Path: ...!eternal-september.org!feeder2.eternal-september.org!news.eternal-september.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail
From: William Hyde <wthyde1953@gmail.com>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written
Subject: Re: Awfully quiet in here...
Date: Mon, 11 Nov 2024 14:42:08 -0500
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Paul S Person wrote:
> On Sun, 10 Nov 2024 15:06:22 -0500, William Hyde
> <wthyde1953@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> D wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sat, 9 Nov 2024, Cryptoengineer wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 11/9/2024 4:04 PM, D wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Sat, 9 Nov 2024, Paul S Person wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> So if not having a lot of people around is a good thing, Wyoming would
>>>>>> probably work.
>>>>>
>>>>> Do you think I would be allowed to wear a cowboy hat and walk around
>>>>> with a gun in Wyoming? That would be a strong incentive!
>>>>
>>>> For citizens who meet the other requirements for firearms possession,
>>>> yes. You don't even need a permit. I'm not sure about green card
>>>> holders.
>>>>
>>>> pt
>>>>
>>>
>>> Hooray! =D Yet another dream that the US would make come true! It truly
>>> is the land of the free compared with shitty old europe which I
>>> passionately hate so much!
>>
>>
>> Some years ago Duke University ran a job search for a senior scientist.
>>
>> An American scientist resident in Denmark was flown in and gave an
>> exceptionally good talk.  At dinner the conversation turned to his life
>> in Denmark, and he seemed very happy with it.
>>
>> So told him that, while I was not myself on the search committee, I
>> thought it was almost certain that he'd be offered the job and asked if
>> he would take it.
>>
>> "Absolutely not!" he said, puzzled that I would even ask.
>>
>> So opinions differ.
>>
>> Duke is in Durham, NC, possibly too warm for your wife.  And it has lots
>> of sidewalks to attract liberals, though as I found in an October walk,
>> ankle-destroying breaks in the sidewalk can be obscured by colourful
>> autumn leaves.
> 
> Saves the city from having to fix the sidewalks: out of sight, out of
> mind.
> 
> Well, until they get sued, anyway.

Halifax was the exact opposite.  They fixed sidewalks which were 
perfectly fine.  The reason being that the city is mildly corrupt, and 
people wanted those contracts. Still, they were a pleasure to walk on.

For contrast, sidewalks on the Dalhousie campus in Halifax were a 
positive danger, but never fixed as the University always had something 
different to spend its limited cash on.  Like office redecoration for 
administrators.

An elderly retired professor died from a fall owing to broken sidewalks 
at A&M.  The site was taped off, but not repaired in the two years 
before I left Texas.

Some years ago there was a competition in Toronto to find the oldest bit 
of sidewalk.  The winning pavement was dated 1918 and was in perfect 
shape.  It was, however, under a bridge and thus somewhat sheltered.

> 
> (The local university once install a road bump that injured five
> people, one of whom died. The fifth, who didn't die, won a $16M
> judgement against them. Only then did they remove it and replace it
> with something less dangerous. Never underestimate the power of a
> lawsuit payout to change minds.)

In Texas the payout would have been limited to 500k.

I wasn't hurt enough to consider suing Durham.  Besides, if one demands 
low taxes one gets low service, and I can't sue the voters, can I?

Caveat Pedestrem.

(Someone correct my Latin, I'm sure that's wrong).


William Hyde