# You get looped back to January 1, 2020. Whatcha gonna do different? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 7, 2020, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210 "2020-06-07T19:26:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2020, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/41 "2020-06-09T03:58:09Z")
1. warn my student what the consequences of the behavior she would be engaging in during the first week of February would be. I would give a lot to be able to do that. 2. Stock up on meat, N95 masks, hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, and all the rest of the stuff that’s gone scarce. 3. #1. Again. ---
**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:** [June 9, 2020, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/42 "2020-06-09T05:49:34Z")
> [@Mdcastle](#): > > Buy myself some N95 masks so I’d be able to leave the house sometime before there’s a vaccine without being afraid. Not just inhalation, though. The virus can infect you via the eyes, and if you take the N95 mask off and touch your mouth or nose with virus-laden hands, you can contract it too. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/43 "2020-06-11T20:52:47Z")
> [@Calavera](#): > > Nothing was explicit in the OP. He makes an offhand reference to lottery numbers but doesn’t guarantee they will remain accurate, (which they won’t). > > I am certain that under the OP’s parameters that the minor changes you make to your life will affect other people in minor ways who will affect other people etc. to the point that the Jan 4 games will have at least some difference in the starting play, and once a small difference sets in, the entire game will be different, and thus the whole post season. The minor ripples will not be stopped. I was taking no stance at all concerning the butterfly effect when I composed the OP, and will make no decisions as to how it would have played out now. IMHO, there are situations where a small change can cascade into world altering events, but those are by and large trillions to one odds. Sure, a rabbit can knock a rock over a ledge to dislodge a larger rock and ultimately trigger an avalanche, but the most likely result is that the first rock will bounce once or twice and come to rest where it will remain undisturbed for another millennia. If you were to remember the winning numbers, would you really not spend the two dollars on a ticket because you were sure the numbers would be different this time around? ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/44 "2020-06-11T22:20:25Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > And maybe I would’ve gotten another cat immediately after losing Shamus on December 29th, even if introducing him to kittens later would’ve been hard. Living alone with no furry pets though this whole mess has **sucked** a lot. We lost our Luc (dachshund) last August. We were going to wait a little while (and maybe sneak in a trip to Costa Rica to visit my brother) before getting a new dog, but we went ahead and adopted Max (another dachshund) in October. And we’re really glad we did! ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/45 "2020-06-12T02:00:24Z")
The one thing I would do differently is tell my wife to do whatever it takes to buy the house across the street from her parents. It came up for sale early in the year and she looked at it as an investment property, but the deal fell through due to some shady stuff related to the septic system or whatever. And I’ve been hearing about it ever since. ---
**Author:** ![Calavera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calavera/32/70_2.png) [@Calavera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Calavera)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/46 "2020-06-12T11:45:38Z")
> [@Projammer](#): > > I was taking no stance at all concerning the butterfly effect when I composed the OP, and will make no decisions as to how it would have played out now. > > IMHO, there are situations where a small change can cascade into world altering events, but those are by and large trillions to one odds. > > Sure, a rabbit can knock a rock over a ledge to dislodge a larger rock and ultimately trigger an avalanche, but the most likely result is that the first rock will bounce once or twice and come to rest where it will remain undisturbed for another millennia. > > If you were to remember the winning numbers, would you really not spend the two dollars on a ticket because you were sure the numbers would be different this time around? I’d certainly chance my arm and hold out _some_ hope if the lottery was today, or tomorrow. Any longer that, although of course I’d buy a ticket “just in case”, the noise will have almost guaranteed to obliterate something that needs to be microsecond perfect like lottery balls. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210/47 "2020-06-12T23:49:39Z")
> [@Gray\_Ghost](#): > > Get filthy rich on stock market and WTI oil options Looks like [Goldman-Sachs pulled over 1USbil](https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/How-Goldman-Sachs-Predicted-The-Biggest-Oil-Price-Crash-In-History.html) on that play. Of course, being monumental greedy bastards they probably think they left the odd billion on the table. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-get-looped-back-to-january-1-2020-whatcha-gonna-do-different/855210.md?page=2)