# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=1415 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1416 --- ## [Just put my winter boots away](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-put-my-winter-boots-away/945147)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-put-my-winter-boots-away/945147 "2021-06-28T21:03:39Z")
I took a chance putting them away in early March, but well, that was too early. We got the early April blizzard. So I’m hoping today that winter’s over, and tucked them away in the winter Storage area. Until mid-Octobe… --- ## [Having to go back to the office is not employer abuse, and certain entitled people should stop whining as such](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/having-to-go-back-to-the-office-is-not-employer-abuse-and-certain-entitled-people-should-stop-whining-as-such/943810)
**Author:** [@R3d\_Anonymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R3d_Anonymous)\ **Replies:** 139\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/having-to-go-back-to-the-office-is-not-employer-abuse-and-certain-entitled-people-should-stop-whining-as-such/943810 "2021-06-28T20:31:59Z")
I do not know what the general sentiment is here. In real life, with friends and family, I’ve found that most people are pretty reasonable about this topic, but my rant here is more in response to the sentiments I’ve be… --- ## [Who decides the "centre" of a city?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-decides-the-centre-of-a-city/945100)
**Author:** [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-decides-the-centre-of-a-city/945100 "2021-06-28T20:11:24Z")
Cities are generally big sprawling collections of buildings and so you’d think the location of the centre would be fuzzy in many cases. But road signs will tell you the exact number of miles to towns and cities, and many… --- ## [Republicans meet secretly to discuss...shhhhh...climate change. Don't tell](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-meet-secretly-to-discuss-shhhhh-climate-change-dont-tell/944945)
**Author:** [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/republicans-meet-secretly-to-discuss-shhhhh-climate-change-dont-tell/944945 "2021-06-28T19:50:43Z")
This NYTimes link is from my local paper. Maybe it won’t be paywalled. WASHINGTON — When Rep. John Curtis quietly approached fellow Republicans to invite them to discuss climate change at a clandestine meeting in his… --- ## [How not escape on a 2000 mile kidnapping trip](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-not-escape-on-a-2000-mile-kidnapping-trip/944753)
**Author:** [@Sigene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigene)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-not-escape-on-a-2000-mile-kidnapping-trip/944753 "2021-06-28T18:35:52Z")
I expect there is a factual answer, but because its not easy to find it seems IMHO is the best place for this. THis is about the story where a murderer kidnapps a woman and forces her to drive 33 hours, 2000 miles acros… --- ## [I like wine but](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-wine-but/944706)
**Author:** [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-like-wine-but/944706 "2021-06-28T17:38:35Z")
There doesn’t seem to be any appetizer foods that go well with wine outside of cheeses or fruits. I know plenty of entrees but no apps. You guys have a go to? (All suggestions welcome but I’m a fan of red wine myself) --- ## [Why did W.H. personnel applaud when Vindman left?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-w-h-personnel-applaud-when-vindman-left/945080)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-w-h-personnel-applaud-when-vindman-left/945080 "2021-06-28T17:30:22Z")
I have tried unsuccessfully to find out the reason that some White House personnel were applauding when Alexander Vindman was escorted out of the White House in Feb. 2020. Was it a show of support for Trump for firing h… --- ## [2003 NE Blackout: how was service restored so quickly?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2003-ne-blackout-how-was-service-restored-so-quickly/945013)
**Author:** [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2003-ne-blackout-how-was-service-restored-so-quickly/945013 "2021-06-28T16:36:59Z")
During the major Texas electrical power outage back in February, large swaths of the grid were shut down in a controlled manner to avoid a catastrophic failure that reportedly could have taken months to recover from. So… --- ## [Religion: where do we draw the line](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/religion-where-do-we-draw-the-line/944869)
**Author:** [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/religion-where-do-we-draw-the-line/944869 "2021-06-28T16:00:17Z")
One or two of us would probably be happy to see religion just fucking go away, but it appears that we are saddled with it. Much of the time, it is not a problem, but also much of the time it is, especially when the perso… --- ## [Sappy songs you are unapologetic about loving](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sappy-songs-you-are-unapologetic-about-loving/944578)
**Author:** [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Replies:** 158\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sappy-songs-you-are-unapologetic-about-loving/944578 "2021-06-28T15:58:12Z")
For my whole life I have been a painful romantic. Honest to God, it drove my wife crazy, even if I was full of romantic feelings toward her. Today I caught the end credits to That Seventies Show and the gang was singin… --- ## [Dopers old enough to remember rock radio in 1971: Did you recognize "Stairway to Heaven" as a instant classic?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-old-enough-to-remember-rock-radio-in-1971-did-you-recognize-stairway-to-heaven-as-a-instant-classic/933411)
**Author:** [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Replies:** 97\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dopers-old-enough-to-remember-rock-radio-in-1971-did-you-recognize-stairway-to-heaven-as-a-instant-classic/933411 "2021-06-28T15:52:42Z")
I’m not old enough to remember when that song first came out, but I definitely remember hearing “More Than A Feeling” a few years later as a 12-year-old and knowing that I’d heard something great. Does anyone else wish … --- ## [I pit the disingenuous Back the Blue and flag waving veteran supporters](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-disingenuous-back-the-blue-and-flag-waving-veteran-supporters/945150)
**Author:** [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-disingenuous-back-the-blue-and-flag-waving-veteran-supporters/945150 "2021-06-28T14:34:49Z")
Our town and region (South Shore suburbs of Boston) are full of Back the Blue and Kneeling for the National Anthem is a Slap in the Face of Veterans jingoists. But when a white supremacist shoots a black retired State… --- ## [High School Student "Free Speech" Case Before SCOTUS](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-school-student-free-speech-case-before-scotus/940931)
**Author:** [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Replies:** 446\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/high-school-student-free-speech-case-before-scotus/940931 "2021-06-28T14:22:36Z")
I’m really torn about this one. On one hand, I don’t want schools to have the power to punish my kid for unpopular beliefs or ideas, say she supports Trump or BLM or whatever. But on the other hand, any organization … --- ## [Trying to put some weight on my old doggie](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-put-some-weight-on-my-old-doggie/943839)
**Author:** [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Replies:** 65\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trying-to-put-some-weight-on-my-old-doggie/943839 "2021-06-28T14:21:58Z")
TL;DR - requesting suggestions to tempt my old doggie’s appetite. Sweetie showed up at my house in the country 14 years ago. I don’t know how old she was then–definitely not a puppy. She could be as old as 16 or 17 now… --- ## [Do you care if you're videoed in public? (By a random stranger)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-care-if-youre-videoed-in-public-by-a-random-stranger/944552)
**Author:** [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Replies:** 57\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-care-if-youre-videoed-in-public-by-a-random-stranger/944552 "2021-06-28T14:17:56Z")
I’ve receently discovered this thing called: “1st amendment audits” on YouTube. Basically, it’s people filming random businesses from a public access, to see if said businesses “respect their right to take video” (reall… --- ## [Fargo S3](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fargo-s3/784313)
**Author:** [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Replies:** 386\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fargo-s3/784313 "2021-06-28T13:15:18Z")
It’s set in 2010 and will premiere on April 19. Looks like a great cast. --- ## [Black US flag](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-us-flag/944663)
**Author:** [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Replies:** 40\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/black-us-flag/944663 "2021-06-28T12:52:50Z")
I saw a flag being waved by a truck today. At first I thought it was a solid black flag, but then I saw that it was a US flag, with all of the stars, strips, and canton black. Does that mean something? --- ## [What did Sheelba of the Eyeless Face say to Fafhrd and the Mouser as they were leaving Lankhmar?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sheelba-of-the-eyeless-face-say-to-fafhrd-and-the-mouser-as-they-were-leaving-lankhmar/945153)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-did-sheelba-of-the-eyeless-face-say-to-fafhrd-and-the-mouser-as-they-were-leaving-lankhmar/945153 "2021-06-28T12:46:12Z")
It was after their girls had been killed and they’d taken revenge and were leaving Lankhmar forever, they thought. But Sheelba caught them up and said something about « never and ever is never for men / you’ll be coming… --- ## [MS Word Question - space around and between pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-question-space-around-and-between-pages/945175)
**Author:** [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-question-space-around-and-between-pages/945175 "2021-06-28T12:24:47Z")
Until a few days ago if I created a new document in MS Word, the pages would be white and the areas between the pages and around the pages would be grey. Now, for some reason, the areas between the pages and around the p… --- ## [Batwoman Season 2](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/batwoman-season-2/930164)
**Author:** [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Replies:** 74\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/batwoman-season-2/930164 "2021-06-28T12:02:26Z")
Batwoman Season 2 premieres Sunday, Jan 17. swapped video links at request of Terminus\_Est; What Exit? Casting changes The biggest change, of course, is that Ruby Rose will not be returning as Kate Kane. … --- ## [A question about baseball bats](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-baseball-bats/945014)
**Author:** [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Replies:** 48\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-about-baseball-bats/945014 "2021-06-28T11:39:06Z")
Continuing the discussion from The legality of deterring mailbox baseball: Reading about mailbox baseball, an activity that I did not know about but that seems to be rampant in rural USA, got me wondering about baseball… --- ## [Does anyone ever admire the irony that Russia, which is where political communism got its foothold](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-admire-the-irony-that-russia-which-is-where-political-communism-got-its-foothold/945111)
**Author:** [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-ever-admire-the-irony-that-russia-which-is-where-political-communism-got-its-foothold/945111 "2021-06-28T10:47:46Z")
Is now run by a right wing kleptocrat who uses identity politics to keep the country divided and stole 200-300 billion dollars from the country? I mean on a cosmic scale you have to admire the humor in that. --- ## [Biden, the church and communion](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-the-church-and-communion/941115)
**Author:** [@cincinnatus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cincinnatus)\ **Replies:** 114\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-the-church-and-communion/941115 "2021-06-28T10:31:01Z")
So much news seems to be bubbling up today. Catholic bishops are pushing to withhold communion from President Biden over his abortion rights stance. Since those in the church dragging this church matter into public pol… --- ## [Was Yiddish ever a kind of lingua franca among European and non-European immigrant Jews to America?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-yiddish-ever-a-kind-of-lingua-franca-among-european-and-non-european-immigrant-jews-to-america/944788)
**Author:** [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Replies:** 54\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-yiddish-ever-a-kind-of-lingua-franca-among-european-and-non-european-immigrant-jews-to-america/944788 "2021-06-28T09:34:18Z")
I’ve always wondered whether Yiddish was ever a kind of lingua franca among European and non-European immigrant Jews to America. I haven’t been able to get a satisfactory answer to the question. --- ## [Red white & blue flags](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-white-blue-flags/945060)
**Author:** [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-white-blue-flags/945060 "2021-06-28T09:05:50Z")
I saw some reference to a red white and blue flag, and idly wondered what percentage of current national flags fit that description. “A lot” was my guess. So, my criteria: Flags must have all 3 colours. Two is not en… --- ## [Passata recipe?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/passata-recipe/945113)
**Author:** [@alovem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alovem)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/passata-recipe/945113 "2021-06-28T06:13:08Z")
Passata is a very simple tomato sauce, but I’m seeing a lot of differences at the cooking stage in online recipes. Most coincide in the first and last steps: Start with perfectly ripe plum tomatoes, discarding seeds and… --- ## [Things you wish you'd known about yourself earlier](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wish-youd-known-about-yourself-earlier/945003)
**Author:** [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wish-youd-known-about-yourself-earlier/945003 "2021-06-28T05:51:25Z")
Even in my early old age/late middle age I find I am continually discovering newish things about myself that could have been useful earlier in my life. Of course I didn’t know them because I wasn’t ready to accept them, … --- ## [Allison Mack: actress, sex cult leader, felon.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/allison-mack-actress-sex-cult-leader-felon/812820)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 67\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/allison-mack-actress-sex-cult-leader-felon/812820 "2021-06-28T04:10:31Z")
I’ve been reading this story of months, but haven’t noticed it discussed here on the Dope. Allison Mack (probably best known as Chloe on Smallville, but I also liked her on the short-lived Opposite Sex) joined a sex cult… --- ## [Kevin Can Go Fuck Himself on AMC+](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kevin-can-go-fuck-himself-on-amc/944311)
**Author:** [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kevin-can-go-fuck-himself-on-amc/944311 "2021-06-28T04:01:57Z")
I bought a new Roku hands-free voice remote and got a free trial for AMC+, and this is a new show. It stars Annie Murphy of Schitt’s Creek and it has a very cynical take on the sitcom. It alternates between two kinds o… --- ## [Why do COVID vaccines use messenger RNA rather than injecting spike proteins directly?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-covid-vaccines-use-messenger-rna-rather-than-injecting-spike-proteins-directly/940281)
**Author:** [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [June 28, 2021, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-covid-vaccines-use-messenger-rna-rather-than-injecting-spike-proteins-directly/940281 "2021-06-28T04:00:19Z")
It seems a little Rube Goldberg to induce the body to create spike proteins with mRNA, then have the immune system react to those newly-created spike proteins. Why not grow the spike proteins in a big vat (or in an anima… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=1414) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=1416)