# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=394 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 395 --- ## [I have given up. Big Tech has beat me into submission](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-given-up-big-tech-has-beat-me-into-submission/1012877)
**Author:** [@Turki-lurki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turki-lurki)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [January 13, 2025, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-given-up-big-tech-has-beat-me-into-submission/1012877 "2025-01-13T02:20:23Z")
In the past I had separate passwords on everything. Complex ones. No F’book or Messenger or X for me, no sir. No bank apps. I value privacy and do not want to be grist for the AI mill. But gradually they beat me down. I… --- ## [Please Critique my Proposed Cocktail Recipe](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-critique-my-proposed-cocktail-recipe/1012858)
**Author:** [@Ynnad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ynnad)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-critique-my-proposed-cocktail-recipe/1012858 "2025-01-12T23:12:33Z")
I only have a mixed drink about every couple of years or so. Don’t worry. I have already met my lifetime quota for alcohol consumption so I don’t have any catching up to do. I am not a connoisseur. My plan: 2 parts c… --- ## [Spanish beach cities recommendations for May?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spanish-beach-cities-recommendations-for-may/1012885)
**Author:** [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spanish-beach-cities-recommendations-for-may/1012885 "2025-01-12T23:21:19Z")
Title basically says it all, planning to go to Madrid in May and thought it might be nice to have a couple days in a beach town along the Mediterranean afterwards and then fly to the U.K. Is May too early to even consid… --- ## [Google Search has Stopped Working -- Any Help?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-search-has-stopped-working-any-help/1012881)
**Author:** [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-search-has-stopped-working-any-help/1012881 "2025-01-12T21:49:45Z")
Ok, so this is a little embarrassing, but I’m at my wit’s end. The other night I went to get a glass of water and when I returned, my very helpful dachshund of Shovel Paws fame had trampled all over the keyboard to my l… --- ## [The 2024-25 Steelers Probably Won’t Make The Super Bowl Thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2024-25-steelers-probably-won-t-make-the-super-bowl-thread/1006955)
**Author:** [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Replies:** 99\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2024-25-steelers-probably-won-t-make-the-super-bowl-thread/1006955 "2025-01-12T20:28:54Z")
So last year’s thread sank out of a combination of disinterest from the rest of you, which I can hardly blame you for as this is more or less self-aggrandizing, and a lack of participation from myself, which is unusual b… --- ## [Where is the best county government?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-the-best-county-government/1012584)
**Author:** [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-the-best-county-government/1012584 "2025-01-12T20:23:48Z")
I am interested in identifying the best local governments in the US. There are lots of opinions as the worst, but I want to find solutions. To do that I need to learn from the best. So, Dopers, you have lived all over, w… --- ## [When cancer "returns," where was it in the interim?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-cancer-returns-where-was-it-in-the-interim/1012279)
**Author:** [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-cancer-returns-where-was-it-in-the-interim/1012279 "2025-01-12T19:39:33Z")
Prompted by an article about actress Olivia Hussey’s death, which mentioned that her breast cancer had “returned” ten years after her diagnosis and a double mastectomy. As a breast cancer survivor, I’ve long wondered, th… --- ## [Boeing 737 hovering?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boeing-737-hovering/1012823)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/boeing-737-hovering/1012823 "2025-01-12T19:02:36Z")
The linked video (Instagram) appears to show a 737 hovering essentially in one place. How strong do the winds have to be before this can happen? I notice that the trees are being blown but not that much. That’s assumi… --- ## [The Penguin was amazing!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-penguin-was-amazing/1007503)
**Author:** [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Replies:** 120\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-penguin-was-amazing/1007503 "2025-01-12T18:20:03Z")
I was blown away by the first episode. A really great crime story. Looking forward to see where it goes. --- ## [Parents or SO's of gaming addicts: Have you ever destroyed or given away a system, and how did that go over?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-or-sos-of-gaming-addicts-have-you-ever-destroyed-or-given-away-a-system-and-how-did-that-go-over/1012700)
**Author:** [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-or-sos-of-gaming-addicts-have-you-ever-destroyed-or-given-away-a-system-and-how-did-that-go-over/1012700 "2025-01-12T17:57:46Z")
I’m curious. I see a lot of chatter about people neglecting their families and life, but not a lot about what people did about it, beyond separating themselves from the person. I do remember a “Foxtrot” comic where 10-… --- ## [Hotel pricing quirk?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-pricing-quirk/971218)
**Author:** [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Replies:** 65\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hotel-pricing-quirk/971218 "2025-01-12T17:29:59Z")
I don’t know is this is IMHO material or belongs in MPSIMS. 21 years ago, in the week of 9/11 we had to drive 300 miles each way to pick up family who had been stranded when their plane was rerouted and grounded during … --- ## [Bring a geezer up to date -- How secure are Android payment apps?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bring-a-geezer-up-to-date-how-secure-are-android-payment-apps/1012610)
**Author:** [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Replies:** 67\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bring-a-geezer-up-to-date-how-secure-are-android-payment-apps/1012610 "2025-01-12T16:20:07Z")
I’m not even sure if I’m calling them by the right term, or what ones exist for Android. I guess it would be the equivalent of Apple Pay, which at least I have heard of. I gather generally you have an app on your phone, … --- ## [Great TV Theme Music...but Lousy Show](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-tv-theme-music-but-lousy-show/1012788)
**Author:** [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Replies:** 44\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-tv-theme-music-but-lousy-show/1012788 "2025-01-12T16:14:04Z")
You see the show for the first time, and the theme and/or music is freakin’ fantastic!…then you watch the actual show and it varies from “meh” to “I wonder if you can make eye wash out of battery acid?”. I’ve got som… --- ## [They're back! - the door-to-door salesmen from hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-back-the-door-to-door-salesmen-from-hell/147402)
**Author:** [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Replies:** 78\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-back-the-door-to-door-salesmen-from-hell/147402 "2025-01-12T16:10:58Z")
Well, not actually from hell; that’s just what the estate agents call it ‘North Hell’ they often say, but really it’s not even a suburb and the climate is quite different. Anyway, they’re back! - the door-to-door salesm… --- ## [I can't play my games offline?! (Epic)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-play-my-games-offline-epic/1012848)
**Author:** [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-play-my-games-offline-epic/1012848 "2025-01-12T14:24:11Z")
So I’ve resigned myself to the fact that these days, every game requires some sort of launcher that in most cases seems to have been coded by an overworked intern on their lunchbreak while listening to Aqua’s Barbie Girl … --- ## [Anita Bryant Passes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anita-bryant-passes/1012786)
**Author:** [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anita-bryant-passes/1012786 "2025-01-12T12:26:45Z")
From Yahoo: Anita Bryant, a multi-Grammy nominated singer and former Miss Oklahoma who later became a high-profile campaigner against gay rights in America, has died at the age of 84. --- ## [Android Messages photos problem](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/android-messages-photos-problem/1012850)
**Author:** [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/android-messages-photos-problem/1012850 "2025-01-12T08:55:17Z")
Yesterday I learned about a problem two people are having sending photos on the Android Messages app. Bob can send photos to Alice but Alice can’t send photos to Bob. Both Bob and Alice can send photos to and from other … --- ## [Christmas Cat \[film\]](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-cat-film/1012863)
**Author:** [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christmas-cat-film/1012863 "2025-01-12T06:39:50Z")
I mean the one who finds people who have not received any new clothes by Christmas, and eats them. According to the IMDB, there is a short film featuring this cat: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt26680526/ My question is:… --- ## [Venturing into vegan/vegetarian food](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venturing-into-vegan-vegetarian-food/1012775)
**Author:** [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Replies:** 52\ **Last updated:** [January 12, 2025, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venturing-into-vegan-vegetarian-food/1012775 "2025-01-12T03:48:34Z")
Trying a vegan food now: Morningstar Farms’ Sweet BBQ Riblets. No way you’d confuse them for real beef short ribs or pork ribs based on texture alone, let alone flavor. About all I taste, in fact, is the barbecue sauc… --- ## [Brief cartoon scene identification - pursuit while behind drum set](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brief-cartoon-scene-identification-pursuit-while-behind-drum-set/1012853)
**Author:** [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brief-cartoon-scene-identification-pursuit-while-behind-drum-set/1012853 "2025-01-11T21:42:47Z")
So I finally saw Whiplash last night, and all that drumming reminded me of a brief animated scene involving someone drumming on a drum set, while chasing someone else. It’s in a mock-1970s-cheap-animation (and maybe psyc… --- ## [SDMB NFL Pick 'em and survival leagues](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmb-nfl-pick-em-and-survival-leagues/1006324)
**Author:** [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sdmb-nfl-pick-em-and-survival-leagues/1006324 "2025-01-11T18:47:57Z")
Last year’s thread which I will mostly just be repeating here. Those of you who played last year should have an invite in your e-mail or you can sign up through the information in the thread. Survival leagues don’t have… --- ## [The best movies of 2024](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-movies-of-2024/1012822)
**Author:** [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-best-movies-of-2024/1012822 "2025-01-11T17:15:22Z")
I’m sure there are a few 2024 releases for me to see. I saw 101 movies released in the year 2024 and my top 10 is probably not really set in stone. All 10 of these are great and you can swap most of them with the movies … --- ## [Soul Man Sam Moore has died](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soul-man-sam-moore-has-died/1012843)
**Author:** [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soul-man-sam-moore-has-died/1012843 "2025-01-11T16:08:36Z")
Sam Moore, one half of Sam & Dave has died at age 89. Their music had a bit of a revival when The Blues Brothers movie came out. --- ## [Home bread bakers, give me your wisdom](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/home-bread-bakers-give-me-your-wisdom/1012728)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/home-bread-bakers-give-me-your-wisdom/1012728 "2025-01-11T15:06:08Z")
Many years ago I made bread for a living, so I know from bread. But doing it at a retail scale, even for a small bakery, is worlds different than doing it at home. Never got into it but I was forced by circumstance to do… --- ## [Ideal size of a parachute umbrella](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ideal-size-of-a-parachute-umbrella/1012832)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ideal-size-of-a-parachute-umbrella/1012832 "2025-01-11T14:30:33Z")
I’m a criminal who wants to make a stylish escape by parachuting off of a roof using an umbrella. Is a regular rainy-day one too small, too flimsy, or just impossible? And if so, what size should my umbrella be for succe… --- ## [Snow? Where? Here in deep, dark South Arkansas?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snow-where-here-in-deep-dark-south-arkansas/1012773)
**Author:** [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snow-where-here-in-deep-dark-south-arkansas/1012773 "2025-01-11T14:18:40Z")
Everyone will be at the grocery store. The cousin you haven’t seen in 3 years will hug you. Gah! There will be no bread, no milk, no eggs. Anywhere. No one owns gloves, except work gloves. I went out to check the garage… --- ## [Why the lack of USB-C mouse's?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-lack-of-usb-c-mouses/1009580)
**Author:** [@Quintas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quintas)\ **Replies:** 77\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-lack-of-usb-c-mouses/1009580 "2025-01-11T09:38:41Z")
If they exist I can’t find them. I got a new Dell XPS laptop 2 months ago and all the ports are usb-c. I have to use an adapter in the usb-c port to plug in my old wireless receiver. Its annoying having this thing … --- ## [Egregious fan interference at MLB game - why not lifetime ban?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egregious-fan-interference-at-mlb-game-why-not-lifetime-ban/1009471)
**Author:** [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Replies:** 46\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egregious-fan-interference-at-mlb-game-why-not-lifetime-ban/1009471 "2025-01-11T07:58:43Z")
So, this happened: I understand ejecting a fan who gets enthusiastic about catching a towering fly ball and leaning out into the field a bit, not paying attention to the player who would otherwise be making the play. … --- ## [Blam Canada!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blam-canada/1012757)
**Author:** [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Replies:** 45\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blam-canada/1012757 "2025-01-11T05:53:24Z")
Offers of immediate surrender from Quebec --- ## [How's Trudeau doing, Canada?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-trudeau-doing-canada/746019)
**Author:** [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Replies:** 602\ **Last updated:** [January 11, 2025, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hows-trudeau-doing-canada/746019 "2025-01-11T05:52:43Z")
I was quite impressed by Justin Trudeau’s diverse new Cabinet and his dynamic attitude, but it was way too early to tell if his youthful enthusiasm was going to follow through on actual results. But there must be some i… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=393) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=395)