I am just wondering, does anyone have a good explanation for why is mortgage so expensive in US?
Like, during low-interest rates in Slovakia, you would pay sub 1% interest, compared to 3% mentioned in the article.
Now, in Slovakia, the rates are 3.69%, which is 0.8% above 12m EURIBOR.
Now, sure, US rates are ~0.8% higher than EU, but that still doesn’t explain why should mortgages there be for 7%.
What does it even mean “psychology of the original sex”?
Seems to me like calling every male with height below 165cm of height trans, because he has below female average height.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and insights.
Yes, women as a group tend to have on average more “feminine interests”. But there are many individual women who have “masculine interests“ and many men with “feminine interests”, so I don’t think that the theoretical perfect transition should require change of interests per se.
I guess I am interested in both.
And I am also interested in a different hypothetical experiment: imagine a perfect genetic therapy that could fully change adults person sex, like growing true new reproductive organs, no need for hormonal supplements, etc.
Would this also be perceived as a threat? You know, in a way, if you can really truly perfectly change your sex, being trans doesn’t really mean anything anymore, or does it?
I am bit confused about this “trans eradication problem”.
Like, I can understand and respect anti-abortion position per se, but that doesn’t seem to be what you have in mind.
So, do you wish there to be more trans people? Why? Isn’t it the same as some deaf communities refusing cochlear implants for their children as to not lose “deaf culture”?
Part of the problem is different expectations on the quality of writing vs talking.
If you would just write word-by-word what you say, it would often look like a gibberish. And we happen to have higher standards for written word than for spoken word (see transcript of Trump’s speach). And we intuitively know that, hence the resistance to writing.
The big realization is that writing what you said is often good enough, and even if not, it is a good start, because you can edit and refine.
Thank you for sharing, though I can imagine it was hard to write.
In my teen years, I was very depressed, yearning love. I was often fantasizing about being born a girl, thinking it would give me the attention I craved. During that time, in my country, transitioning wasn’t really a thing. So it never occurred to me as an option. I don’t know what would happen if it did. I wonder how many kids feel like this during their teen years.
Nevertheless, I eventually fixed it with acquiring needed social skills.
Being “defensive” is not a synonymous with “defending oneself”, at least not in a way these words are typically used.
Being “defensive” implies usage of dirty practices, such as ad hominem, emotional manipulation, misrepresentation of the other party. Essentially, party behaving in a way where a normal good-faith constructive conversation is not possible.
I find it uncontroversial that such a behavior is considered suspicious and undesirable.
Hm. I never aim to arrive sooner than 90minutes before departure—and that’s only because baggage drop closes 60mins before.
If without luggage, I aim for 60min, no matter whether domestic or international.
Never missed a flight yet.
So, I am utterly confused about this whole Buddhist thing. It seems to me that the main goal is to stop existing, essentially die but really truly die, so that person stops suffering. At least that was my understanding of what Nirvana is trying to be. Is that correct or wrong?
Also, I notice a strong obsession with suffering. Yeah, I do suffer here and there, but I don’t make a big deal out of it. I am not even sure I would want all the pain and suffering gone permanently from my life. It feels to me that some discomfort is actively needed in life at least to serve as a backdrop to pleasure. Am I crazy for thinking so?
Sure. What I was trying to point at was that the manual acknowledges that this is actually bad and that things could be done differently. That’s a surprising level of lucidity that I wouldn’t expect to see these days in any government force.
I believe this wasn’t always the case. See the CIA sabotage manual from the WW2
Well, of course, WHAT takes priority. And you need subordinates who have guts to do the right thing even if it contradicts the stated HOW.
I like the “learn the rules before you break them” approach.
In my organization, I tell people that they can break any rule / best practice they truly understand and truly mastered.
Nah. Good organizations impose both what and how. Look at Bezos imposing how meetings should be run.
Btw just a funny thing, it seems that Slovakia (my country) is actually producing one of the top baby carriers in the world.
Baby carrying is quite popular and people are quite knowledgeable re refining here (eg no front facing carrying, no kangaroo carriers, etc)
Check out this brand: https://www.sestrice.com/en/
Yeah. Headline caught my attention and I was expecting that the content would follow, but there was none.
My intent is not to comment on your skill, but to rather warn you of the discipline itself. It seems you feel you’re gaining some profound knowledge by this pondering—I am afraid though this is just illusion—and a dangerous one. Just wanted to warn you of that.
I am afraid that you are just cobbling words together. Which is what happens to most philosophers.
The problem is that you are using poorly defined worlds such as empty, intrinsic, change, interdependend, etc. These words have meanings that depends on the context they are used in—they are not well defined—used without further clarification they just point towards some cluster of terms.
And this is how the word soup is cooked.
I agree. I was not precise in my statement—what I wanted to say was that if for some reason they are trying to use it in place of picture, as a decoration (which I can’t really see why), then this would be the approach. Still, I think using ligature for the word Google is the right approach.
I mentioned Slovakia, not Serbia.
And, for what it’s worth, the rates in neighboring Austria are very similar.
And I am quite sure that mortgage rates aren’t low due to subsidies. The market is very competitive and banks are willing to offer you discounts just to convince you to refinance.
Though, there is a lots of mobility in the market. Government caps the fine for premature payment to 1% of the unpaid amount.