# Discussion thread for the "Polls only" thread (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 28, 2022, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380 "2022-09-28T11:33:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 345
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6884 "2023-09-21T16:30:05Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > Gul Dukat was in one of the polls? If I had noticed, I would have recognized him. At the very real risk of being whooshed, I meant his actor Mark Alaimo of course. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6885 "2023-09-21T16:33:39Z")
I don’t know enough about what hand-to-hand fighting training Zelenskyy’s had to vote in that poll. (I do at least in this case know who the people are!) And if a newspaper in NYCity ran an article about the Gulf without anything in the story indicating which Gulf, I’d be thinking ‘which gulf are they talking about?’ I wouldn’t be thinking of any specific one they might mean, more than any other. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6886 "2023-09-21T16:45:28Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > And if a newspaper in NYCity ran an article about the Gulf without anything in the story indicating which Gulf, I’d be thinking ‘which gulf are they talking about?’ That’s the real answer, moderated by, “there’s usually some context in the article that would clarify that.” ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6887 "2023-09-21T16:56:21Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > > [@WildaBeast](#): > > > > Gul Dukat was in one of the polls? If I had noticed, I would have recognized him. > > At the very real risk of being whooshed, I meant his actor Mark Alaimo of course. I figured that out later, but at the time I did think you literally meant Gul Dukat. No, I wouldn’t have recognized the actor who played him. I haven’t been to a Ren Fair since I was a kid, but I remember having a lot of fun at one back then. Maybe I would feel differently as an adult, but since the only memories I have of them are positive I voted that I love them. My dad did feel differently, since he was the one paying for it and he didn’t like the fact that he was expected to tip all the performers in addition to paying for admission, which I don’t think he knew going in. > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > And if a newspaper in NYCity ran an article about the Gulf without anything in the story indicating which Gulf, I’d be thinking ‘which gulf are they talking about?’ I wouldn’t be thinking of any specific one they might mean, more than any other. At risk of being accused of fighting the hypothetical, it’s highly unlikely that any reputable newspaper would talk about “The Gulf” without any further context. That would just be terrible journalism. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6888 "2023-09-21T17:04:30Z")
Ren Faire - I spent a chunk of my high school and college life being loosely associated with the SCA and of course, I’m a TT-RPG’er so there’s a lot of overlap in interests with that group. My wife was a serious member of the SCA in college, and we have friends who are/were officers. So I like the RenFaire, and even like dressing up for it. But… it’s expensive to go, and if you don’t want to buy stuff, the amount of things you can do and see for free reduces every year. So I haven’t been since about 2 years before COVID. Still like it though. Game of Thrones - I suspect GRRM will finish (or perhaps even has finished) a draft for #6, but I don’t think he’ll ever get it worked out to his satisfaction before dropping dead, much less moving to book #7. Anything he does at this point will never satisfy everyone, and it’s easier to keep putting it off. Putin v Zelensky I voted Putin would win, because he would certainly cheat. Concealed weapons, poison, a classic supervillain “If I lose, a hundred nukes will be set off by the stopping of my heart, now loose and at least your people will LIVE” trope, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6889 "2023-09-21T17:09:17Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > I suspect GRRM will finish (or perhaps even has finished) a draft for #6, but I don’t think he’ll ever get it worked out to his satisfaction before dropping dead, much less moving to book #7. Anything he does at this point will never satisfy everyone, and it’s easier to keep putting it off. This is why I’ll never publish a series until all the books are written. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2023, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6890 "2023-09-21T17:19:59Z")
I’ve gone back and forth on that rule over the years, but Patrick Rothfuss (who has their own thread right now on this issue) finally finished it for me. And that leaves out the issue of series bloat, as I was one of the early Robert Jordan readers who was enjoying the Wheel of Time before it decided to have mid-story character / sub-plot / sell more bestseller padding and ended up with a dead author who let the series get away from them, even if it was ‘finished’ posthumously better than some. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6891 "2023-09-22T00:30:05Z")
For New Mexico, the license plate pictured on that webpage is a vanity plate, to commemorate the state’s centennial. You have to pay extra to get that one. The standard plate is red characters on a yellow background. Which I think is prettier than most. They also have one with yellow characters on a black background, and a red chile pod and a green chile pod on the side. [https://www.mvd.newmexico.gov/vehicles/license-plates/standard-plates/](https://www.mvd.newmexico.gov/vehicles/license-plates/standard-plates/) ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6892 "2023-09-22T01:01:39Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > I’ve gone back and forth on that rule over the years, but Patrick Rothfuss (who has their own thread right now on this issue) finally finished it for me. It’s an entirely selfish rule for me. When I think about how much Rothfuss must be suffering right now under the weight of his readers’ expectations while he’s evidently floundering to get the story out, it seems unbearable. I’m stuck in a MS right now and I have no readers and it’s hard enough with nobody else’s expectations. On the reader side, I know people who refuse to start a series until it’s finished. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6893 "2023-09-22T01:31:34Z")
Putin has been training in judo for decades. Zelenskyy was a comedian. Advantage Putin. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6894 "2023-09-22T02:24:33Z")
New Mexico, Alaska and Idaho for the best (Famous Potatoes!) Oregon, Arizona and Texas for the worst because if I see them, then they are _here_! ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6895 "2023-09-22T03:05:40Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Putin has been training in judo for decades. > > Zelenskyy was a comedian. > > Advantage Putin. But 70-year old judo guy going up against 45-year old non-judo guy? I’d still have to think the age gap makes a big difference. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6896 "2023-09-22T07:29:04Z")
> [@mbh](#): > > For New Mexico, the license plate pictured on that webpage is a vanity plate, to commemorate the state’s centennial. You have to pay extra to get that one. The standard plate is red characters on a yellow background. Which I think is prettier than most. > > They also have one with yellow characters on a black background, and a red chile pod and a green chile pod on the side. > > [Standard Plates | Motor Vehicle Division NM](https://www.mvd.newmexico.gov/vehicles/license-plates/standard-plates/) Thank you! I was just rushing in here to point that out. I may be biased (I am definitely biased), but I’d put any of the main three NM plates up against anyone else’s. The things I think make a plate good are clear, well-spaced letters/numbers and a few well-defined graphic elements with good contrast between the images and background. Too many states have washed-out images and crowded or small letters that aren’t legible on the road. I would give a hand-to-hand battle to Zelenskyy, but the poll question said “armed combat,” did it not? If they’re armed, it’s anyone’s fight. The last Ren Faire I attended (almost certainly an SCA event) was some 40 years ago. It was…okay? I haven’t been motivated to seek out another. It might have been more fun if I’d been a participant (or less! It’s hard to say). And when I hear “the Gulf,” unless it’s “the Gulf War,” I think Gulf of Mexico. It’s just much closer than the Persian Gulf. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6897 "2023-09-22T11:03:07Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Putin has been training in judo for decades. > > Zelenskyy was a comedian. > > Advantage Putin. Anyone mind if we throw (literally, throw) Trump in the mix? mmm ---
**Author:** ![Hatchie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hatchie/32/3983_2.png) [@Hatchie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hatchie)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6898 "2023-09-22T22:16:37Z")
License plates: Delaware and Vermont win, because they are plain and readable the way license plates are supposed to be. Any plate with a picture of anything on it is a loser. Wyoming has a stupid cowboy-riding-bucking horse silhouette, so that’s the worst. Also stupid taglines -“Famous Potatoes”, yes Idaho, we know. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6899 "2023-09-22T22:46:08Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Texas for the worst Texas is the worst because black text on a white background… come on, Texas, were you too cheap to buy a license plate printing machine that could print in color? When I first started seeing them I thought they were temporary tags, but no, that’s their standard plate. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2023, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6900 "2023-09-23T01:52:16Z")
During a recent trip to Texas, I also realized that the numbers and letters are not raised, but simply printed on the flat plate. Maybe there are other states that do this, but I’d never seen it before. Technically, I’m a Boomer, but just barely. I don’t really identify with the generation. ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2023, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6901 "2023-09-23T04:03:23Z")
Texas has had some interesting plates. I agree that the standard one is boring, but that is because there’s a whole freaking lot of specialty plates for just a small extra fee. Many of these plates support causes, and a part of the extra fee goes to these causes. For instance, I had the bluebonnet plate for several years, which supports the Texas parks & wildlife dept. Some of them are quite pretty, although many are boring - lots of college and team plates. And half are for disabled vets [Texas plate selection](https://www.myplates.com/design/background/passenger/small-star-black) ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2023, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6902 "2023-09-23T12:19:10Z")
I suspected we skewed old on this board, but I wasn’t sure how old. The vast majority are Boomers so far. I am a Millennial but more of Xennial. I was probably 16 when we got our first computer and I was in college before I had a cell phone. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2023, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/6903 "2023-09-23T18:22:22Z")
We apparently have at least two Dopers who are either under 11 years old or older than 122. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380.md?page=344) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380.md?page=346)