# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=753 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 754 --- ## [(Old) The first day of school in the MMP](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-the-first-day-of-school-in-the-mmp/988860)
**Author:** [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Replies:** 369\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2023, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/old-the-first-day-of-school-in-the-mmp/988860 "2023-08-29T02:30:55Z")
I know in some areas, school has started and in others it’s about to start - my granddaughter starts kindergarten on Wednesday. So let’s share memories of first days - yours, your kids, whoever. I’ll be back later with … --- ## [What animated Justice League movie was this?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animated-justice-league-movie-was-this/989254)
**Author:** [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [August 29, 2023, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-animated-justice-league-movie-was-this/989254 "2023-08-29T02:14:12Z")
There is a scene in which Martian Manhunter is in a hotel room, and morphing his face to match each face appearing on tv. Thanks! --- ## [This organization says that sheriffs are the final arbiters of law](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-organization-says-that-sheriffs-are-the-final-arbiters-of-law/988901)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-organization-says-that-sheriffs-are-the-final-arbiters-of-law/988901 "2023-08-28T23:32:43Z")
I’d heard that this this belief was popular among the far-right before, but now it’s organized. The numbers and influence described here are chilling. “Over the last five years, the group has hosted trainings, rallies, s… --- ## [Track and Field World Championships have been exciting this year](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/track-and-field-world-championships-have-been-exciting-this-year/989205)
**Author:** [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/track-and-field-world-championships-have-been-exciting-this-year/989205 "2023-08-28T22:45:19Z")
I am not a huge fan of track & field sports but this competition has had some exciting and dramatic competitions. This is not a complete list: Team USA claims WORLD RECORD via SHOCKING 4x400 mixed relay finish at Wor… --- ## [Who was Edmund Fitzgerald?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-edmund-fitzgerald/988613)
**Author:** [@Malkav23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malkav23)\ **Replies:** 43\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-edmund-fitzgerald/988613 "2023-08-28T22:44:34Z")
We’ve all heard our share of Gordon Lightfoot. My question is who was Edmund Fitzgerald, and how did he get a ship named after him? --- ## [An Author Says Books Attributed To Her Were Written By A.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-author-says-books-attributed-to-her-were-written-by-a-i/989185)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 12\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-author-says-books-attributed-to-her-were-written-by-a-i/989185 "2023-08-28T21:28:57Z")
To amplify: an author named Jane Friedman says that several books with her name on them were written by A.I.The books were sold on Amazon until she alerted them, with no way to tell at first glance they are not hers. Oth… --- ## [Joe the Plumber died, age 49 (2008 election)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-the-plumber-died-age-49-2008-election/989243)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-the-plumber-died-age-49-2008-election/989243 "2023-08-28T21:14:31Z")
He asked a question about candidate Obama’s economic plan. There was concern small businesses like a plumbing shop would pay extra taxes. Joe was a media sensation for awhile. The Republicans tried to use him. Cancer k… --- ## [Slow site loading?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slow-site-loading/989149)
**Author:** [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slow-site-loading/989149 "2023-08-28T21:09:06Z")
Since late last night (August 25), when I go to load the main SDMB page, it’s been taking at least 30 seconds, and sometimes longer, to load. I’m wondering if there’s an issue going on, and if anyone else is experiencin… --- ## [Three books this summer about Medusa written by young female scholars](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-books-this-summer-about-medusa-written-by-young-female-scholars/989162)
**Author:** [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/three-books-this-summer-about-medusa-written-by-young-female-scholars/989162 "2023-08-28T21:00:00Z")
Three! Since I had written a much-cited book about Medusa almost a quarter of a century ago (Medusa: Solving the Mystery of the Gorgon – Oxford University Press 2000), people in my writing groups pointed out to me that … --- ## [Donald Trump's Mug Shot and Booking](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-mug-shot-and-booking/989073)
**Author:** [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Replies:** 90\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/donald-trumps-mug-shot-and-booking/989073 "2023-08-28T20:37:07Z")
That damned photo is all over the place this morning. It’s at the top of news websites and the front pages of newspapers. It takes up the entire front page of the New York Post, but it’s still there, less obvious, on the… --- ## [RIP Bob Barker; August 26, 2023](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-bob-barker-august-26-2023/989148)
**Author:** [@Coriolanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coriolanus)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-bob-barker-august-26-2023/989148 "2023-08-28T20:19:54Z")
99 years old. Dunno what it is about reaching 100 that makes it special, yet I’d like to see more of the good people make it. He was a great animal rights activist. He had a terrific against-character scene in Happy Gil… --- ## [What would happen to a John/Jane Doe?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-to-a-john-jane-doe/989157)
**Author:** [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Replies:** 25\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-happen-to-a-john-jane-doe/989157 "2023-08-28T19:18:14Z")
So a person is brought into a hospital with no I.D. They don’t know who they are, no memory or fingerprint record. What happens next if they never remember and no one comes for them? (Is John or Jane Doe correct? I’ve o… --- ## [Sequel Works which add Important Lore Rules which Never Appeared in the Original](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sequel-works-which-add-important-lore-rules-which-never-appeared-in-the-original/988784)
**Author:** [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Replies:** 134\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sequel-works-which-add-important-lore-rules-which-never-appeared-in-the-original/988784 "2023-08-28T19:08:17Z")
Basically a sequel introduces a rule or lore that is seen as incredibly important for the entire franchise, except this rule or lore was never established in the original work and in fact may even contradict it. Grease … --- ## [Asking advice on making Elotes for a fairly large group (need answer fairly fast)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asking-advice-on-making-elotes-for-a-fairly-large-group-need-answer-fairly-fast/989074)
**Author:** [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asking-advice-on-making-elotes-for-a-fairly-large-group-need-answer-fairly-fast/989074 "2023-08-28T19:00:40Z")
So, a month or so ago I made Elotes (Mexican Street Corn) for the first time when I BBQed for some friends who were over. Mrs. solost loved it, and volunteered me to make it for an event on her side of the family tomorro… --- ## [Crank fights - now that's entertainment](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crank-fights-now-thats-entertainment/988864)
**Author:** [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/crank-fights-now-thats-entertainment/988864 "2023-08-28T18:35:31Z")
Two beauts have broken out. In one corner of the antivax ring we have Karen Kingston, Pfizer “whistleblower” who accuses mRNA vaccine “inventor” Robert Malone of being part of a CIA plot to assassinate her. While denyin… --- ## [Why Aren’t You Protesting In The Streets?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-you-protesting-in-the-streets/988836)
**Author:** [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Replies:** 36\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-aren-t-you-protesting-in-the-streets/988836 "2023-08-28T17:50:16Z")
A National Post letter to the editor suggests Canadians should be protesting in the streets over eighty unfilled judicial vacancies. And laments that they aren’t. While this might be true and be problematic, it occurs … --- ## [Does your dog look like someone?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-your-dog-look-like-someone/989079)
**Author:** [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-your-dog-look-like-someone/989079 "2023-08-28T17:49:51Z")
Bayliss is so handsome. He looks like Tyrone Power. Those smoldering dark eyes and expressive eyebrows. He needs to work on the smile, tho’. Dillon looks exactly like Steve Erwin. Eyes always darting around, mouth open… --- ## [Tangential Q to Prigoshin crash: Do private business trips necessarily file a list of passengers?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tangential-q-to-prigoshin-crash-do-private-business-trips-necessarily-file-a-list-of-passengers/989006)
**Author:** [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Replies:** 5\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tangential-q-to-prigoshin-crash-do-private-business-trips-necessarily-file-a-list-of-passengers/989006 "2023-08-28T17:48:31Z")
With reference to the plane crash on 23 August 2023 near Tver, Russia: Official Russian announcements apparently quickly stated that Yevgeny Prigoshin was on the passenger list, and later published a full passenger and … --- ## [Is the current accepted view that all the deaths in the Vietnam war were in vain?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-current-accepted-view-that-all-the-deaths-in-the-vietnam-war-were-in-vain/988121)
**Author:** [@Polerius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polerius)\ **Replies:** 120\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-current-accepted-view-that-all-the-deaths-in-the-vietnam-war-were-in-vain/988121 "2023-08-28T17:05:03Z")
According to Wikipedia, around 280K US soldiers, ~500K Vietnamese soldiers, and ~500K Vietnamese civilians died in the war. In retrospect, was it a strategic blunder to get the US involved in the war? Or was getting int… --- ## [Culture and evolution on Generation Ships](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/culture-and-evolution-on-generation-ships/988726)
**Author:** [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Replies:** 118\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/culture-and-evolution-on-generation-ships/988726 "2023-08-28T16:09:39Z")
Spinning this off from the what to do with the dead bodies thread … Potentially hundreds of thousands of years of a relatively small population with a hard top limit in a confined space. Progeny have to be tightly regu… --- ## [How reliable is the Express (British paper)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-reliable-is-the-express-british-paper/988945)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-reliable-is-the-express-british-paper/988945 "2023-08-28T15:57:16Z")
From the Ukraine Thread, I’ve got a question. @aceplace57 posted a quote from the Express, a British paper. Later on, I posted a question: @EddyTeddyFreddy followed up with: Then I posted: Then @What\_Exit said… --- ## [Why do schools and universities have such toxic workplace cultures?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-schools-and-universities-have-such-toxic-workplace-cultures/988902)
**Author:** [@MrLee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrLee)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-schools-and-universities-have-such-toxic-workplace-cultures/988902 "2023-08-28T15:46:24Z")
Pre-amble: I’ve worked in around education and corporate training for ~22 years. I have two post-graduate degrees in education (and almost a doctoral degree, long story…), and have worked in state secondaries, independen… --- ## [If you play one or more musical instruments, why did you choose the one(s) you chose?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-play-one-or-more-musical-instruments-why-did-you-choose-the-one-s-you-chose/982157)
**Author:** [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-play-one-or-more-musical-instruments-why-did-you-choose-the-one-s-you-chose/982157 "2023-08-28T13:49:31Z")
My dad played the accordion, so when I was 6 or 7, I took accordion lessons. I wrote my first composition at age 7 - a polka! Once I got to 7th grade, I bought my first guitar and a book of chords, and I taught myself t… --- ## [Let's remember the Good Old Days! /s](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-remember-the-good-old-days-s/988062)
**Author:** [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Replies:** 120\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-remember-the-good-old-days-s/988062 "2023-08-28T13:48:17Z")
Let’s remember the Good Old Days when life was so much better. Remember when everybody smoked and you could smoke anywhere? You could smoke in movie theaters, on airplanes, in a hospital room or at the doctors office. R… --- ## [What has been done to these weird looking trees?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-been-done-to-these-weird-looking-trees/987822)
**Author:** [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-has-been-done-to-these-weird-looking-trees/987822 "2023-08-28T13:38:27Z")
I came across this striking image long ago but don’t remember what the location was. The trees lining the path up to the really old looking building have all had something done to them, maybe three or four feet from the… --- ## [What is this screw? called?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-screw-called/989126)
**Author:** [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-this-screw-called/989126 "2023-08-28T07:27:34Z")
Sorry, no photo, (which I couldn’t post anyway!), but what I’m referring to is the kind of tiny, ‘thread only’, (for lack of proper terminology), screw type thing. They are often used to tighten the door handle once it’… --- ## [Who is the redhead singer on Do It Again?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-redhead-singer-on-do-it-again/989055)
**Author:** [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Replies:** 24\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-redhead-singer-on-do-it-again/989055 "2023-08-28T04:36:49Z")
My favorite Steely Dan song. Who is the redhead lead singer? Wikipedia doesn’t say. Link Do It Again (Steely Dan song) - Wikipedia Redhead dude on the left and Fagan is on the right in the thumbnail preview. … --- ## [How long would a dead squirrel stay on your sidewalk?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-would-a-dead-squirrel-stay-on-your-sidewalk/989090)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 63\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-would-a-dead-squirrel-stay-on-your-sidewalk/989090 "2023-08-28T04:28:56Z")
Just curious about your thoughts. I live in a decent Chicago burb, with curbs and sidewalks. There is a public middle school at the south end of my block. At the north end of our block is a home that recently went thr… --- ## [How to lubricate leather WITHOUT softening it](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-lubricate-leather-without-softening-it/989167)
**Author:** [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-lubricate-leather-without-softening-it/989167 "2023-08-28T03:42:07Z")
I have a belt that, instead of having a typical buckle, fastens with pegs that go into the holes. They’re a tight fit, which I’d like to preserve, but I would like to “grease” them a bit so long as it doesn’t soften the … --- ## [Vinland Saga - animated show (Netflix). Anyone else watching this?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vinland-saga-animated-show-netflix-anyone-else-watching-this/989052)
**Author:** [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [August 28, 2023, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vinland-saga-animated-show-netflix-anyone-else-watching-this/989052 "2023-08-28T01:53:29Z")
I am about 4 episodes into the second season and dare I say it, I kind of love this show. It’s a Viking show and as painful as it is to say this, I think its quality is more consistently high than Vikings, a show I real… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=752) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=754)