Zink

Thank you for putting that out there. I still cannot see making any other choice when it came time to vote. The too-close death camps you refer to were a very predictable consequence of this administration. I’m just a straight white guy but I really prefer to not add death camps to the world, or to disappear peaceful productive people from their communities, or to significantly harm the lives of millions of young, old, poor, or disabled people. That includes the ones starving overseas because of recent changes.

“But genocide!” we expect to hear in response. And if any dear readers are already thinking that, I want you to take this one fact away from my comment:

The deeply flawed US voting system — the one which forces the two party system on us — is damned near impossible to change via normal legislation and votes.

It’s THE thing. It is that mechanism that lets the red/blue capitalist american machine continue to vacuum up the vast majority of american votes. Go look up just how much agreement there has to be to amend the constitution. And we’re going to ask the people already in charge to get together and agree to kneecap their future political power. You see the issue.

Sure, the media is complicit and most voters are ignorant of the fact that there are better systems in place around the world. It’s true that a lot can be done outside of elected positions. But when it comes to the actual voting ballot, since the system self-corrects (in a bad way) for significant third parties, the expected consequences of each choice were something like:

1. Status quo, including any US resources being used for genocide and other shit.
2. Genocide Max plan, with 4 free years of Death Camp Prime
3. Flip a coin between 1 & 2 above (stay home or vote for a third party hoping it will get them recognition and funding)
4. Revolution and replace the system, like right now!

And I want to add a caveat that I’m not trying to blame the people who chose #3 above. Before the election I would disagree with that choice, but now in retrospect we know those people weren’t the reason Trump and Republicans won. I guess it remains to be seen how much of it was the genuine love for Trump the maniacs in this place have, and how much of it was election rigging and cheating BS.

It seems to me that most hatred for golf comes because of capitalism and not because of golf.

I think you’re right, and you summed up my thoughts about the first 80% of your comment better than I was going to, lol.

I’d say the hatred for golf has a lot in common with the dislike behind the fuckcars communities. It’s not that people hate the experience of a clean hit in golf or a brisk drive down twisty country roads. It’s the resources that go into supporting them which by definition do not go into supporting more efficient/healthy/equitable choices. And yes there is probably a secondary effect tied to certain target audiences who value exclusivity and are generally the worst.

That line of thinking also breaks down once you consider that life itself is the OG anomaly, and that the evolution of complex life was fueled by a never ending torrent of anomalies.

It is important to consider both sides on any issue. Thank you for keeping things Fair and Balanced.

~/s~

Nah, you just need a nice private spot.

Seriously though, sometimes taking a piss outside just feels right.

So yeah this is me. I’m sure it’s a lot of us here. If you’re lucky you also have that flavor of neurospice that comes with Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, so that not only is the social interaction itself taxing, but then the idea of sharing personal information is horrifying.

The results you get from it still depend on how you choose to react to your environment. Importantly, your brain and neurodivergence are part of that environment.

And it’s ok. Being friendly and participating in chats is not going to sign you up to go to anybody’s house. Sharing some details about your weekend plans won’t invite criticism or sign you up for other activities. (but if you work in a toxic environment, use your own judgment and act accordingly)

I think even with those of us who are very introverted, a lot of how “present” versus “withdrawn” you come across still comes down to things like depression, anxiety, and fatigue. I am fortunate right now to have a pretty good environment between a good job, the right medications, and mental/physical health. I’ll smile and wave at folks around the office, or BS about nerdy shit with whichever other engineers are in the office that day.

…but then I’ll still put in my earbuds and not talk to anybody for hours on end. If another person doesn’t strike up a conversation, maybe I don’t talk out loud all day. And at lunch I’ll not just sit in my car but drive home to eat!

There’s also something deeper and more fundamental at play here. Part of figuring out how to take care of myself and enjoy existence more has been to consciously nudge myself towards actions that I expect to benefit my well-being, rather than what works best for me in the moment. It can be little things, but they do add up.

For example, stopping to ask somebody who does customer demos what interesting stuff they’ve been working on. It seems like the typical in-office time waster. However, a short positive social interaction with a friendly face can boost both of your moods and make both of your days better. The work-related subject is the easy way into starting a conversation (me giving advice on starting conversations is some Twilight Zone feeling shit) and there might even be something interesting to learn.

This is the point where I’d make a joke about how wasting a bit of the company’s time to improve the mental health of two human beings is a win-win in my book. But we all know that happier employees will literally produce better results for the employer too!

I love this one because come to think of it, this was the year I claimed my dad-doing-outdoor-shit powers!

Republicans be like

spend $20M on wealthy consultants

You mean spend $20M on ourselves?

I mean, are the people paying political consultants now not also going to be the ones getting paid in the future?

‘allow myself to [do things good for me] instead of what I’m “supposed” to do’ is like a full half of what it took to figure out how to try to enjoy life.

More true than most realize.

After getting through a lot of shit over the past several years, and having a very good & healthy summer, I am convinced that so many of our ills (metal especially) are from this mistaken assumption that more virtual and more high tech and more consumption are positives for our health rather than negatives.

Like I said, I like my job. I have no problem explaining it to anybody who asks. But the funny thing is, nobody asks, lol. A lot times per year I get the “what do you do” question, but then they’re satisfied with that answer. Many people just volunteer their stories because they think they’re supposed (just learned behavior) to or they’re conditioned to brag about work to feel good & valid.

But despite my decent job (software for embedded linux systems — totally on brand for Lemmy!) the absolute best time I’ve spent this summer has been getting wet and muddy in the back yard. Literally.

By turning my hyperfocus and my time and some of my budget towards a big hobby project (upgrading my koi pond) I have set myself up with an activity that gives me:

• Something good to look forward to
• Results to enjoy
• Fresh air
• Physical exercise, a lot, including lots of lifting
• Lots of meditative time, even though I physically look very busy
• Exercising my instinct/desire/need to create things
• Learning new interesting things that are relevant to the real world but outside my normal area of study/work. In high school I took a hard turn away from chemistry and towards physics. Now I am all about the nitrogen cycle, organic chemistry, oxidation/reduction potential, microorganisms, and so on, in my own way.
• Opportunity to hang out with my kid and a bunch of our pets with room to run.

Good god, yes. This is something I had to break myself from. It is so insidious and pervasive in our culture that I don’t think most of us realize it’s even a thing.

I’ve been to a lot of outdoor birthday parties this summer, and there are so many boring dads who I will hear strike up a conversation about what’s going on at work. I usually make sure to wander in the opposite direction.

And I like my job! But the “talk about work” is usually less about interesting projects or creations and more about what has been going on with that individual’s status. Like yeah Kevin I want you to do well at work and enjoy it, but if it’s all the same to you I’m going to go get chased by kids with squirt guns instead of pretending I care about how your manager is impressed by your team’s metrics.