…but what are we actually trying to measure here? The miles travelled, or the wear and tear that’s caused by the wheels spinning?

Do they exist anymore?

Interesting that it’s just a cost of doing business in China as well.

Obviously. How much?

I was more meaning “on what scale?”. I assume he wasn’t a few hundred short.

He was fined €240M? What had he done?

The safety violation will be that the ammunition wasn’t stored in the proper storage bunkers and was therefore vulnerable to an attack setting off the whole lot.

…and then an attack did just that.

I’ve always thought that diesel busses get ignored too much from an air quality point of view because their emissions get divided by passenger counts. However in absolute terms mass transportation has big dirty engines that need to go.

Kenny was still a big name when he died. His own TV show ended in '89 when he was diagnosed HIV positive, and he continued working in a more limited form for a few more years before succumbing to AIDS in '95.

I’m the picture of health

I think The Mooch is quite proud of how quickly he got kicked out in retrospect.

Are you saying that what we need to be is a bunch of massive dicks? Then we can fuck all the massive assholes. Sure we might get a bit shitty while we do, but it might be the price we need to pay. It’s the little assholes that I’d feel sorry for in that situation.

…because you don’t write checks for bribes.

Well yeah. They were wearing a COVID mask.

You know who carries large amounts of cash?

People who get paid in cash.

I agree, but it appears to be the weakness of all multi-national organisations. The UN security council is paralyzed by the fact that the US and Russia have veto powers. The League of Nations was similarly paralyzed before it. NATO can’t do anything unless the US is involved, and the EU is hamstring by one nation out of 27.

Just being devil’s advocate, but what’s the point of a voting system when those in power can strip voting rights from a country when their votes are inconvenient.

I’m not supporting Orban here, because he’s a Putin puppet that. However if your system can’t handle a single country disagreeing without needing to cheat the system, you might want to question your system.

Oh… I see. I thought it was referencing something actually…well…new.

…but what are the “two new suns”?

You’re Captain Kirk and are exploring a new planet. In the course of your duties you discover that Orion slave traders have been here and the inhabitants are slave owners. You’re horrified by what you’re seeing and feel you must free the slaves above all else.

Do you:

• Attack the owners with the objective of breaking the slaves out and escaping unharmed.
• Buy all the slaves and walk out with them safely. Then set them all free immediately.

I’d argue that in a lot of situations the second call is better. It guarantees the safety and the freedom of the enslaved person. The first option sounds heroic but the outcome is far from predicable.

• You may lose the fight, and the situation continues
• Enslaved people may get caught in the crossfire, or more likely made to fight against you. You now have to defeat the people you’re trying to free.
• You’re partially successful, but those that remain are treated even worse as the owner takes their losses out on them.

The one downside is that the slave owner has now been paid and may use that money to buy more slaves. However if you also get Starfleet to setup a blockade of the planet Orion to stop them moving slaves throughout the galaxy you can cut things off at source.

Regardless. What matters is the freedom of the individuals. No ex-slave was angry at somebody who paid to set them free. I’m sure they were angry with everyone else in the chain, but that last one… They get a pass.