Testing123
1yr ago
I want to look back at the Finnish PM Sanna Marin affair because beneath the luridness, I think there's an interesting political discussion. As I understand it, here's what happened:
Sanna Marin has been the Prime Minister of Finland since 2019. Politically, she's lefty and environmentalist, popular with young people. But outside of Finland, she was only really known for being young (37) and hot. Not "hot for a politician," but objectively straight-up hot for anyone.
In August, a video of Marin partying leaked to the public, seemingly by a dumb friend who put it on a private Instagram page. The video showed Marin being very drunk with her friends in a house, singing and dancing the night away. There was speculation that Marin was on cocaine in the video. She denied it and took a drug test which she passed, but IIRC, it's plausible the drugs would already be out of her system by then.
A few weeks later, another video leaked of Marin at a night club in Helsinki. It shower her dancing with (or arguably, grinding on) a man in a fairly intimate manner. Marin in married with a kid, and the man in the video is not her husband.
About a week later, a picture came out (on Instagram? I'm not sure) of two Instagram models kissing while they flashed the camera. The models, who are friends with Marin, are standing in front of desk in her home that she uses to make official public announcements on tv. Marin admitted that she had them over her house to hang out and sauna when they took the pic.
Throughout the affair, Marin both apologized, but also defended herself on the grounds that she is an ordinary human being who simply likes to party, and that's no one else's business. This culminated in her crying on tv during a speech. A few days ago, Marin was officially cleared of any legal wrongdoing by the Finnish government.
I think Marin's case brings up interesting questions about what we should expect from politicians, specifically, how much we can expect them to avoid engaging in normal but potentially unsavory behavior.
I don't think Marin's defense is without merit. Yes, she's a politician, but she's also a person, and apparently a person who likes to party with her friends. I see no reason why she can't be a good prime minister and occasionally go to night clubs or get drunk with Instagram models. It's also relevant that we are talking about the head of Finland, a minor country of little international importance, so maybe we shouldn't be holding its leadership to such a high standard. If we punish behavior like Marin's too much, we end up with the opposite problem, which IMO is far more prevalent in the US. We end up with Clint Webbs (https://youtube.com/watch?v=EvU3QQH2b2Y [Side note - how do I embed links?]), or rather, a political environment which requires successful politicians to be so bland and boring that it selects for the uncharismatic and psychopathic.
On the other hand, maybe our politicians should be held to a standard of being above reproach. I don't think there's anything morally wrong with getting wasted at a club, but maybe it's a sign of immaturity? Or carelessness? Especially for a 37 year old with a kid? Especially for someone who is in an important position, like... if I had to choose a heart surgeon to operate on me, all else equal, I'd prefer one who doesn't get regularly drunk in clubs. I most certainly wouldn't want the president of the United States or Germany or the UK or a very important country in such a position. Finland isn't super important, but it's still a country.
(Also, though this is somewhat tangential, I think Marin's conduct in the video where she is dancing with the guy doesn't quite constitute cheating, but it crosses a line and shows a moral error, assuming she's in a standard monogamous relationship.)
I'm split between the two positions, but leaning toward, "if you're a politician of a small country, it's ok to party a little, but don't do it too much, and for god's sake, don't let videos of you partying leak."
Testing123
7mo ago
Beautifully written.
To clarify, by "literal virgin (despite being 21 years old)", I meant to convey:
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"virgin" is sometimes used colloquially and insultingly online to just mean "awkward around women", but in this case the guy is a "literal" virgin.
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I mentioned 21 years old because it is an unusual age to still be a virgin and highlights likely social awkwardness, I didn't mean to imply any moral failing on his part for that.
Testing123
6mo ago
Fincher is a master technician and I respect the film for what it is... but the sum of its parts is very "meh." It's just not interesting. I didn't care about any of the characters, I didn't care about the plot, and maybe 60% of the film literally consists of watching Fassbender do ordinary boring shit like pick up rental cars and buy stuff off Amazon. I was never quite bored, but I was never really into it either. Yet again, I really wish Fincher would apply his amazing filmmaking skills to more interesting material. But at least the mid-movie fight scene was amazing.
6/10
Testing123
1yr ago
Testing123
1yr ago
For anyone who is having trouble remembering how they know the name ‘Tommy Tallirico’, it might be from co-hosting Electric Playground on G4 way back in the day.
Testing123
6mo ago
Yep, I've tried going full caveman mode where I use nothing but a light moisturizer, and I've tried going hardcore "throw everything at my face and see what happens." I'm one of those people who is constantly caught in the see-saw between the two extremes. If I go minimalist, I get back acne; if I go maximalist, my skin gets irritated and worn out. I've never been able to maintain a good balance between the two for more than maybe a 6 month period.
Testing123
1yr ago
Is it men loving Asian women? Or is it women loving Asian men? Big difference. Why do they not reveal gendered racial statistics like OkCupid did?
They don't give gender/racial breakdown, but they do have most viewed categories by gender which are surprisingly similar (Japanese is the second most popular category for women???).
Why is "teen" a taboo subject?
Because, whether rightly or wrongly, it's considered pedophilia-adjacent by some. Porn Hub banned its unverified amateurs because it was accused of hosting a lot of underage porn. It probably had very little actually child porn, but quite a bit of jail bait underage porn.
Testing123
11mo ago
Maybe this has been brought up in one of your other dating posts, but have you considered going abroad? I guarantee that you can find better women than who you're talking about here in the Philippines or Thailand, and if you're white, it honestly doesn't matter how ugly you are.
Testing123
1yr ago
You’re making an important point but overstating it. Both Singapore and Hong Kong have robust, complex economies beneath their trade routes. Both have major international financial institutions which have found success competing against the world (as well as some manufacturing and other industries). Qatar and the rest of the oil baron states have virtually no other competitive companies outside of oil.
Testing123
1yr ago
I think it's human nature to want to vent about injustice and annoyances. Plus I'm interested in what people here think about the many facets of OP's story, Reddit's reaction, and what it does or doesn't mean about modern culture. Two birds with one stone.
Testing123
6mo ago
I have used OTC corticosteroids on my hands and have found it very effective. But the reputation of corticosteroids in the face is that they work in the short term at the detriment of the long term. They thin your skin, and thin skin is already the reason why facial skin tends to be so much worse than regular skin.
Have you been prescribed facial corticosteroids by a dermatologist?
Testing123
1yr ago
Should the United States just double or triple the size of its legal infrastructure (courts, judges, etc.)?
Even if you're not libertarian/minarchist minded, you probably agree that running a legal system is one of the most important things the government should be doing. Yet it seems like so many of the problems of the legal system are simple supply problems. Issues like bail, the costs of litigation, the difficulty of executions (as mentioned by a poster below), the inconvenience of every single legal encounter, etc. would be solved or greatly lessened by expanding legal resources. And relative to the vast majority of things the government does, courts are not expensive. I'm guessing the U.S. could double the entire legal system for less than 1% of the budget.
Testing123
6mo ago
I told my allergist about my hot shower response and she diagnosed me with cholinergic urticaria, but didn't say much else except recommending Claritin when I shower. On its own, it's annoying, but not a huge deal. Hell, hot water is generally considered bad for facial skin anyway, so it served as a little extra incentive to embrace cooler showers.
However, on the off chance this allergic response is connected to something bigger, I'm going to press my allergist during my next appointment. Maybe it's worth getting one of those mega antihistamine injections just to see what happens to my face. Honestly, HOPE my facial skin problems are related to my allergies, because that's so much easier to solve. Wouldn't it be amazing if the root of my problems was an allergy to some random fucking environmental thing that I can avoid or crush with antihistamines? But that's probably wishful thinking beyond the rosacea.
I had stress related psoriasis once that went away after dealing with the underlying cause. Is there a possibility that the sensitivity is psychosomatic (in other words linked to stress or other mental health issues)?
I won't say a psychosomatic role is impossible, but I tend to be skeptical. Besides, I beat my psoriasis with cortisone (that stuff kicks ass).
Testing123
6mo ago
hyper realistic silicone mask
Lol, reminds me of Vanilla Sky - https://youtube.com/watch?v=PZ5Eab3Na_E
Testing123
6mo ago
Based on the extensive list of treatments the obvious "See a dermatologist" I suppose has already been covered?
I've been to many dermatologists, as well as two plastic surgeons, one of whom is considered one of the best laser surgeons in the world. On the whole, my experiences with them have been fairly negative. Not that their advice is bad, just that it tends to be very typical (retinoids + sunscreen + moisturizer), and they seem to lack the means or inclination to seriously deal with extremely bad cases like mine.
I don't really blame them, dermatological responses to treatments are incredibly varied on an individual basis, and there isn't really much derms can do about it at a certain point.. There are people who have dry skin and put on an OTC moisturizer for a few weeks and then they're fine. Then there are people with dry skin who will spend literally years juggling multiple moisturizers, toners, cleansers, and serums trying to find the right combo that properly protects the skin barrier without causing break outs.
Usual medical treatments for acne vulgaris include...
I've used azelaic acid and dapsone, both work decently well, but always seem to loose effectiveness for me, and of course, both cause irritation for me. I've considered oral antibiotics, but I'm scared of their long-term side effects, IIRC there isn't a lot of good research on what happens when people take daily antibiotics for months and there are plenty of horror stories of people developing IBS from them.
What's up with the hot showers? Cholinergic urticaria is when you break out in hives from contact with hot water (but also an increase in body temperature and sweating), but is that what you experience?
The experience is exactly that. If I take a hot shower, I get hives on my chest. If I put my head under the water of a hot shower (which I haven't done in years), my face turns red and swells up. Even with lukewarm showers, I get some redness in my face and chest, and if I make the water a little too warm, I get hives.
Testing123
6mo ago
Interesting, my current diet is 150* grams of protein per day, mostly for working out, but there is some evidence that heavy animal protein diets are better for skin due to collagen consumption. Plus heavy meat is generally better for combatting inflamation, which is linked to rosacea. What mechanism would make high protein worse for rosacea?
I have recently started to explore autoimmune issues as a causal mechanism. Reasoning: I had bad eczema on my legs as a kid, have had psoriasis in the past, and my mother has a ton of weird allergy issues (allergic to penicillin and aspirin, was on daily antihistamines for 10+ years, now goes in for monthly antihistamine shots). I went to an allergist for the first time a few weeks ago and confirmed with tests that I'm allergic to cats and tree pollen, plus based on my description to her, I'm certainly allergic to hot showers (make my whole face turn red and swell up). The doctor speculated that I was allergic to dust, but my tests were negative. Next month I'll do a skin test where they put thingys on my back for 4 days and I can't shower.
But I don't think autoimmune is the central cause. My skin looks more like it's been put through the ringer by standard acne, with underlying irritation exacerbating it.
If you want to add another random item to your list though, some people report good results with dandruff shampoo. Like regular 2-in-1 classic head and shoulders. Just using it as body and face wash 1-2 times a week. Lather up, let dwell for 30-90 seconds, and rinse.
I will look into this. I used to use Head and Shoulders daily, but due to the irritation caused by even lukewarm showering, I have cut back on my showering to once every 3ish days (I work from home, don't interact with people a lot).
What is the proposed mechanism for how it would help facial skin? Antifungal?
Testing123
6mo ago
Always bad acne (never quite sure about type, I think bog standard), rosacea, chronically sensitive, acne scarring, lots of smaller discolorations, rough textures (especially orange peel), big pores, very dry by default.
The rebooted reality tv show, "The Mole," has a trans contestant (MTF) who they don't even mention being trans.
EDIT - the HBO reality tv show "The Climb" also has a trans contestant (FTM). He 100% passes and I didn't know he was trans until he brought it up.
Testing123
6mo ago
I checked Amazon and saw glycine is 10 cents per pill, but then I checked my collagen supplement and I see there's already glycine in there. But thank you for the tip.
Testing123
1yr ago
Nah, not really. There was an earlier incident in 2021 where Marin may have given Covid to a minister after catching it in a club (Marin was vaccinated and was told that she couldn't spread it), but the video leaks were in 2022 after all the restrictions had ended.
Testing123
1yr ago
I can’t help but pedantically point out that Demon’s Souls is prob the easiest Soulsborne game, except maybe DS1. Elden Ring has to be the most difficult, followed be Sekiro.
Testing123
11mo ago
I haven’t seen the movie but that was my sense just from the trailer. I don’t know if that’s because Howerton just doesn’t have much range, or if it’s because I’ve only seen him as Dennis for 15 years.
Sometimes I forget that the presidents of other countries (outside America) can't just order troops to go wherever for whatever reason.
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