!nostupidquestions@mander.xyz
This community is for people to ask questions they feel stupid for not knowing the answer or how to find the answer. "How do I not already know this?"
!nostupidquestions
@mander.xyzThe slices in the middle are big, and the slices on the end are so small. Why can't they make it a rectangle with equally-sized square slices?
cross-posted from: https://sopuli.xyz/post/7147508
::: spoiler case 1 (buying a cheap gadget from outside Europe):
I ordered a rare gadget from the US which could not be obtained locally. It was only $10. It was inspected by customs (which IIUC is a random selection process). Customs deemed it worthless, likely because the low value was not worth the paperwork. But then Belgian post demanded a flat “clearance fee” of €10. The rationale is that #bPost wants extra compensation for their effort in managing customs on behalf of the recipient. If I were to refuse payment, bPost would have a right to keep the gadget or destroy it, and had no obligation to return it.
IIUC, I also had the option to fetch the package from the customs office myself and pay nothing. This was an undisclosed option - I only later learned about it via rumor. In hind sight, it would not have made a difference anyway because the customs warehouse is quite far from Brussels. So I paid the €10. ::: ::: spoiler case 2 (a customs mess and lost gift):
In part because of case 1, I tell family outside of Europe to never send me gifts. I generally tell everyone not to send me gifts anyway because of my general objection consumerism. But mom would not hear it; sent me a gift anyway. She wanted it to be a surprise but of course that doesn’t fly with customs. So she did everything right as far as she knows - declared a value and listed the contents.
Normally I would expect to receive a pick-up slip from bPost. But this time customs sent a form asking me for a copy of the invoice and to list the contents and value. I replied saying it’s a gift, thus I have no invoice. I said for the same reason I don’t know the contents or value but that I was told that info was already disclosed on the package by the shipper. I supplied a phone number so they could reach me quicker.
Customs apparently simply ignored my response. I received no further correspondence and no pickup slip. Mom never received the package back either. It just disappeared. I told my mom she should at least demand a refund from USPS on the shipping costs, but she could not be bothered. I’m not sure if customs tried to call me (it was years ago). It’s quite possible that they called and did not speak English which would have effectively been a dead-end because I was not fluent in local languages. ::: ::: spoiler case 3 (future gift):
Another family member really wants to send me a gift for some exceptional reason. I have no idea what it is but I plan to stand my ground and insist that it will be a disaster. :::
I’m posting this to ask if my facts are correct, or whether things have changed. So specifically:
- Is shipping into Europe still a random game of chance, whereby some packages simply get a pass and avoid both VAT and clearance fees?
- Is it possible for a sender to pay the VAT at the same time as paying for shipping and ensure there is no further VAT fees or clearance fees? (I heard that’s possible although I don’t think this was ever offered to people shipping things)
- Is the clearance fee from bPost still a flat €10?
- Is the clearance fee from UPS and/or FedEx still €13 plus a percentage of the value?
- Is it legal for customs to ignore correspondence? I would expect a developed system would require customs to respond one way or another to state what demands are unmet, and to give some kind of notice before or after taking some adverse action. If a response to them is lost, I would also expect customs to send a reminder saying they received no reply (in a civilized region).
- (amend) I heard a rumor that often if a VAT charge is levied, then the courier will often waive their clearance fee but if customs opts not to charge VAT then couriers are encouraged to impose their clearance fee to ensure that recipients have to pay something. Is this generally true? If yes, is it actually written policy?
There’s a widespread nuisance of shared e-scooters (which do not need to be locked) taking up bicycle stalls that cyclists need to lock their bikes. Are e-scooter platforms instructing users to use bicycle racks? Or are people doing that against policy?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct5bl0
Graihagh teams up with the BBC's Global News Podcast to answer listeners' questions
cross-posted from: https://sopuli.xyz/post/6076984
Belgian municipalities have started forcing people to use web browsers to interact with public services. That’s right. It’s no longer possible to reach a variety of public services in an analog way in some Belgian regions. And for people willing to wrestle with the information systems being imposed, it also means cash payment is now impossible when a service requires a fee. The government is steam-rolling over elderly people who struggle with how to use technology along with those who only embrace inclusive privacy-respecting technology. These groups are apparently small enough to be marginalized without government reps worrying about lost votes.
Hypothetically, what would happen if some Amish villages existed in Belgium? I ask because what’s being imposed would strongly go against their religion. Would the right to practice religion carry enough weight to compel the government to maintain an offline option even if it’s a small group of Amish? If yes, would that option likely be extended to everyone, or exclusive to the Amish?
Gov-issued banknotes used to be based on gold, so IIUC that theoretically meant you could always trade your cash for gold. And IIUC, that was also a control on inflation.
Then at some point the currency (guess I’m assuming USD but perhaps it applies to all currencies?) was no longer based on gold. People just simply trust the currency just because there are anti-counterfeit features, and perhaps because everyone else trusts it. Is that it? Is there nothing else to establish confidence in the value?
I ask because I saw a clever anti-cryptocurrency post saying something like:
1 coin of crypto = ½ unicorn horn = 1 faun hoof = ¼ vial of potion from an oni = 50 grams of fairie dust = ⅛ dragon egg = 1 Klingon tooth
Funny, but okay, he hopes to convince people that #cryptocurrency not being based on anything means it’s worthless. Couldn’t we just as well add USD to that equation, since US dollars are also not based on anything now that gold is out of the picture?
cross-posted from: https://sopuli.xyz/post/5730013
Before sharing a link I would like to determine whether the website excludes people from access, and who is excluded. I can test for myself whether the Tor community is excluded, but what about:
- VPNs
- i2p
- public libraries
- #cgNAT issued IP addresses
- various regions
- particular browsers (e.g. lynx, w3m)
for example? I cannot check all those means of access. If a website is implementing some form of digital exclusion, I would like to ensure that I am not helping the exclusive website gain visitors.
#askFedi #netneutrality
cross-posted from: https://lemmyrs.org/post/257873
This seems like something that should be true, but I think I remember seeing a Mythbusters episode where they decided it didn't make a difference. That show was more about entertainment than science, so I wondered if there was a more rigorous study done? I've definitely seen splashes of water(?) come out from flushes so that alone seems to argue for closing lids.