GasBandit

Staff member
Going off what I've read about human trafficking, very often they load them in cargo containers several dozen at a time and ship them to a major port - Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, etc - where the survivors (usually around 75%) are distributed to the various organized crime syndicates that own them. The lucky ones that are "reserved", so to speak, are prepared for delivery, the client gets a call from the middleman and they arrange a meet and payoff. Otherwise they're put to work in salons, massage parlors, sweatshops, etc, to "pay off the debt" they accrued from crossing over. Of course, they also have to pay for their room and board in their new indentured servitude life as well, so they can't really escape without snaring someone with money to pay it off for them.
And those "massage parlors" are usually thinly disguised brothels.
 
We're all fine here, thanks for asking. :)

It's pretty scary though. The death toll's not been as bad as past typhoons, but in terms of infrastructure damage, this typhoon gave us a pretty good ass kicking. A few million people are without power, and there's debris all over the freaking place. We went out this evening, after the worst of the storm was over, and there were broken trees and fallen signs and toppled scooters all over the streets. The cleanup's gonna take a while.

The news showed footage of the winds physically picking up scooters and tossing them all over the place. Considering scooters can weigh up to 80kg (176 pounds), that's some pretty scary wind speed.
 
We're all fine here, thanks for asking. :)

It's pretty scary though. The death toll's not been as bad as past typhoons, but in terms of infrastructure damage, this typhoon gave us a pretty good ass kicking. A few million people are without power, and there's debris all over the freaking place. We went out this evening, after the worst of the storm was over, and there were broken trees and fallen signs and toppled scooters all over the streets. The cleanup's gonna take a while.

The news showed footage of the winds physically picking up scooters and tossing them all over the place. Considering scooters can weigh up to 80kg (176 pounds), that's some pretty scary wind speed.
I actually had students from Taiwan still show up online to my English class. I was like, "Shouldn't you be...I dunno...sheltering?". He was all, "Nah, but if my power goes out, you know what happened"

0_0
 
I actually had students from Taiwan still show up online to my English class. I was like, "Shouldn't you be...I dunno...sheltering?". He was all, "Nah, but if my power goes out, you know what happened"

0_0
They're no stranger to grey skies over there.

--Patrick
 

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Staff member
Don't worry. You can tie all of your blow-up dolls together into a raft if it floods. Plus if you get washed out to sea, at least you have something to do with your time.
 
We're all fine here, thanks for asking. :)

It's pretty scary though. The death toll's not been as bad as past typhoons, but in terms of infrastructure damage, this typhoon gave us a pretty good ass kicking. A few million people are without power, and there's debris all over the freaking place. We went out this evening, after the worst of the storm was over, and there were broken trees and fallen signs and toppled scooters all over the streets. The cleanup's gonna take a while.

The news showed footage of the winds physically picking up scooters and tossing them all over the place. Considering scooters can weigh up to 80kg (176 pounds), that's some pretty scary wind speed.
That's good to know. We haven't heard anything from Mr. Z's family yet, but this gives me hope everything it okay, if at least a little shaken up.
 
How has Taipei 101 handled the wind?

Because that is a shit-ton of glass to come off of a building.
Taipei 101 is designed to be able to handle typhoons and earthquakes. It has a tuned mass damper inside that absorbs the vibrations from winds and quakes. Apparently the damper was sent a-shaking throughout the whole typhoon, which is kinda impressive when you consider it weighs 660 tons.
 

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Staff member
So this is a rant and a win, so I guess it balances out and just becomes random crap. Ever since I got a boat, I have been neglecting my bike. I keep meaning to ride, but haven't. So yesterday, I planned to get up early and go out for a ride while it was still cool. Well, I didn't wake up early, and I farted around until about 10. I rode from west Houston where I live to downtown and back, for a total of 34 miles. Not my greatest distance, but I, uh, underestimated the heat. I was probably close to passing out at one point, when I stopped at a fast food restaurant and ordered a sugary drink and some greasy, salty fries (like they say, eat everything your mama told you not to when heat exhaustion strikes). It wasn't dehydration, mind. I had my camelbak and plenty of water. I was just redlining the temperature.

The problem was that going downtown was fine. It was still relatively early, and there was a nice breeze. At my back. So on the way home, the temperature soared, and that breeze became a blast furnace blowing against me. Later I heard it was the hottest day of the year so far at 102, and that there was a heat advisory in effect. Oops. Lucky I didn't end up in the hospital.

Also fucking cars on memorial beeping at me. A) this is a bike-heavy area, and B) I have the same rights to the road as you and C) this is a 6 lane highway, and the lanes are wide.
 
I, uh, underestimated the heat. I was probably close to passing out at one point, when I stopped at a fast food restaurant and ordered a sugary drink and some greasy, salty fries (like they say, eat everything your mama told you not to when heat exhaustion strikes). It wasn't dehydration, mind. I had my camelbak and plenty of water. I was just redlining the temperature. [...] Later I heard it was the hottest day of the year so far at 102, and that there was a heat advisory in effect. Oops. Lucky I didn't end up in the hospital.
Or worse.

--Patrick
 
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