site banner
PaperclipPerfector  1mo ago (text post)   2435 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for June 26, 2026

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

2
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

I think you must be one of those visiting Europeans because, as a US native, a five hour drive is entirely unremarkable. I do more than that twice per week though with stops at job sites.

When I think of a 'push' I'm thinking of the SF Bay Area to Seattle in one go, or at least Bay Area to LA or San Diego. I've also driven across this great land of ours, probably 12+ hours of driving per day, though took a winding route so as to see some of the sights and it still ended up taking five or six days.

Silence >>>>> Podcasts > Musics

Audiobooks are the only things that keep me sane. Currently blowing through Aubrey/Maturin at a most prodigious rate. But after living this way for... fifteen years? I have something like 600 Audible titles and enough material at this point that I could easily go the rest of my life just re-listening to what I already have.

The really is a dearth of semi-healthy food options

I'm a believer in bringing at least a mini ice chest with good things in it.

I don't think chronic speeding gets you to your destination faster. The naive argument of "It's speed / distance!" doesn't hold up for a number of reasons. First, once you're at 80 mph+, your effective miles per gallon plummets because of the energy needs to overcome air resistance at that speed.

This is definitely underappreciated, and it gets much worse when instead of filling up a tank you're charging a tesla.

motor-vehicle deaths are, if I'm reading correctly, the 2nd most common cause of accidental death in the US, behind "poisoning."

Kinda weird. I've known of countless people who died in car accidents and none who died of poisoning. Wonder if it's a regional thing? Maybe a social filter bubble? Anyway I'd expect medical malpractice to be number one by far, though maybe for some reason that doesn't count as 'accidental'.

Drivers are truly insanely dangerous. The overestimation of ability is breathtaking.

And they vote!

I've known of countless people who died in car accidents and none who died of poisoning. Wonder if it's a regional thing? Maybe a social filter bubble?

Would "poisoning" potentially include accidental drug overdoses?

It seems so.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats