Actual. adjective Existing in fact; typically as contrasted with what was intended, expected, or believed.

Can you please point us to this actual pile of millions of dead babies? I'm sure the health inspector would like to have a word with the proprietor of the establishment containing said pile. (Assuming the health inspector hasn't been fired yet, of course.)

Who is going to write them the check to continue testing? Do you think the manufacturers are going to voluntarily do it? Or will UL keep doing the testing out of the goodness of their hearts? Same answer for Consumer Reports. Don't be daft.

First day here? Welcome!

Oh, yeah, we don't do that now. That all happened in the past, we're looking to the future! MAGA! MAGA! MAGA!

From the Summary: "The email said the agency made the change to be "consistent" with a Trump executive order rescinding the 2022 requirement that all federal law enforcement agents use body cameras"

Existing policy: "all federal law enforcement agents use body cameras"

Why it's being cancelled: "to be 'consistent' with a Trump executive order". If you're looking for an actual detailed well-thought out reasoning behind the EO? Good fucking luck, there's a long line of people waiting for similar answers.

Why? You now know that the ROI is. It's pretty easy to show the value of it, what is the reason for ending it?

[Emphasis mine] Because currently energy consuming devices are forced to compete on price, features, AND energy efficiency. The "This unit will cost $X per year to run" sticker is mandated to be posted front-and-center, almost forcing the purchaser to make an active decision if the $Y savings on the purchase cost is worth $X addition it will cost them to run it.

Without a government mandate there isn't a chance in hell manufacturers will continue to put those stickers on there, because why would they? It's FAR more advantageous for them to compete on prices features alone. And the nanosecond you remove that important piece of information the consumers, especially those with less money, will begin to gravitate towards the "cheaper" units. Then the next product cycle will release another version that's a bit cheaper, and a bit less energy efficient. Then the next product cycle will release another version that's a bit cheaper, and a bit less energy efficient. Then the next product cycle will release another version that's a bit cheaper, and a bit less energy efficient.

No shit.

Of course they will. Then the next model will be some small percentage cheaper to build because energy efficiency is no longer a priority. And since the average idiot (myself included) doesn't have the foggiest clue what the annual energy savings of a 20 SEER AC unit vs a 14 SEER unit, and all they will see (since the manufacturers aren't going to put the energy guide stickers on there anymore) is that the 20 SEER unit is $X more expensive, they are going to pick the less energy efficiency one. Give it 3 or 4 product cycles and you won't even be able to buy the more efficient option anymore.

Sure, they could. But why would they? Shit like that costs money. Businesses will NEVER spend money on something that doesn't directly increase the bottom line, unless it's government mandated.

The point of energy star was to force the manufacturers to compete based on energy efficiency, along with price and features, by forcing them to publish how expensive their equipment was to run.

Agreed. Also, not every problem will be solved by unadulterated capitalism.

Mhm. I'm SURE companies will continue to use something like the energy guide stickers purely out of their desire to educate consumers on how awesome their products are. Not a chance those yellow tags with actual regulated and comparable numbers on them won't be replace by giant "Now costs 10,000% less to operate*" *when compared to an Abrams tank that has been modified to run on Chanel Number 5." type marketing bullshit.

Sure there is. Trump has a well documented hard-on for low-flow shower heads for some fuckin reason. And if I were to make an educated guess based on his physique and known diet? He's probably blown up toilet a time or two and assumed the problem was with the energy-star guidance on water usage.

What the Energy Star program cost? Fuck's sake man, it's right in the summary: "For just $32 million a year, Energy Star helps American families save over $40 billion in annual energy costs. That's a return of $350 for every federal dollar invested." It's not like that statement had any ambiguity that you could be confused as to what information it was trying to construe.

To be clear, I was agreeing with you. My comments were indirectly directed at OP, not you.

You repeat yourself.

There are probably 5,000 things they forgot in their "proposal". Any time anyone comes up with a solution that involves commodity hardware like air tags, arduinos, or anything similar, it's pretty good guarantee that they've never been anywhere near a legit safety-critical control system. They installed Home Assistant and wired up a few ESP-Home based sensors and that worked, so why not scale it up?

This single sentence from that article seems to sum up that string of lawsuits: "We’re batting one thousand. We won every lawsuit in every procedural episode so far and we’ll take them as they come,” Lieber said on Friday. “Obviously, the New Jersey lawsuit has been unsuccessful at every stage."

I enjoy fixing shit. So no, I don't mind spending an hour or two of my time rehabbing your hypothetical coffee pot. Same reason I change my own oil: In my mind, it's stupid to pay someone else to do something that I don't mind doing, especially when I can do it for 1/3 of the price and know that it's done right.