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Neito posted:I feel like, to an extent, taking off my shoes in your house assumes a certain intimacy of the friendship, and that in some ways it'd actually be rude to take off my shoes without your permission. Ditto this. For regular shoes, anyway. If you have muddy/snowy shitkickers than obviously yes please take them off. But if you're an acquaintance or whatever, taking your shoes off indoors is moderately wierd unless you're hanging out for a long time. Eastern PA for reference. Also we love our hotdogs with mustard-onion-pickle and fried. You can keep your goddamn flavorless boiled street cart dogs you goddamn New Yorkers. P.S. New York sucks.
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Feb 1, 2017 02:30
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Kiss Kiss Bang Bang posted:2. How does having no healthcare as a national service reconcile with being a 'great country' or whatever the gently caress? Kinda this. Everyone from a universal/single-payer country looks at us and is like "how the hell do you not wake up terrified everyday?" But the truth is, most folks have some kind of coverage, and it's more about just understanding how to budget for what's not covered. That said, it's become increasingly lovely over the last few decades, with costs going up and up, and the bureaucracy of trying to get claims paid out by insurance increasingly frustrating. I feel that this is mostly because 1) the government has essentially mandated that larger employers provide insurance coverage, taking away consumer choice and making insurers the clients of employers and hospitals, and not patients. And 2) Trying to shoe-horn in universal healthcare features into our private system, so we end up with a lovely hybrid of all that is bad in both systems. Single payer may very well be more efficient than the current byzantine mess that is healthcare in the US, but I'd much rather see things go back to the decentralized system we used to have.
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Feb 2, 2017 13:40
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Yeah, ditto on not really seeing subtitles for native English speakers. Maybe if it's a particularly heavy Scottish/Australian/Irish accent, or non-native like an (again, particularly heavy) Indian accent or something, but in general most Anglophones go without subtitles. As for Intra-US accents and dialects, most folks can understand each other bust you certainly have some heavy accents from the locals that can get tricky. Like some deep Appalachian accents, rural Maine, and of course, the South, Creole being an obvious example .
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Feb 8, 2017 03:34
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Tony Montana posted:Can you tell me why you have the gun? I grew up in a family that hunted and also just generally believed in firearm education. And this was in a part of semi-rural New Jersey, so not the backwoods of Arkansas or anything. If you're a hunter, then obviously it's going to make sense to have a couple guns depending on what your hobby is. If you live somewhere where the police response time can be upwards of 20 minutes, then it's probably not a bad idea to have a firearm of some sort. Keeping it some place like a nightstand would be based on personal preference and who lives in your home, or comes in on a regular basis. If you have young children, it's a bad idea to keep a loaded and unsecured firearm easily accessible. If you're some dude who lives in a sketchy neighborhood, doesn't have a domestic violence problem, and is generally "normal", then it's not overly crazy. Obviously, it's universally preferable to secure any and all firearms to the highest level that you feel appropriate. As for the folks who build "arsenals" and whatnot, there certainly are a bunch of folks who are just your stereotypical gun nut who think they're prepping for doomsday and therefore buy dozens and dozens of tactic-lol'd rifles and such. However, it's very easy, even rational, to have a fair number of guns if you're a hobbyist, hunter, or other enthusiast. For example, your average owner might have: A .22LR rifle for cheap plinking and general practice. A .22LR pistol for the same. A 12-gauge shotgun with several chokes or barrels for trap shooting, waterfowl hunting, and perhaps home defense. A larger caliber rifle for deer hunting or longer range target shooting. A semi-automatic pistol in 9mm/.45ACP/etc. for target practice and personal defense if needed. And right there that's 5 guns in 4 different cartridges. If you're a target shooter you buy in bulk to save money, and you end up with a few thousand rounds of ammunition. To some people that might seem like an "arsenal" but it's really quite reasonable if you're a hunter and avid target shooter. From there, it's easy to buy a couple "fun" or historic curio rifles/handguns, maybe another shotgun or two (e.g. a double barrel for trap, one specialized for home defense, etc.). Or maybe you inherit a couple from your grandfather. You then get a gun safe from WalMart for $200 or something that can fit it all, and it's a very reasonable proposition to have 10 or more guns without being some crazed wacko. This pretty much describes me, and half my friends don't even know I own one gun let alone several. To me, I feel like being able to get good groupings with a 30.06 at 100 yards with iron sights makes me a more competent person, and a better citizen. There's this underlying culture in America, not that we necessarily need to be a bunch of gun nuts, but that we should be a nation of riflemen. If you go back, the National Rifle Association was originally founded post-civil-war by Union officers to improve marksmanship and firearm proficiency. I won't say that culture is 100% intact, but it's an ideal that I think is worth reaching for.
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Feb 8, 2017 13:36
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I agree with the OP that we should not turn this into a gun control/healthcare thread, as those are done to death, but its interesting to talk about the cultural aspects of both since it seems to define America so much abroad.Tiggum posted:See, that just sounds utterly crazy to me. I do not at all see how you get from the premise to the conclusion. What are you going to do, shoot someone? Are you a loving psychopath? It's all about the ability to project lethal force in a defensive manner. No, I would not just pop some kid running away with my TV. But if you are in a situation where you may be dealing with an intruder or otherwise, you get your family together and retreat into a safe room until help arrives. To me, at least, it's perfectly rational and not at all psychotic to want to be able to defend yourself in a generally effective way. Right now firearms are the best way to do that without ouright hiring private security. quote:Same with this one; I don't see a connection between premise and conclusion. What aspect of citizenship requires shooting stuff? Well, military service is the obvious one. But also just general community defense. The ability to be dangerous when you need to be. Not violent or aggressive, but dangerous enough to be useful if you need to help protect family friends and neighbors. Again, I'm not talking about vigilante justice or cowboy poo poo, but it's not unfathomable that the police won't always be there. Long response times in rural areas is just a fact of life. Less frequently, events like Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy caused massive disruptions in services and communication. The occasional violent riot is not uncommon. Knowing how to effectively defend yourself and those around you is just as important as knowing first aid and CPR, and basic emergency preparedness. Again, this is not always about using a rifle to solve every problem, the same way you're not treating a compound fracture every day. But it helps to know how to do something when and if it's required. quote:But a gun for self defence? You just sound like someone who should be locked up for the safety of those around you. This is where the fundamental disconnect lies, I think. There are a huge number of people in the US who are good, caring and giving people, pillars of the community, etc, who are also gun owners and think about self defense. It's more or less normalized. It helps to realize that most folks do not in fact want to go all Die Hard, and just consider gun ownership as a part of their everyday life. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 19:14 on Feb 8, 2017 |
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Feb 8, 2017 18:16
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God Hole's post was pretty good but I wanted to clarify a few points as a fellow Pennsylvanian:God Hole posted:How is the political climate currently in the state and city that you live in? The area between Philly and Pittsburgh is colloquially referred to as "Pennslytucky", as a kind of disparaging portmanteau implying Kentucky as a rural backwater and the middle of the state is an extension of said backwater. Harrisburg and Lancaster aren't too bad. The Lehigh Valley (where I'm native to and currently live) has seen a bit of urbanization, but otherwise Pennsyltucky is a fitting name. God Hole posted:What kind of food culture does your local area have? if you're into cooking, or simply know of some local delicacy, please share a specific dish, with a recipe if you have one, of something that you enjoy making or buying yourself that would be representative of your local food culture. Having lived down near Philly for about a decade, both Pat's and Geno's are tourist trap trash and many better steaks can be found in the smaller joints and street carts. You should also probably mention the Pork Italiano/Italian Pork, and chicken cutlets. Also, for general PA food: Scrapple. I unironically love that stuff. God Hole posted:If someone was to visit the US for the first time, or your state or city in particular, what sights would you recommend? Philly is probably one of the best beer capitals of the country, definitely the best on the East Coast. I also like how you noted "See the Rocky Statue" and not "visit the impressive art museum it's attached to", hah. Centralia used to be a lot cooler. I was there a few times back before the internet really found out about it and spray painted dicks all over everything. The "Graffiti Highway" didn't' exist and it was just an old, abandoned, smoking cracking ruin of a highway that felt really post-apocalyptic and a lot more uninhabited. Atlantic City is a hellhole of a town and should be purged from the earth. I spent the better part of two months there for work and nearly everything outside of the casinos and boardwalk was horrible. If gambling or casino glitz is your thing, there are plenty of other options in PA. For the beach, Ocean City Maryland and the general Delware/Maryland coastline is worth the extra hour or two drive.
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Feb 11, 2017 00:59
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RE: DAPL pipeline outrage. I'm inclined to side with the folks who think it's only a national issue because it's trendy and has a good narrative around it. What makes this particular pipeline construction notable is largely because there was a very organized protest by the local native population, and the police response. There are pipelines going in all over the country, every day. The reason I think that the DAPL is just flavor-of-the-week is because, for example, there's a large natural gas pipeline going right through my county in PA, and I have friends talking about flying to North Dakota to join the protest, when they barely do anything about the one right in their backyard. Shady stuff going on with the FERC environmental assessments, cutting through prime watersheds, etc. It was the same deal with fracking in PA. Everyone in Philly and NYC was screaming their heads off about how evil fracking was without really understanding the real situation. Meanwhile the towns up in Bradford county with a median income of $18,000 were enjoying actually poking their heads out of grinding poverty for a while. I've worked in the environmental consulting world for nearly a decade, and am now in watershed protection with county government. What we need are watchdogs and engaged citizen scientists, not protestors. I need volunteer water testers, people to map and monitor environmentally sensitive areas. We need people to advocate for rational water protection regulations, not waste breath on shutting down one singular controversial project. poo poo, even folks to come to our local watershed association meetings and serve as a board member or help them update the website. Instead, people spend their time ranting on Facebook and sending pre-printed postcards to their senator about a project half a country away. This is not a problem unique to my area. The "national outrage" model we seem to have has gutted a lot of local organizations that do the most good on the ground.
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Feb 13, 2017 13:32
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Jeb Bush 2012 posted:And because of the particularly indefensible circumstances surrounding the choice of route. The campaign is not about "pipelines should be banned in general", although I'm sure there are people involved who feel that way. Again, the whole "white residents shut it down so Dakota Access took a poo poo on Native Americans" is a flashy narrative, but it's also probably bullshit: http://www.snopes.com/dapl-routed-through-standing-rock-after-bismarck-residents-said-no/ Jenalia posted:Oh also they don't know much about places outside America, as is the usual stereotype. If I say I used to live in Canada they assume that means I lived in the arctic. I had an American genuinely ask if we celebrated Christmas "up there." It gets worse if you talk about Europe. They were polite and interested though. It's much more important to assimilate into American culture, so you don't get exposed to other cultures as much. I knew a Chinese guy that had moved and changed his name to Mike and worked very very hard on his English in order to fit in. Obviously it is the (partially deserved) stereotype that Americans are ignorant of geography and countries beyond the border, but on the flip side I've had some hilarious experiences talking to Europeans about American geography and culture as well. Trying to describe where I was from (New Jersey) resulted in a hell of a lot of confusion, with some people having learned anything they know about the region from Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen songs, or thinking that it was one of the boroughs of NYC. People also thought I was from Canada based on my (real) accent, but thought that I should sound like Fran Drescher or Tony Soprano since I was from NJ. It's a really odd feeling that so many non-US folks "know" a lot about the country, but through the lens of entertainment media. Hence this thread, of course.
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Feb 13, 2017 23:33
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Scudworth posted:You have "thing that can kill whatever I point it at" in a list along with batteries and water. And not as a hunting item, as a protection device. Considering the need for that as part of basic emergency preparedness involves a level of fear and paranoia that is unmatched in the western world. I tried to cover this earlier in the thread, but the whole level of fear and implied bloodthirstiness ascribed to gun owners by many folks is really...weird to me. Again, certainly you have the outliers for wackos and such, but at the same time there's a whole other cohort of people who have a paranoid aversion to guns. Actually, as a personal anecdote, before my wife and I got married and were still dating, we went through this discussion. A few months in I purchased a shotgun, which was my first non-inherited firearm (the couple other inherited/gifted guns which were "mine" were stored at my parents place at the time and she never encountered them). When I told my then girlfriend that I has bought the shotgun, she got extremely angry and wouldn't talk to me for two days. She wouldn't even come over to my place for a while "because the gun was there". At this point, it was a dissembled shotgun, in a box, with no ammo. Her family was generally very anti-gun, but had never really had any tradition or exposure to them. So they were always the nebulous tools of destruction that "kill stuff that you point them at for no good reason" that some of the posters in this thread have described. Over a short amount of time, of course, my wife familiarized herself with firearms and the fear melted away as she realized it was just a tool and not some inherently murderous object. She now enjoys going to the range and safely use and handle our weapons. If anything, I count that as an overall reduction in paranoia and fear. Again, it'd be a shame to turn the thread into gun-chat or a gun control slapfest. I agree that there's a certain level of fear running through American society, but it has far more to do with what has been going on with our news media and social networks. There's paranoia on any number of subjects, from pro-gun folks, anti-gun folks, anti-vaccination folks, fear of fascist/socialist coups, FEMA concentration camps, etc. That's a far more pressing issue in American life.
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Feb 15, 2017 13:55
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Tiggum posted:The "it's just a tool" argument always seems to me to be blatantly ignoring the very obvious fact that tools have specific purposes and the purpose of a gun (as a tool) is to kill things. Firearms are tools in that they are pieces of metal, wood, and plastic and are not inherently scary or malevolent. I was about to go back and quote myself from a few pages ago where I explicitly acknowledged that, yes, the ability to be more lethal and dangerous was both the point of knowing/owning firearms, and explained why that was a legitimate thing. But then I noticed I was responding to you in the first place so the point must have sailed over your head. Tiggum posted:What are you going to do, shoot someone for trying to steal your stuff? How is a gun helpful in that situation? In fact, in a hypothetical scenario where some enormous catastrophe has happened and there are no emergency services, I'd really rather no one have any guns. And again there's this apparent conflation of "emergency services" with "people with guns who will use them on your behalf". I think I'd be much more concerned about the lack of fire and ambulance services than with the lack of armed police. Nobody is conflating the two except you. You're putting the "gun" in the forefront, and we're putting "defense". The police are there to first and foremost enforce the law, and also protect life and property. The reason I and others keep talking about "police response times" or emergencies where there's a lack of police coverage, isn't because we expect the police to come in and blow away the bad guys for us. It's because the police have a a habit of either making the bad guys high tail it, or having enough backup to resolve things. If they're not available, then it's up to you to defend yourself and your property until things are resolved one way or the other. Having a firearm and knowing how to use it extend your ability to do so. EDIT: And you mentioned that you'd be more worried about disruption of ambulance and firefighter services. I completely agree. Which is why I have a first aid kit, and know CPR to do my best until the EMTs arrive. And why I have a fire extinguisher and know methods to escape a burning building until the local volunteer corps show up. Why not have the same level of preparation for personal protection? LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 14:09 on Feb 16, 2017 |
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Feb 16, 2017 13:27
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vintagepurple posted:Oh boy a gun debate. So many hot takes itt, no rehashed useless talking past each other here no sirree Yeah, I'm not going to do much more to perpetuate the derail. Save to say that System Metternich had a decent good-faith post. However, looking at national aggregates like that can be misleading. There's definitely a "responsible" vs "irresponsible" gun culture, and of course criminal elements as well. His basic point: System Metternich posted:Is this a price you want to be paying for something that you will in all likelihood never, ever really need? conflates these multiple communities. Since the basic question of the thread is "what's it like living in the US?", this is a pertinent question. Based on voting records and such, it seems the majority of folks understand that this "cost" is not spread equally around the country and most of the issues come from irresponsible folks and crime. Because of this, the answer to "is this price worth paying?" is "Yes, it is. But we can do better by looking at other causes rather than simple aggregate gun ownership numbers". zakharov posted:Worth nothing that gun ownership is highly regional and cultural, like everything else here. I grew up in NJ, live in NYC, and to the best of my knowledge have never known a gun owner. We have pretty strict gun laws in NYC and a local pastime is laughing at tourists who open carry and get arrested. This is a very important point to understanding everyday US culture. I also grew up in NJ, but a different area, and as I've said I'm now in eastern PA. I've always known gun owners, friends and family, and grew up with firearms being very familiar. My dad taught me basic firearms safety when I was 5 or 6 or so, and I was out hunting when I was 11. Where I live is very much on the cusp of the New York Metropolitan Area and rural/agricultural Pennsylvania. We're right across the border, and there are a number of gun clubs and ranges. Since NJ law is pretty hostile to firearms, you have a lot of folks coming over the border to use our ranges, since ranges in NJ aren't nearly as common and the ones that exist tend to be expensive. Judging from license plates, you definitely see the interaction between the crotchety Rod & Gun Club type dudes (which kind of describes who I grew up around), and the tactic-lol dudes from the urban areas. There's very much an urban-rural divide in the US. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 14:00 on Feb 17, 2017 |
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Feb 17, 2017 13:44
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System Metternich posted:Tbh I'm pretty sure that everybody who got gunned down by the dog or got drunk and shot up the living room would have described themselves as a "responsible gun owner" too. And saying what amounts to "it's not me, but those other people that are the problem" frankly seems to me as rather deflecting the problem. But I also don't think that I will be able to change anyone's mind in here (or vice versa), so I won't continue on this topic too. I will say that this is the chronic issue with trying to convey what actual every day life is like re: guns. Suffice it to say that there are rules of basic safety that if followed will make getting shot by your dog or toddler all but impossible. If I had time and this was a different thread a long, thoughtful discussion would probably make it clear that I don't wish to deflect the issue. But, there's one thing to say about long thoughtful discussions about guns on the internet, and that is: lol good luck The walking vs. driving topic is a much better direction to take the thread. When I'm not phone posting from work I might dig into that one. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 17:37 on Feb 17, 2017 |
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Feb 17, 2017 15:27
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The term "village" in the US is actually used fairly extensively but far from uniformly: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Village_(United_States) It's generally a municipal or census definition however. In my region small towns with an independent municipal government are generally referred to as boroughs. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 04:41 on Feb 19, 2017 |
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Feb 19, 2017 04:38
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Tiggum posted:Is there any kind of standardisation to this, or does each state make up their own rules? Like, in Oregon you elect a water commissioner, but in another state that role may be filled by someone appointed by the governor or selected by committee or whatever? There's some basic, de facto standardization in that each state has a governor with an executive branch, two legislative houses, and a judiciary. Each state has their own constitution. And (again in practice) there are a whole host of state agencies and offices that, from state to state, serve similar but not precisely mirror purposes. For example, in Pennsylvania we have the Fish & Boat Commission, as well as a separate Game Commission. They work with stream habitat improvement, game land management, hunting/fishing/boating licenses, etc. Across the river in New Jersey, they have the Division of Fish and Wildlife, as a singular agency. Then of course there is the whole host of differences in legislation and regulation between the two states that these similar agencies enforce.
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Feb 22, 2017 12:32
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Glad to see some insight into why New Yorkers are annoying dickheads, and confirmation that the cause does in fact seem to be some kind of endemic regional narcissism.
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Feb 28, 2017 12:16
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Trump.mp4 posted:Is there a clear Catholic/Protestant divide in Pennsylvania, or if you know, the Northeast in general? If by "clear" you mean people are definitely Catholic or Protestant, then yes. Any kind of animosity is long gone, with the exception of some of the more backwater areas, (specifically where the KKK and the like still has a foothold). Like, my dad is Lutheran and my mom's family is Roman Catholic. It was never really a big deal, but my sister and I were Raised Catholic(tm). We'd do Christmas Eve at my dad's old church but that was about it. You'd notice small stuff, like my dad not going up to receive Communion and such, since he wasn't confirmed. Interesting family anecdote: I found out that when my pretty much secular grandfather got "permission" to marry my grandmother, one of the stipulations from her family was that all children would be raised strict Catholics. Fun times. This was the early 1940s though.
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Apr 2, 2017 23:58
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therobit posted:That is required for a catholic to get married in the church. If they do not marry in the church, then I believe they cannot take communion. It is pretty common. The question was more generally about how serious folks were about the Catholic-Protestant divide. And yeah that's the church's line, and still applies today as you said. It's done most of the time with a wink. But in my grandfather's case the demand was backed up by my grandmother's family and they were pretty staunch about it. As in disowning the daughter and such. For reference though, at the time her parents were first or second generation Irish immigrants. Obviously in the past 80 years or so things have moderated, but many religious families will still get bent out of shape if you don't do the full Catholic thing. In the great state of Pennsylvania though, you can still do a Quaker marriage (or self-marriage). My wife and I, being for all intents and purposes, agonistic/atheist, opted for that route when it came time to get hitched. Kopijeger posted:That's strange, given that (most?) Lutherans practice Confirmation and the Eucharist. Or is it that those don't count by the standards of the Catholic Church? Its this. Has to do with some dude named Marin Luther having a real nasty argument with the Pope or something.
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Apr 3, 2017 11:19
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If you notice the turning lanes every block it makes a bit more sense. The middle strip allows for adequate turning space for multiple cars. It's also the mid-century ideal of a "parkway". Look at all that great green space in the middle! Wide open and pastoral, not like those dirty 19th Century cities all packed together! It's not particularly great design, but it was done for a reason. We certainly have our fair share of tightly packed highways and cities. For example, the Schuylkill Expressway in Philly is built tightly into a hillside next to the Schuylkill River. You can barely tell it's there when looking at it from afar. Great for keeping the character of the landscape intact, but unfortunately it's also nearly impossible to expand and as a result is notoriously backed up with traffic as it was under-designed for the amount of traffic it serves.
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May 2, 2017 15:20
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Madmarker posted:No disagreement that it is far more exaggerated in Louisiana, I'm just trying to point out that Louisiana is not the only place where you will encounter people whose accent is completely indecipherable to non-natives of that region. I think his point is that Creole and Cajun go beyond just a thick accent, but into a full on separate dialect or language.
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May 9, 2017 02:23
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UltraRed posted:Very ignorant statement. In many (most?) areas, anything more than a small garden isn't all that feasible. It often costs them more in opportunity costs. Agreed. Just because folks live in rural areas doesn't mean they personally have enough land, resources, or time to grow a substantial amount of quality vegetables. Also, there's this thing called "winter" where plants don't grow so well. Sure, you can can or pickle your produce to get you through until the next growing season, but again, time, resources, money, etc. Gardening helps, certainly, but you can't rely on it.
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May 10, 2017 15:53
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Pewdiepie posted:Very ignorant statement. I am a farmer. No point in continuing this discussion with people who think they know better. Lmao at the guy explaining winter. I actually work for a conservation district in Pennsylvania. Part of my job is to provide technical assistance to agricultural producers. I also work with master gardeners, and coincidentally I just submitted a grant application today to fund a program to help address food access issues in my county. Now, we have an urban food desert issue here, not a rural one, but the issues are similar. If you're on a tiny lot in a dying small town in the middle of large corn and soybean operations, and your work day is extended by a one-way hour commute because you live in bumfuck nowhere, it's not that easy. In good faith, I'm curious as to what kind of farmer you are, so I understand where you're coming from here. It's easy to say "set aside some land and grow your own veggies" when it's your job. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 19:42 on May 13, 2017 |
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May 13, 2017 00:42
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