"Oh So Very Many Questions Than Before Not Worth Their Own Thread" Thread Vol. XXVI

[cybrxkhan]

I would think "state" and "province" are just arbitrarily chosen words for internal divisions between a country.(well not arbitrary per se, there's historical reasons perhaps why the term was chosen, but I mean that you can call an internal division anything)

 

[Cutlass]

In my spare time I've been reading a humungous rant on how states' rights have been progressively curtailed by the evul Fedz. Apparently the difference lies in part on historical evolution, Argentina became a far more unitary state -in practice- after unification in the second half of the 19th century while the provinces' autonomy before that sometimes mean that they were de facto independent states.

There's a lot of difference in American states even now. Even after a long period of federal dominance.

 

[Flying Pig]

I would think "state" and "province" are just arbitrarily chosen words for internal divisions between a country.(well not arbitrary per se, there's historical reasons perhaps why the term was chosen, but I mean that you can call an internal division anything)

Reasonably - at least in theory, 'state' suggests a quasi-autonomous entity which came together into a federal system, while 'province' usually suggests something carved out by the central power for administrative reasons. Of course, these don't actually work in practice; Canadian provinces fit that definition of 'state', while Nigerian states fit the definition of 'province'. These, though, are the intended connotations of the words.

 

[Cutlass]

Aren't most provinces in Europe formerly independent principalities or the domains of some local sovereign which was aggregated into the nation the region became when some ruler had the power to do so? The majority of the US states were formed out of territory the US federal government controlled and set the boundaries of.And then the feds set the terms by which those territories could become states. Only the 13 original states had independent existence outside of the nation. And 2 of those had their borders changed.

 

[Mouthwash]

Aren't most provinces in Europe formerly independent principalities or the domains of some local sovereign which was aggregated into the nation the region became when some ruler had the power to do so? The majority of the US states were formed out of territory the US federal government controlled and set the boundaries of.And then the feds set the terms by which those territories could become states. Only the 13 original states had independent existence outside of the nation. And 2 of those had their borders changed.

Way more than two. They expanded after independence, and the Virginia/West Virginia divide is a direct result of the civil war.

 

[Tahuti]

Reasonably - at least in theory, 'state' suggests a quasi-autonomous entity which came together into a federal system, while 'province' usually suggests something carved out by the central power for administrative reasons. Of course, these don't actually work in practice; Canadian provinces fit that definition of 'state', while Nigerian states fit the definition of 'province'. These, though, are the intended connotations of the words.

The Netherlands was called the 'United Provinces', suggesting it was an initiative undertaken by the provinces. Indeed, the provinces were really powerful. Provinces doesn't necessarily imply lack of autonomy, rather, being part of a larger geographical area which may or may not be politically represented.

 

[Mango Elephant]

Way more than two. They expanded after independence, and the Virginia/West Virginia divide is a direct result of the civil war.

I refuse to accept the state of Tennessee. That land is really just western North Carolina.

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

What exactly are the ramifications of China holding so much US capital? What do they do with it?

 

[Hygro]

What exactly are the ramifications of China holding so much US capital? What do they do with it?

They use US treasuries to back their currency for their international market. The ramifications thus far have been that we can import cheap goods cheap. We're also printing money, of course, it's not like they're doing anything weird. In this case the trade imbalance is them giving us stuff for our printed money.

 

[Flying Pig]

Aren't most provinces in Europe formerly independent principalities or the domains of some local sovereign which was aggregated into the nation the region became when some ruler had the power to do so? The majority of the US states were formed out of territory the US federal government controlled and set the boundaries of.And then the feds set the terms by which those territories could become states. Only the 13 original states had independent existence outside of the nation. And 2 of those had their borders changed.

Forgetting Texas and Utah, both of which existed with different borders before joining the United States.

The Netherlands was called the 'United Provinces', suggesting it was an initiative undertaken by the provinces. Indeed, the provinces were really powerful. Provinces doesn't necessarily imply lack of autonomy, rather, being part of a larger geographical area which may or may not be politically represented.

True. I think that this is a rule with so many exceptions as to be almost worthless, but I do think that the words still carry those associations. We would make assumptions about a fictional country divided into provinces and one divided into states based on the fundamental assumption that states were more autonomous, I think.

 

[Farm Boy]

They use US treasuries to back their currency for their international market. The ramifications thus far have been that we can import cheap goods cheap. We're also printing money, of course, it's not like they're doing anything weird. In this case the trade imbalance is them giving us stuff for our printed money.

I don't think that's the whole picture. That's the picture that focuses on the currencies. Yes, the US imports goods cheap, but that isn't the entire ramification of what it does. It has to do more than that, or the Chinese wouldn't do it. Other things it does include the realities on the ground regardless of what the currency does. It creates a humming manufacturing economy in China. It pulls millions out of poverty to somewhat more. It gives China access to direct production of things it wants and creates infrastructure. It gives China leverage to acquire access to raw resources while also creating ravenous demand for such. China BUILDS. That's one result of this. Another partial result is that large players in the US economy save a lot of money on labor. Large capitalists make a lot of money. The rest of the US economy shifts towards being service based(this isn't only a China thing, it's just China is such a big player). So you can blame some of the prevalence of dead-end minimum wage jobs being what's available for the young on this. Right? I mean, it looks nice when all you take is the upper middle-to high brackets and get the cheap stuff, but doesn't it hurt everyone else? Sort of like how everyone complains about American grain on international markets? Hope we like working in retail.

 

[Mouthwash]

Why is Breaking Bad so slow and depressing? I'm almost tempted not to even watch the fifth season because of how long I have to wait for any kind of payoff. At this point it's just a way to keep the show going on a minimum of content, not anything as artistically respectable as "pacing" or "realism." There are episodes where literally nothing happens to move the plot forward. It reminds me of nothing so much as a soap opera.

 

[Tee Kay]

Why is Breaking Bad so slow and depressing?

It's set in the United States

 

[madviking]

that's not accurate at all

"you have cancer. your treatment will begin in three years."

that's more like it.

 

[Farm Boy]

There are episodes where literally nothing happens to move the plot forward. It reminds me of nothing so much as a soap opera.

And what leads you to believe that Breaking Bad isn't a soap opera? I'd argue that DragonBallZ was a really really bad soap opera, for instance.

 

[Joecoolyo]

Why is Breaking Bad so slow and depressing? I'm almost tempted not to even watch the fifth season because of how long I have to wait for any kind of payoff. At this point it's just a way to keep the show going on a minimum of content, not anything as artistically respectable as "pacing" or "realism." There are episodes where literally nothing happens to move the plot forward. It reminds me of nothing so much as a soap opera.

If you want your ADD action fix, go watch Michael Bay, not Breaking Bad.

 

[Chukchi Husky]

There was a joke I was told about how American TV shows tend to last for many years. It was something like "In Britain, it is hard for a show to stay on the air, In America, it is hard for a show to be taken off the air".

I'd argue that DragonBallZ was a really really bad soap opera, for instance.

I once made the comment that DragonBall Z was terrible and ridiculous. The reaction I got was "You're wrong. DragonBall Z is the greatest work of animation ever created."

 

[Farm Boy]

I once made the comment that DragonBall Z was terrible and ridiculous. The reaction I got was "You're wrong. DragonBall Z is the greatest work of animation ever created."

It pleases a certain demographic.

I mean, it's the demographic that enjoys watching the characters struggle to make a bowl movement for the entire episode, every episode, but that's cool. I suppose. It's not like I only like classy entertainment myself. I like some terrible shows.

 

[Takhisis]

And what leads you to believe that Breaking Bad isn't a soap opera? I'd argue that DragonBallZ was a really really bad soap opera, for instance.

I once made the comment that DragonBall Z was terrible and ridiculous. The reaction I got was "You're wrong. DragonBall Z is the greatest work of animation ever created."

You have to know how to watch it, and, well, I'd rather watch Dragon Ball than, say, anything involving small-sized antropomorphical equines.

It pleases a certain demographic.

I mean, it's the demographic that enjoys watching the characters struggle to make a bowl movement for the entire episode, every episode, but that's cool. I suppose. It's not like I only like classy entertainment myself. I like some terrible shows.

Actually, almost no bowls are shown except when eating, and Goku has no difficulty with those.

 

[Farm Boy]

Actually, almost no bowls are shown except when eating, and Goku has no difficulty with those.

He still loses to the Supe.