I’m pretty sure Ea-nāṣir stole it.

We moved into our new place in December. We had a fence post that needed replacing. The post was in a place that would work great for a fence gate. So I’m adding a new gate to our fence. This will serve to make the property as whole more accessible. It will also provide a means for those with mobility issues to enter the home without having to climb the big set of stairs at the front door.

I decided to make a proper project out of it. I could have just put in a simple gate, but I decided to go for something grander. I’m building a pergola gate! I’ve finished the columns and installed the first of two beams this evening.

The foundation of the gate are two 8’ long steel fence posts driven 3’ into the ground with a sledge hammer. The posts are approximately 5"x7", each made from five 2x6s laminated together. The beams are made from two cedar 2x6s edge joined together into a 2x12 beam. There will be two beams all together.

Tomorrow I’ll hang the second beam, add some cross pieces at the top of the beams, add some foundation reinforcement, and start building the actual fence gate.

Covid-19.

Those chicks at the supply store are for small hobby farms. The rotisserie chicken comes from a big factory farm. That factory farm either doesn’t have to pay for chicks at all (they just breed their own), or they buy them for a fraction of the retail cost by buying them in bulk directly from suppliers.

Yeah the hate is weird. I’m not the biggest stream watcher, but I can respect the medium. Streamers are just doing the modern version of what AM talk radio personalities like Rush Limbaugh did. Not in terms of content or politics, but in terms of format. Limbaugh ran multi-hour long shows reacting to news and headlines. His listeners primarily listened passively, letting the radio run in the background of daily life. He would take calls and engage with his audience directly. Streaming is just modern talk radio.

Millennials had our share of people that were famous just for being famous. Paris Hilton anyone? We’ve always had influencers, people famous for no particular accomplishments or creative works. I actually prefer the modern version. The past versions were mostly folks from very wealthy backgrounds who came into the limelight due to family connections. If you’re already around a bunch of celebrities and media types because your family is incredibly wealthy, it’s easy for someone to translate that access into fame of their own.

In contrast, at least modern influencers have a decent shot at being from humble backgrounds. They’re still vapid and famous just for being famous, but at least they had to hustle to earn any amount of fame in the first place.

Also, any source that disagrees with you, biased sources like Wikipedia, are just Fake News!

If you’re feeling generous, sign up for the cheapest plan and then pirate everything.

Have a good day.

You are cringe. With your bizarre desire to drag this into a tired exercise in generational warfare. Sorry, I don’t buy that bullshit.

Because it’s cringe as fuck.

Honestly, this is bizarre and you’re creeping me out.

You seem to be under the mistaken impression that this is a court of law…

The social contract is just that, a contract. The unwritten contract of most developed countries has long been:

*Work hard. Get an education. Don’t steal. Don’t commit acts of violence. Don’t try to foment unrest or rebellion. Walk the straight and narrow. In turn, you’ll have a peaceful and adequate life. You may not be rich, but you’ll have all your needs met during your working years, and you’ll be able to retire when old with a bit of dignity."

For generations, the social contract was that anyone who played along and did things “right” would have a decent life. That decent life might mean living in a modest apartment your whole life, but it was achievable by the vast majority. Traditionally, if you couldn’t achieve self-sufficiency, it’s because you either were excluded from the social contract (like certain minority groups), you were born with some debilitating disability, or because you did something very wrong (like commit a serious crime.)

But contracts are two-way streets. When one side breaks the contract, it breaks for both sides. In wealthy countries, this old social contract has been broken by the rich. Millions are finding they did everything they were supposed to, and they still can’t get a decent life. So with the contract broken, there’s far less reason to follow it.

Most people do not avoid committing crimes simply because they fear the law. Most folks have an ethical belief that stealing and violence is wrong. Most people wouldn’t do these things even if there were no police or prisons. But when you break the social contract, the portion of the population that finds committing crimes to be morally acceptable will inevitably rise.