yuna628

As someone libertarian-minded I can only stand back and watch with somewhat amusement because after spending years of my life learning about economics and history from a conservative perspective, it is strange that we have arrived at a moment of intense economic self-injury of which no conservative principles or common sense can be found. Nothing good will come out of tariffs and our economic problems will continue to deepen. It's not just about tariffs of course, there's other concerning economic signs I see, but I sympathize greatly in conversations I've had with small and medium-sized business owners that will now have their worth wiped out, innovation stifled, and many close up shop. I have a great deal of empathy for people that are suffering right now, regardless of their age. I guess it must be a common assumption that boomers were all wealthy enough to put their money into retirement funds and 401Ks or that they actually had savings to begin with. It's not true for everyone though. My parents wasted what little they had long ago, did not plan for any future, and expected their children to be drained dry caring for them. And so we have to the best of our ability. My sibling has worked for over 30 years and has sacrificed their entire life for my parents - that retirement fund was to be finally something to have for themselves once my parents are gone. They've had losses before, particularly during the Bush administration and again during Trump, which they finally chose to move some money out of the market. Now what little is left will be gone I expect. My husband doesn't even have money in the market thank god or else that would be gone too. We could not afford to take such a risk. Tariffs do not offend me, but they are a dangerous and foolish thing that no conservative should ever be wrapping their arms around. My life was not paved in gold, nor was the lives of my family - my parents cared little either way. They came from nothing, had nothing, and wanted to give nothing let alone help themselves as long as everyone is expected to help them. I often recall a conversation with my father that he was happy to receive his SSA benefits, and did not care if there was anything left for his children because he'd be dead. My mother is happy to also receive her benefits but will often say that the SSA program is 'evil' and 'should never have existed' so she also does not care if you or me or anyone else who has labored hard should receive them so long as she/her husband does. So really, I do not begrudge the elderly or anyone else for being angry that their portfolios are being drained, at least they had something to begin with, and hopefully they can move it somewhere safe for the long term, because it's not going to be pretty.

*sigh* I have spent the better part of a week trying to get people to understand why this chick had this happen to her. Furthermore to get them to understand that this would have happened to someone in the same scenario in the UK. Not much luck, people either not reading or insisting that there's no legitimate for her detention. Overall, we could only agree that it's the best interest to send people on their way quickly, instead of holding them in these scenarios. Under the Biden admin I think an Irish band was deported because they were intending on playing gigs in exchange for free room and board. I don't believe they were held for a long time.

I've seen people try to make comparisons to PBS/NPR. BBC is fine as a media organization, and it does a lot more than just air news. Any news organization in the UK, not just the BBC seems closely entwined in government. You can't publish anything about the Crown or government (even if embarrassing info) without their knowledge and approval in some way... the way I understand it? Honestly Boiler, I think currently if we did have a national broadcaster doing what you suggest in that scenario, that some people wouldn't have a problem with it, particularly if it fit within a certain political party goal (that can go either way). There is never just such a thing as a rich benign philanthropist. A person with money and power is in general always looking to promote their own self-interests and generate more wealth and power. This is one reason why newspapers are dying, large media organizations are struggling, and good writers are being pushed out. Citizen journalism does a good job most of the time, but can be extremely error prone and not bound by any sort of ethics and eventually even when those get a larger following online - end up falling into the trap of promoting their self-interests.

All of the minds on SCOTUS are in general particularly decent in their rulings and always interesting in their thoughts, even if some of those thoughts may be a bit out there (looking at Alito)it's nice to see how they may arrive at an argument's ruling. If a court ruled the same way all the time and had no unique thoughts then it would be quite the kangaroo court now wouldn't it? Just because someone approaches a subject or has different feelings on a subject than you do does not make them incompetent to be on the bench. Bright legal minds don't just reside in one political spectrum. I've been reading court decisions since I was very young and each justice, present and past, have their own strengths and weaknesses as it should be. I would say that age can be a significant factor though to always consider. Both sides have considered court packing - and as with anything I often caution what happens when the shoe is on the other foot? Court packing is based out of the desire to see the judiciary rule a certain way by default, and not checks and balances. But the executive being held to abide by the judiciary is another check and balance. This thread posits, disturbingly, to the contrary a dangerous and slippery slope.

So I don't know if this is just a local SSA office thing, but here you can't actually go in without making a physical appointment since COVID (same as with the DMV), at least when we did it back in 2023. Every single time we needed to update a record we went in. It used to be walk-ins (but you were crazy to do it unless it was on a Wed), but I have to tell ya the old office was a hole in the wall mess. Eventually they changed it to a big new building and when we arrived there were 20 windows, but literally only ONE employee and then a security guard. It seemed hilarious that an appointment was needed because there was no one there that needed help. Took all of 5 minutes. I have heard about some kind of directive that has been mentioned in the thread. An article or two and also from some lawyers mentioning it online, but I don't think anything officially yet? Still, I was such a stickler about making sure stuff got done in-person and not waiting around, going into the SSA is a good idea to update whatever is needed. The employee took a scan of the certificate as well.

I freely traveled through three states today unimpeded so I think people are okay?

I've had a hard time finding a Japanese place that is cooking actual authentic food too. Next state over there is basically the Walmart for Asian food called Hung Vuong. Whatever you want you can find there and some of the produce is better than I can find in the regular grocery store.

It's hard to find a good Chinese place these days. There were a few in Baltimore that had legendary status. On our travels back to the UK (imo also difficult to find good Chinese food there too) I had heard rumors of this place in a small market stand that sold real Chrysanthemum tea and bao. The food was so good I nearly cried.. all run by a little grandma and her family. She made everything by hand with love.

Update your status with SSA and I'd also update your status with the DMV if possible.

But how does one prove ulterior motives? We know it happens, but how can you prove it? It seems the courts say you cannot prove such intent without some kind of direct evidence. Suspicion is not proof.

I'm not a matchmaker TB, but you could find one of those if you were interested. Unfortunately there is usually a larger pool of UK men seeking American women but with persistence you might find a British single in your area. Not really sure what dating site you're using but it seems to have a high population of scammers, and that seems like an unsafe amount of risk you've got going on.

It's not that I'd like to see less government necessarily, but I'd prefer that government be in it's proper place working to make things better for all and the general welfare as described in Article I. Whether the federal government have language and civic learning programs or states do (since immigration is a federal domain I'd tend to think it should be federal unless you'd like to go very libertarian and go state domain), I don't care exactly, but I think there's a purpose and place for it that would be very useful. Even the Chinese have English learning programs that start in school at an early age. But there are many countries that offer language learning as part of requirements and assist immigrants to do so. Unfortunately I've seen the denigration of immigrants that can't speak English or don't have as strong English skills as others too many times.

Haven't seen any much change to egg prices. They were still $8-10 depending on size last week and some stores had no stock at all.

TB... I dunno, maybe take it as a sign that whatever site you're using or prospect dating pool you're going for is not the one for you? Maybe get yourself a British lady. 😉

From a libertarian point of view, if you aren't promoting legal immigration then you are promoting illegal immigration by default. I've always thought that a government that has programs to help those learn English is another way of ensuring immigrants integrate and are successful. Other countries do certainly ensure their population know other languages from an early age. In your case your wife was already proficient, but not everyone will have that to rely upon. One of my great-grandmothers could speak four languages, another only spoke Germany/PA Dutch and relied upon my grandfather for translation. My husband often sees how many immigrants are coming for ESL classes at the college, but that relies upon immigrants that already have some kind of support system with family and the financial means. There are many immigrants that won't have that resource. We often complain that our own kids can't read, write, or speak properly... and I often hear English speaking persons talk down to immigrants whose grasp of English isn't the best or limited (on both sides of the pond) I think English speaking assistance is one thing that the government could help with that is worthwhile. At the very least I think we could find ways to encourage it that are productive.