HonCHO

Good luck to anyone running tomorrow morning. I’m shooting for a 1:36 PR. Weather is looking good with 60 deg start.

First time Northshore runners make sure to arrive early. Traffic gets bad getting in to the state park.

I’ll see y’all on the other side double fisting some Abitas.

Family company of about 200-250 employees that I work for sold majority ownership of company to PE group. PE comes in and the first year is “business as usual”. CEO and management stays the same for the most part. They are very deceitful.

Second year they start cleaning house. They insert their own CEO, HR gets wiped out and replaced with their own little moles, and then they really start trimming the fat in other departments. They demand 20% revenue growth for all sales reps no ifs, ands, or buts. Live and die by the numbers. Management by fear.

They try to get the operating cost down and profit up as much as possible with the end goal of selling the company for a quick profit. They are leveraged against their investors and the bank. It’s basically like flipping houses except they’re flipping businesses. They’ve micromanaged us like I’ve never seen before, and turned a pretty good company in to a horrible place to work. Morale is lower than I’ve ever seen. PE will be the end of America.

What’s your plan to fix the $36 trillion debt?

Rome dominated the Western world for roughly 500 years. The US isn’t Rome and is not destined to fall, but we can learn from history, and still save ourselves. Rome didn’t fall in a day.

It crumbled slowly from within:
• Political chaos - Leadership became more about power than public service
• Corruption
• Massive inequality
• Endless wars
• A divided people
• Loss of shared values
Inflation and debt

Decline in Civic Virtue and Unity
• Citizens grew disconnected from public life.
• Patriotism faded.
• Roman identity was diluted across vast cultures and regions.

Urban Decay and Infrastructure Collapse
• Roads, aqueducts, and buildings fell into disrepair.
• The once-great cities declined as people moved to the countryside.
• Law and order broke down in many regions.

?? Similarities Between the U.S. and Ancient Rome

1. Republican Roots
• Rome: Started as a republic with elected senators and consuls.
• U.S.: Founded as a constitutional republic with elected officials and a Senate.

Both valued law, checks and balances, and civic duty (at least in theory).

2. Global Superpower Status
• Rome: Dominated the Mediterranean world for centuries.
• U.S.: Has been the world’s leading military and economic power since WWII.

?? Both exercised enormous influence over other nations’ politics, economics, and culture.

3. Massive Military Footprint
• Rome: Maintained a vast, expensive military to defend its borders and suppress unrest.
• U.S.: Has over 750 military bases in 80+ countries, with high defense spending.

?? Military overreach and fatigue were major challenges

4. Inequality and Class Tension
• Rome: Huge wealth gap between elites and the poor. Slavery and debt crushed the working class.
• U.S.: Rising inequality, corporate consolidation, and growing dissatisfaction among working and middle classes.

5. Political Division and Dysfunction
• Rome: Civil wars, corrupt leaders, and power-hungry elites crippled the Republic.
• U.S.: Increasing polarization, gridlock, corrupt leaders (Democrats). The lawfare against Trump and the Russiagate scandal.

6. Cultural Decay vs. Cultural Shift
• Rome: Some historians point to moral decay, decadence, or loss of shared values.
• U.S.: Ongoing “culture wars” over national identity, values, and truth.

7. Immigration and Borders
• Rome: Struggled to manage influxes of migrants and incorporate new populations.
• U.S.: the Southern border crises

Rome didn’t fall to outsiders until it had already fallen apart inside.

Dude there’s millions of females driving around that don’t even know what a lug nut is.

In!

Hey travel peeps. Long story short I have a $600 credit with Spirit that I have to use. Looking to take the wife (no pics) and two year old somewhere this Fall/Winter.

These are the direct flight destinations out of NOLA with Spirit. I’m not too high on any of these places, but want to try to stick with a direct flight since we’ll have the toddler with us. If you had to pick a city below what would you choose? Don’t think we’re ready for Disney yet.

TIA

Domestic Nonstop Destinations
• Atlanta, GA (ATL) – 2 daily flights
• Chicago-O’Hare, IL (ORD) – 4x weekly
• Dallas-Fort Worth, TX (DFW) – daily
• Detroit, MI (DTW) – 4x weekly
• Fort Lauderdale, FL (FLL) – 3x daily
• Houston-Intercontinental, TX (IAH) – 4x weekly
• Las Vegas, NV (LAS) – daily
• Los Angeles, CA (LAX) – 1–2x daily
• Miami, FL (MIA) – 4x weekly
• Newark, NJ (EWR) – 4x weekly
• Orlando, FL (MCO) – 3x daily
• San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU) – 3x weekly
• Tampa, FL (TPA) – daily ?

Thank you

Roger, SFP, and Tboy all on page 1. You know we must be doing something right. Do y’all have a gay group text going where y’all notify each other when a new poli thread gets posted?