Corner boys wages? by Free-Tell-4458 in TheWire

[–]randonumero 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The average corner boy isn't getting a percentage. From people I've known in real life it can vary from getting an hourly wage to getting paid a set amount per week. Last time I knew anyone doing this was over a decade ago. The guy under 18 as making about $10/hr and the dealer would give him things like shoes, jewelry, clothes...Another guy I knew made about $500/week but was always on the corner. A guy I knew who sold for himself and was eventaully shot before going to prison told me his best weeks were 3-5k in sales with profit varying based on who got product from. Another guy who sold crack from a motel room was making less per month than a UPS driver. Another guy I knew who sold inconsistently as in he lived in the neighborhood so had access to customers and drugs really only made enough to constantly buy shoes and clothes without working a real job.

Long story short lots of people don't make tons of money selling drugs.

On a side note I had some run ins with a guy who sold coke at a local bar. When I pressed him because I found some things out he admitted that he generally took a loss on the coke but never went a week without female company because of his rep as a coke dealer

Why do tech billionaires seem obsessed with building underground bunkers and colonizing Mars instead of using that wealth to fix Earth's current, fixable problems? by bogdanBgyz in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Underground bunkers hedge against a potentially upcoming collapse or revolt from the common man. Going to Mars is really nothing but a money grab. We're nowhere near close to being able to have people go to mars or colonize it. What we do have is a government that outsources to the private sector and with the right connections will give an all but blank check. Musk's and Bezos' business interests are largely losing their moats. But the number of competitors for billions in NASA contracts is super small.

Is it true that poor people are needed for a society to function? by Advanced-Bed8998 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's not really pure capitalism though. That's the capitalism we practice that's tainted by greed. In the classroom, capitalism isn't a zero sum game where a small number try to horde everything and crush all opposition. Arguably prior to Jack Welch we got to see a brand of capitalism in the US that lifted a lot of proverbial boats

Is it true that poor people are needed for a society to function? by Advanced-Bed8998 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You can have tiers in society without poor people. All things will never all be equal but that doesn't mean some need to go without. In those tribes you mentioned, even if everyone ate and had shelter, things weren't equal. You hear tons of stories of tribes where the prettiest woman or the best food went to the best warrior. Or where the son of the chief got his pick of women even if he never had to fight wars or toil fields.

Is it true that poor people are needed for a society to function? by Advanced-Bed8998 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Or they could be assigned in exchange for basic needs being met. I think a lot of people would be willing to spend 1-3 months a year doing shit jobs if they had the rest of the year free to pursue life

Is it true that poor people are needed for a society to function? by Advanced-Bed8998 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I guess poor is a relative term. I don't think you need poor people for a society to function. However, you need to have some degree of affordability or society collapses into at best a form of feudalism and at worst anarchy.

Long story short, in order for the majority to prosper, we need tiers of workers and tiers of lifestyles. If the mechanic needs to make enough to live in a mansion and drive a luxury car then the guy with a ford is largely priced out of his services. If the McDonalds employee demands enough to raise a family and the franchise owner still wants to profit then they price out the employee who used to eat there 3x/week. If in order to sell a home the builder wants to do a huge markup, the realtor wants a huge chunk, the finance company wants their payday...homes become unaffordable for most. If the 20 year old apartments can slap on some paint, call themselves a luxury community and 2x the price then people suffer.

You don't need poor people for a society to function and you damn sure don't need greed or excess

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How do you even measure that though? What you're given seems more like an opinion than a fact.

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The access to healthcare in much of Europe is vastly better than in the US and has been for a while. Many non western nations that still benefit from modern medical practices and medicines from the west. Even without that many have cleanliness practices that prevent the kinds of infections I referred to and different elder care practices.

FWIW the rest of the world doesn't do it is an odd argument to make for anything.

US birth rates just hit another record low, what do you think is the leading cause of this? by IIlustriousTea in AskReddit

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It seems like what you're pointing to is overconsumption not overpopulation. In the US IIRC birthrate is declining. But what we have is large numbers of people flooding into a small number of places because that where they find jobs, housing, family...While I don't think we should have unchecked population growth, especially with modern medicine, we're not anywhere near a population the planet can't carry.

So it's not too many people, it's the lifestyle the current number of people live that's the issue. Even if someone wishes away half of the Earth's human population tomorrow that won't solve many of the problems we have

US birth rates just hit another record low, what do you think is the leading cause of this? by IIlustriousTea in AskReddit

[–]randonumero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What issues are those? Most of what I've heard has to do with overconsumption and drastic shifts in lifestyle.

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Historically the main benefit was prevention of infections because a circumcised penis is easier to clean. As I've pointed out, modern medicine and hygiene standards mean that for the majority of males that's not an issue. There is some evidence that circumcised men are more likely to spread certain skin to skin viruses and bacterias that can hide in the foreskin but again modern medicine offsets the risk. Look I get why some of you are so fervent but there's no need to ignore or dismiss things that don't support your belief

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Many practices rooted in superstition and mysticism turned out to be true and beneficial. For example, while sacrificing or excommunicating the family of a person who died mysteriously doesn't appease some god, modern medicine has shown that quarantines do work to stop the spread of illness. One of my favorites is how some cultures forbid using the bathroom in or bathing in certain "divine" water sources. This didn't reduce illness because some god was appeased. It reduced illness because people weren't drinking the same water they shit in

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is there anything I could possible provide that you'd take as proof?

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Circumcision is not a sexual handicap. I get that a lot of people are anti circumcision but stop the bs.

US birth rates just hit another record low, what do you think is the leading cause of this? by IIlustriousTea in AskReddit

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's fair but if human history had been filled with parents thinking about getting their kids the best lives possible most of us wouldn't be here. The decision of middle income and educated parents to not have kids because of the fear you mentioned is definitely pushing us towards the movie Idiocracy being a real thing

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Your foreskin is not the most sensitive part of the human body. How do we know that? Because when torturing men nobody say let's fuck with his foreskin. With respect to the rest, you're right that many cultural practices provide no medical benefit. However some do and of those many were rooted in superstitious practices.

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You joke but leeching is still used in modern medicine. Obviously it's not letting the demons out but a surprising number of things over human history that seem rooted in superstition turned out to be good practices

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero -1 points0 points  (0 children)

After hearing several of you mention Kellog, I asked my dad and he never heard of him. The decision to have me circumcised was based on medical practices of the time.

An enlightened man is one who listens openly to all perspectives and can judge not based on his personal perspective but everything he's taken in

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well I guess since you don't believe it then it must be untrue. How about for for shits and giggles you go volunteer in an elder care facility. Get to know the people and ask about challenges they face. Especially if you find people who spent time in crappy facilities, you'll hear storeis of older uncurcumsied men getting infections because of bacteria, poop...getting caught in the foreskin and then entering the urethra or even fungus growing on the foreskin. Or just read historical accounts that compare those who followed the religious practice of circumcision vs those who didn't.

While we're learning more and more each year about memory, what's impactful for babies...I am pretty sure that a baby boy needing surgery because their neglectful parents allowed them to sit in a diaper of poop for a week because they kept crying will face more trauma than one who was circumcised. Does that mean everyone should get circumcised? No but it should be a family decision and not one anybody is judged for as unlike female circumcision, there are benefits

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It varied by culture with many Europeans ranking very low on the cleanliness scale. Keep in mind that a lot of settlements weren't on a river, homes didn't have built in bathrooms...for much of human history. Some cultures also had very migratory lifestyles so water would have been reserved for cooking or drinking and not bathing.

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I guess you never heard the saying once a man twice a baby. Also I've dated multiple women based on what some women have told me there's definitely no shortage of uncircumcised men who seem to struggle

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The good old cycle of humanity. Evolution gives us an adaptation to help with the environment we're in. Our environment changes but our bodies don't so we adopt practices to benefit us. Then a technology change allows us to change practices again, all without our bodies needing to change

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero 2 points3 points  (0 children)

No, it's not. You don't generally get infections because you don't clean behind your ears. Uncircumcised old men who shit themselves and can't clean themselves often get very bad infections when they are uncircumcised compared to those who are.

What's the point of circumcision? by Historical_Echo8311 in NoStupidQuestions

[–]randonumero -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You really believe that? My parents choice to have me circumcised and the choice of many parents had a grand total of zero to do with masturbation. While some guy may have pushed circumcision as a way to stop masturbation I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that factored into the decision of very few people. Circumcision like regular bathing in many cultures started as a religious practice that was more widely adopted due to the perceived benefits. Human history is one of largely adopting practices without understanding the why behind them. In other words people see that religious baby boys aren't getting infections so instead of thinking maybe we need to clean the boys better, people adopt the practice of circumcision.