People without financial security: “kids are too expensive and I would be exhausted trying to provide for them”
People with financial security: “I’m having a good time, adding a kid to this mix would really require a step back in my lifestyle.”
Nothing’s been done about it since then.
Research has gone into safer replacements. Many companies have been switching to BPA-free formulas, most notably CVS (notorious for sheer area of thermal paper receipts) that went BPA/BPS free in 2019. Some governments have banned BPA thermal paper, and others, including the EU, have set limits. BPA has been getting phased out because of these studies.
Nothing will be done about it now.
Well no, this organization is lining up to try to replicate the success with getting BPA out of thermal paper by trying to get BPS replaced, too.
Here’s a study of Switzerland. Between 2014 and 2019, the incidence of BPA thermal paper went from 81% down to around 50%, and then after the ban it went to around 10%. BPS has seen some backsliding, and has increased from 3.1% to 19.1%. Still, that’s a significant reduction in the past decade of papers that use either BPA or BPS.
People are doing the work. There’s no reason to sit around and do nothing and complain that others are doing nothing, too.
I just subscribed to cocktails. Thanks for putting that together.
I still have a few reddit alts that I lurk with, at least until we get enough activity on Lemmy on those topics:
Lemmy’s good on all the tech and science stuff I like, and most of the memes/humor that I’m looking for. It’s coming along on some mainstream interests, including the ones I’ve listed above, but still has a ways to go before the organic discussions reach the level of detail and expertise that reddit has. But it’s on the right track, and I’m optimistic about those things filling in over time.
I do.
I know some who work in defense/military/foreign policy who had assumed that there would still be guardrails in place to prevent the nomination and appointment of totally unqualified conspiracy theorists to the highest positions in the defense and intelligence world, the haphazard effects of DOGE cuts on the military and intelligence and veteran agencies, or the vindictive pettiness of some of the senior military firings (or even the termination of security details for officials from the first Trump admin).
I know some who work in healthcare who are terrified about the cuts to healthcare and science research, and a lot of the informational/data infrastructure that they depend on: tracking diseases, etc.
I know some who work in finance and banking who thought that the tariff talk was just a negotiating plot rather than a true belief, and sees real danger that Trump permanently ends the post-war global economic systems that elevated American prosperity.
I even know some in oil and gas who are now convinced that even though Trump says he cares about their industry, he’s not even competent enough to protect them from the harm he’s causing everyone.
And sadly, the worst examples are the immigrants I know who didn’t actually believe us when we told them that Trump 2.0 was going to be a disaster for immigrant human rights and livelihoods, even permanent residents and legitimate visa holders with high incomes and educational backgrounds. Now they’re sharing stories of good law abiding people they know getting rounded up and questioned, and just otherwise fearing for their safety.
And this isn’t exactly the same as people only caring when things affect them. It’s slightly different. It’s people only realizing that he’s full of shit when they come to mess around with areas of their own expertise and experience.
So yeah, I know a bunch. I try to tell them they’ve been duped and that we can move forward by lobbying the Republicans they voted for, but the underlying unspoken theme does often carry a bit of an “I fucking told you so” foundation.
Ok, that’s funny. I’d go on a date with you.
Her: So, you want anything to drink?
Wait are you hitting on them at their place of work, as a customer? Don’t fucking do that.
Maybe forget “techniques” and be real.
For many people, being playful, like on OP’s example, is being real. I’m a playful person. I have generally been a class clown my entire life, and I’d even say it’s a pretty core part of my personality and my identity.
I’ve been married over 10 years, with kids, and I still do this kind of stuff with my wife. I enjoy being silly with my kids, too.
And when I was dating I’d rely pretty heavily on humor for flirting throughout all stages, from meeting a stranger to setting up a first date to being on a date, to going on multiple dates. The other person’s laughter was an indicator of whether we were making a connection. And then, later on, I learned that I could expect my partner to be funny too, and actively make me laugh.
Being fun and flirty is a legitimate strategy for making sure you have the opportunity to connect with people. It is, in itself, attractive to some. And it might be unattractive to others, but it’s better to be attractive to some and unattractive to others than it is to be forgettable and unnoticed.
If they like you they do, if not who cares?
I think this is a pretty naive way of looking at relationships. Connections require some level of effort, especially in adult life. As much as we’d all love to just naturally have friendships, romantic partners, and other relationships just fall into our laps, that’s not really how that works. Most connections require a bit of work to find others, to find commonalities, to develop interest, to have some give and take of making a deeper connection, to have some vulnerability and growth and change as that stranger becomes an acquaintance and develops into someone close.
For younger people, especially under 30, looking for a partner isn’t just about looking for someone they like now. It’s also someone they want to grow with and experience things together with.
I’ve never really liked “children” in the sense of the age group, but I know a bunch of people who have really great, meaningful relationships between adult children and their parents, so I wanted adult children in my late middle ages and retirement ages.
Now, with my own children, I primarily see them as future adults who I get to watch develop into cool people.