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Tal Bachman: The Appliance Rebellion Starts Here
Steyn On-Line ^ | February 12, 2023 | Tal Bachman

Posted on 02/14/2023 1:02:02 PM PST by Twotone

The LG 5.8 cubic foot Capacity Top Load Washer sat in the laundry room, brand new. Maybe it was my imagination, but it looked insouciant.

Dad said it was the latest and greatest in laundering technology. Supposedly, some sort of internal sensor system (having something to do with a computer) fine-tuned water levels depending on clothing weight. Or something. I can't remember exactly what he—or was it the moving guy?—said.

I did notice the washing machine had several preset wash cycles—Allergiene, Sanitary, Bright Whites, Towels, Heavy Duty, Bedding, and more. You could select them with a shiny, space-age-looking chrome dial. (I would later discover the machine had other fancy features with names like TurboWash™ 360, ENERGY STAR® Qualified, Smart Diagnosis™, and ThinQ™ Technology [Wi-Fi Enabled]). It was expensive, Dad said. He'd just purchased it for his new home on Vancouver Island. He felt pleased. He always did like new contraptions.

I didn't think much about the machine at the time. It's not like I had any special interest in appliances. And the house was his, not mine. So I just helped him settle in and drove back to my place a half hour away. If it weren't for Covid arriving shortly thereafter, I never would have thought about Dad's washing machine ever again.

But the virus hit, and economic shutdowns vaporized all the concerts Dad and I had scheduled (we're musicians). The shutdowns also vaporized my wife's business—the one she'd built from the ground up after emigrating from Japan. Almost overnight, everything had changed. Dad—almost 80—now found himself alone in his new home with nothing to do, his projected concert revenues canceled, dealing with health challenges. Koko and I had our own new challenges, too.

(Excerpt) Read more at steynonline.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: appliances; regulations; talbachman
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To: Angelino97
I sold my house in Mira Mesa in Feb 2001 (escrow closing). I had to mess around with some of that silliness on shower heads. The toilets had already been swapped for low flow, but the shower heads were "contraband". The real article instead of what the totalitarian state "allows".

I miss a few things about the San Diego area. Lots of great Asian restaurants. More sunny days to ride my motorcycles. More electronics supply shops so I don't have to wait a week for a part. I don't miss the traffic, gun laws or high taxes.

It is currently snowing. About 5 fresh inches since sunrise. A box in my livingroom has a new supermoto wheel set for my DR650 motorcycle. When the weather warms up, the wheels get installed and "normal" resumes. For now, outside activity is on hold. I'm getting inside things done.

61 posted on 02/14/2023 4:54:59 PM PST by Myrddin
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To: nevadapatriot
"Tal Bachman - son of Randy Bachman..."

Funny Randy Bachman story:

He mentioned to his daughter that he spent the day in the studio with Lenny Kravitz, and his daughter went bonkers:"Lenny Kravitz! Oh dad that is just awesome..."

Randy said: "what the hell, your dad is RANDY BACHMAN"!

62 posted on 02/14/2023 5:14:50 PM PST by Psalm 73 ("You'll never hear surf music again" - J. Hendrix)
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To: nevadapatriot
"Tal Bachman - son of Randy Bachman..."

Funny Randy Bachman story:

He mentioned to his daughter that he spent the day in the studio with Lenny Kravitz, and his daughter went bonkers:"Lenny Kravitz! Oh dad that is just awesome..."

Randy said: "what the hell, your dad is RANDY BACHMAN"!

63 posted on 02/14/2023 5:14:50 PM PST by Psalm 73 ("You'll never hear surf music again" - J. Hendrix)
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To: itsahoot

I sure have seen those, actually seen them in use. It must have been a great invention when it came out!

Of course, then you got your body parts caught in them.

Then came the lawyers!


64 posted on 02/14/2023 6:04:48 PM PST by rlmorel ("If you think tough men are dangerous, just wait until you see what weak men are capable of." JBP)
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To: mabarker1

no spindle, so it just goes round and round???


65 posted on 02/14/2023 6:55:46 PM PST by Chode (there is no fall back position, there's no rally point, there is no LZ... we're on our own. #FJB)
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To: subterfuge
Whirlpool are the absolute WORST appliances.

We, on the other hand, have had mostly good luck with Whirlpool appliances. Our Whirlpool washer and dryer are both around 20 years old and still working fine, though I've had to do some surgery on the washer a few times. The thing is, I've always avoided the fancy electronics and stuck to simpler, more functional appliances. The only "fancy" Whirlpool we ever bought was a dishwasher with the latest (at that time) electronics - it lasted 3 years and poof. I learned to wash clothes using my mom's old Maytag with a wringer and a separate rinse tub, so I don't need fancy. I was recently offered a top of the line LG washer and dryer set for relative peanuts - the controls on the washer looked like a cockpit. Turned it down and stuck with old reliable.

66 posted on 02/14/2023 7:59:50 PM PST by Some Fat Guy in L.A. (Still bitterly clinging to rational thought despite its unfashionability)
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To: Carriage Hill

Next time.

I’ve about got enough semi-dead machines to make a semi-interactive shooting gallery.


67 posted on 02/14/2023 11:58:11 PM PST by mabarker1 ( (Congress- the opposite of PROGRESS!!! A fraud, a hypocrite, a liar. I'm a member of Congress !7)
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To: Chode; Carriage Hill; All
Yeppers, when the POS did work it spun up to probably somewhere near the 60,000 RPM. It was Direct Drive, very quite- you could hear the air moving in the drum/clothes. I think the real design plan was for it to spin so fast it would literally sling the dirt and shit right out of the clothing with centrifugal force. The water saver function.

The balance system for SPIN is little bladders around the drum that get filled with water to counter-balance as needed.

Over engineering at its finest.

There was enough room that I could have put the Dogs in to wash one at a time. (With the SPIN turned OFF so their eyes wouldn't bug out.)

68 posted on 02/15/2023 12:30:17 AM PST by mabarker1 ( (Congress- the opposite of PROGRESS!!! A fraud, a hypocrite, a liar. I'm a member of Congress !7)
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To: ridesthemiles

I have no idea how old the stove is, I never use the self cleaner part, Easy Off works just fne, plus I put foil liners in the oven.

The Hav/Vac system is our newest buy, old one died. The new one is more efficient cost less on the utility bill than the old one. Replacing the small hot water tank with a large tankless solved the problem of never having enough hot water. Insurance took care of the roof damage, we just paid for the shingle up grade. We do the repairs when needed. At the prices and features we want. Not what government tells us to.

Lowe’s was still taking gift cards for payments, so had $1.00 off 35 gal of gas. Bought at Krogers on the 4 x the gas points. So had extra to share with my boys, his daughter has a hybrid car took very little gas.


69 posted on 02/15/2023 7:00:59 AM PST by GailA (Constitution vs evil Treasonous political Apparatchiks, Constitutional Conservative.)
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To: rlmorel
Then came the lawyers!

Yep in my day they would have just asked; Why did you do a damn fool thing like that.

70 posted on 02/15/2023 8:51:00 AM PST by itsahoot (Many Republicans are secretly Democrats, no Democrats are secretly Republicans. Dan Bongino.)
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To: rlmorel

Then came the churches, then came the schools
Then came the lawyers, then came the rules
Then came the trains and the trucks with their loads
And the dirty old track was the Telegraph Road

-Dire Straits


71 posted on 02/15/2023 8:51:38 AM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: mabarker1

looks like the inside of a space capsule...


72 posted on 02/15/2023 9:07:24 AM PST by Chode (there is no fall back position, there's no rally point, there is no LZ... we're on our own. #FJB)
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To: itsahoot
Heh, that is how normal and sensible people would respond!
73 posted on 02/15/2023 9:08:38 AM PST by rlmorel ("If you think tough men are dangerous, just wait until you see what weak men are capable of." JBP)
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To: dfwgator

Perfect reference!

Loved Dire Straits in the day! IIRC, they had a half dozen songs I really liked.


74 posted on 02/15/2023 9:10:15 AM PST by rlmorel ("If you think tough men are dangerous, just wait until you see what weak men are capable of." JBP)
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To: Twotone

If possible get your old washer rebuilt. If that isnt an option then put a splitter on your washing machine cold water faucet and attach a short piece of garden hose so you can fill the tub higher than the machine is limited. It works!


75 posted on 02/15/2023 9:54:46 AM PST by Wilderness Conservative (Nature is the ultimate conservative)
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To: rlmorel
Heh, that is how normal and sensible people would respond!

I can remember walking into a store and looking around before going to Saturday matinee when I saw some steak knives in a carton and I ran my finder down the edge to see if they were sharp and decided they weren’t. I walked out of the store and noticed that blood was dripping from my finger. I didn't run back into the store or shout out that someone had hurt me because I knew even at 11 years of age there was one person responsible, even more I was not about to tell my parents what had happened because I didn't want them to think I was that stupid.

Should the store have noticed the sharp edges of the blades were turned up where any moron could cut themselves, sure but truth is there weren't that many morons when I was a kid over 70 years ago.

76 posted on 02/15/2023 12:21:52 PM PST by itsahoot (Many Republicans are secretly Democrats, no Democrats are secretly Republicans. Dan Bongino.)
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To: Wilderness Conservative

I’ll have a chat with my handyman!


77 posted on 02/15/2023 1:08:31 PM PST by Twotone
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To: Chode

And about as much room inside.


78 posted on 02/15/2023 1:31:25 PM PST by mabarker1 ( (Congress- the opposite of PROGRESS!!! A fraud, a hypocrite, a liar. I'm a member of Congress !7)
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To: mabarker1

pretty much...


79 posted on 02/15/2023 3:34:40 PM PST by Chode (there is no fall back position, there's no rally point, there is no LZ... we're on our own. #FJB)
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To: itsahoot

Hahaha...I might have received a slight whack to the back of the head from my Dad, his ring leaving a slight dent as he said peevishly...

“What? What’s wrong with you? What are you doing playing around with knives in that store?”


80 posted on 02/15/2023 8:34:31 PM PST by rlmorel ("If you think tough men are dangerous, just wait until you see what weak men are capable of." JBP)
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