And I’ll answer as well to keep the train running, even though i wasn’t part of this…

I don’t pay with cash unless specifically asked. I don’t regularly carry cash. If I need to pay cash I get it first that purpose, but usually get a larger amount. I’m a bit more likely to use it if I gave it but don’t refill it when it’s gone, until I’m forced to

You could ask some of those guys how they prefer to be paid. My electrician likes Venmo and my house cleaner prefers Zelle. I can pay them instantly like with a credit card but they’re not hit with the fees

Then there are a few aircraft that can do it like old movies. Perfectly safe to fly with the “window” open, and a hell of a lot of fun

And yet they’re talking about a nanny as a local device temporarily attached to a car and that does not necessarily “phone home”. Not everything is a “slippery slope”

And yes, speed governors were all too common after the 1970s fuel crisis. As far as I know they still are on trucks, like rental moving trucks. This is not a new thing, except to allow a court to mandate it for repeat egregious offenders

My town has been increasingly prioritizing road redesign for safety - my favorite example is a major road lined with strip malls was restriped down to one lane and is now noticeably slower, calmer and safer yet we get through it noticeably faster. The magic of doing it right

To get to a common destination through there used to take me 12-16 minutes. Now I drive slower and it’s consistently 9 minutes or less!

The article even helps with priorities, with special outrage for speeding in school zones. Fine, let’s start there. It ought to be an easy argument that every school zone should prioritize pedestrian safety, and be difficult to speed in. Even if it’s as simple as directing through drivers elsewhere, it’s a win

We already have such Nannies for repeat drunk drivers so how is this different? It even fits with the narrative that we don’t know who is driving- we know the car is being driven dangerously so should prevent that regardless of driver

• https://roadlawguide.com/dui-dwi-laws/ignition-interlock/

Every state is different - while I’m not sure how mine handles multiple speeding tickets, ask me how I know that 30 mph over counts as a major accident on your insurance. At that point, the cost of the ticket is almost irrelevant (approaching a toll both on a highway, when I passed the new speed sign I hadn’t yet slowed enough, the assholes. If they looked at my speed like 50’ later…).

Anyhow I have to expect it’s more “good old boy” corruption, where at each step he gets dismissed or charge reduced

Edit: oh, speed camera infractions. I believe those can’t be criminal since you have the right to face your accuser.

This is a big deal that we should pay more attention to. It’s holding back adoption of transit, bike lanes, and EVs

Too many people believe their gas taxes pay for road maintenance. That it’s targeted toward roads and that it covers roads. Too often they react in outrage at concepts like

• EVs aren’t paying their fair share
• it’s not supposed to pay for transit
• let bicyclists pay for their own roads

The reality is that gas taxes are not usually targeted, it’s already not fair with the variety of weight and efficiency of vehicles, and in the US it typically covers more like half of road maintenance so it’s still highly dependent on other funding sources

Maybe it’s time to rethink this tax, to something without the emotional baggage, that’s fair for everyone, and that adequately funds all transportation needs

The only thing is I’m getting awfully cynical on that. Sure, I’m all in to approve any tax increase for education, but is it really for that? The cynic in me wonders if politicians tend to shuffle the budget around so education appears to be in need. People are more likely to pay for education but are less likely to approve tax increases for other uses

Some taxes are fairly generic, like income tax or property tax. However some are specifically targeted, intentionally or not.

Too many people believe their gas taxes pay for road maintenance (on average in US less than half) so react in outrage when someone proposes other transportation needs, such as rail or bike lanes, or react in outrage at the idea of EVs not paying their fair share.

We should

1. replace the gasoline tax with a carbon tax on gasoline, so it pays for the environmental damage
2. Pay for transportation maintenance in a more inclusive way, perhaps cars can pay annually based on weight and mileage. Or for simplicity and privacy perhaps a fixed fee on annual registration. This would be fair for EV vs ice cars, and non-car owners don’t pay

My pellet smoker never has exposed flame , although I might turn it up at times to sear the outside.

The trick is that when you don’t have cider or apple juice to add moisture while forming a crust, apricot preserves work really well …… somehow I always have that.

But if you want that fall off the bone tenderness from a tough cut of meat, you need to cook low and slow.

Amateurs! 3 hours for ribs? Try 5 hours on my pellet grill/smoker

Politics. Some of us are stuck with the chaos and destruction of US politics, and the rest of lemmy is probably tired of hearing about it.

Every day brings a new disaster for us science, technology, environment, education, quality of life, freedom, new abuses of human rights and constitutional authority, new violations of leadership holding themselves above the law. Outrage of racism and classism, stoked divisiveness. It’s certainly exhausting and horrifying but it’s also my future, my kids future.

We try to rein it in but it affects our everyday lives, so it leaks online. I understand wanting to avoid it. I wish I could

or that they pay for high quality components

This would be a valid choice for both the manufacturer and consumer, if it were true and transparent. Most of us have things we spend more on with the expectation of quality and that we spend less on with the expectation there is no quality

For example I don’t buy the concept that my printer manufacturer has magical ink in their resale cartridges. Even if they did, the 3-4 cartridges I can otherwise buy would make up for a lot of magic

Tell me again how traffic cameras make us safer and we can totally trust them to be applied objectively for public safety and no other purpose?

I think “metros” are a combination of “heavy rail” and “commuter rail” over a larger metro area. Fast and longer distance like commuter rail, but regular service like “heavy rail”

Maybe, but I’m not familiar with chicagos system

• Amtrak == intercity. Travel from one city to another, potentially long distance. Scheduled
• Commuter Rail == into and out of the city, over a large region. Typically Bring commuting workers in from suburbs and may be scheduled to prioritize rush hour
• heavy rail == “normal” trains, might be used as subway or surface. Typically travel from one part of a city to another, and operate continuously, with minutes between trains
• light rail == slower, cheaper, a tram. might be underground or a streetcar. Typically travel along neighborhoods, more local transit. Scheduled continuously with minutes between trains

Here in Boston

• I can take Amtrak to nyc, to Portland Maine, or to Albany and west
• we have commuter rail lines covering half the state to bring people from towns and suburbs into Boston.
• we have I think 3 “heavy” rail lines operating as subways, and on the surface as it leaves the city proper
• we have a light rail line operating in tunnels through the city center but on the surface as a tram or streetcar through various neighborhoods. For example students can hop on the get from one end of Boston university another

Speed is the problem for boats

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hull_speed

Maybe it’s the same for commuter rail. It’s weird seeing average 33 passengers, when they were always standing room only while I was riding