Zink

Oh we have men of character forming militias alright.

The character is just a lobotomized and racist Elmer Fudd.

That sounds pretty difficult to do in the modern world.

In contrast, I like the idea that before he croaks he could know that his name will be cursed and his grave pissed upon for generations.

I think that's still a valid argument since perfection will probably never happen.

For me it's more like, remember when the expectation was that Tesla would ever produce a version that didn't suck ass?

I have multiple relatives who only seem to be able communicate ideas to other people in the form of complaints and gossip.

There's a very strong correlation between that and being more negative, more conservative/Trumpy, more bigoted, and definitely more miserable to be around.

I grew up in that kind of environment, and I swear there are pathways buried deep in my brain that still try to generate the "look at that stupid asshole doing a thing I wouldn't choose to do, or that I'm jealous over" emotion. However, it only strengthens my resolve to not carry that bullshit forward into the next generation.

Getting laid off during COVID was like a preview of retirement, on top of other benefits like showing how little of my personal identity was tied to my job and how little I actually care about it. "Career line go up forever" was one of many things I was SUPPOSED to care about, but did not ACTUALLY care about. And that helped me fast-forward figuring out what does matter to me.

It was amazing.

The "I'll work forever" badge of honor garbage is just one of the many ways people get conditioned to go against their own best interests to help out the rich/political people that really matter. (/s and barf)

Yeah, there's some real truth to that, not gonna argue at all. With my ADHD and weak appetite I'll just forget to eat, or not want to eat in the first place.

But even with whatever I enjoy in moderation whether it's due to the excellent food or the environment (thinking holiday family dinners this time of year) or both, I don't look at it like an escape. It's just a nice enhancement to your day that engages your senses. In that way I think of the occasional amazing meal the same way I think of the occasional spirited drive home on a twisty road in beautiful weather with all the windows down.

However, I do want to acknowledge that we are all different and have to figure out what works for our particular brain given our experiences and environment. Food might just never be a contributor for you. And it's not a huge one for me either, but over the past few years I've learned to value and hold on to any little incremental positive life improvements I run into.

Yeah, LLMs are interesting tech products to play with and find some niche uses for.

But for the love of god they are not "prop up the entire stock market and numerous multi-trillion-dollar companies indefinitely" good!

This is one reason I'm so glad we devs can install linux at work. I have LibreOffice installed sure, but if I need to use the Microsoft Office suite for some reason, it all works great as webpages in librewolf!

I think you guys can both be correct here. Just because shitty people are all over the Earth, that does not negate the problems people point out with the US.

I did not see them say or even imply that the US is the only place with sexist conservatives, or that we are the worst in the world about it. It was answering a question about the US too.

I think we all know that there are places in the world that have been far worse for far longer in just about any bad way you can think of. But it's still pretty noteworthy when the world's superpower that once saw itself as a diverse melting pot and land of opportunity and democracy goes and elects somebody who literally said on TV that they would be a dictator. And this after that same person already did a horrible bad faith job for all the world to see.

Most supporters voted for him thrice. Just another old white dude got in the way that one time.

That complexity sure sounds like corruption!

But realistically, corruption does add to the complexity, lol.

Nah I don't think that's the alternative. It's not about dedicating your life to it. It's about allowing yourself some nice experiences to enhance your daily life even though you have very important bills to pay and can't just buy whatever food you want.

I didn't even comment because I'm some kind of cooking or dining enthusiast. It was more about the general attitude (which I very much grew up with) essentially that it is silly and self-indulgent to stop and smell the roses when there's money to be made or work to be done. Basically the conservative culture where being a good human means being a productive boot-licking worker bee and not getting into all that touchy-feely human stuff.