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PaperclipPerfector  11d ago (text post)   2803 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for October 16, 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.

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Anyone watch the Roadster demo last night? As expected, it had some peak Elon cringe moments, but you don't have to be a great MC when you have a flying car.

Possibly the greatest product demo of all time.

I considered making a culture war post about this, but I suck at writing.

When I watched it, I audibly gasped; the most incredible feat of engineering I've witnessed since I saw the dual Dragon landings on that ocean platform. That said, I've been amazed to see the polarizing response on all the usual sites. You have a vocal contingent going "HOLY HELL THIS IS INCREDIBLE", but also a sizable movement going "this is stupid"/"what are we gonna use this for?"/"you could've solved world hunger instead", etc.

To me, this could've been a rallying reminder of the greatness of human ingenuity. Instead it's just another scissor statement.

To quote Zvi:

29 As maze levels rise, mazes take control of more and more of an economy and people’s lives.

30 Under sufficiently strong pressure the maze behaviors, value and culture filter out into the broader society. Maze behaviors, values and culture are seen increasingly as legitimate and comfortable and praiseworthy. This happens even outside of any organization. Non-maze behaviors are increasingly seen as illegitimate, uncomfortable and blameworthy.

31 The result of these effects is that people in societies with high maze levels, especially those with power and wealth, increasingly and increasingly openly oppose and vilify the creation of clarity, engaging in any productive object-level action, and participation in or even belief in the existence of positive sum games of any kind. Simulacrum levels continue to rise.

32 Given sufficiently high societal maze levels, talk in support of maze behaviors would eventually becoming more and more open, and dominate discourse and how people are educated about the world, as people explicitly and publicly endorse and teach anti-virtues over virtues.

33 We would see increasing societal inability to create clarity, engage in actions or do anything other than repeat existing patterns. Costs to all still possible actions would rise. Existing patterns would expropriate increasing portions of remaining resources to keep themselves afloat, and increasingly ban any activity outside those patterns.

35 The default short term outcome on the scale of a nation, when maze levels and simulacrum levels increase, is declining growth, dynamism, slack, discourse, hope, happiness, virtue and wealth. People increasingly lose the things that matter in life.

36 The default long term outcome on the scale of a nation is the rise and fall of civilizations.

37 We do in fact see all of this. Here and now.

(Removed full stops in original from the numbered list to avoid the Markdown numbered-list bug.)

This is what a decadent society looks like. Do note, however, that decadent societies always stumble, but they don't always fall - they can right themselves, though it's usually bloody.

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