Random Thoughts Thread

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Every manufacturer has some issue where they fall short.  Tesla's problem is that they can't seem to build a car with consistent quality anywhere close to what GM is doing.   And it is a matter of percentages also.

In 2021, Tesla produced 936,222 vehicle for their entire lineup globally. But they can't get their door panels to line up correctly each time or for a new vehicle not to brick itself 5 days after delivery.

In 2021, GM sold 835,269 Silverado/Sierras and Colorado/Canyon just in North America. Add in the 97k from the Colorado/Canyon and GM produces as many trucks as Tesla's entire lineup.

GM built 6.3 million vehicles globally in 2021 and that's down from a peak of 10.01 million in 2016.

So while GM has experienced some design quality issues... generally the build quality is pretty good and consistent.

Telsa also complicates matters by making running upgrades to their vehicles.... so that two cars coming off the same production line within days of each other can end up with different parts. So just having a 2022 Tesla doesn't mean anything... you need to know which version 2022 you got.  If that were being done by say, Honda, I'd have a lot more confidence in the process.

Thank you for that information.

I'm just saying that neither are perfect and I don't believe Musk heading other companies is the reason Teslas don't have consistent door panel gaps or bricking themselves. 

[Drew Dowdell]

2 hours ago, ccap41 said:

Thank you for that information.

I'm just saying that neither are perfect and I don't believe Musk heading other companies is the reason Teslas don't have consistent door panel gaps or bricking themselves. 

Oh it absolutely is because he hires egos rather than talent. Any VP of Production at any other manufacturer would have been sacked ages ago. 

Sure he steals top talent, but he steals it from Apple, Microsoft, and sometimes Uber… but no one who actually has experience…you know… building cars.

If he hired people who knew how to build cars, then he could delegate that to those people and he could go off building rockets to Mars or whatever. 
 

He’s arguably better at delegating over at Tesla solar and SpaceX. At Tesla Solar he just bought out another company and kept most of the management. At SpaceX he hired a rocket engineer and stole a bunch of people from Boeing.

[G. David Felt]

Very cool if true, I have found nothing on any of the VW media sites on this, but it seems VW is moving away from their MEB platform to a even better flexible EV platform.

ID.4 Sedan Heralds New VW Product Development Process (wardsauto.com)

There is lots of hints at this here at VW subsidiary CARIAD – Automotive Software for Volkswagen

CARIAD | Brands & Models of the Volkswagen Group (volkswagenag.com)

Media | Volkswagen Group (volkswagenag.com)

[G. David Felt]

Ouch, this sucks when you are excited for your new ride and then end up with a lemon.

Sadly, this seems to be more and more common for Tesla, lemon quality.

https://www.autoevolution.com/news/tesla-enthusiast-buys-a-brand-new-2022-model-y-says-the-car-is-unacceptable-191198.html

[ccap41]

Tesla isn't the only one with issues.

https://www.motortrend.com/news/ford-mustang-mach-e-recall-electric-nhtsa-battery/

The cause of this issue stems from repeated use of DC fast charging and driving at wide-open throttle that causes the contactors to overheat. When that overheating occurs, it deforms the electrical surfaces that prevents them from making contact or can cause arcing that can weld those surfaces to each other. This recall will affect 48,924 Mach Es, including ones that have not been handed over to customers as of yet.

The repair Ford has issued for this recall is a software update to the Secondary On-Board Diagnostic Control Module (SOBDCM) and Battery Energy Control Module (BECM). While these will be performed with an Over-The-Air (OTA) update, unfortunately it won't be ready to roll out until next month. Similarly to the 12 volt battery charging issue, owners can take their Mach E into their local Ford or Lincoln dealership to do the update using their Ford Integrated Diagnostic Software (IDS). We also asked if this recall could potentially affect the 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning, but Ford wasn't able to respond to us if it has or hasn't in time for first publication. If they get back to us, we'll update this article accordingly.

 

[trinacriabob]

A non sequitur random thought in my world ...

I tend to get a lot of stories and videos about bears, mountain lions, sharks, and alligators on my homepage.  I guess the cookies tell them to send those my way.

This one is mind blowing.  They confirmed the existence of a rumored alligator in Lake Conway, Arkansas.  So I looked at the map.  It is NORTH of Little Rock.  One draws some latitude lines in their mind above which the conditions should not be good for alligators and this is fairly far north, so I learned you can't count on these "lines in the sand."

Incidentally, many parts of Arkansas are surprisingly scenic.  I learned that last fall.

There was also one spotted last week on the waterside trails of an apartment complex outside Huntsville, Alabama.  And it made the local news. Not Mobile, AL, down on the Gulf, but more northerly Huntsville, near the Tennessee border.

 

[G. David Felt]

3 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

A non sequitur random thought in my world ...

I tend to get a lot of stories and videos about bears, mountain lions, sharks, and alligators on my homepage.  I guess the cookies tell them to send those my way.

This one is mind blowing.  They confirmed the existence of a rumored alligator in Lake Conway, Arkansas.  So I looked at the map.  It is NORTH of Little Rock.  One draws some latitude lines in their mind above which the conditions should not be good for alligators and this is fairly far north, so I learned you can't count on these "lines in the sand."

Incidentally, many parts of Arkansas are surprisingly scenic.  I learned that last fall.

There was also one spotted last week on the waterside trails of an apartment complex outside Huntsville, Alabama.  And it made the local news. Not Mobile, AL, down on the Gulf, but more northerly Huntsville, near the Tennessee border.

 

Guess it really is Alligator Dominion time!  

Very interesting read on Bosch thoughts on Tesla Battery Tech.

Tesla tab talk | Bosch Global

[A Horse With No Name]

I hate to eat crow, but my Ranger might be the favorite vehicle I have ever owned, including my 66 Mustang Fastback. 

 

That being said, I will talk a little smack. 

 

[trinacriabob]

It was obvious that the Dow was coming down from being at around 36,000.  It might have gotten up there too fast.

I thought that it might head down toward and stay at about 33,000 to 33,500 for a while.

Well, I was wrong.  Given that they put a man on the moon over 50 years ago, anything is possible.

[surreal1272]

"But all car companies have issues with quality. It's not just Tesla."

 

Not at the same frequency (Tesla is consistently at the bottom of just about every reliability ranking/score out there) and not issues like this...

https://www.motortrend.com/news/nhtsa-tesla-autopilot-investigation-shutoff-crash/

 

But whatever we do, do not blame Elon.?

[trinacriabob]

Happy Friday, folks.

This is how our family moved back to the U.S. the last time we did so.

My parents were holding my hand and keeping a close eye on me.  My parents said that the food was very good, but that, on the smaller ships (with one funnel) in the fleet, it was outstanding.  I would have liked to have explored it.  I would have probably gotten lost.  I remember that the cinema had a balcony!

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, surreal1272 said:

"But all car companies have issues with quality. It's not just Tesla."

Might as well actually quote me... 

As Some 2021 Ford Bronco V-6 Engines Fail, NHTSA Gets Involved

https://www.motortrend.com/news/2021-ford-bronco-2-7-liter-engine-valve-troubles/

 

Ford Recalls Escape, Fusion, Edge, C-Max, Transit Connect Because They Could Roll Away

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a40300779/ford-recall-escape-fusion-edge-c-max-transit-connect/

 

[G. David Felt]

I have to agree that I think Oil is grossly overvalued.

Citi: Oil Is Overvalued By $50 Per Barrel | OilPrice.com

[trinacriabob]

1 hour ago, David said:

I have to agree that I think Oil is grossly overvalued.

Citi: Oil Is Overvalued By $50 Per Barrel | OilPrice.com

Their not tapping into the reserves that are available - to a reasonable degree - is part of the complex web to explain the gouging.

[surreal1272]

“See! I showed you where other companies have problems too. It’s not just Tesla “

 

Also Tesla (who is consistently ranked at or near the bottom of every dependability survey)…

 

 

And, then was this just a couple of months ago. 
https://www.euronews.com/next/2022/04/15/the-fun-police-strikes-again-tesla-recalls-595-000-vehicles-after-safety-investigation

 

Point being, DUH! Other companies like Ford have problems too. However, those problems don’t happen as often at Fore as they clearly do at Tesla. That is years of this nonsense with a large ego at the helm but sure, let’s just pretend that Teslas problems are equal to say, Ford, when they’re clearly not. That makes a lot of sense. 

Edited June 18, 2022 by surreal1272

[oldshurst442]

@ccap41

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/elon-musk-sued-258-billion-190433065.html

Elon Musk was sued for $258 billion on Thursday by a Dogecoin investor who accused him of running a pyramid scheme to support the cryptocurrency.

In a complaint filed in federal court in Manhattan, plaintiff Keith Johnson accused Musk, electric car company Tesla Inc and space tourism company SpaceX of racketeering for touting Dogecoin and driving up its price, only to then let the price tumble.

Musk is CEO of both Tesla and SpaceX.

"Defendants were aware since 2019 that Dogecoin had no value yet promoted Dogecoin to profit from its trading," the complaint said. "Musk used his pedestal as World's Richest man to operate and manipulate the Dogecoin Pyramid Scheme for profit, exposure and amusement."

The complaint also aggregates comments from Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and others questioning the value of cryptocurrency.

 

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/news/spacex-employees-denounce-ceo-musk-170623252.html

 A group of SpaceX employees derided flamboyant billionaire Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk as a "distraction and embarrassment" in an internal letter to executives.

Musk, also head of electric automaker Tesla Inc, has been in headlines and late-night comedy monologues in recent months for a tumultuous quest to buy social media giant Twitter, a reported allegation of sexual harassment that Musk has denied as well as crude comments online and a foray into political discourse.

"Elon's behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks," read the letter, which does not single out any controversy in particular. Reuters was provided a copy of the letter. "As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX - every tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company."

 

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/spacex-fired-employees-behind-letter-092313006.html

SpaceX has fired employees who circulated a draft for an open letter, which said CEO Elon Musk's behavior in public is "a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment," according to a New York Times report.

Three SpaceX employees told The Times that the company fired some of the organizers behind the letter on Thursday afternoon.

The Times also reviewed an internal email from SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell, which confirmed the company had "terminated a number of employees involved."

In the email to employees, Shotwell called the letter "overreaching activism" and said the distribution had "made employees feel uncomfortable, intimidated and bullied, and/or angry because the letter pressured them to sign onto something that did not reflect their views," per The Times.

The Times reported that it wasn't clear how many employees had been fired. Two sources told Reuters SpaceX had fired at least five employees over the letter.

 

 

@ccap41 

You are 100% correct. All these distractions could not possibly BE a distraction to Tesla as if he is NOT a micro managing idiotic boss.  I kinda felt bad for a second when @surreal1272 mentioned Elon was on the spectrum. I had forgotten that Elon mentioned that himself.  Bu then I came back to my senses for not giving a shyte whether he is on the spectrum or not,  because he mentioned that on his opening monologue on SNL.  Not exactly a podium for me to be empathetic to his situation regarding Tesla and him BEING on the spectrum. 

He is quite aware of his actions...DESPITE him being on the spectrum. He CRAVES being in the limelight.  

The other CEOs in the other companies you mentioned dont behave like Musk does... 

John Z DeLorean was said that he also behaved more like a celebrity rather than a Pontiac or Chevy boss.  Eventually landing him, rightfully or wrongfully, in trouble with the law.   

Elon has been sued quite a few times already...  whether or not he has escaped being liable, if this trend continues, eventually one lawsuit WILL stick and the way he runs things, as a micro manager, it wont bode well for ANY of his companies.  

He is lucky that investors keep on dishing out billions to him for Tesla... 

Him running his mouth off towards Rivian and Lucid make him look like a fool...

 

https://insideevs.com/news/592252/elon-musk-says-lucid-rivian-are-tracking-toward-bankruptcy/

 

But you continue doing you, being ALWAYS against the grain pretending you are a righteous internet poster...  

 

Edited June 18, 2022 by oldshurst442

[trinacriabob]

Happy Father's Day on its eve to our members who are fathers.  Happy Sunday and enjoy your day.

[G. David Felt]

18 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

Happy Father's Day on its eve to our members who are fathers.  Happy Sunday and enjoy your day.

Agree, Happy Father's Day to all dads, be they human or fur babies. Enjoy your special day!

[riviera74]

On 6/17/2022 at 8:20 PM, trinacriabob said:

Their not tapping into the reserves that are available - to a reasonable degree - is part of the complex web to explain the gouging.

It does not help when there is too little refining capacity to process the crude oil into gasoline and diesel etc.  That is the other elephant in the room.

[G. David Felt]

4 minutes ago, riviera74 said:

It does not help when there is too little refining capacity to process the crude oil into gasoline and diesel etc.  That is the other elephant in the room.

Too True and both the refineries and Oil production companies are on record now of not wanting to drill and expand going through again the Boom/Bust cycle so they are letting prices go up, increasing crazy profits but not really doing much to plan for the future with moderate addition of refining and oil drilling.

[G. David Felt]

Interesting read / watch of the Tesla 3 and to be honest, I think Tesla is heading in the direction of buyout or merge as I agree with the writing story where they say there are better built EVs in the same price category now.

Owner Suggests Tesla Model 3 Is Not Worth The Money, Regrets Purchase (insideevs.com)

 

[G. David Felt]

Very interesting, this kind of video info will change people's thoughts, I think.

 

[trinacriabob]

Today is the summer equinox.  I hope everyone can take advantage of the longest day of the year!  And, of course, that the weather is good wherever you may be.

[G. David Felt]

Happy Summer Solstice Everyone, Longest Day of the Year! Enjoy getting outside when you can.

Seattle is supposed to have a high of 73 today, been a long cold wet spring and so today will be good to get outside, only last Thursday we got 3 inches of snow on the passes. Maybe summer will be here for this coming weekend.

[trinacriabob]

My REAL random thought for this beautiful summer day:

Why is it that so many receptionists and medical assistants at general practitioner type (internal and family medicine) medical offices are b!+chy?  WTF is that all about?  They fling open the glass sliding window ... if there is one.  They're rude if you just want to check in and sit down for a routine visit.  I know that many of the patients might be sick, achy, and a little crotchety.   They've relayed lab orders and scrips incorrectly, and you have to call them back to have something changed or added, to which they seem really disgruntled.  And, if you rarely go in and want a certain bloodwork lab test included, you might get, "Is it time for that one?!?!?"  (It is, or I wouldn't be asking for it.)

They're even rude at medical practices in nice neighborhoods.  And some of the medical assistants could qualify to be on Jerry Springer and look like the type who would be huddled outside the front of some office building with kindred souls on break, with all of them looking world weary, smoking their cigarettes.

WTF, right?

[Drew Dowdell]

On 6/9/2022 at 8:33 PM, Drew Dowdell said:

1. HR Director took delivery of her brand new Tesla Model Y on Friday.

2. By Wednesday it was on a flatbed, stone dead, getting trucked back to Tesla for repairs.

June 21st and she still has her Model 3 loaner. She’s had the loaner for longer than her new car.

[G. David Felt]

9 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

June 21st and she still has her Model 3 loaner. She’s had the loaner for longer than her new car.

Have they stated what the problem is? Bad battery pack, bad controller? Be very interested in what caused it to brick.

[G. David Felt]

Very cool to see all these F150 Lighting's getting loaded up for delivery to customers and how nice and quiet it is.

 

Also I see Ford has announced that they have chosen Valencia Spain Plant for their first Europe EV dedicated assembly plant for their next Gen EV Architecture.

Spending $2 Billion in Cologne Germany to start production next year of passenger EVs.

Ford has advanced their Goal for Europe to be pure electric auto sales, Carbon Neutral across Europe by 2035

Quote of the Press Release: 

Next generation architecture a critical component of Ford’s all-electric future in Europe

The next generation architecture is a critical step in the transformation of Ford in Europe to achieve an all-electric future and build a thriving business while making a positive contribution to society and reducing emissions in line with the Paris Climate Agreement.

Ford’s plans for all-electric future in Europe supports the global goal of 2 million+ annual production of EVs by 2026 and 10% company adjusted EBIT margin by 2026.

Ford Speeds Toward All-Electric, Connected Future in Europe; Chooses Valencia Plant, Spain, for Next-Gen EV Architecture | Ford Media Center

[ccap41]

For something that looks pretty dang good overall, I can’t understand why they didn’t engineer a frunk into it. That’s one of the biggest advantages of an EV and they excluded it. 
 

[G. David Felt]

1 hour ago, ccap41 said:

For something that looks pretty dang good overall, I can’t understand why they didn’t engineer a frunk into it. That’s one of the biggest advantages of an EV and they excluded it. 
 

Thanks for posting it looks great, but I totally agree that they should have included a frunk. I suspect that cooling, electrical, etc. many things that have not had much deep thinking yet was hidden in the front since they had not thought about where they would put it. I suspect other Cadillac and GM EVs will end up with a frunk especially the trucks, but for the mid to compact cars/CUVs that GM makes that front will initially be used for placing all the electrical components.

Will be interesting to see if the Chevrolet Equinox and Blazer SS will have frunks, I suspect not.

[G. David Felt]

Very Cool new Video on LYRIQ

Liberating Performance

 

New Face of Cadillac

 

 

[ccap41]

2 minutes ago, David said:

Thanks for posting it looks great, but I totally agree that they should have included a frunk. I suspect that cooling, electrical, etc. many things that have not had much deep thinking yet was hidden in the front since they had not thought about where they would put it. I suspect other Cadillac and GM EVs will end up with a frunk especially the trucks, but for the mid to compact cars/CUVs that GM makes that front will initially be used for placing all the electrical components.

Will be interesting to see if the Chevrolet Equinox and Blazer SS will have frunks, I suspect not.

For ground-up built EVs, that's a pretty big mistake, imo.  

I can't imagine they didn't have "much deep thinking yet" on a frunk. The Silverado EV has one so it isn't like GM just had blinders on and weren't looking at the rest of the industry. 

As somebody once said, "that is a total failure!" 

[G. David Felt]

While excited for the GM EVs, I am bum' ed by the blah white/grey interiors. So sterile and cold looking to me.

[ccap41]

Just now, David said:

While excited for the GM EVs, I am bum' ed by the blah white/grey interiors. So sterile and cold looking to me.

I think the white looks sharp but I wouldn't want all black. 

[G. David Felt]

4 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

For ground-up built EVs, that's a pretty big mistake, imo.  

I can't imagine they didn't have "much deep thinking yet" on a frunk. The Silverado EV has one so it isn't like GM just had blinders on and weren't looking at the rest of the industry. 

As somebody once said, "that is a total failure!" 

I have to wonder if they decided to go with a bigger interior space as Tesla has FAILED IMHO on interior space and has a pathetic Frunk for size. This makes me wonder if they decided to maximize the interior space forgoing a Frunk. The videos I posted it would seem they have kept with using the front end as a storage space for all things electrical, cooling and powertrain. Will be interesting to see how this Ultium Platform evolves.

3 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

I think the white looks sharp but I wouldn't want all black. 

I like the Cashmere interior of my Escalade better than the white. White becomes dirty so fast it seems to me. Better yet, is the warm mocha brown interiors, those are great, warm, inviting and I think look way better than black or white.

[oldshurst442]

Pretty impressive skyline.  ALMOST makes me proud... 

 

as how I feel like a Montrealer tho...

r

 

[ccap41]

Can we vote people off the island? 

[surreal1272]

4 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

Can we vote people off the island? 

I’m thinking at least one person here should be careful what they wish for unless they are just wanting to stay on troll island. 

[oldshurst442]

LOL

My arch nemesis 

 

we keep losing to them.

All else is someone trying real hard to troll... 

[oldshurst442]

xcept we also won a couple of times against them.

In 2018 as the last time. 

Just to say we dont always lose to them. 

That bald dude is me.   My daughter is the 5th girl counting left to right.

3 coaches.  Myself at the right. Head coach to the right of me and the coach at the far right.

This year we are two coaches. Myself and another dad.  we both share head coaching. we have a chance to win it all this year, including beating that rascal of a St Lazare team! 

Edited June 24, 2022 by oldshurst442

[oldshurst442]

We didnt win gold that year. (In 2018) We did win bronze.  Everyone is a winner, right?

At least I dont drive a CUV...

Anyway,  St Lazare didnt win anything that year because we were the reason they didnt qualify for the medal round. 

In 2017, they won gold while we won bronze.  They were the reason why we played for the bronze medal. 

In 2019, we beat ourselves and didnt make it to the medal round. They won Gold.

In 2020, we could have won Gold but there was no medal tournament. Just games (Covid) and we were the best team in our league.  

Last year we fell short in qualifying for the medal round.  Yup, our final game to qualify for a medal to determine if we play for bronze and we had to beat them. We didnt. They beat us thrusting them to the Gold game.  They won gold.  If we beat them that game, we would play each other for the bronze....

 

 

Edited June 24, 2022 by oldshurst442

[G. David Felt]

Interesting read, very cool for Hyundai and Kia.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-25/these-electric-cars-are-quietly-dominating-the-ev-market

[trinacriabob]

On 6/23/2022 at 9:34 PM, oldshurst442 said:

Pretty impressive skyline.  ALMOST makes me proud... 

 

I love Toronto's skyline.  When there were fewer buildings (I was looking at some photos from about 20 years ago), they looked more individualistic ... probably because most of them were commercial high rises.  Now, the many condo towers that are going up are ruining the quality of the skyline.  That's my opinion.  And they're all similar tall rectangles packed into one clump.

I almost think the best view of the skyline is going to and from the Toronto Islands on the ferry.  Most people don't even know Toronto has a chain of islands just 15 minutes off of the downtown waterfront.

View from the ferry.

The fare is fair.

I still like Montreal more.  I always will.

- - - - -

Going back to National Donut Day earlier this month, here are some "nostalgia" photos.

This was lunch.

This was dinner.

Because they require you buy a drink (about $2), I don't think Dunkin' lost any money on this deal.  Their donuts are a little over a $1.  So, then, how much does that tea bag, drip coffee, or iced tea cost them?  Not much.  I did not feel guilty about going twice.  I was just being a goofball that day, anyway.   If someone handed you a donut without other stipulations, then it would have truly been a FREE donut.

By the way, lunch was better.

[trinacriabob]

I just noticed today is National PTSD Awareness Day.  Some people are practically "paralyzed" by PTSD, depending on the severity of it.  It can happen to both veterans and people who were not in the armed forces.  

I believe the last month - May - is Mental Health Awareness Month.  The number of people in our country, and the world, who suffer from mental health conditions, and for whom they infringe on their overall health and quality of life, is significant.  

The general public is becoming more aware of and empathetic toward mental illness.  That's a big step forward.

[ccap41]

27 minutes ago, trinacriabob said:

The number of people in our country, and the world, who suffer from mental health conditions, and for whom they infringe on their overall health and quality of life, is significant.  

It is significant and how they've been put in a position to make life-changing decisions for the rest of us. (every politician ever ? ?)

[G. David Felt]

On 6/24/2022 at 12:37 PM, oldshurst442 said:

We didn't win gold that year. (In 2018) We did win bronze.  Everyone is a winner, right?

At least I don't drive a CUV...

Anyway, St Lazare didn't win anything that year because we were the reason, they didn't qualify for the medal round. 

In 2017, they won gold while we won bronze.  They were the reason why we played for the bronze medal. 

In 2019, we beat ourselves and didn't make it to the medal round. They won Gold.

In 2020, we could have won Gold but there was no medal tournament. Just games (Covid) and we were the best team in our league.  

Last year we fell short in qualifying for the medal round.  Yup, our final game to qualify for a medal to determine if we play for bronze and we had to beat them. We didn't. They beat us thrusting them to the gold game.  They won gold.  If we beat them that game, we would play each other for the bronze....

Need a way bigger picture, so small cannot see any details, Olds. 

Nope, not everyone is a winner. That fact is what drives humanity to do better I believe.

Saying everyone is a winner is the Lemming philosophy that pushes humans to just accept mediocre. 

2 hours ago, trinacriabob said:

I just noticed today is National PTSD Awareness Day.  Some people are practically "paralyzed" by PTSD, depending on the severity of it.  It can happen to both veterans and people who were not in the armed forces.  

I believe the last month - May - is Mental Health Awareness Month.  The number of people in our country, and the world, who suffer from mental health conditions, and for whom they infringe on their overall health and quality of life, is significant.  

The general public is becoming more aware of and empathetic toward mental illness.  That's a big step forward.

So true, we do not have enough mental health experts to help everyone, proof is look at all the homeless and the issues one can find there.

2 hours ago, ccap41 said:

It is significant and how they've been put in a position to make life-changing decisions for the rest of us. (every politician ever ? ?)

So true, politicians are the worst ever, proof is the last 6 years and how crazy things have become. A solid reason why I believe we need term limits.

Stay cool guys, have a great day, look forward to our next conversation/debate on auto's. ?

[ccap41]

9 minutes ago, David said:

So true, politicians are the worst ever, proof is the last 6 years and how crazy things have become. A solid reason why I believe we need term limits.

Stay cool guys, have a great day, look forward to our next conversation/debate on auto's. ?

Term limits are only a part of what's needed but it would be an acceptable start. 

Stay cool you say? We're having beautiful weather after a two week run of upper 90's and 100 degree F weather. Yesterday and today's highs are 81 degrees F! 

[G. David Felt]

2 hours ago, ccap41 said:

Term limits are only a part of what's needed but it would be an acceptable start. 

Stay cool you say? We're having beautiful weather after a two week run of upper 90's and 100 degree F weather. Yesterday and today's highs are 81 degrees F! 

Yes, it is a start.

Ugh, 81 is still too high. 90 here after high 80's over the weekend. I love my 60's weather.

[Robert Hall]

Today is about absolutely perfect...74 and sunny...same tomorrow for my birthday, then back in the 90s. I should go to the beach this evening. 

[trinacriabob]

6 hours ago, Robert Hall said:

Today is about absolutely perfect...74 and sunny...same tomorrow for my birthday

Happy birthday a few hours in advance, Mr. Hall.  Enjoy your day! 

(For me, food is always part of it.)