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BenFranklinsCat

Reddit URLhttps://www.reddit.com/user/BenFranklinsCat
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  • Worth checking the Dugs n Pubs site for places you can take them to eat and drink! https://www.dugswelcome.com/dogfriendly/dogsfriendlypubs/glasgow-dogfriendlypubs/ by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 15th Nov 2021 3:18pm)
  • Yeah, we've had this in the past too. It's definitely variable between drivers. We used to take my Mum's dog with our and our cousin's to the park all at once, and sometimes they made us take separate trips and sometimes they didn't. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 15th Nov 2021 3:17pm)
  • Problem is the way we use prison and the way we view justice in society. No amount of prison time is "appropriate" to a particular crime. If we're going to have prisons, it should be where we put people that cannot be part of a reasonable society, and we should keep them there until they are capable of such. Which, in my unachievable utopian ideal, would mean it's an absolute last resort for when a panel of psychiatrists and criminal profilers can spot someone like this. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 18th Nov 2021 8:10am)
  • In New York they discovered that investing in making people's homes and surrounding areas prettier tends to make them prouder of living there, but the problem in Glasgow is you have to literally undo three or four generations of people who feel so disenfranchised they want to smash anything organised you put in front of them. We had the same problem in Dundee before I moved here. That deep an issue won't go away in a generation, but every time we try something and it doesn't work within a few years people write it off with some classist shite about neds and then move on. :( by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 22nd Nov 2021 7:49am)
  • True - when I was moving back to Scotland this year my wife and I took a Google Maps tour of the Hilltown and I was really amazed at how well they'd turned some of those areas around. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 22nd Nov 2021 8:37am)
  • I've moved back here from the Netherlands and I can't begin to tell you how amazing a well organised public transport network is. Of course some people won't listen when I say that because it was a leading Dutch company that took over the Scottish rail network, but the reason they had so many problems was that the prior holders of the networks hadn't updated anything, so they were forced to continually close stretches while they modernised, and they were blamed for it ... truth is anyone trying to update Scottish trains needs to rebuild significantly. Glasgow is amazing but its entire transport infrastructure is fucked up, as is such a huge portion of its local level politics. I haven't the foggiest what it needs to sort it out, but we could start with a good corruption investigation and go from there. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 6th Dec 2021 7:19am)
  • Well, I'm reporting it the way I heard it - perhaps it's more that Network Rail dragged their feet with upgrades? Either way, the Dutch company are doing great work in the Netherlands and were blaming the state of the British infrastructure and our unwillingness to bear the burden of updating for their struggles to recreate their success, and it seems about right to me. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 6th Dec 2021 11:53am)
  • Have used many airports around the country ... it's small but that just means you don't have to take a bus from Gregg's to WH Smith. It's fairly well laid out, and the staff get you through relatively quickly (if anyone feels they've had a bad experience with slow moving lines, wait until you're in the cattle herd of Heathrow Immigration with the oppressive "prove your worth" vibes). So not sure I really agree, short of it not being a Heathrow sized monstrosity. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 21st Dec 2021 8:03am)
  • Or Anna and the Apocalypse, that one's pretty good too. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 1st Jan 2022 4:53am)
  • I've stood on the Chicago street they used for the tanker flip scene in Batman Begins on a gloomy rainy day, and it's really recognisable, so there's places you can technically visit! by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 16th Jan 2022 12:04am)
  • Yeah, that's what I meant by "stood on the Chicago street" ... not the Glasgow street made to look like Chicago. But yeah, I got the movie wrong. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 16th Jan 2022 9:52pm)
  • Oh shit ... I used that car park to go to the new Vue cinema in St Enoch (there's a terminal where you can put in your reg and your parking is discounted to £1) but never actually checked that they charged me ... by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 14th Feb 2022 2:19pm)
  • I have a major conundrum on my hands, because my local is brilliant but he's a Labour guy and I just don't think I can hold my nose long enough to vote Labour. At this point I'm voting SNP on the basis that we need to sever our connection to the rotting carcass of Westminster and then sort our own shit out once we have. No matter the socio-economic consequences of independence, they can't be worse than being saddled to the sinking ship of Tory-dominated post-colonialism, and I can't come up with anything we couldn't deal with well enough ourselves. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 3rd May 2022 9:29am)
  • Did he seriously just say that he's arresting this guy because of George Floyd's death? Or was he saying he wanted to seize your phone because of the George Floyd protests? I mean the protests were because an officer killed a man when he had no right to even assault him, and the man was found guilty of murder, so ... what's the logic here? Didn't that officer basically just admit he wants to avoid there being incriminating evidence of his own wrongdoing? by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 24th May 2022 12:57pm)
  • Ah, I had the voices the wrong way around, I thought it was the officer saying "George Floyd" as a defence for what he was doing, was very confused. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 24th May 2022 3:13pm)
  • If nothing else it's good to report them for the statistics. If nobody reports crimes where nothing can haporn then it's like they never happen, therefore nothing can happen about them, and so on ... by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 6th Jun 2022 12:14pm)
  • If you're going for food I call it "ooh, we're being fancy tonight are we?" Except with heavy sarcasm because unless it's the prepared lobster or something like that, we're eating the same shite you'd get out of Tesco but paying an extra £20. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 14th Jun 2022 10:30pm)
  • I mean I rely on the 17 from West Coast and although they take a circuitous route that almost doubles the driving time, they're a relatively good service. £2.99 for an all day ticket that takes me miles out Not to take anything away from all your stories, but the issue seems to quite specifically be FirstBus (and Scotrail). by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 18th Jun 2022 8:44pm)
  • Outside the Hillhead Book Club there's a good bit of space, and I've seen a couple buskers there, but generally Byres road is a busy thoroughfare with narrow pavements, so probably not going to get a lot of attention. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 27th Jun 2022 4:06pm)
  • Tricky one though - can't judge a book by its cover. Lipoedema, for example, isn't exactly rare but can create unremovable fat deposits in certain spots (mostly waist, arms and upper legs) and there's no amount of exercise or diet that removes them. I can understand where you're coming from when it's genuinely a lifestyle choice made out of arrogance or ignorance, but you can't tell from looking if it's that, or the result of a condition. And that's not even taking into account mental health issues, depression or eating disorders. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 21st Jul 2022 5:38pm)
  • I wouldn't say that was ignorance either though. There's a genuine problem that can be seen in all societies where poverty prevents people from eating healthily, and a lack of education doesn't help. I think the actual number of people who are obese because of some kind of personal choice is really probably minuscule. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 21st Jul 2022 9:34pm)
  • The way some people react to these things shows that we do have a big problem with casual drinking. My family tore itself apart over it - a Protestant marrying a Muslim? Of course that's okay. A joint Protestant-Muslim wedding? We can work something out, totally reasonable. No alcohol at the reception? You have SHAMED this family and we will never talk to you again. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 24th Jul 2022 11:14am)
  • They ran off and, ironically, got married in Vegas surrounded by even more booze, and the family didn't speak until my aunt's funeral several years later. I was being facetious, it was a bit more complicated. The Muslim bride expected the husband's family to pay for everything and was offended that they were arguing for any concessions, pretty much an "everyone sucks here" outcome. Also I got confused, it was the Catholic side not the Protestant one. Lot of nonsense. Very glad my parents broke away and raised my sister and I as atheists, even if it did mean the aunts all think we're bound for hell/limbo. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 24th Jul 2022 2:52pm)
  • While I agree it isn't a good compromise, you lose me at "who wants to hang around a wedding all day sober" on two counts: 1. If you can't face a social scenario/celebration sober, you're proving my earlier point that we have a very big problem with a need for casual alcohol consumption and 2. Weddings aren't about you, they're a celebration of the bride and groom. So unless their request is unreasonably uncomfortable for people, it should be met. If sobriety for an afternoon/evening is unreasonably uncomfortable for you, I would direct you back to point (1): some of us have a serious problem with casual/social alcohol dependency! by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 24th Jul 2022 11:50pm)
  • It's a Conservative's economy. It's designed for the rich to get richer and the poor to get poorer. Give it another generation or two and there'll be no middle class to speak of, and not in any good sense. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 3rd Aug 2022 6:07pm)
  • If you've got a car, Paisley Showcase is where it's at. Decent seats, quality screen, almost always quiet, and the food is alright. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 19th Aug 2022 8:10pm)
  • Weird as it sounds, my wife and I have started trying to tour all the cinemas we can so I'll definitely check that one out! Weird (and kinda sad) that due to insane parking costs, public transport, and the excessively steep geography of Glasgow City Centre, it will actually be easier for us to visit there than finally hit up the Everyman in town. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 20th Aug 2022 12:16am)
  • Huh. You're right, I take that back. For some reason I had it in my head that it was somewhere up by Blythswood, which my partner couldn't comfortably walk to. Guess we're taking the bus to Central for our next cinema trip! by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 20th Aug 2022 9:47am)
  • Having just moved back from The Netherlands, Glasgow is absolutely and completely unfit for cycling. I've been here a year now and not had my big fancy bike out once, because no matter what I'll have to huff the thing up steps and ride in roads that are already tight and tense when I'm in the car. I'm all for getting cars out of the city centre but it's going to take a lot of work to make decent cycle routes (complete with speed control to reign in the crazy delivery bikers) and better accessible metro transport. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 30th Aug 2022 5:47pm)
  • Number 1 reason I wish we could legalise it - the smell of cheap stanky weed vs the lemony fresh smell of properly cultivated herb. People are gonna smoke, at least let them smoke the good stuff rather than the bathtub gin equivalent they do right now. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 19th Sep 2022 12:39am)
  • I've had a friend get put in hospital with "non-Covid flu" and they told her it's most likely a variant that isn't showing up on tests. I think it's rare and maybe needs the right combo of test/strain/person but it's not unheard of that it could be Covid. I also had a cold/sore throat for about a week before testing positive with my last bout, which felt like you describe - absolutely dying, couldn't get out of bed for two days, and onto week 3 of recovery and still feeling the effects. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 19th Sep 2022 12:56pm)
  • Shops will say that it's not their responsibility what customers do when they leave the premises, but if I had guests over and the guests dumped rubbish in the street outside you can bet the council would blame me, so ... by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 21st Sep 2022 11:24am)
  • I stay in a wee place called Duntocher. No drama, no trouble, and the #17 from West Coast Motors runs right through it. Hardgate shops 5m down the road, Clydebank not much further. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 9th Oct 2022 12:38pm)
  • Be aware, if you do, that the government just passed a bill that allows them to electronically tag you and forbid you from meeting with certain people just in case you try this. And that's on top of classing public disorder and nuisance as threatening behaviour a while back, so you can be jailed for it. That said, it's the only tool we have left and they're trying to take it from us bit by bit. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 21st Oct 2022 12:00pm)
  • That's a fair point, I'm not sure. I always get confused trying to understand devolved law and what is and isn't applicable. Hopefully it doesn't apply to us. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 21st Oct 2022 2:02pm)
  • I always thought it was a capitalism thing. I've heard people say "why would I thank someone for doing their job?". Same with why some people chuck their litter on the ground (or on the floor of the bus, which is extra cunty as we're all stuck in this stupid tin can together for the next 45 minutes), they seem to think it's okay because someone is employed to clean up after them. I love that Scotland defends itself on that front with some traditions - the same as thanking people in a shop as you leave (even if I use the self checkout, I'll normally mutter "thanks" to anyone that's standing near them). If we stop being nice to people that are providing us a service and treat people as paid drones, we eliminate any intrinsic motivation they have to do the job well and promote doing only as much as you're paid for - and bus drivers aren't paid to be nice to you as board. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 26th Oct 2022 11:43am)
  • The ones in the shop are straight up Charlie Brown ugly. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 4th Dec 2022 2:40pm)
  • I was there that night! Fucking legendary, they had booked Insane Championship Wrestling to do a couple matches earlier in the night, so there was a bunch of ACTUAL pro wrestlers that had been drinking until 3am and they tried to chuck them out before Taker/Michaels ... Me and my mates were down by the doors trying to decide what to do after the staff had turned the TVs off. We left after seeing the manager lock himself and a couple staff members in the office for their own safety and hearing glass/wood smashing up the stairs. Kinda wish I'd had the balls to stick it out now ... by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 23rd Jan 2023 12:17pm)
  • DELETED > Glasgow has the lowest percentage in Scotland of people with access to a vehicle > Glasgow’s population swells massively during the day. In other words, nobody in Glasgow owns a car because the traffic is terrible. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 26th Jan 2023 10:08pm)
  • I saw a comment a while back that Britain is the only nation not to have had a major revolution (or to have had a directly attached neighbour revolt) in the past however-many years, and it's a contributing factor to us having a culture of subservience and putting up with things- whereas France or Germany would have burned Westminster to the ground years ago. I've been saying this for almost 10 years now but it feels like we're going to have to go through something BIG to make a change happen. I don't like it, I don't want to see people hurt, but I think some kind of uprising might be the only possible outcome of everything that's happened. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 9th Mar 2023 7:12am)
  • Spent 10 years in NL and would heartily recommend vaping over smoking. No tobacco, no smoke in your lungs and less pungent aroma. I had a Firefly vape pen that you put crushed weed into, and it superheated it without burning it. Worked a treat. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 17th Mar 2023 5:55pm)
  • I mean technically vape is short for vaporiser, but I guess people don't use them interchangeably nowadays? If by "vape" you mean liquid vaporiser, the Firefly actually had an adapter that would allow you to use a liquid chamber, so I guess it's both? by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 17th Mar 2023 11:21pm)
  • Addiction can also be self-medication. I have ADHD and I used to drink to quiet the buzzing in my brain. I could easily get addicted to coke since my brain is constantly low on dopamine. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 23rd Mar 2023 5:21pm)
  • I'm so lucky I ended up on a West Coast Motors route into my work. 3.50 all day ticket, and it's a pretty reliable service. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 11th Apr 2023 7:55pm)
  • That's the key thing, I think. People don't just turn into careless antisocial bastards overnight. Glasgow has a history of picking areas to spend money on and ignoring the others, and if you grew up in a space where the people supposedly looking after you didn't care a shit about it's upkeep, then there's a good chance you just learn not to give a shit either. It's how New York City became the shithole city it was in the 70s and 80s. They eventually figured out that the way make your place nice is to spend money on the bits that look the worst, not the best (though admittedly that can also lead to gentrification, which is another thing Glasgow has issues with). If Glasgow could sort it's council out, spread money around fairly, and stop putting pots of cash into rebuilding George Square every 3 years, they could definitely improve things. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 12th Apr 2023 8:41pm)
  • Sadly, while staffies can be dangerous IF they attack, most of them are big lazy softies who love belly rubs. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 13th Apr 2023 9:30pm)
  • Just to balance all the depressing stories in here, I went to see Anamanaguchi in King Tut's and I was amazed. 100+ super nerdy and socially anxious kids bouncing up and down and having a polite raucous time. Highlight was when the band's colour changing lights tipped over and the crowd grabbed them - not only did they just politely pass it around a lap of the crowd and then gently place it back on the stage, they even made sure the cable was held up the whole time and didn't get tugged on or tangled. Love a good nerd gig. Also went to see Ben Folds at the amphitheatre a couple years back, and there were a couple lassies at the front who clearly didn't know Ben's solo stuff and were there expecting a Ben Folds Five style gig. They weren't that loud but kept trying to start people dancing and stuff. Ben clocked them half way through and had some banter with them, then tried to accommodate them by covering "Great Balls of Fire" but forgot the words! It was a good night all round. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 14th Apr 2023 3:41pm)
  • Try Rum Barber. I'm biased since I know them but they eliminated gender from their pricing just for this reason! They charge for long or shot hair instead of mens or womens cuts. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 22nd Apr 2023 10:31am)
  • "In a fit state" is so legally loose that they can easily say you were acting a bit off one day so we're keeping your money. Will be amazed if anyone actually falls for this. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 10th May 2023 9:47pm)
  • Falone's in Duntocher. Won awards for their chips. Well out the way of anything worth seeing otherwise though. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 24th May 2023 9:44pm)
  • I'm surprised we dont have a movie like this. Like an Armando Ianucci-directed version of Greenland/Day After Tomorrow, where an ecological disaster threatens to wipe out mankind and the UK government puts out a message that sleepily suggests that everyone kindly make their way to a shelter, but that everything isn't that bad and there's no need to fuss too much. Our everyday hero sensibly panics and hightails it out the city, but their way is blocked by upper-middle-class Conservative types packing picnics in their oversized Range Rovers and muttering about how it was probably the immigrants' fault, while lava pours through Hyde Park and hail stones the size of footballs smash the M1 to smithereens. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 1st Jun 2023 9:54am)
  • Nah mate, cognitive behavioural therapy. Man's needing to master his impulses and reevaluate his emotions so he can ride in balance. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 12th Jun 2023 10:55pm)
  • That's probably great, but I'll never know because the moment I get into Piece I want to order a Dirty Fat Boy. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 7th Jul 2023 1:55pm)
  • Oh you absolute bastard. Guess I'm headed into town for lunch this week. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 7th Jul 2023 4:17pm)
  • Contrary to some of the opinions here, I kinda miss Dundee as someone who used to live there. It was a lot easier to socialise, and there was a lot less pretension in a lot of the arts/music scenes. Like, some real wanker-y nonsense at times, but you could always turn up and join in with things. Everyone was on the same level. In Glasgow every music and arts event is about people looking for the big time and trying to get famous. Every gig is either a blockbuster or a dud. Every food venue either gets massively crowded and becomes super famous or it folds in a couple weeks. That said, it's bigger, there's more to do, and in most places the vibe is a bit happier and less glum than in Dundee. Transport is 6 and 1/2 a dozen ... better in some ways (there's more of it) worse in others (1st Bus is way worse than McGills for being both useless and unscrupulous). Its hard to say if its a clear better/worse. Glasgow has more opportunity and a different kind of charm, while I found Dundee a bit more welcoming in its own way. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 10th Jul 2023 9:37am)
  • I haven't really experienced the metal scene in Glasgow. I think classic metal & punk scenes have always had great vibes, then there was that awful period where the post-punk/[whatever]core metal scene came up with all the poser bullshitters screaming nonsensically and throwing windmills in the pit ... they can fuck off. As far as I can tell that somehow led to a death metal resurgence since then and we're back to the good old days of battle jackets and mosh pit etiquette? Afraid by then I'd gone from punk to goth to industrial to electronica, and now I'm 1/2 cheesy synthwave and 1/2 acoustic folk, depending on my mood. The gig scene for indie rock/folk is great if you like following up and coming famous bands but not so much if you like playing and having a laugh. I saw a lot more experimentation and weird stuff at gigs in Dundee, because everyone kinda knew you weren't going to get a record label by playing Duke's Corner or Drouthy's. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 10th Jul 2023 8:28pm)
  • I've come to a middle ground which means "don't enable the dumbass bits of the system" or "don't report things if there isn't any trouble". Like, you don't have to report folk drinking in public, even if they're teenagers, if they're not trouble. You don't need to call the cops on Jim from the pub just because he does a bit of cash-in-hand work so he can afford his mortgage without struggling. But you absolutely call the cops if people are being antisocial, breaking things, creating a mess, and you grass the shit out of greedy landlords and big corpos that dodge taxes so they can buy a bigger yacht. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 11th Jul 2023 5:14pm)
  • Depends what you define as a negative impact. The rise in conservative politics has led to a lot of pearl-clutching "they'll bring down the value of our neighbourhood" or "they make me afraid to go outside" type complaints about things around my area. There's no harm in kids hanging about outside the shops playing football and chatting. Even if they're splitting a half bottle of voddy on a Friday night, they're not casuing havoc or smoking crack. Calling the cops on them for no serious reason is actually how gangs get started in the first place! by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 12th Jul 2023 10:10am)
  • Or you'd have two bins getting burned down. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 20th Jul 2023 11:58am)
  • DELETED What a terrible thing to have happen! Didn't suspect that r/autism problems, like people's misunderstanding and dismissal of nonverbal people, weren't just constrained to autistic people! by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 27th Jul 2023 12:36pm)
  • This is the worst part of the conspiracy. They've twisted the idea of 15 minute walkable neighborhoods into the idea that they want to control freedom of movement, and they'll be taking our cars away from us because its all a big socialist agenda. The irony is that, in the end, they've talked their way from a progressive policy that attacks big corporations and puts more emphasis on local produce and empowerment of individuals, to a policy that's supporting auto manufacturers and big companies. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 29th Jul 2023 4:02pm)
  • Amazingly there's still a LazerQuest in the city. I've been in, it's like walking through abandoned sets from the fist series of Red Dwarf. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 30th Jul 2023 8:32pm)
  • Nah, across the river, near the Quay. Portman Street, behind the Wonder World soft play area. There's a pretty cool full body VR place there as well - they have a 4 player Left 4 Dead style game you can do in an empty room, £20 per person. Edit: I feel bad saying "full body VR" - they've got backpack PCs and ankle-mounted extra Vive trackers. But it's a cool setup, worth visiting if you like VR games. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 30th Jul 2023 9:25pm)
  • NHS sound awful for this stuff. I got diagnosed with ADHD while overseas and have been on meds since I moved back home. Thankfully my GP talked to the other doctor and hasn't questioned my prescription, but I'm worried that if I say anything I might end up with someone taking my meds off me ... they literally saved my life, and I go back to being miserable and angry when I'm taken off them for too long. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 2nd Aug 2023 8:15am)
  • Yeah, that's my fear. My GP seems cool with just leaving it but I know it would better for me to have reviews. I've just heard so many horror stories about NHS docs and psychs who "don't believe in ADHD/medication" and it seems the regulation isn't really there to protect patients from opinionated doctors right now ... by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 2nd Aug 2023 10:39am)
  • Got to say I didn't like Everyman. Food was underwhelming, plus very hard to eat given the lack of room. The chairs aren't tiny but they're not giant recliners like you get at Vue or Cineworld, and the screen was tiny and washed out. Felt like I'd paid for the vibe but not the experience. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 2nd Aug 2023 11:51pm)
  • This is a big part of why I wish it was legal. Have you ever smelled homemade moonshine? If you read news reports from the prohibition era they talk about the disgusting, overpowering stench of alcohol. The gross burnt tire smell you get all around Glasgow right now is shitty skunk, the result of people not having any choice and buying whatever their dealer has. Good, casual daily smoking weed tends to smell fresh and floral. There's a lot of rich funky smelling strains, but they're more party strains that you wouldn't be smoking in public (the equivalent of a red bull vs a bottle of tequila). Legalisation wouldn't immediately mean people started smoking more sensibly but it would definitely be the first step to letting social convention dictate behaviour, and I firmly believe that once the excitement died down you'd have far fewer kids smoking skunk at the bus stop. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 13th Aug 2023 11:33pm)
  • European drug laws just don't make sense sometimes. In the Netherlands its still illegal to buy and sell weed, just decriminalised: you can be arrested for it but the *policy* is to not charge you for it. So shops can exist as long as the police agree, which is shady as fuck because the police can just turn around and shut them down whenever they want, so essentially they've got to be paying someone off. On top of that, you're only allowed to grow 2 small plants, so who supplies the shops? Netherlands still have drug task forces who go out to look for cannabis farms. All they have to do is stake out a shop. I'm all for legalisation but it has to be full proper legalisation or nothing in my opinion. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 13th Aug 2023 11:40pm)
  • Care to elaborate on what part you disagree with? by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 14th Aug 2023 11:13am)
  • Sounds like you've never lived anywhere with legal or decriminalised cannabis. The benefits to cutting down on antisocial use have been observed there. And yes, if you take care to buy selective cannabis strains some have as much effect on you as a can of red bull while others will knock you off your feet. As a result, in cultures where these things are socially accepted, there's casual use and there's party use. I'm sorry you don't believe it, I can't imagine how else to explain it other than you should go take a serious look at how cultures that have accepted cannabis use are operating. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 14th Aug 2023 12:49pm)
  • Well clearly you're stuck in your vision of it, but in case it changes your mind at all, Amsterdam sticks of weed because of weed tourism. Coffee shops full of tourists getting out their box in the middle of the afternoon isn't something you see anywhere else. The rest of the Netherlands doesn't have the same issues you get in Glasgow, outside of where you'd normally smell alcohol too - there's a bit of a whiff in the park sometimes, and there's always some bams hottboxing in a car park on a Saturday night, but in 8 years of living around the country I never found it as annoying as I find it in Glasgow, and I'm pretty sure that's down to the fact nobody can shop around for sensible strains for use at different times. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 14th Aug 2023 1:37pm)
  • I know it's a daft thing to be upset about, but one of my favourite pro wrestlers just died in his early 30s. Now, on one hand he comes from a line of wrestlers who have had heart attacks and other issues, but they all lived happy lives. Maybe retired earlier than others, but didn't die spontaneously one night from a heart attack. The deciding factor? Covid. It weakened his heart further. Do you remember that kid that dropped dead of a heart attack a while back, and some doctors talked about the mystery of 30-something heart-related deaths on the rise? Or the wave of excessive stomach bugs in schools, much worse than we've seen? Fuck this harmful conspiracy bullshit. These people don't deserve a platform, they should be run out of town for the sake of everyone that's legitimately lost someone to this pandemic. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 25th Aug 2023 11:41am)
  • Put simply, we know how Covid works. It's a degenerative cellular condition that attacks soft tissue areas of the body - lungs, brain, heart - and we know how the vaccine works. "Studies" - and I say this as an academic whose job it is to understand this stuff - can theoretically draw statistical connections between things. They should be used to inspire scientific explanation of things. I'm sure that there's a correlation between people who have had the vaccine and people who have died of heart and lung issues that are similar to Covid. I'm sure of this because Covid is rife across the world and has been for a long time. So most of us have had covid at one point or another. Without a way to isolate people from having ever had covid and then test the vaccine on them, there's no way you can statistically prove that the vaccine causes people to die from covid-like body trauma. But autopsies and scientific experiments have shown empirically what covid does to the body. So rather than conclude that death from covid-like bodily damage is caused by the vaccine, or the time of the year, or anything else you can draw a statistical correlation to, I'd rather conclude that covid-related symptoms that cause death are most likely caused by covid. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 25th Aug 2023 12:11pm)
  • Congratulations on not reading my comment. Studies can show a lot of things, that doesn't make them true. Numerous studies together with empirical evidence is generally considered to be what we refer to as truth nowadays. If you would rather panic about a few small correlations that's your own business, but when you start peddling that as absolute truth, that's when you're kidding yourself and potentially causing harm. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 25th Aug 2023 1:30pm)
  • > kids (who have no risk) Wow. Like, wow. Okay. Kids are, it would seem, at less risk of *dying* **directly** from Covid. Less risk, not only risk. And only of dying directly. Not less risk of long term effects. Wow. That, right there, is why you're doing harm. You are putting kids in harm's way with twisted logic. by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 25th Aug 2023 3:56pm)
  • Does make me wonder if its down to the state of the world. I always have this belief that people always act in the way that's presented to them - so people who live in shitty housing districts will end up being shitty litterbugs because the council hasn't bothered to care about the upkeep of the place, and it becomes a vicious cycle. Well, our government showed us during Covid that they didn't give two shits about our wellbeing, threw parties while we were stuck in our homes, embezzled money on dodgy contracts with their cronies, etc. So now the society they govern see no reason they should give two shits about people. Sadly the answer is to be strong, be the change you want to see in others, etc, but it can be overwhelming when the people in power have so much more influence. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 29th Aug 2023 4:38pm)
  • Pretty clear from the range of responses this is down to particular spots in Glasgow. I really wish this place would learn to spread funding around a bit more - history has really shown that if you continually put money into the "good" bits of a city, you end up with antisocial behaviour going through the roof in the under funded places. The trick is you have to give the most money to the places that are doing worst, and trust that in time they'll develop respect for their surroundings while letting the good places slide a bit so they develop a bit of humility and character. Constant balancing act. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 29th Aug 2023 4:45pm)
  • Unfortunately I think we're in the minority. Most folk around here blame antisocial behaviour in rough areas on the inhabitants... and while I'm all for a discussion of free will and personal responsibility, I don't think leaving shit areas to be shit areas is ever a solution. by BenFranklinsCat (Tue 29th Aug 2023 4:53pm)
  • > Usual response to that is you can't polish a turd. Definitely something I can appreciate. I always think that societal change takes time, though. We're talking about the way people get shaped by upbringing - there isn't any fixing that at times, and you have to live through scumbags seeming ungrateful to make changes happen. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 30th Aug 2023 12:19pm)
  • In terms of getting the work done, this is why you're as well paying the extra to go to a major chain like Halfords. The people there are salaried, they've got no incentive to rip you off and every incentive to get the work done and be rid of you. Without being a mechanic at all, it sounds to me like they ripped you off pretty bad. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 31st Aug 2023 12:13pm)
  • Maybe not a popular idea but as an HE teacher it would make a huge impact on the quality of Uni and College education if these places were affordable enough for students to share them. Right now I have students trekking in from everywhere, some travelling up to 2 hours or more, and unless we can block timetable classes and lectures together then they're either out a fortune (and half their day) for one class, or they just don't turn up (and I can't blame them for that). by BenFranklinsCat (Fri 1st Sep 2023 12:51pm)
  • Glasgow really hs me torn. The creative side of me looks on at the endless rows of kebab shops and thinks "is this it? Do people just want the same greasy flavourless shit all day, so much that we can sustain so many identical outlets?" Then the down to earth side of me sees a new place opening up southside that charge £25 for two noodles on a freeze-dried bao bun and thinks "wait, people really fall for this nonsense? I'll have a bag of chips for £1, thanks" by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 4th Sep 2023 1:56pm)
  • Having worked with people who would whisper shit like that amongst themselves, they're just as bad as cat callers. There's a difference between knowing your shit is wrong and fixing it and knowingnyour shit will get you into trouble and hiding it. I can sympathise, because I was very rarely in a position where I could tell a bloke to stop being an asshole behind women's backs, but at the same time it does need said that it's not okay. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 10th Sep 2023 12:55pm)
  • In my case, because there wasn't a structure where I could make a complaint or get it sorted without any backlash. I know its selfish, but I wasn't going to make myself an office pariah and alienate my coworkers over it. Nowadays, having seen/heard more of what it's like for women, I would be more inclined to say something, but thankfully I'm working in a better place. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 10th Sep 2023 4:35pm)
  • Douglas Adams' idea that aliens might destroy earth and consider it ethical because they filed the paperwork and posted the notice in an off-world office has become really, really resonant for me since I discovered Glasgow public transport. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 11th Sep 2023 11:10am)
  • Sex is actually less binary than you'd think, depending on who you ask and what you're referring to. Does the person have a penis or a vulva? That's almost always binary, with a few rare exceptions. Does the person have high testosterone, excessive facial hair growth, etc ... that's a soupy mix of genetic markers, including some pre and some post natal that don't even fully develop until your teens. The correlation between the markers and the observed genitalia map out to two normal distributions - meaning a baby born with a penis is as likely to grow a beard as you are to score 50% in a class test. Maybe, maybe not. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 14th Sep 2023 12:15pm)
  • The problem with that is, who is defining sex that way? I know that what you mean is the capacity to produce either, withstanding biological abnormalities or other issues, but when you phrase it as "the ability to produce sperm or ova" you do invite all sorts of questions about infertility, and we're back to "it's a soupy mix of stuff". It might seem facetious but its true, even that definition is fuzzy at times. Nobody in the pro- or anti-trans argument is going around checking whether you had the chance to produce sperm or ova barring any complications that might result in infertility. They're talking about masculine/feminine body shapes and genetic traits, which is the general social model of sex, which then leads to the more complex issues I was raising. At the end of the day it doesn't matter anyway. Just let trans people be trans people and live their life. Once you get to the point of saying "but technically ..." I think it's a fair indicator you're arguing over something that doesn't matter. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 14th Sep 2023 12:56pm)
  • Cost of living crisis, after all. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 18th Sep 2023 5:44pm)
  • There's actual science behind the attraction of neurodiverse people to one another. It's a running joke that if you meet me and we become friends right away, then I have bad news for you. But keep an eye on the substances. I uses to drink to "quiet the buzz in my head", and years later I found out it was ADHD all along. I got diagnosed and medicated abroad, and thankfully my GP just accepted my overseas diagnosis and kept my medication going ... but I'm scared to talk to them about it in case I end up in front of someone who doesn't trust it. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 28th Sep 2023 5:45pm)
  • So, your choice is your choice and I respect that, but just in case it's part of your reasoning: I was nervous about taking stimulant meds but I can guarantee it doesn't feel like being stimulated. There's no buzz or high or shakes - in fact, I didn't even notice the difference when I started taking them until I was well into cleaning the room and realised all the background noise as faded away and I could just make decisions and act on them like a regular person (for a while). I've been on too high a dose for a bit and got little anxious throughout the day, and the worst side effect is that once I accidentally took my dose twice, but even then I just got really worked up and had to lie down and try and relax, and it passed really quickly. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 28th Sep 2023 5:50pm)
  • Drove to work this week (usually take the bus) and there was someone cycling from Great Western to the back of Buchanan Bus Station, through a complex set of lights, on a rented city bike with no helmet. Absolute madness, no way that's safe enough. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 1st Oct 2023 4:29pm)
  • I'm definitely on the side of getting better bike lines and facilities, but at the same time it's ridiculously unsafe for people to be riding cheap bikes on busy roads without a helmet. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 1st Oct 2023 8:36pm)
  • If you're cycling in traffic you need a helmet. I'm all for fixing up the infrastructure but that doesn't mean it isn't nuts to be out in the busy road without one. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 1st Oct 2023 9:21pm)
  • Cycling in heavy traffic through a difficult junction without a helmet. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 1st Oct 2023 10:49pm)
  • DELETED Humanity has royally fucked the climate hasn't it? Between this and summer fires down in London. Its just going to keep getting worse. Time to dig a bunker and learn to become mole people, I guess? by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 7th Oct 2023 11:19am)
  • Supporting Palestine doesn't have to mean supporting Hamas. Cant we can condone violence without erasing the decades of inhumane treatment that Palestine has endured? If we support Northern Ireland's independence, does that mean we support the violence and terrorism that occurred on the way to it being obtained? by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 9th Oct 2023 11:23am)
  • Yeah, I understand. The thing that stresses me out a out this is history. It's like people think that World War Two began with Hitler magically enthralling the German population. They forget that the Euro nations basically got together and fucked Germany completely with the Treaty of Versailles as "recompense" for World War One, until the people were desperate enough to follow a lunatic who could give them a glint of hope. Or how ISIS rose to power because we "saved" the religious mountain tribes, but didn't care about stabilising the country or supporting the people, and then went on to topple Saddam Hussein but didn't think to stick around and make sure the country got back on its feet. History has shown that black and white thinking, revenge and working with selfish political interests only ever breeds contempt and creates these monsters, and we've built another one I Hamas. If we only stopped thinking eye-for-an-eye and started trying to care about _why_ violence happened, maybe we could stem the tide before it gets worse. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 9th Oct 2023 11:42am)
  • I know what you're saying makes sense to you, but you're missing how the value plays into the market. The valuation is not what the house will sell in a flat market with no multiple buyers or haggling. People are paying over the value because they're trying to outbid each other. So if the house is valued at £210 people end up paying £250 to beat the competition. If you, personally, looked at the house and said - accurately - "this'll go for about £250", then it would go for £290 because, again, competition, and - boom - you've created runaway inflation in house prices. Second to this is insurance and mortgages. These have to be dealt based purely on the value of the house, and not what people pay due to competition ... which, don't get me wrong, is a shitty thing, because if you've already tossed away £50k just to beat your competitors out, and then you only get a 75% mortgage on the rest, you're out a massive chunk of money. But the competition is not guaranteed - feasibly, if the stars aligned just right, you might not get anything over asking price - so the banks' responsibility to lend on tangible assets and not speculation comes up, and they can't give out money based on selling prices. It isn't a great situation for us buyers, but I'm afraid that valuation = sale price isn't accurate and would make things worse. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 12th Oct 2023 6:25am)
  • Unfortunately mortgage companies and banks have a legal responsibility (lol - I know, when it fucking suits them, right? But still) to lend money on tangible assets rather than market speculation. If the competition is forcing people to pay over the value for a property, that's not a guarantee that will happen every time. If the value comes in at £210 and people pay £250, the mortgage company legally can't mortgage it at £250 in case maybe there aren't enough buyers to push the price up. You have to separate "value" from market price, because the value is more fixed (besides inflation/degradation) and the market more fluctuating. Not saying its nice, but it's how markets work. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 12th Oct 2023 6:42am)
  • I thought that too, but the more I think about it the less I'm convinced. Things can go for crazy prices at live auctions as well. I think demand is the biggest factor. When I was purchasing a house years back and overseas, housing was surplus to demand there, and we were bidding under asking prices because if someone bid at asking we could just walk away and pick something else. When we moved back the market was behind demand. Properties were selling within weeks, and we were looking at having to wait a year for a new build (with nothing but horror stories) or get a dreadful "fixer-upper". I really think a lack of choice in the market is a bigger factor than the closed bidding system by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 12th Oct 2023 8:06am)
  • What makes you say that? I get that valuation is a bit of a "black box" scenario and feels very finger-in-the-air but since all we know of the market is the selling price, how can you say it's shite? At the end of the day valuation is just a bartering tool, and what matter is that different evaluators share the same opinions. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 12th Oct 2023 8:34am)
  • > This is how things work in every other country and it is far far far better I'm not sure what you mean here. Having bought property overseas, the valuation process was the same - it wasn't an estimate of the market price after haggling, it was the base value. When we bought, housing was in excess. The house was listed around its value and we paid under that. When we sold, housing was in need, we listed at slightly over it's value and still sold for more than the asking price. What do you think is done differently in other countries? by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 12th Oct 2023 4:01pm)
  • Not doubting that at all. Its a shit situation. The point is it isn't the valuation. That's done the same here as elsewhere. It's the state of our economy. For what it's worth, as far as I know the market is equally as bad where I left (The Netherlands) as it is here, for the same reasons: not enough affordable housing. Its really that bad. There's debate over exactly why we're in this situation, but I'm keeping this conversation going just to say: be angry at the right thing. Whether we need to oust career landlords and AirBnB, or build more cheap flats, or stop immigration (that one can get tae fuck in my opinion) - the situation won't go away until we have enough property within people's price range that they don't have to compete, and then overpayment will go down. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 12th Oct 2023 5:18pm)
  • I live out near Clydebank, and I have to say that while the majority of public transport is a nightmare some lines and services are reliable enough to live by. I commute almost daily on the 17 from West Coast, its 3.50 for a day ticket and its reliable as hell. If you don't mind missing out on big city social life, places outside Glasgow are worth looking at, just check what transport lines you're on. by BenFranklinsCat (Thu 19th Oct 2023 12:58pm)
  • Thing with the Dutch approach is that the whole city is designed around it, and the national culture supports it. Bike lanes down the side of the cobbled roads (missing from images here) and everyone has bikes - including a lot of "baksfiets": big box-carrying bikes that can carry groceries or be fitted with seat belts for kids. On top of that, as much as I loved living over there, it's not overly accessible for wheelchairs or people ith crutches. Swings and roundabouts to some extent. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 4th Nov 2023 11:34am)
  • True, as the partner of someone with mobility issues we're not great. But my partner CAN catch a bus from one end of Glasgow to the other, which she couldn't do in Breda. I'm actually all in favour of more pedestrian zones and getting cars out of our cities but we'd need to find new solutions to ferry people around the space that are inclusive and accessible if we did. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 4th Nov 2023 12:14pm)
  • Ah, no, don't get me wrong. Buses and trains are incredible in NL. But! Depending on the city, their access to certain areas wasn't helpful. Visiting Delft or Breda or anywhere that wasn't a totally modern city, the bus service served the outer rings and there was a 5-10 minute walk over cobblestones or through narrow lanes to get to anything specific. As much as I hate Glasgow being chocka with traffic, my partner finds it easier to get a bus to a specific part of the city here, but in general the transport is way worse. My partner and I didn't even own a car over there, because it was so easy to hop on a bus or a train to another city! I miss that part terribly. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 4th Nov 2023 1:21pm)
  • Yeah, I stayed in Breda which is known for being an "old" city with lovely canals. My partner looked into the history and it turns out they filled in all their canals in the 70s but had to dig them all back out less than 10 years later. Wish we could do something similar but the way we've built the M8 to be a major road, I don't think we could really get a traffic-free Glasgow. by BenFranklinsCat (Sat 4th Nov 2023 4:00pm)
  • I know what you mean and, to tell the truth, the best bet is make it yourself. Every takeaway I know is either absolutely pointless cardboard or artsy fartsy "light dusting of cheese" nonsense. My wife got into cooking during the pandemic and manages to talk me into making pizza dough and sauce from scratch, and while it's not easy to make _good_ pizza, it's easy to make chewy dough and load thar bad boy with smoked apple wood and mature cheddar - I sometimes even chuck chopped up hot dogs on there like an absolute fuckin goblin. You can mess with the sauce too. Some days I'll chuck some balsamic in there for a bit of a kick, other times a bit of sugar if I want that cheap Chicago Town taste. Best shout is Binging With Babish - start out with his recipe. by BenFranklinsCat (Sun 19th Nov 2023 9:41pm)
  • I feel you. We're going to lose people from my sector (education), my associated sector (game development) and even critical stuff like health care, maintenance, engineering, farming ... I also got back to Scotland just in time to see a lot of expat incentives get stripped back from the country I was working in (the Netherlands). I think this wave of right-wing conservatism (is that a word?) is going to take a while to pass across Europe. I've got the worst feeling in the pit of my stomach that the leaders of all those countries are shoring up their borders because of fear of things they're not talking about, like sudden increases in climate collapse and/or the spread of land war. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 6th Dec 2023 8:55am)
  • Netherlands offered 30% of income tax free to people who moved to fill key roles (which educators fell into). Admittedly that was always a bit over the top but it was what attracted a lot of people over, and its being scrapped similarly with nothing to replace it. by BenFranklinsCat (Wed 6th Dec 2023 5:34pm)
  • My coworkers whole family is floored with a stomach bug, and according to Dr Google it could be the latest Covid strain, because the early signs include vomiting and diarrhoea. According to him one of his family members has well over 50% of their kid's class off sick with it all at the same time right now. by BenFranklinsCat (Mon 11th Dec 2023 1:10pm)