@alacrity@blaineg@chavers
My son, who flies pretty frequently, will occasionally wear a ‘utili-kilt’ then opt out of the full body scanner just to see the TSA agent go through the pat down process. He says that they will even pat down his (bare) legs on occasion…
@blaineg@chienfou@hchavers I had a kid working for me a few years back who was an admitted piercing freak- nothing on his face, but “everything” else was. He loved going through the scanner and watching the faces of the agents pale. Great guy- but his S&M game was a bit too much for my clients. He works at Whole Foods now…
Doesn’t specify the maximum laptop size that fits. And I’m broke from buying the water bottles + some music production equipment (a hobby that is unreasonably expensive). Oh, and the extortion fees-- I mean, taxes. So meh. But thank you.
@mike808@sicc574 Honestly the TR-8S looks amazing though. But no, I’m just starting out making music without Ableton Live and my laptop. I have a Korg Minilogue, Behringer Xenyx 1202FX mixer, and Korg Volca Sample. Gonna get the Volca FM (to be played with my Arturia Keystep), Volca Modular, and Novation Circuit next, then I’ll have a nice basic live setup I can perform and/or improv new songs on. Hands-on like this is so much quicker and more fun than clicking around on a DAW, though less powerful. There’s a lot more on my wishlist but this comment is more than long enough.
@mikeureko That comment gave me flashbacks to a bad relationship where my partner spent every penny he made on sound equipment. And none of it was ever good enough, so he’d sell it at a loss and then buy more.
@Fuzzalini That sounds like some hardcore GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) mixed with a materialist fixation and addictive personality or something. Thankfully I treasure and grow attached to my gear (not materialistically but rather for its potential and how it helps me be more creative) and don’t even have enough money to buy gear like crazy like that. I used to be a sort of person to do that (minus the money to do so) but a series of… Experiences… Caused me to look at all of life, even music, totally differently. Good luck in your future endeavors though!
So glad I quit getting smoked by canceling Meh months ago, too much junk now…get your act together meh I will be more then happy to pay $5 for shipping if you had anything decent like the good old days years ago
Well, I am in the market for a backpack, and these look interesting, but I’m looking for a mini backpack tbh. Just to hold a powerbank and some assorted crap while I play Pokemon GO. You get a mini hit me up, because I refuse to pay target $25 for cheap chinese crap. If you get american made all the better.
@tinamarie1974 Its a thought. I don’t quite think Wish is somewhere I would shop however as if I’m not mistaken its basically shop china direct. I’m getting more into a camp of these days of wanting to decrease dependence on foreign manufacturers, though that not to say I won’t make purchases from them. Basically, if it’s something I don’t have to have right this second, I’m willing to hold out to buy domestic.
Basically, if it’s something I don’t have to have right this second, I’m willing to hold out to buy domestic.
So paying tarrifs and buying from the giant Chinese Vending Machines in your neighborhood is somehow better? Where do you think Walmart, Kohl’s, and Best Buy, etc. get all the stuff they sell that makes all that money for the shareholders while sticking your local community with their low-wage worker healthcare, food stamps, and slumlord housing costs and kill local businesses like a fart in an elevator?
So @Tiamat114, @mike808 is a little blunt but he is correct. From a consumer goods POV everything is imported. Even if the product is made in the USA, where do you think they sourced the raw goods? Likely overseas. If the company can claim significant transformation of the raw goods to the finished product then the COO changes from where the mat’l was purchased to the USA.
So as much as I respect your idea, buy what is cheaper and saves you money if you like the product. We live in a global economy.
@tinamarie1974@mike808 I didn’t realize I was going to start a discourse. I boycott Walmart and haven’t shopped there in years (Along with several specific companies including Nestle’ and Coke), and rarely shop big box stores. I literally for the most part just don’t buy stuff beyond food mostly cause I can’t afford it, and if I can’t find new what I need or what I go second hand used. If I do buy something new, it’s mostly from Aldi and yes, most of their stuff is from overseas. The clothing seems to be India and Pakistan, and yes even the food often is imported. Damn I love me german week stuff from Germany, tastes awesome and the ingredients are usually understandable and near preservative free for an added bonus.
I’m not telling anyone how to shop, I posted my personal thoughts on the matter. I was admittedly blunt on it however with my views, and I apologize. I severely doubt most people care enough to look into the details when it comes to purchasing. They need pants, they buy pants. That’s just how it is. I can not fault anyone for that mentality, they need to do what they need to get by and I can respect that.
I think the last piece of clothing I bought local was from a little hippie festival we have around here. It was a hand made tye-dye, but the shirt itself was fruit of the Loom. I wouldn’t expect in that case for them to be making the shirt themselves, but I know I used to buy a lot of shirts from Woot! when they were printed on AA shirts. I’ve also purchased shirts from a company on amazon (with which I also am not thrilled about purchasing from and minimize, from my understanding the workers are treated worse than cattle) named Made by Johnny which also claims made in America with unknown material origin.
It’s impossible in this day and age to find anything completely sourced and manufactured here these days, and that’s ok. I feel there’s limits on how far I personally want to go however and try as best I can to support people here in our own country first if possible. It’s not that I hate any particular nationality, but I do not support how the government of that nation treats their people. Quite frankly people here are treated badly too, though not as badly from my limited understanding. I don’t think anyone is pro human rights violations or supports slavery or whatever, but I just personally can’t get behind supporting that if I can help it. It’s a drop in the ocean and it’s silly but if I can make a choice in the matter I want to.
To your other point, yes I understand we live in a global economy and most raw materials are imported. I just bought an American flag from Aldi (lawl) for 4th of July that touts on the label “US flag and all component parts 100% made and assembled in the USA” (which surprisingly was hard to find one not made overseas, at least I had trouble) and I totally get that doesn’t say sourced. The raw stuff was probably imported. I’m not sure if it really is, but it would seem to be a herculean task to try and research the origin of the components and under what circumstances they were acquired and by whom. As for completing the product, ideally someone here has a job that involves making that flag, though more likely there’s a fair amount of automation involved, the former being my preference. We all know automation is however, an inevitability.
I may sound the fool but that’s just how I feel on the subject. I agree with you however, that people should buy what is cheaper and saves them money if they like the product. We need to try and take care of ourselves on a personal level first before worrying about everyone else in the world unless we are in a position to do so, then it’s up to that individual to decide for them self what to buy or not.
I doubt I communicated myself well since I have trouble sometimes focusing to be coherent, but I do hope its at least readable and understandable without too much jumping around.
@mike808@Tiamat114 please do not apologize for being you! My goal was not to be defensive, but to just say hey many people do not realize the amount of imported material that goes into a US product. I meant no disrespect.
I applaud you for doing your part to make the world a better place and if waiting makes you happy, that us what you should do.
As much as the sentiment is there to “buy local/USA”, there really isn’t a way to actually exercise your choice, much like certain women’s healthcare choices, or DRM-free movies, books, games, computer apps, or opting out of robocalls, and internet/phone surveillance/tracking. And let’s not forget “hopecycling” where you put stuff in the recycle bin because you hope it is actually recycled when it isn’t.
I wish we did have realistic options to change things. Alas, it seems that the only one left is in the voting booth in November, 2020. And even that one may be the last time.
I too, choose locally sourced food whenever I can, and choose non-animal eco-friendly plant-based alternatives, but am not a vegetarian.
FYI - almonds for almond milk are hugely water consuming to grow, so they’re not quite the best dairy-industry free alternative out there. Look into pea-milks like Ripple. I still use butter in recipes, like on that perfect sous vide strip steak I’m having tonight.
Do not apologize for being unable to eat the elephant alone or in one bite. For we are all hungry and if we must eat, make sure the elephants of opression, regression, and ignorance are on the menu to be devoured down to the bone. Because that’s how deep ugly runs.
buy what is cheaper and saves you money if you like the product. We live in a global economy.
I think there is a balance here to spending more on products that best align with your viewpoints. There are trade-offs in all of them.
By selecting only on price, you enable slave wage economies, ecological damage, and corruption in places outside the US (and US-based companies outsourcing everything except executives) that take shortcuts to avoid the costs that US producers pay for their products to have those attributes - they are not free.
I’m willing to pay more, whenever I can, to vote with my wallet on sustainable, fair-wage, renewable energy (have you signed up for your local power company’s pure renewable program?), eco-friendly, local jobs-producing products and services.
@mike808@Tiamat114@tinamarie1974 A lot of huge, multi-national companies are the backbone of stable, reliable income for retirement funds.
I support the more efficient companies because they are keeping America’s retirees comfortable, warm and fed. Why do you people hate old people so much?
@mike808@Tiamat114@therealjrn I have actually done and do many things to reduce my carbon footprint and try to make the world a better place. Not that it is anyone’s business, but, I spent roughly $10 - $15k last year alone to make my home more energy efficient. That is just one item on my list
I am currently researching solar power. Not sure what I will do at this point, time will tell. I likely will not post it on here when I make my decision. I don’t need the pat on the back or otherwise.
Personally, I never feel the need to push my agenda with anyone. I should only worry about what I AM doing, not what others do. I think that is the problem in our country today. People believe it is their responsibility to push their agenda to the point of being annoying and disrespectful. It is the reason families are divided. I have an opinion, you have an opinion. They may be the same, they may be different. I personally don’t care. My concern is that when I lay my head on my pillow every night, I feel good about the decisions I made.
My original point, not knowing @tiamat114 's financial position, is that most products do have foreign componets and if they like the item and it is reasonably priced why not take the leap?
There have been far too many comments on this topic and I am done.
Thank you and @tiamat114, sorry this turned into a political cluster. THAT should never have happened and was never my goal.
By selecting only on price, you enable slave wage economies, ecological damage, and corruption in places outside the US
So this is a bit of a wander down the accidental globalization subthread started here. Don’t read this if it is going to piss you off. I have an opinion. I teach this stuff, including in the course that ends Sunday. Doesn’t mean I right, but I am reasonably current on the subject, on at least some of the subtleties, on the research and on economics of this. And each person, of course, can make their own decisions on where they stand on what this means for how they choose to spend their money.
Not all companies who off shore pay slave wages nor damage the environment. Many behave in a socially responsible way. Not every country is corrupt. Of course there are some abuses and we do hear an awful lot about those companies and those countries who do behave poorly. And in some countries the abuses are more than in others. Some companies behave more poorly than others. In some countries only a fraction of the citizens of that country benefit from the (primarily) manufacturing that is taking place there by foreign owned companies. In others this has been largely responsible for pulling big swaths of the population out of poverty. Part of the outcomes you get, of course, depends on the political and economic situation in that country and how corrupt the government there is.
I used to live in Cambodia back when it was one of the poorest countries in the world (a least developed nation which are the bottom 10, at the time it was the 3rd poorest country in the world - I have an NGO there I started). What the garment industry did in that country was to start to pull a number of people out of poverty. They had jobs where before there were none. Their standard of living rose. They could afford to go to the doctor, have more than one change of clothing, eat more, keep more of their kids in school rather than have them work…
Offshoring has been responsible for that in many nations which has then led to their economic growth. Due to more disposable income by citizens, this means they can support more businesses by being customers. This leads to the growth of entrepreneurship by people who are citizens of that country. That raises more people’s income. You get an upward spiral. The end result is a higher standard of living, on average for all (yes there are still desperately poor in every developing nation and some developed ones). Sure there are abusers of the system, but there are many who are not abusing it too. In many, many countries there are more winners than losers.
Wages paid are lower because cost of living is lower. At the time when I lived in Cambodia all you needed to live a solid middle class western style life in Phnom Penh (the most expensive city to live in Cambodia at the time) was around $230/mo. At that time that would get you a house, several people to cook and clean, do the yard work, a driver…As a result no company is going to pay $10 or $20/hour. That is out of line with the cost of living there.
Yes in the garment industry (the primary industry there at the time) there was some abuse (workers were paid around $60-80/month at the time plus dirt cheap - compared to the usual rent on the economy - apartments to rent that were company owned). But many (certainly not all) of the abuses have stopped in most factories (folks there have discovered what has been discovered in many developed nations - your employees are your company, treat them well and productivity goes up thus profits go up - HR/people policies, treatment of folks, etc. is roughly 25% of a company’s bottom line). Now Cambodia, due to off shoring manufacturing by developed countries, is no longer considered a least developed nation and is no longer one of the 10 poorest in the world.
Of course with the current interdependence of the world with respect to supply chains, production of goods, etc. it does become difficult for folks who want to only buy goods sourced from certain countries and not from others. There is talk about laws to determine what % of something needs to be made of parts from a country (not just assembled in) to even be able to say it was “made in X country”.
Not sure what the solution is but I am pretty sure the world isn’t going to be able to go back to how it was prior to so much off shoring. At this point it isn’t possible to put back in that pandora’s box what came out when we opened it. I am also reasonably sure that the next world war is going to be won by economic disruption of supply chains of critical items rather than by dropping bombs.
@Kidsandliz I don’t disagree with much of what you’ve stated.
Not all companies who off shore pay slave wages nor damage the environment.
The problem is that when you select based on price alone, the companies (including government owned entities) that do not honor those ideals do not bear the costs to uphold them and a race to the bottom is a winning economic strategy against their competitors. For government-run manufacturers/entities, they have competitors outside the home country.
This is why even in the developed USA, labor-driven industries (ag, fast food, retail) can’t stand the idea of a minimum wage – they wish for free labor – aka slavery. Not all, maybe not many - but almost all that do (legally or not), do so because it yields a lower COGS. If you can’t move the selling price of your product, the only place to squeeze profit is from lower costs. That is how Walmart transformed the distribution business. They squeezed their suppliers instead of their customers. When labor is a primary supplier, we see how low-cost primacy of the consumer drives the race to the bottom.
My point was that if you want to select the products you buy on corporate behavior, then you should be flexible about selecting only on lowest price. That difference is the cost of those ideals (absent many other market forces), and we should be willing to pay a bit more for goods made by companies that demonstrate them if we want them to be successful and be the baseline of corporate behavior rather than the exception.
There is no free lunch, so always buying based on cost alone won’t change the world, if that’s what you’re trying to do as a side effect. I buy on lowest cost too – but I also recognize that where I want to make a difference, I have to be willing to pay more to do that.
That’s why I pay more (~5%) for my electricity to be 100% renewable – because it forces my utility company to buy RECs if they want to keep their coal plants. Until it is cheaper for them to replace them with renewable sourced than to have to buy RECs. In the meantime, I’m using 100% renewable energy, certified by the US government. Every month, all year.
@mike808 I’m sure you’re aware, but gog.com
has lots of DRM-free pc games.
Almost every PC game I’ve bought in the last eight or nine years has been from them. The exceptions are Minecraft (marginal, timeframe-wise), a game my neighbors made that wasn’t available on gog, and a couple of gifts for others.
@txag96 Reportedly, TSA is neutral on ‘recreationals’, meaning they won’t go looking for it, but will deal with it if found, maybe… Those damn DEA dope dogs on the other hand…
@therealjrn@txag96 Neither do I … worked too hard for my RN license to blow it on some pot…
I used to live in CO in the 70’s… the fact they have legalized pot makes me wonder how they get anything done now…
Well, I got my ship notice today. Then I got my order today. The warehouse gremlins are working overtime.
I like the size and feel. The design is what made me buy since I really didn’t need a new bag.I will be trying it out tomorrow but I think this will be my daily bag and my current one will be retired.
Specs
What’s in the Box?
1x Hemp Backpack
Price Comparison
$60 List
Warranty
90 days
Estimated Delivery
Monday, July 13th - Thursday, July 16th
No, not now. I still have the “credit” room the dead battery Halloween spinners.
Meh
You can put your weed in it.
Three cheers for whoever came up with “Back-Pachyderm”!
Puff puff pass
“Made of hemp and zippers” made me chuckle. Good job, writer!
1/10 would not smoke
Get off my lawn! Stupid hippies.
Nothing says “I volunteer for a TSA cavity search” like
bringing this to the airport.
@alacrity as a frequent traveler, I can attest the the nosy (and handy) TSA.
@alacrity Except, perhaps, this shirt.
@alacrity @blaineg @chavers
My son, who flies pretty frequently, will occasionally wear a ‘utili-kilt’ then opt out of the full body scanner just to see the TSA agent go through the pat down process. He says that they will even pat down his (bare) legs on occasion…
@alacrity @chienfou He might have a concealed weapon under his skin.
@blaineg @chienfou @hchavers I had a kid working for me a few years back who was an admitted piercing freak- nothing on his face, but “everything” else was. He loved going through the scanner and watching the faces of the agents pale. Great guy- but his S&M game was a bit too much for my clients. He works at Whole Foods now…
It really reminds me of the old You Don’t Know Jack bit from the fake commercials at the end of the game
https://jackboxgames.bandcamp.com/track/health-food-store-boy-doll
@guyfromhawthorn He actually has a hemp backpack!
I freely admit I would love to own this Back-pachyderm. There is absolutely no way I could explain it to my wife.
@Nate311 I am giving you a star just for freely admitting you would wear this
@mfladd @Nate311 Looks good!
@Nate311 For $15 you need to do this.
@blaineg I haven’t told her about this one yet:
@blaineg @Nate311 @mfladd I bought one just because of the “Back-pachyderm” name…that and I had a coupon.
@blaineg @Nate311 Nice bag of holding.
Just today got my Thule backpack order from last week, so am good for now. But thanks, anyhow, Meh, for offering me shit to keep my shit in.
Also, just curious, what do these smell like if you manage to start a fire in one? Could that alone get you arrested?
Should have sold these on Hempday, not Highday.
Perfect for that pack a day smoker.
@wonidejack
@alacrity @wonidejack I dunno… at $15 a pack, this is still kind of pricey… (but not far from what cigarettes cost in NYC…)
These are perfect for the children’s school supply giveaway. And the parents would never find out.
More Kafka in the write-ups, please!
Number one complaint is that if your laptop overheats, you get a bad case of the munchies.
@mehcuda67 Wha
Doesn’t specify the maximum laptop size that fits. And I’m broke from buying the water bottles + some music production equipment (a hobby that is unreasonably expensive). Oh, and the extortion fees-- I mean, taxes. So meh. But thank you.
Sincerely, an aspiring hemp + permaculture farmer
@mikeureko Fostex 8 track?
@mikeureko @sicc574
Bruh. Roland TR-808.
@mike808 @sicc574 Honestly the TR-8S looks amazing though. But no, I’m just starting out making music without Ableton Live and my laptop. I have a Korg Minilogue, Behringer Xenyx 1202FX mixer, and Korg Volca Sample. Gonna get the Volca FM (to be played with my Arturia Keystep), Volca Modular, and Novation Circuit next, then I’ll have a nice basic live setup I can perform and/or improv new songs on.
Hands-on like this is so much quicker and more fun than clicking around on a DAW, though less powerful. There’s a lot more on my wishlist but this comment is more than long enough.
@mikeureko That comment gave me flashbacks to a bad relationship where my partner spent every penny he made on sound equipment. And none of it was ever good enough, so he’d sell it at a loss and then buy more.
@Fuzzalini That sounds like some hardcore GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) mixed with a materialist fixation and addictive personality or something. Thankfully I treasure and grow attached to my gear (not materialistically but rather for its potential and how it helps me be more creative) and don’t even have enough money to buy gear like crazy like that. I used to be a sort of person to do that (minus the money to do so) but a series of… Experiences… Caused me to look at all of life, even music, totally differently. Good luck in your future endeavors though!
So glad I quit getting smoked by canceling Meh months ago, too much junk now…get your act together meh I will be more then happy to pay $5 for shipping if you had anything decent like the good old days years ago
@johanquinn
Well, it didn’t work…I might be wrong but meh is still going strong…
do you only get 1, or do you get 3? hey, don’t bogart that!
@panda317 check out the specs at the top:
Well, I am in the market for a backpack, and these look interesting, but I’m looking for a mini backpack tbh. Just to hold a powerbank and some assorted crap while I play Pokemon GO. You get a mini hit me up, because I refuse to pay target $25 for cheap chinese crap. If you get american made all the better.
@Tiamat114 wish.com?
@tinamarie1974 Its a thought. I don’t quite think Wish is somewhere I would shop however as if I’m not mistaken its basically shop china direct. I’m getting more into a camp of these days of wanting to decrease dependence on foreign manufacturers, though that not to say I won’t make purchases from them. Basically, if it’s something I don’t have to have right this second, I’m willing to hold out to buy domestic.
@Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974
So paying tarrifs and buying from the giant Chinese Vending Machines in your neighborhood is somehow better? Where do you think Walmart, Kohl’s, and Best Buy, etc. get all the stuff they sell that makes all that money for the shareholders while sticking your local community with their low-wage worker healthcare, food stamps, and slumlord housing costs and kill local businesses like a fart in an elevator?
So @Tiamat114, @mike808 is a little blunt but he is correct. From a consumer goods POV everything is imported. Even if the product is made in the USA, where do you think they sourced the raw goods? Likely overseas. If the company can claim significant transformation of the raw goods to the finished product then the COO changes from where the mat’l was purchased to the USA.
So as much as I respect your idea, buy what is cheaper and saves you money if you like the product. We live in a global economy.
@tinamarie1974 @mike808 I didn’t realize I was going to start a discourse. I boycott Walmart and haven’t shopped there in years (Along with several specific companies including Nestle’ and Coke), and rarely shop big box stores. I literally for the most part just don’t buy stuff beyond food mostly cause I can’t afford it, and if I can’t find new what I need or what I go second hand used. If I do buy something new, it’s mostly from Aldi and yes, most of their stuff is from overseas. The clothing seems to be India and Pakistan, and yes even the food often is imported. Damn I love me german week stuff from Germany, tastes awesome and the ingredients are usually understandable and near preservative free for an added bonus.
I’m not telling anyone how to shop, I posted my personal thoughts on the matter. I was admittedly blunt on it however with my views, and I apologize. I severely doubt most people care enough to look into the details when it comes to purchasing. They need pants, they buy pants. That’s just how it is. I can not fault anyone for that mentality, they need to do what they need to get by and I can respect that.
I think the last piece of clothing I bought local was from a little hippie festival we have around here. It was a hand made tye-dye, but the shirt itself was fruit of the Loom. I wouldn’t expect in that case for them to be making the shirt themselves, but I know I used to buy a lot of shirts from Woot! when they were printed on AA shirts. I’ve also purchased shirts from a company on amazon (with which I also am not thrilled about purchasing from and minimize, from my understanding the workers are treated worse than cattle) named Made by Johnny which also claims made in America with unknown material origin.
It’s impossible in this day and age to find anything completely sourced and manufactured here these days, and that’s ok. I feel there’s limits on how far I personally want to go however and try as best I can to support people here in our own country first if possible. It’s not that I hate any particular nationality, but I do not support how the government of that nation treats their people. Quite frankly people here are treated badly too, though not as badly from my limited understanding. I don’t think anyone is pro human rights violations or supports slavery or whatever, but I just personally can’t get behind supporting that if I can help it. It’s a drop in the ocean and it’s silly but if I can make a choice in the matter I want to.
To your other point, yes I understand we live in a global economy and most raw materials are imported. I just bought an American flag from Aldi (lawl) for 4th of July that touts on the label “US flag and all component parts 100% made and assembled in the USA” (which surprisingly was hard to find one not made overseas, at least I had trouble) and I totally get that doesn’t say sourced. The raw stuff was probably imported. I’m not sure if it really is, but it would seem to be a herculean task to try and research the origin of the components and under what circumstances they were acquired and by whom. As for completing the product, ideally someone here has a job that involves making that flag, though more likely there’s a fair amount of automation involved, the former being my preference. We all know automation is however, an inevitability.
I may sound the fool but that’s just how I feel on the subject. I agree with you however, that people should buy what is cheaper and saves them money if they like the product. We need to try and take care of ourselves on a personal level first before worrying about everyone else in the world unless we are in a position to do so, then it’s up to that individual to decide for them self what to buy or not.
I doubt I communicated myself well since I have trouble sometimes focusing to be coherent, but I do hope its at least readable and understandable without too much jumping around.
VAN MURALS! GROUND SQUIRRELS! SPIT CURLS! AWESOME!
@mike808 @Tiamat114 please do not apologize for being you! My goal was not to be defensive, but to just say hey many people do not realize the amount of imported material that goes into a US product. I meant no disrespect.
I applaud you for doing your part to make the world a better place and if waiting makes you happy, that us what you should do.
And I love German week too! Good stuff
@mike808 @Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974 I agree
@Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974 My point was mainly:
As much as the sentiment is there to “buy local/USA”, there really isn’t a way to actually exercise your choice, much like certain women’s healthcare choices, or DRM-free movies, books, games, computer apps, or opting out of robocalls, and internet/phone surveillance/tracking. And let’s not forget “hopecycling” where you put stuff in the recycle bin because you hope it is actually recycled when it isn’t.
I wish we did have realistic options to change things. Alas, it seems that the only one left is in the voting booth in November, 2020. And even that one may be the last time.
I too, choose locally sourced food whenever I can, and choose non-animal eco-friendly plant-based alternatives, but am not a vegetarian.
FYI - almonds for almond milk are hugely water consuming to grow, so they’re not quite the best dairy-industry free alternative out there. Look into pea-milks like Ripple. I still use butter in recipes, like on that perfect sous vide strip steak I’m having tonight.
Do not apologize for being unable to eat the elephant alone or in one bite. For we are all hungry and if we must eat, make sure the elephants of opression, regression, and ignorance are on the menu to be devoured down to the bone. Because that’s how deep ugly runs.
@mike808 @TexterTusher @Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974
Yeah, me too, an apology is in order here.
@Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974
I think there is a balance here to spending more on products that best align with your viewpoints. There are trade-offs in all of them.
By selecting only on price, you enable slave wage economies, ecological damage, and corruption in places outside the US (and US-based companies outsourcing everything except executives) that take shortcuts to avoid the costs that US producers pay for their products to have those attributes - they are not free.
I’m willing to pay more, whenever I can, to vote with my wallet on sustainable, fair-wage, renewable energy (have you signed up for your local power company’s pure renewable program?), eco-friendly, local jobs-producing products and services.
@mike808 @Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974 A lot of huge, multi-national companies are the backbone of stable, reliable income for retirement funds.
I support the more efficient companies because they are keeping America’s retirees comfortable, warm and fed. Why do you people hate old people so much?
@mike808 @Tiamat114 @therealjrn I have actually done and do many things to reduce my carbon footprint and try to make the world a better place. Not that it is anyone’s business, but, I spent roughly $10 - $15k last year alone to make my home more energy efficient. That is just one item on my list
I am currently researching solar power. Not sure what I will do at this point, time will tell. I likely will not post it on here when I make my decision. I don’t need the pat on the back or otherwise.
Personally, I never feel the need to push my agenda with anyone. I should only worry about what I AM doing, not what others do. I think that is the problem in our country today. People believe it is their responsibility to push their agenda to the point of being annoying and disrespectful. It is the reason families are divided. I have an opinion, you have an opinion. They may be the same, they may be different. I personally don’t care. My concern is that when I lay my head on my pillow every night, I feel good about the decisions I made.
My original point, not knowing @tiamat114 's financial position, is that most products do have foreign componets and if they like the item and it is reasonably priced why not take the leap?
There have been far too many comments on this topic and I am done.
Thank you and @tiamat114, sorry this turned into a political cluster. THAT should never have happened and was never my goal.
@mike808 @Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974
Who do we blame for this mess?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
@mike808 @therealjrn @Tiamat114 well son of a bitch! It is MY fault for at least one more day
@mike808 @therealjrn @Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974
But the goat badge says it IS your fault (even if I agree with you!)
@therealjrn @tinamarie1974
/giphy herp derp goat
At least you have this to look forward to on Monday
@mike808 @Tiamat114 @tinamarie1974
So this is a bit of a wander down the accidental globalization subthread started here. Don’t read this if it is going to piss you off. I have an opinion. I teach this stuff, including in the course that ends Sunday. Doesn’t mean I right, but I am reasonably current on the subject, on at least some of the subtleties, on the research and on economics of this. And each person, of course, can make their own decisions on where they stand on what this means for how they choose to spend their money.
Not all companies who off shore pay slave wages nor damage the environment. Many behave in a socially responsible way. Not every country is corrupt. Of course there are some abuses and we do hear an awful lot about those companies and those countries who do behave poorly. And in some countries the abuses are more than in others. Some companies behave more poorly than others. In some countries only a fraction of the citizens of that country benefit from the (primarily) manufacturing that is taking place there by foreign owned companies. In others this has been largely responsible for pulling big swaths of the population out of poverty. Part of the outcomes you get, of course, depends on the political and economic situation in that country and how corrupt the government there is.
I used to live in Cambodia back when it was one of the poorest countries in the world (a least developed nation which are the bottom 10, at the time it was the 3rd poorest country in the world - I have an NGO there I started). What the garment industry did in that country was to start to pull a number of people out of poverty. They had jobs where before there were none. Their standard of living rose. They could afford to go to the doctor, have more than one change of clothing, eat more, keep more of their kids in school rather than have them work…
Offshoring has been responsible for that in many nations which has then led to their economic growth. Due to more disposable income by citizens, this means they can support more businesses by being customers. This leads to the growth of entrepreneurship by people who are citizens of that country. That raises more people’s income. You get an upward spiral. The end result is a higher standard of living, on average for all (yes there are still desperately poor in every developing nation and some developed ones). Sure there are abusers of the system, but there are many who are not abusing it too. In many, many countries there are more winners than losers.
Wages paid are lower because cost of living is lower. At the time when I lived in Cambodia all you needed to live a solid middle class western style life in Phnom Penh (the most expensive city to live in Cambodia at the time) was around $230/mo. At that time that would get you a house, several people to cook and clean, do the yard work, a driver…As a result no company is going to pay $10 or $20/hour. That is out of line with the cost of living there.
Yes in the garment industry (the primary industry there at the time) there was some abuse (workers were paid around $60-80/month at the time plus dirt cheap - compared to the usual rent on the economy - apartments to rent that were company owned). But many (certainly not all) of the abuses have stopped in most factories (folks there have discovered what has been discovered in many developed nations - your employees are your company, treat them well and productivity goes up thus profits go up - HR/people policies, treatment of folks, etc. is roughly 25% of a company’s bottom line). Now Cambodia, due to off shoring manufacturing by developed countries, is no longer considered a least developed nation and is no longer one of the 10 poorest in the world.
Of course with the current interdependence of the world with respect to supply chains, production of goods, etc. it does become difficult for folks who want to only buy goods sourced from certain countries and not from others. There is talk about laws to determine what % of something needs to be made of parts from a country (not just assembled in) to even be able to say it was “made in X country”.
Not sure what the solution is but I am pretty sure the world isn’t going to be able to go back to how it was prior to so much off shoring. At this point it isn’t possible to put back in that pandora’s box what came out when we opened it. I am also reasonably sure that the next world war is going to be won by economic disruption of supply chains of critical items rather than by dropping bombs.
@Kidsandliz I don’t disagree with much of what you’ve stated.
The problem is that when you select based on price alone, the companies (including government owned entities) that do not honor those ideals do not bear the costs to uphold them and a race to the bottom is a winning economic strategy against their competitors. For government-run manufacturers/entities, they have competitors outside the home country.
This is why even in the developed USA, labor-driven industries (ag, fast food, retail) can’t stand the idea of a minimum wage – they wish for free labor – aka slavery. Not all, maybe not many - but almost all that do (legally or not), do so because it yields a lower COGS. If you can’t move the selling price of your product, the only place to squeeze profit is from lower costs. That is how Walmart transformed the distribution business. They squeezed their suppliers instead of their customers. When labor is a primary supplier, we see how low-cost primacy of the consumer drives the race to the bottom.
My point was that if you want to select the products you buy on corporate behavior, then you should be flexible about selecting only on lowest price. That difference is the cost of those ideals (absent many other market forces), and we should be willing to pay a bit more for goods made by companies that demonstrate them if we want them to be successful and be the baseline of corporate behavior rather than the exception.
There is no free lunch, so always buying based on cost alone won’t change the world, if that’s what you’re trying to do as a side effect. I buy on lowest cost too – but I also recognize that where I want to make a difference, I have to be willing to pay more to do that.
That’s why I pay more (~5%) for my electricity to be 100% renewable – because it forces my utility company to buy RECs if they want to keep their coal plants. Until it is cheaper for them to replace them with renewable sourced than to have to buy RECs. In the meantime, I’m using 100% renewable energy, certified by the US government. Every month, all year.
@mike808 I’m sure you’re aware, but gog.com
has lots of DRM-free pc games.
Almost every PC game I’ve bought in the last eight or nine years has been from them. The exceptions are Minecraft (marginal, timeframe-wise), a game my neighbors made that wasn’t available on gog, and a couple of gifts for others.
I bought one but couldn’t keep it lit
Guaranteed to earn you an extra search through airport security.
@txag96 Yeah but it’s not gay if it’s the TSA.
@txag96 Reportedly, TSA is neutral on ‘recreationals’, meaning they won’t go looking for it, but will deal with it if found, maybe… Those damn DEA dope dogs on the other hand…
@chienfou @txag96 I don’t use it so I’m in the clear as far as that goes.
@therealjrn @txag96 Neither do I … worked too hard for my RN license to blow it on some pot…
I used to live in CO in the 70’s… the fact they have legalized pot makes me wonder how they get anything done now…
Is it waterproof? I need a waterproof backpack.
Well, I got my ship notice today. Then I got my order today. The warehouse gremlins are working overtime.
I like the size and feel. The design is what made me buy since I really didn’t need a new bag.I will be trying it out tomorrow but I think this will be my daily bag and my current one will be retired.