Daily Stoic Week 45

by | Nov 4, 2022 | Advice, LifeSkills, Musings | 159 comments

Daily Stoic Week 44

The Daily Stoic

The Practicing Stoic

Meditations

How to Be a Stoic

If you have anger issues, this one is a great tool (h/t mindyourbusiness)

Disclaimer: I’m not your Supervisor. These are my opinions after reading through these books a few times.

November 5

“This is the very thing which makes up the virtue of the happy person and a well-flowing life—when the affairs of life are in every way tuned to the harmony between the individual divine spirit and the will of the director of the universe.”
—CHRYSIPPUS, QUOTED IN DIOGENES LAERTIUS, LIVES OF THE EMINENT PHILOSOPHERS, 7.1.88

When I am controlling anger and keeping my worries confined to what I control, I am happier and my life seems to flow better. When I am successful at that, I keep my spirit in harmony with the universe.

 

November 6

“If the breaking day sees someone proud,
The ending day sees them brought low.
No one should put too much trust in triumph,
No one should give up hope of trials improving.
Clotho mixes one with the other and stops
Fortune from resting, spinning every fate around.
No one has had so much divine favor
That they could guarantee themselves tomorrow.
God keeps our lives hurtling on,
Spinning in a whirlwind.”
—SENECA, THYESTES, 613

While “Pride comes before a fall”, isn’t always true, it is true that there is no guarantee of continued success. I try to keep in mind that fact and not get too hung up on my current level of moderate prosperity and happiness. Anything could and will eventually bring it to an end, so it is important to appreciate it while it lasts, while not becoming dependent on it.

 

November 7

“Don’t trust in your reputation, money, or position, but in the strength that is yours—namely, your judgments about the things that you control and don’t control. For this alone is what makes us
free and unfettered, that picks us up by the neck from the depths and lifts us eye to eye with the rich and powerful.”
—EPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 3.26.34–35

This follows yesterday’s quote very well. What can I count on in my life?My money?, My house? My wife’s health? My own health?  Which of these is permanent and written in stone to never be lost? None of them. I am trying to understand this and be able to accept when something does go wrong, so I will not add to any future troubles by adding to the stress with a bad reaction.

 

November 8

“Remember that you are an actor in a play, playing a character according to the will of the playwright—if a short play, then it’s short; if long, long. If he wishes you to play the beggar, play even that role well, just as you would if it were a cripple, a honcho, or an everyday person. For this is your duty, to perform well the
character assigned you. That selection belongs to another.”
—EPICTETUS, ENCHIRIDION, 17

I play my role the best I can most times, but I still find things to get upset about and waste time hoping for things that wont happen or hoping things that will happen eventually don’t happen soon. If my station in life changes, I will try to handle it with the same acceptance I have for all the positive things that are in my life right now.

 

November 9

“The universe is change. Life is opinion.”
—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 4.3.4b

All things change. I saw this the last time I saw my mom. She needs a walker to move around the house and cannot stand for long periods of time. She is not doing well with her new reality, yet she doesn’t go to the pool to walk in an attempt to get her strength up. She figures “It is what it is.” Sometimes you have to be strong enough to fight change and go down swinging, but it is also important to know what you can change and what you cannot.

 

November 10

“Think by way of example on the times of Vespasian, and you’ll see all these things: marrying, raising children, falling ill, dying, wars, holiday feasts, commerce, farming, flattering, pretending, suspecting, scheming, praying that others die, grumbling over one’s lot, falling in love, amassing fortunes, lusting after office and power. Now that life of theirs is dead and gone . . . the times of Trajan, again the same . . .”
—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 4.32

People are basically the same now as they have been for ages. The ability to access knowledge anytime has not changed that. At a certain basic level, nothing I do will be different from what most people in the past have done, nor will it be much different in the future. It is easy to think we are smarter than ancient people, but looking at what they managed to do without machines or computers should quell that notion.

November 11

“When you are distressed by an external thing, it’s not the thing itself that troubles you, but only your judgment of it. And you can wipe this out at a moment’s notice.”
—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 8.47

I am currently having to deal with a mistake I made on a report that got sent up to the high level bosses at my work. This bothers me very much because I am usually very conscientious about my reports and this time I was in a hurry and did not double check that my changes were saved. I am not stressing (much) about this. Old me would have trouble sleeping tonight, but I have learned to be able to block it out since there is nothing I can do now except fix it, own up to it and be more careful in the future.

 

And now for something completely different:

I used to listen to this on Dr. Demento and when I found the video last year, I could not stop laughing.

This is one of the funniest songs I’ve ever heard, but it is wrong on so many levels.

Another hilarious one.

 

About The Author

ron73440

ron73440

What I told my wife when she said my steel Baby Eagle .45 was heavy, "Heavy is good, heavy is reliable, if it doesn't work you could always hit him with it."-Boris the Blade MOLON LABE

159 Comments

  1. UnCivilServant

    I think it was mentioned at some point, but I’ve forgotten.

    How many days of stoicism are in the book?

    Do you plan to continue the articles once the book proper runs out?

    • Mojeaux

      How many days of stoicism are in the book?

      366

    • mindyourbusiness

      I hope ron does. There’s a bunch of good Stoic writing out there. Bill Irvine and Massimo Pigliucci, just to name two.

      • ron73440

        I’m not sure there is enough interest.

        If so, I have many things I could go through.

      • Fourscore

        I understand where your mom is coming from. I have to accept that some things are not going to change for the better. I look back to last year and now I feel like a kid with a Lionel Train on Christmas Day.

        I never had a Lionel or any other kind but I’m ready for deer hunting tomorrow with my buddy, that ain’t bad.

        Thanks, Ron

  2. R.J.

    I never knew there was a video for “Kinko the Clown!” That made my day! Thanks Ron!

    • ron73440

      I don’t think it’s an official video, but it should be.

  3. The Other Kevin

    “When you are distressed by an external thing, it’s not the thing itself that troubles you, but only your judgment of it. And you can wipe this out at a moment’s notice.”

    Wow, that’s one to remember.

    • R.J.

      I liked that too.

    • Mojeaux

      “The problem is not the problem. The problem is your attitude about the problem.” —Captain Jack Sparrow

      • WTF

        I try to remind myself that I can’t control how other people behave, but I can control how I react to it.

      • Mojeaux

        If it’s an ongoing problem, at some point, reacting with drama just becomes exhausting. I can’t but help to react calmly when the thing happens and it’s done and I have no control over it and I know it’s going to happen again in the future. It’s not calm, though. It’s resignation.

    • WTF

      Yeah, that’s a good one, and really helpful for dealing with life’s bullshit.

    • WTF

      Gotta be a joke.

      • Mojeaux

        Maybe he doesn’t realize brisket is a trash cut and that it needs the fat? I dunno.

      • juris imprudent

        He’s having a bit of fun.

      • Semi-Spartan Dad

        It is. He’s says in the comments that it’s A5 Wagyu. That can’t be worth the cost differential after smoking for 20 hours.

        I’ve had A5 strip steak flown in from Japan, and it was very good, but actually prefer prime Angus.

      • UnCivilServant

        There is an idea ratio of meat to fat, and both brisket and wagyu are too far on the fatty side

      • Gustave Lytton

        Geez, it’s not tartare. You cook it so the fat renders.

      • UnCivilServant

        You guys already complain about how much I cook beef.

      • juris imprudent

        There is a world of difference between steak, brisket, pot roast and hamburger – each needs to be cooked appropriately to maximize what makes each delicious.

      • UnCivilServant

        I’ve never seen a preparation of brisket that wasn’t either too greasy or too dry.

        You’re welcome to provide one that falls into the space in between.

      • juris imprudent

        As it happens, I’m putting a brisket on tonight for tomorrow, but I won’t deliver.

      • Nephilium

        UCS:

        Burnt ends if you can find a place that hasn’t run out for the day.

      • Gustave Lytton

        The actual wagyu I’ve found around here has been frozen, usually oxidized, and generally very poor in appearance. Safeway/Albertsons of all places has started carrying prime. The quality & cut varies widely but the so called butchers are almost exclusively Choice and are at the level of what the grocery store meat dept was when I was a kid. Don’t get me started on steakhouses.

      • juris imprudent

        You can get American wagyu if you want it.

      • Semi-Spartan Dad

        I’ve heard several recommendations for the brisket from Snake River Farms. The Japan wagyu I tried was a 10th anniversary kind of deal, but I should look into Snake River Farms.

        I’d really like to get a American wagyu heifer for the pasture, but they are way too expensive. I’m going to try to swing an Angus cow/heifer calf pair this Spring though.

      • juris imprudent

        I’m trying to more and more buy local grass-fed beef; we have several local sources. I wouldn’t mind doing a quarter or half, but actually doing the raising seems like more work than I want.

      • R C Dean

        We’ve gotten a quarter a couple of times. Saved some money, and have been very happy with the meat.

        You will need a lot of freezer space. Way more than a fridge/freezer combo provides.

      • R C Dean

        Oh, one of them we got from landscaping company. The family also has a cattle ranch outside of town, and the landscaping office is their front office for selling beef. The transaction felt deliciously subversive.

      • Semi-Spartan Dad

        I have several Jersey’s (Bulls, cows, heifers) and a Charolais heifer. I’m thinking a couple Angus cows/heifer will be enough stock to produce several meat steers or sellable cows each year. They all free range on grass now, but once we actually have steers ready for market, I’m going to fence off an acre or so to grain finish 60 days before market. There’s a slaughter house 20 minutes away that’s FDA licensed for selling half and quarter shares.

        The most work comes from putting in the fencing. Once that’s done, it’s pretty low-key as long as no one escapes. Make sure the water trough is full and unfrozen in the winter. Fly spray every couple weeks in the summer. Hay for the winter was $500 delivered and just takes a few minutes to pick up and a drop a round bale with the tractor. Square bales are a pain in the ass and a lot of work.


        You will need a lot of freezer space. Way more than a fridge/freezer combo provides.

        The transaction felt deliciously subversive.

        Related to this, I actually found a grey-market butcher. Guy has a set up on his property for hanging beef carcasses and two walk in freezers. I’ll use the licensed slaughter house down the road for steers so that the shares can be sold to the public, but that was something to find. We’re going to do a run of meat chickens next year and may see if he can help with that. It’s a lot of work when you’re processing dozens.

      • Gustave Lytton

        Looks good compared to most prime, but thats probably a BMS of 7-8 so grade 4 to barely 5. And for the glamour shot too. The stuff they sell in the store is going to be lower.

  4. PutridMeat

    “The universe is change. Life is opinion.” and She figures “It is what it is.”

    This day sort of illustrates the nagging problem I have with Stoicism. Well, not really problem as I haven’t looked into it too deeply, but it’s an underlying current that may entirely be a shortcoming of my mental state/makeup. But is seems very easy to slide from Stoicism into defeatism. Just accept whatever happens, there’s nothing you can do, turn the other cheek. I know that’s not the lesson here, but rather knowing what you can change and when you can change them versus what you cannot, but it can be a very subtle distinction and a trap that is easy to fall into.

    • Mojeaux

      But is seems very easy to slide from Stoicism into defeatism.

      I have struggled with this.

      • Fourscore

        Glibs have been a dog send for me. SP, OM and the lot of you folks has enriched my life beyond measure.

    • Fatty Bolger

      That’s pretty much Epictetus’s schtick, and why I really don’t like him.

    • mindyourbusiness

      When James Stockdale got a room in the Hanoi Hilton, he didn’t have any idea when – if ever – he’d be released. He’d no idea when or if the torture would stop. But he found ways to communicate with his fellow prisoners and deny the enemy any propaganda value. To me, that’s an example of “the wisdom to know the difference”. It’s also a good example of Epictetus’ “Persist and resist”.

    • ron73440

      It’s up to you if you slide into defeatism or not.

      The Stoics don’t say to never try to affect things you can’t control.

      They do emphasize not getting upset if your efforts are unsuccessful.

  5. DEG

    I saw this the last time I saw my mom. She needs a walker to move around the house and cannot stand for long periods of time. She is not doing well with her new reality, yet she doesn’t go to the pool to walk in an attempt to get her strength up.

    Reminds me of my parents, though it is more my dad that doesn’t seem to take seriously how their health has fallen.

    • Mojeaux

      I’m wondering how much of an effort/how painful it is to load herself up to go to the pool, change into a swimsuit, change out of the swimsuit, load herself up to go home. The amount of work that would entail would make me think twice about it, too. OTOH, if she has nothing else to do, she can go slowly.

      My mother hied herself off to physical therapy when things got too much for her body. She hated every second of it, but she went.

      • DEG

        My mom is much more cognizant of the reality of their health than my dad. Well, she doesn’t have much of a choice as that reality stares her in the face every day.

        She’s been in a home for two years undergoing intensive physical therapy after breaking her ankle/leg in a fall. The doctors said she’d never walk again, but with a walker and a little assistance standing up, she can take a few steps.

      • PutridMeat

        Sorry for her. My dad broke his back 5 years ago-ish; For a moment, he was dedicated to trying to walk again but the physical reality combined with a slide into dementia, likely exacerbated by the injury and the resulting restrictions of his facilities, overwhelmed that, and he never really made it. But that is one of those things that to the degree you can, I think you must fight it, even if there’s no chance to change it. Good luck to both and for you to have the strength to help them as best you can.

        (looks for something else to distract me from the task of writing up the documentation on the work I finished this week… I Stoically hate ‘documentation’)

      • DEG

        Thanks. There’s really not much I can do to help her.

        Sorry about your dad.

      • ron73440

        I understand it might not be easy, but I can’t imagine being in that situation and doing nothing to improve yourself.

        Also, she has nothing else to do, she is fully retired and has a good income.

      • Fourscore

        I think your parents DO realize the precariousness of their health, they just don’t want you and your family to be concerned and worried.
        I don’t tell my kids everything for fear it would intrude on their lives. I want them to enjoy life without thinking of me as a burden.

  6. hayeksplosives

    “ I keep my spirit in harmony with the universe.”

    ^ I don’t get this, the words have no meaning for me. I’m glad it works for some.

    “When you are distressed by an external thing, it’s not the thing itself that troubles you, but only your judgment of it. And you can wipe this out at a moment’s notice.”

    ^ Hells, yes.

    • PutridMeat

      On the “Hells, yes” – this is another one that bothers me wrt Stoicism. No, it actually is the thing itself that troubles me. Should I wipe out my judgement of slavery? Should I wipe out my judgement of Communism and the horrors it brings? Everyday things, sure. Someone talking too loud in a restaurant, someone eating too loudly, snoring, whatever. Those are amenable to that approach and applying it can make things better. But there are things in and of themselves that ARE troubling and it makes you a better person to judge them and be troubled by them.

      • R C Dean

        You can wipe out your judgment. Nobody says you have to. To me, its more about self-reflection/awareness – should I really be getting all aggravated about this thing? Often, the answer will be no. But not always. Make a conscious choice.

  7. juris imprudent

    Remember that you are an actor in a play, playing a character according to the will of the playwright

    Nope. That’s a load of fatalism. Inshallah in other words. For I damn sure am not accepting a fate dictated by another person.

    • Mojeaux

      So, I wrote a blog post (part 2), supporting that assertion.

      IRL, as I do believe in God, I believe that our personalities were there before we were, that we make choices according to our personalities in any given circumstance, and that God knows what we’re going to choose, which is a wishy-washy way of straddling foreordination v free will.

      • The Other Kevin

        “…I want to read characters who are like me and not The Other”

        It was all those sled hockey articles, wasn’t it?

      • Mojeaux

        Ummmm… 😏

      • juris imprudent

        and that God knows what we’re going to choose

        The problem of the omniscient God. In the book of Job, God makes a wager with Satan. Now if God is all-knowing, then the wager is a fraud for he knows how the story will end. Satan, presumably being close enough to God would realize that and laugh off the wager. And the rest of the story would lose all of its meaning.

        Of course if God isn’t omniscient, that creates a different set of problems.

      • juris imprudent

        His eyes wide.

      • Dr. Fronkensteen

        From a creature that can lick him/herself?

      • R C Dean

        I think the philosophical lacunae is between “God is ominiscient/omnipotent” and “We have free will.” If the Big Fella really knows how we will exercise free will, in advance, infallibly, is it really free will? Or a script He wrote?

      • UnCivilServant

        If he knew what you were going to do based upon the ability to predict, are you really deprived of free will because he figured it out before you did it?

      • UnCivilServant

        Or, if the omniscience is obtained via not being constrained to the linear time tream we are, is existing simulteneously and being conscious of both before and after your decision depriving you of it?

      • Dr. Fronkensteen

        Good point. My kids have free will even though I know what they’re about to attempt will end badly.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Satan, presumably being close enough to God would realize that and laugh off the wager

        That’s a big assumption. Satan, as an angel who rebelled, most likely does not believe that God is omniscient.

      • juris imprudent

        But then God knew Satan’s rebellion was coming? And let it happen?

      • juris imprudent

        So the wager is still a fraud, even if Satan doesn’t know that.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Yep. God’s kind of an asshole, I’m sure you’ve noticed that before.

      • juris imprudent

        Yeah, that would be the implication. Not a good signpost for the morals he hands down.

      • The Other Kevin

        Scott Adams often says we do not have free will. We act quite predictably based on our “programming”, i.e. our genetics, our upbringing, etc. I see his point, but I don’t want to agree with him.

      • Shiny Nerfherder

        We can push our programming through choices.

        Even if free will is an illusion, I don’t see how it really matters.

      • Fatty Bolger

        We don’t have complete free will, obviously. But we do seem to have quite a bit. For instance, I knew twins who deliberately made themselves different from each other, to the point most people wouldn’t recognize them as twins. But of course in some ways, they were still alike, because they shared the same genetics and upbringing.

      • Fourscore

        I’ll have to ask my wife if I have free will. A second opinion is always welcome

    • ron73440

      Not necessarily, it is more saying that you should do the most you can with what you have, not that you are stuck and shouldn’t work to improve yourself.

  8. R C Dean

    Speaking of people who could use some Stoicism:

    The Twitter layoffs are starting today. There are complaints that Musk violated the WARN Act, requiring 60 days notice (or, I think, severance) for laying off more than 50 people at a time. I’m wondering if the first round is mostly overseas workers, and whether the WARN Act includes them (which would strike me as odd). I also am seeing that people are being terminated immediately, but I’m not seeing anything about severance.

    • UnCivilServant

      I’ve not seen information either way on severance for the rank and file. They could be getting enough for the legal requirement for all we know. Or he could be taking a stance of “sue me”.

      • R C Dean

        I doubt he walked into a WARN Act violation. It’s not exactly an obscure law. We’ll see. The acquisition didn’t go down the way I thought, so who knows.

      • Gustave Lytton

        Live by the vpn, die by the vpn.

        Seems those Tweeps still haven’t learned, posting whiny laments on LinkedIn is a great way to signal to potential employers to stay far away from you.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Yeah, seems unlikely. They’ll probably just keep paying them for 60 days, it’s the simplest way to to do it.

      • DEG

        That’s what companies I’ve worked for in the past did. From folks I know that went through it, the company’s message was summed up as: “We no longer require your services. To comply with the WARN act, you’ll be on the payroll for 60 days. Do not come into the office. At the end of 60 days, you will no longer be an employee and if you sign the paperwork agreeing not to sue us, we’ll pay a severance.”

    • R.J.

      I wonder if he satisfied the WARN Act by telling the entire world, month after month, that he was going to drastically cut staff when he took over.

      • UnCivilServant

        I suspect you need more specificity, including the actual effective date, on those notifications for it to count.

    • kinnath

      Back in the past, megacorp laid off a bunch of factory people on the Friday before Christmas. The folks on the factory floor were whining about the WARN act and the required 60 day notice. Management said that they notified the union 60 days in advance as required by law. The union choose to withhold that information from the members.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Wow. As if I needed another reason to hate unions.

  9. The Late P Brooks

    I made the mistake of “checking” on that F40 on BaT. The idea of putting the auction into overtime by resetting the clock to two minutes when a bid comes in at the end is smart.

    Anyway, after about an hour of overtime, the bid went to: $2,475,026 (Reserve Not Met).

    I guess the guy will just have to keep looking at it.

    • UnCivilServant

      Wait, how high was the reserve and what sort of vehicle was this? (Not a gearhead, can’t figure it out from the info provided)

      • UnCivilServant

        Oh, it’s a Ferrari.

        Anyway, how high was the reserve?

      • R C Dean

        Not known. For reasons I am sure sloopy can explain, reserves are kept secret, right up until they are met. Not sure I understand why you let bidding that won’t result in a sale. Why not just set the minimum bid at the reserve?

      • UnCivilServant

        Psychology.

        People balk at the high price, and are willing to start low, then get caught up in the competition, making it past the place where they would have gone “No way” as the starting point.

        Keeping it secret post auction has no function other than just not really mattering beyond “no sale”

      • Grummun

        It will come up for auction again.

      • DEG

        One of the collector gun auctions I watch says that their policy is to not reveal if an item has a reserve or not, but that if an item has a reserve, that the low end of their estimate is the reserve.

        In all the time I’ve watched their auction, I haven’t seen an item that came up for bid not sell, so I don’t know how they would describe why an item didn’t sell if it didn’t sell. I have seen lots withdrawn, but never seen a lot that came up for sale not sell.

      • DEG

        Correction: I remember now that there are lots that didn’t sell, but those lots received no bids at all.

    • UnCivilServant

      And yes, every auction site should add time to the clock if a bid comes in just before close. Bid sniping is an abomination, let the bidding continue.

      • MikeS

        Bid snipping is NOT an abomination when the auction site has proxy bidding. Put in your high bid and wait. On eBay I’ve done nothing but snipe bidding for a decade or two because I got sick and tired of assholes making multiple minimum bids at the end and raising my final winning bid for no reason.

      • UnCivilServant

        I just abandoned auction sites.

  10. The Late P Brooks

    Anyway, how high was the reserve?

    They don’t tell you.

    • UnCivilServant

      from the floor provided by the winning bid, I do think they set it too high.

      • UnCivilServant

        According to your site the average is $2m.

        While in my opinion that’s too much, it does appear to be the market rate. I do not know if there’s anything about this particular F40 that makes the owner think they can beat the average by at least 25%, or if they’re just of that mind.

      • slumbrew

        That’s the 5-year average. The 1-year average is $2.6M, with two recently selling for ~ $4M. And 2 for ~ $2M. Why the spread? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

      • UnCivilServant

        With only 32 sold over 5 years, that’s a terrible dataset for crunching numbers.

      • slumbrew

        If you limit it to 1989 models, that average drops under $2 – but we’re talking about so few sales (5 in 5 years) you’re going to see wild fluctuations.

        My point is, a reserve north of $2.4M isn’t obviously crazy or “wrong”.

      • UnCivilServant

        My assessment was based upon having no particular attachment to that model and going “why spend that much for that car?”

      • slumbrew

        It’s a collector’s item, which have their own logic. There were 1,315 built, people _really_ like Ferraris, and they’ve been a good investment over the last couple of decades.

  11. The Late P Brooks

    The Twitter layoffs are starting today. There are complaints that Musk violated the WARN Act, requiring 60 days notice (or, I think, severance) for laying off more than 50 people at a time.

    I saw that earlier. You have to assume Musk has access to a horde of M&A people who can explain it to him.

    I wonder if at least some of those Twerps can be classified in such a way as to be exempt.

    • Fatty Bolger

      Exempt employees are still covered under WARN.

      • Fatty Bolger

        Or maybe I misread you. If you mean some can be classified as exempt from WARN (not “exempt” employees), there’s some exception for low hour part timers or people how haven’t been working there that long. But I think they are still supposed to get the 60 day notice if the overall layoff meets the WARN triggers, which this one must.

    • Urthona

      Except he gave severance until next year so that covers it.

      • rhywun

        Yeah, the lawsuits (already) and the bitching and the moaning – as if these aren’t the most scrutinized dismissals in the history of shitcanning – are ridiculous.

    • Grummun

      “You’re not being laid off. I’m firing all of you for cause.”

  12. The Late P Brooks

    from the floor provided by the winning bid, I do think they set it too high.

    Where’s the market? I don’t know. That may have been step one of an invitation for a private buyer. Based on watching other auctions, the seller can waive the reserve if bidding gets “close enough”. You definitely don’t want somebody to swoop in and lowball something like that.

  13. The Late P Brooks

    Based on what I read this morning, all the Twerps really knows i there has been a “stand by for an announcement” message. Rushing off to file a lawsuit might be just a bit premature.

    • UnCivilServant

      I suspect, and this is speculation, that the lawyer filed of her own initiative, convinced she could pick up members of the class action later, but really wanted to be the one to file because the size of the payday for her would be grotesque if she won anything.

    • Fatty Bolger

      Premature, but also a cheap way to get your name in the news.

  14. The Late P Brooks

    maybe I misread you. If you mean some can be classified as exempt from WARN (not “exempt” employees)

    Yes. I don’t know enough about WARN to know who is covered. Obviously not the Gang of Four who were out by end of business on Day One.

    • R C Dean

      They weren’t RIFfed/laid off. They were fired for cause.

      • kinnath

        lying to Musk and lying to the court about key financial data related to the buyout

      • UnCivilServant

        Sorry, I misread which employees were being referenced.

        I thought it was still the 3700.

      • kinnath

        ok

  15. The Late P Brooks

    My assessment was based upon having no particular attachment to that model and going “why spend that much for that car?”

    As always, value is subjective, but they are both extremely rare and qualitatively exceptional.

  16. Grosspatzer

    My cell phone number was apparently once owned by a female grifter from the Anchorage area, so every now and then I get calls from creditors looking for Dagmara. A few years ago I even got a reminder to keep an appointment with a gynecologist in Anchorage. I guess that gives me some transgender cred.

    Well, I just got a robocall urging me to vote for Chewbacca in the Alaska Senate election. What, I thought, did STEVE SMITH use subterfuge to get on the ballot? So I typed “Kelly Chewbacca” into the search bar, and got this – not the Chewbacca I was expecting.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_Tshibaka

    Not STEVE SMITH, I am disappointed. OTOH, better than the incumbent. Need a ruling from Alaska glibs.

    • The Other Kevin

      I hear she pulls your arms off when she loses.

      • UnCivilServant

        Hrmm… Invest in prosthetics futures?

      • slumbrew

        He’ll have no defense.

      • rhywun

        “Tell me about it.”

        /Barry O.

    • Zwak. who's suit is as ragged as his nerves.

      Chewbacca? I Tshi what you did there.

    • slumbrew

      A totally fair and unbiased take (at least as much as I watched).

      Did he ever get to the part where the “free” ice cream would be purchased, far above market value, with money they took from you by threat of force?

      • Michael Bluth

        No, of course not. It’s free ice cream! Team Blue is working for you, but is only prevented by that dang Team Red who just hates everyone.

    • The Other Kevin

      That is 0% accurate. Nobody on team blue is saying anything like “we didn’t do as well as we could to provide you with free ice cream.” It’s more like, “If you don’t pretend we are giving you all the free ice cream in the world you are a MAGA terrorist and we will shut you up and sic the FBI and IRS on you.”

    • Shiny Nerfherder

      OFFS

      That’s leftism for retards

    • Fatty Bolger

      I think it means your friend is a moron. So sorry.

  17. kinnath

    Jury finds Trump friend Thomas Barrack not guilty on all counts in foreign lobbying trial

    A New York jury Friday found Trump confidant and billionaire Thomas Barrack not guilty of all charges in his trial on federal foreign lobbying allegations.

    Barrack, a 75-year-old investor who was an adviser to former President Donald Trump and chair of his Inaugural Committee, was accused of using his connections to Trump’s administration to try to sway U.S. foreign policy for a client, the United Arab Emirates.

    The process is the punishment. The punishment is a warning to others.

    • ron73440

      I read the article, not sure what the crime really was except “working with Trump”.

      Am I missing something?

      • kinnath

        No. You are missing nothing. They punished this guy for being part of Trump’s show. This is to make sure that everyone knows not to do it in the future.

  18. kinnath

    The WARN act is not in play

    The blunt emails have indeed been sent. Read one of the notes sent to an employee, which Insider obtained, below: It’s titled “Your Role at Twitter.”

    Hello,

    As shared earlier today, Twitter is conducting a workforce reduction to help improve the health of the company. These decisions are never easy and it is with regret that we write to inform you that your role at Twitter has been impacted.

    Today is your last working day at the company, however, you will remain employed by Twitter and will receive compensation and benefits through your separation date of February 2, 2023.

    During this time, you will be on a Non-Working Notice period and your access to Twitter systems will be deactivated. While you are not expected to work during the None-Working Notice period, you are still required to comply with all company policies, including the Employee Playbook and Code of Conduct.

    More at the link above.

    • UnCivilServant

      “Here is your notice. Now don’t come into the office.”

      • kinnath

        Exactly.

        90 day notice. Don’t come back.

      • Semi-Spartan Dad

        you are still required to comply with all company policies, including the Employee Playbook and Code of Conduct.

        And you can be fired for cause for speaking out against the company without violating the Warn Act. No severance and no unemployment. I’m guessing a lot of these laid off Twitter employees won’t realize the implications of this until they’ve crossed the line.

      • slumbrew

        Yeah, that’s the key clause – also means pay ends if you start another job before 60 days is up (at least at my company – you’re automatically assumed to have quit if you start working another job).

    • slumbrew

      I could deal with that; 60 paid days to get a new gig, plus a severance payment at that point. Even in this economy, I’d be ready to go by day 60 (I assume they can’t legally accept a new job before then w/o giving up the Twitter pay).

      I’d like to think I’d be among the wheat and not the chaff, but it could be worse.

      • slumbrew

        Shit, that’s 90 days, isn’t it? And then a severance package. Not bad at all.

      • rhywun

        I got the same in 2018. And then they hired me back a couple years later. 🤪

      • slumbrew
      • rhywun

        Yeah, when my old boss called me to ask if I wanted to re-join, I was like sure. There’s a lot worse out there.

    • The Other Kevin

      They’re getting pay and benefits all the way through February? Enjoy the holidays, folks.

      • R.J.

        That is nice.

    • Gender Traitor

      The WARN act is not in play.

      “Won’t someone please think of the children class action lawyers??”

      • UnCivilServant

        I’m happy she’s hoist by her own haste.

      • Gender Traitor

        … after she tried to host a heist.

  19. The Late P Brooks

    Today is your last working day at the company, however, you will remain employed by Twitter and will receive compensation and benefits through your separation date of February 2, 2023.

    That seems pretty dadgum generous.

    • slumbrew

      One time, I got to keep my Aeron. I was pretty happy about that.

  20. R.J.

    We now live in a world where Kinko is celebrated and supported.

    • ron73440

      Really, really.

    • Gender Traitor

      I know I do, and I miss them. It still doesn’t feel right to call them “FedEx Office.”

      • MikeS

        🤭