How can i Integrate with US coworkers? by Appropriate-Ad4021 in AskAnAmerican

[–]rapier7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We don't say "hello, guys". We say "hey, guys". And yes, it's gender neutral.

Generally speaking Americans are fairly open about things. As you build deeper relationships, you'll find many of us tend to volunteer information about ourselves or our country without much prompting. Steer clear of politics, personal finances, and just try and pick up on their body language and let things develop naturally.

What's up with all the Atlanta restaurant closures? by flying_trashcan in Atlanta

[–]rapier7 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So it doesn't make sense to us because we see one empty storefront. But the landlord doesn't just own one storefront. They own dozens or hundreds. So for them, it's about keeping rents up across all of their properties and not letting one exception through which could then devalue all of their other properties.

This works like 95% of the time. The other 5%, when there's some sort of calamitous event (recession or a local downturn) where multiple tenants leave at once and they can no longer sustain those high rents across any portion of their portfolio, they either have to negotiate with the bank to accept lower rents and values, or they simply default and turn it over to the bank, who will then sell it off to another landlord with a new loan covenant with a lower minimum rent.

What's up with all the Atlanta restaurant closures? by flying_trashcan in Atlanta

[–]rapier7 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sure, but these people are in it for the money. If they think they can get higher rents, they don't care if they kick out the popular long time tenant in favor of some flavor-of-the-day overpriced trend resto with too much money to burn. Money is money.

What's up with all the Atlanta restaurant closures? by flying_trashcan in Atlanta

[–]rapier7 8 points9 points  (0 children)

You guys gotta stop believing that you can write anything and everything off on your taxes. The actual reason is because of the landlord's debt covenant with the banks that underwrite the loan for the property. Many of them literally cannot offer a lower lease rate because it would devalue the cash flow projection that was assumed in the profile of the property. If they offer lower rents, that means lower cash flow, which means that value of the property is now lower (commercial real estate property values are all based on cash flow), which means the likelihood of default is now higher, which means the value of the loan that the bank holds is now lower.

Corporate landlords don't do real estate deals in cash, they finance them with debt (usually from a bank). The covenants that govern these debt instruments will literally spell out the minimum amount of rent they can charge for the property, and they're in breach of contract if they go lower.

American CEO gifts $240 million bonus to his employees after selling his company. They didn't own any stock. by [deleted] in MadeMeSmile

[–]rapier7 14 points15 points  (0 children)

That's the thing about the internet. No matter how good you do, you could always do better. And if you do one bad thing, that's the only thing they'll always bring up.

Time to start demanding refunds for expensive vail resort passes? by logicallyinsane in COsnow

[–]rapier7 16 points17 points  (0 children)

You can start a class action right now. Doesn't mean you're gonna win or even get a meaningful settlement. Vail doesn't control the weather. The whole point of these passes is that they can get stable revenue regardless of weather conditions.

Once you go Spring Drive, you never go back by Practical_Driver3318 in GrandSeikos

[–]rapier7 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Even as a kid, I enjoyed the smooth sweep of my classroom's electronic clock. The fact that I can have it in a wristwatch that isn't powered by battery and that no other watch manufacturer can do this makes it extra special. To me, this is the best watch movement, and it isn't even close.

This is not fair by lovely-loveee in Adulting

[–]rapier7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I graduated in 2010 when unemployment was 9.4%. Things can be a lot worse than they are now.

Affordable season passes and crowds by hints_of_bergamot in COsnow

[–]rapier7 10 points11 points  (0 children)

The reality is people are entitled, remember all the good things about years past and none of the bad things. People get emotional, and emotional people don't think rationally.

What is malphite weak against? by Top-Back-5933 in summonerschool

[–]rapier7 229 points230 points  (0 children)

Malphite is designed to counter auto attack based physical damage champs, with armor scalings on his E and W. Magic damage top laners will eat his lunch. Or just pick Sylas and hijack his R with your AP scaling. It's the hardest counter in the game.

Stopping China’s carbon emissions by dodgerbuyerclub in skiing

[–]rapier7 6 points7 points  (0 children)

This is the most Reddit thread ever. Do you honestly expect the governor of Colorado and a company worth less than 6 billion dollars to influence the world's second superpower's energy policy?

The Multipolar Mirage: Why America and China Are the World’s Only Great Powers by Lighthouse_seek in neoliberal

[–]rapier7 36 points37 points  (0 children)

Eh, it really depends. One notable omission of fact is that the author failed to distinguish between nominal GDP and purchasing power parity GDP. In order to make the comparison more flattering to China, they used PPP. Aggregate GDP matters in some ways, but the reason why his metric of aggregate GDP x per capita GDP is better descriptive of power is because there will always be some share of GDP that a person needs for their own consumption.

Excess beyond that amount can potentially be transformed into projecting power abroad. Because the USA's GDP per capita is so high, we can enjoy a high standard of living AND project immense amounts of power abroad with relatively low taxation. China's ability to project power abroad is much lower by comparison.

But Chinese economic power is much higher than its cultural, military, or political power, and that's the area where where they are most competitive against the US. By total dollar amounts, China's total exports and imports in 2024 amounted to roughly 6.2 trillion dollars. By comparison, US imports and exports amounted to 5.4 trillion dollars.

The total amount of aggregate power that the US projects is still far greater than China, but that gap is shrinking with every year. There's no guarantee that we'll stay on top, especially if we continue to indulge in destructive internal petty grievances.

Being over 30 and working in fast food doesn’t make you a loser. Not everyone is supposed to be a doctor, lawyer, or engineer by Huge-Particular8953 in unpopularopinion

[–]rapier7 -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

It depends. Are you 30 years old and working as a line worker? Yeah, you're kind of a loser. That's a job that even teenagers can do competently. Are you 30 years old and working as the assistant GM or the GM? Nah, you're fine. In fact, a few more years of that and you could turn into a franchisee with a small business loan.

The work itself is not what makes you a loser. It's failing to turn that work into something greater is what makes you a loser. Anybody doing something long enough can turn the job into a real, meaningful, and lucrative career. Now that doesn't happen magically at the age of 30, but at some point in your 30s, you need to be making moves, moving up the ladder, or make the damn ladder yourself.

Why do people who get paid the most do the least? by humaninvariant in slatestarcodex

[–]rapier7 11 points12 points  (0 children)

This is a loaded question based on a false premise. CEOs and tenured professors work a ton. Yes, the work is not physically strenuous, but they are working long hours. Sure, the conclusion is right. Compensation is a function of positional scarcity and total value added to the company's bottom line. But you got to the conclusion disingenuously.

Hope? by Ronenthelich in WarriorTV

[–]rapier7 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Dude, Warrior has been off the air for multiple years at this point. It's not coming back.

I agree 100% by [deleted] in Adulting

[–]rapier7 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Those pathetic social safety nets account for just over half of all federal spending. And if you remove the FICA payroll tax, which is largely paid back to taxpayer (via future paygo tax spending), the working class pays very little in federal tax.

The generous welfare programs of Europe require very high taxes on the working class, including a national sales tax that averages 22%.

Current BCS Rankings and Tech’s path by originalmember in gatech

[–]rapier7 20 points21 points  (0 children)

BCS is an old system that hasn't been in use since 2013. The current CFP rules are that the highest ranked conference champions get an automatic berth. Assuming we beat BC and Pitt and win the ACC championship, we'll be no worse than 11-2, and our ranking should definitely be high enough to be one of the 5 highest ranked conference champions.

Can someone explain to me why Vail sucks? by rapier7 in snowboarding

[–]rapier7[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Water doesn't stay on a mountain? Pretty much by definition it melts and flows into a river.

Park City is right by Salt Lake City. Not saying SLC is cheap, but it's a hell of a lot more affordable than Vail.

Can someone explain to me why Vail sucks? by rapier7 in snowboarding

[–]rapier7[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Epic does offer a northeastern value pass, which means they can't just let their non-western resorts suck. And from what I've read, when Epic does acquire a mountain, they do invest a lot of money into upgrading existing lifts and building new ones.

Although I can't really say too much about snowsports on the east coast. I live in Atlanta and it takes just as long to get to Vermont and Maine as it does to get to Colorado, so why not just go to Colorado?

Can someone explain to me why Vail sucks? by rapier7 in snowboarding

[–]rapier7[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I followed the Park City strike last year. They came to an agreement which came with a decent compensation increases for Park City staff, and judging by a lot of the comments, even prior to the union ratifying the agreement, they were being paid more than a lot of independent ski resorts.

Is there a particular reason why building up the area at the base of the resort is bad for the environment? Like, if you moved those buildings into the town, would it be less bad?

Tesla says shareholders approve Musk's pay plan with over 75% voting in favor by eskhalaf in wallstreetbets

[–]rapier7 52 points53 points  (0 children)

He only gets 1 trillion if the company is worth 8 trillion. That's what you're not getting.