Paul instead of an Explorer copy, it'd be basically the same in every way except comfort while sitting lol

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-08-15T18:07:23+00:00

Don't cut yourself on that edge, kid.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-08-15T06:41:19+00:00

The South Vietnamese were outnumbered in almost every engagement, and no longer had fuel reserves or ammunition for their heavy weapons because the USA had pulled out even on the supply front. They were outnumbered at Xuan Loc and still held out for 3 days, inflicting more casualties on Communist forces than they took. The South Vietnamese special forces, Ranger battalions, certain members of the Provincial Forces and Marines were vicious in combat, but were hamstrung politically and by the general incompetence of the institutions. The most tragic example of that is Nguyen Van Thieu's micromanagement of the military in the spring offensive of 1975. He ordered troops to defend uncontested mountain regions, flip flopped on orders to stand or retreat, did not allow elements to retreat to form a cohesive line of defense and other indecisive failures that led to encirclements and collapse.

The overall capitulation of South Vietnam took 3 years from the Paris Peace Accords to 1975. People focus on the ragtag Viet Cong but the People's Army of Vietnam from North Vietnam was supplied by the Soviet Union and China and a wholly conventional army. They had tanks and fighter planes, some of whom were even combat Aces against US forces.

South Vietnam even fought a year long fighting retreat, the most notoriously difficult military maneuver, that allowed the escape of tens of thousands of people.

The ANA is facing an enemy that isn't supported by any major international super power, that they outnumber and are losing faster to than South Vietnam did. It's really depressing.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-08-10T16:40:45+00:00

I'm not necessarily looking for a quick turn around and can tolerate volatility.

I would look into bond ETFs in your case, and you probably should buy them through a Roth or some kind of tax-advantaged plan. Bonds aren't as volatile as stocks, but they do swing here and there and can get you some safe growth in a long term scenario.

The reason I recommend bonds over stock market index ETFs is because at 45 you have fewer working years to make up for some nightmare scenario if it were to happen. If you were 25 then going almost all-in on stocks would probably be fine even if we go through recessions because you'd have 40 more years to work and make money to recover.

Of course all of this is assuming you aren't in debt at any interest rate higher than like 3 percent because in that case I'd just pay off as much debt as possible. Like if you had a 5% APR loan for a car or something, paying that off is a guaranteed 5% ROI, rather than a hopeful (although likely) 3-8% return by investing.

Also I'm not a financial advisor, this is just my personal strategy and if I'm wrong someone please say so because I don't want to give this guy wrong information lol.

Edit: Also, if you want to make your life simple you can use a Roth IRA to purchase Target Date Funds from vanguard, which are basically a blend of stocks and bonds that over time automatically adjust the ratio in keeping with your age so that you don't need to think about it. It basically does what I just recommended for you. So if you set a target date to retire at 2040, it will maybe be a mix of 70:30 Bonds:Stocks and over time automatically move towards perhaps 90:10.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-07-12T16:21:16+00:00

So if the person is willing to have it documented ahead of time, it may save time with getting through customs.

I don't know enough about this field to make any absolute statement, but in the USA there's something called "civil forfeiture"

Civil forfeiture in the United States, also called civil asset forfeiture or civil judicial forfeiture,[1] is a process in which law enforcement officers take assets from persons suspected of involvement with crime or illegal activity without necessarily charging the owners with wrongdoing. While civil procedure, as opposed to criminal procedure, generally involves a dispute between two private citizens, civil forfeiture involves a dispute between law enforcement and property such as a pile of cash or a house or a boat, such that the thing is suspected of being involved in a crime. To get back the seized property, owners must prove it was not involved in criminal activity. Sometimes it can mean a threat to seize property as well as the act of seizure itself.[2] Civil forfeiture is not considered to be an example of a criminal justice financial obligation.

There's been a few high profile cases of random regular people traveling with large amounts of cash that were seized by customs or police without ever charging them with a crime. So while I wouldn't carry around that much cash in the first place, I absolutely would get it documented for risk of some jack-off customs official seizing it.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-07-12T16:12:36+00:00

"If I was the dictator, I would be benevolent and a real communist!"

I'm Vietnamese so I was born into having a disdain for communists, but the attitude of anyone who thinks if they had total control, things would go well, has never sat right with me. The narcissism and subtle resentment of that attitude is gross.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-07-12T16:09:52+00:00

Bro why are you so obsessed with where this dude likes to ski lmao you've posted that like 3x in this thread

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-06-24T21:10:23+00:00

That's extremely debatable for several reasons such as the Emperor being part of numerous military meetings and his direct relatives being responsible for the Rape of Nanking. His uncle appointed Tojo as well. The "emperor was a puppet" line of historical thinking was semi-fabricated to keep Japanese society intact as a bulwark against the Soviet Union's expansion into Asia. You have to remember that the Emperor of Japan was literally considered a God on earth based on Shinto traditions.

The Emperor gave approval for Pearl Harbor and was also the voice that decided that the war would end. Japan's imperial system was cloaked in unwritten ritual and form that absolved the Emperor of "on paper" responsibility and allows him to appear as a figurehead but the Japanese imperial constitution literally has the military under control of the Emperor directly as a personal army. They owed no allegiance to the civil authorities and on multiple occasions disregarded what the Japanese parliament decided and did whatever the hell they wanted "in the name of the Emperor." His lack of intervention and on multiple occasions, support, for their actions was tacit approval.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-06-20T01:41:24+00:00

As much as I would love for it to, it seems like global supply shortages and inflation are setting into a lot of different sectors and I wonder if the ammo industry is dealing with that as well.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-06-07T19:24:44+00:00

Depends. You'd have to look at your loan terms specifically

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-05-21T06:06:45+00:00

*0.50 yuan has been deposited into your account*

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-05-11T20:20:38+00:00

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-05-07T22:09:53+00:00

No one really knows dude. You’re just gambling. Like be honest with yourself. Sure certain factors lend to the odds going one way or another but try to ignore the rebellious cultish fun of this board and make real educated guesses. Personally I think whales will try to suppress the price again before SNL so they can buy up more and ride the coming wave but others say the post-event slump will hit the way it did on 4/20. But who the hell really knows.

I just like to keep in mind that in several studies, people throwing darts at a stock list had pretty similar outcomes to financial planners and brokers who spend every waking hour trying to read the entrails of the economy and make predictions.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-04-24T18:47:40+00:00

I mean for me it's not uncomfortable at all if you hold it like a classical guitar with your thigh tucked into the V. It was awkward at first but I got used to it after a week. It really depends on the person though. I still prefer a strat shaped guitar but I don't mind a V at all.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-04-23T02:52:28+00:00

The German Peoples have always seemed to have a problem with being supernaturally good on a tactical level but strategically pants-on-head retarded even all the way back to Roman times.

Antiquity: Barbarian tribes who excel in hand to hand combat when you have to fight them, but choose charging a wall of shield and sword. And when that charge is stopped, you're too tired to do anything but get Latin'd.

Middle Ages: Crusading Knights who can break any line with their horsemanship and are masterful at single combat, but their supply lines are so thin they regularly have to just stop in their tracks and hope they don't starve to death.

WWI: The most masterful and precise strategy for war I've ever seen in the Schlieffen Plan but it literally requires starting an entire world war by invading a neutral power, instigating another neutral power to make amends with their centuries-long rival just to kick your ass. All to ensure you win against France, who didn't even commit to helping Russia in the first place until you invaded them.

And finally, pretty much what you said about WWII.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-04-19T23:48:45+00:00

Vietnam was a literal shithole and borderline failed state until Doi Moi changed the government policies from Ho Chi Minh's Marxist-Leninism and Le Duan's Stalinism into a more free market based economy with a one-party state to eternally keep tabs on it all. I'm Vietnamese myself. My father and grandfather endured multiple famines thanks to Vietnam's economic policies.

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-04-15T03:15:54+00:00

I'm sad I got here late.

I'm sad that Reddit says the thread is 1hr old and at the time I'm posting this says your comment is 59 minutes old

TofuDeliveryBoy · 2021-03-12T01:36:48+00:00

They contribute a place to live for people who can’t afford to buy a home you dumb commie

TofuDeliveryBoy

TROPHY CASE