Miscellaneous, distracted, various, and inimitable

[patric]

I commend you for being a Republican without blinders on but you're in the overwhelming minority. Most polls show over 70% of Republicans believe the election was rigged and Trump actually won plus over 50% of Republicans believe Dems are involved in child sex rings. It's not a few crazies spouting crap here and there - it's the Republican party full stop. Heck 20% of the party believes freeing slaves was a BAD idea. You're at best a RINO to the party.

Born from far-right nationalism, the extremist ideology expounding the view that immigration will ultimately destroy white values and western civilization has found favor not only with media figures, such as the conservative Fox News host Tucker Carlson, but a host of elected politicians and others seeking office.

Those who have convinced themselves Democrats are operating an open-door immigration policy to "replace" Republican voters with people of color and keep themselves in power permanently include Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, chair of her party's House conference, and JD Vance, the Donald Trump-approved Republican nominee to represent Ohio in the US Senate.

After the Buffalo shooting, the pair are among those receiving blowback for embracing the conspiracy theory that the killer referred to repeatedly in an online manifesto authorities believe he posted to justify the attack.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/may/16/buffalo-massacre-great-replacement-theory-republicans

[heironymouspasparagus]

Whiplash moment....


I am curious - why has the tulsanow website never been changed over to https://    ??

[tulsabug]

Whiplash moment....


I am curious - why has the tulsanow website never been changed over to https://    ??

We like to party like it's 1999 here yo.

[heironymouspasparagus]

We like to party like it's 1999 here yo.

I feel like I should be making posts about the inane insanity of the political world, but the embarrassment of riches leaves me at a loss where to start!
I have touched on a few AZ points, so maybe will just go there while getting all my ducks in a row...

More to come.    Yeah, I know....inane post about inane topics!   Ironic, isn't it?

[heironymouspasparagus]

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I am looking at various large garage door options and have seen airplane hangar doors that are a bifold arrangement, leaving a kind of 'awning' over the front when opened.   Is there a company in Tulsa area that does that type door?   I know there has to be as many aircraft hangars as are around - I just can't seem to find one.  Obviously looking in all the wrong places! 

[Red Arrow]

I am looking at various large garage door options and have seen airplane hangar doors that are a bifold arrangement, leaving a kind of 'awning' over the front when opened.   Is there a company in Tulsa area that does that type door?   I know there has to be as many aircraft hangars as are around - I just can't seem to find one.  Obviously looking in all the wrong places! 

There are also hangar doors that open by tilting the bottom outward and the top inward then lifting the entire door without folding.  They seem to leave more vertical clearance than the bifold door since the door remains in a single plane.  They also leave about 1/2 the door outward as an awning.  I don't know right now who is building them.

[heironymouspasparagus]

There are also hangar doors that open by tilting the bottom outward and the top inward then lifting the entire door without folding.  They seem to leave more vertical clearance than the bifold door since the door remains in a single plane.  They also leave about 1/2 the door outward as an awning.  I don't know right now who is building them.

I see people building their own for small structures...kinda want something a little more "designed" than I would make it...by someone who has done it before.  But I may take a shot at it - maybe on a small shed just to see what happens.

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[Red Arrow]

I see people building their own for small structures...kinda want something a little more "designed" than I would make it...by someone who has done it before.  But I may take a shot at it - maybe on a small shed just to see what happens.

The usual configuration is to put a set of rollers at mid height and another set near the top of the door. Regular overhead door channel guides are used.  I believe the actual lift and cable attach methods may be patented but several cables are attached to the outside of the door near mid-height. Power source to pull the cables is at one end of the door, inside the structure.

[heironymouspasparagus]

The usual configuration is to put a set of rollers at mid height and another set near the top of the door. Regular overhead door channel guides are used.  I believe the actual lift and cable attach methods may be patented but several cables are attached to the outside of the door near mid-height. Power source to pull the cables is at one end of the door, inside the structure.

Thanks for the info - here and there!   As for patents, well, all patents are designed to be gotten around!  Make better/different/improved.  Spent a career doing that!  (Successfully!)

Plus, they are probably getting old enough to expire by now, too.

[Red Arrow]

Thanks for the info - here and there!   As for patents, well, all patents are designed to be gotten around!  Make better/different/improved.  Spent a career doing that!  (Successfully!)
Plus, they are probably getting old enough to expire by now, too.

Patents probably have expired.  I just felt obligated to mention them.

I worked on several projects that were improvements, etc., to patented items too. Part of the territory being an engineer.

[heironymouspasparagus]

Patents probably have expired.  I just felt obligated to mention them.

I worked on several projects that were improvements, etc., to patented items too. Part of the territory being an engineer.

Probably one of the most fun parts!

[dbacksfan 2.0]

I heard about this company through a friend and thought I'd pass it along. They do all kinds of vertical bifold and canopy garage doors from residential to commercial. Here is the residential section.

https://www.bifold.com/designer-doors-residential.php#category

[heironymouspasparagus]

I heard about this company through a friend and thought I'd pass it along. They do all kinds of vertical bifold and canopy garage doors from residential to commercial. Here is the residential section.

https://www.bifold.com/designer-doors-residential.php#category

Thanks!   I like the one piece, too!  Less stuff to break!

[heironymouspasparagus]

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I haven't had a good rant lately.  I think it is time!  Come join me for the ride!  It will be fun!

French truckers went on strike and picketed because the government wants to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64!  What could they possibly be complaining about??  The US retirement age is death!!  At age 85, they strap you to a post to hold you up at the front door of Walmart to be a greeter!  (Retirement scenario from Stephen Colbert.  The rest is me with info from US govt sources.)

Instead of actually fixing the issues - which would require that the richest not get that extra 13% tax cut they have today - that the bottom 97% of us don't get - on a few thousand more dollars per year.  Some of the following numbers do have some rounding error, but they are much closer to reality than not!

Some ballpark numbers - SS takes in about $1 Trillion a year.  Medicare/Medicaid is ballpark 1/2 that.  SS pays out about $1 Trillion a year so it is close to even - there are some other incomes, like interest on trust fund but smaller numbers.  And the payout is starting to tap into the trust fund in US Treasuries. 

All of that is paid in by everyone who makes under $165,000 a year!  Above that point, you get a 13% cut - half thru you, half thru company as part of "total compensation" package.  That's great for the richest 3% in the country!  As it always is.  Of course.

IF that number was raised to that 'magical' $400,000 I hear thrown around as the threshold of being rich, SS income would be about $2.4 Trillion per year - while still paying out only about $1 Trillion with slow increases over time.  IF done properly, that extra from the $2.4 Trillion (and growing!) would do 2 things!  1. Guarantee instantly that SS would never have a problem again forever.  2. Would have an extra $1.5 Trillion every year to start paying down the debt!  And if the multi-trillion dollar Bush/T**** tax cuts were to expire, the entire debt would be paid off in probably less than 8-10 years!   ALL of it!  Paid in full!  And richest 1-2% still get to keep yet another one of their big tax cuts, so they should stay happy!

IF we could keep the Republicans from starting more unjustified, unfunded wars!

And the extra hundreds of billions of dollars interest we pay now could then go into developing our country.  Think infrastructure, education, healthcare to start.  Maybe we could actually lower the retirement age!  Imagine a place where you didn't have to die to retire!

Imagine doing something right!!  If only there was no Republican Obstructionism to actually fixing problems!!

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[Red Arrow]

I haven't had a good rant lately.  I think it is time!  Come join me for the ride!  It will be fun!

OK.  Bumpy but somewhat fun.

French truckers went on strike and picketed because the government wants to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64!  What could they possibly be complaining about??  The US retirement age is death!!  At age 85, they strap you to a post to hold you up at the front door of Walmart to be a greeter!  (Retirement scenario from Stephen Colbert.  The rest is me with info from US govt sources.)

The people who were happy with only a burger flipping skill set and some other unfortunate folks don't get to retire. For many folks not getting to retire is bad planning or choosing a lifestyle they cannot afford.  A better education would be a good start to remedy this.  Sometimes job opportunities can limit where one lives and works though.

Instead of actually fixing the issues - which would require that the richest not get that extra 13% tax cut they have today - that the bottom 97% of us don't get - on a few thousand more dollars per year.  Some of the following numbers do have some rounding error, but they are much closer to reality than not!
Some ballpark numbers - SS takes in about $1 Trillion a year.  Medicare/Medicaid is ballpark 1/2 that.  SS pays out about $1 Trillion a year so it is close to even - there are some other incomes, like interest on trust fund but smaller numbers.  And the payout is starting to tap into the trust fund in US Treasuries. 
All of that is paid in by everyone who makes under on earned income under $165,000 a year!  Above that point, you and your employer get a combined 13% cut - half thru for you, half thru for your employer company as part of "total compensation" package.  That's great for the richest 3% in the country!  As it always is.  Of course.

I believe if you are self employed, your 13% might be accurate.

IF that number was raised to that 'magical' $400,000 I hear thrown around as the threshold of being rich, SS income would be about $2.4 Trillion per year - while still paying out only about $1 Trillion with slow increases over time.  IF done properly, that extra from the $2.4 Trillion (and growing!) would do 2 things!  1. Guarantee instantly that SS would never have a problem again forever.  2. Would have an extra $1.5 Trillion every year to start paying down the debt!  And if the multi-trillion dollar Bush/T**** tax cuts were to expire, the entire debt would be paid off in probably less than 8-10 years!   ALL of it!  Paid in full!  And richest 1-2% still get to keep yet another one of their big tax cuts, so they should stay happy!

Social Security benefits are based on how much one contributed while working.  I cannot imaging you not complaining if benefits were adjusted upward based on the amount contributed on the difference between $160,200 for 2023 (but I'm not going to fuss over the difference to $165,000) and any larger number such as $400,000.
Maximum Taxable Earnings (Social Security): https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/maxtax.html

People on Medicare with high incomes pay increased premiums on their Part B (Doctor's office visits etc) and Part D (prescription medicine): 
Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amount (IRMAA):   

We use the most recent federal tax return the IRS provides to us. If you must pay higher premiums, we use a sliding scale to calculate the adjustments, based on your "modified adjusted gross income" (MAGI). Your MAGI is your total adjusted gross income and tax-exempt interest income.

https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/medicare/medicare-premiums.html
Brackets are not as smoothly incorporated as on Income Tax.  $1.00 annual income into the next bracket can increase your premium tens to hundreds of dollars per month.

There are some tax advantages to being retired.   First off, you are not paying Social Security/Medicare Tax, unless you are only partially retired and still have earned income.  Depending on your total income, some or most of your Social Security income will not be taxed on your Federal Income Tax.  Oklahoma does not tax Social Security income and allows the first $10,000 of qualified retirement pension/income to not be taxed.  Many other states offer something similar.