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The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

theatlantic.com

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Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#321

Post by rootusrootus »

microgpt wrote: post #249
rootusrootus wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, some people have that viewpoint. Very transactional. I think there was a time when I might have agreed. But as I have gotten older I've gained more of an appreciation for shared mythology and how it promotes social cohesion. Historically in many places religion has been a primary source of shared mythology. In America, despite prominent Christian religions, a strong historical shared mythology has been of our ow…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_civil_religion btw

I had not read that, thank you for sharing!

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#322

Post by timw4mail »

JKCalhoun wrote: post #311
WalterBright wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> it was just about four-engine planes becoming too expensive to run Four engines are also less safe than twin engines. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but Boeing did the math and made the case.

My understanding is that the 747 has the highest safety record of any commercial plane. Is that not true?

Hard to beat other planes that have not had fatal crashes or hull losses, especially when you consider the Tenerife crash.

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#323

Post by rootusrootus »

wolvoleo wrote: post #195
rootusrootus wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, some people have that viewpoint. Very transactional. I think there was a time when I might have agreed. But as I have gotten older I've gained more of an appreciation for shared mythology and how it promotes social cohesion. Historically in many places religion has been a primary source of shared mythology. In America, despite prominent Christian religions, a strong historical shared mythology has been of our ow…

To me it's really because they have broken that promise. Governments take advantage of that cohesion. It's not really because of the transactionality to my benefit but just because what they stand for is a net negative for society and the world. Consider the military. Few wars are actually worth giving one's life for. Since 1945 basically none. If the Communists had won in Vietnam nothing would have happened to Ameri…

I share your disillusionment, but my preferred response would be Americans coming together and deciding that actually, we do care, and we do want a better society for everyone, a better government, less corruption, etc. I am not suggesting that everyone needs to subscribe to my idea of better, either, I am just saying that we could improve things just be getting a majority of people acting in good faith and having real discussions about the issues we face. A healthy debate where winning means everybody wins, and losing just means you rework and improve your ideas and arguments and keep on participating.

Man I'm an idealist today. Okay that's just about every day, thankfully. But nihilism sometimes tries to consume me too.

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#324

Post by microgpt »

boxed wrote: post #307
microgpt wrote: post #246

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Social media promotes ad revenue (engagement). That's why it's full of brainrot slop and outrage bait. Legacy media promotes ideologies consistent with its owners, which is why for instance it downplays bad stuff Israel does and upplays bad stuff Iran does.

> Legacy media promotes ideologies consistent with its owners, which is why for instance it downplays bad stuff Israel does and upplays bad stuff Iran does. Partly true, but also mostly wrong. It's all about the business model. Owners doing what you say can only do so much if the business model is based on selling ads and no one gets a salary if they don't attack jews enough for their audience. The claim that Israels…

The business model isn't based on selling ads any more. The primary source of revenue is accepting payment to run or block certain topics

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#325

Post by Forgeties79 »

Symbiote wrote: post #292
Forgeties79 wrote: post #288

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Eurostar. Buy tickets online, walk up to gate, QR code beeps on a little scanner, walk onto train. That was it. No TSA-like security experience, no person checking anything (except one guy who walked around on the train and scanned one ticket which registered all our tickets at once, pretty uneventful). UK is a notable exception but they’re also kind of insane about government surveillance/security, especially post-b…

The Channel Tunnel has security checks because it's a 30km undersea tunnel, and separates an island country with a different approach to weapons to its neighbour. There are no security checks on any other trains in the UK. It's also not necessary (in Europe) to buy tickets any differently when crossing borders. Advance-purchase tickets are used for long-distance high-speed trains where they don't want people sitting,…

Duly noted

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#326

Post by Rover222 »

wolvoleo wrote: post #127
rootusrootus wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is very tiring. I get why Europeans might enjoy taking shots at us (though at one point I'd have said it was more of a good natured ribbing, given that Europe's history is also many Americans' history), and I fully understand the armies of bots spreading invective ... but the constant dogging on America by our own citizens is sad. I'm sure a lot of this outcome is intentional, but nobody fights back. America is ma…

Not American but I feel the sentiment. I'm planning to change nationality soon as 'my' own country is also on the same right-wing conservative track. I'm not interested in making things better anymore. I just want to break with them forever. They deserve no more admiration or loyalty. I don't believe in national pride or even of sports teams. My loyalty is always conditional, as long as my ethics align. I can imagine…

I think labeling all things right-wing as bad is part of the problem. The left goes too far, and pushes people to the right. That's why Trump got back into power.

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#328

Post by nehal3m »

tetris11 wrote: post #267
nehal3m wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope you replied something like 'No, meeting this project deadline is more important than YOUR child dying, to me this is a paycheck.' That's what I would've been thinking in the shower 2 days after the conversation, anyway.

I feel like people on HN who have comfortable passive incomes from stocks or other sources forget that people need a paycheck to sustain their lifestyles.

I very much depend on my pay check to sustain my life in the long run, although worker protections and a small (!) nest egg make it so I wouldn’t have to put up with this kind of abuse. I see employment as an agreement for a set number of hours of my expertise in exchange for a fee. End of transaction.

The real world is slightly less black and white of course, but that’s the gist of it.

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#329

Post by AnimalMuppet »

WalterBright wrote: post #210
AnimalMuppet wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Union Pacific Railroad (the eastern half of the transcontinental railroad) also caused the financial crisis of 1873 (due to construction costs and various corruption and bribery around financing them). It then went bankrupt in 1893. So, yes, it transformed the country. That didn't necessarily benefit the stockholders and bondholders.

1. It finished the railroad in 1869. 1873 was four years later. 1893 was 24 years later - a generation. 2. Check out "Nothing Like It in the World" by Ambrose.

Right, but four years later was definitely caused by the problem of (and shenanigans around) financing the original construction. Even if you want to say that 1893 was too late to be relevant, 1873 wasn't. It was the problem of financing the original construction that damaged the entire US economy.

Re: The Boeing 747 begins its final descent

#330

Post by cjrp »

pseingatl wrote: post #226
chadgiq wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Flew one from Chicago to Tokyo quite a few years back, what a great flight that was!

Was it on Flying Tiger? I worked on cargo 747's for them in another lifetime; they had a daily Chicago-Tokyo 747 cargo flight.

More likely United I'd say
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