Oh man, she got the crazy eyes. Don’t mess with someone like that, don’t engage or make eye contact.

So, makes sense she’s republican.

I seriously almost did this. I visited the Netherlands, and fell absolutely head over heels for their way of life. It’s so damn peaceful and free! You don’t have to worry about getting shot when you’re running errands. You don’t have to worry about going bankrupt through medical expenses. You don’t have to worry about going to jail over weed or mushrooms. You don’t have to buy a car, because bicycling infrastructure and public transportation is AMAZING.

While I was there I met a lovely chap who is originally from England. He told me that he spent a holiday in Amsterdam, and broke his leg. So he stayed at the hospital, and afterwards, just didn’t leave. He’s been working/living there ever since.

When it came time for me to leave, I had accidentally missed my train, and it was going to be some extra money to switch around my flight/train to get back home, and a part of me was seriously considering just being like “fuck it” and staying. The only thing stopping me from moving there now is the knowledge that I’d have to continue paying taxes to the U.S. if I wanted to keep my citizenship while living and paying taxes in the Netherlands. 😑

If anyone can tell me a way around this… please do, because I want to move to the Netherlands.

From the study itself:

These (UPFs) products are characterised as industrial formulations primarily composed of chemically modified substances extracted from foods, along with additives to enhance taste, texture, appearance, and durability, with minimal to no inclusion of whole foods.

What is a “whole food?”

I looked further into the paper they used to classify UPFs

A practical way to identify an ultra-processed product is to check to see if its list of ingredients contains at least one item characteristic of the NOVA ultra-processed food group, which is to say, either food substances never or rarely used in kitchens (such as high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated or interesterified oils, and hydrolysed proteins), or classes of additives designed to make the final product palatable or more appealing (such as flavours, flavour enhancers, colours, emulsifiers, emulsifying salts, sweeteners, thickeners, and anti-foaming, bulking, carbonating, foaming, gelling and glazing agents).

So I guess a “whole food” is a food that doesn’t contain High fructose corn syrup or additives. But if they are making this direct link between ultra-processed foods and increased mortality, then surely it’s these specific substances that are responsible for it? So why aren’t we banning high fructose corn syrup and these additives?

Surely it doesn’t need to be more complicated than that?

“What happens when we eat these substances?”

“we tend to die more quickly then if we didn’t eat them.”

“so let’s ban these substances.”

“OK.”

This is where Finland and Sweden excel. Because they have mandatory military service, everyone with a gun has been trained in all aspects of it’s use/care. Finland is one of the top 10 countries with the most firearms per civilian, and yet their rate of firearm deaths is minuscule in comparison to the U.S..

At this rate though, I don’t see how any meaningful gun regulation can be passed. The nra stopped universal background checks from being passed after Sandy Hook. I lost faith in republicans since then. They’re bad faith actors, that when faced with the prisoners dilemma, choose suicide.

Remind me why it’s legal for a foreign government to fund election campaigns in the U.S. against it’s critics? When mbs ordered the killing of Jamaal Kashogi, and people were outraged, did we let him pay for the election campaign of his critics opponent? Who’s Saudi Arabia’s candidate in congress this year? how about China’s? Russia’s?

Remember when Bernie almost won and only took transparent, U.S. based small money donations? Remember what it was like to have a candidate that you actually trusted?

Latimer pulled in the endorsement of former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

Holy shit just fuck off to obscurity you POS. Nobody wants to hear from you. All the power you’ve wielded and you’ve done NOTHING good with it. Americas marge thatcher

The world needs more babies.

Does it?

Or do we just need to embrace migrants?

“A reduction in the share of workers can lead to labor shortages, which may raise the bargaining power of employees and lift wages — all of which is ultimately inflationary,” Simona Paravani-Mellinghoff, managing director at BlackRock, wrote in an analysis last year.

“Have babies,” said the billionaire, “or else who am I going to exploit in the future?”

Getting real sick of all these different foreign governments abusing shitty campaign finance laws to fleece Americans out of tax money while shielding themselves from the consequences of their own actions. Everyone standing in the way of campaign finance reform is explicitly on the take, it’s never been more obvious.

Anyone else also hesitant to comment on stories like this because you just know some zionist POS is gonna pop up out of the woodwork to say some dumb shit about hamas?

For Bacon, Lewis’ son, the lack of charges is an open wound. He worries no one will remember what happened given the passage of almost four years — and the number of others killed by police under questionable circumstances.

At this point, the damage is done. A child has to grow up without his father. They had the trooper in jail for 100 days, paid the Bacon family 4.5 million, and only agreed not to prosecute the trooper because he signed a pledge to never work in law enforcement again. So they know he F-ed up, but what’s with the slap on the wrist for the trooper? He shot this black man in the forehead, 1.6 seconds after stopping his patrol car. I don’t even understand why he got out of his car so quick after successfully pitting the guys car. The guys car is perpendicular to the road, in a ditch, with your squad car behind it. Why are you jumping out with your gun drawn? God, you’d think he’d be jumping out to make sure the driver was OK, but nope.

Someone driving intoxicated should be punished, not murdered.

When I started my first “real” job, where I got health insurance, it was an absolute nightmare trying to find a therapist through their network. I remember having to call them to figure out if they would cover visits to a specialist in trauma. Sat on hold for an hour and 45 minutes, just to get some random woman who would NOT give me any information until I told her “why” I needed to see a therapist.

After trying unsuccessfully to skip past the question, she kept asking, so I said fine, and trauma dumped all over her. I’ll save you the details, but I could tell she was shaken once I finished. After all that bullshit, she still couldn’t even tell me if the provider was covered or not, and instead sent me a 90 page non-searchable PDF listing a bunch of random therapists in random order located all over the state (which was negative help). I was so upset I just hung up on her.

Medicare for all. Health insurance is a scam that bankrupts Americans, puts barriers between you and care, and actively harms all of us collectively.

Empathy in all things, friend! When I originally posted my comments, I was all full of piss and vinegar. I was fresh from my city’s pride parade festival, and as per usual, there were a bunch of protestors, hucksters, and others trying to scream at, ridicule, and scam everyone in attendance. What should be a safe space, gets turned into something else. I guess that’s what happens when you try to be extra inclusive, you end up welcoming everyone who would also try to ruin the event. It upset me. Particularly this article, where it seems like now even just being overweight gives people the entitlement to steamroll what should be a celebration of gay culture.

That being said, I do have empathy for people addicted to sugar and carbs. When I’m extra sad, I let myself splurge on calories because it’s better than the two alternatives, booze and suicide. And when I’m sad for long enough, I gain weight, and then that becomes another thing to be sad about. It usually culminates in my becoming so upset that I say “EFF IT” and start working out/eating better. Losing weight ALWAYS helps me feel better again. The process of taking control of what I eat and how/when I exercise is fundamental to tackling my depression.

and one of the best tips you can give to someone just starting out, is how to find fast food that’s healthy. Pro-tip, get the wheat bread at subway. The Sweet-onion chicken teriyaki sandwich is only 360 calories and tastes amazing.

congrats, you identify as the only thing dumber than a conservative

I had this problem. How I solved it was signing up for the planet fitness near the office. I was always too tired after the commute to work out at home, but found that if I go straight from work to the gym, I could get an hour workout in, while also skipping some of the heaviest traffic. Even if you show up, put on your gym clothes, and free-spin on an exercise bike for 30 minutes, it’s more than you’re doing now, and will add up.

The amount of refined sugar and high fructose corn syrup that the U.S. allows in our foodstuffs is so much that it’d carry criminal penalties in European countries. That shit can be just as addictive as heroin, and is in EVERYTHING. It’s also been shown that sweet but sugar free substances that let your body taste sweet without receiving any glucose, increases your craving for the real thing. So while eating sugar free stuff can help satisfy a sweet craving, it can also exacerbate it.

When I see an overweight person, I don’t think “oh what a lazy POS,” I think “There is someone in the throes of addiction.”

There’s a reason Jenny Craig modeled her weight watchers club after AA.

yeah, I get that.

But here’s the thing.

Everyone feels judged at the beach.

You’re in a state of undress, in public. Bright sun illuminating everything, where the main activity is sitting and staring.

If you’re fat you feel judged for your belly.

If you’re a woman you feel judged for your attire.

If you’re a man you feel judged for your lack of muscles.

If you’re a teen you feel judged (I’m pretty sure this is just a permanent state of feeling judged between ages 13-23).

If you’re alone you feel judged for being alone.

Everyone feels judged at the beach.

But that’s OK because who cares what they think anyway? fuck’em, enjoy the feeling of sand between your toes. See how far you can punt that child. Collect a seashell.

oh look it’s one of the three conservative jokes.

Should probly identify as an attack helicopter that hates his wife, make this comment the trifecta of dumbfuck.

CS gas

Science Direct website says that

In contrast to other forms of chemical exposure, irrigating the affected area will only intensify and prolong the effects of CS gas or particles.

Thank you! I texted my father, saying “oh, look another year down!” and he replied “ok,” and told me his plans for later that day. So you’re actually the only person to have congratulated me on this so far. So, thanks!

Have you tried recumbent bicycles? they are a lot easier on my lower back, and there are some real fun designs out there like trikes that could make bicycling a reality again. Or swimming, when I hurt my knees and couldn’t run/bicycle without pain, I started swimming laps, and holy cow is that a lot of exercise if you’re not used to it.

Additionally, refined sugar is addictive. I know my previous comment might lead you to believe I have no sympathy for wider folks, but I truly do. I’ve lost 100lbs over a year once. I gain back when I go through periods of depression, and then I force myself to lose weight again. Over last holiday season I was separated from my family and spent it entirely alone. I gained about 25-30 lbs. Since then, I’ve restricted my calorie intake to around 1200-1500 calories a day, with around an hour of exercise also each day. I’ve lost ~25 lbs since starting that in March. I know how hard losing weight can be. I’m also a (former) addict, so I know how hard quitting something that’s ubiquitous throughout society can be (alcohol). But it can be done. Sugar is addictive just like alcohol is, which is why Jenny Craig modeled her fitness groups after AA.

The problem is that losing weight is uncomfortable at first. You’re hungry because your stomach is all stretched out, despite taking in enough calories for the day. It takes time for your stomach to shrink to the proper size, so for the first couple weeks, you’ll be eating all your body needs, but it will feel like you’re not. and it’s uncomfortable. Weigh this discomfort against all the discomfort that being overweight has constantly provided, and decide which one you’d rather live through. The temporary discomfort of feeling hungry and not knowing what to do with your hands after you’re done eating for the day (and only for the first couple weeks of dieting), or the constant discomfort all over your body and in your own mind, every day that you’re overweight.

Pride is for people who were routinely ostracized, beaten, disowned, and murdered because they were different in a way they couldn’t change.

Being overweight is something you can change.

Being fat has always been accepted. It’s just not celebrated, because it’s not healthy, indicates that you don’t take care of your body, and/or you don’t have control over your eating habits. There are rare circumstances when weight is influenced by a medical condition, but generally it’s people eating too much and not moving enough. Being fat is looked down on the same way as being un-showered, wearing dirty torn clothes, or smelling bad. It’s not the person, but the way this person presents themselves, and it can be changed. It’s like if a guy wears offensive slogan t-shirts every day, and gets upset when people aren’t especially nice to him. It’s your own doing, my guy.

Were you kicked out of your family because you’re fat? Were you fired from your job because you were fat? Were you denied healthcare because you were fat? When was the last time someone targeted fat people for a mass shooting?

Fat acceptance is just an attempt at finding victim hood within habitual self-flagellation.

But also, I’ve never fat shamed anyone, I’ve never picked on someone because of their weight, or “judged” them. People who do that are assholes. I’m just upset that pride is being routinely co-opted by other movements like furries, fat acceptance, and all this other nonsense that, again, nobody was ever actually hurt over. I’m sorry you feel judged at the beach, but gay people are routinely murdered because they’re gay and pride is a protest.