Poll of the Day > Air quality alert today in my area

(+) Yeah! (+)

Normally that just means high humidity and "heavy" air, but everything is just hazy and the air smells like smoke and gets stuck in your throat. My allergies are going nuts from it. Keep your crappy air to yourself Canada!!

Seriously though, I hope all our Canadian PotDers are staying safe and aren't being hurt directly by these wildfires.

Only do half breaths

Same here, its very muggy today. Was supposed to rain today but doesnt look like it

I'm over on Vancouver Island, so we just get whiffs of smoke right now. Are you West or East US?

I lived in Kelowna for a couple of years, and it's supposed to be a 'woo hoo summer!!!' kinda town. Hard to enjoy it when 3/4 of the summer you're being choked by the air.

ReturnOfFa posted...

I'm over on Vancouver Island, so we just get whiffs of smoke right now. Are you West or East US?

I lived in Kelowna for a couple of years, and it's supposed to be a 'woo hoo summer!!!' kinda town. Hard to enjoy it when 3/4 of the summer you're being choked by the air.

East, I am pretty close to the border, although it technically takes me over an hour to get to a "crossing" since I am on Lake Ontario. I can actually see the Toronto skyline from the beach on a clear day.

too many farted I bet

The air's finally cleared here (Nova Scotia) after spending all of last week under a quality advisory because we were in the middle of multiple wildfires that were some of the worst in the province's history. As an asthmatic, I basically had to wear an N95 mask any time I went outside, and I still had to take a day and a half off because I felt horrible. It rained a ton over the weekend, though (we've actually had more rain so far in June than we had in all of May), which has been a major help for getting them under control and clearing the air.

I'm further south on the East Coast and we are getting the smoke here today. My allergies are not amused.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/6/6/5/AAXuu6AAEi7x.jpg

rjsilverthorn posted...

I'm further south on the East Coast and we are getting the smoke here today. My allergies are not amused.

NYC and NJ started getting it yesterday, and it was way worse today. I know people with breathing problems who've been having issues.

It's hazy as hell out, and you can smell a strong smoke smell in the air.

It kind of looks like the end of the world out.

Wear your N95 masks if you still have them, it apparently really helps.

Yeah I'm in New York, it's a mess

ParanoidObsessive posted...

It kind of looks like the end of the world out.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/7/2/7/AAAMj5AAEi8v.jpg

Coincidence? More than likely.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIuH-2naozI

https://i.imgur.com/XH9OUnS.jpg
That was at work around 1:30PM or so. 20 minutes before that it was super orange/sepia and I was seeing cars turn their headlights on (modern ones that go off sensors) and some of those overhead ones in parks were turning on too.

Conservatives are apparently refusing to wear masks for this too.
I for one applaud them for their bravery this time.

shadowsword87 posted...

Wear your N95 masks if you still have them, it apparently really helps.

Can confirm. When we had so many fires locally last week, it single-handedly made the difference between feeling like I needed to lie down to recover after being outside for less than a minute to being able to comfortably walk around outside without issue, and that's with one that hasn't been fit-tested (though it seems to be a pretty good fit) and despite the fact that I've got a full beard preventing it from being properly airtight. Would strongly recommend.

rjsilverthorn posted...

Coincidence? More than likely.

Or really brilliant marketing on Blizzard's part.

I have no problem believing Bobby Kotick was out setting fires in exactly the right places at exactly the right time just to pull that off.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

Or really brilliant marketing on Blizzard's part.

I have no problem believing Bobby Kotick was out setting fires in exactly the right places at exactly the right time just to pull that off.

I have no problem believing that he'd be willing to, but I do kind of doubt that he has the ability to pull it off. Wildfires are a little too unpredictable for it to really be possible to do that, at least not without spending way, WAY more than the game will ever make on it.

Code purple. Never even heard of code purple.

The air quality is real bad today. My son wants to play outside but he can't and that sucks.

adjl posted...

I have no problem believing that he'd be willing to, but I do kind of doubt that he has the ability to pull it off. Wildfires are a little too unpredictable for it to really be possible to do that, at least not without spending way, WAY more than the game will ever make on it.

Yeah, I don't doubt the willingness but I do doubt the competence.

rjsilverthorn posted...

Yeah, I don't doubt the willingness but I do doubt the competence.

That's why they had to set so many fires. To be sure!

WAKE UP SHEEPLE!

adjl posted...

Can confirm. When we had so many fires locally last week, it single-handedly made the difference between feeling like I needed to lie down to recover after being outside for less than a minute to being able to comfortably walk around outside without issue, and that's with one that hasn't been fit-tested (though it seems to be a pretty good fit) and despite the fact that I've got a full beard preventing it from being properly airtight. Would strongly recommend.

This is what you wear if you wear a mask.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/1/9/6/AAdJgnAAEjEE.jpg

MagicalPrincess posted...

This is what you wear if you wear a mask.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/1/9/6/AAdJgnAAEjEE.jpg

Depends what you're aiming to do. If you're trying to block out 100% of whatever's in the outside air, then yes, you need a full-face SCBA respirator like that, as well as having it fit-tested and being clean-shaven to ensure a perfect seal. If you aren't trying to wade through a plume of mustard gas, though, you can usually get away with something much less protective, which is significantly cheaper and more practical. Properly fitted, an N95 mask will filter out 95% of particulates, which is perfectly fine for situations like this where you're just trying to reduce the amount of an irritant you're inhaling as opposed to perfectly protecting yourself from something seriously dangerous. Even without being properly fitted, it's still enough to help quite a bit, as was my experience last week.

The attitude that anything less than perfect, 100% protection is useless saw a lot of popularity through Covid, and it's really never made any sense at all. Yes, 100% protection is the ideal, but any degree of risk/harm reduction is still a good thing. Brakes aren't guaranteed to work 100% of the time, but you don't see people taking the brakes off of their cars because of that.

Completely missed the point. Either a mask like I showed or no mask at all.

MagicalPrincess posted...

Either a mask like I showed or no mask at all.

adjl posted...

The attitude that anything less than perfect, 100% protection is useless saw a lot of popularity through Covid, and it's really never made any sense at all. Yes, 100% protection is the ideal, but any degree of risk/harm reduction is still a good thing.

That's precisely the opposite of completely missing the point. That's completely understanding the point, then explaining why the point is stupid.

adjl posted...

That's precisely the opposite of completely missing the point. That's completely understanding the point, then explaining why the point is stupid.

You do realize you're talking to MagicalPrincess, right?

ParanoidObsessive posted...

You do realize you're talking to MagicalPrincess, right?

Yep. It's still a position I've seen far too many people take, including people who are genuinely stupid and not just trolling, so I make a habit of shooting it down whenever possible.

I find it interesting that the smoke is so bad there just as two people I know were traveling north, one from Florida to the Virginia/Maryland/D.C. area and the other from Florida to outside of NYC. More than likely they'll have great stories to tell when they return next week.

I thought the air was shitty today, i live in nowhere ohio and it even sucks out here
im a little out of the loop so i was unaware of the fires

Weather.gov gave us an air quality warning now, it finally spread over here.
So I got myself a box fan and some air filters, and ducktaped it together, woooo.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/6/0/0/AAQwHjAAEjKY.jpg

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/6/4/AAQwHjAAEjQE.jpg

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/6/5/AAQwHjAAEjQF.jpg

captpackrat posted...

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/6/0/0/AAQwHjAAEjKY.jpg

captpackrat posted...

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/6/4/AAQwHjAAEjQE.jpg

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/6/5/AAQwHjAAEjQF.jpg

Could you please not be one of the shits that has to constantly make everything political?

I mean, I almost mistook you for HornedLion for a minute there.

Bro not sure where you've been posting but packie has been making political posts for years he's just not as aggressive about it

ParanoidObsessive posted...

Could you please not be one of the shits that has to constantly make everything political?

I mean, I almost mistook you for HornedLion for a minute there.

There's a distinct difference between "making something political" and "not pretending something isn't political." Bringing up climate change in the context of worsening wildfires falls squarely into the latter camp. Everyone knows the severity and frequency of these fires is increasing due to climate change, and that modern conventions in designing subdivisions needlessly increase the risk of catastrophic property loss as a result of them. It's just a question of whether or not people are willing to admit that there's a problem instead of denying it and hoping it'll just get better on its own.

Everyone will go on about climate change but will refuse to turn their AC off in the summer, take shorter showers, go for more walks to the store (for those who do live close enough), eat less meat, etc; Bleeding hearts with no impetus to act.

GanglyKhan posted...

Everyone will go on about climate change but will refuse to turn their AC off in the summer, take shorter showers, go for more walks to the store (for those who do live close enough), eat less meat, etc; Bleeding hearts with no impetus to act.

All that is a drop in the bucket. Corporations have to do better and their customers are other businesses so there is nothing to boycott.

JOExHIGASHI posted...

All that is a drop in the bucket. Corporations have to do better and their customers are other businesses so there is nothing to boycott.

So you're saying your efforts don't matter? If you can't believe in collective success, you can't reach a solution. Additionally, corporations aren't just producing things for fun, someone is buying those things. Powerplants are burning coal for HVAC for residential homes. We're all part of the problem, the solution, and everything in-between. Don't shirk your portion of the responsibility.

Also, vote for people that aren't ignoring the problem/actively making it worse. The only way to actually solve the issue is going to be through top-down enforcement. Personal responsibility can only go so far.

adjl posted...

Also, vote for people that aren't ignoring the problem/actively making it worse. The only way to actually solve the issue is going to be through top-down enforcement. Personal responsibility can only go so far.

I absolutely agree with that outlook. It's true that personal responsibility can only go so far. It's just incredibly defeatist of a person to not even try because of that fact, and that really bums me out.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

Could you please not be one of the shits that has to constantly make everything political?

lol wut

GanglyKhan posted...

It's just incredibly defeatist of a person to not even try because of that fact, and that really bums me out.

To be fair, I kind of get it. I could invest tens of thousands of dollars, hundreds of hours of labour, and sacrifice a considerable amount of my personal quality of life to reduce my carbon footprint to next to nothing, and it would make zero difference in the grand scheme of things. It kind of kills the motivation to try when you know trying won't actually accomplish anything unless everyone else (a sizable percentage of whom have not only explicitly said they won't try, but that they are actively trying to make it worse because "owning the libs" comprises their entire personal identity) does the same. I still make some efforts to not be too harmful, as I can (walking/biking to work whenever I have to go into the office, eating less meat, trying to be energy-efficient), but I can understand people not having the motivation to do even that (to say nothing of the fact that so much of American infrastructure doesn't even allow people to cut down on their driving without stranding themselves).

That's a big part of why top-down enforcement is needed: If they can be assured that other people will be putting forth similar efforts and that their efforts will be contributing to a collective large-scale improvement, people are going to be much more willing to get on board.

Also, every private passenger jet needs to be blown up. No more of that nonsense. The fact that I could spend my whole life sacrificing everything to minimize my carbon footprint and barely be able to dent the effects of Taylor Swift taking a 4-minute plane ride to the mall is insanely idiotic.

adjl posted...

To be fair, I kind of get it.

I'm not going to try and edit several quote blocks, I'm terrible at it lol But I get it too. It's demotivating to think or believe you're "the only one" doing something or putting forth the effort. But that's where the feelings have to stop and the reality has to sink in. Obviously you (in the general sense of "you") aren't the ONLY person working towards bettering a situation. Part of the onus is to find those other people, network, collaborate, and make many small personal changes and encourage and push for those large, all-encompassing ones as well. Compromise is important too, so, okay, keep your jet, but now it comes with an incredibly steep fine that goes directly to environmental conservation efforts. It's a multi-faceted kind of topic and what I see a lot of is people sitting on their thumbs and doing much of nothing. The reality is, if you care about the environment, then you need to get over the fact that you may not actually see all the benefits and the positive results in your lifetime. People used to work hard for future generations they'd never meet. Now it seems nobody cares about anything past next week. I also understand I am getting a bit off-topic, but I do believe this cultural malaise has much to do with the lack of impactful efforts as a collective.

Edit: Oh, I forgot to address how you said that people need to be assured others are putting in efforts as well and I really appreciated that. Which is also part of that malaise. We all gotta learn to live with and trust each other a bit more that we can figure these things out as a group, and not just individuals who happen to be similarly stuck on Earth.

The air quality here in Dallas is Orange (aka not good lol) but I dont think its because of Canada

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/4/0/2/AAQwHjAAEjW6.jpg

ParanoidObsessive posted...

Could you please not be one of the shits that has to constantly make everything political?

I mean, I almost mistook you for HornedLion for a minute there.

oh no, noting that Conservative media are being contrarian and someone noted it, oh no, how political

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/4/1/AAfe4vAAEjfV.jpg