Easy to be idealist when you never hold office. 3rd parties never have to show where they would comprise, because they are not running for these higher offices in a meaningful way.

The republican agenda is so profoundly awful, and the US electorate has not yet resoundly rejected it. Meanwhile, we're too busy "trying to send a message" to recognize that the democrats are the only party even marginally open to progressive policies. Depending on where you live, there are a lot of groups pushing for election reform, and many places where that will be on the ballot. Get involved, help make that change happen...but you can do that and also flush the big orange turd.

How did I get dragged into this in a joke thread??

Some level of election reform will be on the ballot in 9 states this fall. Make sure you vote, if you can!

Also worth noting that these efforts are generally led mainly by democrats, with support from some moderate republicans. In contrast, 10 republican-led state legistatures have passed outright bans on RCV. One of these parties is not like the other!

https://www.npr.org/2024/06/05/nx-s1-4969563/ranked-choice-voting-bans

1. The two-party system is destroying the country.
2. Resoundly reject the party that is actively pushing for a weird christofascist state. <-- the us electorate has not yet done this!
3. Actively push for election reform <-- AK, AZ, CO, DC, ID, MT, NV, OR, and SD will all have ballet initiatives this November regarding election reform. VOTE!
4. Get involved with organizations that are moving to further the causes you care about, and get active in politics.

Voting for president is the smallest part of civic participation, not the end-all-be-all

That's what she (the train) said

Cool story, bro. How do you propose to do that? You got a magic wand? How many of those ballot initiatives failed this time around?

Such sad times! I'm so sorry for your loss. We had a cat and a dog die when our kids were young (4&2yo when the cat died, 5&3 for the dog). It was really hard! Especially since both pets had been with me for almost 20 years... both were a big losses. We talked about it with them once it was clear that they were on their way out. We tried to keep it age appropriate and simple, but very matter of fact, no euphemisms, etc. When the time came that we decided to euthanize, we gave the kids the option if they wanted to come or not (both to the vet, and then to stay with the pet until the end). Both times, they chose to stay, and then we went out for ice cream and talked about it all a bunch, kinda trying to follow their lead whenever they wanted to talk about it. I would definitely do the same again in the future...explain what's going to happen, what it'll be like, then give them the option. It was hard, especially because at their ages they were also pretty focused on my response, but also it seemed like it gave them a pretty good grip on the whole thing. Maybe a sense of closure? They were sad, but it felt like healthy sad, definitely not traumatizing or anything.

Just visited NYC for the first time in decades, and was blown away with the ferries. Such a great way to see the city!

Hey fellow Montanan! Check out Big Sky Rail Authority's arguments for implementing a southern passanger rail service, or think of the benefits of increased bus service connecting the larger Montana cities. We have main travel corridors across the state that could be greatly improved by a public transportation network, linking rural communities and connecting them to larger city centers. Combine that with local bus service, walkable communities, and biking infrastructure in places where it can be supported like Missoula, Bozeman, Billings, etc can improve traffic and livability of the towns. Also, think of the improvement to traffic conditions for people coming into town from surrounding rural communities if you can divert a good portion of traffic to public options. In a rural state like ours, there's always going to be some need for personal vehicles, but there's still lots of places where having more public transportation options could improve our communities and lessen our climate impacts. Sure, it's going to look different than in other parts of the country, but still a lot of room for improvement around here.

Nice! Any tricks you're using to roll them out thin when they're that big?

You are misgendering her.

I've always loved sports; so that part's easy, personally. But I've also learned to kind of savor the feeling of using my muscles and getting tired. Whatever I'm doing, or even on days where I didn't have time to "exercise", I make a point to check in on different parts of my body, maybe tense them or stretch; just trying to notice what feels good and then really savor that feeling. I find that building that mental practice helps motivate me to seek out exercise, or power through when I'm not really enjoying a particular activity.

My friends, why are you even bothering to post here if your response is "I have to drive my car a million miles always?" If your work commute is a million miles, that sucks already for you, I'm sure. But, really, what are you hoping to add here??

Replacing ANY car trip with a bike trip can be pretty fun and rewarding, if that's safe for you in your community. Doesn't have to be a work trip if that doesn't work for you.

Really stoked about this trailer for going between bike and bus with cargo

There are also a few, more recent companion books that give a lot of historical context to both Melville and whaling, etc

Why Read Moby Dick? By Nathaniel Philbrick

Ahab's Rolling Sea, by Richard J King

Can I summarize to clarify your point? Fun runs haven't solved breast cancer, so it's probably best to give up on humanity? Is that accurate?

Nope, but as with so many discussions of this nature, this question misses the nuance of why women's sports exist.

While that is true, this is a different issue. American Prairie's mission is connect a bunch of land in central Montana and use it to restore short grass prairie ecosystems. Part of that goal is restoring native large grazers (bison) that were largely killed off in the 1800s. Bison were historically very abundant, and had a huge effect on shaping and maintaining prairie ecosystems. Today, technically, the bison are considered "livestock" with regard to BLM grazing, but American Prairie is trying to manage the bison as wild herds and restore their ecosystem function. And lobbying for updated classification for the bison, which are neither livestock but not truly "wildlife" yet.

The pushback to American Prairie's mission is pretty political in MT, as you might imagine...

Whoa....what are you doing that you break so many rims?

If you want cheap and weight/performance's not an issue, do you have a community bike shop in your area, or some other option for salvaging used bike parts?

Didn't see the NPR article, but this absolutely rings true to me. I live in a blue city in a red state. We were littered by Green Party ads for the primaries that were funded by right wing groups. I wouldn't say that the far left and far right are working together, but the right is for sure posing as leftist in local outlets and actively encouranging the left's tendency to eat their own.