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The New Coffee Room

  1. TNCR
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  3. Mildly interesting

Mildly interesting

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  • MikM Mik

    alt text

    In 2013, a Detroit man bought a house next to his ex-wife, then spent $7,000 on a 12-foot bronze middle finger statue, complete with spotlights, pointed directly at her window.

    Sometimes, history isn’t just about wars or kings, it’s about the lengths people will go for a personal grudge.

    In Detroit in 2013, Alan Markovitz, a local strip club owner, made headlines when he purchased a house next door to his ex-wife. Instead of quietly moving on, he commissioned a massive 12-foot bronze statue of a hand flipping the middle finger and planted it in his yard so it would point squarely at her home. To ensure the gesture couldn’t be missed, he installed spotlights to keep the statue illuminated through the night.

    The story quickly spread online, becoming an infamous example of what some called the “pettiest divorce revenge in history.” While some admired the audacity, others criticized the move as a permanent reminder of bitterness. Markovitz himself admitted he didn’t expect the monument to go viral, but once photos circulated, the statue became internet lore.

    Fun Fact: This wasn’t just a neighborhood oddity, Markovitz’s statue even landed in international news, cementing its place as one of the most memorable (and expensive) acts of post-divorce revenge on record.

    jon-nycJ Online
    jon-nycJ Online
    jon-nyc
    wrote last edited by jon-nyc
    #2702

    @Mik said in Mildly interesting:

    In 2013, a Detroit man bought a house next to his ex-wife, then spent $7,000 on a 12-foot bronze middle finger statue, complete with spotlights, pointed directly at her window.

    I’m reminded of Freud’s line: The opposite of love is not hate, but indifference.

    If you don't take it, it can only good happen.

    1 Reply Last reply
    • jon-nycJ Online
      jon-nycJ Online
      jon-nyc
      wrote last edited by
      #2703

      This looks satisfying.

      If you don't take it, it can only good happen.

      1 Reply Last reply
      • kluursK Offline
        kluursK Offline
        kluurs
        wrote last edited by
        #2704

        image.png

        1 Reply Last reply
        • kluursK Offline
          kluursK Offline
          kluurs
          wrote last edited by
          #2705

          image.png

          taiwan_girlT 1 Reply Last reply
          • kluursK kluurs

            image.png

            taiwan_girlT Offline
            taiwan_girlT Offline
            taiwan_girl
            wrote last edited by
            #2706

            @kluurs I remember reading something similar about tardigrades (water bears). The US army actually had given a grant to scientists to study them. If I remember, it related to being able to re-hydrate blood, and possibly being able to use de-hydrated blood because of its easier to store and transport.

            1 Reply Last reply
            • MikM Offline
              MikM Offline
              Mik
              wrote last edited by
              #2707

              Since 1630, land reclamation has made Boston over 10 times larger

              IMG_5219.jpeg

              "The intelligent man who is proud of his intelligence is like the condemned man who is proud of his large cell." Simone Weil

              1 Reply Last reply
              • jon-nycJ Online
                jon-nycJ Online
                jon-nyc
                wrote last edited by
                #2708

                I hope when Indians stand in that reclaimed land they do a land acknowledgment honoring the European population that first settled it.

                If you don't take it, it can only good happen.

                1 Reply Last reply
                • MikM Offline
                  MikM Offline
                  Mik
                  wrote last edited by
                  #2709

                  IMG_5220.jpeg

                  "The intelligent man who is proud of his intelligence is like the condemned man who is proud of his large cell." Simone Weil

                  1 Reply Last reply
                  • HoraceH Offline
                    HoraceH Offline
                    Horace
                    wrote last edited by
                    #2710

                    Link to video

                    Education is extremely important.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    • MikM Offline
                      MikM Offline
                      Mik
                      wrote last edited by
                      #2711

                      “Bill of mortality” from the Great Plague of London's deadliest week, which ended on this day in 1665, leaving a count of 7165 dead.

                      In addition to the high count attributed to "Plague" and other expected maladies of the time, we see deaths assigned to more enigmatic causes — “Frighted”, “Suddenly”, “Winde”, “Teeth”, and “Planet”. In addition to those that paint a very specific and vivid picture, e.g. “Burnt in his Bed by a Candle at St. Giles Cripplegate”.

                      More info, and the whole year of "bills" to view, here: https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/londons-dreadful-visitation-bills-of-mortality

                      image.png

                      "The intelligent man who is proud of his intelligence is like the condemned man who is proud of his large cell." Simone Weil

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      • A Offline
                        A Offline
                        AndyD
                        wrote last edited by AndyD
                        #2712

                        Screenshot_20250930-065132_TikTok.jpg

                        Can't recall seeing a relief map of this area; look at all those mountainous areas in Yemen etc!

                        bachophileB 1 Reply Last reply
                        • markM Offline
                          markM Offline
                          mark
                          wrote last edited by
                          #2713

                          IMG_0245.jpeg

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          • kluursK Offline
                            kluursK Offline
                            kluurs
                            wrote last edited by
                            #2714

                            image.png

                            AxtremusA 1 Reply Last reply
                            • A Offline
                              A Offline
                              AndyD
                              wrote last edited by
                              #2715

                              Super photo(shop) of what it may have looked like when new; nonetheless true
                              https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/spain-uncovered-megalithic-monument/

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              • A AndyD

                                Screenshot_20250930-065132_TikTok.jpg

                                Can't recall seeing a relief map of this area; look at all those mountainous areas in Yemen etc!

                                bachophileB Offline
                                bachophileB Offline
                                bachophile
                                wrote last edited by bachophile
                                #2716

                                @AndyD said in Mildly interesting:

                                Screenshot_20250930-065132_TikTok.jpg

                                Can't recall seeing a relief map of this area; look at all those mountainous areas in Yemen etc!

                                yemen is not on the map, thats over to the east across the red sea, maybe you are referring to the Sinai peninsula, which in the south is quite mountainous (eg...Mount Sinai)

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                👍
                                • jon-nycJ Online
                                  jon-nycJ Online
                                  jon-nyc
                                  wrote last edited by
                                  #2717

                                  If you don't take it, it can only good happen.

                                  taiwan_girlT 1 Reply Last reply
                                  • jon-nycJ jon-nyc

                                    taiwan_girlT Offline
                                    taiwan_girlT Offline
                                    taiwan_girl
                                    wrote last edited by
                                    #2718

                                    @jon-nyc Interesting. I would not have guessed that. I would have thought it was younger 100+ years ago.

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    • W Offline
                                      W Offline
                                      Wim
                                      wrote last edited by
                                      #2719

                                      WW II

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      • kluursK kluurs

                                        image.png

                                        AxtremusA Offline
                                        AxtremusA Offline
                                        Axtremus
                                        wrote last edited by
                                        #2720

                                        @kluurs said in Mildly interesting:

                                        image.png

                                        What, no companion articles on sighting of UFOs landing there?

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        • MikM Offline
                                          MikM Offline
                                          Mik
                                          wrote last edited by Mik
                                          #2721

                                          This is interesting, if true. Complete opposite of what we learned from monopoly, which was to amass wealth and mercilessly crush your opponents. Of course we were like that with everything. All competition was blood sport.

                                          The original Monopoly was invented by a woman in 1904 to highlight the dangers of unchecked capitalism, she was told her concept was too complex, then the idea was stolen.
                                          Long before Monopoly became a family game-night staple, it was a pointed critique of economic inequality. The game was originally created in 1904 by Elizabeth Magie, an American writer, inventor, and staunch supporter of economist Henry George’s ideas about land reform. She called it The Landlord’s Game and designed it to demonstrate how wealth accumulation and rent-seeking concentrated power in the hands of a few while impoverishing everyone else.
                                          Magie patented the game in 1904, including two rule sets: one where players competed to monopolize property and another where everyone benefited equally from shared wealth — a direct moral lesson about the difference between greed and fairness. She hoped it would teach players that monopolies harm society.
                                          Years later, Charles Darrow encountered a version of Magie’s game, modified and circulating informally among friends and communities. He sold it to Parker Brothers in the 1930s, claiming it as his own invention. The company bought Magie’s patent for just $500 and erased her name from history. Monopoly went on to become one of the best-selling board games of all time — ironically celebrating the very capitalist spirit it was meant to criticize.
                                          Added Fact: Elizabeth Magie’s original 1904 patent for The Landlord’s Game remains one of the earliest known board game patents filed by a woman in the United States.

                                          alt text

                                          "The intelligent man who is proud of his intelligence is like the condemned man who is proud of his large cell." Simone Weil

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