Random Thoughts

[TheHighwayMan3561]

I was watching the sequence near the ending of Aliens where Ripley goes into the Xenomorph nest to rescue Newt.  Said sequence has a 15 minute warning countdown in the background indicating when the fusion power plant will explode.  The segment is actually 15 minutes in real time.

Not like Star Trek III, where Kirk, Chekov, and Scotty set the 60 second auto destruct, then:
-leave the bridge to take the turbolift to whatever deck the transporter room is on, then walk to the transporter room from wherever they got off
-go into the transporter room, Kirk gives a pep talk, they beam off and bring the Klingons on
-the Klingons then cautiously navigate the corridors not knowing where the Enterprise crew is
-they then take the turbolift to the bridge where the assault team leader gives a report to Christopher Lloyd back on the Klingon ship how no one is there, but "the computer is speaking"

...this sequence took 50 seconds of in-universe time before the "OH SHIT OMG GET OUT" and they all die.

[Rothman]

I was watching the sequence near the ending of Aliens where Ripley goes into the Xenomorph nest to rescue Newt.  Said sequence has a 15 minute warning countdown in the background indicating when the fusion power plant will explode.  The segment is actually 15 minutes in real time.

Not like Star Trek III, where Kirk, Chekov, and Scotty set the 60 second auto destruct, then:
-leave the bridge to take the turbolift to whatever deck the transporter room is on, then walk to the transporter room from wherever they got off
-go into the transporter room, Kirk gives a pep talk, they beam off and bring the Klingons on
-the Klingons then cautiously navigate the corridors not knowing where the Enterprise crew is
-they then take the turbolift to the bridge where the assault team leader gives a report to Christopher Lloyd back on the Klingon ship how no one is there, but "the computer is speaking"

...this sequence took 50 seconds of in-universe time before the "OH SHIT OMG GET OUT" and they all die.

Meh.  10 second difference is pretty tolerable given a whole host of other time indiscretions in movies galore.

[webny99]

I believe airport terminals are the only places which have a posted "oops, you missed it...go around; we won't tell anyone" second opportunity for drivers.

A number of US/Canada border crossings have a "second chance" after having already passed "Last Exit in [US/Canada]" signage. Most require passing through Customs to return though, so "we won't tell anyone" doesn't really apply.

[vdeane]

I believe airport terminals are the only places which have a posted "oops, you missed it...go around; we won't tell anyone" second opportunity for drivers.

A number of US/Canada border crossings have a "second chance" after having already passed "Last Exit in [US/Canada]" signage. Most require passing through Customs to return though, so "we won't tell anyone" doesn't really apply.

Drive to the border and turn around, and enter for the chance to win an all-expenses paid vacation to El Salvador!

(sorry, couldn't resist)

[D-Dey65]

My former hometown of Medford, New York used to have three gas stations on three of the four corners of NY 112 and Suffolk CR 16 (Horseblock Road), and one of them was also on the northwest corner of Suffolk CR 16 and Middle Island Road. Sadly, I have no way to prove this anymore.

[mgk920]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Mike

[vdeane]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Mike

Lots of them, though I imagine that most are too political for here.  Although it was interesting when CTV was talking to their correspondent at the CPC watch party, while the TV showing CTV was on in the background, especially after the broadcast delay was cleared and we could see the correspondent on the TV in the background.  I think they cut it off before we could see it on the TV on the TV in the background.

[GaryV]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Too bad elections in the US can't get over that quickly.

[7/8]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Mike

I don't want to get in trouble by going in-depth with my thoughts, so I'll stick with a pretty neutral comment. I'm disappointed that we appear to be heading toward a two-party system outside Quebec. Maybe with a minority government, the few remaining third party MP's can push for electoral reform? Probably wishful thinking on my part, but a man can dream! I'm so tired of the inevitable "strategic voting" shit from first-past-the-post.

[kkt]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Too bad elections in the US can't get over that quickly.

Yep.  Five week general election campaigns?  Sign me up!

[ZLoth]

Personally, I would prefer that the presidential primaries followed a regionalizaed format. Here is an example based upon the OMB divisions established in 1974:



The order would be on a random draw basis with some weighting involved so that the states that ended up last would have more of a chance to be picked fist in the next primary round, and vice versa. Part of this is because California, despite having the most people and electorial vote, had it's primary in most cycles in June when the candidates for president have been all decided.

[Rothman]

Politics are politics...should be stopped.

[Scott5114]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Mike

I don't want to get in trouble by going in-depth with my thoughts, so I'll stick with a pretty neutral comment. I'm disappointed that we appear to be heading toward a two-party system outside Quebec. Maybe with a minority government, the few remaining third party MP's can push for electoral reform? Probably wishful thinking on my part, but a man can dream! I'm so tired of the inevitable "strategic voting" shit from first-past-the-post.

I don't know as much about Canadian politics as I probably should to be commenting on it, but the analysis that I saw seemed to indicate that people who typically voted for minor parties switched to one of the major parties in this election because the risk presented by an opposing party being elected was perceived as being much greater than normal.

But yes...we shouldn't get much too more in depth than that with the political discussion.

[kphoger]

I don't know as much about Canadian politics as I probably should to be commenting on it, but the analysis that I saw seemed to indicate that people who typically voted for minor parties switched to one of the major parties in this election because the risk presented by an opposing party being elected was perceived as being much greater than normal.

I don't know enough either, but my impression is that folks are concerned that, when you go down that road, you don't go back.  Once the trend toward two parties begins, it just never reverses.

[vdeane]

Thoughts on Monday's (2025-04-28) Canadian federal election?

Too bad elections in the US can't get over that quickly.

Indeed.  Not just the length of the campaign but the counting.  I like how with Canadian elections I can start streaming the coverage in the evening and know how the election went before I go to bed.  US elections, you either pull an all-nighter, or you check it the next morning.

[Max Rockatansky]

I already try to stay from political stuff in this country.  Why would I want to get invested in what goes on with politics in another?

I think about 80% of politics related posts or news I see comes from road fans on multiple social media platforms.

[kphoger]

US elections, you either pull an all-nighter, or you check it the next morning.

Depending on what exactly you're following, the next morning isn't nearly long enough to wait.  In 2024, I was watching some congressional seats that took quite a number of days to be finalized.

[LilianaUwU]

I find it hilarious that the Liberals eliminating a seat in the Gaspé peninsula resulted in them losing all their presence there.

[webny99]

US elections, you either pull an all-nighter, or you check it the next morning.

Or both, TBH.

[kkt]

US elections, you either pull an all-nighter, or you check it the next morning.

Depending on what exactly you're following, the next morning isn't nearly long enough to wait.  In 2024, I was watching some congressional seats that took quite a number of days to be finalized.

Yes, in mail-in ballot states in which the ballots just need to be postmarked by election Tuesday it's common for the count not to be final until Friday.  Better to let every voter decide on election day with the same information than force people mailing to mail early.

[formulanone]

Once the trend toward two parties begins, it just never reverses.

Oh, I think we're stuck in R right now but nobody remembers how to use the clutch pedal.

Seriously, I like that the Canadian election cycle is a fraction of time compared to how the US handles the process, which seems to be a 2-year media-driven cycle in the last few decades. So it's more of a continuously-variable transmission which endlessly drones and gives the illusion of shifting.

[Molandfreak]

Some important takeaways regarding the Canadian election:

While it is true that it is trending towards a two-party system nationally, there are a couple things to note about the political system which make it unwise, at the very least, for the New Democratic Party to completely dissolve or merge. First, in Alberta, BC, and Saskatchewan, affiliated chapters of the national party are effectively the parties of the left in two-party systems existing in those provinces (more or less). Particularly in BC, there was an interesting situation where the right-leaning party was a nationally unaffiliated party called the BC Liberals until they changed their name to BC United a couple years ago. Therefore, the NDP has the popular support base to continue running candidates in these provinces, though whether this will continue to translate to the national parliament remains to be seen. It is more than any third party running in the US could dream of achieving in the next decade, though. Additionally, Jagmeet Singh has become an unpopular figure among regular NDP voters for various reasons. Since he was redistricted and lost in his new riding this election, I will bet that a new leader will be chosen in the next party elections. Strategically, they should choose someone from the west and focus on farmer labor issues for the reasons I outlined earlier.

If the NDP continues to be a thorn in the Liberal party's side, down the road they will have to form coalitions. Maybe they will revisit the mixed-member proportional representation system proposed by Trudeau in 2015. In this system, members would be elected on the provincial level based on a predetermined party list. The territories would continue to operate under the first-past-the-post system since they have only one MP each.

[vdeane]

Once the trend toward two parties begins, it just never reverses.

Oh, I think we're stuck in R right now but nobody remembers how to use the clutch pedal.

Seriously, I like that the Canadian election cycle is a fraction of time compared to how the US handles the process, which seems to be a 2-year media-driven cycle in the last few decades. So it's more of a continuously-variable transmission which endlessly drones and gives the illusion of shifting.

To the point where my AP Government/Politics textbook listed the first step of running for president as "be mentioned by the media as someone who appears presidential".  The fact that other countries have much shorter elections is the reason why I tend to find people saying that we need long elections "to get to know the candidates" ridiculous.  In no other country would someone losing because the people "didn't get to know her" in a long, drawn-out primary be considered a credible reason why they lost (are there even any other countries that even have primaries resembling the ones in the US?).

[SEWIGuy]

Once the trend toward two parties begins, it just never reverses.

Oh, I think we're stuck in R right now but nobody remembers how to use the clutch pedal.

Seriously, I like that the Canadian election cycle is a fraction of time compared to how the US handles the process, which seems to be a 2-year media-driven cycle in the last few decades. So it's more of a continuously-variable transmission which endlessly drones and gives the illusion of shifting.

To the point where my AP Government/Politics textbook listed the first step of running for president as "be mentioned by the media as someone who appears presidential".  The fact that other countries have much shorter elections is the reason why I tend to find people saying that we need long elections "to get to know the candidates" ridiculous.  In no other country would someone losing because the people "didn't get to know her" in a long, drawn-out primary be considered a credible reason why they lost (are there even any other countries that even have primaries resembling the ones in the US?).

France has a non-partisan, two-stage Presidential election where candidates can declare they are running years in advance of the date.

[vdeane]

France has a non-partisan, two-stage Presidential election where candidates can declare they are running years in advance of the date.

I guess, if you're comparing to California's "Jungle Primary", but it's not really the same because the second is a run-off for the first.  It's not like they're voting on which candidates will represent the parties - that's already decided by then.

As for declaring well in advance... so did Poilievre, but that doesn't mean that Canada has US-length elections.