Diet_Coke's recent activity
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Comment on What are your favorite fun/happy facts? in ~talk
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Comment on Bernie Sanders drops out of American presidential race in ~society
Diet_Coke There were a lot of not great candidates this cycle, but only Biden has weaknesses that mirror Trump. Even Amy Klobuchar could have gone after Trump for his boorishness, his corruption, his...There were a lot of not great candidates this cycle, but only Biden has weaknesses that mirror Trump. Even Amy Klobuchar could have gone after Trump for his boorishness, his corruption, his inability to string a thought together, his racist policies, his actions that worsen climate change, and his predilection to starting stupid wars. Biden can't do any of that without a flood of whattaboutism.
Now, going by the primaries, Bernie consistently won independent voters. You're not going to beat Trump without them. It's just hard for me to imagine someone who would show up to vote for Biden and not Bernie, but there are plenty of Bernie voters who've never felt like they could believe in a politician before and aren't going to show up for Joe.
Platforms are basically meaningless. I mean, they're nice, but it's just something to add to the horse race narratives. What I care about is a candidate's ability or willingness to do the right thing. Three in four Democrats support Medicare For All, Biden would veto it. I have zero confidence he will do anything to meaningfully address climate change. I have less than zero confidence he'll act to fix all the damage caused by the Trump admin, and send them to jail for their crimes. About the only bright spot in a Biden administration is the judges he nominates might not be awful.
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What are your favorite fun/happy facts?
Mine is about my spirit animal. Manatees have long been known as gentle giants, and somehow sailors once confused them with beautiful women. What fewer people know about manatees, is that they...
Mine is about my spirit animal.
Manatees have long been known as gentle giants, and somehow sailors once confused them with beautiful women. What fewer people know about manatees, is that they control their buoyancy with flatulance. Their whole life is floating around and eating seagrass. They get gassy and start to float up, so they let a few farts out to get back down to the seagrass. And you thought dolphins had life figured out.
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Comment on Bernie Sanders drops out of American presidential race in ~society
Diet_Coke I feel you on that, sorry for not holding up to Tilderino standards. I've always been a big believer that groups can make better decisions than individuals but it's hard not to see Biden as the...I feel you on that, sorry for not holding up to Tilderino standards. I've always been a big believer that groups can make better decisions than individuals but it's hard not to see Biden as the absolute worst possible match up against Trump.
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Comment on Bernie Sanders drops out of American presidential race in ~society
Diet_Coke I suspect that this is all the result of a bet between two billionaires. One said, I'll prove that I'm the richest most powerful guy, I'll get reality TV show host Donald Trump elected. A couple...I suspect that this is all the result of a bet between two billionaires. One said, I'll prove that I'm the richest most powerful guy, I'll get reality TV show host Donald Trump elected. A couple years later, they reconvene at the Bohemian Grove and the other billionaire says you did a pretty good job with Trump, but wait till you see what I make the Democrats do this year.
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Comment on Bernie Sanders drops out of American presidential race in ~society
Diet_Coke I can't wait to vote for the senile mentally addled rapist with a history of siding with corporations over workers and people.I can't wait to vote for the senile mentally addled rapist with a history of siding with corporations over workers and people.
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Comment on After 9/11, Americans gave up privacy for security. Will we make the same trade-off after COVID-19? in ~tech
Diet_Coke You know, if we had a President Obama, or even Clinton, or even Romney, I'd probably trust the government to use mobile phone data to help people quarantine. However I have not one single iota of...You know, if we had a President Obama, or even Clinton, or even Romney, I'd probably trust the government to use mobile phone data to help people quarantine. However I have not one single iota of doubt that Trump would abuse this power to further hurt communities of color and activists.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~misc
Diet_Coke If you want to understand that time and how it happened better, you might want to check out a couple documentaries: The Power of Nightmares and, with a big heaping tablespoon of salt Zeitgeist -...If you want to understand that time and how it happened better, you might want to check out a couple documentaries:
and, with a big heaping tablespoon of salt
Zeitgeist - which I would suggest not viewing as historically accurate (with the benefit of hindsight it should be pretty clear some of it was really out there), but because it focuses on the creation and power of simple good/evil stories.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Diet_Coke That's me right now too, although I'm probably 1/3 of your playtime tops. I don't mind that, kind of what you expect for a game like this, although some of the mechanics are a little opaque. I'm...Admittedly, all my games so far in ~60 hours of play have ended with my hitting a wall, bit it always felt like there was one more aspect of gameplay for me to work on before returning.
That's me right now too, although I'm probably 1/3 of your playtime tops. I don't mind that, kind of what you expect for a game like this, although some of the mechanics are a little opaque. I'm still getting the hang of expanding, so far the best I've been able to do is as a democracy, prioritizing areas with lots of mining potential. With some faction management and rivalries I've been able to expand pretty big, but then I hit a wall where I think I'd either need to do diplomacy or wars to keep growing.
If you like Stellaris, you'll enjoy Surviving Mars. It's similar in that you have to balance a dozen different things and if a catastrophe strikes at the wrong time it can totally fuck you over. It is very satisfying though, once you've got a cool base set up, to just watch it go.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Diet_Coke (edited )Link ParentStellaris is a great quarantine game. My only issue with it is that it's so complex, it's easy to get lost. I have no clue how wars work and only a basic understanding of things like diplomacy. I...Stellaris is a great quarantine game. My only issue with it is that it's so complex, it's easy to get lost. I have no clue how wars work and only a basic understanding of things like diplomacy. I spent 45 minutes trying to look up where the edict menu is on PS4 because the placement doesnt make much sense. IIRC it's in the traditions menu but seems like it should be in the government menu. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of real story to it either. Definitely enjoy it though, although IMO Surviving Mars is maybe more fun.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~misc
Diet_Coke It seems that way looking back, but on the other hand hate crimes against Muslims (and Sikhs just because they wear turbans) went up and there's still an undercurrent of othering or outright...It seems that way looking back, but on the other hand hate crimes against Muslims (and Sikhs just because they wear turbans) went up and there's still an undercurrent of othering or outright racism towards them. One Pakistani-American I went to school with had government agents detain her family, question her father, and search their house because he was involved in a charity and travelled to Pakistan regularly. I remember how pretty soon the patriotism became jingoism, and being against useless wars was anti-American. The fear was incredible, my suburban nowhere middle school cancelled after school events in fear of Al Qaeda coming for us. It's so ridiculous looking back on it.
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Comment on Do you think a recession is likely within the next 15 years? If so, what/who will cause it and why? in ~talk
Diet_Coke I figured it would be in October, when a lot of companies publish year-end reports for investors. One thing that's for sure, you can see how fragile the """booming economy""' wasI figured it would be in October, when a lot of companies publish year-end reports for investors. One thing that's for sure, you can see how fragile the """booming economy""' was
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Comment on What old tech are you holding onto and why? in ~tech
Diet_Coke (edited )Link ParentThe feel in your hand is about the same as a thin book, and the screen was designed to look like a page from a book too. The only downside is there's no backlight, so it's tough to read on a plane...The feel in your hand is about the same as a thin book, and the screen was designed to look like a page from a book too. The only downside is there's no backlight, so it's tough to read on a plane at night. What I like about it vs a real book, is that my Kindle is actually a couple dozen books, and it's linked up to Amazon so I can always get a new one. If I'm taking it on vacation, I can wait until I get to the airport to decide what to read.
Edited to add: you can download any public domain book for free, which includes a lot of the classics.
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Comment on What old tech are you holding onto and why? in ~tech
Diet_Coke I still have a first gen Kindle, with e-ink. The thing is awesome, and a great way to read. I don't use it that often these days, but I have more books on it than I do physical books.I still have a first gen Kindle, with e-ink. The thing is awesome, and a great way to read. I don't use it that often these days, but I have more books on it than I do physical books.
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Comment on Daily coronavirus-related chat, questions, and minor updates - April 4 in ~health
Diet_Coke This is the most wholesome thing I've ever read. You and your family are awesome.This is the most wholesome thing I've ever read. You and your family are awesome.
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Comment on Now is not the time to lose our humanity: Some DOs and DO NOTs in ~talk
Diet_Coke Exactly. And the profiteers hoarding and reselling basic necessities for profit? They're just entrepreneurs, eliminating inefficiencies in supply chains. Every example of bad behavior just...Exactly. And the profiteers hoarding and reselling basic necessities for profit? They're just entrepreneurs, eliminating inefficiencies in supply chains. Every example of bad behavior just reinforces their beliefs. It makes me less than hopeful there will be meaningful accountability when the dust has settled.
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Comment on Now is not the time to lose our humanity: Some DOs and DO NOTs in ~talk
Diet_Coke I think the problem is that this is basically what Republicans want. A central tenet of their political ideology is that government can't solve problems. As St. Reaganicus said, government is not...this crisis as an indictment for modern conservatism and a clear example as to why Republicans should either demand better of their politicians or own up to it and say that yes, their politicians are indeed representing them when they make religious activities essential or say we should be back to work by easter.
I think the problem is that this is basically what Republicans want. A central tenet of their political ideology is that government can't solve problems. As St. Reaganicus said, government is not the solution to the problem, government is the problem. And so they've stacked the government with vacancies and incompetents and left the great majority of responsibility on states and individual businesses. In my city, a group of restaurant owners who collectively own dozens of restaurants, got together and decided to all close at the same time - before anyone at any level of government ordered it. We're seeing so many examples of outright ineptness it's hard to even list them all. To a dyed-in-the-wool Republican, that's just the government doing what it does and further reinforces their beliefs.
I think that, as the dust starts to settle, it's going to be important to point out governments around the world that handled this crisis well. It never had to get this bad. It only got this bad because of the unique awfulness of Donald Trump. If he weren't incompetent in a thousand different ways, it would be better. Unfortunately there's an American resistance to emulating success from around the world.
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Comment on Scientists predict more major hurricanes than normal in 2020 season in ~enviro
Diet_Coke This is what happens when you give the PlayStation 7 controller to your little brotherThis is what happens when you give the PlayStation 7 controller to your little brother
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Comment on Scientists predict more major hurricanes than normal in 2020 season in ~enviro
Diet_Coke The worst part is that the timeline for the virus being worst in places like Florida and Texas, it lines up closely to hurricane season. Something to consider, if infections are really bad in...The worst part is that the timeline for the virus being worst in places like Florida and Texas, it lines up closely to hurricane season. Something to consider, if infections are really bad in Florida are the governors of Georgia and Alabama going to let people evacuate? Republicans don't have the most welcoming track record with refugees.
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Comment on Hey Tilderinos, what's your favorite cannabis strain? in ~talk
Diet_Coke Whichever one is in my bowl at the moment!Whichever one is in my bowl at the moment!
My favorite fun language fact is that religious and sacrilegious don't share an etymology