Tolya Ugajin
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Posts posted by Tolya Ugajin
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28 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:
Some hopeful news:
FEMA to restrict exports of critical supplies leaving US
From CNN's Geneva Sands and Priscilla Alvarez
Companies will soon be blocked from exporting critical medical supplies needed by the US for the coronavirus response, unless the Federal Emergency Management Agency gives approval for overseas shipments, according to a federal draft regulation.
The combined effort between FEMA and US Customs and Border Protection, which oversees trade and travel, comes as the United States seeks to shore up equipment for hospitals treating coronavirus patients.
Late last week: White House trade adviser Peter Navarro previewed these actions, saying there is “a black market which you have described, where we're having people bid against each other, brokers come in, they're bidding and bidding on all this different (personal protective equipment)."
"It's driving the price up and guess what? You know where it's going? The domestic sources here are being exported," said Navarro, the White House's Defense Production Act policy coordinator, at last Thursday's White House briefing. "We are going to crack down unmercifully."
In a joint statement Wednesday, the two agencies, both of which fall under the Department of Homeland Security, said they're "working together to prevent domestic brokers, distributors, and other intermediaries from diverting these critical medical resources overseas."
Interesting. So, is this a good use of Presidential power, because it puts American's first, or it is evil because it denies resources to other countries?
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Derender clothing and un-alpha the alpha'd parts below.
That is all.
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I would totally date Tolya if I were a chick. He's sooooo tall, dark, and handsome, and he has a big, thick, full...wallet.
My current main, however, not a chance. I've never thought white guys look good bald, his beard would be itchy, and, besides, he's a tightwad who never wants to go anywhere. Unless he's a very cunning linguist, female me isn't interested.
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4 hours ago, Theresa Tennyson said:
No, most of us still are.
Even the most negative projections say that unemployment would be in the 20%-30% range.
Sitting here in the United States, not only are people with "necessary" jobs still working, there are several technically unnecessary levels that are still considered "necessary" as well - like Internet service, for instance. What is happening is that several of the many, many unnecessary levels of society are being peeled off. The fact that it's such a huge disruption is a comment over how much our society depends on people paying for things they don't need.
Well, they are technically correct, in that, factoring in retirees, the disabled, children, and those who choose not to work for one reason or another, the majority of Americans are not employed.
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53 minutes ago, Scylla Rhiadra said:
Can someone please point me to where the OP "begged" for anything? For themselves, or anyone else for that matter?
Regardless of whether or not it is true that "most" of us are unemployed, the suggestions that there are millions hurting financially now because of this pandemic is demonstrable fact: what is not clear is how this may be impacting upon LL's own financial situation.
The OP did not "beg": they asked a perfectly reasonable question, albeit one that is premised upon information (are premium signups dropping? Are estate owners bailing in any significant numbers? Are rentals being impacted?) that we don't have access to yet. The question was -- as more or less directly articulated in the title of the thread -- has LL put in place any plans or mechanisms to respond to the presumptive impact of the recession/depression that we are now quickly sliding into?
Thanks to the few here who have actually attempted to answer the question. As for the other responses: I get, to some degree anyway, the hostility of people to those who come here demanding that something be done to help them. This OP doesn't do that. When we respond to a relatively reasonable (even if misguided) question with the same vitriol as we would to a bona fide "beggar," it is we who end up looking like jerks.
The pile-on here is unnecessary, uncalled for, and ungenerous.
Oh, I'm sorry, is there a special term for using the 3rd person when begging that is more socially acceptable?
Perhaps the "hostility" is due to the fact that this is at least the 5th thread asking essentially the same thing - can I get all my normal SL experience for free, using the pandemic as an excuse, because I can't possibly be expected to cut back on my nonessential entertainment. You can package it as a "reasonable question", but that's what it is.
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2 minutes ago, Alwin Alcott said:
different approach
... buy a year premium as long you have the funds! You'll support LL, you can have a decent nice home for a year, and get weekly stipend!
Asking a beggar to spend their money more wisely? YOU MONSTER!!!
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8 hours ago, Raveness Slade said:
As the real world continues to grow in numbers with the virus, most of us arent employed. Yes, every single aspect of life is being affected in this, including Second Life.
Not to take away from all the happenings in real life, but what is Linden Labs doing to aid Residents who have experienced job loss? Because as we know, this is taking
a big toll on Second Life also. We have homes we rent, shops, stores etc...No RL work = No uploading to SL...
Does LL have any special plans in place ? Ive seen stores lower prices, stores have freebies, but not hearing much about rental lands, and I feel that is going to be a big
issue in the coming weeks, if not longer. It will take a long time to get back on our feet if and when things start to look up.
Oh FFS, another one? Do you people ever stop to see if maybe 30 other people haven't posted the same exact topic? This entitlement mentality of "hey, the world is going to heck, LL should give me free stuff" is really getting out of hand.
LL's "plan" to aid residents who have lost jobs is nothing. People lose their jobs all the time. What, should SL be "means tested" now?
If you're not employed, SL should be one of the first things you cut back on, especially since you can enjoy it free. Stop expecting others to fund your entertainment.
But, if you must have a handout, I tell you what, I recently created a "virtual trailer park" - you can have a trailer rent-free for a month. Can't help you with shops or uploads, sorry, but there's a nice game area.
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My company adapted one of our production lines to make tents and similar items for local hospitals, and will soon be making masks for our employees and local health care workers. Fortunately, most of our products and services are for "essential" industries, so we have yet to lay anyone off, despite large numbers of office staff (myself included) who are demonstrably far less productive than before the shelter in place orders. I've also been pleasantly surprised by how few of our employees are exploiting the situation and our exceedingly generous response to it.
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1 hour ago, Lancewae Barrowstone said:
The medical advisors to the White House, Drs. Birx and Fauci, admit the IMHE data projections they have been using to advise the President are eering hugely on the high side of expectated hospital & equipmernt demands, as compared to actual data coming in now from all the states. They used those projections in order to be most aggressive in meeting the COVID19 threat here in the U.S.. You can't blame them; the responsibility was placed on their shoulders for advise, and they do not plan to fail it.
Here is an example, for everyone's information, of the differences when comparing those IMHE projections to the current daily data so far (seen in the green line):
I was referred over to a Mark Levin Podcast from last Friday (4/02/20) that laid out a comparison (done by Sean Davis and John Solomon) of those IMHE projections, with some actual random state data available now. The model predicted that in the U.S. over 121,000 people would be hospitalized by that day (4/02/20), when the actual number was 31,142.
So, the researchers decided to look at some state data to learn more. The model predicted that by that day
in Texas 1716 would be hospitalized, when the final number was 196,
in Georgia 2777 would be hospitalized when it was 962,
in Virginia 670 would be hospitalized when the final number was 305,
and in NY 50,962 were projected to be hospitalized by COVID-19 when the actual number was 18,368.
These data are compiled and found here >> https://covid19.healthdata.org/projections
Hyperbole aside, politics aside, broad characterizations of people you don't really know aside.., let's hope this trend continues at FAR below expectations.
~ Cheers
Scientists are human, and nobody wants their model to under-predict, especially since the more extreme your prediction, the more likely you'll end up on CNN (or Fox for that matter).
My own model is that 100% of the population will end up getting it, and 3% of them will die from it, while 97% of the population will die of something else. Some of that 97% will die of domestic violence (skyrocketing under the shelter-at-home policies, according to the NY Times) or murdered by people being released from jails (those stories are starting to trickle in), but, on the plus side, traffic fatalities are down, as apparently are burglaries and property crime.
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7 hours ago, Luna Bliss said:
There are some situations where more power is called for by leaders, and other times it is not. All situations are not the same.
Not to Godwin the thread, but that is pretty much how people in 1930's Germany felt.
Those who are willing to give up a bit of freedom (in this case a fairly large amount) in exchange for a bit more safety often end up with neither. There are enough examples in history of leaders being given power to "save the people" and the people end up regretting it, yet here we are, in 2020, assuming it cannot happen to us.
If you don't think it can happen here, a fairly powerful member of Congress said this of the Coronavirus situation: "‘Tremendous Opportunity to Restructure Things to Fit Our Vision". If that's not a "leader" using peoples' fears to grab power - power in no way linked to the pandemic or providing relief - then I'm not really sure what is. Yet relief was held up for several days while the most egregious attempts at "restructuring" we debated and knocked out and extra pork for pet projects (again, with no relation to Covid) were added in. Those are the leaders you wish to give more power.
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5 hours ago, FairreLilette said:
Regarding the "states rights" to be prepared and to make decisions regarding staying at home issues, etc...I think it should be changed in times like this. I think a President should have the right to declare a shelter in home for the whole USA during a pandemic.
How do you feel about that, Prokofy? Should it be changed.
Just Generally Speaking About Other Stuff:
And, is that what Marshall Law is more or less...a President and the it's armed forces taking over these "states rights"? Well, with almost 9 states of last week having no shelter in home declared, I think a President needs more power here.
Power is a funny thing. Once people have it, they seldom wish to give it up. The more it is used, the more addictive it becomes, and the more acquiescent people become in it being used, even when it is no longer really needed and starts to be used to their disadvantage. People who willingly give more power, and give away their rights, because they are afraid very often find out they cannot get that power back later. It is rather amusing to see all the people who for 3 years have been calling this president a tyrant and a fascist suddenly insisting that the tyrannical fascist get and more importantly use more power.
As far as states without shelter at home orders, Arkansas is leaving it up to local authorities, and several cities have them. Iowa, rather than having a knee-jerk reaction, has established a scale which would determine if and when one would be put in place, and has imposed various bans of types of businesses and gatherings, etc. Nebraska is leaving it to the counties, and the majority of them having taken various such measures on their own (covering more than 80% of their population). North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming have all responded similarly to Nebraska. All of these states, with the possible exception of Arkansas (I am not very familiar with Arkansas) are largely rural, most people live in small towns (Wyoming for instance has only 10 cities with 10K+ people, and not one with over 70K), not at all like California, New York, Washington, etc. Combined, they have about the same population as New York state, and yet far fewer cases (and deaths) than New York City alone. Perhaps their leaders know what works for their constituents better than some doctor in DC who has likely never visited most of them?
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1 minute ago, Seicher Rae said:
On my list, HR people are much higher up. But they are gristly and taste bad.
If we really are what we eat, I taste like frozen pizzas, McDonalds, steak, and red wine.
Speaking of which, time to drive to work, pick up the mail, hit Home Depot for supplies, and grab a Bic Mac for lunch.
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Just now, LittleMe Jewell said:
Yeah but for the vast majority of Democrats, Trump is the devil no matter what. Similar to how for the majority of Republicans, Obama was the devil no matter what.
Let's just agree that, when food gets really tight, all politicians, regardless of political affiliation, will be on the menu. When we run out of politicians, lawyers, bankers, and HR people are next.
I wonder who will taste better, AOC or Lyndsie Graham?
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1 hour ago, Seicher Rae said:
I stand corrected on the $600. I thought it was per month, not per week. Just for general stating purposes, unemployment is 60% of your normal income, usually factored over a period of many months. Different states do figure it differently. I had a choice of filing under one New England state or another, one was considerably higher in payment.
While the WHO isn't above reproach, imho Trump made things much worse and tens of thousands of lives are (well, will be) directly on his hands. There are many reasons for this, but one of them is the original deny-er and down playing (that he's still doing) of the severity. Anyway, on THAT issue we could go back and forth. I'm not up to that. I just know you're wrong.
And while I was just "schooled" about the SSDI by someone with the IQ of a radish... yeah, no.
CNN, MSNBC, etc. all were talking early on about how Covid wasn't too bad, the flu is worse, etc. etc. etc. So, if you want to claim Trump has "blood on his hands", that's fine - we're all entitled to our wrong opinions - but you better be putting Rachel Maddow, Anderson Cooper, etc. in line for some blood They all downplayed it for WEEKS, while Trump was putting travel restrictions on, organizing a task force, etc. It wasn't until mid-March, when the WHO declared it a pandemic, that the MSM changed their tune. Don't take my word for it, it's all on video. The hypocrisy on this is extreme even by CNN's degenerate standards Oh, and when an avowed Trump hater like Gavin Newsome is on camera praising Trump, you might want to reconsider who awfully he's handling the response. His pressers are a joke, but for the most part, the public and governors are giving him good marks thus far.
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1 minute ago, Seicher Rae said:
I hate it when I mostly agree with you. 😠
Let's see, I don't agree with you about the unemployment stuff about people making more than they would by working. That would be some weird math. I suppose you could point to one or two outlier cases. Sadly, I have a lot of experience of having a low paying job and then getting unemployment. The one time bailout of what is it, $1200? isn't going to really help all that much to people already on the edge of poverty who now have no income and this thing is going to last months. Oh, wait, Congress is now considering part 2... what could go wrong? (And my shrink thinks I'm cynical. Huh. Go figger.)
I'm on SSDI (Social Security Disability Income) and as far as I know, I'm going to get a check. I can really use the money, as SSDI payments have me below the poverty line, but like you I was rather shocked by that. My SSDI remains steady, it isn't affected by the pandemic, so why am I getting extra money? I'll absolutely take it. But ???
I don't think thousands of people dying is a laughable situation. The Buffoon In Charge made things worse (agree with your assessment above).
Congrats on the ten pound loss. You're probably in the minority there of the couch potatoes binge watching Netflix. My carpal tunnel is acting up too.
No, it's not weird math, and it was pointed out before the package even went to a vote. People who don't understand how programs work wrote a bill with no understanding of what the effects would be, because, well, we just gotta go spend money so people will think we're doing something!
The law is written to increase unemployment benefits by $600/wk. I looked up benefits in California, and they top out at $455/wk. Add $600, and you have $1,055/wk in benefits. That is the same gross income as someone making $53,805. So, anyone who normally makes less than that...will earn more on unemployment than working. The math will vary from state to state based on where benefits top out at. By the way, US median individual income is $31K and change. I haven't seen yet whether or not this extra $600 will be treated as taxable income, but I already have a small number of employees asking if we could lay them off so they can just collect unemployment.
Agreed on the $1,200. I was perturbed when I learned I wouldn't be getting any of it, but I'd just spend it on garden supplies anyway. But, while people will enjoy the money, what is the point, exactly? If you're still working, you don't need it. If you're not working, well, unless you're in that narrow band from $53K to $75K, you'll either not get it or be making more on unemployment. It's thoughtless throwing around of money, because, GOP or DEM, if there's one thing you're good at, it's spending tax dollars.
I'm not on board with "Trump made things worse". The WHO was downplaying this from the beginning. Trump took early action to curb travel from China and was called a racist. He's acting like a moron, but if you want to blame anyone for making it worse, try the head of the WHO who may as well be (and may well be) on China's payroll.
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On 4/5/2020 at 7:10 AM, PhilGalaxi said:
Hi
This has been going on for the past week now.
No changes from previous week for me
I can log in but after a few seconds I cannot move, then get logged out
Longest i can stay is like 5 minutes.
Is there an issue with Second Life servers right now?
Does not matter where I go or the size of my character
I have 5 G and have never had a problem like this
Is it because everybody is using SL now because of stay at home?
I'm experiencing similar problems with the internet in general. Skype has never been this bad. Even my Netflix has been sluggish from time to time.
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14 hours ago, TheydonBois said:
So here's my idea for unity and peace in SL
1 - we go to a KFC in RL on Friday and get party buckets
2 - go on MP or get building yourself! and get some fried chicken for your avatar to eat
3 - we all log into public sandbox on Friday at 2pm SLT and have a mass KFC party and embrace the healing power of fried chicken. we eat it in RL while our avatars eat it on SL
Curse you! Now I am craving KFC and the closest one is a 40 minute round trip!
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Sorry, I have nothing to vent about. I find the situation mildly amusing in many ways.
First, we have people who have called Trump a dictator for 3 years whining that he's not acting more like a dictator now - for instance, why isn't he forcing business to do what some talking head says they need to do, why isn't he closing down the whole country? Some wag even suggested he should nationalize a bunch of industries. Trump is clearly a sucky dictator.
Then, we have people who yell and scream "more gubbermint!" acting all confused about how the government cannot just immediately fix this. We've known the US is woefully unprepared for a pandemic since the early 2000's - even that dim bulb Bush Jr. pointed it out. Yet 15 years later, they can't even figure out where all the ventilators and masks are stockpiled. By all means, let's let these folks run more of our lives, so checking out at the grocery will be like checking out at the DMV.
And just when I thought the media and Trump couldn't make themselves look even worse, we get these daily orgies of stupidity on the situation. Trump gets up and looks like a buffoon (I mean worse than normal) and the press looks like people who get kicked out of the school newspaper club in high school trying to make him look bad. FFS people, just let him talk, he does a great job making himself look like an idiot, and your pathetic attempts to make him look bad are so transparent, Americans think he's handling the crisis better than you are! (since some numbskull will insist that's wrong, check with Gallup, the score is Trump 60%, media 48%).
And then there's Congress. Hey, how does this unemployment thing work? Oops, we didn't know so we just made it so almost half of Americans would be financially better off being unemployed than working. GENIUS! Everyone except millionaires will get a check! Oh, wait, we meant everyone except millionaires and the middle class (the folks who would NOT make more on unemployment). AWESOME! And let's give extra money to people who are guaranteed to not become unemployed as a result of all this - people on Social Security, because, well, we're just buying votes now. Hey, we need to get this done in a hurry! So let'sl take our time trying to cram in hundreds of things unrelated to Covid and loading it with gifts to our friends (like, hey give the Kennedy Center $25M so they can lay off most of their staff). We're so stunning and brave!
It might sound like I'm complaining, but, actually, I'm laughing at the world burning. It's like a watching a NASCAR race, but all the drivers are convicted pedophiles, they're all blindfolded, and every car is rigged with pyrotechnics that go off on the slightest bump. Every time I think I've seen the coolest explosion ever, nope, here comes on even more spectacular. Very entertaining.
Oh, and I don't like being around people much, anyway, so social distancing is awesome, I am at least a month ahead on my yard work and Spring cleaning, lost 10 pounds already, and saving a ton of money working from home. My only real complaint is my carpal tunnel is acting up from too much laptop work while sitting on the couch binge watching Netflix.
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10 hours ago, Aki Teriatzi said:
... one step from being shut off?
Why, yes, yes it is.
You should hurry along and find something else to do with your time. Something productive. Maybe read more, exercise more. Start writing poetry. I hear knitting is relaxing.
Hurry along, now, before they turn it off and you're stuck in a defunct hard drive for all eternity.
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So far, while, working from home today, I managed to vacuum all the floors (well, OK, the Roomba did the work), and moved 3/4 ton of stone from the driveway in front to the pond in back (it was in 40# bags, so not as much work as it might sound). I also conquered about 15% of the world's land mass on Civilization, watched 4 episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise, and, you know, work worked.
Random thought - is manufacturing Viagra an "essential" business during Covidmania? Asking for a friend.
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I'm thinking bacon and an omelet for dinner tonight. Or a frozen pizza.
Hey, at least it's not sauteed 'possum.
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5 hours ago, Garnet Psaltery said:
I think it's probably time to do something with the Shop and Hop gifts that I haven't touched, plus all those old hunt gifts. I mean, Steam Hunt prizes from 2013 really should go.
Please outdo my idleness claim by telling me of older things you still have.
I still have Tolya's original prim hair from 2008. Ewwwwwww. Along with my original Xcite schlong (not sure which is older, actually). I accidentally changed its color to green. Also Ewwwwww.
I've heard of death erections - do you think zombies run around with woodies?
Anyhoo, I never really throw anything out except for duplicates of "Copy" items. I have a big folder my girl helpfully labelled "Crap". I use it for tossing anything in that I will likely never use again. She uses it whenever she logs me in and tosses anything she doesn't want to ever see again. Which is why almost all of the clothing I have ever bought myself is in the Crap folder. it's my second biggest folder.
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10 hours ago, Tarina Sewell said:
um...
BTW, I stole your profile pic here to be my new Fakebook profile picture. I will probably say, "My Precious" in my Gollum voice every time I use TP for a long time now
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... buy a year premium as long you have the funds! You'll support LL, you can have a decent nice home for a year, and get weekly stipend!
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Feelings, part 2.
in General Discussion Forum
Posted
Yep, that will feel bad.