I absolutely get the desire to dunk on Elon. We should. But after the catharsis, we, as a society need to see this as a foundational lesson: Wealth and power is like lead exposure. It allows people to escape social pressure and reality, destroying empathy, identity and security in the process.

Thankfully I ignored Silver and Gold and invested all my money in Boron and Iodine. I’m diamond hands on Nitrogen and Oxygen too. Feeling pretty good.

Sure. Why the fuck not.

How long and loud were Andre the Giant’s farts, I wonder aloud for no reason….

Tired: Progressives working carefully and quietly within a government increasingly calcified by power being in the hands the self interested; achieving ever diminishing returns Wired:

I think we really need to start discussing a concrete plan for a progressive future for America right now. We need to give the philosophy heads as much time as possible to work on the policy heads. Straight policy with no philosophy is going lead right back to where we are now.

America is asphyxiating on the outcome of this one little exchange back in 1787. A proviso that added 15 words to Article V making it impossible to change Senate apportionment No surprise that it was done on the motion of an aristocracy loving chode who left Thomas Paine to rot in a French prison…

US representatives “represent” almost 800,000 people….each. We have the highest “constituent to representative” ratio in the world. #2? Japan. Almost 300K per rep. Sovereign micro island nations have the lowest ratio, a few hundred per rep. Second lowest? Nordic countries (6,000-30,000 per rep)

As part of returning power to the people, it is well past time to expand the US house. Because we only have 435, each representative “represents” almost 800,000 people. This is absurd and leads to shit like this…better to suck up to a few people in power than worry about 800,000 people.

I have nothing against Orwell, but holy hell, “Orwellian” was already carrying the definition of governmental tyranny…now it’s an Orwell quote for propaganda? Better than nothing, I suppose - but there are so many other (and better) writers on both of these topics.

There has always been bad faith hypocritical bullshit…. But the MAGAsphere in horror about the idea of “a semiautomatic 9 millimeter firearm with two magazines FILLED with BULLETS…and a laser sight” should get every interviewer to just laugh in their face and say “get the fuck outta here, man”

*savage, uncivilized assholes howling and pointing at the mysterious, massive, growing energy radiating from the Twin Cities* “BANKROLLED! ORGANIZED! PROFESSIONAL! SOMEONE BEHIND IT”, they scream from mouths frothed with frightened excitement. First time they’ve seen Empathy -they’re scared. 😂

Homo habilis: I will use tools to succeed Homo erectus: I will walk upright to succeed Homo sapiens: I will use wisdom and discernment to succeed Homo magatus: I will gobble the crank of a loser who smells like bad breath mixed with with feces to succeed.

Predator Badlands is absolutely fantastic. Trachtenberg keeps hitting it out of the park.

All the discourse of late re: “leftists” has reminded me that we’d be far better off organizing around the shared principle of respecting difference and treating all others with the dignity and respect that we would want for ourselves. We all fall into 1 of 2 groups - “the kind” or “the unkind”.

Matthew Arnold really had American Newspapers pegged back in 1888. His whole book “Civilization in the United States” is one hell of a read.

“Never steal from happy people” The Mighty Nein is such a good show!!

Really hating that the response from Democrats on the topic of war crimes is that they are “illegal”. Use that space to thunder about right and wrong, what is ethical, what is moral…take a sec and explain WHY we have drawn that line. They should not assume that this is obvious to everyone.

If Neil Postman was still alive, he would write “Accommodating ourselves to Death: the worldview of Ezra Klein”

Progressives: Fusion! Conservatives: Fission! Centrists: Ugh. Both of you, stop being divisive! 🤪

Never paid much attention to Jay, but when I saw this post, I instantly became very worried about this site. Communication is meant to share what we think, but, most importantly HOW we think. Understanding other minds is crucial and you cannot do that if you pop in, grab what is shiny and run out

Folks — this is not a normal government shutdown. Let me explain the stakes and how we got here.

In the Klein/Coates interview, the word “politics” appears 47 times. The word “principles” appears zero times. The word “values” appears zero times. The word “truths” appears once - when Coates discusses that the animating nature of this politics is that “all humanity is equal”. Ezra missed it.

Before someone is born, they do not check a box asking to be made unable to navigate reality and act against their own interests. To a substantial degree (perhaps entirely), their environment has shaped them. We need to keep a good society if we ever hope to keep good government.

Me, on the Ezra Klein show: “We’re going to… …not say ‘steelman’ or ‘orthogonal’. (Flick on nuts if you do) …drink these.” (12 pack of Spotted Cow) …read these.” (B. Russell, T. Paine, H. Marcuse, M. Aurelius) …shave that.” (The beard…*shudder*) …while watching this.” (All of George Carlin)

I had JUST beaten the “bird fight” arena on Silksong after trying a stupid number of times…. …..went to bed. Updated software…reverted back to the save before the fight. 😂

We are in the most recent battle in the centuries long war between “the miserable” and “the cheerful”.

During all this talk of eugenics and fascism, I think we should remember that this goes back much much much further than Nazis. I present to you Heraclitus, a miserable asshole who believed that for humanity to survive, it had to allow “strife” to kill the weak. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracli...

“It would be odd if the last effect of science were to revive a philosophy dating from 500 B.C.” Read this excerpt from Bertrand Russell’s “Impact of science on society” (1953). We are in the odd place.

Me, looking at the meetup options in Minneapolis: “In which of these will I find the ‘enjoys Bertrand Russell and is excited about the new Demon Slayer movie’ crowd?” Throwing axes first and hoping you have shared interests second seems like a silly way to do this.

So let’s examine the techbro endgame here: -They want to live forever via science. -They want to make their intelligence limitless with implants. -But they want robots to do everything physical -and AI to do everything creative. Making the perfect toothbrush while ripping out all their teeth.

Fuck me running, it takes so little anthropomorphizing of inanimate tools/tech to get humans to start sputtering about “meaningful experiences” and “spirits” and “ghosts in the machine”. Starting to think if we put googly eyes on hammers and screwdrivers, Home Depot could host a singles night.

Murderbot final episode review: -perfect -will make you cry ugly, warm and wholesome tears

The Ben Ryan NYT “scoop” is corrosive dogshit, so I won’t repost it. But it is worth looking it up here on Bluesky and reading the comments. So refreshing to see thousands of voices calling it out for what it is.

As AI slop takes over the internet, people will just retreat to usable sites and also shift to doing other (hopefully offline) things…I hope. If not…i don’t even want to know what kind of mind that is going to produce. “Chronically online AI slop brain” is going to be an abomination.

Looking forward to mentally escaping into the world of Death Stranding 2.

A reminder that “Common Sense” begins by basically stating: “Most of you aren’t going to agree with this and there are many who are going to argue against it. When you make a habit of not calling a wrong a wrong, you start to think it is right. Well, fuck that.” Paine would have pissed on polls

We should have a detached, free, objective press that relentlessly works to inform the people on how their government is meeting the mission statement of the preamble. What we have instead are mouse droids on a star destroyer…squeaking, cleaning up imperial boot scuffs and uselessly tipping over.

Supremacists project strength by bullying society. Egalitarians project strength by staying committed to their principles, even in the face of bullying. People do love a “strongman”, but we forget there is a progressive version of this and more people should flex those muscles.

I’m starting to think that Andy Beshear’s secret sauce is the fact he shares the “why” behind his decisions (principle) and how it is he came about those principles. And im glad he sees that this is working for him and is sharing it with other leaders.

You can tell someone you are “Chili” but maybe they dont know what Chili is or their idea of Chili is different from your recipe. Share the ingredients. Open the can. Give ‘em a taste. Tell them how you arrived at the recipe. This post is about sharing principles and not labels.

Was gonna become the Joker, but, oooof, face paint and green/purple apparel from Asia is too expensive due to the tariffs. Thankfully, the US is increasing its production of disease and contamination, so I was able to become the Toxic Avenger by sourcing locally.

Devil May Cry episode 6 was excellent all around, but holy shit - the flashback scene set to “Ghost” by Gunship (w/Power Glove) is an absolute standout. Gave me goosebumps - in a good way. Also reminded me a bit of the opening sequence of Master Blaster. youtu.be/aUJuwNxNUWQ?...

Very, very pleasantly surprised by the new Devil May Cry animated show. On episode 7 and loving it. Excellent animation, solid voice acting (especially Hoon Lee as White Rabbit) killer music, great combat and a compelling plot with a LOT of emotional depth.

Now that the tariffs are here, some of you may be turning to Goodwill to find good, affordable clothing. However… *pops switch blade* You stay away from the men’s collared shirts, jackets and pants section, you hear? I don’t need no fresh fish trying to muscle in on my action!

The Quants: “People’s feelings and beliefs don’t seem to correspond to the real world data! I don’t understand!” Philosophers/Sociologists/Psychologists/Anthropologists/Historians/Polymaths/Intellectuals (when the word meant something): “Hey, do you have a library card, bro?”

Finland begins teaching its students how to verify news…starting in elementary school. We need to start doing this here - create a class (perhaps in high school) on misinformation/critical thinking. I think it would be a blast to teach…

Thanks, but I’d rather eat spaghetti out of a colostomy bag…

Wonder how far a candidate would go on an anti-tech / anti-ad platform: “No more ads on the internet/gas station pumps/bathrooms” “No more micro transactions” “No more spam email/mail and robocalls” “No more automated systems when you call” “No more loyalty cards/points programs”