Things you didn't know until very recently...

That ought to make my friend Max happy. He's a big fan of both the Fallout games and West Virginia.

Mister Rogers was a lifelong Republican.

edited 11th Jun '18 6:38:11 AM by WilliamRadarStorm

You can spin away the shrink rays in Piston It Away and Spaced Out. Thanks, Caddicarus (well, Caddicarus's comment section at least)!

edited 11th Jun '18 9:48:04 AM by ReikoKazama

The FIFA World Cup in Russia starts in 3 days.

IHOP is rebranding itself to IHO(b). The B is for burgers.

I question the wisdom of this move.

1. these specialty burgers are temporary and will only be served for a limited time.

2. which is kind of redundant, as they still serve burgers regularly now.

I honestly think the naming change is just a temporary publicity gimmick. Sort of like when a lot of Pizza Huts renamed to "The Hut" for a time.

Hello Kitty vibrators are a thing.

Yes, actually.

edited 11th Jun '18 4:02:59 PM by Spinosegnosaurus77

You watched the Toys that Made Us?

Most of the newer U.S. dollar bills ($5 and up) have strips weaved into them that can only be seen with a UV light. Each bill's strip is a different color.

A muskrat weighs about four pounds. I thought it was significantly larger.

There's a "Bad Webcomics Wiki". I know there's wiki for everything but something THAT specific is at least a bit baffling.

There is one for creepy company logos, too.

Adultery is punishable by three years of prison in Massachusetts.

Adultery is a punishable offense in 21 US states, ranging from a fine of $10 (Maryland) to four years in prison (Michigan). Rarely is it actually prosecuted, though.

Funko Pop figures' heads can turn.

I just got a message on Facebook from somebody who shares a name with one of my books' characters.

America’s professional soccer league is a cartel. Salaries are capped, and the lower-division teams in which domestic players might develop cannot be promoted.

Not sure if I'd call that a cartel, but it's definitely different from how football is organised in Europe.

I would actually like it if salary caps were also implemented here, as well as transfer spending caps. The usual argument against that is that it stops smaller clubs from getting to the level of the clubs that are already at the top, but in the current system, the clubs that are at the top are earning more than small clubs, so it's practically just about the same.

I also prefer the European system of promotion and relegation, but I can understand why American sports don't tend to go for it. It would also make their draft system less practical. If your current system is set up to help bottom clubs by giving them first choice of new players, it would feel stupid to then still send them out of the league.

Things will get pretty awkward when the USA hosts FIFA in 2026.

Why?

Aside from the things kyun already mentioned, MLS would either have to take a lengthy hiatus as long as the World Cup is running (similar to how the NHL shuts down when the Winter Olympics are on), or try to carry on without many of their best players.

I don't know how this will affect Liga MX, since I don't know if they play during the summer months like MLS does.

There will be something of a template for that if the World Cup in Qatar is played during the winter, as planned. That will force the big leagues of the world to take a break at that time. It should be easier if there's a precedent.

The North American leagues only have the best players of the host countries, and only Mexico is likely to go more than about a game past the group stage. In that sense, it wouldn't matter a whole lot for the competition if Canada and the US had to go with their second choices (and their best players would probably be playing in Europe, anyway). Of course, it would be bad for the audience if the home teams were weakened.

I'm sure this will be resolved. The American leagues could just take a break.

Some people still believe in cold fusion.

Kyun: All North American pro leagues are closed-shop (no promotion/relegation, etc.) It's a situation stretching back to the 19th century with the forerunners of the AL and NL in baseball - MLB has an explicit exemption from Sherman Antitrust laws granted by Congress.