Used to believe these were just random complaints from upset parents. Seeing it start with politically sensitive material and then spread to a wide range of books shows a clear plan. It's not about protecting kids anymore, it's about controlling what ideas people can find. That shift in strategy changed my whole view on the book banning movement. Now the initial complaint just looks like a foot in the door.

Used to just give my harness a quick glance before heading up. Then a buddy pointed out a frayed stitch I'd missed for weeks, right where the leg loop connects. My hand ran over it and felt the roughness before I even saw it properly. Now I do a full hands-on check every single time, no shortcuts. That story about the rigger just drives it home even more.

That guy in Tacoma is onto something. It's always the fix that sounds like you're trying to cook the part that actually works. I saw a guy free a stuck thermostat by tapping it with a socket extension while the engine was hot. Sounded like a caveman repair, but the thing just popped open. Sometimes the simple heat and beat method still wins.

Oh perfect, my backup plan was to ruin it slightly slower.

That exact thing happened to me with a camp knife in my Portland garage. I see this pattern all the time where people, myself included, focus so hard on the main task we forget the backup plan. You had the blanket, which is smart, but the warping shows the heat was still wrong. My go-to now is to always check the oil temp with a cheap thermometer before the steel even goes in the forge. It stops most of these surprises before they start.