Instigate

While I loved PropertyCity while I lived there, my early years in RuralTown showed that’s where the real Country really is. We had a herd of FarmAnimals and would always go down to the WaterBody on the weekends where the LargeMammals roamed free and wild!

You’re welcome to do it in their stead. I’ll happily wait for confirmation that you’ve done the thing you want others to do but aren’t willing to do yourself.

I misremembered and have edited my post above: the unit stupidly doesn’t wear bodycams at all.

However, the tactical police units who stormed McKenzie’s home and shot him did not wear body cameras.

Under previous questioning, one of the senior constables involved said, “obviously the tactical guys wanted all body-worn switched off”.

Deputy State Coroner Harriet Grahame asked one of the tactical officers why the unit does not use body-worn video.

Officer T1 said the team did not want tactics being given out and “inadvertently it always seems to get out on social media”.

https://9news.com.au/article/83310510-9e0e-44a3-84b0-5bd275dce9af

In the NSW (Australian) emergency services, there’s now a division that’s been slowly rolling out called the PACER (Police, Ambulance, Clinical, Early Response) program where Police can have mental health clinicians who are based with them attend to a call to provide immediate advice, support and mental health therapy in some cases. It’s still a pilot program at the moment but where it has been rolled out it’s significantly reduced mental health presentations to hospital at the very least. I’m keen for statistics to be seen around reductions in arrests or charges, because I think they’re likely to follow.

Thankfully Police shootings in NSW are generally pretty rare, but they still happen. Recently (2023) a 95 year old woman using a walking frame and wielding a knife was tasered by a cop and died a week later from her injuries, and back in 2019 a man was executed by three shots to the back while having a psychotic episode after officers disabled their bodycams (edit: I misremembered - the cops that stormed the house weren’t wearing bodycams at all). We don’t have it as bad as some do, but it’s still not a great situation.

Although we in Australia are pretty frickin arse-backwards and conservative about stupid shit, I do have a lot of faith and hope in programs like PACER. I just hope it can be expanded and become mandatory statewide, but the cynic in me says that’s not likely. As someone who’s had to call Police for a relative’s mental health crisis before, I can definitely understand the fear.

Or a Sikh trans woman. Or a cis woman with very active facial hair follicles. I mean, it could be so many different people.

Where I’m from, some people will still use feet/inches only for heights of human beings (weird, I know), but the most common response is in cm. For instance, if you asked me how tall I am I’d say 173cm, but I would say it like “I’m about a hundred and seventy-three” or “one-seven-three” - you don’t really have to say the units. Much the same as you’d say “I’m five foot seven” and you don’t need to specify “inches”.

Wow. That’s a bunch of great ideas right there!

I really like using federal government to set direction but pushing for local changes ASAP. Honestly that seems like the most logical way to cater to individual needs while moving as quickly as possible.

Obviously we also have to invest heavily in public transport, right? Not only do we need to beef up what existing but we’ll need to create new linkages in order to prevent transportation deserts. Part of the issue with that is it might require some compulsory acquisition of land. That’s always a super tetchy area because I don’t always ascribe to a utilitarian “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one” view.

I think another area that needs to be looked at is mandating some level of working from home in roles where that’s possible. Travelling to and from work causes the most congestion both on roads and in public transport, and it’s just silly to be forcing people to travel when they don’t need to all the time. That’s something that will need another top-down approach - probably set down either at State or Federal level and mandated legislatively.

Can I just say thank you so much for your considered and good-faith reply. This is what I come to Lemmy for - the ideas and the opinions that really spark debate and discussion!

That sounds like a good place to start to me!

A few other concerns that I have with a blanket ban are around implementation - if it’s done suddenly then public transport systems will be extremely overwhelmed and will underperform, leading to large losses in productivity across the economy. Do you think a staged approach or a fast approach is more appropriate, and what sort of timeframes do you think are feasible for enacting a ban?

You’re absolutely right - just about any action taken on a population-wide scale will have both positives and negatives, and they’re also not likely to be shared equally among stratified groups in that population. Just to be clear - I’m not discounting a car ban as an option entirely but rather trying to determine how it would actually work. In my utopia there would rarely be need for personal vehicles, but I’m not smart enough to know the steps to get there. I’m keen on discussing what those steps might be, and how we can engage them in a way that their impact on individuals is as equitable as possible.

I think you might’ve made an unfair assumption about my position just because I asked a question. To clarify: I am all for reducing car usage as much as possible by implementing high-quality no-cost public transport solutions. I am however concerned that a blanket ban on all cars will negatively impact already underprivileged communities, and so a more methodical approach that limits and disincentivises car usage for those who don’t need it, while still retaining options for those who do, would better address the issue with the least unintended consequences possible.

I see the confusion - my semicolon usage was to denote items in a list. Physical disabilities, Autism and obesity were three separate conditions that I was suggesting may be impacted by removing all cars from the road. My apologies if that was not clear. I included Autism in there specifically because my cousin recently got his licence and has been over the moon about how he no longer has to deal with the sensory overload shit he puts up with on public transport. It was an example close to my heart, and clearly it was close to yours as well.

I’m sorry that it seems as though I’ve presented concepts as absolute truths - that was not my intention. My intention was to list some circumstances where some people may be negatively affected as a starting point for discussion around disability accommodations in a car-free world.

Just to state - I personally do believe we need to reduce car usage as much as possible and seriously ramp up accessibility while removing all costs for high-quality public transport. I think cars are a blight on our society and we rely far too heavily on them. I just don’t know how to get rid of them without any negative unintended consequences. I was seeking a debate, or to be informed on how this could be done well. Instead it seems as though I’ve offended you, which was not my intention.

I know that understanding tone from text can be difficult at the best of times but I’ve honestly tried to be as genuine and non-combative as possible. I’m sorry there’s not more I can do to convey that I agree with your sentiment and am asking for help in how that can be put into place without accidentally harming anyone.

That’s a fair call mate, but I would like to remind you that Autism is a spectrum, and many different people have many different presentations and symptomatology associated with their conditions. I’m sorry that you’re not able to drive due to your condition, but many others are able to including some of my close family members.

My bad if what I wrote made you feel like a prop - it wasn’t my intention. I was genuinely trying to spark conversation about disability accommodations in car-free world.

Serious question: are you concerned that banning all cars will negatively impact some groups more than others - for instance, people living with disability? Cars are a far more preferable mode of transport for someone who has a physical disability; someone who has autism and struggles with sensory overload; or someone who is morbidly obese and struggles to walk even short distances. What are your thoughts on how their needs can be accommodated if we take all cars off the road overnight tonight?

Yeah, I’d almost say it’s an essential purchase. I buy a fair few online titles and I’ve found my 128Gb SD to be a bit lacking. I’m considering upgrading to a 256Gb or 512Gb but they’re still too expensive at high transfer rates.

If you have to choose between capacity and transfer rate for an SD card for a Switch, go for transfer. I had an old slow card and that was abhorrent for load times and stuttering on games that were stored there.

I recently bought an adjustable clip to clip the Switch (sans joycons) to my Pro Controller and it’s super comfy for long periods of gaming. I’ve also seen people use 3rd party joycons that are shaped more like the Pro Controller handles which seem comfy too.

You’re right, the base Switch isn’t all that comfy for long periods of play, but there are both ways around that and it can also be played docked, which I think are redeeming features.

Further to this - it doesn’t download cart data to the Switch/SD card, but it does store save data, update data and DLC data on the Switch/SD card. So while BOTW may not download its whole 10Gb onto the Switch, you may end up with a few Gb in other data that’s locally stored.

The Switch design is an evolution of the Wii U controller, which itself was evolved from the the lower screen design of the DS, which itself was modelled on the old Vertical Multi Screen Game and Watches from the 1980s.

Have a look through all of Nintendo’s consoles and you’ll see the lines of inspiration drawn from generation to generation.

Assumedly the character in the comic is not on death’s doorstep, and they’re also not drawn as being particularly old. The character theoretically has decades ahead of them. If they’re lamenting the lack of decades of experience, they still have decades in which to gather said experience.

A lot has been said about the lack of free time that comes with age, but that only exists to a point. Additional responsibilities created by having children fade as they age and eventually move out of home. After middle age people often move into the twilight of their careers where they’re less focussed on work progression and are able to use their free time better as opposed to working towards the next promotion. Eventually, we usually retire and have almost as much free time as when we were children.

I get that taking on a brand new hobby in your 40s seems daunting, but it’ll only get easier and easier from that age onwards.

Definitely agree with a lot of the listed games but wanted to add some I haven’t seen yet:

• Monster Hunter: Rise. The Monster Hunter series’ most recent main series instalment sees you playing as a Hunter of massive creatures, carving them up and using the parts to craft stronger and better equipment. Multiplayer only available with multiple switches, but is still a very rewarding solo game.

• Cadence of Hyrule. A Zelda and Crypt of the NecroDancer mashup that sees you play as Link or Zelda in a musical world where everything moves at the speed of the beat of the music. Very novel and interesting game, but relatively short.

• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX. This is a true roguelike and a remake of the first game in the offshoot Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series made by the same creators of the Shiren the Wanderer series. Gameplay is turn-based and grid-based, with randomly generated dungeons for you to conquer, and you play as a human who’s been turned into Pokémon alongside many others you can befriend.

It’s often advantageous to prevent catastrophe before it occurs rather than clean up the mess once it happens.

I feel like a lot of people haven’t ever played Rogue and so struggle understand what Roguelike actually means. Fair call, it’s a very old game with essentially no graphics, but to understand the genre properly everyone needs to give it a go at least once in my opinion.

Side note; love me the whole Mystery Dungeon franchise. I still need to pick up the Shiren the Wanderer series.