Dacia is kind of taking over for VW in being the affordable everyman car. I’ve been driving a Duster for 5 years and one of my reasons for driving Dacia is that they’re affordable on purchase, affordable on parts and not fully computerised as the EVs are. They also get pretty decent mileage and aren’t crazy expensive to fill up.

I would love to drive something more environmentally friendly, but in reality EVs aren’t where I need them to be. I can’t charge them at home due to not having a driveway or a set parking spot, they take too long to charge when on the go and I’m pretty afraid for what will happen to electricity networks and prices if everyone starts driving one.

I’m also not fond of the lack of simple tactile controls. Screens distract you from watching the road. Buttons you can push without looking at them. I really feel that EVs are a rich man’s solution to a problem that needs a more broad approach. The upfront cost of EVs, the replacement of batteries and the need for dedicated space to charge at home just aren’t viable for even me, someone on a median income. Imagine how tough they are on the single mom in a flat that’s still driving a 2004 Suzuki Swift.

And for those thinking public transport is an option: come live in Dublin, the biggest city in Ireland and tell me again. Public transport is atrocious here.

I find it works well for me, especially internationally. I don’t want to think of the fees I’d rack up with normal calls.

The Israel boycott requires a lot of mental math. Boycotting companies for operating in the occupied territories for example. I have to know which companies are there before I purchase something, which is just a lot of research. Most people don’t do that.

Doesn’t help some countries tried to get it on the books that boycotting Israel is antisemitism, which is still a touchy subject in Europe unless you’re a neo-nazi. It’s also a conflict that’s been ongoing since the formation of Israel and while horrific, doesn’t touch the lives of most Europeans. The US is making direct threats to people’s prosperity and safety.

I’m not saying that the BDS movement isn’t good BTW, it’s clearly a noble cause. But outside of the difficulty of keeping up with it, it has also become somewhat alike to vegan snobbery, with the most rabid adherents feeling a sort of moral superiority to others who can’t afford to spend that much time researching every purchase or can’t change the products they choose.

Most in the US boycott movement say “boycott where you can”. They understand it’s not possible for all people to just let go of everything. For example autistic people who need certain brands because of their routine, or people who need medication that’s under US patents. I’ve never heard such thoughtful consideration from the BDS movement.

If that is your true view on what it means to be human, I’m truly sad for you. An AI system can’t experience joy, loss, sadness or happiness. There’s few animals around that can do this consciously. Humans are one of them. There is so much more to life than just chemical processes in your brain (that haven’t even been shown to happen before the thought happens or their connection to thought in general). Life is shared in a community and experienced together, humans aren’t meant to be solitary processing units, they’re group animals and that experience creates something not replicable with emotionless systems.

This is also why AI art fails. It doesn’t know how to connect to others and take input from experiences, because it doesn’t experience. It’s solipsist in its nature.

So I’m not in the US, but AFAIK there’s not really a Norse Pagan organisation that does the same as such. I think it’s best to use known organisations like the universal life church just for the paperwork and then just do the ceremony as you and the couple see fit.