Zach Lipton

general recent conversations

Discussion on answer by Ben: Pronouns…

Imported from a comment discussion on academia.stackexchange.c...

Zach Lipton

Dec 6, 2023 21:41

Jumping back up for a moment, even if you believe that there are people who "are claiming transgender identity on mistaken grounds" and believe you have some capability to determine who those people are, it's not appropriate to bring that up in a workplace setting, where your focus should be on the person's work, not your diagnosis of their self-identification

Zach Lipton

Dec 6, 2023 05:29

@vsz Sorry, that was all meant as one response and wasn't meant to be directed at you specifically.

Zach Lipton

Dec 6, 2023 05:28

Or to put that another way, an academic statement of purpose, or most situations really, is very much not the place to decide what is in someone else's "best interests" and to decide that you know what's best for them over their stated preferences.

Zach Lipton

Dec 6, 2023 05:26

Remember the context of this question. The point is to identify a faculty member to talk about their research. Bringing their self-defined identity into it...you're introducing something that should be irrelevant and focusing on this one aspect of a person instead of their work.

Zach Lipton

Dec 6, 2023 05:21

Many of us enjoy being able to get through our day without having our identity questioned or challenged, and it's a basic matter of kindness to extend the same courtesy to other people.

Zach Lipton

Dec 6, 2023 05:21

@AdamPřenosil With respect to your idea that it's in the best interests of some people to not have people automatically accept their stated identity, the problem here is that you aren't their therapist, confidant, or advisor; they're not looking to you for a growth opportunity or "personal thriving." They simply want to get through their day just like anyone else.

Discussion on answer by Harper - Rein…

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Zach Lipton

Aug 23, 2023 17:09

@craq The flights are operating no matter what (at least until they get so unpopular that the airline cancels them or goes broke), and the marginal cost of adding an additional passenger is quite small (yes, the additional weight burns a bit more fuel, and don't forget a couple cents for your bag of peanuts). The airline is trying to maximize the profit they get from the flights they have already scheduled. If the airline has seats on a scheduled flight they can't sell at a higher price, they might as well sell them for cheap because that still beats $0 if the seat flies empty

Discussion on question by Vikram Murt…

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Zach Lipton

Feb 21, 2023 23:24

I'm not sure what you mean? Are you saying that it's disturbing to see a moderator say that racism is a very real part of the world we live in?

Discussion on question by Weiwen Ng: …

Imported from a comment discussion on bicycles.stackexchange.c...

Zach Lipton

Feb 9, 2023 13:42

@Peter-ReinstateMonica I completely agree with you that it's a situation that asks a lot of a braking system. But in this case, the two passengers could easily weigh the same as a larger adult+child seat+kid (+backpack, +some groceries in panniers, etc...), and descending 14% grades is well within the intended and marketed use case of an urban utility e-bike (granted, we don't know at what kind of speed they tried to stop).

Discussion on answer by Nate Eldredge…

Imported from a comment discussion on law.stackexchange.com/qu...

Zach Lipton

Jul 3, 2022 16:54

@Someone Depends on the jurisdiction and the offense. It appears from a quick search that Oregon treats simple traffic violations as civil matters where the state's burden of proof is just preponderance of the evidence (other jurisdictions use other standards). I think the other point being made here is that traffic court is often a rather streamlined process. If you have a defense, you can make it, but traffic court judges are often unamused by "clever" legal arguments.

Discussion on answer by Harper - Rein…

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Zach Lipton

Jun 18, 2022 20:22

The spec sheet claims that the printer is "CSA listed," but it also says the input voltage needs to be in the range 200-240V.

Discussion between Aritro Pathak and …

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Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 06:01

have a good night

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 06:00

I need to get going, but again, I'm sorry this all happened, and I hope everything goes well for the rest of your trip

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:59

yeah I've found through experience that small airports can be a gamble. convenient when everything goes right, but isolated and inflexible when there are issues

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:36

things like hotel rooms, if they're provided at all, are an internal customer service policy by the airline and not something they're contractually obligated to provide unless they're operating in a country where the law requires it

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:36

presumably, if that happened, they would have put you on another flight from JFK. Whether or not that flight would have been on AA or a codeshare, whether or not it would be the same day or another day, whether or not they would have provided a hotel room, I can't really say

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:34

from their perspective, once you fail to check in on time for the first leg of your trip, you're a no-show, and the counterfactual of "what would have happened if I had been on time and something else happened later?" is kind of irrelevant

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:32

I'd imagine they would say they're being generous by accommodating you on other AA flights with available seats without making you pay a change fee or a difference in fare, though I fully recognize that feels like "they didn't try to rip me off more" and not generosity

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:24

exactly. And from their perspective, once you didn't check in on time for your first flight, they'll consider it your mistake, and while they'll still rebook you on other American flights with open seats as a courtesy, they won't spend money on things like hotel rooms and flights on other airlines

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:21

I'm not sure. it's common for airlines to be more accommodating in the case that the delay is on their end than if the passenger missed the flight

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:18

But I'm not seeing how you're really owed anything more than what you're getting at this point

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:18

I'm sorry that happened, it's definitely super frustrating and you're far from the first person to be tripped up by situations like this, especially traveling during COVID where there are a lot of complex and frequently-changing travel requirements that vary wildly from country to country

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:17

it's an unfortunate thing. There was a form you didn't know about, it took some time to get it sorted out, by the time that all happened, check in had closed, and so the airline applied their usual policy in the case a passenger misses their flight (rebooking on alternative flights, but no hotel accommodation or rebooking onto other airlines)

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:14

yeah it's pretty common to not be able to use the kiosks for many international flights, usually because they need to check travel documents, like the COVID form, manually

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:14

well if they had their boarding passes, they already checked in, so they didn't miss the check in deadline

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:13

I wish they were able to make that exception, and it's not an egregious mistake on your part, just an ordinary error of the sort that happens to all of us, but apparently they weren't able to do so. I don't think it's "extremely rude" of them to not make a significant exception to their own policies

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:12

yes, it's definitely unfortunate. My point is that you were hoping they'd be able to make an exception to their policies and get you on the flight anyway, despite missing the check in deadline due to an unfortunate series of circumstances, and that sadly didn't happen

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:11

well, yes. If 30 minutes wasn't too short, the rule would say you can check in 30 minutes before departure.

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:10

and in many very small airports, the check in desk needs to physically close on time because the people who work there need to go do other jobs to get the flight ready for departure. They're not in a position to make exceptions for you and risk delaying the entire flight

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:09

the check in deadline is early enough to ensure that your checked bags can be screened for security (they go to a different place than you do as a passenger, and that process is out of the airline's control), given back to the airline, sorted into the correct place, brought out to the flight, and loaded on board on time

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:06

you had checked luggage?

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:05

the document you were required to have to check in was a completed "Mandatory health declaration form for vaccinated travelers." The fact that you had all the documents you needed to fill out the declaration form isn't really the point: the agent is not allowed to check you in unless and until you can show that you have completed the Indian declaration form

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:01

Hi. I'm sorry this happened, I'm sorry your trip was delayed, and I'm sorry the staff were rude and unhelpful, but fundamentally, your question boils down to "I missed the check in deadline because I didn't have all the required documents by the deadline, but shouldn't they have made an exception for me anyway?"

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:00

According to your timestamps, you only got one of the required travel documents you needed for your trip 31 minutes before departure, and the check in deadline was over well before then. As such, AA's position is presumably that you missed the check in deadline, by a fair amount. I have no idea what the situation was with those other passengers: perhaps they had already checked in online, already had boarding passes, didn't have checked bags, weren't traveling internationally, or any number of other reasons we can only speculate about.

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:00

AA's conditions of carriage says you're responsible for having whatever travel documents are required for international travel. No, there is no expectation that AA send you an email about the travel documents needed for your situation, and if they do send such an email, it's only as a courtesy. The website provided by AA states that a "Mandatory health declaration form for vaccinated travelers" is required.

Zach Lipton

Jun 3, 2022 05:00

Most every airline will require that you have sorted out and present all required travel documents before they can check you in for the first leg of your flight. Even if you have domestic legs first, they need to see that you're able to enter the destination country before they check you in for any part of your trip. If something goes wrong and the airline is penalized for not checking that you have the proper documents at your destination, it's the first agent who checked you in who is ultimately going to be blamed, so they need to everything by the book.

Discussion on answer by DJClayworth: …

Imported from a comment discussion on law.stackexchange.com/qu...

Zach Lipton

May 28, 2022 15:30

"You have to remember that carrying a loaded semi-automatic rifle through an elementary school isn't illegal in the US."—carrying a firearm into a school is generally illegal on its own under state and federal law (Texas law is kind of complicated here because of its sign posting requirements). That's not to say that deadly force would be immediately justified in every such circumstance, but wandering around an elementary school with a rifle is usually illegal by itself.

Discussion on question by Julie: Is t…

Imported from a comment discussion on travel.stackexchange.com...

Zach Lipton

Apr 23, 2022 09:05

more than suspicious that whatever you're doing, it wasn't "visiting" the UK as anyone would normally understand that term?

Zach Lipton

Apr 23, 2022 09:04

So during a pandemic, and we're talking 2020 when flights were limited, before anyone was vaccinated, and most people traveling were doing so for fairly important reasons, you flew 5,000 miles and then turned around and flew another 5,000 miles back to the UK just a couple days later? And this after you already spent a great deal of time in the UK? Can you see how any immigration officer would look at that pattern of behavior and immediately be

Discussion on question by Franck Dern…

Imported from a comment discussion on travel.stackexchange.com...

Zach Lipton

Feb 12, 2022 07:19

While many chain hotels will price match, or even do better than price matching, to encourage direct bookings, they often don't allow this at the last minute, and the price matching is done by a special back office department that verifies the terms of the offer (e.g. the cancellation policies and refundability usually have to be identical. some agencies are excluded, etc...). It makes sense that the desk clerk is not authorized to perform this kind of analysis on the spot and lower the hotel's rates; for all they know, you could be showing them a fake agency website to scam a cheaper room.

In a hotel many of the rooms may be unoccupied and have not been rented to a guest. How do the maids know which rooms have been rented and which ones are unoccupied? Do they just go in every single room and if the room looks fresh they assume it is unoccupied? What if the guest made the bed or di...

Zach Lipton

Jan 6, 2022 04:25

ugh I feel bad for the family who can't find a doctor to sign off that they've recovered from COVID so they can fly home

Zach Lipton

Dec 13, 2021 20:48

finally! I really hope so. It's always bugged me that we're closing people's perfectly good questions because we make a difficult-to-understand distinction between sites and SE staff refused to implement a migration path

Zach Lipton

Nov 23, 2021 19:48

I assume they changed their username at some point? Setting their name/logo is a way of disclosing affiliation I guess, but it sounds like they were wildly dishonest when they claimed no affiliation back in April if they subsequently set their username to be the same as the company name

Zach Lipton

Nov 22, 2021 07:09

glad you're alright! I appreciate how extremely Dutch it is to relate distances in terms of how far away it is from where your bike was parked

Zach Lipton

Oct 26, 2021 19:08

Bloomberg assembled a pretty big dataset of global travel restrictions and reopenings bloomberg.com/graphics/…

Discussion on answer by gnasher729: C…

Imported from a comment discussion on workplace.stackexchange....

Zach Lipton

Dec 17, 2021 11:19

I mean, it's clearly a bug if you intend the feature to do one thing but it actually allows remote code exploitation. There may be a debate over whether to attribute more fault to the design (or really, the very existence) of the feature or its implementation, but either way, it boils down to a bug. And the general class of bug of format string vulnerabilities was certainly well-known in 2000, popping up with things like printf() in C and SQL injection attacks, among other places, though I agree we take a different approach to security today than we did then.

Discussion on question by Niko: What …

Imported from a comment discussion on travel.stackexchange.com...

Zach Lipton

Nov 5, 2021 14:48

@MarkJohnson Checking from out of state isn't really an issue in the US, since people in any state will be familiar with the CDC vaccine record card, which is used in all states. The issue is that employees at local businesses like bars and restaurants that require checks (whether because they're required by local law or company policy) may be unfamiliar with vaccine records issued by other countries.