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gschenk
gschenk
09:08
By coincidence I had two 400 m runs after dinner on Wednesday. I forgot my swim trunks at the pool.
It is much less awful than running in the morning. 400 m is where running is still fun before everything hurts.
That makes me question the typical advise: start slow and increase distance. However, I just cannot run that slow with anything that resembles good running form. Which makes it a bouncy slog that's also painful. In contrast I can get cardio and weight loss from cycling while the faster short runs should still improve muscle activation and strength.
 
8 hours later…
Sam7919
Sam7919
17:18
@Erlkoenig Don't let Trump's bluster worry you. He's actually a peacenik, through and through. Why? Because he did it once before. Just before his inauguration eight years ago he saw fit to declare "why do we have all these nuclear weapons if we don't get to use them?". Everyone started shivering of course. But that too was just his big mouth talking. He likes to say he's a straight talker and that he's no politician. He's actually a consummate politician. Half of what he says means nothing.
We just have to wait and see which half. Anyway, back to cycling!
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
"Peacenik" for the US perhaps. If he makes good on his promise to leave the NATO while also continuing to support Putin, it's going to look pretty grim for Europe. And it already looks grim for all sorts of minorities in the US.
Sam7919
Sam7919
17:41
@Erlkoenig We've had this discussion 2+ years ago. My reading of Putin's intentions remains different from yours. He doesn't want to see NATO at his doorstep, and he's using the occasion to capture a corridor to the only place in Russia that becomes just a little bit pleasantly warm during summers (Crimea).
Hitler started his world-conquest project six years after he became chancellor. Putin has been in power for what, 20 years? If he wanted to start marching into Germany or anywhere in Europe, he'd have started by now.
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
NATO is basically gone without the US, so what's stopping him after capturing the resources of Ukraine and other Non-NATO/EU countries (Trump also wants to stop support for Ukraine)?
Sam7919
Sam7919
I do see your fears. There is one way out. I don't see Scholz having the balls to say it to the US though: "If you leave NATO, the nuclear umbrella Germany will have from England and France will pale in comparison with the Russian army's potential. If you leave NATO, we will begin a nuclear weapons program in earnest."
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
I have considered this just as well, and I don't think Trump would care. However, knowing our bureaucratic state and our military's inability to even keep an ordinary truck in working order, our chances to build actual nuclear weapons in any useful timeframe are pretty slim. Also, Scholz is going to get voted out of office in January (our govt just dissolved itself), and our Putin-loving nazi party and also the Putin-loving communist party are probably going to win big.
Looks like we, and the other EU states with right-wing governments are going to welcome him with open arms
 
5 hours later…
gschenk
gschenk
23:04
@Sam7919 France and UK don't have a 'nuclear umbrella'. They miss the necessary tactical elements of the nuclear triad required for deterrence. If you only have doomsday weapons, an opponent can escalate with smaller weapons because they know you are not mad enough to suicide over a small nuke at a remote place. UK and France rely on the US for that capability.
@Sam7919 we cannot because of binding international treaties prohibiting proliferation and nuclear tests. You can be certain those treaties will not be abolished.
now, two years later, after all Putin said to the contrary and Russia's conduct, you still belive that? If Putin was concerned about a NATO threat, why would he bother with abducting children or ethnic cleansing? In Kursk one can observe how concerned he is about Russia's safety.

Please consider it from this perspective: So maybe Putin is concerned about NATO and the European Union as they both protect Nations from Russian dominance. Remember, in Nov 2019 NATO was so toothless French president Macron called the alliance "brain dead".
Oh, dear. I actually came here to ask for you opinion on *bikes*.

We're about to ride to the Stevens CX bike to have a test ride. Would you bring a torque key and bits to remove the stem in order to inspect the steerer? Or is it a bit too rude to ask someone "may I take your bike apart"?
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
23:35
@gschenk Sounds a bit rude indeed. How likely is it that a steerer is damaged, and visibly so? Unless it's steel and might be rusty... Perhaps just check for loose headset (pull front brake and rock bike back and forth, put finger on crown to check for movement); if it's fine, the steerer is probably mostly fine too
gschenk
gschenk
No its a carbon steerer there are two likely modes: When stem bolts are tightened too much the steerer may crack. Ineptly cutting the steerer will lead to delamination that can proceed and lead to failure.
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
perhaps just remove the top cap and look inside (flashlight)
If it's cracked you might feel it doing the rocker test or when braking hard
gschenk
gschenk
I could also inspect it at home and agree there will be a refund in case of damage.
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
Pretty impractical unless the seller is very nice
gschenk
gschenk
Hm, no, I don't think so. 'hidden damage is cause for refund' isn't an unusual clause in contracts, just needs a short enough time, say a fortnight, to make it fair for the seller too.
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
23:48
Technically true but if the seller refuses a refund it's going to get hairy, much more than with a commercial vendor. You could take it apart right after handing over the money so that the seller sees you didn't break it
gschenk
gschenk
Yes, there's some residual risk of course. But most people are pretty decent. I could write it into the contract? Perhaps good idea to look for a contract template. Last time I was ill prepared, and just lucky the seller had some form of legal training.
adfc.de/fileadmin/user_upload/Im-Alltag/Fahrradkauf/Download/…
Erlkoenig
Erlkoenig
Technically you don't really need it in a contract as the BGB already requires the seller to fix issues, but the main issue is proving anything
gschenk
gschenk
I would make a verbal agreement with the seller. As I mentioned before, most people's word is good. If not, I'm risking at worst EUR 1k. If i expect 1/50 bikes to have visibly broken, and 1/5 to break their word, my expectation value for a loss is EUR 4.

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