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Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

johnwhiles.com

691–700 of 982 posts

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#691
I don't know how much money I have saved over the years by just switching to an epilator. Women's disposable razors tend to be even more expensive than men's where I live; it's always felt like a rip-off.

On the topic of razors, double edged blades also tend to be better at preventing ingrown hairs and irritation compared to the layered 3-4-blade system from what I've read and experienced. My experience is just with minor peach fuzz and not proper facial hair, but after years of trying different methods for this (eyebrow razors, chemical options, facial trimmers, regular razors), getting a cheap razor that takes double-edged blades is the thing that has worked the best so far.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#692

My dad bought me one of these bulky 12 speed razors, 5 years ago. I've used 1 cartridge from it about 6 months ago. I hadn't shaved my face since before they came out. I use a clipper to keep it trimmed. Why use any disposable product whatsoever. His point on single use plastics is spot on. I know a lot of people that love to lecture me about my moralistic views, the types of people who believe in overpopulation and…

Reminds me of George W Bush vs Al Gore in that Bush had a modest ranch house with all the eco friendly features and Gore, the environmentalalist had some 20,000+ foot megamansion.

The bad-faith narratives about Al Gore's personal life were hilariously wrong and offensive and irrelevant 25-30 years ago. I guess some people still haven't caught on.

Al Gore was right about, well, basically everything he said on major policy issues.

BTW, that supposed "megamansion"? It's a 5-bedroom home, really quite modest by the standards of today's billionaires. It's basically what you'd assume a former Senator and Vice President might have. Efforts to paint this as somehow offensive are obviously in bad faith.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#693

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cast iron becomes very low maintenance after the seasoning is started. I don't even usually wash mine. Everything slides right off at the end. Just let it heat up before using it, use a moderately high heat but not too high, and it's a nonstick pan without the carcinogens.

> Just let it heat up before using it No lol that's the whole point > without the carcinogens. I'll take that trade, I'm not going to spend my 30s sitting around waiting for pans to heat up because there's some very small probability a pan will harm me.

For some reason I always thought that for most cooking you want the pan to be at the desired final temperature before throwing in the ingredients anyway to get the optimum taste and texture.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#694
post #416

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The quality and state of the cast iron pan makes a big difference. If you have a good seasoning then less oil while cooking is needed. If you have a new pan with a rougher surface then using a steel spatula will smooth out the surface texture and improve performance (without making it too smooth where seasoning won't stick). There's a lot of varying advice on cast iron, but the prevailing wisdom seems to be that if y…

I actually machined, de-oiled, and polished a cast iron skillet I bought in the the supermarket. After seasoning with flax oil it was effectively non-stick. I would use a single pat of butter for 3-4 eggs. Regular use with heat control and edged steel spatula are essential to maintain seasoning. Also make sure helpful people don’t try to wash it in the dishwasher. I would just wipe it out with a paper towel and soft…

I got mine working fine on my electric after some experimenting with what heat to use.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#695

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shaving. It's not a religion. It's easy to experiment. 1. Don't shave. Grow a wild and wooly beard. 2. Electric clippers. For that permanent five o'clock shadow look. 3. Electric shaver. Easy. 4. Cartridge + foam. Smooth. 5. Double edge safety razor. Very smooth. Requires some skill. 6. Straight edge razor. Super smooth? No idea personally. 7. Laser. Also no idea personally. What this article completely misses, is th…

Wait is it possible to shave with a laser? The only thing I've seen for that was the Kickstarter scam a few years ago

You use a light-saber, very carefully.

Ha, it is for permanent hair removal. Might be good for the upper cheeks, not sure.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#696

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Just let it heat up before using it No lol that's the whole point > without the carcinogens. I'll take that trade, I'm not going to spend my 30s sitting around waiting for pans to heat up because there's some very small probability a pan will harm me.

For some reason I always thought that for most cooking you want the pan to be at the desired final temperature before throwing in the ingredients anyway to get the optimum taste and texture.

Thinner pans heat up faster

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#697

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shaving. It's not a religion. It's easy to experiment. 1. Don't shave. Grow a wild and wooly beard. 2. Electric clippers. For that permanent five o'clock shadow look. 3. Electric shaver. Easy. 4. Cartridge + foam. Smooth. 5. Double edge safety razor. Very smooth. Requires some skill. 6. Straight edge razor. Super smooth? No idea personally. 7. Laser. Also no idea personally. What this article completely misses, is th…

Wait is it possible to shave with a laser? The only thing I've seen for that was the Kickstarter scam a few years ago

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Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#698
post #372

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I checked on wikipedia and I found no mentions of that in the finished product. It's both/ Read the article I linked above "most people in the U.S. have PFAS in their bloodstream" so these chemicals are toxic in the finished product (which they then digest when using) and during manufacture. >While contamination of drinking water around military bases and factories gets most of the attention, the EPA says 80 percent…

>It's both/ Read the article I linked above "most people in the U.S. have PFAS in their bloodstream" so these chemicals are toxic in the finished product (which they then digest when using) and during manufacture. The "product" in this case being "non-stick pans", or various other consumer products? The wikipedia article seems to suggest the latter. >they are still produced internationally and are imported into the U…

>I'm inclined to believe that there's a bunch of ways for PFAS to get into people's bloodstreams, but cookware isn't one of them

You have the burden of proof to prove your claim/belief. I already provided a source that says "80 percent of human exposure comes from consumer products in the home." which you're making the illogical leap that that must not include pans coated in these chemicals that we use to cook on... That seems illogical. Yes there are other sources of PFAs, but you're trying to exclude one of the most obvious sources.

>That's perfectly consistent with my prior claim that "finished non-stick pans are safe"

You have literally cited zero evidence for your claim--so no it's not consistent. You're pulling this out of your ass.

I strongly suggest you do a bit more reading on the subject: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2022/03/07/pfas-guide-ch...

Regardless, I'll keep using my cast iron, carbon steel, and enameled cast iron pans--you can keep eating weird chemicals.

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#699

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For some reason I always thought that for most cooking you want the pan to be at the desired final temperature before throwing in the ingredients anyway to get the optimum taste and texture.

Thinner pans heat up faster

I'm definitely no pan expert, but I think there are now cast iron options that heat up very quickly, so maybe one doesn't have to compromise on that. I've had a Ronneby Bruk "ultra light" cast iron pan for years and it tends to heat up within a few minutes. At this point I don't remember what a regular pan's heat-up time is though, maybe I've just gotten used to the "pain".

Re: Shaving is an example of how consumer products extract more money

#700

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is only one conspiracy theory I believe in, it’s /reddit/r/castiron is a troll site created to make people believe ‘seasoning’ is really a thing. After spending a few weeks trying, I’ve had multiple people tell me they got theirs ‘seasoned’ after three or four months. Don’t let yourself be sucked in.

Yeah, it's very largely BS. If you cook enough bacon and high-fat foods in it over time.... sure. But people who say you can easily cook eggs in it or everything else "after its seasoned" are just not to be listened to. Use a nonstick. EDIT: Or carbon steel I guess. Even then, meh. Remember that the vast majority of professional chefs use nonstick skillets specifically for eggs both at home and in their workplace.

I ground down a pan and started over on it this year. This is all it took to get it perfect:

-In the very beginning, bake it in an oven with a very thin layer of crisco two times

-Only use it for eggs for a while, letting the butter turn into seasoning with higher heat as it cools. Find the right preheating ranges by experiment.

Now it's maintenance-free and nonstick.

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