@ActuallyATleilaxuGhola's banner p

ActuallyATleilaxuGhola

Axolotl Tank Class of '21

1 follower   follows 0 users  
joined 2022 September 08 09:59:22 UTC 

				
User ID: 1012


				
				
				

			

		

	














	


		


			



	

		

			

			

				

					

						

							
						

						

							
							

								
ActuallyATleilaxuGhola


								

								

								
								
								

								
							
					
 
				


				
Axolotl Tank Class of '21

				
				
				

				

					1 follower  

					follows 0 users  

					joined 2022 September 08 09:59:22 UTC
				


				
					

					
No bio...

				

				

				

				

				

					

					

					
					
					

					
User ID: 1012


					
					
					
				

			


					

						
					



		

	

 











			
			

			
			

			




	


		

			
‎

			

				
				

					Hour
					Day
					Week
					Month
					
					All
				

			


			
‎

			

	
	

	 Hot Bump Top Bottom New Old Controversial
	



		

	






	

		
		

		
		
	

	

  







		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Kind of a shower thought, but could it be that it's just really hard to write an interesting, unique badass hero nowadays without being excoriated for toxic masculinity and being retrograde?  Indiana Jones and Han Solo get grandfathered in as endearing classics of a bygone age, so you get a pass if you recycle them (although you probably have to pay some tribute to wokeness in the form of retcons and script changes).


Perhaps also there's also a suspension of disbelief problem.  Millennials and zoomers are permanently on seven layers of irony and have grown up on endless trope subversion.  How could you write a straight action hero who would appeal to such an audience?


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of May 22, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
As a fellow male, I agree.  But most girls aren't interested in hearing your nerd flexes, they're trying to figure out whether you have basic social skills and whether or not you're a weirdo/loser.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of May 22, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I took would like more examples of "hostile occupation of conservate Christians." I agree with FC that this just sounds like people being mad that their parents raised them in a religious tradition that they no longer believe in (likely because mass media and public education converted them to a rival religious tradition).


"Hostile occupation" sounds to me more like Francoist Spain where you needed letters of recommendation from your parish priest for a government position, or where the school curriculum is designed and monitored by the Church, or where major retailers wouldn't even consider a "Pride Month display" for fear of boycotts or falling afoul of the law.


Conservative parts of America have Pride displays at big box and book stores, their school curriculums are implemented by a body of teachers who are as a group quite woke, and although you don't yet need a letter vouching for your good character from your local DEIB commissar, if enough people learn that you're a heretic who opposes woke teachings you will be blacklisted from many government institutions and powerful corporations.


Given the above I have a really hard taking people seriously when they claim to have escaped a conservative hellhole because their parents made them go to church on Sunday and disapproved of their gender identity and oh yeah one time at a bar a drunk guy called them a faggot.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of May 22, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					


Being Catholic is a choice in a way that being black or ethnic Jewish is not.




No, it's not.  There's a difference but it's much smaller than people imagine.  Is being "atheist" a choice?  People don't choose their convictions the same way they choose their clothes.  I'm a Christian.  Sometimes I wished I weren't, because Christianity is very demanding and because it's low status among my peers.  But I'm convinced of its truth for the time being, so whether I like it or not I remain Christian.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of May 22, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
It's too good not to post:




When it gets down to it — talking trade balances here — once we've brain-drained all our technology into other countries, once things have evened out, they're making cars in Bolivia and microwave ovens in Tadzhikistan and selling them here — once our edge in natural resources has been made irrelevant by giant Hong Kong ships and dirigibles that can ship North Dakota all the way to New Zealand for a nickel — once the Invisible Hand has taken away all those historical inequities and smeared them out into a broad global layer of what a Pakistani brickmaker would consider to be prosperity — y'know what? There's only four things we do better than anyone else:






music






movies






microcode (software)






high-speed pizza delivery




				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of May 22, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
That's true.  Books and films on these topics makes instruments of Leftist moral education.  But IMO racism or mass killing of perceived enemies are not the ultimate sins (though they're certainly not good), so these sorts of books are grating to me.  I imagine a Leftist would feel the same about, say, The Passion of The Christ.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of May 15, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I haven't seen that discussion, but it sounds possible.  Places like that are usually exactly what you'd expect, some combination of:


    

  • 

    Extremely small
    

    • 

  • 

    Filthy and/or damaged
    

    • 

  • 

    Old
    

    • 

  • 

    Structurally dangerous (predating latest earthquake safety laws)
    

    • 

  • 

    In a natural disaster high risk zone (flood/tsunami/landslide)
    

    • 

  • 

    Terrible location (far from public transit, or next to factories/noisy train station/graveyard/sewage plant etc)
    

    • 

  • 

    Tainted by association (usually a suicide or high profile crime)
    

    • 

  • 

    Shitty neighbors (almost by definition)
    

    • 



$150/month might still seem outrageously low given the above, but I again have to emphasize that these are usually basically pod "apartments" that would probably violate building codes in the U.S. for being so small.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Wellness Wednesday for June 14, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Man, I felt this post deeply.  This describes my experience and feelings to a tee.  I've never been a big name around here, but I've been around since we lived on the SSC subreddit and I've enjoyed the years of effort posting.  But I too feel that nowadays I often come here to hate read or consensus build rather than to engage.  Similarly to you, some of this is because there is just less charity all around, but a large part of it is also that I feel that I've seen the "other side" of most issues and that my mind is more or less made up.  And so it's probably time for me to stop posting.


The most valuable takeaway for me has been reading the writings of the progressive-adjacent posters who patiently stick around and explain blue tribe ideals despite the increasingly frequently dogpiles.  They helped me discover some blind spots I have and have gotten me closer to passing the Ideological Turing Test.  I am indebted to them and wish them all the best.


Big thanks to @ZorbaTHut for putting a ton of effort in to this community over the years, it couldn't have happened without you.


See you space cowboy...


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 12, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Thank you.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 12, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I accept that point and agree with you.  Regardless of whether or not it's actual "kidnapping," it is is surely very bad for the future of an independent Ukrainian nation.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for June 11, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Wasn't it applied to fans of "The Man Show?"  So it's probably around 20 years old.  Maybe it (or a sanitized version of it) started offline?


Edit: Since people seem unfamiliar with the term -- my understanding is "person (usually a guy) who leans left not out of pure devotion to the progressive cause, but because he enjoys fun deviant stuff like booze and porn that the prudish Christian Right would try to restrict or ban."


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for June 9, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Japanese crows.  They're huge and really clever.  There are crow fanzines and crow pet owner societies in Japan.  Sometimes they even have live crow pop-up cafes.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for June 9, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
If you've got the right sort of sand, you can make a Sagrada Familia sandcastle.  My daughter enjoyed this when she was about 4 or 5.  Otherwise just crack a beer and let 'em run around, they make their own fun at that age.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for June 9, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Definitely take them when they're a bit older.  My dad took me to Normandy when I was 8 or 9, and decades later those are still some of my most vivid memories.  Extremely cool and interesting.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for June 4, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Thanks, done.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
No, I think you may very well be a principled person.  But you are probably surrounded by a large majority who are arguing for unprincipled exceptions who will use your principled stance to cynically further their goals.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for June 4, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I guess I don't think it is one, but there are a lot of smart people on here who sometimes are able to help me see things from a different angle so I suppose I was hoping for that.  If I could tell you what kind of answer I wanted, if I could steelman this in my head, I probably wouldn't ask here.


If I had to imagine a well-adjusted and over 25 who was into tomboys, I suppose I would imagine a guy with traditionally feminine personality traits who enjoyed taking on traditionally female aspects of a male-female relationship.  But I don't think that's what I'm seeing on the internet, instead it just seems like emotional immaturity.  Are there mature, feminine men who are into tomboys in any significant number? Or are men who like tomboys a totally different breed? Or something else I haven't imagined?


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
This is essentially what I believe.  As long as he remains active in politics, and quite possibly even if he doesn't, the investigations will continue until they get him or he dies.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					


Now I’ve got an urge to map the exact route by which he moved the goalposts, but I’m trying to cool down a bit before posting.




I'd be interested in reading this as I'm often baffled and fascinated at my boomer relatives' logic.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I dunno, man.  I'm pretty sure that if Jan 6th was a bit hotter the cops would've started shooting people and would probably have been exonerated for doing so.  Look how draconian the legal repercussions have been for Jan 6 participants.


Not so for BLM.  I don't blame cops for not shooting BLM rioters, they knew that the full force of the radical left-wing political machines would come down on them and utterly ruin their lives.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for June 4, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I agree that men who complain about that stuff are ridiculous.  "My female feminine wife acts like such a woman!  How could this happen to me? Who could have forseen this?"  It's silly.


I imagine it's probably pretty different for gay guys, so my OP probably doesn't apply to them


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Is it fear, or is it just business sense?  Toy Story was a hit in part because it used a setting and characters familiar to an American audience (suburban childhood life, old fashioned cowboy toy, newfangled spaceman toy, slinky, green army men, Mr potato head).  Ghibli movies are universally loved it Japan because of all the very-Japanese details and cultural references woven into them (likely both intentionally and unintentionally) -- see Totoro, Pom Poko, Spirited Away, or My Neighbors The Yamadas. I think the term "love letter" is trite when describing a movie, but these films are love letters to the childhoods and shared experiences of their respective audiences.  They target a specific culture and a specific slice of space and time.


Modern family films don't really seem to do that anymore.  Everything is either engineered to appeal to the widest possible audience (gotta appeal to the East Asian market) or, when they do try to set a film in a specific culture, it's a theme park version created by outsiders (Coco, Moana, new Mulan) that is still designed to be widely palatable.  In both cases the end product is sometimes entertaining but never beloved as it doesn't connect with our own memories or experiences on more than a superficial level.


If you're not convinced, try this -- imagine a 2024 Disney remake of Totoro, complete with the newfangled 3D animation, the gender roles updated, the clothing modernized,  interiors of the homes genericized, still vaguely Japanese (in the way a Japanese-American from California might imagine "Japanese") but mostly just anodyne and inoffensive, Totoro's wood has been expanded to cover a huge expanse of land and Catbus has a new origin story, and now Mei has a cute comic relief Makurokurosuke sidekick that hangs out on her shoulder (merchandising!).  It would probably make a good trailer or two and I bet it would make some money at the box office, but a lot of the themes, images, and dare I say SOVL would have been lost in the quest to broaden appeal.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
It really adds 30 years.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Edmond Dantes was in deep despair while imprisoned in Chateau D'If for an unspecified crime on the accusation of an unknown person.  Only when he finally deduced what his "crime" had been and who was responsible for his wrongful imprisonment did he regain his will to act.


I think this is an accurate reflection of how many people internally experience oppression by a specific person with intelligible motives versus oppression by an impersonal, alien force to which they are merely unnoticed collateral damage.


"Why is my rent going up this month? Isn't there anything you can do?"  "Nope, sorry, the computer system says your rent goes up $125 this year.  Corporate sets the rules, there's nothing I can do."


Indeed, “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.”  Without a "why," the "how" is often unbearable.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of June 5, 2023
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
There's a bit of a dogpile here in the vein of "Well why do we still celebrate ${holiday commemorating event}??" which I think doesn't grasp the point you're trying to make.


Pride Parades used to be more in-your-face, freak out the squares squares type events that were held as protests.  "We're here, we're queer, get used to it!"  Now that everyone's either "used to it" or afraid of drawing the wrath of HR and/or Twitter mobs, there should no longer be any need for protests.


But Pride Parades turned out to be great opportunities to siphon off bit of the heady nectar of the latest "civil rights victory."  If you're queer, you can go there and celebrate defeating bigotry and bask in the righteousness of the cause ("Fuck hate! Love conquers all!")  If you're normal you can go there and enjoy the same as an "ally."  As mentioned in this thread, corporations got involved to sell stuff and also to get a little of that civil rights glory for themselves, likewise for the city government.  And so it is no longer a protest, but a big, well-funded party where you can have a blast and showcase your righteousness.