Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit | onlypassingthru's commentslogin

There's a 1991 film (and earlier novel) called Black Robe that fictionalizes what it might've been like when the first Jesuit missionaries introduced this powerful black magic to the North American natives in the 17th century.[0]

[0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cj_bSkuKVA


The WNBA would like a word.

IIRC, Steve Nash wanted to play professional soccer but since there wasn't a professional pathway had to settle for playing basketball in college and later the NBA.

Are there bootlegs on vinyl? Maybe now there can be.

yes there is, I bought one by accident the other day

Isn't a vinyl cutter the first step when pressing records?

You might need different machines to cut wax/vinyl directly vs cutting lacquer to make a stamper.

God, give me grace to accept with serenity

the things that cannot be changed,

courage to change the things

which should be changed,

and the wisdom to distinguish

the one from the other.

- Reinhold Niebuhr's Serenity prayer


As much as the serenity prayer comes across as some tacky shit you'd find painted on a wall in that one handwriting font in a beach house in Florida... it's the greatest distillation of human wisdom I've ever found.

I've been in therapy many years, and you wouldn't believe how often it comes up and we discuss it in the context of some problem in my life. So much of life's difficulties hinge on the axis of trying to figure out where we can place our agency and where we should.


Exactly; powerlessness is a big source of stress / anxiety / etc, but when you truly accept that you can't for example change other people or things outside of yourself will never be exactly the way you want them to be, then you'll be a lot more at peace.

To phrase it negatively, it's a kind of selfishness / indifference. But it's not "I don't care", but more "it is what it is".


The difficult part is to also be careful as to not become one of those YouTube "stoics" who just stay in "I don't care" state for everything. We can't control other people, but we can try to influence them towards a better path if needed.

I see some people accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, but then have no courage to change the things which should be changed because they have no wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.


Spinoza has a much deeper and more effective approach to this, I found.

If you like this I highly recommend you read Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations if you haven’t

An easy read that dives into stoicism, a similar mindset, within the context of running the Roman Empire.

Great read.


The two people I knew who really liked the serenity prayer (and wanted everybody to notice) were assholes. It can mean something like "See, I struggle every day with important issues concerning my power, and, I'm wise about it too! Also I consulted God, turns out you have to put up with some things," which makes it into an excuse for being really controlling.

My preferred version: do what you can, don't sweat it.


Might as well post the full version, which adds context:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time.

Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace.

Taking, as he did, the sinful world as it is, not as I would have it.

Trusting that he will make all things right if I surrender to His will; that I may be reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with Him forever.

—Reinhold Niebuhr, 1892-1971


While working in Japan, I once asked my Japanese supervisor what he was doing for his next vacation. He responded that he never took a vacation and had, in fact, accrued some ridiculous amount of PTO over many years that he never intended to use. がんばって!

Americans do that too.

I think europe seems to be pretty balanced. Friends take 5 week vacation in the summer.


5 weeks in summer is outrageous? Once you add weekends that's like only working half of all days, not to mention if you add real value to your company your company has to wait weeks for you to return. I guess there's a reason Europe has become so poor

> your company has to wait weeks for you to return

I mean that’s the very concept of a holiday to me ?


The honesty will be noticeable. Maybe we'll see some honest assessments like "That is not possible within the laws of known physics", "Your legal argument is nonsensical and defies logic", "There is no evidence to support taking that will cure anything", etc., etc.


If you're playing a poker game and you look around the table and and can't tell who the sucker is, it's you.

- Paul Newman


I once had two onsite interviews with a 20 minute "break" in between. I was given a surprise crossword puzzle during the break to see (if I had a rich vocabulary?, excelled at puzzles?, could come up with synonyms under pressure?). The puzzle was then evaluated and discussed during the following interview.

The job was entirely focused on numbers in spreadsheets.


And the Model S is no longer in production due to poor sales. How many of these $650k family sedans could Ferrari possibly move?


Ah I see...

Apparently they're aiming to produce about 2500-3000 Luces (Luci?) a year, and they're building about 14,000 cars total annually. So not too many in keeping with their scarcity strategy. That has worked great for them so far, but I doubt they can replicate it with the Luce.


Ferrari is intentionally low volume on everything. So the question is more about just how many they want and planned to move than absolute numbers.

Ferrari also presells the vast majority of its "special" cars. Which this one is. The run is probably already entirely sold out.


Bizarre comparison.

Who is the customer for a Model S? What fancy full-size sedan would they otherwise buy?

Certainly not the person who'd buy a BMW 7er or a Mercedes S-class. Model S does not offer the basic comforts required to compete in this segment.

Perhaps the person who'd buy a BMW 5er or a Mercedes e-class? Possibly, but the Model S is still an uncomfortable, noisy and cheap feeling clunker compared to those two.

It's not like the full-size luxury sedan market is doing too bad. We've got at least:

  Audi: A8
  BMW: 7er, i7
  Mercedes: S-class, EQS
  Porsche: Panamera, Taycan (sort of)
  Rolls Royce: Phantom, Ghost
  Bentley: Flying spur
Plenty of room for Ferrari to exist, but the Model S has been offering a low-end product at relatively high prices.


> Who is the customer for a Model S? What fancy full-size sedan would they otherwise buy?

raises hand

I like EVs for their ripping fast 0-60. It's the only performance metric I can actually use. Top speed doesn't matter.

I drive a Model 3 Performance. I would have upgraded to a Model S Plaid a couple years ago, but Elon made a hard right turn politically and so I don't want to give him any more money. Also, Tesla has still been unable to fix quality consistency. My M3P has been great, but I've seen too many stories. Even people paying $100K for a Model S Plaid end up with things coming unglued or misaligned. I've seen them try to deliver a car with obvious gnarly scratches in the paint.

With the weather getting dryer in the PNW, I'm now looking for a convertible for my next car. Still looking to keep electric though, so now I'm just waiting patiently for the Porsche 718, Polestar 6, or Corvette EV convertible if they ever make one. Basically, whoever makes the first EV sports convertible for $200K or less that doesn't look ugly as sin will likely get my money.


Thank you for noticing that Tesla's are priced at premium levels, but they still don't know how to make actual quality that is present the models you listed above. I've owned several of these and driven all but the EQS and there's a huuuge gap between a 7er S-class and a Tesla. Huge.


Probably more than you'd think. Lamborghini is selling around 5000 butt-ugly Urus SUVs per year.


Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: