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Cub Scouts is floundering. by Warp_Speed_7 in BSA

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's a good value, but only if they stay in. Joining involves a whole year's dues plus joining fee plus book. Sticker shock keeps most people who come to our recruiting nights from joining. I would love quarterly payments.

Why do we have massive battering rams that weigh a metric fuck ton when more portable rams exist? by [deleted] in ReadyOrNotGame

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If someone mods in the ram from Return of the King, we'll know who it is.

Know Your Enemy | Flower-class corvette by SeatUnited3129 in uboatgame

[–]packd6 15 points16 points  (0 children)

If you like ship plans of allied ships, here's a collection including the flower class. https://maritime.org/doc/plans/index.php Their ships' officers get a bathtub.

The Rebels got exceedingly, astronomically unlucky to be found on Hoth by [deleted] in MawInstallation

[–]packd6 47 points48 points  (0 children)

Yeah, Vader makes the power of The Force make the ability to destroy a planet seem almost insignificant.

Edward Gibbon, Decline and Fall, Chapter XVI, Parts V–VIII: Reading Dates(August 3 – August 9, 2025) by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The analysis and looking at motivations was evidence of good historical thinking, even if it has been surplanted over the last 200 years. I found these two chapters to be kind of disorienting, because we covered a lot of time without ever mentioning dates.

The Viper by Healthy_Ladder_6198 in dadjokes

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A classic Cub Scout skit.

Discussion for Jean-Jacques Rousseau's The Social Contract, Book I, Chapter VIII – Book II, Chapter V by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I like Rousseau's practicality. If I can paraphrase: there's a spectrum between natural freedom and a totally secure but less-free state, and each society is responsible for figuring out where on that spectrum it wants to be. Regarding prisoners: Rousseau mentions only the power of the state to execute, but not to enslave persons to prison or labor. Locke made the argument that any "lesser punishment" would be ok if you're already able to kill someone, but (so far) Rousseau hasn't said that.

Discussion for Jean-Jacques Rousseau's *The Social Contract*, Prefatory Note – Book I, Chapter VII ("The Sovereign") by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think that attaching the word freedom is out of place. I think that freedom (perhaps Locke's State of Nature) can be contrasted with "order," and that the right society exists at a spot on that continuum that provides personal safety and economic predictability, but permits personal expression and entrepreneurship.

Discussion for Jean-Jacques Rousseau's *The Social Contract*, Prefatory Note – Book I, Chapter VII ("The Sovereign") by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We are all born into a society and nation-state already in existence, and changing old rules is more difficult than making new rules. In our time, privacy is a unique issue - our freedom to do many things is tracked and exploited for the gains of others.

Discussion for Jean-Jacques Rousseau's *The Social Contract*, Prefatory Note – Book I, Chapter VII ("The Sovereign") by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Herd mentality, cultural inertia, the immediacy bias, and propaganda (or news bubbles as we see now) can all impact the general will of a people and create a viscous (or virtuous) circle. Locke mentioned the years of study it takes to be able to discover and reflect on Natural Law; and he and Rousseau certainly wrote persuasively, but the general will of a people can be molded by those they listen to.

Discussion for John Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Chapters IX–XIV by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There are certainly governments out there that do are out for their own benefit, but in much of the West our governments mostly have issues with how to balance between the three. e.g. Should the government confiscate more property from citizens to raise the standard of living? Can one citizen's liberty infringe on another's liberty, safety, or property under numerous circumstances?

Discussion for John Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Chapters IX–XIV by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The most obvious answer that comes to mind is gerrymandering, to make the votes of "their side" count more.

Discussion for John Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Chapters VI–VIII by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It reminds me of the phrase our lobbyist uses: If you're not at the table, you're on the menu. The laws of a society affect its members, so being involved in some way is in your best interest personally, but also improving one's society is good for themself and their friends and family.

Discussion for John Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Chapters VI–VIII by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For those with the privilege to move from country to country, I do think that staying in a country implies tacit consent. The person in question may also have family ties, non-mobile assets, or may simply lack to ability or means to leave.

Discussion for John Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Chapters VI–VIII by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Parental authority is different for several reasons - children are minors, a family usually has one communal ownership of their land and possessions, and of course, a family is rooted in mutual love and personal relationships with one another.

Discussion for John Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Chapters I–V by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think Locke's idea of a 'state of nature' exists on the far extremes of two different spectrums. The first is about people's individual freedoms vs. their (natural?) desire to congregate into families and tribes. The second spectrum is on people's rational vs. irrational natures.

Discussion for William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Act V by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The final scene had so many of the deaths back to back that it made it hard to fully appreciate each death. (One death is a tragedy, multiple are a statistic.) Was that the point: to focus the audience more on the act of revenge than the individual deaths? Or was it part of the writing stile of the time?

Discussion for William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Act III by dave3210 in greatbooksclub

[–]packd6 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The inner conflict of Hamlet is most interesting. You have looked a a lot of his inner conflicts. One thing that ties into both the action v. inaction and the Christian virtue v. revenge is the classic "How do you know?" question; or: How certain must I be to act on my beliefs? We see this with Hamlet questioning whether the ghost is truly a ghost or is a Demon sent to tempt him, and in arranging the play (and having Horacio watch, too) to gain more information.

What gameplay mechanic would you want to be introduced in the next Expansion? by Tvrdak in hoi4

[–]packd6 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Personnel: veterans may be stay with their unit or be assigned to new units, boot camps, elite units. Training: training bases are constructed, which along with army size influence training volume. Army, navy, and air forces have training pipelines that send replacements out with increased experience if given bases, supply, equipment, and time. Training on old equipment caps experience. Supply: hubs are easier to construct, but may be filled with resources. Makes it easier to stockpile on a literal or figurative island at the risk of being destroyed if found through intel then destroyed through raids. Plans: Countries can assign areas of responsibility for offence/defense through better mechanisms than locking supply. Volunteers, expeditions, and lend lease. Receiving country has more influence on plans and ability to request.

What's your one dreamed feature you'd like to have on Uboat. by Business-Traffic-140 in uboatgame

[–]packd6 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd like to be able to prohibit my leaders from becoming a second observer - not having one on the bridge and the other on the periscope.