unicorn

This is not realistically an issue when the plane is in flight. I'm very atheist, so I personally find the beliefs and actions of Hassidic Jews farcical and almost clown-like, but I respect the rights of others to practice and behave according to their own beliefs, as long as their actions don't impinge on my own rights and beliefs. It looks like those believers did their best to be out of the way of others, i.e. not blocking the aisles. I may look at them and silently snicker to myself, but I feel I have no right to dictate or condemn their behavior when they're obviously doing their best not to be obtrusive.

Thanks for the info. The actions by Lufthansa, given this new information, seem particularly egregious, for a number of reasons. This seemed to be a case of selective enforcement of what were, at the time (May 2022), highly outdated masking requirements (which most airports and airlines had already abandoned, though not Lufthansa, obviously): "...They told me that there was zero mask enforcement in first class and that one of the first class flight attendants was not wearing her own mask for most of the flight. Passengers in first class didn’t wear masks for most of the flight and weren’t asked to. From talking to several passengers in economy, it seems like there were a couple of isolated masking issues in economy class, both among some visibly Hasidic Jews as well as non-Jews. It’s a shame that they flouted the rules, but it’s unclear why those few passengers weren’t singled out for punishment as would happen on most airlines in the world...". It also appears that many passengers who were not wearing Hassidic garb were also effectively not wearing masks (it was still the accepted belief at the time that masks were effective in reducing transmission, but obviously not with the mask hanging around your chin and not covering the nose): Strange that the blurb from Reuters didn't discuss the actual issue at hand, but given the information in the article provided by @Riobard, it's clear that anti-Jewish sentiment still has its place among some Germans at Lufthansa.

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-imposes-4-million-penalty-against-lufthansa-over-treatment-jewish-passengers-2024-10-15/#:~:text=WASHINGTON%2C Oct 15 (Reuters),Transportation Department said on Tuesday. "Lufthansa (LHAG.DE), opens new tab has agreed to pay a $4 million penalty for allegedly discriminating against Jewish passengers who were trying to board a connecting flight in Frankfurt in May 2022, the U.S. Transportation Department said on Tuesday. Lufthansa prohibited 128 Jewish passengers, nearly all of whom wore garments generally worn by Orthodox Jewish men, from boarding a connecting flight in Germany on the basis of alleged misbehavior by some passengers, the Transportation Department said. Although many of the passengers did not know each other or were not traveling together, passengers interviewed by DOT investigators stated that Lufthansa treated them as if they were a single group and denied all of them boarding for the alleged misbehavior of a few, DOT said...". Bad PR for the German carrier 😬. Left out of the story was what the "alleged misbehavior" was. That seems like an important part of the story. Did they refuse to wear seatbelts? Drink too much kosher wine? Also makes one wonder why they couldn't have simply identified the unruly (?) passengers. They must have known where they were sitting. I'd surely like to know the details. It seems crazy at first glance.

The map is silly and seems to be purely from someone's vivid imagination. Moroccans and Tunisians aren't that hairy.

What is the map supposed to show? Percentage of men with hair on their heads? Chests? Back? Arms?

I lived with a domestic partner who was from Russia, and we lived together for over 13 years (during which time he became an American citizen). I told him there were three words to describe a Russian with brains and/or talent: No Longer Russian.

When the Australian immigration officer asked if I had a criminal history, I commented "Oh, is that still a requirement?" 😄

I've known men who've been banned from that app due to compensation being suggested... I'd think it wouldn't take that long before getting caught.

https://www.aol.com/airline-apologizes-sexually-explicit-movie-105954587.html "...Technical problems meant individual movie selection was not available on a Qantas flight from Sydney to Haneda, leaving the crew to pick one film to be broadcast to the whole cabin. Their selection of Dakota Johnson and Sean Penn's racy drama "Daddio" was a surprise to many, and to the airline, which apologized Tuesday. According to one review, the movie features "references to oral sex, masturbation" as well as a "brief but clear photo of erect penis on phone screen. Photos of a woman's naked breasts. Explicit sex-related dialogue and texting."... "It was impossible to pause, dim, or turn it off," one person wrote on Reddit. "Here's the kicker: the movie they played was extremely inappropriate. It featured graphic nudity and a lot of sexting – the kind where you could literally read the texts on screen without needing headphones."...". 😧

I remember my husband and mine's 10-day visit to Vietnam. The Vietnamese always feel quite self-assured in their military might. As one of our guides told us, "We beat the French, we beat the Americans, we beat the Chinese. We're not afraid of anyone." (What we call the Vietnam War, in Vietnam, they call the American War) Optimally, the International Court of Justice should study the issue and provide a ruling binding on all of the parties. If that fails, Vietnam and other parties with interests in the area, including the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Australia, and the US should get together, since otherwise I don't see how any one country can stand a chance against the massive Chinese Navy (Vietnamese bravura aside). China's claims in the South China Sea seem preposterous, but no one country can stand up to the Chinese alone.

Interesting. I was surprised to learn that most of Algeria has only a Level 2 Travel Advisory, like most of Europe. The exceptions are the Sahara, and the areas near Tunisia (surprising), Libya (less surprising), and the countries to the south. I'd always thought it was more like Libya, which is a Level 4. It's probably the only country which requires a visa of Americans which isn't a Level 4 (well, the PRC is Level 3). Strangely, Libya offers eVisas to US citizens, but Algeria does not. Algeria seems to be a rather anti-social country, requiring visas of almost all foreigners, except a few of its neighboring countries, Malaysia, and the Seychelles, of all places. I think I'd be more interested in visiting Libya, were it safer to visit there, since Libya has some primo ancient Roman and Greek sights. I don't think Algeria has enough to offer to make me want to bother with a consular visa. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/algeria-travel-advisory.html Eastern and southern borders — Level 4: Do Not Travel Avoid travel to rural areas within 50 km (31 miles) of the border with Tunisia and within 250 km (155 miles) of the borders with Libya, Niger, Mali, and Mauritania due to terrorist and criminal activities, including kidnapping. Visit our website for High-Risk Travelers. Overland travel to the Sahara Desert — Level 4: Do Not Travel Do not travel overland in the Sahara Desert due to terrorist and criminal activity, including kidnapping. All gray countries need consular visas to go to Algeria!

Well, the words "heterosexual" and "bisexual" have strict definitions, so it's not really a matter of how one chooses to "look at it." No rambling 45 minute discourse will change the definitions or words. As noted above, a heterosexual is someone whose sexual or romantic attractions are purely with those of the opposite gender. If there is any "fluidity," or attractions to both genders (either sexual or romantic), then the person is bisexual, whether he chooses to identify himself as such or not. These are simply matters of how the terms are defined. A person may call himself "heterofluid," or "heteroflexible," but if he is capable of attraction to either men or women, he's bisexual, by definition. Whether he likes it or not.

I'd hope that it's only a matter of time before Vietnam drops visa requirements for western countries. Certainly, the US has become extremely friendly with Vietnam, as we see their labor force to be a useful counterbalance towards China, and we align more with Vietnam politically as well, as the PRC takes aggressive postures in the South China Sea. The US has formal military ties with the Philippines, but would probably also side with Vietnam if there were any disputes with them as well. If the PRC keeps sinking Philippine coast guard ships, maybe the US could strike an alliance with Vietnam to counter PRC belligerence... https://www.rfa.org/english/news/vietnam/vietnamese-chinese-encounter-eez-03272023054137.html https://www.cbsnews.com/news/philippines-china-sea-conflict-us-role-60-minutes/

Wow. Looking at that man's internet footprint, he certainly seems fixated about this subject, for some reason. 🙄Yes, it is true that a sexual act in an of itself doesn't define a person's sexual orientation. Obviously, if a man has sex with another man for purely financial gain (escorting, porn flics, etc.), and he's fantasizing about a woman while having sex with men, yes, he's straight. However, if a man actually enjoys sex with other men (and isn't fantasizing about a woman while having sex with another man), then he's either bi or gay. He may be more on the straight spectrum of bisexuality, but he's bisexual nonetheless. It may be that most people are bisexual to some extent, and that my (and a majority of my friends) being gay is far more unusual than bisexuality. Speaking for myself, there's is no way I could get aroused by a woman, though I might be able to fantasize about a man and perform if I had to (haven't tried so far). And, once again, how a person "self-identifies," or presents himself to others, is not the same as his actual sexual orientation (which may be a mystery, even to him).

French pole vaulter costume.

Dear, you know that going onto irrelevant drunken stories means that you have no arguments on the merits of the dispute... 😁

Maybe you only have one head, but it seems to me that you're the one who's drinking too much, with your irrelevant stories. All of these heads are drinking on the job... https://www.the-sun.com/news/7777506/russian-soldiers-drunk-ukraine-fight/

As I mentioned in a prior post further up the string, the approved methods, aside from the medications, are the penile injections, the urethral suppository (MUSE), and the vacuum/constriction devices (such as ErecAid). Obviously, penile prostheses will also work 100% of the time, and there are various of them (some provide a fixed erection, and others can be controlled using a pump). Penile injections are over 95% effective. I've never come across someone for whom it didn't work.

Well, I hope that this testosterone level you're mentioning is at least a total testosterone level (not the best level to follow), and not a free testosterone level (the level one should be following to monitor response to treatment). Even if it's your total testosterone level which is over 1300, that's significantly above physiological (normal) levels. This is potentially hazardous and could lead to complications, especially polycythemia, an increase in hemoglobin which leads to increased blood viscosity ("thickness"), which increases the risk of blood clots (including strokes or heart attacks). I hope they're following your hemoglobin. Bremelanotide has shown efficacy in improving sexual desire in premenopausal women. It is not a treatment for ED, and certainly not approved for use in men: https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a619054.html#:~:text=Bremelanotide injection should not be,or to improve sexual performance. "...Bremelanotide injection is used to treat women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD; a low sexual desire that causes distress or interpersonal difficulty) who have not experienced menopause (change of life; the end of monthly menstrual periods); who have not had problems with low sexual desire in the past; and whose low sexual desire is not due to a medical or mental health problem, a relationship problem, or medication or other drug use. Bremelanotide injection should not be used for the treatment of HSDD in women who have gone through menopause, in men, or to improve sexual performance...". https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/bremelanotide-subcutaneous-route/side-effects/drg-20466805?p=1 "...Women who have gone through menopause and men should not use bremelanotide. Do not use this medicine to improve sexual performance...". Shockwave treatment for ED is still considered experimental. I would definitely not consider videos put out by a clinic which makes money from selling such treatment as "evidence" of this treatment's efficacy. There are plenty of approved and extremely effective treatments for ED. If free testosterone levels are low, then returning the levels to physiological levels can be helpful. Exceeding those levels is dangerous. Why mess with unapproved (by the FDA) treatments, when there are approved treatments which work for virtually all men?

The only monkeypox cases on the planet as of this time are in central and east Africa.

With targets this easy, maybe we won't have to worry about pickpockets in the future? Why bother pickpocketing when you can just ask and have people show you their money?