# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=111 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 112 --- ## [An ode to ass gaskets — are they beginning to disappear?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-ode-to-ass-gaskets-are-they-beginning-to-disappear/1012384)
**Author:** [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-ode-to-ass-gaskets-are-they-beginning-to-disappear/1012384 "2026-05-02T23:28:45Z")
Important: this is not about whether paper toilet seat covers have any effective purpose or function in terms of disease transmission. We’ve done that repeatedly (2002, 2003, 2005, etc etc) and the general consensus is t… --- ## [What's going on with all the major VPN outages?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-going-on-with-all-the-major-vpn-outages/1029735)
**Author:** [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-going-on-with-all-the-major-vpn-outages/1029735 "2026-05-02T23:08:51Z")
Evidently this has been a thing since 8 April 2026. For quite a number of people (inlcuding yours truly), VPN access is the only way to connect with friends, families, and actual information. VPNs are also used by many c… --- ## [Is extra-sharp cheese supposed to crumble easily?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-extra-sharp-cheese-supposed-to-crumble-easily/1029573)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-extra-sharp-cheese-supposed-to-crumble-easily/1029573 "2026-05-02T23:06:42Z")
I usually buy Sargento sharp, sliced cheese for sandwiches. Walmart was out of stock and I bought Sargento extra-sharp, sliced cheese. I was quickly reminded why I usually don’t buy extra-sharp. The slices won’t come o… --- ## [Can Hemorrhoids Spontaneously Subside (TMI, obviously)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-hemorrhoids-spontaneously-subside-tmi-obviously/1029060)
**Author:** [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-hemorrhoids-spontaneously-subside-tmi-obviously/1029060 "2026-05-02T22:09:08Z")
For the past 6 years at least, I’ve had hemorrhoids. Not small ones, mind you. Big enough for my urologist to comment on them when I had my first appointment with him. Since they didn’t bother me in any way and were not… --- ## [Any easy rules for the pronunciation of the -al- syllable in English?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-rules-for-the-pronunciation-of-the-al-syllable-in-english/1029536)
**Author:** [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-easy-rules-for-the-pronunciation-of-the-al-syllable-in-english/1029536 "2026-05-02T18:49:35Z")
As a non-native speaker, I find this one of the most frustrating features of English. Sometimes it rhymes with “call”, sometimes with “shall”. Some words, like “mall”, appear to have both pronunciations, and usage differ… --- ## [2025-26 Ski and Snowboard thread - It's all downhill from here](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2025-26-ski-and-snowboard-thread-its-all-downhill-from-here/1023731)
**Author:** [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Replies:** 86\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2025-26-ski-and-snowboard-thread-its-all-downhill-from-here/1023731 "2026-05-02T18:23:46Z")
It’s that time of year again. We bought Indy Passes again, but got them for free this year by getting an Indy themed vanity plate on our cars. INDGRL and INDGUY at your service. Same set of trips planned, a week in Main… --- ## [What does it mean to say one opioid is X times stronger than another?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-say-one-opioid-is-x-times-stronger-than-another/1029722)
**Author:** [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-to-say-one-opioid-is-x-times-stronger-than-another/1029722 "2026-05-02T17:51:37Z")
What does it mean to say one opioid is X times stronger than another? For example, I read carfentanil is 10,000 times stronger than morphine while tramadol is about 1/10 as strong as morphine. This seems to say we could … --- ## [Seeking a Public Domain recording of Mozart's Requiem Mass](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seeking-a-public-domain-recording-of-mozarts-requiem-mass/1029708)
**Author:** [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/seeking-a-public-domain-recording-of-mozarts-requiem-mass/1029708 "2026-05-02T17:28:11Z")
Title says it all. Not trying to go cheap. But I’ve a need for a recording where I can use it as a music bed for some visual material that might well wind up being streamed. Any ideas on where I might find a recording … --- ## [Mayday, mayday: May 1 2026 protests](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mayday-mayday-may-1-2026-protests/1029695)
**Author:** [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mayday-mayday-may-1-2026-protests/1029695 "2026-05-02T16:55:51Z")
Anybody else going to a protest today and/or on strike? As most of my work is at home where nobody sees me, about the only effective thing I can do about striking is to not buy anything today; but I am shortly going to … --- ## [The "Hostess Party" scene in movie Goodfellas never made sense to me](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hostess-party-scene-in-movie-goodfellas-never-made-sense-to-me/827582)
**Author:** [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-hostess-party-scene-in-movie-goodfellas-never-made-sense-to-me/827582 "2026-05-02T16:19:30Z")
This scene always confused me. Karen Hill is at an all-woman party with what I assume are fellow mafia housewives/girlfriends putting makeup and other beauty products on each other. She laments the other women have bad … --- ## [If Apple has sued Apple, why hasn't RCA sued Sirius?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-apple-has-sued-apple-why-hasnt-rca-sued-sirius/351266)
**Author:** [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-apple-has-sued-apple-why-hasnt-rca-sued-sirius/351266 "2026-05-02T16:06:44Z")
Many of us are familiar with the long-lived legal wranglings between Apple Records and the Apple Computer company. With this in mind, I am surprised that the R.C.A. folks has not sued Sirius Radio for a similar kind of … --- ## [Analyzing "Tenet" by Christopher Nolan (warning: Spoilers!)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/analyzing-tenet-by-christopher-nolan-warning-spoilers/1028586)
**Author:** [@PlaceboTarget](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlaceboTarget)\ **Replies:** 79\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/analyzing-tenet-by-christopher-nolan-warning-spoilers/1028586 "2026-05-02T16:05:34Z")
I wonder if people are interested in analyzing “Tenet.” “Tenet” is about saving the world. A covert agent known only as the Protagonist is drawn into a temporal war where objects and people can move backward through tim… --- ## [Looking for a water bottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-water-bottle/1027601)
**Author:** [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-water-bottle/1027601 "2026-05-02T15:09:56Z")
I’d like a water bottle that I can carry on short walks. Usually I’m not going on day-long hikes or anything like that; I’m usually out for 1-2 hours, so I just need to carry a liter or so. I have quite a few Nalgene-typ… --- ## [Chicken recipes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chicken-recipes/1021708)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/chicken-recipes/1021708 "2026-05-02T14:53:16Z")
I couldn’t find a recent chicken recipe to put this in, so… Poulet à la moutarde 4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs 2 Tbsp olive oil 1 shallot thinly sliced 2 cloves garlic minced 3 bay leaves 1 cup dry white wine 1¼ cu… --- ## [Magnetic Fridge Poetry?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magnetic-fridge-poetry/1029699)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/magnetic-fridge-poetry/1029699 "2026-05-02T14:30:13Z")
This stuff was somewhat popular among my friends 20-30 years ago, and like many trends disappeared. But it was pretty cool. Basically you got 100 or so little words in little magnets that you could arrange to make some… --- ## [Do you prefer bi-weekly or semi-monthly pay?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-prefer-bi-weekly-or-semi-monthly-pay/1029521)
**Author:** [@Quintas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quintas)\ **Replies:** 68\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-prefer-bi-weekly-or-semi-monthly-pay/1029521 "2026-05-02T10:52:37Z")
I’ve been semi-monthly (15th and 30th) for years, then company switched to bi-weekly (every other Friday) in 2026. I dislike it although I’m in the minority among my coworkers. Yes I make the same per year, but the r… --- ## [Does the NBA really need 7 games to determine a winner?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-nba-really-need-7-games-to-determine-a-winner/1029673)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [May 2, 2026, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-nba-really-need-7-games-to-determine-a-winner/1029673 "2026-05-02T07:11:07Z")
Geez the basketball season is so long. --- ## [Why NOT to Marry](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-to-marry/1027859)
**Author:** [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Replies:** 174\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-not-to-marry/1027859 "2026-05-01T23:11:13Z")
You can’t know why NOT to marry until it’s too late. Let me try to summarize: Once the honeymoon phase wears off, both you and your spouse’s real personalities come out. The person you’d die for becomes a drag and/or a … --- ## [Lutheran/Methodist sharing a pastor](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lutheran-methodist-sharing-a-pastor/1029655)
**Author:** [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lutheran-methodist-sharing-a-pastor/1029655 "2026-05-01T23:02:06Z")
Seems like the right forum. I was home visiting my mom in my very small (\<1000 population) hometown in Minnesota. Strolling through the metropolis, I saw that one of the Lutheran churches (this one is ELCA) is sharing a… --- ## [Which Marvel Comics executive dropped dead when they fired him?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-marvel-comics-executive-dropped-dead-when-they-fired-him/1029707)
**Author:** [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-marvel-comics-executive-dropped-dead-when-they-fired-him/1029707 "2026-05-01T22:48:56Z")
In Sean Howe’s Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, he mentioned a hard-driving, cost-cutting executive for Marvel Comics who was summarily fired by new owners and collapsed–dead?–on the spot. I just spent the last half hour… --- ## [I want this shirt!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-this-shirt/1029690)
**Author:** [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-this-shirt/1029690 "2026-05-01T22:39:12Z")
Huh. It looks like it won’t load directly, so I’ll just tell y’all what you’ll see if you click the link. It’s a picture of Sean Astin wearing his Twoflower costume from Th… --- ## [What would Democrats do with a supermajority in Congress?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-democrats-do-with-a-supermajority-in-congress/1029627)
**Author:** [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-democrats-do-with-a-supermajority-in-congress/1029627 "2026-05-01T21:49:12Z")
First, the hypothetical. The results are from the midterms, and the blue tsunami was enormous. Democrats have a 100 seat advantage in the House and have 70 seats in the Senate. Yes, I know this is extremely unlikely, … --- ## [Fuck the Sackler family, and fuck the DOJ for letting them skate without jail time](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-sackler-family-and-fuck-the-doj-for-letting-them-skate-without-jail-time/923596)
**Author:** [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Replies:** 87\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-the-sackler-family-and-fuck-the-doj-for-letting-them-skate-without-jail-time/923596 "2026-05-01T21:08:09Z")
Profiteers off of human misery and manufacturer of the opiod crises, the Sackler family owned Purdue Pharma has reached a global settlement with the DOJ over criminal charges that they aided and abetted the unnecessary … --- ## [Current views on tipping in restaurants](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/current-views-on-tipping-in-restaurants/929607)
**Author:** [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Replies:** 189\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/current-views-on-tipping-in-restaurants/929607 "2026-05-01T20:56:07Z")
I don’t understand tipping in restaurants sometimes these days. Pre-COVID, if a youngster asked me why people tip in a restaurant, I might say… Sometimes they get you a good seat Sometimes they’re very quick getting t… --- ## [Obligation for tip?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obligation-for-tip/1027365)
**Author:** [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obligation-for-tip/1027365 "2026-05-01T20:53:17Z")
So in the thread about Door Dash’s DoubleDash option, I noticed that @aceplace57 said that he wouldn’t tip less than $7 or 8 for something inexpensive- under $14, as it was a paltry $3.50. Now I got to wondering, why w… --- ## [Medicare: Advantage vs. Medigap](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicare-advantage-vs-medigap/1024830)
**Author:** [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Replies:** 117\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/medicare-advantage-vs-medigap/1024830 "2026-05-01T20:22:12Z")
I’ve been on Medicare, with an Aetna Advantage plan, for five years. I’ve been happy with it, and have had no serious problems with it. My wife turned 65 in September and on the advice of a broker we enrolled her in a Hu… --- ## [RIP to the mass market paperback](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-to-the-mass-market-paperback/1025726)
**Author:** [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Replies:** 87\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-to-the-mass-market-paperback/1025726 "2026-05-01T20:15:19Z")
Last Call for Mass Market Paperbacks They were already moribund - see the stats in the attached article - but their main distributor has said they’re done with them at the end of this year. It hits with a nostalgic pain… --- ## [Most despicable movie characters](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-despicable-movie-characters/1029585)
**Author:** [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Replies:** 56\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-despicable-movie-characters/1029585 "2026-05-01T19:29:31Z")
Who do we think are the most despicable characters in movie history? I don’t mean most evil or scariest. I mean the ones we find most loathsome, most deplorable. Anton Chigurh in “No Country for Old Men” is terrifying, b… --- ## [Weird Discourse feature. New or new discovery?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-discourse-feature-new-or-new-discovery/1029692)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-discourse-feature-new-or-new-discovery/1029692 "2026-05-01T16:35:24Z")
Today for the first time in the years that I’ve been reading this site in Discourse on my phone, something new happened. While touching a thread subject in a forum, a preview box if the first post in the thread popped up… --- ## [Learning Mandarin: HelloChinese and written language](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learning-mandarin-hellochinese-and-written-language/1022797)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [May 1, 2026, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learning-mandarin-hellochinese-and-written-language/1022797 "2026-05-01T16:04:11Z")
I speak a few languages and have studied many others out of interest or due to travel. I went to China twenty years ago and learned a few hundred words and phrases but only a few symbols. I have now decided to try to l… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=110) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=112)