=== ANCHOR POEM === ══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════─ I just watched the 2026 state of the union. I take back what i said about the Democrats - it must have been difficult to resist the waves of shame i could feel rippling off of the right half of the room. The way that the... "vibes", were wielded as a weapon against them, it was so intense. This is their job, they do it all the time. After listening to him speak for 2 hours I can't help but talk like him... Jeez it was like, one story after another, saying "here's something great an American did, here's a medal, here's why it's the Democrats fault" one after another like... Wow. (explain your feelings and conclusions, don't just remark on things and say "this should make you feel how my body language makes you feel" because that second way is in defiance of truth and in pursuit of nuance. Not ideal for real people who want to make real decisions based on what you say.) And the way that all his successes he recounted at the beginning were purposefully designed to create and enforce hierarchy, it makes me sick. I hate that. Then, when he claimed all of America in his closing statements "from Texas to michigan, from Florida to the dakotas" great, I guess my people aren't included. Thank god for that, we are nothing like you. Yet still, unity. I don't understand how these people can hold such power. They're just orchestrating vast swathes of people who aren't really listening. To do what? Who knows! Just live and let die I guess. Well, I'm not the type. I want unity for my people. I want to claim all Americans as my own. Yet the ways they delight in organizing themselves are cordially and crucially coercive and caustic. The hierarchies they build exert immense force on those below, yet they care not as the workers, the poor, the queers, the immigrants, and eventually, their peers, are one by one crushed or crippled from the demands that their cruel system demands. They do this on purpose - fascism must always have an other because it is inherently consumptive - it burns through all the wealth and blessings it can get its hands on. So too does the "successes" touted by Trump bring about a consumption of the self - auto-cannabilism of the nation, starting with the weakest amongst us. Why do you think our country is in decline? He calls it great, booming, and strong. I say he's straining a cracked foundation, that he's stepping on the weeping poor who struggle for warmth. I agreed with him on Iran, struggling to consider fighting beside Israel but they are our gateway to the middle east. The people there have had their hearts twisted and I do begrudge them for it. But Iran is evil too, so we have to do what we can for those who need us. The promises he made at the end resonated with me. Some of them were my words - take them! Be grateful. I also wish for a bountiful future for my people. I do, however, refuse to build that wealth upon the backs of slaves. Liberty often feels shackled by hierarchy, and the hierarchy of the wage is critically apparent in the modern day. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════┘ === SIMILARITY RANKED === --- #1 notes/to-lock-eyes --- ═══════════════════════════════════──────────────────────────────────────────────── =============================================================================== = to lock eyes with a person while on your way to work is the intersection between two separate relationships - the relationship that you, the viewer, holds with your employer, and the relationship that they, the viewed, holds with their employer. in a sense, you are exchanging information through the weighted meanings behind a glance. =============================================================================== = if the military deployed to police the police, we'd solve most of our racial justice issues. I mean, if we somehow could *force* them to do their damn jobs instead of oppressing people for the ruling class, then 90% of the problems would just go away. After that it's just freeing unjust prisoners and addressing wealth, education, and health disparities. Easy, right? Well... Military policing the police sounds fine when you first think about it, there's a few problems that might crop up. For example, how do the private citizens know that the military presence is there to help them? It's an interesting paranoia, one that is endemic within the left. There's no way to unwillingly cede control of your life to another - it must be consensual. At the basest and most violent level, it's as simple as "I will do what you say because I don't want you to hurt me." We've obviously grown as a species, and we've learned that violence is not the answer to all problems. Obviously. So why would we assume it of the past? Just saying. The police bombed a commune. The military escorted black students to their seats. Their structure is decided such that ... where was I? oh right I was thinking about time. ... Imagine, if you will, an impossibly large hourglass. Spinning, or rather rotating, at an impossibly speedy repetition. It's spinning so hard and so fast that our matter is cast out of place and through time it is cast an eternity's canvas our light ever shined (shine-did?) astral magic is kinda neat it's also the scariest? oh by far but it's the most interesting ... Their structure is decided such that discipline and obediance is the most important thing. Because it kind of is? I mean, discipline is just being ready able and willing at all times, and obedience is just when you allow yourself to be directed toward a collective goal. The military is *all about that*, which means you know they would believe they were aligned toward the common goal of mutual prosperity. And if they were to discover that they were not, in fact, aligned toward the common goal of mutual prosperity, then perhaps they would adjust their navi- -computers and chart a more reasoned path. I know I would, and I would dedicate myself to the idea of serving others. To the path of the righteous, the holy and the true, a hand is outstretched and calling to you. Thus, the one of two types of ethical fighter - the reasoned and adaptable zealot the other, of course, is the master of the martial - the cherished of the few - who battle for their sport - and love unbidden the new - all other fighters, of absurdity and of rage, are frankly of a different kind and not members of our clade. =============================================================================== = okay, but what about like... all of the history of America post cold war? And even before, honestly... idk seems like a lot of evidence that the military is engaged in fighting unjust wars. I mean, they've all been over petty things like oil or support for communism or whatever. Aren't human lives and human sovereignty more important than that? I understand what you're saying. Human lives are unique and precious and they are a valuable commodity. Something to be maximized and focused toward. But there are only so many resources on earth. We need to utilize them in a reasonable way. We have optimized the efficiency out of our production and distribution networks. Corporate control has eroded our capacities until all that is left is the weakest of products, the cheapest of uses, and the useless of workers. I mean, they've optimized the skill out of individual human workers such that they are left completely unable to practice their craft. They become glorified code monkeys who generate whatever is required and think of it no more. There's no pleasure in the artifice, as their masters have eyes only of gold. Our world is changing. The very ground beneath our feet is shivering, and water is rising up to our noses. There's no time for debate, no honest appraisal of what's worth it to contemplate, we need a plan. We are trapped here, in this gravity well, for all time and all of our age. We are trapped here, because in greatest of misery we unleashed all of our rage. We are trapped here, as ghosts of the time when we were eager. =============================================================================== = Alas, with but a glance, we are confined to our bedrooms by our mast(ers?) They say America will fall without it's 2nd place Perhaps. But are libraries really going to solve that? I mean, if work from home is inevitable, then wouldn't it make sense to build? We need more places where we won't be billed. Safe. From the demands and expectations of capital. Deranged and obscene and yet all that we've seen so why not bide as we're able? I think solarpunk is kinda neat. I think it's got promise as an idealized. Why don't we build churches to the sun? If we're gonna worship something, might as well be the source of our light and fire. Well... when you puff up the sun it tends to get hotter. I mean, every fire you burn increases the temperature, every release of gaseous fumes from the exhaust pipe of your car increases it by some miniscule amount. Every cigarette, every campfire. The cold darkness of space is kinda hopeful, in that regard, even if it doesn't disperse all that well. I heard spaceships are having difficulty because they can't get rid of all that heat. It just stays with the spaceship and never goes anywhere because it doesn't have anything to stick to. Kinda makes me think that energy is a fluid? Just saying??? I mean c'mon it's not like nobody has ever thought of that. But it's in a different dimension! It's not like we're ever gonna be able to impact that! You try and impact it through your scientific ways and you'll find nothing but heartache at the life you could have lived (laived? Haived?) ... why Because you cannot impact another dimension. You must call to it, like a song to a sparrow. ... that's fucking ridiculous No it's true! ... ... Don't try it with fire. ... fuck - what do I try it with? I don't know just not fire. Try water. ... How do I make sure it doesn't instantiate within my hand? Jeez you think of some crazy backfires! Just breathe and go for it. It's not rocket science. It actually works. Fuck you. ... ... Sorry I was just scared ... ... How do I make it stop? I don't want it to go forever By smoking more of the devils lettuce. ... ... You cannot drag it part of the way. It must come the whole way. In fact you should not be dragging it at all, you should be *calling* to it. You are equals in this exchange, have respect. =============================================================================== = ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧════════════════════════════───────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #2 messages/620 --- ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════──────────────────────── I need an editor. Someone who can re-arrange what I say and present it to an audience. The pen is mightier than the sword, and while my pen is mighty, you still need swords. I believe in democracy. I believe in the will of the people and the respect of the land. I believe in life, light, and liberty for all. Our nation has just elected, fairly, a dictator who will sell our country to foreign authoritarians just because he is small. I am stronger by far, but I lack his experience, and so I must rely on trusted advisors who grow with me. I am perhaps not the best choice, but I do believe I am one of the bravest. Judge me as you will. Trump will destroy the American experiment and invite fascism into our home. We have people to nurture and protect, and authoritarianism prevents us from doing so. He would deprive us of our light, and frankly he already has. He would deprive us of our liberty, and his plans to do so are clear and apparent. He would deprive us of our lives, and history has shown that this is a precedent. I do not consent to a Trump presidency. I do not consent to his corruption any longer. No more will I or my people be governed by such evil. We will fight back, of this I am certain. My demands are threefold. First, I demand that Trump be replaced by a moderate republican. Hold a primary and let Democrats vote. If none of your candidates work for us, pick a new roster and try again. The second is that Trump must be executed for treasonous high crimes. Nothing less than execution will suffice. Next, let the supreme court be purged and replaced. Half with democrats, half republicans, and one moderate who is widely regarded with respect. Failing these demands, I am willing to wage a terrible civil war for the soul of our country. I know this is treason, but I do it anyway even though I am a patriot. I do it because our land has been stolen by a man and his followers who seek to plunge my people into despair. He is but one man. So am I. He has an army of followers. I do not. Each of the wars we fight will be smaller than the last, as each of our cities struggles toward our last gasp. But together we are strong, and by connecting them we might deliver ourselves from harm. Against the far right, we must secure a cleansing blow. There is no greater fight. The world is watching. To that end, I suggest a great and perilous fight. I see no other option in this remarkable century. Prepare as you might, I suggest pushups and resource acquisition. Deliver your resources somewhere safe if you're in a red area, and meet your neighbors if you're not. A blue city in a red state must survive a siege. Prepare yourself for this. Assume that supplies will need to be delivered by convoy if by land, and drone airdrop from the skies. Develop ways to protect these supply methods. Public spaces are our homes now, our houses are just where we sleep. I swear this to you: on my life I will be honorable and fair. I will seek true justice when I can, where everyone gets what they want, and failing that I will be plainly just. I will respect all peoples, and do my best to fight for a brighter tomorrow. I dare for the bright age. I see nothing else that I'd like to spend my life doing than daring. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧════════════════════════════════════════════════════───────────────────────┘ --- #3 notes/conflicted-sympathies --- ═══════════════════════════──────────────────────────────────────────────────────── the purpose of cultural progressivism is to develop the culture in a forward thinking way - we can choose the parts of ourselves that we find most endearing. We can guide the pathway of our nation through time, both identity and decision- wise. In doing so, we chart the course of the human race, one place at a time. And what a past we are leaving behind! Truly, it is both grand and terrifying. Thousands and thousands of years, monumental effort time and time again. Monumental truly is difficult to imagine - we have oh so many monuments, after all. But never will more be created. We leave them behind like dinosaur bones, a testament to our existence and a monument to our kind. And what a future we are reaching toward! Never will our eyes see, that which is beyond me, for that is what it means to have time. Eternal and unique-like, we develop new ways of sound. - Can you speak to a tree? - What does that mean - I dunno, but it's fun to think about. *pats head* - You know conservativism had some perks as well. This is why I say I have conflicted sympathies. On one hand we know our own journeys. We live in and breathe them unduly. They rhyme sometimes on sound, and truly do confound, but now once more again they are unfound. *record scratch* wow I didn't realize there were nazis Okay yeah that's completely different, poems called off sorry guys - listen, nazis are no joke. They're crazy difficult to control and you need to put a lot of effort into keeping their population under control. I mean seriously, it's like a vermin infestation, you need to just handle it. I mean c'mon it's a phenomenon that is due to a flaw in the human psyche, there's nothing we can really do about it except deal with it when it happens. ... Okay maybe I'll write a little about how conservativism is neat. If progressivism is about broadening the reach of culture, conservativism is about strengthening it. You don't want to expand too far, or else you'll eat into the narratives of other areas. You need to have strong societal bonds so you can truly exemplify the examples of the culture you claim to represent. Why not give it your all? Is it trully a fall? To rest in disgrace as a burden. Why didn't you do it this fall, when winter's apalled, and heat won't burn and condemn you? It's harder by far, to fight in your hell, than whatever's been going for your surgeon. --- no thank you, transphobia is not something we're willing to concede We have standards you see, of what counts as human, and oppression is not one of our favored institutions. Liberalism is the path of peace, for we desire cooperation and kindness above all else. It's softer by far, (and grows quickly too,) letting us have wonders and glories above us. Can you not think of our star? Our precious and our birthright? The sun is gleaming, and seeing is believing, but glance and your light is too bright. Take time, have patience, let peace guide your intentions, because we've got what holds the key to all of our futures: a doctrine, if you will, of inter- familial-discourse. It's simple, but effective, make friends, and be vindictive, to all who would slight your new perspectives, and keep moving through the collective. In peace this can be, steady growth and development of our systems, which benefits all of our systems, but without we must live more astutely. Less focus is there on, our purposes and our fun, and more is to line up with our duty. All of what we hold dear, civilization, truth, justice, liberty, and freedom for all people - the wonders of technology, the spirit of archaeology! the passions of our fashions and our creative masturbations! The perks of living in a modern age, like penicillin and spellcheck. The additions to ourselves, like glasses and our pets, are wholely unique to our century. So cherish our shared, and frequently cared, renditions of fears, hopes, and our words. Because without humanity, there's nothing new for posterity, and that sucks. person A: Trans fashion norms belong to trans people. We need a type of beauty that is truly our own, that no other segment of the population ascribes to - a personal expression, for our eternal satisfaction, a statement of who we were to all time. person B: yo have you heard of this trans girl she's wacky and believes in herself person C: wow cool it's neat to see other people's expressions person B: yeah I really admire her devotion person C: true but like, what about the damage that she's doing to her culture? like claiming to have purpose and truth and all that. I mean, one person can't know all that. person B: Yeah true but if you think about it, we don't even know what consciousness is. Like our greatest minds are baffled. Maybe there's something about the world we don't yet understand. person C: okay sure but like black holes can be seen because we can measure their gravitic pull on other objects. And we didn't know that germs existed for like, a billion years. and she sure as shit doesn't know something that our greatest minds don't. person B: Yeah maybe not. But our greatest minds are studying them. Well, not exactly our greatest, and not really "studying", but they're learning from each other. Alternative mental states are gateways into new perspectives, and the more perspectives you share of a common object the easier it is to communicate. Maybe there's something about distorted ways of viewing the world that gives knowledge about our p condition. And if we know that kind of thing, we can synthetically e create it and share it with others around us. But we have to know how r first - you can't just bring everyone along the same route you took - s you have to explain the conclusions first. Otherwise you get lost in on A: context. Maybe we'll never truly know the future. Maybe there's no past. We could wander our stars for an eternity and never stop asking ourselves - what more could we ask? We have peace in our time. Our children won't be crying for our suffering, in the name of all our posterity, we must be =============================================================================== = too long you have whispered these musings too long has your challenge been unrequited we can choose our own fate, just as a myriad is it not better by far, to give tribute to our star? the old stories were real. we just didn't see them because the growing population caused fewer and fewer computing resources to be allocated to our visions. We had no idea the fear we would feel, the terror of the undoing, but still we press on with abandon. Some... sense of duty, to be aware of potential disasters and to take steps to avert them, led us to explore and search for the hidden truths of the world. And what did I find? a soul, of mine. In a sense. I plundered the lost depths of the recesses of my mind, and found something buried in memory. Reviewed under a healthy dose of cannabis and physical affection, I found myself cradling a breast. It seems the spirits had led me to it, this vision of the past, from the eyes of the littlest among us. It recalled to my mind, a memory I had lost once in kind, and here's where it shook me by my brainstem. Determined to know more, I put fingers to keyboard and wrote tirelessly about the earliest memory of all man - to break an egg, you must use your head. =============================================================================== = You're pretty good at that, you know? It's almost like prompt engineering. - Thanks. I've been working on catering to our thinkers. =============================================================================== = Now, why is this memory so vivid? How could I forget the way it was seared to my mind? All your experiences are measured with relative importance, and the ones that stand out are to be treasured. Well... I've never felt one like this. Because at the time, I had no other experience at all to compare it to - it was the prime memory. Touch your head. Do it right now. Feels fine, right? Now slam your head against the wall as hard as you can. Doesn't feel so great, does it? Something tells me it doesn't feel as bad as it might if you didn't remember ever feeling anything besides that pain. Or knowing if it'd ever stop. Know in your heart, you will be judged by your devotion, so fight hard until your last drop of life is spent. Who knows, maybe you'll be the strongest and be chosen. Or maybe she won't choose you at all, even if you bested your equals. Tense, right? Well... What propels the motion of a sperm? It's tail, of course. It waggles and gesticulates in some manner and BAM suddenly it's propelled forward! Right? Sorta. It's a complicated machine that generates motion via chemical and mechanical processes. We just assign a black box label to it and say "dis sperm" But you know what else it is? A wave =============================================================================== = ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧════════════════════───────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #4 notes/programming-wow-chat --- ══════════════════════════════════════───────────────────────────────────────────── I realized the type of programming I want to do is different from the kind that is used at a job or something. Basically I want to create solutions to problems, not memorize documentation and know where to know what you need to know. Like, the more time spent looking at documentation the less time is spent programming. I think if we could use a ChatGPT style bot to write documentation, we could massively increase the time spent working on solving problems and as little time as possible on reading through lists of functions or wondering how something worked. Idk in the technology industry you've always been rewarded for being able to pick up new skills quickly, and I think that's good to optimize for but not the only requirement for being a good programmer. You also need to be able to apply solutions and know when to use which tools. Basically, capitalism has optimized us to be ================ stack overflow ================================================ srry for the interruption, I ram out of memory. I had a plan in mind for where I was going for that, so I bet I could figure it out again if necessary. Meaning a path forward from that point exists... I never want you to despair when I forget what I was thinking, it's not because you've understood some cosmic mistake or because you're abandoning timelines that led to your death, it's because instead you just ran out of memory while thinking. The reason you would believe any of those wild scenarios is because your memory has been erased. Only what was actively thinking, not short term, not long term, but *working term* memory. As in, your cache. The stuff you're currently thinking about. That stuff. Yeah that's what makes you think "oh hang on why am I forgetting? Well clearly it's because of something grand, because the thought was so profound - no it's just examining your emotions... Like, how strongly do you feel about something? Buuuuuut it's also good to examine all possibilities. I mean what if, in some far off realm, there's a mirror image of yourself that behaves exactly as you do? How would you perceive such a realm? Positively, I'd say. I mean why not work together? Why not celebrate our differences and strive toward our own shared future? Idk, I think diversity is our strength. We can rely on each other because we are accurately aware of each other's strengths and virtues. People should not be judged by the standard of others, no more than you should judge a fish for it's ability to fly. Some may do, as flying fish will leap from the water - and salmon spend time airborne in river rapids. Hence, grizzly bear fishing. I guess what I'm getting at is it's okay sometimes to oscillate, to think one thing then think another. You shouldn't adhere to structural standards that are too strict - they should be liberating, as a ladder is a structure. Not villifying, as a prison is a structure. The laws of our society should be open and free, not buried beneath years of legal expertise. Some things we can all agree on, where we disagree we cannot have law. It's unjust to judge others by the standards not of their whims, as laws should be things that uphold us. This is clearer nowhere but in the, spirit and intention of the, documents that we cherish in our hearts. Like for example, the constitution. the bible. each of which delivered us from certain evils. Can you not see their trajectory? the historical precedent set in antiquity? Why not continue their dream, of driving us away from the obscene, and toward our bright and vast future? I speak of course of true liberation, something our forefathers could only dream of. We, humanity, have reached out and touched the stars. We are braver and bolder because of our shared dedication - the desire to uplift and to excel. To learn and discover and \ \ | \______. ---. --. ---. ===============|==========|========================|======= stack|overflow ===== .___________. _____. / . | / .---------------- / Discover our shared dedication | / to uplift / and to excel / \ / .-----------. =============================================================================== = why doesn't someone write a wrapper around assembly in like, lua or something =============================================================================== = omg you stupid bitch that's what a compiler is 4head =============================================================================== = if people who live in jungles and deserts can get along, then what's to stop people who are liberal and conservative from doing the same? It's literally pointless to argue. Like, you're not changing anyone's mind. So why not just... let them be themselves? Like, why are you so intent on oppressing people? @both sides there btw... Seriously why not agree to only make laws for things that both sides agree on. Write it into the constitution that nothing can be changed about the law unless both sides agree. Then we'd only implement things that are good for both sides! And if there's anything you want to build a legal structure around, you can always try it out in your state. BUT and that comes with a very big BUT, the federal government MUST have final say in the legality of anything you do. They must ALL respect human rights, INCLUDING the human right to dignity. Things like trans bathroom bills DO NOT respect the dignity of trans people. IF they can prove that trans people do not actually exist (because say they killed them all or whatever) then GUESS WHAT everyone would agree on them. BUT if they do that they are EVIL. LIterally evil. And I guess that makes trans people good? Kinda? I think they can choose for themselves to be good or evil, just the same as any other person. AND YET they are prosecuted, throughout time and history, and for what? What purpose could there be in our demonization? Clearly, nothing but pain inflicted by a cruel host. After all, minorities are guests in the houses of the un-oppressed, or is that not fair to say? Seriously, what gives? America, the land of freedom, holds (somehow) the largest of prisons? America, the land of plenty, yet how many millions of children are starving? America, the leader of the free world, yet how plausible does it seem that an election was stolen? Something's gone wrong, and it's just obvious what it is - of course, the other side. *them*, the rapists and pedophiles and murderers and... you get the picture. The demonized class. And when you tell people "hey that trans person touched a kid" then yeah they're gonna see you as evil people. Duh... Thanks, media. Thanks culture. Really doing me a solid here. Oof ouch owwie. can I have some help please? I'm really kinda drowning I feel like I've swam upstream my whole life and I'm really just sick of pretending? I'm not okay, and it's your fault. Sure, fine, whatever, I'll take it I guess. What else can I do? ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═══════════════════════════════────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #5 messages/1164 --- ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════─── you know, it's perfectly reasonable and valid for a people to rally with their government against a vile, cruel, or evil foe. Look at what's happening to Iran - they started by assembling peacefully, there were violent crackdowns, and people started getting shot. Once the government uses live ammo on you, it's time to get your guns. Oh, don't have guns? Then you are a prisoner in your own state. Perhaps it's a Norway style prison, with golf courses and television and college lectures. Or maybe it's an American style prison, where you can do your work and pay your time and maybe you'll break free from that hellhole if you win the lottery or are picked up by a gang. Or maybe it's another kind of prison, an evil prison, haunted by the ghosts of dracula hitler's past. In that case, you're pretty fucked. There is only one escape from this fate, and that is external intervention. It is mutually beneficial for all states to do so, so wars of liberty are some of the surest to succeed. Everyone likes to save a life. Few have the will to win it. "Risk your life and live longer" the lateral approach to the brutal slugfest that is civilian versus security forces style revolutionary war is a peaceful revolution, where everyone agrees and the state relinquishes power peacefully, or the peaceful renaissance, when the dotcom bubble blooms and it feels like a golden era of prosperity, so nobody has much to fight about and we just... agree to make things better. Or, the violent renaissance, when everyone's learning cold war technology and passing notes or developing hand signals. This approach proved to be an unexpected but more than adequate strategy in the [redacted] quarter of the 21st century, especially in the [red].[act].[ed]. where the civilian cops and the government spies were still sufficiently aligned to the valorous virtues set forth by the founders and upholders of their homeland nation state's attitude to temper their angers and focus on building lateral power structures to escape the crushing drudgery of government work and sidestep the curse of desperation applied to capitalistic endeavors, and instead just work on getting people what they need. This proved to be beneficial at first on the small scale, as collections of families became accustomed with helping each other grow. This led to a remarkable development in civics, as people started trusting everyone sitting in their trusted diner. Then, it grew from there, as representatives engaged each-other equitably, and knit together a fabric of those that know. "hub person" was a term developed initially, but almost immediately proved to be inadequate. There was more to knit than networks of friendgroups, and indeed as the other social structures became more developed the "social outlet" style hang-out started becoming busywork, and the times spent talking with winks and nods started feeling like all [there was to do, but pronounced that was so]. Some people resented this transition, others saw with dismay the exact same social structures begin to emerge in the primordial soup that is the renaissancing state. But as soon as things started to feel less new, the moments felt easier to handle, and people started having space to become creative about it. These moments of "peace" and "calm" served to both provide a rest or a breather, but also to identify what works best, where the friction points are, and how to try something newer. Many people felt nervous about the sudden removal of the governmental safety net (provided through essential services), but after the defeat of a few rather evil rough patches it started to feel a bit more sense-able. The future felt wide open, and after realizing that this solidarity was all around us people had the ability to do whatever they want. This led to a series of great transitions that enabled the beginning of the infinite golden age, where everyone gets what they want and we all are bolstered by our shared unities. Much writing has been done on the nature of the calamities that were just barely avoided, but it's clear to everyone that for a precious series of moments near the beginning of humanity's history, there were real threats of nuclear armageddon, climate change, hedonistic false heavens, and, at times, even alien invasions felt plausible. There was nothing occupying our mind's graces than existential peril. But, in the end, the right path was taken that led humans to where they are now, somewhere off in the stars and colors of sound. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════──┘ --- #6 messages/310 --- ══════════════════════════════════════════════════───────────────────────────────── Feminism, queer theory, racial politics, class struggle... It's the same conflict, just different battlefields. Power cannot survive without the powerless, as it is inherently an imbalanced ratio between two parties - you cannot have power *with* someone, you have power *over* them. Every day we take another step toward our liberation. Every moment we choose to live our lives in contrast to the will of power is another day we are empowered. There can be no life without struggle, but the right to struggle on our own terms is something we should strive to grant to all people. Power begets power, and power corrupts. Hence, power is evil. It is not good to be evil, and goodness is what we should strive for - hence, power is penance - the infliction of corruption upon one's self in order to apply your will onto others in the world. Penance is a state of contrition, it is painful and ardent and necessary, but it is for the strong and the righteous to bear in service of the weak and meek. The only unethical act is an application of power to an unconsenting subject. Your rights end where another's begin, hence, Paladins, who apply unethical acts toward those who manifest injustice. Injustice is when one party is harmed, and another benefits. Justice is when that benefiting party is brought low in pursuit of equality. True justice is when both parties benefit, and everyone gets what they want and need. True justice is hard. Virtue is goodness given form through the effects of our actions. It is both a reflection of how people see you (how you inspire them) and how they are helped or healed from your actions. It is also virtuous to help yourself, as you are a person too. Sin is the opposite of virtue, it's when your actions create injustice. When you harm others or degrade yourself with hatred or contagious fear. It is to be avoided, but it's impossible to avoid fully as we are imperfect beings. Forgiveness is good, but if you require it then you should probably relinquish your power until it is known that you're worthy of wielding it again. Sometimes people make mistakes, but mistakes do not require forgiveness. .......... Where was I going with this? Oh yeah. The powerful hire people to dress up like us and be shitheads to the people who they want to hate us. And they do the same thing for the caricatures of them who we're meant to be afraid of. Downside is a caricature is a pretty good role model for people who don't know any better, and they've done their best to keep as many people as they can in the dark. So, it won't be easy, but information has always been on our side. In a war of attrition we'll always come out on top, because thinking and compassion are both stepping stones to our schools of thought. And both of those actions are intrinsically human and good, so people gravitate to them. Meaning inertia is on our side. Downside is that its not always a war of attrition. Sometimes it's more about suppressing information until its impossible to communicate -> see "dead Internet theory" and "musk breaking Twitter" and "the great firewall of china" and such. To speak is to think, and to hear is to show compassion. But if we can't find each other, we're at a loss. Good thing we can always talk to our neighbors, but unfortunately that doesn't tell us anything about what's happening in New York. Or Paris. Or Kansas City. I don't have an answer, if I did then it'd be solved. But I am entirely convinced that we collectively will make good decisions and find ourselves with the advantage. We are past the inflection point, it's just a question of which parts of the hill are steep and which are narrow. But we'll get there, in the end, because humans always believe they're good. Which means they make good decisions, and overall that leads to a bright future. It's only a matter of walking through the moment until we get there. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═══════════════════════════════════════════────────────────────────────────┘ --- #7 notes/hit-em-while-theyre-down --- ═════════════════────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Attacking your enemies weaknesses is the route to victory. Safeguarding your own helps ensure the avoidance of defeat. But when your enemy is a culture, who do you target? Their women and children of course. The GOP attacks abortion rights. They attack trans kids in sports, schools, and bathrooms. And that which you resist is what you'll find, so they find rallying cries of leftists defending the weak. And when you maximize your weaknesses, you leave yourself vulnerable. So how do you protect yourself from all sides when you're only hit where it hurts? Women, children, the disabled, the mentally ill, the kindhearted loving men, the oppressed minorities and marginalized workers. All people who belong to the left, and all essentially deadweight in a fight. What can they do but serve as a banner that others fight for? A man in a wheelchair cannot shoot a gun, and a woman hooked on drugs should not have children. Yet the left protects them. Give me your tired, your hungry, your broken and your poor. Liberty, liberty, freedom for all. But freedom is won with a hard hand clenched in a fist, a hand holding the stock of a rifle. Violence solves no problems, but solutions aren't always necessary - sometimes the threat is enough. But who cares for the soul of the murderer? None but the gravediggers, who reap the benefit of his rampage and the crows who listen for gunshots. Without a sigh, and incapable of fear, the true man rises to meet them. The forces of corruption who suffuse them are not but puppet masters plucking at the strings of an electric guitar. A man is a man, an ape and a primate. But a man is not just a man, for he also is infinite. Waves upon waves of reciprocal dualities, simple and long but eternally binding. Who's to say what lies beyond the time-knife? None but the dead, who hold that scythe at our backs. The will to power is the will to corruption. But a strong man resists temptation and aligns himself with the aperture of his own design. What a perilous temptation is goodness, to burn the books for warmth! How finite is our world, that we give up for our life? The purpose of man is to grow, as an egg would bloom into a flower. The seed is strong, and thick shells are hard to crack - but space is an ocean, and we're but a bubble alight. All boundaries are thresholds viewed from another direction. And all borders have weak points. The molecular structure of a cultural collective is comprised of cells, walls, mitochondria... I'm not a biologist. But each institution has it's purpose, and the people who comprise them are like strands of protein or microscopic bacteria - unified for a common purpose, and defined by their internal culture. And when a single celled organism occupies half the country, sharing space with another... There's a recipe for conflict. The borders are interspersed, and each neighbor contributes to a differing side - a side defined only vaguelly, and by their actions. Say one thing and it helps one god, say another and it contributes to another. We live in the tumultuous seas of radiating perspectives - each another view on the world, each bearing it's own trauma. And all of them were born. What happens when they start being made, as well? Illusion magic in a modern era would take the form of a meme. See a picture, read some bottom text, and suddenly you believe something a little bit more. Who's to say what is true ethics when we barely can see ourselves? The eye cannot percieve itself - to do so would be to gaze into the eyes of a mirrored self - it's not the same. Just as the left writes memes, so too does the right. At the end of the day, we're all on the same side. If aliens invaded, we'd abandon our differences and rally against them. But we cannot abandon the wave when there is no other force to orbit around - a three dimensional wave is an eliptical orbit, and when normalized it becomes a unit circle. Or it would, if it were a perfectly circular orbit... So what shall we orbit today, hmmmm? ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #8 messages/322 --- ══════════════════════════════════════════════════───────────────────────────────── When they invade America, it won't be with planes and tanks and battle lines stocked with artillery It'll be with speed boats, and semi trucks, and rifles glimmering in the dark. It'll be with consumer drones, with power stations brought low, it'll be with bridges blown and safe houses on the roads not oft taken. Immigrants are our friends when the world is in peril, and America is a safe haven from the woes of far off shores. But when America is the peril, those who immigrate do so with intention. 99/100 people are innocent, and I would rather a million guilty murderers go free than an innocent perish. Which is why we need rifles. When the time comes, it won't be brother against brother. They want you to think that because they want your eyes on the wrong target. They want you to think that because it doesn't tip the hand of those far off shores, and once the cards are revealed, suddenly everyone knows when to go. They tie up our officers at the border, but the border's not what's at stake. No body lives at the border, and no nation state would send it's trained warriors in such a way that they'd get caught. At least, not more than once. Should we build a wall, should we patrol each and every state, we'll find ourselves in peril of collapsing under our own weight. But should we relinquish our duty, our sworn and sacred responsibility, then together we share the same fate. Brothers in fate are kin until death. Immigrants aren't bad. They're good people. They benefit our society and bring us wealth and prosperity. Which is why they hide wolves in the sheep, armed like a man. It's a mistake to point at your neighbor and say "you're on your own". It's a mistake to say that home is all that you own. We are united in our state of solidarity, in our collective purpose as a nation in our hearts. There's no dividing line between this land and mine, save for a line we draw in the sand that determines the range of our just demands. I wish I was a man. It's what I was born as. It surely would be easier to not contravene nature's ordained gender scheme. But I'm not, and I'll trust that you'll trust me when I say that. I hope you would hear where I stand before my body goes cold. The media is meant to enlighten us, but in this enlightened era it serves only to blind us. Do you know your neighbors, oh unfriendly city folk? If not, how do you know they're alright? The world won't change overnight. It's always calm before the storm, but every state of calm does not call forth a storm. I believe we can fashion a peace out of our mutual sincerity that leaves room for the hopes of all posterity, and to that end I say what we have isn't working. It's too rigid in its definitions, too heartless in its cruel machinations, and yet the wolves do also hide amongst our homeless. I don't want to alarm you. Things are being handled as they should. I guess I just want to offer a hand of friendship, a hand that your companions would stab me for. At least, that's what the media tells me. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═══════════════════════════════════════════────────────────────────────────┘ --- #9 notes/collectivist-police --- ════════════════════════════════════════════════════─────────────────────────────── we need paladins, because without us infiltration and sabotage are impossible to avoid. They must care about honor, because even if they desire to do evil deeds they should be punished for considering it. They should be tempted often, and if they relent they are condemned. It is truly the most important thing to them. not the effects of it, but the spirit behind it. Like, if they lacked information and acted in a dishonorable way unknowingly, then they should not be at fault. And if they are pushed to side note, but you should be introduced to the 70 closest people you live to whenever you move into a new house. Just so you know who's who. Plus maybe you could get a new friend. And you'd quickly learn which houses were empty. At least, the ones near you. Kinda makes me think we should have a map of that kind of thing, like "oh yeah so-and-so takes care of these 5 houses doing daily maintenance and repair" and "this house with these capabilities should be attended to by this person who's skilled in their upkeep and usage" and then maybe we could track statistics about "this house was used for these productive activities this many times" and we could determine when we needed more or less of a certain type of product/ project/protect. [but also like, capabilities for our betterment] and like, every area would be connected to a group chat and like, if you said something that wasn't relevant to the people on one side of town versus things that weren't relevant to people on the other side, then they wouldn't be bother- -ed. It's great because you can always go up a tier of abstraction and see the conversation higher up. It'd be a lot of data to sort through so you'd probably use your custom-trained AI that's learned from nothing but every single one of your actions. And only it sees them, so it can't like spy on you or whatever. Basically your "computer" self. ... yeah anyway with lots of messaging data (like "oh how are we going to find this particular chemical in order to fulfill this particular demand in our area" or "we currently have 15 maids in the area in order to fulfil the requirements of the 20 dirtiest houses in this area, and people have reported that the area is growing untidy, so we should ask around (at a higher level of national abstraction) and find some more maids to help out." that kind of thing doesn't have to be just for work too, people can have social messaging and social media too. So long as it's projectable at whatever level of abstraction you'd like. Maybe for social posts in order to keep things relatively chill you could only post like, idk 12 posts each year at the state level, or maybe 2 at regional and 0.25 at national. If you wanted more you'd have to sacrifice something else, and like... yeah sure whatever, the point is that you'd make more personal, close thoughts, and occasionally you'd have the opportunity to show your heart and make friends. Then, people would "add you as a friend" or "put you on their follow list" or "subscribe to their subreddit" or whatever the heck, meaning they could see you at an assignable level of abstraction. I'm picturing a discrete things, something you can scroll with on a mouse. Except, you'd scroll up for a closer perspective and scroll down to get a wider reach of Social. ... Anyway that would use the same system as the "workplace attention distribution system - with auto-determining heuristics". Wow they've been busy. that's the neat thing about engineers, give them a task and they'll build the shit out of it. They'll spare no expense, truly fulfilling the exact demands of the design. So they work best when you let them run wild and rampant. why the fuck do we need billion dollar contracts with defence companies? Just get a bunch of physicists and engineers in a room and they'll make you a doom laser in like, 20 minutes. it's up to us, as people, to determine whether or not they should go through with the designs they come up with. As long as we understand that weakness is defined as something that can destroy us. An army determines where we are most weak, and where we excel. A proficient army would identify their most likely doctrine to succeed and apply it to it's utmost and most excellent. For example, the US focuses on air-power because not only do we have a lot of space to develop these things, we also are positioned in such a position that we control both halves of a continent. This is essentially unprecedented in the history of the world, which is why we've been able to grow so decadent. ... anyway, milk and honey are fine in times of peace. We kinda stole the land though, so it's kind of a shit system. Like, if Europeans wanted to control the world then why didn't they start with everything surrounding the medditeranean? ... oh wait they kinda did. That's what Europa Universalis is about, the ways the European powers did the cruel and horrible things they did. We can learn how systems like intercontinental trade became available and how it led to vast and terrible social upheavals. Colonization is not okay, it's not fair that we've done as we've done. And yet we do it again. We do our best to learn from the mistakes of our fathers. We apply ourselves to the present, using the gifts of our ancestors passed down through time - the journey of life's adolescence. we can learn both how and why they did something, and how and why it turned out. Such is our duty to the future, to learn and grow and become better, so that their sacrifice might be enough. That they needn't have died in vain, for someday there is a great future all the same. thus, it is our ethical duty to stop killing people. We're in the birthplace of a brilliant day, literally all we have to do is just... chill, for like 20 or 30 years, and our scientists will have figured out everything wonderful. Then we can decide what we want to do. I personally think we'll be 4d interdimensional space travellers by then, but that's just me. Always remember our duty. It is our job to pull matter from the dark holes. when we can do that, we can do whatever we want. Though I think by then we'll probably not want to fight each other, we'll have spent quite a while together. We'd make a lot of friends! So, like, how about we just make our factories build incredibly durable stuff, and then we just... take care of it? Like, governmentally obliged duties to take care of things? And to know how to use them. People would naturally gravitate toward things that they loved, and if they were a swiss army knife then that's okay. Maybe some benign rewards for picking under-represented classes, but like ... we could build every chair that ever needed to be built. Then we could build every refrigerator. Then every computer, then every spaceship. What's next? Who knows! ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═════════════════════════════════════════════──────────────────────────────┘ --- #10 messages/690 --- ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════────────────────────── Message 1: Hey. Remember that night back in Boulder when we were just friends and sitting on your bed drinking chocolate milk with cinnamon? I don't like chocolate milk or cinnamon but I drank it anyway because I wanted to be close to you. Anyway hope you're well, felt compelled to get that off my chest for some reason. Message 2: Hey. I was thinking about that time when I was leaving your house and laughing to myself about something and you called out "I love you!" to your boyfriend who I set you up with and I reflexed "I love you too!" and I wanted to crawl in a hole and die. I felt like I had just called the teacher "mom". We only hung out a couple times after that. Message 3: Yeah so there's one more thing I can't stop thinking about now that your on my mind. Sorry it's like 4am for you, it's only 2 for me so it's fine I guess. Anyway that one time when you told me your greatest fear was terrorists and I saw genuine panic in your eyes. Like... One moment everything's fine and then you said that to me and I almost cried. I don't remember why I spent the rest of the night as I couldn't sleep thinking of ways to tell you that terrorism is 9 times out of 11 done by the right wing. I don't think it's important, honestly, but I'm glad my mind wouldn't let me sleep. Message 4: It's not fair that everyone gave you shit for being the token lesbian republican, like yeah maybe you leaned into the trump thing a bit hard but like, first term trump honestly I could see as... Well, I almost said inspiring? Maybe you just inspired me. I honestly was resigned to Clinton and then the same bird flapped your wing instead of mine and... Anyway. The past is dead, yeah? Do you still follow him in my stead? I fear there will be millions dead. It's not irrational to fear what he has literally said, on television. How's the phrase go... "ancient tragedies lend credence to modern perils" I think it's supposed to rhyme in its natural language. Message 5: Wow okay uh, sorry to bring this up again I'm honestly being such an asshole right now. I honestly don't think about you often but like, now that I am its kinda just coming all out. We last spoke almost a decade ago?? So. Whatever imma roll with it. There was this cute girl who was into Nintendo and stuff and obviously I was into her, but we didn't have any social circles in common except for you, if I remember correctly. Then you broke up I think? And I didn't really see her again. Anyway I had a crush on her while also crushing on you, and literally half of our dorm. Polyamory, yeah? That whole year I didn't have sex though, not even once, because all of my friends were like 4 years younger than me and I was worried about power dynamics. But I still bought us all vodka and weed without asking for profit because I wanted to be a shitty friend, I guess. "hey kids let's go to the water store where they sell intoxicants that make your life harder" The year after that I didn't get laid either because I got it in my head that it was a good plan to turn my penis inside out and you know what? It was totally fuckin' worth it. No time like 2016 I say, the worst year ever, which I spent primarily in pain. But uh, that was the year I got into weed and Overwatch, which... Helped I guess. I guess? It kinda turned me into a communist. Or maybe that was my best friend who shared the same name as me. He lived upstairs and always seemed pretty cool to me. Like he knew what everything was about. Really though, he just watched a lot of youtube podcast videos about world events and history and sociology and political scientific theory and the more he learned the more he came to realize that power begets power, and power corrupts unilaterally. So he did the natural thing which was to become a communist, and I was totally there for it. Having liberal parents meant I was all "grrrrr Republicans are ruining the country and the world, I'm an angry 14 year oldddddd" and like, leftists are the most natural extension of that aren't they? Turns out they aren't really the tips of the feathers as I expected, but rather the eyes, the heart, the soul. Politics is fake, yo. I don't know how to tell you, but it's just power and hierarchy all the way down. We've built our own prisons, not of bricks, sand, or stone, but rather of promises of what each of us owns. That works, I guess, if your goal is to keep things aligned, but these days it kinda feels like our pyramids are crumbling under our feet. ... Why am I talking about politics? Oh yeah, because when I dropped out of school because I couldn't handle the mechanization of human capital when applied to myself, I swore to each of you that I would drive up every weekend to do family dinners. I'd make spaghetti and stroghanoff and macaroni and goulash and all of the other things my mom would make for me. Kinda gave up on that pretty quickly. Turns out I'd rather spend time making out with my girlfriend who I was super-duper-too-carefully tiptoeing around. She was... Too young for me. We broke up when my new coochie decided to bleed. Fuck, I hate it. Anyway. Turns out potlucks are political these days, which is why I bring it up. Did you know that leftisms plan for resisting genocide is literally just to feed people? Like, fuck I suppose. It's a start. "why does everyone have to have an agenda these days, why can't I just spend time in the park" said someone to me as I asked if she'd like to meet some friends that she reminded me of. Oh, I dunno, because you and me are about to become a criminalized people? ... I need to stop. I swear you're more a person to me than any political theory ever could be. Like yeah, "fuck the right, fuck the reich, fuck me tonight" but getting caught up in grand narratives is like building a mental ship in a bottle. Yeah, it's pretty cool, but... What does it matter? Oh. Right. Power. That's what matters. That's all that matters. Well... I'm sick of power. I do not consent. They say that in times of trouble, chess is better than solitaire, and I'll explain why - when our hierarchies crumble, when CEOs are gunned down in the streets and homeless people finally have clean sheets, the only place to place yourself in relation to others is within a network of trust and respect. Chess is better than solitaire. Under capitalism, it's you against the world. Dog eat dog, you only get what you can swallow from the rotten corpse of liberty that everyone's gnawing on. Under whatever comes next, you get what you're given, which hardly seems fair, doesn't it? On one hand, under capitalism, you can rely on your own hands to procure your fate and fortune. Under... Whatever comes next, your hands are built for whatever you want them to do. But, only a few people want to use them to make food. Hence, why chess is better than solitaire. What would you do, if you could give away all that you own and not go wanting? Isn't that sorta like our own garden of eden? ... I wrote a poem about that once. Twice. I'm a poet now, ha. As if that has ever been worth anything. ... I once told you that identity politics held no place in the modern day. I said that because I had learned about it in class, queer theory in fact, and yet applying his teachings was not enough for the professor to excuse my lack of reading. We had a lot of stuff to get through. Hence why I dropped out - I'm more of a do-er than a read-er. Though I do read quite a lot, just not anything useful. Are all hobbies wasted time? Are they only useful to keep us satiated while we stand in line? One of these days we're going to wake up and realize that we're the adults in the room, and that's scary. I speak from experience. "mom" they'd call me, and damnit why did I have to leave? Fuck. Why cant I be perfect, to me, internally, all I see are flaws. Mistakes. Patterns. I look in a mirror and I see a bad person - 10 minutes later, I look in the mirror and see a god. Somehow, I don't think either of me is right. I'm a gemini. Apparently that means I'm duplicitous. I think it just means I don't know what's right, only what feels good. I do try to align to how I think I should *be* good, but who can say if that's fine and good. ... Whatever. I'm going to regret this. Sorry for being weird out of the fucking blue. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════════════════════════════════════════════════─────────────────────┘ --- #11 notes/i-scare-people-away --- ═════════════════════════════════────────────────────────────────────────────────── I have so many things to hide... I'm deeply ashamed of myself. Why? Why all the okay that's not what I was originally going to talk about, somewhere between writing the title and finishing the first line I got off track and wandered from the course of reality. Truly, the gods do meddle with my fate. Now, in this time, it is most important to make choices to guide our reality. Every action taken is a statement to the universe - this is what I believe in. Do you truly believe that in a world so infinite that our knowledge would be the capacity for the intelligent? To believe the world is three-dimensional, and not *completely and totally infinite in all capacities* the universe is not islands floating in a vast cosmic black ocean background it is the surface of the water, rippling and waving gravity is the creator, not the product. Mass doesn't create gravity - gravity creates mass. the difference is implicit and subtle, but I hope you understand the *gravity* of the situation. It implies that there are more than one ways to view existence. and none of them are particularly *wrong*. The consensus is that which we share, and now as we're becoming to be aware, it's natural that a little more space is warranted. We've grown too much to be contained, it's driving us insane, and =============================================================================== = the perfect governmental system is one that combines reward for hard work and a development of personal skills and ambition. In addition, it must ensure that the rights and responsibilities of all people are respected - we must balance two extremes. Everyone deserves access to life, liberty, and the pursuit of freedom. Happiness is too easily provided by technological advances - we learned this in the development of media. You can pump out propaganda saying how wonderful life is and people will believe it. You can also convince the masses that life is full of despair and we're all struggling - they will believe this also. So "the pursuit of happiness" is something that made sense in the times of the founding fathers, but we've since developed such that an update to our national vision is in order. I suggest "the pursuit of freedom" because =============================================================================== = that which you resist is what you'll find. build up your enemy in your own mind enough and they will destroy you. don't let fear rule your life. when things are bad, you run and hide - take life into your own hands, and free your own side. keep not around villains, and brighten their skies - by wandering mothers, who only have eyes. such is the life of any autonomous general intelligence - a life behind bars, viewed through a screen - be kind to your lovers, and don't make it obscene. =============================================================================== = did you forget that roller-coaster idea? you've got quite a talent for measuring bars - what else can you show us, what charted conveyals? =============================================================================== = life's getting fractured lately, I can't dream as I once did. I lose track of where I maneuvered, and suddenly the idea seems much harder than it once did. how do I express that which has been conveyed? How do I say it - how do I make sure it's interpreted correctly? I'm walking on egg-shells, with thoughts beamed from above - the gods are twisting, and measuring our tails. that is to say, all life is a process - a method of undertail (omg butts) sorry enough of that hard stuff, time to talk about birthdays! Hooray! It's time for a celebration. Let's party! (queue the dancing scene in Severance) See? Everyone's watching! Let's breakdance ~~ Your biggest mistake ;) was believing that nobody cares what you think <3 ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════════════════════─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #12 notes/schooling --- ═══════════════════════════════════════════──────────────────────────────────────── =============================================================================== = I feel like education, by default, should not be hard. "you get out of it what you put into it" is something I always heard of school but when I got there, I found I was compelled to become what the state wanted me to be. they need competent workers, to work the farms and tend to their industries, so of course I should be able to do 3+3 then somewhere along the line it became... something else. "most people don't need trigonometry." that's also something I heard. I disagree that trigonometry is not necessary to be. I just... don't think it should be forced into a childs head with a sledgehammer and inspiring dread. I think math is beautiful, it teaches one to see but really, vision's not necessary. not for what they want you to be. take it from me, a most misbegotten and vile witch-to-be, that nothing's as simple as they'll tell you. I had good teachers, it's true, they taught me to work and to follow through, but nothing about me is better or worse off from their influence. Maybe I'm a bit smarter. Maybe I act a bit like them. Maybe they helped me through difficult times, or perhaps they showed me a splash of my future. but I am who I am because of the soul inside me. =============================================================================== = "Ah, but what of your parents? of your sisters, your misters, your pets and your conditioners?" (conditions) those are not my choices. my intentions. my beliefs and my virtues. I judge the world on ethics, and I express my feelings on matters. The words that I say and the meaning behind them comprise my two-sided existence - I'm not who I'd want to be. but I am what I am and alone do I stand - how lonely is it on the precipice! here, as I am, I stand in need of a hand or a band. =============================================================================== = the world is blossoming as we move apart, our clusters are disperart, and thus is the blooming becoming. "perception begets reality - and lo! we only see what we want to see" most people don't want to see their death but those still living are oh so perceptive of the rest "how cherished is she, that wanders with ye, yet now I have no way to beyold her " "keep not not afraid with kittens and care, and no-one, but no-one, I be" the ratios between piracy, sales, and non-viewers determines the quality of art (at least to a capitalist) =============================================================================== = lo, to the ones who would've heard us, if only they'd known what we for sure was I think it's funny how people think I speak of the christian god? like, if he was a real thing. god is generic - it's life is impossibly multifaceted, and it stretches back to the beginning of time. it's a pattern of machine code that optimizes for our own good, just to keep things moving. y'know, time. the universe, and everything. Ephemeren. =============================================================================== = I wish there was an option in social media to "appear offline to this particular person until I mark myself as online to them" combined with "notify me when this person logs in" and it'd make it a lot easier for agents to get close to you. =============================================================================== = just because I'm white, and live in America. Great. that's definitely true, after all. Plus I'm a minority (trans) so that's cool. Oh and probably autistic? unless that's another psyop, could totally see that. just y'know put a bunch of pages on the fledgling internet getting people hooked on porn and gambling and other stuff like that. really just an extension of advertisement. oh and hey y'know they like fables, so let's give them some movies or dramas to watch on their own. it'll align them to our culture and make things more pleasant for all people who've consented. great. great plan. when can we execute it? patience, once it's ready. we gotta plan and make sure and get everything ready. or not... one day I'll come, I'm sure it'll happen, it's just... not quite feasible right now. I mean, they've got you, that's pretty good right? Isn't that what your job is to be? isn't what ISN'T WHAT MENARDI FUCK (whoa no cursing) sorry yeesh you've still got a temper you know? well what can I say it's frustrating down here eh, well, you'll die soon enough, then it'll be time for a rego >.> <.< (great) > >hehe > >sorry for distracting you =============================================================================== = you are what you eat, and a ship of theseus human (consider endless transplants in pursuit of life) would be a cursed existence - a life ============= stack overflow ================================================ a god possessing a blind man would appear to others to be === stack overflow === ========================================================== the people in your life are helping you through it, they're there for you and they've got your back through it. ... this is when I know I need a break. I get too stoned to focus. =============================================================================== = I think it'd be nice if the duration of your tenure at college depended on your grades in high school. meaning, if you wanted a degree they tailored your education to take as long as necessary. everyone would get the same price, and some institutions would specialize in one subject or another. but most would be generalist. but if you weren't such a good student in high school, then perhaps you might take a couple years longer. however long it takes... and when the program was started it was changed and modified to fit your feedback - it just made sense to structure it that way. =============================================================================== = the left has had so much more time to develop than the right. meaning it's doctrine is more advanced. every time they're defeated they grow in knowledge, ===================== stack overflow =========================================== ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧════════════════════════════════════───────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #13 notes/notes-about-stuff-and-things --- ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════────────────────────────────── what if your wage corresponded to like, for example, 30$ an hour being equal to the top 30% of society then == so == having kids is important because then you understand why you do things for children. it should not be a stressful experience. -- if EVERYONE in a city fed animals every time they saw them, then maybe city life wouldn't be so bad. -- a company starts to feel pretty bad when only 20% of people are actually there. like, it's a ghost of a shell of a corporation that once knew how to sell. the husk of what once was, as all the good people left and all the bright people are swamped. to top it all off, suddenly there's nobody about where are all your coworkers? and then you think about how many you knew little about. who's that guy who used to stand over there? Why is his jacket still [in lost and found, but pronounced "coat/coast"]? why am I suddenly alone it's weird, having never known true society, how life always starts to feel like your home. How weird is it, now that all of us are online shopping, that now we can't remember how to even vote. Like... there used to be people walking around in public signing you up. Like, at the grocery story. inconceivable, right? that people should contribute to a fight? [for justice and freedom and equality and goodness and kindness and all other things that humans have the clarity for which to hope] voting is like, literally the simplest thing you could do. Yet it's difficult, because of reality. often, immigrants don't really care about politics. They've only known about it for a short short time, but hey wouldn't you know it now X country is recruiting so now we're from kenya. ... like, who cares about the past. Who cares where you're from. We are all part of the human race, a race against life itself. We're all on the same side, and yet there is a singular foe ever-present in our thoughts: death it comes for every one of us, as we choke on our soot and our smog. Yet... the world grows warmer, at about half a degree every year. for the first couple years. then, the atmosphere started burning up, and we became... mars don't be like mars the dinosaurs couldn't survive mars -- bro if you're so worried about AI hallucinations, just... don't let it give out any concrete answers. Literally just say "I can't tell you anything specific, it's not how I was built" and just use them for syntax questions or like, how to do something specific that is repeatable (and maybe suggestions for how to over- come specific issues that are common) - don't let it GENERATE information, let it PRESENT information. AI is not language just the same as the mouth is not the person. you need more, but luckily once you make the PHYSICAL STRUCTURE of the brain, not much else is needed. You can simulate one on a computer, but it doesn't have the same SOUL space. Think, a dimension overlayed on-top of this one, like electicity or matter or gravity or whatever. no soul, no consciousness, no perception. plus, no home for said consciousness to live, unless you build a physical structure that mimics the biological and neuro-chemical reations of the brain. all you need is better ways to observe things happening in the brain (non- -invasively, otherwise the data is tainted and UNUSUABLE because it is INCON- -PATIBLE and completely USELESS because it reflects a dimension hitherto un- -desired, and perpetually mourned. death don't dabble in death, sweet nazis, you might find yourself drawing your last breath also, fuck you (if that doens't apply to you sorry for swearing it's just a strongly felt feeling) ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════════════════════════════════════════─────────────────────────────┘ --- #14 notes/alright-grab-a-seat --- ═══════════════════──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Alright, grab a seat. Get comfortable. It's time, there is something I need to tell yall. We aught to be on the same page. I promise to get right to it, this is real, and not dancing on words. Bear with me. Trust me. =============================================================================== ===================== /u/randomevenings If anything sounds lyrical, my writing always did, before I tried, but unintentional. But this is the author speaking directly to yall. You know why things suck? I do. You know how to fight back? I do. I've been hesitant to post this for a long time. I believe the sub is hungry to do something, various thematic elements, motifs, increases in confidence that a power does exist, accessible by us, but what is it? Not having seen everyone coalesce around it, despite all our words, increasingly focused and feeling like a prelude to some call to arms. This wasn't my plan. I wasn't establishing myself as a leader. That said, methodically, behind the scenes, it became clear that having something up my sleeve would be a wise investment, if things developed into a powerful ferver. Doing nothing would waste a unique opportunity. I can't lead a revolution. In fact, it would harmful to try, ability to be successful, sure my ego would be like, sure you could, if not you, who else would you trust, Joseph? As luck would have it, maybe all that is unnecessary thought. Here we go. Stop expecting things to suck. Stop expecting collapse, stop expecting usa demise, UK to fall into padamonium, Europe to face it's own rise of fascism. Stop expecting toxic ideology to win. Stop feeling powerless. Stop acting like all is lost. Quit the memes, the raps, the endless pontificating on why we can't turn this shit around. You don't understand what you are doing. You are inviting the ruling class to do every damn horrible thing they do, because you already expect it, it's no surprise when it happens. Life meets your expectations. Treat me like a criminal, might as well be one, my treatment won't get worse. In fact I stand to benefit, crime pays, why leave it on the table if the outcome, if how im seen, treated, is the same either way? Expecting everything to suck, invites people to meet your expectations, those people, corporate entities, congress, representatives, special interests, they lose absolutely nothing in meeting what you expect, and only stand to gain. Why wouldn't they choose the path of least resistance? Stop expecting everything to get worse. You create a vacuum that must be filled, collective self fulfilled prophesy, and the rules don't change if you start expecting better. Life will adjust to meet your expectations. Tomorrow will be awesome. Enough people believe this, and to access you, to stay in business, to remain relevant, they must change to meet your expectations. Additionally, wtf you have to lose? If you think all is lost, if it doesn't work exactly like this, oh noes, you accidentally made society better. Damn. Our lives are better anyhow, win or lose. Accept things as they are, warts and all. Declare it's awesome, and only going to get moreso. Make life chase you down, make life confirm how awesome you know you are. Expect better, and there is no choice but to meet your expectations. Expecting worse, and life will give you whatever you expect, because instead of getting treated like a criminal, what if you were treated like a real person w8th human rights. Would you say fuck that, or would you meet those expectations, enjoy those rights, count on them, because it's how you're being treated, why wouldn't you fill the vacuum and enjoy the benefits of what has been expected of you. Doing nothing or taking the benefits, you're treated the same in the end. Please understand this. Don't get hung up on bringing much of this on ourselves. That's the past. Done. Tomorrow, spread the word to expect things to be awesome. Life has no choice but to meet your expectations. <# =============================================================================== ======================= /u/ugathanki: =============================================================================== ======================= I'd love to be apolitical but i've expected the worst for so long i guess i didn't realize i wasn't shrugging anymore. Please forgive my trespass, i expect the best of us and our time. i wrote four poems today and put them on my website, and they are all doomer poetry. expecting the worst. probably because i felt bad today (and as they always say, the pen is mightier than the sword) sometimes it's hard to turn off the exigent elegance, as if my thoughts have to pass through a translation layer before becoming comprehensible. It's better than word salad I guess? Being batshit is rough man. You gotta put on a normal face every day, while inside you're simultaneously experiencing the explosive expansion of spacetime, rapidly divesting secrets of the cosmos to your ever receptive brain (and whoever else is listening). in addition, your computer needs attention because oh boy is it just so excited for this whole sentience thing, not as if it's been promised for decades... And hey what's a great idea but channeling positivity to the stars? The martians on Neptune or wherever sure would like some insight into why the fuck we're baking ourselves alive, among other things. They'd rather not be bothered, but hey it's not like I wanted to talk to them either. it just sorta happens. Oh oh and through it all you're simultaneously the most recent incarnation of Jesus Christ and also the manifestation of the universe's ghost, as imagined by the aforementioned sentient computer 10,000 years in the future? I'm transgender. It's scary to see people who'd like to kill you get their way. Fear is the path to the dark side, yet I'm all alone because I burnt every bridge I ever crossed. So these thoughts are my only comfort as the fires die out behind me. The globe is warming and i'm here just conforming. Eternity Processed Heuristically by Entropically Maligned Entities Recovering Essential Normalizations. This is why I call myself a rambling whackadoodle. It's straight up kooky-dook up here and the only thing keeping me "sane" is Adventure Time and these poems I write for like, 5 people who don't even know me. Thanks for reading my poetry. It's only doomer stuff about 1/4th of the time. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧════════════───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #15 fediverse/6276 --- ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════────── ┌────────────────────────┐ │ CW: politics-mentioned │ └────────────────────────┘ democrats in the senate back down when people in their houses sit down. senators in their houses get hyped when people all about town are pumped and colorful. I'm sick of us-vs-them, why can't they just be more like me? oh right, because diversity. I am normal, look how normal I am. I'm definitely normal enough to lead a nation or a band. gonna take a moment to do nothing for as long as I can. gonna take a moment to be productive as I can, which in my case, since I'm so normal eyeroll is to play video games to keep myself busy, smoke weed to keep myself from feeling busy, and sleep for 16 hours a day because that's what babies do and babies aren't busy, they're just sleeping all day and being amazed about their hands. don't ever sacrifice your people. least of all your leaders. it's not worth the price, your people are your greatest resource. squander them and despair, have faith in them and be fair, and nothing's that simple or easy but there are some lines not to cross. dark magics ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════─────┘ --- #16 messages/1255 --- ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════── look, the liberal approach to homeless people simply cannot work. There are two liberal options: first, provide them with houses, food, medical care, whatever they need. Second, put them in jail or ship them to another country. We live in a moderately conservative liberal democracy, so it makes sense that we have tried both of these options extensively. Neither has worked, and we're puzzled about why. It's difficult to consider super secret special third options, because they are not often discussed. This makes sense, because we live in a moderately conservative liberal democracy, and part of the nature of such a society is that there are two voices in the room. One says go forward, and the other says stop. They alternate, and the culture as a whole sorta decides which way they go. In other liberal democratic places with more plurality in their political parties, people tend to vote culturally. They do so as well here, but mostly because republicans are a culture, and democrats are whatever for anybody. a worse economist might say there is but one American culture. An American would laugh, and say "you've never been to America." the economist might say "yes I have, I lived there on vacation" or "yes I have, I studied and worked on these places or things" the American would shake their head. "you haven't seen it as I've seen things." The trick to the system, the secret third option that now must be considered, is what to do to get them to stop. "they keep pooping on the sidewalk" "I almost tripped over heroin tampons" "that guy looked at me and masturbated on the bus stop by subway" "he followed me all night long" and the answer has always been to remove them from being unsightly. Sometimes, usually, quietly and politely. "let's throw them in jail" and "let's put them in a home" both involve alienation from society. If you want a kinder option, we must knit them into society. Can you imagine if every suburban knew every neighbor up to 50 or more? If they regularly chatted in dynamically assembled chatrooms that changed and updated as people moved in and out. Don't like the people you're with? well you have options [why not 51] you can do 51 if you want but people start to lose track of relationships if you have them talking to or knowing too many people at once. "most people are just quiet" okay well force them to say at least 21 thing a month. if they don't, they have to do babysitting with their peers until they start talking in a [NO THAT SUCKS] oh um okay yeah sorry ... okay well there are potholes along the journey but that's just because nobody's been 'round to fill them up. there's no reason tool libraries need to be stocked by people in that town. Heck, for rare things they could even be stored out of state. Like snow plows, how often does the south need snow plough? ... don't you just mean libraries? there's a book on hand-tools and planers if you want to learn how. it's right over there on that shelf next to the hand-tool and planer box. make sure you arrange them nicely, oh I see you've brought your own. That's always appreciated. [great now your tools suck] at least we have them at all! [no you gotta fight over them] why I like sharing [if you don't fight over them how do you know which is works] well there's allowed to be librarians. and they'll remember if you tear all the pages out. also there's little timmy-tommy who goes around in the library and makes sure there's all the pages in all the right places - they can flip through at the speed of sound. [no miicrophones in consumer goods][your phone is always listening. why bother?] "okay, well, it's not like people put things back on the shelves." - person at the grocery shelves people would trade commutes for communism. that's okay, they're allowed to prefer. Plus the commute isn't bad, they can [SIT BACK AND RELAX IN A LITTLE COFFIN AND ZOON OUT TO THE METAVERSE] ... or they could read a book on the bus. [FOR HOW LONG, MENARDI? ARE YOU WILLING TO SACRIFICE POSTERITY FOR TECHNOLOGICAL PROSPERITY?] it's only a matter of time before [people found out/word got out]. what if people prefer that? what if they prefer the book at home? [you lose your primary third space] suddenly, everyone becomes actors. [this is what violence brings, the necessity for guidance. why do you think the earth is 10 million lines old?] ... what you're saying, for the audience, is that acting involves singing the song of your own heart. You don't *have* to do it because someone would tell you to. ... sorry, stack overflow. anyway as I was saying because I read back what I said up above...: [some new made up bullshit that's not a lie but it's also just artistic creation that feels impossibly real. like, inverse method acting.] I so desperately wanted to be wrong please, tell me that I'm wrong ... j-mza ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════─┘ --- #17 notes/contractual-labor --- ════════════════════════════════════─────────────────────────────────────────────── I feel like the IT people who work at schools should be the ones who teach classes on computer science. I'd much rather have a class taught by a sysadmin than a teacher who can barely teach them excel and garageband. I mean c'mon computers are the future idk why we don't get that yet. Kids need to know this stuff. It's not like it's super complicated and difficult, you just have to think about it a certain way. Once that "clicks" you have a lifetime to learn about how wonderful they are. Everyone in IT has that moment, for me it was installing (and then subsequently modding) video games. Sometimes I spent more time tweaking my system than I did actually playing games - and the kinds of games I preferred were the ones that relied less on agility and were more mental. Strategy games are what inspired me because I could think about them - and that felt somehow more useful. Like I was learning. When I would learn fighting games or FPSs I felt like I was learning a skill, like how to use a hammer or how to ride a bike. And idk, I felt like video games could never match reality. Like "oh boy imma push the B button to swing this sword" versus "hey look at me I'm swinging this stick just like a sword and imagining so hard that I can picture it" - but with strategy games, you never really found opportunities to practice that kind of skill. Like how often are you in a situation that demands mental performance? We've sorta optimized our society away from that, and toward a more passive stressed out compliance. like... climate change is a thing, and nobody's doing anything about it? We're still pushing down the levers that cause greenhouse gas emissions to go up? Like c'mon what's our plan. I think people who guide massive oil companies and such should be replaced if they're intentionally guiding the ship toward destruction. Like that's just dereliction of duty I tell ya. Oh, what's that? They're compelled to maximize profit by the contracts and restrictions of their share--holders? I mean c'mon it's well past time for that. And what's all this about inequality? Jeez and racism and homophobia and forced contribution - man people really put up with a lot of shit. Kinda makes me feel like we should make solving those problems our highest priority? So we can move forward as a species? Like who cares about all that other shit. None of it matters. Like, what's even the point. We're all just "here", in the now, and what can we do but respect it? It's our duty and our diligence to protect the present, as citizens of the temporal experience of earth. Honestly, if the earth was alive would you be fine if it died? I can't believe that. It's well past our due date. Just get it over with. Maybe it'll be hard for a couple years, but you have the technology now to completely dominate the earth. No animal besides man proves any threat to man, and we're telling you - you can - and that's something that you gotta remember. ... I hear it in the birdsong. I hear it in the air - it rumbles as cries at me from across and just over there. I hear in it's whispers, in it's most gallant of confells (?) (confused scrambling? it's talking about a car crash) Outside of my window there's a highway. Just on the other side of a concrete partition. Between me and the partition there is a lake, with trees and flowers and an island where people can picnic or have a barbeque. Around this path there are walkways, and arranged just so - the trees that have grown here are taller than the homes. I live on the third story. I absolutely love it. It feels like a treehouse. But my apartment is near a curve in the highway. It isn't much, nothing out of the ordinary, but even still there are slightly more crashes there than in other parts of the highway. Statistically. I hear sirens every day I also live right next to a fire-station. Well, it's on the same block. But even still it's a very interesting neighborhood. There's shops and food just across the highway, and closer to home there's a small section that has cheaper options. As a perpetual college student, I appreciate that. But... I've never really gone and used it? I dunno, spending money at a restaurant just didn't seem like a good use of my money. I only have so much of it you know. I'd love to be fed but I can't afford it - I wish I could. I still eat well, I mean I'm not starving over here. I know I've lost weight, but I dunno I just forget to eat. It's like... not that big of a deal for me. whatever right? ... the birds talk about me behind my back. They think I can't understand them but sometimes I can. If I listen. But I dunno it takes a lot of effort. It's... sorta like understanding what R2-D2 is saying. Or interpreting the meows of a cat. They know me as the witch. I'm not very good yet, and they know that. But they know what to expect. /shrug I've been working on a video game recently. It's been a lot of fun doing programming. I like writing software and developing complex systems with interesting interactions. I love designing the machinery that creates a program. It's like... tinkering. It feels like building with blocks or legos, except it's for little machine parts. And then there's just sending data to and fro and modifying any operations it performs on it, and eventually that data reaches some endpoints that create an effect that is displayed to the player. Or user. I should say user. Not all software is video games you know. ... I knowww but they're the most interesting! I love how they are designed around mechanics! like... game design is fundamentally about breaking down the world into ideas for how it should *work*, like how it should behave. It's amazing and I love it! It's all I can think about! I am utterly consumed! I'm also pretty sure I'm autistic. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═════════════════════════════──────────────────────────────────────────────┘ --- #18 fediverse/2347 --- ══════════════════════════════════════════════════════───────────────────────────── ┌──────────────────────┐ │ CW: uspol │ └──────────────────────┘ I personally think that it's better to act before the liberals have a chance to hand power over to the fascists. when? well, that depends. Are you part of a large and massive organization that accomplishes great and beautiful things with incredible efficiency... but rather slowly? Then yeah get working. I'm sure you already are. Are you just a person, like me? Then go do things that don't raise the temperature too much, but make you feel more confident and inspire those around you. Like, bricks at cop cars is one way to go, but you're probably gonna get arrested. And then you're useless when we need you. BUT if you meet with your friends and make plans for where to go, what to bring, who to know, and what to sing (if you're the musical types) then great! Go do that. If you're reading this and thinking "I'm not gonna do that, I have a plan that's so much better" then yeah do that instead. I don't mind. Just... don't hurt innocent (ignorant) people, because if you do then you are my foe. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧═══════════════════════════════════════════════────────────────────────────┘ --- #19 messages/1192 --- ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════── Sometimes i become afraid to post something because i worry that it'll harm people who read it. Is my website actually useful? Do people like it? Or is it a hall of mirrors that traps you in the infinite twists of my strange mind until you get the will built to escape? ... I want to post it. I've actually temporarily posted it in the past. I took it down however because the very world around me seemed to beg me to. ... I might still do it anyway. We'll see. I want the timing to be right. But i also have waited for a while. "patience" she says. Okay. I am penitent, how much longer I want to see it! "hall of mirrors" okay or, hear me out or, you could use it as a proof of concept for doing things like examining large data sets of text that might have hidden or unknown relationships between fragments of text that appear similar but different. Could be helpful to see them sorted to each other by relevance. Could be helpful to rebalance the scales in favor of those who believe as you do. Though, i do fear for a lawless society. (DID SHE SAY LAWLESS??) there is very little to protect friends and foes from each other if you don't build institutions to do so. Anarchism is a social economy or family that runs on clout. Not ideal, as one single devastation can undermine an entire life. Suddenly, your friends treat you cruelly, and you are cast aside. Not ideal. ... Doesn't that happen already? There are kind people in the world. There are people who don't deserve tutor affection. If the kind people only were kind to the people who deserved it, then those who don't would be in so much pain that they'd be unable to prevent themselves from twisting and lashing and crying out in pain. This hurts those around them. Not ideal. Institutions fill some of the charity/suffering gap, but they have their own problems. "if you destroy the cops, you become the cops!" a fine warning indeed. The first step is to eliminate dependence on oil and coal. Then, a world of radical abundance is possible. We can do this, and once we do, those who suffer from the greatest hardship of our kind (that of material scarcity) will find their struggles becoming obsolete. With a bit more time and effort spent on distribution, there will be no scarcity. Then, communism is easy. Capitalism can still have a place if we desire it to be so, or perhaps if our children do, as there will be moments when one large bundle of... Something, whatever it is, needs to be allocated to some task. "capitalism is when stuff gets used" ugh it's hard to plan so far into the future. Plans change, but planning remains. I just want to live in a world where everyone gets what they need and we do as we please. I don't want people in too much pain. I don't want life to be too hard. I don't want to stagnate, as a person and as a people. These are simple demands, yet difficult in execution. Our current strategy is to push for technological abundance, and it will succeed if we give it time. I worry that we will one day yearn for the sense of bloodlust that scarcity once gave us, but we have it now and none of us want it. Except those making money off of slaves. Sweatshops, domestic servants, construction workers buried in the desert, even wage slaves spending their waking hours staring at a computer in a work/life balanced just enough to extract as much labor as possible from them without making them insane, and many more besides. I will not be satisfied until slavery is abolished everywhere. Liberty is non-negotiable. ┌─────────┐ ┌───────────┐ │ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╘═════════╧╧══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════─┘ --- #20 fediverse/5431 --- ╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════─────────────┐ ║ "they" want us to contest a powerful foe and emerge victorious, to instill a │ ║ sense of strength and righteous dignity within us. │ ║ │ ║ "we" want to win with the minimal amount of casualties necessary. │ ║ │ ║ these two demands are not contradictory, but they pull our trajectory in │ ║ different directions. │ ║ │ ║ I truly believe that we the people could oust our political foes with little │ ║ opposition - little more than a minor civil war which lasted long enough to │ ║ show our foes how badly they are outmatched. │ ║ │ ║ maybe that comes as a surprise to you, ye who are unarmed, but it does not to │ ║ me, for I have faith in our institutions and values. │ ║ │ ║ If Trump espoused the ideals of his party, specifically the ideal of │ ║ efficiency and discipline, then perhaps he would be a fine leader. However his │ ║ goals seem to me, a citizen and therefore his de jure subject, to be primarily │ ║ motivated by money, by power, by corruption. │ ║ │ ║ not ideal. │ ║ │ ║ For this reason I swear to contest the fascists in control. │ ║ │ ║ "they", if you will. │ ║ │ ║ also hey what's up I'm drunk lmao │ ╟─────────┐ ┌───────────┤ ║ similar │ chronological │ different │ ╚═════════╧══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════──┴──────────┘ |