u/PoopsMcScoots

It seems crazy to me that nuclear fusion is so crazy complex, and may very well need us to mine the moon, while perpetually being 10 years away for the last 70 years.

But at the same time we could have geothermal anywhere on earth if we just made better boring equipment.

And by better, I mean giant not-messing-around lasers that vaporize the rock.

I mean, sure, it would probably have to be nuclear powered.

And sure, it would probably extremely expensive.

But once it’s done, it’s done.

That’s a free electricity for life that doesn’t require sunshine or wind.

How come this is never discussed?

As a small business owner, I am so thoroughly sick and tired of people going “oh, I wish I could make X amount of dollars per hour!” after rendering services.

1. a company owner is paying the government twice. They have to pay for their earnings and they have to pay taxes on what they pay themselves as an LLC. Take any amount that they get and divided by half and that’s roughly accurate. If they charge $100, they have to pay about $30 through the company, and about $20 of what they pay themselves.
2. businesses are not hourly. They aren’t. They do not cease to exist when not actively doing work. And there is a lot of work running a business. You are not paying that money for the time there. You are paying money for them to have everything they need to do that time.
3. you have absolutely no clue how punitive advertising is in this day and age. If someone is doing ads, they are almost certainly losing money just to build up rapport. In no world is someone paying Google Maps to advertise their company and making a profit off of the leads. They are absolutely losing money.
4. that money you are paying is for an ideal situation. You might be mad that you see the part online they charged you for and have a 20% markup, but that 20% is paying for when a job goes wrong. If you need to buy a $100 widget to do a repair, $120 is ridiculously fair to charge. Because if the nuances of your job ruins a widget, you sure as shit have no intention of paying for it do you?
5. Work is not without risk. Tradesmen have to sniff out the bullshit and traps. What you see as straightforward, a tradesmen sees as a calculated risk. Most jobs go straightforward, but it just takes one within random circumstances to completely ruin the business. You are not always being charged for time and skill. The risk is absolutely a factor. Anyone who owns a small business has absolutely done jobs where they lost money.

When I ordered my food to go online, it asked how much it wanted me to tip.

I tipped 15%.

I went to pick up my order, and the guy handed me a piece of paper to sign.

And it had a tip line.

I asked him why is it asking for a tip? I gave a tip.

The guy told me, this is an additional tip.

I told him I already tipped.

He said yeah, but this is if you wanted to tip more.

Looking closely it displayed my tip, and sure enough the line said additional tip.

The guy tells me if you don’t want it don’t put anything.

I said, sorry, but there’s no way I’m leaving that blank.

And wrote the total on the total line.

And the guy said sarcastically “great! Thanks!” and walked away mad.

Am I crazy here?

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, in the 60s and 70s vehicles used to be equipped regularly with “safari roofs”.

It was basically a platform over the entire vehicle that served two purposes:

1. luggage storage.

2. it stopped the sun from directly contacting the vehicle, keeping it much cooler.

I can kind of see how people aren’t crazy about strapping luggage to a roof these days.

But it’s crazy to me that there’s not something like this available for work vans.

They already have the system in place for racks.

Just making an attachment that is a flat mirrored surface.

I don’t think it would affect gas consumption significantly more than the racks already do.

But it would absolutely make it like 10° cooler inside the cabin.

You probably don’t even know what Friendster is I’m guessing.

It was Facebook.

2 years before Facebook existed.

And I mean IT WAS FACEBOOK.

Practically identical.

First off, let’s just be perfectly clear: if there is a cover-up happening about Mitch McConnell so that they don’t have to have a special election this is unquestionably fraud.

All people involved should be arrested and charged with criminal conspiracy in the very least.

But I have zero doubt the DNC is not gonna do a goddamn thing.

They won’t even keep it in the conversation for more than a week.

I don’t know if it’s incompetence, wishful thinking, or downright malice.

But I am so sick and tired of the DNC rolling over on everything.

It’s very easy to criticize racial tensions when you live in a country without racial diversity.

And America is easily the most racially diverse country in the world.

And I’m not saying we don’t have our problems. The systemic racism and treatment of Black people is abhorrent.

Yes, Black people are more likely to get pulled over, more likely to get searched, more likely to be arrested, more likely to be prosecuted, more likely to be found guilty, and have much harsher sentences.

While at the same time historically being disadvantaged at every step, then claiming they commit more crimes ignoring all other factors, such as comparing it to poverty or consider considering how slanted the legal system is against them.

It’s truly awful.

But I just don’t think it’s uniquely worse and then some other countries pretend.

Other countries just don’t make the news as often our demographics are laughably different.

We have more racial tensions because we have wider racial demographics.

And as a side note, I’m using the term American because we’re the only country that has America in the name and you know which country I’m talking about.

Let me be perfectly clear here, hate is a strong word, but the correct word.

I mean I really hate them.

They just have this pompous attitude that they are better than everyone else and anybody who tries to do anything new is stupid.

They have a never-ending list of problems and holes to poke.

Even when it’s painfully obvious how a problem could be fixed in the adaptation.

And overall, they’re just shutting down even trying to see the vision.

And they never say it politely, it’s always wrapped in insults, because they’re not trying to make a point they just wanna shit on someone.

And God help you if you walk them all the way through every single point.

You are wasting your effort in playing chess with a pigeon.

It doesn’t matter what moves you make they’re just gonna knock over the pieces, shit on the board, and strut around like they won.

And the biggest go they have is deliberately refusing to understand someone. They will make a person presenting an idea repeat themselves 50 times and still not comprehend a damn thing.

There is just something inherently wrong with people like this and I sincerely wish they would just go away.

Why do they have to participate in a post just to tell the person shut up?

Seriously, I hate a problem for every solution people.

Edit: by the way, if you’re about to type “there are no new ideas” you are exactly the person I’m talking about.

In the 90s we had knobs.

They were instant and had infinite range.

Modern volume control have lag and like 10 or 20 levels.

I hate it.

Maybe I’m imagining things, but I don’t think I am.

Gradually over the last three years so years, people have started getting ridiculous with the space they leave.

I’m seeing people leaving like three car lengths at stop lights.

I’ve even gone around cars and pull in front of them. It’s so ridiculous.

Meanwhile, ordering food there’s all these assholes now that order or pay then move up just enough to not make eye contact with the cashier, while blocking the person behind them.

Order a drink and say nothing?

Then they are going to fill the cup past the brim of the cup and add a thimble of actual drink.

Order easy ice?

They put in like 3 chips that are melted by the time it gets to your car.

Make it a point to ask for a reasonable amount of ice and they huff, then give you either all ice or no ice anyway.

Say something and they glare at you, take your cup inside, spit in it, and bring it back out.

You know how every street in America looks the same, covered in giant glowing signs?

And it’s ugly as hell?

Why??

Why do we do this?

Every city in America should adopt strict signage laws.

And the companies should be on board with it.

Why?

Because Burger King is on one side of the street and McDonald’s is on the other.

Burger King puta up a glowing sign, so McDonald’s put up a glowing sign, so Burger King installs essentially a glowing billboard, and McDonald’s puts up their own.

Both of them are putting up tons of money to be louder than the other.

And both of them are going to put up the largest brightest sign they’re allowed.

If someone’s going to buy a burger, they’re going to buy a burger.

And if they’re just gonna be equal anyways, might as well save everyone’s eyes and say they’re only allowed non-backlit signs.

They’re still gonna get the same amount of customers, but now they don’t have to have a shouting match with ugly signs.

My business requires constant stops at Lowe’s daily.

I probably spent about $5000 at Lowe’s a month.

And when I do that I need a physical copy of the receipt and a digital copy of the receipt, while signing a text exemption.

Here’s the problem.

The second Im ready to pay an associate has to come up and put in a code.

Then the screen asks how I want my receipt.

9 out of 10 times the employee immediately pushes receipt without asking me at all.

And then I’m stuck there waiting while they roll their eyes at me because I need an email receipt.

And they act like I’m the biggest asshole on earth for it.

So I’ve made sure to be proactive and tell them a very explicitly that I need both an email and print receipt.

100% of the time they go “yeah, yeah, yeah…” and still press print receipt 9 out of 10 times.

I don’t know how to be nice anymore.

I explained it to them and they still don’t listen, and I’m the bad guy for both telling them and making them fix their mistake.

And I’ll be honest at one point I went off on a kid.

He yeah, yeah, yeah’ed me then hit print.

I told him “Dude! I just told you I want a email too.”

He let out a loud annoyed huff and I tore into him.

I told him “ oh! I’m sorry, is it annoying having people expect you to do your job in between playing with your cell phone? Am I such an asshole for telling you that I want to print and email and then not being happy when you don’t listen? And exactly how am I supposed to ask you people to do your job in a way that doesn’t piss you off? If I were your boss, I would fire you on the spot right now.”

This is not an AITAH, post.

I don’t care if you think I’m an asshole.

I just do not know at this point what words I need to use to make them listen.