chocobean's recent activity
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Comment on The rage of tradwives in ~life.women
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Comment on On vulgar materialism in ~society
chocobean Link ParentExactly. Every media has influence, from an underground zine to a media empire, but the degree to which that is weighted is not the same thing.Exactly. Every media has influence, from an underground zine to a media empire, but the degree to which that is weighted is not the same thing.
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Comment on My partner says our relationship has always felt suffocating, but she does not know what she wants. What would you do? in ~life
chocobean Link ParentHey Kaffo, sounds like you have a healthy direction to head towards and have gotten a lot of momentum towards it! The important part is you don't feel sfuck and helpless :) and it sounds like both...Hey Kaffo, sounds like you have a healthy direction to head towards and have gotten a lot of momentum towards it! The important part is you don't feel sfuck and helpless :) and it sounds like both you and your ex are still growing and getting to know yourselves more. Congratulations.
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Comment on On vulgar materialism in ~society
chocobean (edited )LinkPresumably, I live in a democracy, where rich people get the same one vote as me. What is this extent to which the rich have influence over the state? According to the author, vulgar materialism...Second, we can ask: in the real world, does money give you influence over the state? To some extent, yes.
Presumably, I live in a democracy, where rich people get the same one vote as me. What is this extent to which the rich have influence over the state? According to the author, vulgar materialism is the strawman
where everything is explained by money, states are weak, democracy is a fiction, corporations and the rich run the world, ideology and religion and nationalism and language have no explanatory power and are merely covers for secret, underlying material motives.
Notices the extreme language choice: everything is explained by money, A = B and C = D, EFG have no explanatory power and are merely H.
The author doesn't then go on to explain how then does the world actually work and why some gradient of vulgar materialism stubbornly feels to be true.
Dear reader, do not fall for the obviously wrong silent opposite either, that once we accept the author's obvious strawman as false, we must then accept that nothing is explained by money, states have absolute power, democracy is sacredly upheld and fair, corporations and the rich have no more influence than anyone else, ideology and religion and nationalism and language have all the explanatory power necessary and therefore let's not eat the rich.
That, I hope, sounds as obviously stupid as the original strawman.
So then who is running the world? Even in a world where each King Baby has absolute power, they (singular) still needs to rely on the people around them (singular) to bring consorts or import exotic food or to execute a foe.
The truth is that the world has always been run by a core of people surrounded by a slightly bigger circle with less influence, surrounded by a slightly bigger circle with less influence and so on. That core can have a diameter of 1, as in a dictatorship, but that One Person must still be surrounded by a slightly bigger circle who give opinions and provide flattery for beneficial decrees and sycophantically suggest their own business/family interests for consideration during banquets and dinners and galas and whatever. In a democracy, the head of state shares decision making powers with his ministers, who can unseat him, and he is limited by those who can mobilize violence to enact laws that limit his power. We are seeing in America that checks and balances are a fiction, yes, but even if we reduce all decisions to just one man again, Trump is still surrounded by a ring of influencers, and rely on people to execute his grifts. It's the same small circle of people at the Emperor's banquets: the rich.
The oligarchs may not have absolute power, but they're still orders of magnitude closer to it than the average voter. An oligarch may not be able to draft his own law, but he's not just invited to the party during which that decision is made, he's the one throwing it.
Do voters and language and whatever have no power? Reader, we know that every single speck of dust in the universe exerts gravitational force upon even the most massive black hole at the opposite end of the universe. Go vote, go canvass, go and exert that influence, but don't listen to any distracting fiction that tells you they only just have the same one vote as you .
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Comment on Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news in ~news
chocobean Link ParentQuick internet search says that's louder than angle grinder, rock concert, and jackhammer. Of course that's not sustained volume, so one burst probably pretty harmless Does 6 seconds and arrow not...That is in the noise range of a chain saw, a jet aircraft taking off and an ambulance siren at close range.
Quick internet search says that's louder than angle grinder, rock concert, and jackhammer. Of course that's not sustained volume, so one burst probably pretty harmless
It’s the second time McGrail-Bateup has broken a world record. In 2019, he broke a speed record for an archer shooting 10 arrows. His time of 60.03 seconds shaved a fraction of a second off a record that had stood since 2015.
Nine months later, a 7-year-old boy shattered McGrail-Bateup’s record by 11.4 seconds.
Does 6 seconds and arrow not sound perfectly doable? But of course there's an accuracy portion involved:
https://thearcheryexpert.com/longest-bow-shot/
Joseph McGrail-Bateup (Australia) completed the fastest time to shoot ten arrows into a 40 cm target from an 18 m distance in 1 min 0.03 seconds.
Joseph used a longbow for this attempt.
It was achieved in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, on 17 November 2026.
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Comment on Why carbon capture can't solve climate change in ~enviro
chocobean LinkIt's possible for something to be an integral part of a solution that is exactly counter to the solution when championed by bad actors: Saving money, limit spending and getting more work, but...It's possible for something to be an integral part of a solution that is exactly counter to the solution when championed by bad actors:
Saving money, limit spending and getting more work, but pushed by capitalists who also oppose living wages, collective bargaining, collude within industries, and hide salary information.
Good diet and exercise pushed by junk food companies who hire scientists to target addiction.
Self control and "play responsibly" pushed by gambling, tabocca liquor corporations that employ dark design strategies to target whales.
Building resilient energy grid, but pushed by oil and gas companies who want to sell energy to data centers.
Proper parenting when pushed by racists and supremacists and anti-choice people.
Everything good is used by people who mean harm. Carbon capture is a necessary part of the solution but, is aggressively pushed because it is profitable and allows for no limitation on emissions. In fact, this wonderful tech will be used to justify accelerating emission levels. No support unless emissions standards are upheld first: which we have not even pretended to try to do for 50 years
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Comment on Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news in ~news
chocobean Link ParentIn Texas, even the pets that run away are biggerIn Texas, even the pets that run away are bigger
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Comment on These tacky men with ridiculous glasses want you to wear them too in ~life.style
chocobean Link ParentHmmm I don't like this line of thinking, it does sound sexist, if i wouldn't like this said about women. And also, while a lot of rich jerkwads are men, there are a lot of rich men who aren't...Hmmm I don't like this line of thinking, it does sound sexist, if i wouldn't like this said about women. And also, while a lot of rich jerkwads are men, there are a lot of rich men who aren't jerks, and a lot of women who are terrible people rich or poor.
Especially if people are already thinking tacky CEOs are one shaped already, then singling out men is both hurtful to all men who aren't tacky CEOs, and also reinforces that CEOs are men, which hurts women
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Comment on Should the plural of "milf" be "milfs" or "milves"? in ~humanities.languages
chocobean Link ParentIs it still a harem if the Miles don't cluster around one of the oaves?Is it still a harem if the Miles don't cluster around one of the oaves?
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Comment on Should the plural of "milf" be "milfs" or "milves"? in ~humanities.languages
chocobean Link ParentWe have the mountain variety aplenty, methinks :) Actually, do mountain lions also group as pride???We have the mountain variety aplenty, methinks :)
Actually, do mountain lions also group as pride???
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Comment on Should the plural of "milf" be "milfs" or "milves"? in ~humanities.languages
chocobean Link ParentProbably best use of Examplary tag use I've seen in a while. But should I also tag it as Joke....?Probably best use of Examplary tag use I've seen in a while. But should I also tag it as Joke....?
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Comment on Should the plural of "milf" be "milfs" or "milves"? in ~humanities.languages
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Comment on ‘Donkey’: Eddie Murphy ‘Shrek’ spinoff sets summer 2028 release in ~movies
chocobean Link ParentHonestly they're not bad movies, in particular I love 2 more than even 1. But they're hardly innovative anymore, eh, the irreverent fairy tale comedy is by now a firmly established genre, which...Honestly they're not bad movies, in particular I love 2 more than even 1. But they're hardly innovative anymore, eh, the irreverent fairy tale comedy is by now a firmly established genre, which somewhat defeats the original goal as parody. Kinda sad to see something mold breaking become its own cookie cutter.
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Comment on Should the plural of "milf" be "milfs" or "milves"? in ~humanities.languages
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Comment on ‘Donkey’: Eddie Murphy ‘Shrek’ spinoff sets summer 2028 release in ~movies
chocobean LinkI was part of the generation that first watched Shrek as it played in theatres, with it being an instant hit because it was unlike traditional animated fairy tales. But that was quarter of a...I was part of the generation that first watched Shrek as it played in theatres, with it being an instant hit because it was unlike traditional animated fairy tales. But that was quarter of a century ago.
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Comment on 4 × 3 in ~games
chocobean Link Parentoh I didn't get today's. Was quite stuck on this group, never having had an apple device. Pre-Installed on iPhone SAFARI · WALLET · FACETIMEoh I didn't get today's.
Was quite stuck on this group, never having had an apple device.Pre-Installed on iPhone
SAFARI · WALLET · FACETIME -
Comment on How important is sexual chemistry/ability/quality to you when you date/marry/whatever? in ~life
chocobean Link ParentThat sounds .... Fun? But you're slightly uncomfortable or thrown off a bit with women getting rowdy at the original Sir Mixalot, try Jonathan Colton's romantic ballad version.That sounds .... Fun? But you're slightly uncomfortable or thrown off a bit with women getting rowdy at the original Sir Mixalot, try Jonathan Colton's romantic ballad version.
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Comment on How important is sexual chemistry/ability/quality to you when you date/marry/whatever? in ~life
chocobean (edited )Link ParentDear knifemissle, please don't feel discouraged; you engaged honestly and provided excellent resources in a non judgemental and gentle manner to many who need to hear this. I hope OP is among...Dear knifemissle, please don't feel discouraged; you engaged honestly and provided excellent resources in a non judgemental and gentle manner to many who need to hear this. I hope OP is among those who benefit, but because it is the internet, I'm convinced that we all learn from each other even when we're not OPs. Many advice columns gave me lifelong good advice and provided safety baselines and established norms that my family of origin didn't: so, thank you for sharing, and maybe many boys will read it and gain benefit from your comments .
Edit: typo
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Comment on 4 × 3 in ~games
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Comment on How important is sexual chemistry/ability/quality to you when you date/marry/whatever? in ~life
chocobean LinkI don't have relevant input for dating / whatever, but for marriage, I would rate sexual chemistry/ability near the absolute bottom of my list. Quality matters higher on that list, and include...I don't have relevant input for dating / whatever, but for marriage, I would rate sexual chemistry/ability near the absolute bottom of my list. Quality matters higher on that list, and include such things as others have mentioned here: patience, listening, responsiveness, emotional maturity, healthy ego and boundaries, generosity, good cheer, fairness and caring, perceptiveness and ability to have great ongoing conversations. These also happen to be great qualities for personality and outside of the bedroom as well. Someone who knows how to be flexible and find the fun in everyone or in every season and every emcounter, someone who doesn't have anything to prove to himself or others and is just fully present as one person in front of another person, someone who isn't comparing the present moment with what was or what it could be. I want to be with someone, not audition for role of Sex Goddess or be in some All Time Top 10 tournament bracket.
I'm of the opinion that quality as a sexual partner is a subset of their overall personality and quality. Point out a confident gentleman, and you've identified a good lover.
This is fawning behaviour right? If they roll over and show their bellies and go "oh wow you're so big and strong and correct and awesome, I also hate those women and I'm not like them I'm a pick me girl" they can get resources and protection and respect from one (presumably) loyal man and opt out of the rat race with faceless men who aren't loyal to them right?
The Serena Joy model Atwood wrote about from behind the iron curtain.