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Cake day: July 9th, 2023

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  • MethodicalSpark@lemmy.worldtoMicroblog Memes@lemmy.worldOutstanding idea.
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    6 days ago

    The Boca Chica test site in Texas is built immediately adjacent to a protected wildlife preserve. This is the site where SpaceX has been working on the Starship launch vehicle.

    The second part about failing is extreme hyperbole. SpaceX is the most successful launch company in human history by any reasonable metric. I’d argue Musks distance from the company in recent years has helped.


  • Europe licenses trucks and trailers differently than in the U.S. An American one-ton pickup can tow at a combined weight of up to 26,000lbs in most states on a standard Class D license. The same license you need to operate a Honda Civic. This weight would require a commercial license in Europe, raising the bar for entry.

    The lengths of trucks and trailers is also regulated more heavily due to smaller European streets. A vehicle rated to tow a 26,000lb load in Europe would need to be much shorter in length to abide by these regulations. This is why you only see “cab-over” style “lorries” in Europe.

    What follows is my opinion on some additional factors:

    It’s more affordable for Europeans to hire a professional driver for heavy loads owing to the short distances between destinations. It’s also less likely that your average European owns land or has a need to haul a heavy load to maintain said property.










  • I’ve owned a lot of different vehicles over the years.

    1998 Ford Taurus, 2002 Ford Mustang, 2012 Honda Civic Coupe, 2016 Honda HRV, 2017 Yamaha FZ-09, 2019 Mazda MX-5 Miata, …and finally… 2023 Ford F-150 Tremor

    My two favorite vehicles out of that list are the Miata and the F-150. I’ve lived both lives and they’re not comparable.

    The Miata was a blast to take out into the country and find a series of twisty corners while banging through gears with the top down. I do miss having the wind in my hair and no particular destination in mind.

    The F-150 is great because I’m building a house and need to haul loads of lumber and plywood. It’s also fantastic because I can take it off road and camp in the bed on vacation, getting to places the Miata could never go. It’s also pretty fun to drive with a lot of power.

    Admittedly, when you get spirited with the pedal, you can hear the echos and screams of dinosaurs as their remains are incinerated expeditiously by the twin-turbo V6. Not the most environmentally conscious thing I’ve owned, but I disagree that trucks aren’t fun.








  • I spent my childhood in a very rural area. I couldn’t wait to get away. I went to college and moved to a small-to-medium sized US city where I’ve now resided in the downtown area for over ten years.

    The public transit is limited and the bus system is poor. Riding a bus to my job would take two hours each way, when driving takes 20 minutes. The jobs in my field are concentrated in the suburbs so I have no choice but to own a vehicle. Owning a vehicle in the city costs significantly more than in the suburbs or rural areas. I am unable to perform vehicle maintenance myself due to the unaffordability of homes here with garages or even off-street parking. My vehicle has been broken into multiple times. My insurance is higher and the cost to repair glass is a huge dent in one’s monthly income.

    I have homeless people who jump the fence into a shared courtyard for my condominium and setup camp, leaving trash and other dangerous objects behind. The police come hours late if at all for these issues. My girlfriend gets catcalled and harassed by men who seem to spend all day propped against a building at the nearest street corner.

    The most difficult thing for me to come to terms with is the fact that I’ve always dreamed of starting a business. My expertise is in physical industries. The kind where having a workshop or some land to keep equipment on goes a long way toward your success. Living in a city longterm would make that dream impossible.

    Nothing in the city is free. It is impossible to exist here without each and every activity costing you something. Having everyone live in cities and use public transit is a wonderful thought, but it isn’t perfect.

    I’m moving back to a rural area in a few years and building a house. It’ll be nice to walk outside, look up at the sky, have some peace and quiet, and just exist without being charged for it.