Crowstep
1yr ago
So what's the story behind everyone's usernames?
I'll start, mine is derived from crow-stepped gables, a common feature of the architecture in my city.
Crowstep
1yr ago
I think your explanation for low rates of white intermarriage is wrong. We should expect the majority racial group to intermarry less, absent any racial preference.
As a toy example, let's say a population is 99% French and 1% Chinese, and everyone has a strong preference for intermarriage. We should expect 100% of Chinese to intermarry, and only 1% of French to intermarry. A higher number for French intermarriage isn't mathematically possible, there aren't enough Chinese spouses to go around.
Crowstep
1yr ago
I recently finished Macnamara's Folly too. I appreciated that it was written by an ordinary soldier, as opposed to an academic or policy wonk.
Man that Reddit thread was such a mess. Debates over the definition of words (particularly old, broad words like socialism) are fruitless.
Crowstep
1yr ago
Has anyone used an iPad mini?
I currently have an Android tablet (10 inch screen) but it's a bit big for my liking. I'm considering getting the iPad due to its smaller size.
I would mainly be using it for reading ebooks and watching videos, so nothing requiring much power. I've previously tried a smaller Android tablet but it was so slow as to be useless.
Crowstep
1yr ago
I've always thought that English could do with a second person plural, like 'vous' in French. Being able to distinguish between talking to a group and an individual in a group setting is very helpful.
Of course, language being what it is, English speakers have basically created alternatives out of necessity (y'all, youse, you guys etc). Give it a few hundred years and I'm sure we'll be using them as words in their own right.
Crowstep
1yr ago
Day trading is a bad idea. The overwhelming majority of investors lose money.
How you invest the money depends on when you will need it. If you don't need the money in the next ten years or more, you a better off putting it in an index fund. Vanguard does the ones with the lowest fees.
Index funds can also be 'income' rather than 'accumulation'. This means that dividends are paid out as cash target than being reinvested in the shares that make up the fund. If you intend to spend the income from your savings (rather than just getting the pot) then this might be a better idea.
Crowstep
1yr ago
I wouldn't worry about that. My nieces are nephews are all becoming obsessed with Harry Potter and the parents are very happy about it.
Roald Dahl was antisemitic and kids still read his books. They're still being adapted into plays and films too.
I agree that the books are superb. Rowling has a real ability to add 'colour' to her world. Like the weird currency or the every flavour beans. Small things like that make it a much richer experience.
Crowstep
1yr ago
The price of the shares can go up or down, which would bring the value of the fund up or down. But every quarter the dividend payments from the shares would be paid out to the fund holders. This is usually around 2% of the value of the fund, but obviously can be lower in a poor business environment.
An accumulation fund would just take these dividends and buy more shares with them.
Crowstep
1yr ago
Macnamara's Folly showed that higher IQ soldiers were more effective than lower IQ ones, even at manual talks like loading shells in a mortar.
Even manual labour requires people to follow processes, learn from mistakes etc.
Crowstep
1yr ago
I watched the first episode and found it a little bleak. Does it get lighter as the series goes on?
Crowstep
1yr ago
Not necessarily, you could just get less marriage/cohabiting overall, with the higher earning women and lower earning men remaining single.
In terms of marriage, this has already happened. While the wage gap between men and women has shrunk since the 1980s, the wage gap between the average husband and wife has remained the same.
Women rarely marry men who earn less money than them. If you reduce the number of higher (relative to women) earning men, then more women won't marry at all.
Crowstep
1yr ago
I translate 'white' to just mean European. Messi looks like a standard southern European man, so yes.
The weird historical circumstances that lead to Spanish people being considered their own race in America frustrates me to no end.
Unfortunately, the modernist ugliness you are right to complain about is Western, or at least it came from the West originally, and has now been embraced by decision makers globally.
Traditional architecture, sculpture and painting are beautiful everywhere, regardless of the geographic background. The modernist equivalents are ugly regardless of background.
Compare two recent statues in London. The first is a pile of whipped cream, with a drone, fly and cherry sitting on top. It is designed by a British woman and is an example of contemporary western art.
The second is a recreation of the ancient Winged Bull statue from Iraq, which was destroyed by ISIS. It was designed by an Iraqi Jew and is a literal recreation of ancient middle eastern art.
The Winged Bull statue is self-evidently far superior, it is also not western. It is superior because it is traditionalist and not modernist.
Crowstep
1yr ago
A girl once told me I had very soft hands, and insisted on holding my hand as much as possible all night (we weren't on a date, just out drinking in a medium-sized group).
I assumed she was hitting on me but was politely rebuffed. Apparently she really did just like my soft hands.
Crowstep
1yr ago
The consensus among researchers is that non-celiac gluten sensitivity its a distinct, but closely related disease to celiac. Part of the reason there has been debate is because we didn't have any biomarkers for it, at least until 2020:
https://gut.bmj.com/content/69/11/1966
I would try and be more sympathetic to your friend. While 'feeling lethargic' is vague, the only celiac symptom I had was 'a weird rash', which I had for more than ten years before actually realising what the cause was. For a lot of diagnosed celiacs, symptoms can be as vague as lethargy, anxiety, mild depression, poor sleep, bloating etc. That doesn't mean that they are malingering, it just means that autoimmune diseases manifest in a large number of different ways.
Any recommendations for funny podcasts?
Some of my favourites are:
No Such Thing As A Fish - The researchers from the British panel show QI talk about their favourite facts of the week. It is essentially a panel show in itself, but without the conceit of any games or scoring
Dreamgun Film Reads - A group of Irish comedians (with special guests sometimes) do live readings of film scripts, that have been rewritten to be full of jokes. The podcasts are recordings of the live shows, complete with audience laughter. If you like films I strongly recommend giving this a listen.
The Beef and Dairy Network Podcast - Deadpan surrealism. The host presents a fake podcast about the beef and dairy industry. Surprisingly good given the odd-sounding premise
Lateral - British Youtuber Tom Scott hosts a quiz show with guests. All the questions involve lateral thinking. Not as funny as the others but still quite fun.
I'd really like to find something similar to Dreamgun, in the sense of being a scripted show in front of a live audience. I'm not really into D&D, which seems to have spawned a lot of comedy podcasts in the last few years.
Crowstep
1yr ago
Monday Morning Podcast by Bill Burr
Thanks, I'll give it a listen.
Any particular episodes you'd recommend? With 12 years of episodes I'm not sure where to start.
Crowstep
1yr ago
If you're on Android then you can use and YouTube Vanced. It's a bit of a hassle to set up but it works well. Also blocks ads.
Crowstep
1yr ago
Does anyone know if Memphis PD still uses affirmative action in their hiring? Google suggests that it was ruled unconstitutional in 1999, but I wonder if it continued in some obscured form.
It stands to reason that a PD that tips the scales in favour of black applicants would have more police brutality than a meritocratic hiring process which can weed out the more reckless hires.
Crowstep
1yr ago
Guns, Germs and Steel is actually pretty poorly regarded in academia, although it has had a significant influence on popular understanding.
From what I recall of my undergrad days, two main books on the topic were 'The Great Divergence' by Kenneth Pomeranz and 'The European Miracle' by E L James.
Crowstep
1yr ago
For those who didn't see the original comment, can you give us a tldr?
Good luck!
Crowstep
1yr ago
I've been partner dancing for almost a decade now. Mainly latin, but I've also tried my hand at Lindy Hop and Forro.
I've been toying with making an effort-post summarising the prominent styles for laymen, in the style of this post:
https://old.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/comments/9h2jbi/you_should_probably_lift_weights/
Crowstep
1yr ago
Since I live in a university-town, all the dance scenes in the city trend fairly young, although there are definitely social differences. Salsa has more (continential) Europeans, Kizomba has more African men and 'curvy' women, the Lindy Hop scene is apparently a collection of polyamorous bisexuals, Forro has a lot of Brazilians and Portuguese.
The Latin scene is relatively drama-free, I would say.
Assuming that you're male, I can say that women love a man that can dance. Dance scenes are generally female-heavy as well so it's a great place to meet women if you can get reasonably competent (which does take time).
Kinda funny that the most obvious left-wing politician was a woman wearing Tumblrina glasses.
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