BSR

Some of us in this thread are simply defending presumption of innocence. Why should being gay change one's opinion of presumption of innocence?

YouTube just demonetized Russell Brand. Forget about innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, YT didn’t even wait until charges were filed. If you have 1 million subscribers, you're making a very good living on YouTube. With 6.62 million subscribers, Brand must have been making bank, but with his channel now demonetized, his YT revenue is currently $0.00. Besides the YT demonetization, Brand has been dropped by his agent, his book deal was canceled, and several stops of his tour were canceled. And all it took was an accusation.

In some cases, like Bill Cosby & Harvey Weinstein, it's understandable that accusers took so long to come forward. Both are cases of powerful men who threatened to destroy their victims' careers & lives unless they kept their mouths shut. Russell Brand never had that kind of power. His alleged victims could have reported him a decade+ ago. But if you dare so much as raise an eyebrow about these very delayed accusations, a good portion of our society will vilify you for doubting. To destroy a man's career and reputation, all that's needed nowadays is an accusation, no evidence necessary, forget a conviction. The Me Too movement has destroyed the once cherished presumption of innocence.

I'm being too harsh, at least about the paintings. The Botero paintings on the restaurant's walls were OK, not my thing but not ugly either. It was the big sculpture in the front that I thought was f*ckin' hideous, enough to kill anyone's appetite. I only ate at Botero once, but hooooo-weeeee! it was one of the best meals I've ever had. You're right about the Wynn & Encore restaurants. They used to be so different, special, and original. Now they're the same stamped-from-a-mold operations as all the other restaurants on the Strip. Steve Wynn had his faults (oh boy, in spades), but the man was also a genius.

I doubt executive pay increases sparked this strike. The Big 3 automakers' profit forecasts have dimmed because they have had to invest heavily and are budgeting to invest even more in the development of battery electric vehicles. While consumers are buying more EVs, supply is outpacing demand. Combine the automakers' less than rosey financial outlook with the political environment -- a staunchly pro-union President facing reelection in 14 months (not trying to make this a political discussion, just stating facts) -- and union bosses saw the automakers at their most vulnerable.

Cable Girls is a series (42 45-minute episodes) about 5 phone operators who start out as friends and end up closer than family. I actually finished it a month or so ago but had my doubts about recommending it. It's a bit too "messagey," and like all messagey projects, it too often gets so wrapped up in pounding the message (feminism, in this case) that it ignores what should be its primary objective: telling a great story. That said, the series does have its strengths: a really strong cast, a villain you love to hate, a great feel for the era (Spain 1928-40), and when it's not being too messagey, some very engaging plot lines. Another con: I hated the ending. But then I had to remind myself of the brutality of the Spanish civil war -- no "happily ever afters" in post-war Spain. Hope that's not too much of a spoiler. All things considered, however, I do recommend Cable Girls.

Javier is plenty cute at first glance, maybe an 8 out of 10. But his personality is super-duper-cute, definitely shoots him up to a 10. I much prefer the pre-botox Javi. Yes, I can see how he kinda freaked when he saw the lines on his face getting deeper, but to me, there is nothing more boring than perfection. The botox gives his face an eerie artificial look that turns me off. I'll take wrinkled but natural imperfection 6 days a week and twice on Sundays.

Given that their inflation-adjusted wages have decreased in the last 30 years, with a particularly sharp decrease since 2002-03, I can see why the autoworkers are striking. Once you start making $45/hour, $90,000/year, you base your finances (like how much house you can afford) on that salary. When that earning power declines over time, uh oh. That said, my sympathy for the autoworkers is limited. Yes, the monotony and repetition of assembly-line work make it a difficult and challenging job (my uncle was a CAW worker for decades). But the job requires only a high school diploma but does not require extensive training (compared to the long apprenticeships for plumbers or electricians, for example). The autoworkers already get healthcare and retirement benefits that most blue-collar workers can only dream about on top of a salary of around $65,000 (eyeballing it from that chart). And they still want 21% more?? Given the requirements of the job, who else in America has it as good as the autoworkers do? I have no idea how this strike will play out. I don't think management can simply hire nonunion replacement workers or relocate factories to right-to-work states because were that an option, they would have done so decades ago. At the same time, I doubt the market will bear such high labor costs given the competition from nonunion manufacturers. I just have this terrible feeling that the eventual outcome will be one in which nobody comes out a winner.

Just googled his net worth, estimated at $100 million. No, I don't care for his style either, but I admire any artist who gets that rich while most of his peers starve. There used to be a steakhouse at the Wynn (technically Encore) called Botero where some of his works (or very good copies) were on display. The food was amazing. The paintings & sculptures were enough to spoil your appetite.

I'm not sure of the specifics, but I think the unionized car companies are handcuffed, i.e., previous contracts legally prevent them from simply picking up & moving to right-to-work states. Any Michigan labor lawyers on the forum?

I find the obsession to know all about an actor's private life rather creepy and sad. "Creepy" because such obsession is stalkerish, "sad" because an obsessed fan has absolutely zero chance of dating Alex Zakhar Pérez, regardless of his sexual orientation, because AZP is light-years outta their league.

More people die of cold than heat, worldwide there are 9 times more deaths from cold than heat. Freezing to death is rare. Cold deaths happen because "cold restricts blood flow to keep our core warm, increasing blood pressure and killing through strokes, heart attacks and respiratory diseases." That said, heat deaths are increasing and cold deaths are decreasing as temperatures warm.

Crazy stat: of the 72 Slams Novak has played, he has reached the final in 36 of them and has won the title 24 times. Daniil was very good in the final, especially in the second set, but Novak was great. Congratulations also to Coco Gauff, women's singles champion. Coco was already making $1 million/year as a 15-year-old junior before she upset Venus Williams at Wimbledon (all in endorsements because juniors make no prize money). Now that she's won the US Open, her endorsement income must be jaw-dropping. Oh, and the $3 million check Novak and Coco each collected ain't exactly chicken feed.

True, Backboardvedev played the best tennis of his career, like a tennis version of the Terminator. But you have to wonder if he can play like that 2 matches in a row. That said, 90% of that level should be enough to beat Novak. Novak & Shelton played out as expected. Novak, arguably the best returner in tennis history, returned enough serves to force Ben into neutral rallies. Only Alcaraz and Medvedev are good enough to win the majority of neutral rallies against Novak. Shelton simply lacks the game. Also, I think Ben's shoulder was bothering him because he wasn't booming the serve as he normally does. First Novak mocked Ben's celebratory gesture after match point, then the two exchanged a rather frosty postmatch handshake. Clearly there's some saltiness between the two, but I don't know the story behind it.

A little friendly advice: best to avoid presenting an anecdote as evidence because you might trigger @Marc in Calif into an explosion of nasty sarcasm. The title of this thread is that LGBTs are feeling compelled to move out of Florida. As much as the Cult of Victimhood loves that narrative, there is simply no proof that a significant number of LGBTs are actually leaving, or at least leaving for the reasons given. Just as there is no evidence of blacks leaving or canceling visits because of the NAACP travel warning. Wishing something were true does not make it true.

Pretty much the score most predicted, a staight-set win with Novak, 1 tiebreak. The stat that surprised me was that Shelton, he of the 149 mph serve, hit just 2 aces in 3 sets. I haven't seen the match yet; it's ready & waiting on the DVR. Will comment more after watching.

I heard that 15 million households are caught in the middle of the Spectrum-Disney standoff. Sorry to hear you're one of them. Outside of the Australian and US Open, Ben hasn't been able to win 2 matches in a row whereas in Australia he won 4 in a row and at the USO (so far) 5 in a row. So 9 wins to 1 loss in 2 tournaments, but 8-19 at all the rest.

Do you know where a mass shooting has never happened? In schools that allow their teachers to conceal carry. 272 TX school districts have adopted concealed programs, and 28 states have adopted the program to varying degrees. Not a single mass shooting (or even an individual shooting) during school hours. Sorry, again, just responding to your post. Please return to the subject of crime and tourist safety in Brazil.

I will never understand why the so-called "experts" lump together gun murders with gun suicides. Murder is a crime problem whereas suicide is a mental health problem. Eliminating guns will not stop people from committing suicide. Most will find another means. The few who don't will fall into an abyss: drugs, alcohol, depression, all of the above. Japan, where individual gun ownership is extremely rare, has a higher suicide rate than the US. The US does not have gun violence problem. We have a drug warfare problem and a gun suicide problem. If you factor out those 2 causes of gun death, the US has a gun murder rate comparable to Belgium. I provided all the links & stats in another (now deleted) thread, but nobody bothered to read them. Hopefully you'll understand why I lack motivation to do it all over again. To solve the drug warfare problem, the US could do what Bukele did in El Salvador: build a massive prison and lock all the narcos up. Whaddya know, the murder rate plummeted from a shocking 103 per 100,000 in 2015 to just 7.8 per 100K in 2022. For 2023 year to date ( 1/1-9/3), the murder rate dropped to an eye-poppingly low 2.3 per 100K.

If you make a claim like that, back it up with some evidence. Otherwise, it's just your personal opinion.

Honestly, my brain short-circuits a bit when I hear Ben Shelton referred to as black because his black father (mom's white) is the spitting image of one of my uncles, who is Filipino with a bit of Chinese blood. I have to think his dad Bryan is at least part Asian. Anyway, I suspect that Bryan & Lisa Shelton are some of the nicest people in tennis, or anywhere for that matter. They grew close and fell in love, sadly, when Bryan's best friend/Lisa's brother Todd was dying of brain cancer. Todd Witsken is famous for upsetting Jimmy Connors in the 3rd round of the 1986 US Open, the first time since 1973 that Connors failed to reach the semifinals. Todd was also legendary for being one of the all-time nicest human beings ever to grace the sport. I'm guessing his sister and best friend are very much like him. Dad Bryan also played pro, reaching a career-high ranking of #55 and winning 2 ATP titles, but his greatest accomplishments are arguably as a coach. He led both a women's and a men's team to Division 1 national championships, the only college tennis coach ever to do so. He quit his job at UFlorida to coach his son, and Ben's improvement since Dad joined the team in June has been impressive. I'm not always a fan of having a parent as coach (cases in point: Coco Gauff & Stefanos Tsitsipas), but Ben is in very good hands. Who's gonna win their semifinal? Ben hits with monster power, like 149 mph serves (a "big" serve is anything 124+ mph) and 107 mph forehands (90+ mph is considered a "big" forehand), but I gotta go with Novak. The man's won 23 Grand Slams (the men's record) for a damn good reason: he chews up Big Bang players like Ben for breakfast. But applying Joaquín Andújar's baseball wisdom to tennis ... you can sum up tennis in one word: you never know.

I googled intentional homicide rates in the US and Brazil, because your claim about the safety of big cities in the 2 countries just didn't sound right. In 2020 the murder rate in Brazil was 22.38 per 100,000; in 2022 it was 23.3 per 100K. In the US in 2020 & 2021 the murder rate was 6.42 & 6.81 respectively per 100K (couldn't find 2022 data). As for mass shootings, it's a bit tricky because the definition of "mass shooting" varies. As for your feeling of being unsafe at an LGBT event, your personal anecdote is not evidence, as @Marc in Calif will politely explain.

Any documentation that blacks & gays have stopped traveling to Florida? The professional victims keep screeching, but blacks & gays keep visiting. Funny how that works.

Ho hum, politics as usual. No matter how loudly professional victims screech, the rest of the world just ignores them. Actions speak louder than words. Any documentation of gays & blacks leaving Florida en masse? No, of course not, because these warnings are all just empty rhetoric.

The pediatric cardiologist didn't do anything, but conversely it sounds like the state or community didn't do anything to him either. He simply didn't like the politics. When he became politically active, his high profile triggered "hate mail." Mind you, every political activist is subjected to hate. Every conservative I follow on social media gets death threats on a daily basis. As for the messages he got pleading for him to find Jesus, pffft, I can't believe he let that get to him. Just buy a shredder and giggle as you feed in one "fires of Hell" letter after the other. You don't have to move to Chelsea or West Hollywood to find a gay-friendly spot. I grew up in Kansas City, which trust me, was not the least bit gay-friendly in the 70s & 80s (very few places were). But I've since met plenty of gays currently living in KC who just love it -- big gay community, such nice friendly people, both gay & straight -- with a cost of living that pretty much everyone can afford, even cheaper than Austin TX!