Oh honey, don't even start. I'm a working rancher who has more experience with both factory farming and responsible livestock breeding than you can even imagine, and a professional dog trainer (protip: ranching doesn't pay the bills) in a rural county with a budget shortage. Shut your own face, dumbass. Unless you…

I think this is a very good point. I find it troubling, in these discussions, to equate Wahlberg seeking pardon with any remorse he may or may not feel. I see a lot of statements along the lines of, "If he really felt remorse, he would live with it on his record and not seek a pardon to erase it." Which maybe is true…

Seriously. I even have a relatively bad reaction to the flu shot every year, and I still get it. The only years I haven't are ones where there has been a shortage and public health officials in my area were asking that only particularly vulnerable populations get it. I always feel mildly achy and sick for 3-4 days…

Agreed. Even if it's not a medical problem, sometimes smell is inevitable especially if you work a physically demanding job or something. I use deodorant and normally don't have BO, but I'm not going to deny that sometimes it has happened (I do reapply during long days at my day job, but even that's not always…

Right back atcha <3

I'm sure you'll see my GT response but I just want to make it clear I <3 you and have enjoyed our chat, and I"m sorry if I made you feel attacked or otherwise uncomfortable. I didn't think you read GT and I've nitpicked other posts I generally agree with too recently so it wasn't intended as a callout or anything.…

I fully believe that but I'm uncomfortable with a blanket condemnation of a vague statement like Pratt's when we're talking about a diverse continent with extremely variable social and conservational issues. I mean, Africa is a vast continent of many cultures and ecosystems. Some governments take that into account and…

I'm sorry, I'm not trying to be shitty but...

The quote you posted was true, but it was referencing the hunting of endangered species, which Pratt was not endorsing. It's that conflation that I have trouble with. All hunters are not equal and there are a lot of shitty, awful ones out there anywhere, and I'm not denying that. It just bothers me to condemn hunters…

I understand your point of view, and thank you for the explanation. Do you have any other links, though? I don't mean to impugn your source, but it seriously conflates the hunting of endangered species with all hunters right in the first few paragraphs, and some of the citations are questionable. I also have issues…

Is it just the basic principle of it or is there something specific in that comment that bothers you? I'm not a fan of trophy hunting (to say the least), but he specifically mentions feeding people and isn't advocating for hunting endangered species so I don't see a problem with it personally, except it's a bit crass…

I know people have already said it, but as further reassurance: I know a LOT of police officers, and I have been to trainings and workshops with them, and every last one of them says that they would rather be called out and find it's nothing, than to have people be afraid to call. If you're worried, call them out.…

You're lucky, then. That is in no way universal in the US, and preventable homebirth deaths are a significant problem here. I do know that a few states have more stringent licensing requirements but many do not. And perhaps my use of the word "brief" was misleading as you're correct that it's not like you just take a…

Yes, this is an important distinction that US readers need to keep in mind. Here in the US, homebirths are very different since most are overseen by Certified Professional Midwives, who literally just need to take an online course and a brief apprenticeship to be certified. Certified Nurse Midwives are highly trained…

I'm with you. I actually love (in a non-sexual way) the feel of caterpillars crawling on me, and if I'm expecting it (as in not a spider or something running across my face in the middle of the night while I'm trying to sleep like happened a couple of nights ago) I like holding most other bugs too. Really, for most…

Haha, it's okay that it's not real punishment. I have my doubts about the effectiveness of time-outs as punishments. I use them a lot though because many bad behaviors come from overexcitement and a time-out lets the dog cool down in a safe place, and at the very least it is damage control that prevents the dog from…

I've seen a case like this get charged as manslaughter in the US too. The circumstances of the beating were different, but it was a planned assault and then during the beating the victim fell and hit his head, which killed him (so the cause of death and all was very similar).

I suspect that had a lot to do with the gratitude challenge coinciding with our rainy season and the fact that any desert dweller gets excited about rain. At least in NM, we've had above average rainfall the last couple of years. There was even some serious flooding in parts of the state.

Normally I'd agree, but Whole Foods turkey is in another class. I did it once years ago when the oven went out in our rental the day before Thanksgiving and our out-of-town landlord couldn't get a replacement in until the weekend, and I had invited a bunch of people over. The stovetop still worked for sides and our…

I know the feeling, I have always been the exact same way. There's so much promise and the actress is great but ugh. I still think there were some missteps with her in the latest season but at least she actually kinda is a character now, and not just a plot device.