Overheard on Facebook

[I'm a red panda]

Why not get a $25 ice grinder/chipper?

Nugget ice is partially hollow and frozen at lower temperatures. It makes it easier to chew.

[ysette9]

I love love love that kind of ice. They actually have one at work next to the sparkling water dispenser. I joked at orientation that the best perk of joining this company is sparkling water on tap. I’m so spoiled.

[dragoncar]

I love love love that kind of ice. They actually have one at work next to the sparkling water dispenser. I joked at orientation that the best perk of joining this company is sparkling water on tap. I’m so spoiled.

Wow, I love that kind of ice too.  Not $500 love, but I would definitely spend some money for it.  Why are they so durn expensive though?

[JAYSLOL]

Just saw an ad on FaceBook for a shower head essential oil infuser, like it actually mixes essential oil into the water as you have a shower.  Why the actual heck would i want to hose myself off with lavender oil or some other crap?  And why would FaceBook think I was a good match for that ad? 

[I'm a red panda]

Just saw an ad on FaceBook for a shower head essential oil infuser, like it actually mixes essential oil into the water as you have a shower.  Why the actual heck would i want to hose myself off with lavender oil or some other crap?  And why would FaceBook think I was a good match for that ad?

Part 1) I LOVE peppermint or orange oil in my shower in the morning. It helps wake me up. The infuser puts barely any in, just for scent.  I just drip some on the floor though.
2) No idea.

[partgypsy]

Is nugget ice that stuff you get in commercial ice dispensers that is kind of soft and chewy? I loved the heck out of that stuff when in college (getting my free water at the college coffee house). Still I had no idea you could even buy a home version of it. That's an awful lot of soft drinks to buy to justify that kind of expense, even if it does completely eliminate her purchasing of drinks (which I doubt).

[I'm a red panda]

Is nugget ice that stuff you get in commercial ice dispensers that is kind of soft and chewy? I loved the heck out of that stuff when in college (getting my free water at the college coffee house). Still I had no idea you could even buy a home version of it. That's an awful lot of soft drinks to buy to justify that kind of expense, even if it does completely eliminate her purchasing of drinks (which I doubt).

Yep.  Like Sonic has.

[Proud Foot]

Is nugget ice that stuff you get in commercial ice dispensers that is kind of soft and chewy? I loved the heck out of that stuff when in college (getting my free water at the college coffee house). Still I had no idea you could even buy a home version of it. That's an awful lot of soft drinks to buy to justify that kind of expense, even if it does completely eliminate her purchasing of drinks (which I doubt).

Yep.  Like Sonic has.

And you can buy bags of the ice at Sonic too.

[ysette9]

It is also delicious all by itself

[Bloop Bloop]

The manipulative / bad-faith / incredibly shifty posts on Facebook I wouldn't tolerate at all. If any of my friends posted that shit I'd unfriend them (both on FB and in real life) immediately. There are enough users and losers in this world without trying to voluntarily associate with them.

One of my good mates just got sucked into an MLM unfortunately - he's a good mate so I'm going to try to dissuade him from it, but if I wasn't already friend with him I'd drop him like a hot potato.

[bluebelle]

Hi All, I'm coming here in hopes of a rational response.....but need to give background information to give context

Canada has an amber alert policy that has forced wireless carries to disable smart phone functionality that overrides any silent or do not disturb settings and send amber alerts through the phone.   My only recourse is to turn off the phone, which isn't an option, I have nonagenarian parents, I'm in IT, I'm on call.  I have my phone set to do not disturb and allow 'favourites' to ring through.

There was a tragic case Thursday evening of a father killing his child.   The first amber alert went out at 11:37pm, The second at 12:45am the next day.   It happened in the GTA (greater Toronto area) and I'm hearing conflicting reports that the alert may have been been even more wide spread that than....So let's say conservately that 4 million people we awakened twice Thursday night.   As to be expected, there was alot of complaints about the late night alerts.  Some very stupid, with calls to 911 to complain.

Cue Friday, and all the Facebook posts about how to save a child wake me up anytime, and one of our national magazines published an online article that basically said that anyone that objected to being awakend was a 'horrible person', 'not a good person'.  Someone posted a link to that article ( https://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/you-are-horrible-people ), with the tag line 'this shouldn't even need to be said'.  I was tired and grumpy (4 hours disturbed sleep!), so I replied to the effect that I thought it inappropriate that a national magazine publish such an inflammatory piece and that I thought our government over-reached to disable smart phone functionality.

Man - unleash the haters.  holy shit.  I've disengaged, because well, it's pointless to try and have an intelligent arguement with an unarmed apponent.

I find the MMM community able to have a rational, thoughtful discussion - Do you think I should have the right to choose to not get amber alerts in the middle of the night?   Really, what do these people think I'm going to do?  Get dressed and go out looking?  That I should 'get over myself', so what if I lost sleep, a CHILD was missing.   

I am asking for constructive feedback/thoughtful cases as to why my individual right to use my electronic device as a choose should be overriden by the 'greater good' af spamming an amber alert.   And remeber I'm only protesting my inability to silence that amber alert through 'silent' or 'do not disturb' functionality.   I'm all for sending them when I'm awake and potentially able to contribute useful information.

[ixtap]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

[bluebelle]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

that was one of my points.....thank you......apparently I am looking for external validation.

[Imma]

Our emergency services do the same thing; we were recently woken up by a message telling us to close windows and doors due to potentially toxic smoke from a fire. Pretty useful.

In case of an amber alert, at least in my country, it's not a message telling you to go out and go looking, but something along the lines of 'keep your eyes open for a red Honda with this license plate' and is only sent out when a child is in potentially lethal situation. A lot of people don't sleep at night and this might save the kid's life. Maybe the message even wakes you up, you can't fall asleep after that and you look out of the window and see the suspect's car. Yes, I think waking up for 2 minutes at night is a small price to pay if that means an abducted kid in danger might survive. We all know those first hours are vital.

[geekette]

I've turned off Amber Alerts (US based iPhone).  Even if you can't do that, I do think it should honor DND. 

[bluebelle]

Our emergency services do the same thing; we were recently woken up by a message telling us to close windows and doors due to potentially toxic smoke from a fire. Pretty useful.

In case of an amber alert, at least in my country, it's not a message telling you to go out and go looking, but something along the lines of 'keep your eyes open for a red Honda with this license plate' and is only sent out when a child is in potentially lethal situation. A lot of people don't sleep at night and this might save the kid's life. Maybe the message even wakes you up, you can't fall asleep after that and you look out of the window and see the suspect's car. Yes, I think waking up for 2 minutes at night is a small price to pay if that means an abducted kid in danger might survive. We all know those first hours are vital.

thank you for a thoughtful response.  Our messages are similar.  Do you have the option putting your phone 'do not disturb'?  This is the main thing I am objecting to, that my over-reaching government has deemed that I don't have the right to 'do not disturb'.....the same government that allows anti-vaxers to not inoculate their child and put other children at risk.

and do people really fall back to sleep in two minutes after an ear piercing alert?  I was still awake when the second one came in an hour later, and awake 2 hours after that.

[TheGrimSqueaker]

Our emergency services do the same thing; we were recently woken up by a message telling us to close windows and doors due to potentially toxic smoke from a fire. Pretty useful.

In case of an amber alert, at least in my country, it's not a message telling you to go out and go looking, but something along the lines of 'keep your eyes open for a red Honda with this license plate' and is only sent out when a child is in potentially lethal situation. A lot of people don't sleep at night and this might save the kid's life. Maybe the message even wakes you up, you can't fall asleep after that and you look out of the window and see the suspect's car. Yes, I think waking up for 2 minutes at night is a small price to pay if that means an abducted kid in danger might survive. We all know those first hours are vital.

thank you for a thoughtful response.  Our messages are similar.  Do you have the option putting your phone 'do not disturb'?  This is the main thing I am objecting to, that my over-reaching government has deemed that I don't have the right to 'do not disturb'.....the same government that allows anti-vaxers to not inoculate their child and put other children at risk.

and do people really fall back to sleep in two minutes after an ear piercing alert?  I was still awake when the second one came in an hour later, and awake 2 hours after that.

To me, it seems reasonable to have layers of "do not disturb".

Do not robo-call me and chew up airtime I have to pay for: 24x7
Do not solicit me: 24x7
Do not yap about politicians or surveys: 24x7
Only a specific list of callers will cause my phone to ring, others go to voice mail: during my usual sleep hours only
Amber alerts go to voice mail or the text queue but wake me up for imminent threats to myself: during my usual sleep hours only
... etc.

Why exactly should this so difficult to program? It's the kind of if/then logic even a high school kid should be able to manage, so with all the whizbang crap that lets your location be tracked by every messed-up stalker around and that lets your head be put into someone else's porn film, you'd think they have the programming skills.

Any phone manufacturer that made the above configurations standard would have an incredible sales boost.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

[Goldielocks]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

I hate this kind of selfish take on life. If you want the benefits of living in a herd, there are certain prices to pay, and this is one of them. Someone fighting for their life over-rules your convenience EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

I see this most often in hospital waiting rooms, some twit with a cut needing a few stitches whining because they were first.... meanwhile an infant needs resus. I just tell them now - sorry, arsehole, we're trying to save the inconvenient life of a two year old out the back, fucking two year olds, you know how it is.

[Rural]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

I hate this kind of selfish take on life. If you want the benefits of living in a herd, there are certain prices to pay, and this is one of them. Someone fighting for their life over-rules your convenience EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

I see this most often in hospital waiting rooms, some twit with a cut needing a few stitches whining because they were first.... meanwhile an infant needs resus. I just tell them now - sorry, arsehole, we're trying to save the inconvenient life of a two year old out the back, fucking two year olds, you know how it is.

But this is a false equivalence. Some asshole in the ER /= four million people spread over who knows what distance, uninvolved with the tragic event, and who have tried to adjust the settings on their phones so they can sleep in their homes, until the government overrides those settings not once but twice. Of the four million, how many do you suppose were trauma surgeons who needed to be fresh the next day to save lives? How many others similar? It doesn't even accomplish the "greater good" goal.

[TheGrimSqueaker]

Then of course Amber Alerts often aren't timely or accurate. Frequently they are not released until hours after the body is found. Then there's the second alert that contains the same information as the first one, and the third extra unneccessary alert that cancels the first two. Result: you're woken up three times. First, it's because of something bad that happened two hundred miles away five hours ago, and they found the missing kid three hours ago. Then, it's because it's an hour later and there was fresh information six hours ago. Finally it's two hours later, canceling both alerts. You have lost four hours of sleep, and every single wake-up was completely unnecessary because the victim had already been found.

Most of the time it's two bickering parents who are too immature to manage their divorce like adults, and one decides to call in a false report against the other.

[shelivesthedream]

Huh, I'd never heard of amber alerts. Having googled them, yes, I would be really pissed off if it overrode DND on my phone. DND would be on when I would not be in a position to do anything (eg. In my bedroom in the middle of the night) and I would presumably get it when I woke up.

I would love an emergency text alert system for floods or terrorist attacks that DID override DND, though. I don't think k we have anything like that over here.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

I hate this kind of selfish take on life. If you want the benefits of living in a herd, there are certain prices to pay, and this is one of them. Someone fighting for their life over-rules your convenience EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

I see this most often in hospital waiting rooms, some twit with a cut needing a few stitches whining because they were first.... meanwhile an infant needs resus. I just tell them now - sorry, arsehole, we're trying to save the inconvenient life of a two year old out the back, fucking two year olds, you know how it is.

But this is a false equivalence. Some asshole in the ER /= four million people spread over who knows what distance, uninvolved with the tragic event, and who have tried to adjust the settings on their phones so they can sleep in their homes, until the government overrides those settings not once but twice. Of the four million, how many do you suppose were trauma surgeons who needed to be fresh the next day to save lives? How many others similar? It doesn't even accomplish the "greater good" goal.

It's not false equivalency at all.... because the fact is that all of those people woken up are completely prepared to be woken up as long as they feel it involves them. That's why their phone is on. It's on for stupid texts from friends, a morning alarm, so you can hear urgent info about your own kids (obviously more important that someone else's...), in my neck of the woods it's on for tsunami alerts, it's even on for parcel delivery texts. If you don't want anyone waking you, do what trauma surgeons actually do and turn your phone off. That's right, they turn their phones off when they're off duty. The fact is that a child in danger does involve all of the millions of people in the vicinity, because any one of those could have seen something that would save a life. You have the choice whether of not you participate, so stop whining when you get a text that wasn't one you wanted.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

Then of course Amber Alerts often aren't timely or accurate. Frequently they are not released until hours after the body is found. Then there's the second alert that contains the same information as the first one, and the third extra unneccessary alert that cancels the first two. Result: you're woken up three times. First, it's because of something bad that happened two hundred miles away five hours ago, and they found the missing kid three hours ago. Then, it's because it's an hour later and there was fresh information six hours ago. Finally it's two hours later, canceling both alerts. You have lost four hours of sleep, and every single wake-up was completely unnecessary because the victim had already been found.

Most of the time it's two bickering parents who are too immature to manage their divorce like adults, and one decides to call in a false report against the other.

This bit could be completely better managed, no argument there.

[marty998]

Then of course Amber Alerts often aren't timely or accurate. Frequently they are not released until hours after the body is found. Then there's the second alert that contains the same information as the first one, and the third extra unneccessary alert that cancels the first two. Result: you're woken up three times. First, it's because of something bad that happened two hundred miles away five hours ago, and they found the missing kid three hours ago. Then, it's because it's an hour later and there was fresh information six hours ago. Finally it's two hours later, canceling both alerts. You have lost four hours of sleep, and every single wake-up was completely unnecessary because the victim had already been found.

Most of the time it's two bickering parents who are too immature to manage their divorce like adults, and one decides to call in a false report against the other.

Call me a luddite but would turning off the phone / pulling out the battery be the solution?

Then of course lots of furious lobbying at the next election to amend the scope an intrusiveness of alerts.

[bluebelle]

Call me a luddite but would turning off the phone / pulling out the battery be the solution?

Then of course lots of furious lobbying at the next election to amend the scope an intrusiveness of alerts.

I don' t have the option of turning off the phone - I'm on call for work and have elderly parents.  I SHOULD have the option to choose who can ring through a do not disturb option, the Canadian government had that option taken away from me.  They had the wireless companies disable functionality on smart phones.  That is want I'm rallying against, the it is government over-reach.    And it's not even effective - some sound sleepers slept through it or heard it, wondered what the noise was and rolled over.  It's the light or poor sleepers like me that ended up awake for several hours.

And an unexpected phone alert is not the same as a fire hall siren - people who buy houses across from a fire hall/hospital/police station or under an airport flight pattern should expect noise - the house was priced accordingly.

And my original estimate of people affected was probably very low, it went out over a 500-1000 mile radius in the most populated area of Canada.

I am happy to get all the frickin' alerts they want to send me while I'm awake, but if I've put my phone on DND, I'm going to do fuck all, so I want them to fuck off.  I am not a child hating selfish prick who doesn't deserve to live in society, I am a realistic human being who knows what I will and won't do.

[bluebelle]

Then of course Amber Alerts often aren't timely or accurate. Frequently they are not released until hours after the body is found. Then there's the second alert that contains the same information as the first one, and the third extra unneccessary alert that cancels the first two. Result: you're woken up three times. First, it's because of something bad that happened two hundred miles away five hours ago, and they found the missing kid three hours ago. Then, it's because it's an hour later and there was fresh information six hours ago. Finally it's two hours later, canceling both alerts. You have lost four hours of sleep, and every single wake-up was completely unnecessary because the victim had already been found.

Most of the time it's two bickering parents who are too immature to manage their divorce like adults, and one decides to call in a false report against the other.

Call me a luddite but would turning off the phone / pulling out the battery be the solution?

Then of course lots of furious lobbying at the next election to amend the scope an intrusiveness of alerts.

[zolotiyeruki]

thank you for a thoughtful response.  Our messages are similar.  Do you have the option putting your phone 'do not disturb'?  This is the main thing I am objecting to, that my over-reaching government has deemed that I don't have the right to 'do not disturb'.....the same government that allows anti-vaxers to not inoculate their child and put other children at risk.

and do people really fall back to sleep in two minutes after an ear piercing alert?  I was still awake when the second one came in an hour later, and awake 2 hours after that.

There *is* another option: root your phone.  If you have root, you may have that more granular control over emergency broadcasts. Many custom ROMs, including the one on my phone do exactly that. My phone is set to ignore Amber alaerts and presidential alerts (remember when Pres. Obama used that one as a PSA to go and vote?), but show alerts for severe or extreme threats.

EDIT:  I've been corrected on the strikethrough portion above.  I wonder where I got that thought...

[geekette]

There *is* another option: root your phone.  If you have root, you may have that more granular control over emergency broadcasts. Many custom ROMs, including the one on my phone do exactly that. My phone is set to ignore Amber alaerts and presidential alerts (remember when Pres. Obama used that one as a PSA to go and vote?), but show alerts for severe or extreme threats.
[/quote]
Huh?  The first "Presidential Alert" went out last year, so I really don't think it was Obama.

[ixtap]

There *is* another option: root your phone.  If you have root, you may have that more granular control over emergency broadcasts. Many custom ROMs, including the one on my phone do exactly that. My phone is set to ignore Amber alaerts and presidential alerts (remember when Pres. Obama used that one as a PSA to go and vote?), but show alerts for severe or extreme threats.

Huh?  The first "Presidential Alert" went out last year, so I really don't think it was Obama.
[/quote]

As I recall, Obama set the system into motion, but never used it. And I know a lot of people who would have lifted a mighty uproar.

Moreover, it sounds we have to ask if the override that brought up this up would be fixed on a phone level. Has the Canadian government required a line of code in the operating system or is there some manner of overriding it at the broadcast system level?

[OtherJen]

thank you for a thoughtful response.  Our messages are similar.  Do you have the option putting your phone 'do not disturb'?  This is the main thing I am objecting to, that my over-reaching government has deemed that I don't have the right to 'do not disturb'.....the same government that allows anti-vaxers to not inoculate their child and put other children at risk.

and do people really fall back to sleep in two minutes after an ear piercing alert?  I was still awake when the second one came in an hour later, and awake 2 hours after that.

There *is* another option: root your phone.  If you have root, you may have that more granular control over emergency broadcasts. Many custom ROMs, including the one on my phone do exactly that. My phone is set to ignore Amber alaerts and presidential alerts (remember when Pres. Obama used that one as a PSA to go and vote?), but show alerts for severe or extreme threats.

I don't remember it because it never happened. Nice try. The Trump administration was the first to use the system as a test.

[Alfred J Quack]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

I hate this kind of selfish take on life. If you want the benefits of living in a herd, there are certain prices to pay, and this is one of them. Someone fighting for their life over-rules your convenience EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

I see this most often in hospital waiting rooms, some twit with a cut needing a few stitches whining because they were first.... meanwhile an infant needs resus. I just tell them now - sorry, arsehole, we're trying to save the inconvenient life of a two year old out the back, fucking two year olds, you know how it is.

I get your take on the point, and I know what you mean in the waiting room (some asshole with an infected toenail was crying up a storm while I was wheeled in before him with an exploded appendix).

Back to the amber alert: I have 2 kids, both with a disability. If there is a way I can help then by all means, send me a message. But, getting a message, hours after its applicable and 150km off, is both useless and demeaning. There is absolutely nothing I can contribute, and the fact that I know this means they just raised my adrenaline for no apparent reason.
The only way for this message to be useful is if it is timely and localised. If it's not both, send out a general message rather than spamming 1 million phones. I watch the news, and if I see an amber Alert I'll read it but for someone to decide that a kidnapping 50km north with the suspect last seen 150km north of my position just isn't useful to anyone.

[Zikoris]

Call me a luddite but would turning off the phone / pulling out the battery be the solution?

Then of course lots of furious lobbying at the next election to amend the scope an intrusiveness of alerts.

I don' t have the option of turning off the phone - I'm on call for work and have elderly parents.  I SHOULD have the option to choose who can ring through a do not disturb option, the Canadian government had that option taken away from me.  They had the wireless companies disable functionality on smart phones.  That is want I'm rallying against, the it is government over-reach.    And it's not even effective - some sound sleepers slept through it or heard it, wondered what the noise was and rolled over.  It's the light or poor sleepers like me that ended up awake for several hours.

And an unexpected phone alert is not the same as a fire hall siren - people who buy houses across from a fire hall/hospital/police station or under an airport flight pattern should expect noise - the house was priced accordingly.

And my original estimate of people affected was probably very low, it went out over a 500-1000 mile radius in the most populated area of Canada.

I am happy to get all the frickin' alerts they want to send me while I'm awake, but if I've put my phone on DND, I'm going to do fuck all, so I want them to fuck off.  I am not a child hating selfish prick who doesn't deserve to live in society, I am a realistic human being who knows what I will and won't do.

I guess it would be an extra expense, but what if you got a cheap flip phone to leave on at night for emergencies, and turned the smart phone off? As a happy flip phone user, I can tell you the alerts don't come through on them - probably because they don't have the hardware or something.

[dragoncar]

If a phone supports WiFi calling, you could Use airplane mode and let the phone only use WiFi calling.  In my experience, and let me know if wrong, is that these alerts don’t work on WiFi calling, but it very well might depend on the carrier implemebtation

[zolotiyeruki]

Huh?  The first "Presidential Alert" went out last year, so I really don't think it was Obama.

As I recall, Obama set the system into motion, but never used it. And I know a lot of people who would have lifted a mighty uproar.

I don't remember it because it never happened. Nice try. The Trump administration was the first to use the system as a test.

I stand corrected (and have updated my earlier post).  Thanks!

[TexasRunner]

Then of course Amber Alerts often aren't timely or accurate. Frequently they are not released until hours after the body is found. Then there's the second alert that contains the same information as the first one, and the third extra unneccessary alert that cancels the first two. Result: you're woken up three times. First, it's because of something bad that happened two hundred miles away five hours ago, and they found the missing kid three hours ago. Then, it's because it's an hour later and there was fresh information six hours ago. Finally it's two hours later, canceling both alerts. You have lost four hours of sleep, and every single wake-up was completely unnecessary because the victim had already been found.

Most of the time it's two bickering parents who are too immature to manage their divorce like adults, and one decides to call in a false report against the other.

Add to this the government stupidity of region classifications...  Me and my coworkers regularly get Amber Alerts (that interrupts the whole office) for situations in Houston or Waco.  Once was because of a situation in Abilene, Tx.

Using Tyler Texas as an example, thats 198 miles away (Houston), 146 miles away (Waco) or 280 miles away (Abiline):  and across HALF OF TEXAS.  Thats like being in New York and getting an Amber Alert from Richmond Virginia...  They were (and still are) regularly sending out Amber Alerts to millions of people across hundreds of miles for dubious reasons.  I wouldn't mind in my immediate town, or even any town immediately preceding mine- as in a 30 mile radius.  But we are talking about a 4 hour drive away at 60mph (and we aren't located along an interstate corridor of travel).  Basically idiocy that blasts out to millions of people at any point in time all for one circumstance that may be dubious (eg fighting divorcees example).

Oh, and the only option on my phone is to completely opt out.  So no wildfire or tornado warnings either (which actually does affect thousands of people across vast swaths of area), and no way of saying only alert me if I'm within __ distance.  Typical great idea that is horribly ruined by government incompetence.

[slugline]

Add to this the government stupidity of region classifications...  Me and my coworkers regularly get Amber Alerts (that interrupts the whole office) for situations in Houston or Waco.  Once was because of a situation in Abilene, Tx.

I'm in Houston and I feel the same way about alerts originating from the other side of Texas. Meanwhile, we would never see anything out of Louisiana communities that are geographically closer to us. The system certainly deserves better targeting capability for sure.

[mustachepungoeshere]

I'd like to derail this thread for a sec to say...

Happy birthday, @marty998!

[marty998]

I'd like to derail this thread for a sec to say...

Happy birthday, @marty998!

@mustachepungoeshere thankyou :)

In suitably Mustachian fashion we managed to celebrate it in under $10 this evening, didn't we :D

[frugalnacho]

fuck the amber alert and emergency alert notifications.  I disabled them on my phone, and will always 100% disable them on every phone I ever have.

[DadJokes]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

When I lived closer to train tracks, I complained about the train horn all the time. The train would come through in the middle of the night and lay on the horn for a full minute.

I never understood the point of using a train horn when every railroad crossing in town had bars that came down to block traffic. If people aren't going to be impeded by the bars, then a train horn isn't going to stop them either. Quit waking people up.

However, every now and then, some idiot still gets hit by the train. Stupid can overcome all preventative measures.

[bluebelle]

What the fuck is anyone going to do about the tragedy from their bedroom in the middle of the night?

Um... realise they saw something critical 4 hours earlier and call the police before some shitbag has the opportunity to move, abuse or kill a child??? Do you also bitch and moan if the fire department uses sirens while attending your neighbour's house fire while you're trying to watch the news??? After all, what are you meant to do about said fire?

Actually, people complain about fire alarms all the time.  I lived across the street from a fire station and they had a policy to not turn on the sirens  at night (unless necessary) within 2 blocks of the fire hall.  That way they spread out the "wake people up at night" factor...  people would be impacted only 1/3 of the time, because they would drive in different directions depending on the call.

I think the challenge with the Amber Alert is -- multiple calls in the night, not just one...and..   Sent out to 4 million people, overriding DND, not to just 1000 people (example) in the target area.  This could lead to Amber alerts several times a week or more in major areas, if they don't fine tune their settings.

I hate this kind of selfish take on life. If you want the benefits of living in a herd, there are certain prices to pay, and this is one of them. Someone fighting for their life over-rules your convenience EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

I see this most often in hospital waiting rooms, some twit with a cut needing a few stitches whining because they were first.... meanwhile an infant needs resus. I just tell them now - sorry, arsehole, we're trying to save the inconvenient life of a two year old out the back, fucking two year olds, you know how it is.

But this is a false equivalence. Some asshole in the ER /= four million people spread over who knows what distance, uninvolved with the tragic event, and who have tried to adjust the settings on their phones so they can sleep in their homes, until the government overrides those settings not once but twice. Of the four million, how many do you suppose were trauma surgeons who needed to be fresh the next day to save lives? How many others similar? It doesn't even accomplish the "greater good" goal.

It's not false equivalency at all.... because the fact is that all of those people woken up are completely prepared to be woken up as long as they feel it involves them. That's why their phone is on. It's on for stupid texts from friends, a morning alarm, so you can hear urgent info about your own kids (obviously more important that someone else's...), in my neck of the woods it's on for tsunami alerts, it's even on for parcel delivery texts. If you don't want anyone waking you, do what trauma surgeons actually do and turn your phone off. That's right, they turn their phones off when they're off duty. The fact is that a child in danger does involve all of the millions of people in the vicinity, because any one of those could have seen something that would save a life. You have the choice whether of not you participate, so stop whining when you get a text that wasn't one you wanted.

I think you need to re-read my original post on the topic.  I don't have the choice of whether I get to participate unless I turn off my phone.  The Canadian government mandated that the functionality to turn off alerts be disabled.   That's what I'm bitching about, and I'm sure as fuck am not whinning about it.  Whinning is a victim stance, I'm angry about government over-reach.   

[a286]

Stupid can overcome all preventative measures.

This should be embroidered on a pillow.

[Sugaree]

Hey, did you know that people who are physically able to do their own grocery shopping, but choose to order grocery pickup are just lazy bums?

Nevermind the fact that shopping online (almost) 100% guarantees that I stick to my list, have no impulse purchases, and stick to my budget.  Or the fact that my time is valuable to me and I don't want to spend it grocery shopping.  I'm just a worthless, lazy millennial.  LOL.


ETA:  Online ordering is also apparently an opening for identity theft and domestic terrorism.  I think the tin foil hats are on aisle 5...

[zolotiyeruki]

Hey, did you know that people who are physically able to do their own grocery shopping, but choose to order grocery pickup are just lazy bums?

Nevermind the fact that shopping online (almost) 100% guarantees that I stick to my list, have no impulse purchases, and stick to my budget.  Or the fact that my time is valuable to me and I don't want to spend it grocery shopping.  I'm just a worthless, lazy millennial.  LOL.

Yeah, a long time ago, DW used to take the kids grocery shopping.  Eventually that was too much effort, so she shifted to going at 6am before the kids got up.  Once our local Walmart started doing grocery pickup, we pounced on it.  It's not a matter of laziness at all--DW is probably the hardest working person I know.  Grocery trips used to take her over an hour, including driving time.  Now it takes 25 minutes.  That extra 35 minutes is huge.

[Sugaree]

Hey, did you know that people who are physically able to do their own grocery shopping, but choose to order grocery pickup are just lazy bums?

Nevermind the fact that shopping online (almost) 100% guarantees that I stick to my list, have no impulse purchases, and stick to my budget.  Or the fact that my time is valuable to me and I don't want to spend it grocery shopping.  I'm just a worthless, lazy millennial.  LOL.

Yeah, a long time ago, DW used to take the kids grocery shopping.  Eventually that was too much effort, so she shifted to going at 6am before the kids got up.  Once our local Walmart started doing grocery pickup, we pounced on it.  It's not a matter of laziness at all--DW is probably the hardest working person I know.  Grocery trips used to take her over an hour, including driving time.  Now it takes 25 minutes.  That extra 35 minutes is huge.

It's not even that.  I have an app/website where I organize recipes and plan menus.  It generates a shopping list for me.  I can use that app and sit in my kitchen and literally go down the list and see what I have and what I don't.  I can also use those prices to check against the loss leaders at other stores and see what, if anything, is worth stopping somewhere else for.  I'm staying on, or below, budget and I don't have to go into Walmart.  Win-win.  The old farts just want to be able to bitch about something. 

[bluebelle]

Hey, did you know that people who are physically able to do their own grocery shopping, but choose to order grocery pickup are just lazy bums?

Nevermind the fact that shopping online (almost) 100% guarantees that I stick to my list, have no impulse purchases, and stick to my budget.  Or the fact that my time is valuable to me and I don't want to spend it grocery shopping.  I'm just a worthless, lazy millennial.  LOL.

Yeah, a long time ago, DW used to take the kids grocery shopping.  Eventually that was too much effort, so she shifted to going at 6am before the kids got up.  Once our local Walmart started doing grocery pickup, we pounced on it.  It's not a matter of laziness at all--DW is probably the hardest working person I know.  Grocery trips used to take her over an hour, including driving time.  Now it takes 25 minutes.  That extra 35 minutes is huge.

It's not even that.  I have an app/website where I organize recipes and plan menus.  It generates a shopping list for me.  I can use that app and sit in my kitchen and literally go down the list and see what I have and what I don't.  I can also use those prices to check against the loss leaders at other stores and see what, if anything, is worth stopping somewhere else for.  I'm staying on, or below, budget and I don't have to go into Walmart.  Win-win.  The old farts just want to be able to bitch about something.

hey, I'm an old fart, I wasn't bitching about it.....I love on-line shopping, and do it wherever possible (and free).  I haven't gotten into on-line grocery shopping yet for two reasons
(1) they charge me $5.95 for that service
(2) I do alot of price matching for groceries, and the on-line system doesn't handle that (yet???).  And I want to save that money....but I've choosen to spent my time to save that money....but I HATE grocery shopping, so I totally get why someone with children would choose to avoid it.

[zolotiyeruki]

Hey, did you know that people who are physically able to do their own grocery shopping, but choose to order grocery pickup are just lazy bums?

Nevermind the fact that shopping online (almost) 100% guarantees that I stick to my list, have no impulse purchases, and stick to my budget.  Or the fact that my time is valuable to me and I don't want to spend it grocery shopping.  I'm just a worthless, lazy millennial.  LOL.

Yeah, a long time ago, DW used to take the kids grocery shopping.  Eventually that was too much effort, so she shifted to going at 6am before the kids got up.  Once our local Walmart started doing grocery pickup, we pounced on it.  It's not a matter of laziness at all--DW is probably the hardest working person I know.  Grocery trips used to take her over an hour, including driving time.  Now it takes 25 minutes.  That extra 35 minutes is huge.

It's not even that.  I have an app/website where I organize recipes and plan menus.  It generates a shopping list for me.  I can use that app and sit in my kitchen and literally go down the list and see what I have and what I don't.  I can also use those prices to check against the loss leaders at other stores and see what, if anything, is worth stopping somewhere else for.  I'm staying on, or below, budget and I don't have to go into Walmart.  Win-win.  The old farts just want to be able to bitch about something.

hey, I'm an old fart, I wasn't bitching about it.....I love on-line shopping, and do it wherever possible (and free).  I haven't gotten into on-line grocery shopping yet for two reasons
(1) they charge me $5.95 for that service
(2) I do alot of price matching for groceries, and the on-line system doesn't handle that (yet???).  And I want to save that money....but I've choosen to spent my time to save that money....but I HATE grocery shopping, so I totally get why someone with children would choose to avoid it.

Ah, that makes sense.  Walmart doesn't charge for pickup (yay!), and a couple years ago they discontinued their price match policy (boooo!)

[Sugaree]

Hey, did you know that people who are physically able to do their own grocery shopping, but choose to order grocery pickup are just lazy bums?

Nevermind the fact that shopping online (almost) 100% guarantees that I stick to my list, have no impulse purchases, and stick to my budget.  Or the fact that my time is valuable to me and I don't want to spend it grocery shopping.  I'm just a worthless, lazy millennial.  LOL.

Yeah, a long time ago, DW used to take the kids grocery shopping.  Eventually that was too much effort, so she shifted to going at 6am before the kids got up.  Once our local Walmart started doing grocery pickup, we pounced on it.  It's not a matter of laziness at all--DW is probably the hardest working person I know.  Grocery trips used to take her over an hour, including driving time.  Now it takes 25 minutes.  That extra 35 minutes is huge.

It's not even that.  I have an app/website where I organize recipes and plan menus.  It generates a shopping list for me.  I can use that app and sit in my kitchen and literally go down the list and see what I have and what I don't.  I can also use those prices to check against the loss leaders at other stores and see what, if anything, is worth stopping somewhere else for.  I'm staying on, or below, budget and I don't have to go into Walmart.  Win-win.  The old farts just want to be able to bitch about something.

hey, I'm an old fart, I wasn't bitching about it.....I love on-line shopping, and do it wherever possible (and free).  I haven't gotten into on-line grocery shopping yet for two reasons
(1) they charge me $5.95 for that service
(2) I do alot of price matching for groceries, and the on-line system doesn't handle that (yet???).  And I want to save that money....but I've choosen to spent my time to save that money....but I HATE grocery shopping, so I totally get why someone with children would choose to avoid it.

I live in an area where there's not a whole lot of competition when it comes to groceries.  There is Walmart and a couple of independent cost-plus-10% stores and a local chain.  There's a Publix and Aldi, but they are at least a 30-45 minute drive from my house.  I've done the price book thing and Walmart is cheaper for 98% of the things we buy on a regular basis.  Where I can save money is by checking out the loss leaders from the non-WM stores.  Generally, I'll stock up on meat when there's a good price on it.  Lately, I've been stocking up on cases from a local butcher/meat store.  Turkey Sausage for $.60/lb and picnic hams for $.50/lb. 

The price match thing is weird with Walmart these days.  The price check thing on the app has to be used with Walmart Pay.  Which I don't mind because I'd pay for everything with my phone if I could.  But I haven't found a way to submit receipts using the online ordering yet.