I have a theory about her intentions for writing about killing that dog.

Noem published her autobiography while vying to be the republican running mate in the election. On the one hand, why would she choose to publish something so openly sinister in her autobiography, at such a consequential time for her political career? She must have known that story would get picked up and blasted in the media. But part of me wonders if maybe, that was her goal. Maybe by including the dog story in her book, Noem was sending a signal to Trump that she wouldn’t flinch to do the cruel, dirty work that maga wants done. And now here she is, doing dirty work.

Out of curiosity, in a perfect world and existing regulations excepted, what sort of firearm regulations would you like to see in Canada?

I know we live in a polarized political landscape. And I acknowledge it’s not possible to make everyone happy. But I also feel like, part of being a good politician is conducting yourself in such a way that large numbers of people don’t hate you. Poilievre failed at that, so I think it’s fair and proper that he’s on the receiving end of this political bullying.

And it’s comical that a man so gripped by antagonistic, indecent rhetoric is getting all huffy that citizens are making a mockery of his cowardly and stupid by-election. Obviously, instead of protesting, he should be asking himself why so many citizens are willing to dedicate their free time to fucking with his shit.

Filtering doesn’t necessarily have to be driven by AI.

Take recipes for example. Recipes are now almost impossible to get non AI results for via search engines. But, simple hardcoded parameters that set a preference for older results, ones without affiliate links (Marginalia does this), ones with fewer than 5 domains executing javascript on the site, some analysis of the date of the domain registration and activity on the domain, some analysis of the top level domain to filter out blogspam, these would all make the search results more human.

My hope is that eventually, there will be a paradigm of search engine optimization, maybe even an open standard for the absence of excessive javascript, affiliate links, social media buttons, etc. Sites that lack those elements are way less likely to be junk.

I think tools for detecting and filtering out ai material from search results would go a long way to improve the current situation, and is a middle ground between an internet revolution and a technological dystopia. There is still an unfathomably large amount of good information on the internet, the issue is that there is 20x more trash. And the trash is scaling rapidly, humans are not.

If you haven’t already, give the Marginalia search engine a try. They’re doing something interesting in this space. You can filter out results with javascript, affiliate links, tracking, ads, and cookies. After filtering, the internet feels a lot more like it did 20 years ago, more sincere, more human.

If I recall correctly, Marginalia is made and maintained by one guy. As the trash to good content ratio worsens, I think more people will want to build on and use projects like Marginalia.

Time is needed to forge new alliances and firm trade partners

True. Alliances are key for Canadian sovereignty and security. The nation should be cementing existing relationships with maximum effort. As patriotic as myself and other Canadians feel these days, it must be acknowledged - no imaginable scenario exists in which Canada alone has enough military might to act as a deterrent against US aggression.

Imagine that a fully functional nuclear arsenal wasn’t a generation away, and Canada had one right now. Even then, if the US made the insane decision that Canada was lebensraum, our nation’s military might alone could not prevent that.

I’m not even against a Canadian nuclear weapons program per se. But it makes no sense for Canada to pursue a nuclear weapons program right now, if the objective is to hold off a US threat. It’s comforting to imagine that there’s some panacea to the threats that Canada is facing right now, but I don’t see how nuclear fits that bill in any way.

It’s unfortunate that we even have to think these things. But anyway, that’s my 2c.

I’d like to be sealed in a sous vide bag, that way I can be perpetually protected from anything that tastes good and live forever.

First off, welcome in advance, enjoy your trip!

Bad news: Toronto traffic is nuts, and accoms are expensive. Good news: transit is good. Assuming you’re landing at pearson, the UP Express train takes you straight into downtown & it’s like $10. Anywhere you could want to go in the city centre is walkable or easy to get to on transit, no reason to drive, really. In certain spots during rush hour, it’s actually faster to walk than drive. But, that’s a good thing for exploring.

Don’t be afraid to ask people for help or directions while you’re here. People in Toronto and Vancouver have a lot of pride in their cities, and want visitors to have a good time, especially if they’re coming from overseas. Canadians are typically kind, and helpful!

The process to log in to the online portal of Outlook is so bad it’s crossed into comical territory. So much friction, only to shunt you to a full screen clippy copilot page.

I’d be curious to know what the usage statistics are for that page. Like, what could a person possibly accomplish there?

Car window shatters on a giraffe’s head as shocked couple inside try to wind it up when animal reached in for their food - Daily Mail, April 9 2018

I got this wrong a while back - I think it’s ‘medias’

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_medias_res

Firearm laws in Canada are very strict, and not comparable to the American system. No serious Canadian politician is advocating for lax gun laws or an American-style system in terms of firearm ownership.

Under Trudeau, the first major Liberal movement on banning so-called assault style firearms came after the tragedy in Portapique. The gunman in that massacre used firearms smuggled from the States, and a pistol stolen off of an RCMP officer. The shooter was reported to the RCMP for having illegal firearms repeatedly, and months/years before the shooting occurred. So, I think it’s important to point out that no measure that the Liberals have moved on since 2020 would have changed the outcome in Portapique. That’s why law abiding firearm owners are pushing for increased enforcement, instead of new measures that uniquely target them.

Cheers.

Even 304 stainless steel will corrode slightly in the presence of strong acids or bases, and my bet is what you’re tasting are particles coming off from that thin corroded layer. Those particles aren’t volatile, so you won’t smell them, but it makes sense that you would taste them.

If you’re sensitive to metallic flavours and want to avoid them, seek out 316 stainless steel for kitchen implements and tools. 316 is more resistant to corrosion from acids and salts. It’s more expensive than 304, but it will last longer. You’ll see 316 used a lot in commercial food production, things like dairy, beer & wine, exactly because those things are acidic, and 316 is more resistant to corrosion.

Not a scientist, but, interested in these things.

I would say it’s because spicy foods have highly volatile aroma compounds. Tannin and acids aren’t as volatile. Any aroma we perceive is the result of volatile molecules, solubalized in our mucus, binding to receptor sites in our olfactory epithelium - in other words, olfaction is a chemical sense. The tannic mouthfeel of a dry red wine is (if I’m not mistaken) a result of nonvolatile acids acting mechanically on the tongue, so olfaction, a chemical sense, doesn’t come into play in that mechanical sensation of acidity. Also consider that the tannins in a red wine are in a liquid solution. Fine, dry citric acid powder will irritate the nose if you breathe in the particles, just like fine dry cayenne pepper will.

Not sure what you mean with cooling. Something like camphor is highly volatile, and gives a cooling aromatic sensation. Think eucalyptus, fisherman’s friend, vick’s vapo rub, things like that. Do those smell cooling to you?

Metals don’t have volatile aromatic compounds in them at low temperatures, but, they definitely smell like something when they’re red hot. Again, the idea here is that metals are heavy and nonvolatile, so they’re invisible to our noses at room temperature, unlike say, a freshly sliced jalapeno pepper. Out of curiosity, what tastes metallic to you?

OK you’re China posting, we get it.

I disagree.

Don’t forget that China is an oppressive dictatorship that is actively antagonistic to Canadian sovereignty. Consider the risks that increased Chinese government surveillance would pose to Chinese Canadians who speak out against China, and the increased control their government would have as a result. Just because you don’t believe you have anything to hide, doesn’t mean that nobody has anything to hide.

Consider also, that on an atomic level, data isn’t powerful, but it is powerful in aggregate. Consider the realtime advantage a hostile foreign power would have in a wartime scenario with cameras and microphones in even a fraction of the vehicles on the road.

Chinese EVs are a very bad idea for national security and they shouldn’t be allowed in Canada under any circumstance. These concerns don’t extend to Japan, South Korea, or Europe, they aren’t actively antagonistic to Canadian sovereignty.

I hope this is a lever Canada uses to get China to fuck off with their foreign interference, and stop trying to flood our auto market with their trojan horse spy EVs.

Counterpoint - we’re all going to die. There’s no good reason to feel guilt or shame for filling our lives with things that enrich our short time on this rock.

Almost anything we choose to do that is fun or interesting shortens our lifespan. So does worry, and boredom.

People who want to min-max and optimize their life and health, I guess, why not. But that’s not the only way to live a meaningful life.

No worries eh, we get it. Come on over!

Plus, if you need to buy absolutely anything, enjoy a nice discount on our non-tariffed goods - iphones, spices, car tires, fill your boots.

For sure, let me know how your conversation goes.