By choice, dingus.

I don’t have that option. Big Ole difference. Maybe give everyone Lyme disease so they develop red meat allergies and we can talk

Okay. You want me to double down? I won’t eat at vegan places most of the time. Here’s the thing: vegetables are delicious. So why?

Vegans will support a vegan place no matter what and will talk it up as being amazing even if it sucks. I’ve been burned being told, “oh. That place is so good” and it’s just a matter of vegans circling the wagons and propping up a place that serves a lazy impossible burger with fake plastic cheese on it. Y’all ain’t accountable and it makes it difficult taking vegan food seriously. No wonder y’all’s food has an inferiority complex

I and others are over here with soy, egg and gluten allergies that restrict pretty heavily what I can eat. But go off since you have it all figured out, king.

I mean… you can upstream everything. I work for a place that sells outdoor sports gear. Pretty benign unless you do a deep dive into supply chains and the like.

For the record, I did work at a place the built parts for cruise missiles. It sucked. I quit

I just checked down there. It’s your chin

Some of that shit is fucking dangerous. At the height of the EPO (EPO being a hormone which increases red blood cell production and makes the chuckledick system more efficient) era of pro cycling, the rumor was some pros had to wake up in the middle of the night and get on a trainer because they’d gotten their blood so viscous that they risked getting clots of they stayed in one spot too long.

Also, if you do it wrong you’ll absolutely fuck yourself up. Riccardo Ricco Basically gave himself kidney failure because he infused blood which he’d kept in fucking mini fridge.

It’s not like elite athletes aren’t already on weird shit normal people would never consider… they’re on plenty of gear but what’s allowed is already regulated. A lot of pros toe the line, some in better faith than others. The line is there for safety and because it would be a headache letting things be a free for all. People would get hurt and plenty of prospective athletes would be turned off if you have to be dangerously juiced just to compete

Opening any of these motors voids the warranty, but most reputable shops have the firmware and diagnostic tools for these motors (as well as the ability to send them back for issues/service)

If you think something like a Super 73 will be serviceable by anyone, go nuts king

“I review eBikes for a living” and these are what he chose?

These bikes are all nightmares. Please don’t buy those (well, the Yuba is legit, but not the top 3)

These are all consumer direct brands that you buy at department stores. People who put these together are generally not detail oriented. The parts spec (Altus derailleur?) is the cheapest shit possible that was not designed for an eBike application. The weight and torque of the bike is more than the parts are designed for. It will need servicing and the cassette/ chain will be roached every 500 miles or so.

Therein lies the kicker: most mainstream shops won’t service these. No name motors (maybe Bafang if you’re lucky) and batteries that are prone to catching on fire if you overcharge them means a shop won’t take the chance. With all the proprietary parts and propriety firmware for the motor a shop would have a hard time even if they did take them in. I turn these bikes away from my shop every week and a lot of them are built by fly by night companies that fold or don’t support the bike 2 years after you buy it.

If you are considering going the eBike route, get something with Bosch, Shimano, Fazua, TQ or similar MID DRIVE motor as opposed to these hub drive bikes. Hub drive bikes have weird cables that you dare not risk ripping out or nicking while taking out the 30lb rear wheel to change a flat and all that weight near the back of the bike makes for a shitty handling one.

Who the fuck buys an e-bike on ali-fucking-baba?

You’d be surprised. Most people get sticker shock and think spending $1200us is a deal. Those things are fucking deathtraps that are prone to the battery catching on fire.

There’s a world of difference between a legit branded eBike with a Bosch, Shimano or similar motor and a $1200 D2C Amazon shitbox from some fly by night company. The new ones with smart charges are not at much risk for a battery to catch fire. If anything, they’re kind of annoying because the motor will cut off at the first sign that silent might be wrong, so my shop has gotten complaints about bikes that stop working

Also, that’s funny that USAA won’t cover bikes that assist above 15mph, since literally every class of eBike goes faster than that

I think you answered your own question.

If you’re burnt out, grinding it through 2 more years and amassing 2 more years of debt doesn’t sound worth it to me… especially if you’re already working in your field

Electric cars are here to save the car industry, not the environment

Quebec does a lot of dumb shit that isn’t consistent with the rest of Canada

I worked for a few labels back in the day. Bands could make money depending on if they’re discerning with who they signed with. Some indie labels split profits down the middle after costs are recouped

Problem is each and every revenue stream is a fraction of what it used to be

Daniel Ek (Spotify CEO) is 3x richer than Paul McCartney. If that doesn’t bun you out enough, he uses his fortune to invest in sketchy AI for military applications., plus you know… Joe Rogan and all that shit

Fuck that guy in the face

Nah. My band’s releases that I have the rights to are not on Spotify on purpose. I’m not going to give you free use of my art so you can pay myself and my bandmates almost enough to get a sandwich every quarter.

Fuck right off with that insulting shit.

I worked at labels for years… that’s not the way it works

If an artist is enough of a dummy to blow their entire advance unwisely quitting their job, spend months in the studio, and get an elaborate tour bus: the label will pay for it but those expenditures are weighed against your royalties. Scummy labels exist, sure, but often the artist went on a spending spree with what anointed to a loan the label was paying them.

Spotify also pays absolute garbage and fucks bands harder than most labels were ever able to

When Isreal openly advocates for Jews of other nationalities to come illegally occupy land that has supposedly been set aside for Palestinians they're doing so to displace and replace them. How many resolutions about Palestine have been vetoed by only the US and Isreal with the rest of the world unilaterally telling Israel to cut it out? Shit, this one is from 7 years ago and was one of 18(!!!) similar resolutions against Isreal that year…

What Isreal is doing is genocide. I don't for a minute condone all the methods Hamas is employing, but what's happening is a predictable response from an increasingly desperate people

Well, it did do a lot of its learning on reddit and Twitter. Garbage in, garbage out

As a cyclist, I can confidently say you probably still get more consideration than myself

Burners by and large are dipshits, but no one reasonable is laughing at anyone dying.