Newsworthy but not its own thread worthy

[alexora]

Originally Posted by Lando Griffin

The mafia is still a thing? I thought that went out of fashion a long time ago, lol.

Not in Italy it hasn't...

http://gangstersinc.org/profiles/blogs/italian-organized-crime

[alexora]

Originally Posted by pelham456

nothing "wilful", just google. chocolate is far and away the default for this term. if u go to any store and ask for (just) "truffles", they will direct u to the candy aisle.

One just doesn't go to 'the store' to buy truffles.

These are rare items, usually sold in specialist retail locations (Think Harrods Food Hall or Fortnum & Mason), and often sold at auction.

This is what they are not:

A chocolate truffle is a type of chocolate confectionery, traditionally made with a chocolate ganache centre coated in chocolate, cocoa powder, coconut, or chopped and toasted nuts (typically hazelnuts or almonds), usually in a spherical, conical, or curved shape.

Their name derives from their similar appearance to truffles, edible fungi of the genus Tuber.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_truffle

And this is what they actually are:

Some truffle species are highly prized as food. French gastronome Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin called truffles "the diamond of the kitchen". Edible truffles are used in Italian, French and numerous other national haute cuisines. Truffles are cultivated and harvested from natural environments.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truffle

[pelham456]

yes, we are in agreement here. i KNOW what the original truffles were, but, as u say yourself, they are "rare" and sold in limited venues. my point from the beginning has been that the DEFAULT meaning for the term "truffle" (with no further modification) is now the CHOCOLATE one.

to be honest, i am surprised that the US doesn't require the term "imitation" on the packages. further proof, i guess, that ppl now consider THOSE "truffles".

perhaps they should require "non-chocolate" to be added to all fungal ones.

or maybe "imitation"...they DO kinda look like the real (chocolate) ones....

[pelham456]

Originally Posted by pelham456

the only reference i hear to the mushroom ones anymore is in "truffle butter", recent slang for vagina.

JFTR, i believe it means vaginal SECRETION, not vagina proper. "cooz" in my patois.

sorry abt that.

You Tube

You Tube

[alexora]

Originally Posted by pelham456

my point from the beginning has been that the DEFAULT meaning for the term "truffle" (with no further modification) is now the CHOCOLATE one.

No: if you order a dish that uses truffles, you cannot expect to receive something covered in chocolate.

Just because in your neck of the woods people don't have a clue, it doesn't mean you can assert what the 'default' meaning of what a truffle is: it's a default for you, not for the world at large.

I would venture that you have never tasted a dish that features them, as that they are not included in your culinary palette, since you will not find them at the arches, and the Colonel does not use them on his chicken...

[pelham456]

Originally Posted by alexora

No: if you order a dish that uses truffles, you cannot expect to receive something covered in chocolate.

Just because in your neck of the woods people don't have a clue, it doesn't mean you can assert what the 'default' meaning of what a truffle is: it's a default for you, not for the world at large.

I would venture that you have never tasted a dish that features them, as that they are not included in your culinary palette, since you will not find them at the arches, and the Colonel does not use them on his chicken...

my neck of the woods is google. u can see for yourself the results were like 95% for the chocolate ones. incl, i should note, many UK BRANDS.

i may have my provincial tastes; u have yours. google is the great arbiter.

if my wife says "honey, go buy me some truffles", i am coming back with chocolate. u can get $4000 mushrooms, be my guest.

google indicates u will be sleeping on the couch.

[pelham456]

alexora, u have given me a great idea -- how would u like to go into business together marketing "all-natural, authentic, truffles" for $3000 / lb (discount price) then fulfilling the orders with $7 bags of lindt? we could make a killing!

almost as much as i made in tokyo marketing travel packages to "USA" (minor town elsewhere in japan) and "Hawai"** (other town in japan)....



-----
** english spelling a problem on this one, but they match in japanese.

[Easymuse]

Associated Press
Porn actor Ron Jeremy found unable to stand trial for rape

FILE - Former adult film star Ron Jeremy appears for his arraignment on rape and sexual assault charges at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, in Los Angeles on June 26, 2020. A Los Angeles judge has declared that porn performer Ron Jeremy is mentally incompetent to stand trial on dozens of rape and sexual assault counts. Judge Ronald Harris said Tuesday that Jeremy is in cognitive decline and is unlikely to recover. (David McNew/Pool Photo via AP, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)


ANDREW DALTON
Tue, January 17, 2023

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Los Angeles judge on Tuesday declared that porn performer Ron Jeremy is mentally incompetent to stand trial on dozens of rape and sexual assault counts.

Superior Court Judge Ronald S. Harris said in a hearing that after reviewing reports from both prosecutors and Jeremy's defense that he is in “incurable neurocognitive decline" from which he is unlikely to recover.

Prosecutors asked that he be periodically reevaluated.

A hearing on placing the 69-year-old Jeremy, whose legal name is Ronald Hyatt, in a state hospital will be held next month.

Jeremy pleaded not guilty after a grand jury indicted him on 34 counts of sexual assault, including 12 counts of rape.

“When he was arrested two years ago I said he would be found innocent of all charges,” Jeremy's attorney Stuart Goldfarb said in an email. “Two years have passed and with the additional discovery I received I believed he would have have been found innocent. It is unfortunate due to mental condition he will not go to trial and have the the opportunity to clear his name."

Jeremy, who has remained in jail since his arrest in 2020, did not attend the hearing.

An email seeking comment Tuesday from the District Attorney's Office was not immediately returned.

Nicknamed “The Hedgehog,” Jeremy has been among the best known and most prolific actors in the porn industry for decades, and became a recognizable pop cultural novelty through reality shows, public appearances and music videos.

He has long been a magnet for seekers of autographs and selfies, which is how he first encountered most of the women and girls aged 15 to 51 he is accused of assaulting between the 1990s and 2019.

According to transcripts of grand jury testimony from the women and girls obtained by The Associated Press, Jeremy would lure them into a small secluded space, often the bathroom of a West Hollywood bar and grill he frequents, trap them and sexually assault them.

The Los Angeles Times first reported that Jeremy would not be going to trial.

The charges stemmed from a district attorney's task force set up to investigate entertainment industry sexual misconduct after reports about Harvey Weinstein in 2017 made the #metoo movement an international phenomenon.

Jeremy was among a very few men charged in the task force's work, along with Weinstein himself, who was convicted of rape and sexual assault in December.

Prosecutors are still deciding whether to retry Weinstein on several counts for which his jury was deadlocked. They plan to retry actor Danny Masterson on three rape counts after his jury failed to reach verdicts last month.

___

[Easymuse]

men’s journal

GEAR
7 Key Facts About the 2024 Corvette E-Ray, the Brand’s First Hybrid Electric
by Michael Frank

The new 2024 Corvette E-Ray follows the McLaren Artura into the world of hybrids—and also breaks entirely new ground, both for Corvette and supercars the world over.

Corvette has probably been the most anachronistic brand in the automotive world. It’s made by the same label that brings you Silverados by the hundreds of thousands. This isn’t Ferrari funding its Scuderia race team, a consumer car maker that seems to exist solely to finance Formula 1. It’s General Motors, as unexotic as your next can of Coca-Cola.

Yet, somehow Corvette continues to nip at the heels of exotics, a Midwestern rube busting through the chainlink meant to keep the automotive riff-raff from soiling the manicured lawns at the world’s most elite concours. And this happened yet again in 2019 when the C8 Corvette broke all convention by using a mid-engine design, rather than a rear-engine layout. It, too, delivers blistering, world-class-slaying performance at prices that should make the Ferraris and McLarens of the world blush.

1. It’s the First-ever AWD Vette.

By adding a 160-horsepower electric motor to the front axle, in combination with the extant Corvette’s 6.2-liter, 495-horsepower V-8, for a total of 655 horsepower, Corvette says the E-Ray will be the fastest production two-seater in the brand’s 70-year history, gunning down 60mph in 2.5 seconds and a quarter-mile in 10.5 seconds. What’s key here is that’s not even the most horsepower in a current model. You can get a Z06 version with 670 horsepower, but all-wheel drive rather than rear-wheel drive puts the E-Ray’s juice into the pavement, so it’s quicker than the Z06. By embedding the car’s batteries in the floor and moving its electric motor up front, we’re betting the E-Ray also has even better fore-aft weight distribution, too.

2. The EV-only Mode Saves Gas—and Eardrums.

Corvette has stressed that AWD won’t just offer summer burnout performance, but the ability to have a year-round sports car that can keep going in wet and snowy conditions. With rivals like Porsche offering AWD for years, that’s not a bad “sell,” and maybe a better one than “Stealth Mode,” which allows Corvette owners the ability to run their 2024 Corvette E-Ray in EV-only propulsion. Obviously electrics run nearly silently, and rolling stealthily along up to 45mph will also save gas. But we kinda doubt you buy a Corvette because you’re bashful about your whip.

3. It’s an EV, but Not a Plug-in.

It’s not entirely clear how long 2024 Corvette E-Ray drivers will be able to roll in electric mode, but with a fairly small ​​1.9-kWh battery, a good guess is only a few miles. There’s no plug to recharge the battery, and the E-Ray will juice solely off of regenerative braking and coasting. You can also set the car up for track mode, which will optimize the kind of instant acceleration that electric motors excel at delivering. If you’re braking hard on a road course, regen should keep the battery fueled. Whether this all adds up to the E-Ray offering Z06-besting lap times still remains an open question, though, because the new car almost surely gained weight, which is the enemy of great handling.

4. It’s Boasting Cylinder Deactivation.

Corvette engineered the 2024 Corvette E-Ray electric motor to operate in conjunction with cylinder deactivation. Half of the V-8’s cylinders can shut down during steady-state driving (say, a constant 70mph on the highway) and while GM has used this function on past models, pairing cylinder deactivation with EV output will likely result in far better overall fuel economy.

5. It Will Come as a Convertible, Too.

While it’s not entirely clear how this configuration will work, Corvette will sell an E-Ray with either a removable top or a fixed hardtop. We haven’t seen pictures of the liftable roof version, so whether that’s more like a T-top or a full convertible is yet to be determined.

6. It’s Got Standard Performance.

E-Ray will come standard with both Brembo carbon ceramic brakes and magnetic ride suspension. The former probably wasn’t as critical as the latter feature, because if you’re going to tout the AWD Vette as ideal for winter roads, you’ll want to be able to soften the ride for suboptimal surface conditions.

7. It’s Expensive but Still Standard Corvette Pricing.

A Z06 will run you $109,000. And an E-Ray costs $104,000. Considering that the hybrid McLaren Artura runs $237,500, you could instead get both cars and take a lavish European vacation to boot and still walk away with pocket change. Yes, Corvette is taking orders now and you can expect delivery by the end of the year.

[alexora]

Originally Posted by pelham456

alexora, u have given me a great idea -- how would u like to go into business together marketing "all-natural, authentic, truffles" for $3000 / lb (discount price) then fulfilling the orders with $7 bags of lindt? we could make a killing!

I have googled truffle, and all the top results lead to the tuber, not to the confectionary...