BarneyPiccolo

@BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If it fits...⁩ ⁨⁨10⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  It should be. That’s exactly why those cars exist. I just got back from NYC, and I always admire the people that drive them there. You can always find a parking place. You often find them at the end of street, just barely squeezed in before the crosswalk. No other car can do that.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The information density on a vinyl can be higher earlier in the record than later...⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  Putting your most complex, frequency-dense track at the end of a side is engineering malpractice

  Sure, that’s why you don’t find complex and/or dynamic songs like Stairway to Heaven, When The Levee Breaks, A Day In the Life, Jungleland, Won’t Get Fooled Again, You Can’t Always Get What You Want, Purple Rain, etc. as the last song on the album, or side. Oh, wait…

  I’m not saying there aren’t engineers/producers who never put the ease of their jobs ahead of musical decisions, but musical artists whose artistic vision is more important than simple commerce aren’t concerned about “engineering malpractice.” The engineer serves the musical vision of the artist, and whining about “inner ring distortion” isn’t going to go far.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Watch: New ‘Star Trek: Starfleet Academy’ Promos Reveal Surprising Deep Cut To TOS & More⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  Discovery was awful, but Strange New Worlds is true to the form. This could go either way.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The information density on a vinyl can be higher earlier in the record than later...⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  Thanks for playing.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The information density on a vinyl can be higher earlier in the record than later...⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  I never said I’ve been on the record business since 1995, I said I spent 30 years in the record business, starting in 1977, the peak of the age of vinyl, cassette, and 8-tracks, and I saw the introduction of the CD, and the end of all those other formats. Recalculating, I actually spent another 7 years or so beyond that, on a consulting basis.

  I know vinyl, I’ve got a huge vinyl collection, and I know the business from the inside. The fact that there were far more terrible albums than great albums has nothing to do with the silly idea that they programmed the shitty tracks on the inside because the sound quality was worse. That’s just stupid.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK the Venezuelans community in the US is not representative of Venezuelans as a whole.⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  I don’t know why anyone is buying that propaganda. They’ve been stopping huge oil tankers filled with Venezuelan oil. They’re producing enough oil that we wanted it, and plenty of other countries are pissed that we’re taking it from them.

  Of course Trump only cares about the oil. Has everyone been asleep for the last decade?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK the Venezuelans community in the US is not representative of Venezuelans as a whole.⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  The only thing this is about is Trump getting PERSONAL control of the oil, so he can be as wealthy as his friends the Saudis.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The information density on a vinyl can be higher earlier in the record than later...⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  As I said on another post, I’ve never heard of that sort of programming in over 30 years in the record industry.

  During the vinyl days, albums were the art form, and artists and producers made great effort to program their tracks listings for the best listener experience. So it would usually start with a big banger to kick off the album, followed by a few fun songs, and ending the side with another banger, just maybe not as big as the opening track, but not always. The idea that it would have less bass, have less fidelity, or was a throwaway song that didn’t require decent sound quality is dumb.

  Often the first side ending song was a big number, that would have required the best sound available. Perhaps the best example is Stairway to Heaven, which closes the first side of Led Zeppelin IV, and I defy anyone to call that a second rate track with poor fidelity, and that’s why it was relegated to the inner ring.

  The second side is a restart, and often has an interesting opening track, like Within You Without You on Sgt Pepper. ELP’s Karn Evil #9, Part 2. (Part 1 closes the first side) Is probably the all-time best second side opener, with its Carnival Barker call: “Welcome back my friends, to the show that never ends…”

  But the biggest clue that the idea of the worst songs being relegated to the inner rings is nonsense is the fact that most albums try to have big finish. Again, Led Zeppelin IV perfectly illustrates the issue. It closes with When The Levee Breaks, featuring John Bonham’s thunderous drums, which have since become iconic. It certainly wasn’t a low fidelity track with Plant’s wailing keen, the screaming harmonica, and those monster drums giving it one of the widest dynamic ranges of any rock classic.

  Without the side break, the side 1 closer, and the side 2 opener end up side-by-side. The fact that there is a big blast of “busy music” in the middle of the CD, contradicts the assertion that the side closers are lower quality tracks.

  In the vinyl days, the programming of album tracks was a major artistic decision, and the fidelity of the track was never a factor. If a song wasn’t good enough that it required being put in a “second-rate” position on the album, why would they be putting it on the album at all?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The information density on a vinyl can be higher earlier in the record than later...⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  I used to work for a few record companies, including a small one that was very influential, and I was in the middle of everything, from album concepts, through recording and production, artwork, liner notes, etc., as well as the largest record company in America at the time, and never once in 30 years did I ever hear anybody suggest that the “shittier” songs should be relegated to the inner rings, because the sound is inferior.

  That’s just nonsensical on multiple levels, and it has NEVER happened.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Who is going to be the next Pres of Venezula after all this US stuff?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Trump.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How does Chuck Schumer still have a job?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  There may have been more difference in the past, but after watching the Dems do literally NOTHING to blunt MAGA’s return during the entire Biden administration, and almost helping them take back the country. Biden put the case in the hands of his AG, and he managed to find the most unmotivated REPUBLICAN of all time to do the job, who gave them a 2 year head start. The Dems deserve a significant amount of the blame.

  The Dems obviously don’t want to make things to difficult for the Sociopathic Oligarchs. Look at the last shutdown. They let people lose their food assistance for a few weeks, but the minute it started to hit the airports, and the corporations couldn’t move their operatives around, the Dems folded within 48 hours, and surrendered with absolutely nothing in return.

  Either the Dems are in cahoots, or they are cowardly and negligent. Either way, the result is the same, so who cares if there is a technical distinction?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How does Chuck Schumer still have a job?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  If you don’t think the Dems and MAGA serve the same Sociopathic Oligarchs, you are delusional.

  They are like the management tier in your workplace. Some managers are pretty cool, and some are terroristic assholes who make every moment at work agonizing. But despite the difference in approach, they both want you to toe the company line, and put the company’s interests ahead of EVERYTHING. Nice or not, they both want to enslave and exploit you on behalf of the company.

  We’d all rather work under the nice manager, but if we really want to make the workplace work for the workers, then we have to make the managers fear the workers enough that they appeal the top. That’s unlikely, and eventually we will be forced to bypass them, and take our grievances to the top ourselves.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  I was making a minor contribution to a discussion, and that would have been the end of it, but something about it seemed to really offend you, and send you on the attack. All I’ve done since then is reiterate my opinion that taking a few steps isn’t really that difficult, but you can’t seem to let it go. You’ve already forced the two of us to put far more effort into this argument than it would take to actually create a fake identity on the 60s.

  I’ve never seen someone so lazy that they’d get infuriated by three simple steps, with one requiring you to go outdoors.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  The point was that in the old days, that’s what you had to do to create an entirely new identity, and considering how effective it was, it really wasn’t that complicated or difficult.

  Only today, where so many things are easy, does a few steps, including a couple of hours in a cemetery, a couple of letters, and some waiting time, sound like insurmountable obstacles. That’s especially true, when you consider that today, you probably couldn’t do it yourself, and you’d have to involve yourself with some people you probably don’t want to deal with, and pay a ton of money.

  But yeah, the old way was harder, because you had to walk around.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Check mate, atheists. ⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  All translated from translations of translations of languages that nobody speaks. So I’m sure the final product of this inter-millenial game of telephone is perfect. Why? Because it is the ordained word of God, so of course it is. Checkmate.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  It was something you could do yourself, and not have to track down some sketchy criminal to buy some fake identity that may or may not work.

  It was a major crime that you could pull off all by yourself, without getting involved with anyone else. It wasn’t a pain in the ass, any more than anything was a pain in the ass in the olden days. Want to buy something? Get your ass in the car and go to the store. Want a gift for someone in another state? You had to buy it, box it, and take it to the post office to mail it. No buying it from Amazon and having it delivered, without ever leaving your chair.

  Spending a couple of hours in a cemetery, them mailing a couple of letters, would have been considered a pretty easy major crime in those days.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Yeah, that was life before the Internet. You actually had to do stuff. You couldn’t just click a few keys, and get what you want.

  Still, to create an entirely new identity, and disappear? Today, you couldn’t do it all. A little legwork and a few months of waiting for mail isn’t that much to ask.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The Wall People⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  I’ve known a few families with 6 or more kids, and in nearly all cases, each of those kids goes on to have 6+ kids.

  I once dated a girl who was one of five, and they were the smallest branch of the family. Each of her parents came from 8 kids, and each of those 8 kids had at least 6. I went to a family holiday weekend party, and there were HUNDREDS of people, all related, and all within a couple of generations.

  I was one of two, my wife is an only child, and we only had one. My brother had two. Any more than that sounds exhausting. We had a bunch of cats instead of a bunch of kids.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  It wasn’t that hard. Spend a couple hours in the children’s section of a cemetery in some midsize Midwest city, and you’d have a list of names of babies, who most likely died right in that very county. Request a copy of a birth certificate from the local county offices. Use that to apply for a Social Security Card, and use that and the birth certificate to get a driver’s license.

  Most of it has to be done through the mail, so it will take a while, but that’s the worst of it.

  Can’t do that today, though. They’ve locked down birth certificates pretty well, it would be hard to get your mitts on one. These days they tend to just steal someone else’s identity, and live parallel lives with someone else.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  It was easy to fake an identity back then. Nothing was computerized or tracked. Just get a birth certificate from a baby who died around the time of your birth, and you could get a Social Security card, a Driver’s License, and a whole new identity.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Check mate, atheists. ⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  That’s easy, it’s all in the Bible. You can’t deny anything that’s in the Bible. That’s always the checkmate.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Pizza is a tomato pie.⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  That’s not an edgy take. Pizzas have been traditionally referred to as pies for a long time. It’s fallen out of favor in the last few generations, but there was a time when it was common to refer to it as a pie.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Nothing to see here.⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  I hear he has advanced dementia.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Nothing to see here.⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  He was doing it right there. Why do you think they’re smiling.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why did an old friend who stood up for me in school block me when I messaged him on Facebook?⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Not everybody wants to reconnect with any random person from their past. He did a nice thing for someone years ago, that doesn’t mean he wants a relationship with that person for the rest of their life.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If God truly is ‘all-powerful’ and ‘omnipotent,’ then Jesus dying wasn’t the only way to ‘save us.’”⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  None of it ever made sense to me, even when I was a kid. How does torturing Jesus to death remove MY sins? He gets killed, that somehow absolves my sins, and now I’m obligated to worship him, and do whatever some guy in a robe tells me that Jesus wants me to do?

  Or God. Or maybe both, because their kind of the same person, along with Dead Jesus, who is just as bossy as both God and Jesus.

  And let’s not get into Communion. The first time that was explained to me, I was appalled. Then I was told about transfiguration, and I was like “You people are out of your fucking minds,” but I was only about 8, and nobody was interested in my opinions on religion. Decades later, and my disbelief has only increased.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Belief⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  There we go, next level Critical.Thinking. Nicely done.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Belief⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  people frequently do stupid bad things not because they are bad, but because they are stupid,

  I get that, right up until you start talking about MAGA. Those people didn’t grow up being ignorant of MAGA’s evils, and then were seduced by them. MAGA gave voice to the evil that was already brewing in them, so they enthusiastically joined in.

  Some people may do bad things out of ignorance, but MAGAs do bad things because it’s fun for them. They may be ignorant, too, but that’s no excuse, they don’t get a pass because of it. Some people are just bad people, who have lost the benefit of the doubt.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Belief⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  The world is getting dumber and meaner, so good morality stands out more.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If you have ANY Canadian ancestor, you are likely a Canadian citizen as a result of recent changes in Canadian law⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  I did my genealogy a couple of summers ago, and found out that my maternal grandmother’s family came from Canada to Syracuse for factory work, in the late 19th century.

  I am definitely going to be looking into this.