Unfortunately, living in the US, I would not take a job with a pension because the (private) pension system cannot be trusted. I remember the 00s when many company pension accounts went bankrupt, because companies were no longer offering it as a benefit and it was easy enough to screw over retired past employees. Companies would take poorly performing divisions and their pension plans, spin them off as a new company that would quickly file for bankruptcy.

I would not trust a pension without it being insured by an organization like the FDIC. Even then, I would be afraid that my pension would not cover living costs due to inflation.

Luckily there are alternatives. I have a 401k, which should give me a steady flow of inflation proof dividends… until a market downturn wipes it out. If that happens, I can fall back to Social Security. Don’t believe the baloney that the government will ever let Social Security go bankrupt. They will just cut down benefits.

That is why they make you lease the battery. You cannot swap out your old battery, just the battery you are leasing. Your lease payments include the cost of them replacing batteries.

The model only works if users are forced to subscribe to a battery swapping service for the full life of the vehicle (or there is a large upfront fee to join with a used vehicle). Otherwise it would be too easy for a consumer with a worn out battery to do a one-time swap and get a like-new battery as a cheap alternative to very costly battery repairs. The dumped battery is likely to have very poor range and the battery swap company will need to dispose of it.

Not wanting to work in a crowded home has nothing to do with disliking your family. Kids are loud. They run around the house. They watch TV with the volume set too high. They have excited calls with their friends. Many home builders skimp on noise insulation for interior walls.

Tie more positive things to the federal minimum wage, for example tax brackets and retirement fund contribution limits. They go up every single year, so the government will either have to keep raising the minimum wage or go on the record to justify why the ratio is wrong.

It was not automatic so rich people can avoid it. I have never heard of someone facing criminal charges for failing to register. I have heard that failing to register can impact eligibility for college financial aid and scholarships.

The problem is not even big trucks. It is medium speed collisions with barriers. Kei trucks typically don’t have air bags or a crumple zone. They are designed for low speed driving on open roads.

The US has had prepaid plans for ages. The first phone I got, back in 2006 or 2007 was like that. If I recall correctly, it was 25¢/minute to call and 10¢/text. If I bought a $25 balance card, the credit would expire after 90 days instead of the usual 30 (plus unused balance would roll over, as long as I had unexpired money in my account.

In most social deduction games, the point of the minority team is to create confusion, since they have all the information. The majority team is trying to deduce roles, so they benefit from players who telegraph their strategy.

Are you sure you did not mean Gloryhammer? https://loudwire.com/gloryhammer-chris-bowes-response-statements-racism-misogyny-leaked-chat/

As someone born in the Russia, I support Zelensky looking at the old borders of the Kievan Rus.

Having to crawl through multiple menus to order is not that big of a deal for restaurants. They don’t value your time, they value their staff time (because they have to pay for it). There is probably very little ongoing cost to double the number of order kiosks while every additional human taking orders needs to be paid minimum wage. The restaurant owner watches with hate as their money slowly melts away while you decide if you want pickles, fried onions, and jalapenos on your burger.

Were you playing an ice level of Chip’s Challenge?

I watched it and I did not like it, but it is probably that I went into it with the wrong expectations. The entire premise of “musical about a zombie apocalypse” sounded a bit goofy to me and the trailer had the same mood, so I expected a comedy, or at least something a bit tongue in cheek. Instead, the movie is a total downer.

Just keep going about my daily life. The result of the election is not going to change where I live or where I work. The Federal Government doesn’t have much of an impact on my day to day life, beyond federal laws and regulatory agencies. I don’t see those changing in an (immediately) catastrophic way. Most of my day to day life is determined by my state and town government.

I like store brand oat loops more than Cheerios. I feel like they are less powdery.

I would call it a suspense thriller, not a horror film.

Ryan Reynolds has one character that he plays in all of his movies. It is a character I enjoy seeing, but it is the same character over and over.

Home decor may depend on your recipient. Some people like a certain style and want their decor to fit it. You may think that it is the type of lamp they like but it might mess with their ambiance.

The only way I can have any accuracy about a pop culture event is if I can associate that event with a concrete event that happened in my life (and I remember the date of). It makes it fairly easy to remember events that happened when I was in school (what grade was I in? what year was I in that grade?) but harder for things since I have been working (where did I live/work? well that narrows it down to a few years).