3
thepalagoon 3 points ago +3 / -0

The Wokeydokes!

Ah, I kind of love that.

6
thepalagoon 6 points ago +6 / -0

Fuck.

I actually believe this. It is never the obvious people you imagine it is. Even Epstein, guilty as he was, got his bankroll and marching orders from somewhere.

7
thepalagoon 7 points ago +7 / -0

It should not be this complicated.

Every other country in the world enforces their borders more tightly than ours. I actually went through the process of applying for and renewing a visa to live abroad, and I fully expected to be deported (or, at best, lose my job) if I stopped following the law.

I understand with the way courts and laws work that is has to be done this way, but it is beyond frustrating when the underlying issue is the Federal Government actively aiding and abetting our enemies. There isn't a great remedy because that is a somewhat subjective opinion (the government can say it is trying and failing, which is not technically illegal).

3
thepalagoon 3 points ago +3 / -0

These types follow the same heuristic:

If a source agrees with their opinion, post it everywhere and rely on it, regardless of the quality of the data or the conflicts of interest.

If a source disagrees with their opinion, it is fake news.

10
thepalagoon 10 points ago +10 / -0

For real. And if you ever try to talk sense into a cult member you end up falling into that meme of patrick starr and his wallet:

"So we agree that the shots never stopped you from getting infected?"

"Yup."

"And we agree that the shots never stopped transmission in a meaningful way?"

"Yup."

"And we agree that governments pushed the shots under the pretense the shots would prevent infection and stop transmission?"

"Yup."

"And we agree that even if you were up to date on your shots you could still get sick and die?"

"Yup."

"So all the mandates were completely pointless and the shots themselves were worthless at best."

"Well actually the shots were very valuable in reducing the severity of illness. I am so glad we have them and fuck dirty antivaxxers."

Every. Single. Time.

23
thepalagoon 23 points ago +24 / -1

Because our enemies are stupid and prone to acting emotionally.

14
thepalagoon 14 points ago +14 / -0

I mean, look at the POW Camps in the South at the end of the Civil War.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War_prison_camps

When regular citizens are starving, when the army is starving, then it only stands to reason that the prisoners of war will be dead from starvation. Add disease into that scenario and you have a recipe for millions of people dead.

It's just another thing, isn't it? Can't actually have a discussion about it because the crazies on both sides come out. It's entirely possible millions of jews were rounded up, put in labor camps, submitted to hellish conditions... and died like many prisoners of war do, especially on the losing side. It's still genocidal, but it's a little less maniacal, and we can't ever have that.

15
thepalagoon 15 points ago +15 / -0

I'm not going to give the left more credit than I need to.

They are not masters of language manipulation. They have created their own words which have parallel meanings to people in "The Cult" and no one really understands them but they're used as a cudgel to silence heretics.

Trust me, I've been deep down the rabbit hole in my time. I'd spend 2 hours reading a dense postmodernist article and think myself crazy because NOTHING I had just read made any sense... then I'd get in to class and everyone would have such great clarity, but they would also say a whole bunch without saying anything.

They're just parroting things. They're not listening to you or considering your perspective.

25
thepalagoon 25 points ago +25 / -0

All you need from this article:

One of SBI employees said "we're not interested in tokenism."

So, basically, minus the rest of the screed, let me translate:

"We would never push for race changes or narrative changes to just make a fool of a character, we push race changes and narrative changes for The Message."

It's a really insidious slight of hand, where they deny what they're doing, and then bury the lede and admit to everything they're accused of, but, it's "(D)ifferent" for some stupid woke or sociological buzzword-laden reason.

22
thepalagoon 22 points ago +22 / -0

No, they won't.

New York has already collapsed, but the power structures won't admit that.

How else can I explain infrastructure that instantly feels dated as soon as you cross state lines? How else can you explain traffic signals that aren't regularly maintained and are so out of sync you frequently get stuck at a red light just as you get to the light, just to watch no one cross and a wave of traffic arrive just as it turns green for you.

How else can you explain a complete breakdown in services? I have called police numerous times (work-related) and I can confirm that "hello there is a knife-wielding maniac in the street smacking school buses and stopping traffic" is the kind of call that goes completely unanswered.

How else can you explain the state moving today to put Illegals at the front of the motherfucking line for State Jobs?

The left is a doom cult locked in their hubris until it all blows up on them. There is no saving blue states, there is only attempting to prevent the rot from spreading.

Will collapse overnight? My friend, blue states have been there for a long time.

15
thepalagoon 15 points ago +15 / -0

There are some other good answers here -- I would say it's largely because the economy is shit.

It's the same with sports media companies. The money on the balance sheet keeps going up, but the profit never appears. Companies have gone from 7-figure contracts to 10-figure contracts in the last 20 years but these same companies are now laying people off and claiming insolvency.

Same with game companies.

Same with housing.

Same with education.

Same with everything.

At some point, this huge bubble is going to collapse.

13
thepalagoon 13 points ago +13 / -0

Partly a problem of even the westerners living in expat bubbles and not really adapting.

Not unique to Japan, either. A significant percentage of the western population in Korea lives in Seoul and frequents these same kind of bubbles. I knew Westerners who lived in Korea for years who couldn't read basic Korean, which is sad because it takes about 15 minutes to learn.

But I do think Japan is easy to navigate as a tourist if you pack your humility. I've fucked up numerous times myself, including walking into a hotel lobby with my shoes on. The reaction to that transgression was severe - imagine one of those record-scratch moments in a movie - but was quickly moved past by listening.

This also helped me out quite a bit when my wife's lab brought in a Japanese postdoc. We helped his family navigate US society a bit and we made some lifelong friends out of the deal.

Of all my international friendships, my Japanese friends are the most rock-solid.

3
thepalagoon 3 points ago +3 / -0

I hate this song, but it isn't the worst shit she's put out recently. I don't even know the title of the song but I am sure it has Young in the title and she sings about how she used to be so hip and fun but now she's old and settled.

Bitch you're fucking 30. Just because you chain-smoked every phallic shaped object and dove headfirst into every vice imaginable doesn't mean you're old. You're fucking chewed up and spat out, there is a difference.

4
thepalagoon 4 points ago +4 / -0

It's the same sort of clown world logic that has the BBC talking about all native blacks throughout history.

They are trying to rewrite history.

I would have some respect for them if they admitted "obviously there have been few women leaders throughout history."

But no, we have to pretend that other cultures have always had this utopian gender balance that white people came along and screwed up.

That's just the best logical assumption I can make.

3
thepalagoon 3 points ago +3 / -0

Bold of you to assume anyone in NYS matters to the government.

This state jumped the shark long ago. Representatives don't even pretend to represent. The gas stove ban they rammed through last year (which will 100% be repealed before it goes into effect) despite the fact a clear majority opposed it.

This state is a rotting corpse that will suck every well-intentioned citizen dry.

Get out, don't look back, and don't ever set foot into this hellhole of a state again. It is the only option.

3
thepalagoon 3 points ago +3 / -0

I don't pretend to be an expert, but I am still waiting for someone to show me some evidence that unions have any positive role in the 21st century.

I have been in two unions in my life, and both were absolute and abject disasters. The first one, about 20 years ago, was when I worked gameday staff for an MLB team. When one of my coworkers was fired for a really bullshit reason (clear and open retaliation) it took six months before he was cleared to come back, and by that time it was almost Thanksgiving.

Last year I was in another union that was only for entry level staff (I was in the midst of a career change). That union was worse: their primary concern was providing febreeze to my coworkers who couldn't manage to get to work without smelling like a dispensary. When I raised a complaint (I was scheduled on doubles 17 days in a row), the union told me verbatim "I hope you don't think it is our job to listen to your complaints."

Fuck them... and I can say that now as management who is definitively not in the union.

Just... give me one example of a union doing something that is a net positive. Demanding a 30% raise because the democrats fucked the economy doesn't quite qualify.

13
thepalagoon 13 points ago +13 / -0

For all of us that keep our head down around the DIE bullshit, this is an aspect of the current situation that I have had trouble articulating.

Just another example of boys being left behind or viewed as "defective girls." Extra sad considering people have been hitting this same drum since at least 1990.

15
thepalagoon 15 points ago +15 / -0

Yeah, fully agree everything that came after was woke bullshit. I mean, the original LiS had a bunch of woke nonsense in it, too, but it was set at a private art school in the pacific northwest. If anything, it made the environment more realistic.

Agree to disagree about the ending, though. AFAIK the devs have confirmed there's a "canon" decision (the really stupid decision), but that's after the fact. It's Dumbledore is gay in its importance for how I experienced the story. I thought it was risky to offer a choice in how the game ends, but I like it. The essence of the game is built on really key decision points and how the player handles them... but the ending just comes down to a simple emotional choice. I liked it, B/B+ game -- I did not see the twist coming.

8
thepalagoon 8 points ago +8 / -0

Make no mistake, this is meant to appease the radicals and nothing more. This is a lame attempt to stir up the idea that the democrats hear the concerns before they shrug and go "well, you still gotta vote for biden."

I dunno, maybe I'm crazy... but this makes me optimistic.

There is no liberal pipeline. They never use anyone younger, and if they do it's because they are literally a paid actor (AOC). The young democrats are all toxic, radical, stupid, or some combination of all three.

The fact they were desperate enough to drag stewart back to the daily show is kind of sad, honestly.

21
thepalagoon 21 points ago +22 / -1

While you aren't wrong, I refuse to believe any game's fanbase is worse than Life is Strange's.

Want to talk about the interesting implications of time travel? Care about the story (I know the dialogue was cheesy, but the story was great)?

Too bad it's softcore lesbian fantasies all the way down.

6
thepalagoon 6 points ago +6 / -0

I think the elites underestimated how much everyone hates California --- or at least recognizes it aint a place you want to live.

No one would take Newsome seriously. I think they have moved on. There really isn't anyone. I mean, when "former first lady*" is your best backup plan... you're fucked.

Klobuchar and Warren are radioactive because they radiate Karen energy. AOC is too dumb, Bernie is too much of a cuck. No one takes any of their diversity hire congresscreatures seriously.

Their cupboard is bare. It is good news, but it underscores how desperate they are

15
thepalagoon 15 points ago +15 / -0

Every time a liberal uses that many words, you can be sure they don't even understand it.

It's just a collection of big words that is supposed to quantify an emotional reaction to something into empirical data... and it never will be.

6
thepalagoon 6 points ago +6 / -0

I am slightly... confused, I guess.

I read the article, and their methodology seems sound. They used recognized and peer-reviewed clinical assessment tools. Their sample is solid, recruiting from patients who were already linked with the hospital seeking the old chop and swap.

But... I have the same question as to how they recruited people from this particular population to submit to the research. And I have bigger questions about how this article came out of the University of Tehran of all places.

I guess I assumed that the social contagion hadn't reached Iran, or that they wouldn't be tolerant of it. Even if they are, a sample size of 70 seems high for Iran.

I also have lingering questions about bias in the research. Again, based on what little I know about Iran I assume this kind of thing isn't tolerated (and the journal of publication has Islam in the title...). I think it is reasonable to question whether there might have been an incentive to conclude mass personality disorder comorbidity in transgenders.

I like the conclusion as much as anyone here, but I will always advocate for good, solid, verifiable data. Given other data I have seen suggesting a high prevalence of autism among the population, and these results contradict/don't address that, I regretfully have to hit this one with a DOUBT.

1
thepalagoon 1 point ago +1 / -0

I truly don't think you even need to be punitive. Let these assholes hang themselves:

Though this is an obvious and drastic oversimplification:

  1. Figure out some way to discharge student loan debt in bankruptcy. Fuck Joe Biden and this law in particular. In theory signing an affidavit that you are not and will not claim to be a graduate of that program seems to be a good starting point. Logically, people who need their degree will not declare bankruptcy. Doctors and lawyers and other "high debt but high earning" professions would never renounce their degrees, but your sociology, _____ studies, theater, etc majors will en masse.

  2. When that happens, pull the universities in front of Congress and ask them to explain why. They can't, of course, and will embarrass themselves trying. Then the media (presumably less cucked at this point) can run all their smears "tuition up 2000%, ROI down 352%"

  3. At some point the solution becomes clear: do not punish the borrowers, who made mistakes but there are clear reasons why so many young adults were actively pushed into making those mistakes... and do not punish the taxpayers, who never made the mistake in the first place. Punish the universities. Punish the people actually committing the fraud.

From this point we should be on our way to a better situation.

It seems simple, though: ask the universities to explain the increases in tuition while decreasing ROI and... they can't. There is no explanation.

Fuck em. Take their endowments. Maybe we won't make this mistake again.

2
thepalagoon 2 points ago +2 / -0

This may be a controversial opinion around these parts (not with you, I surmise):

I think Philosophy needs to return to the bedrock of education. I am in favor of a true liberal arts education, as it does produce critical and independent thinkers, and that alone lends itself to a diverse range of professions.

But that is not feasible in the current paradigm. It has to be rigorous and there has to be failure.

The problem is not in the disciplines themselves. Sociology is not useless -- in a more sane world sociologists would have been at the forefront of the fatherlessness crisis, instead of egging it on. Human society is inherently complicated and does merit study and inquisition -- but it should be rigorous and empirical and unbiased.

I don't see how where get from where we are to where we need to be without completely starting over. I hope I'm wrong, but -- I think the rot is too deep.

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