HeroesJourneyMadness's recent activity
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Comment on New experimental evidence shows lack of employment effects of guaranteed income in ~finance
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Comment on New experimental evidence shows lack of employment effects of guaranteed income in ~finance
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentSorry, but your assumptions and conclusions read as though they’re from such an incredibly anti-UBI place that I’m not sure the exchange is helpful. The thread looks to me like at least some folks...Sorry, but your assumptions and conclusions read as though they’re from such an incredibly anti-UBI place that I’m not sure the exchange is helpful. The thread looks to me like at least some folks are making statements where the sample size and dollar amount and timeline are okay when something supports their opinion, but not when it doesn’t.
I also want to challenge the veracity of any conclusions about UBI at all based on a few thousand people getting $400 for a few months during the pandemic.
As for the costs of UBI, IMO arguments rooted there don’t belong in this discussion at all. This is about “does it work”, not “how or who pays for it” - that’s changing the topic into an area where someone who has prejudged UBI feels like they might have a better argument.
Try and be intellectually honest in arguments I guess is what I’m going for here.
I’m kind of interested in finding out the origins of this paper- who funded it and the background of the authors, because it smells funny to me.
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Comment on Google will now link to The Internet Archive to add more context to Search results in ~tech
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkI just hope that this “partnership” is very very good for TIA. I don’t trust a Google agenda one bit. TIA is essential for a ton of research and fact-checking. I don’t want Google owning it, being...I just hope that this “partnership” is very very good for TIA. I don’t trust a Google agenda one bit. TIA is essential for a ton of research and fact-checking. I don’t want Google owning it, being able to influence it, or able to shutter it.
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Comment on What things do you have are surprisingly good / handy? in ~life
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentMan. I loved keeping a Leatherman in my daily carry bag. I stopped doing it when the TSA got their third one from me. Still annoyed about it.Man. I loved keeping a Leatherman in my daily carry bag. I stopped doing it when the TSA got their third one from me. Still annoyed about it.
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Comment on Batman: Caped Crusader gender-flipped The Penguin as Batman had "a lack of good villains" in ~tv
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkHoly manufactured drama Batman! This EP or author or (likely) both are trolling for buzz. Calling Batman's rouge's gallery weak is just lazy clickbait. His villains are held up constantly as some...Holy manufactured drama Batman! This EP or author or (likely) both are trolling for buzz. Calling Batman's rouge's gallery weak is just lazy clickbait. His villains are held up constantly as some of the most interesting and best in all of comics.
I don't care about the gender flip. If I HAD to weigh in, I went "huh, that might be an interesting angle... let's see what's done with it." That's about it. I'm much more interested in if it stays smart - or gets smarter. Rounding out the season by focusing on Dent's arc... Seemed okay. Two Face has never been a favorite of mine. I bet it was hard to do in so few episodes, but I commend taking the fractured psyche of him slowly and with interest and care. That was well done.
I enjoyed it well enough. If anything I'd ask them to take even bigger risks... IF they do it well. IMO there are two limbs this show could die on:
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Being too timid (read: precious) with the source material such that it's too much retreading the same ground as other versions.
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Lacking depth. These stories have to be good. Really good. Plot-induced stupidity- even for exposition should be avoided at all costs. There were too many instances where Gordon made me eyeroll, and that really took me out of it.
I'll give it a really harsh 8/10. Probably deserves an 8.5, but I, like many other Batfans do not like dumb Batman stories, and the bar is pretty high on this property.
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Comment on Meditation and mindfulness have a dark side that we don't talk about in ~health.mental
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentWell, here's a whole lot of words I finally posted. There might be some thoughts in there somewhere. Hope you can find them.Well, here's a whole lot of words I finally posted. There might be some thoughts in there somewhere. Hope you can find them.
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Comment on Meditation and mindfulness have a dark side that we don't talk about in ~health.mental
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkI just read the article and thread (50-some comments currently) and feel like there's something I can add that's an angle not covered, but may be worth consideration. Qualifier: I don't meditate...I just read the article and thread (50-some comments currently) and feel like there's something I can add that's an angle not covered, but may be worth consideration.
Qualifier: I don't meditate currently, but have at periods in my life. My life is not on track. As I've mentioned before here, I'm a 12-step guy of many years. Also - I'll try to stick mostly to my own personal experience first, but will likely make generalizations based on that.
My experience is mixed with meditation, so I've a sort of "whatever works for you" opinion on the matter. The times when I've meditated are when I was struggling. When "life had gotten lifey" so they say- when sleep and peace of mind are hard to come by. If my own pattern is common, as I suspect it might be, then it seems probable that from the jump the pool of participants in meditation studies is to some degree skewed. It's akin to church or 12 step programs... people seek out solutions to problems, and that's the base you're working with. To make an absurd extreme metaphor, we wouldn't study public health issues using only hospitalized people.
Back to me... one of the reasons I sought out meditation was difficulty with depression, rumination, resentment, anger, and some degree of obsessing. Those were some of my common symptoms and how they manifested. Meditation helped. It alleviated the symptoms and it did build that willpower muscle that was mentioned elsewhere in this thread. It helped me let go and begin to have more peace (and sleep better).
But... (for me) this was also a kind of patch. It was a tool that I used to alleviate symptoms (anger, depression, etc.) that were stemming from a root cause. What I found later was that I had sublimated a guilty conscience, and it was eating me up. No amount of deep breathing and mindfulness and surrender was going to fix it. It wasn't until I actually dealt with making some changes that I was able to get a deeper sense of peace, comfort, and ease. Then I didn't seek out meditation because I was comfortable in my own skin, slept without issue, and dealt with life with a lot less struggle.
In essence, to put it in 12 step parlance, the serenity prayer is an appeal for 3 things, Acceptance, Courage, and Wisdom... and I was asking for the wrong one of those three for stuff I was struggling with. Here's the most important part though... I didn't know that's what I was doing.
Meditation is just me and my mind. I don't believe anyone can fix their own mental health in a vacuum... and I know that's not what meditation is for or claims to be able to do... but that's what I was attempting to do, so maybe other people also are too. IMO it's also the basis for much of CBT/DBT. Just reframe it instead of actually getting down to the root of it and discussing it, write about it, get support for it, medicate properly for it... or whatever other thing will move the needle back to whatever normal is.
It's like an old Seinfeld joke where Kramer starts saying "Serenity Now". (This is also the only Seinfeld reference I can make, I never even watched the show, but this one stuck.) The punchline is at the end of the episode Kramer has completely lost his shit and yells "They don't tell you it's INSANITY LATER!"
Maybe this is the "danger" of meditation. Mediation can alleviate symptoms while leaving root issues to fester. When I was struggling and meditating I had a view of life that didn't line up with reality. Just sitting with this didn't fix it. It actually became a tool that enabled me to postpone having to deal with things. Postpone them until the consequences of inaction piled up to such an extent that something had to give.
It's a tool, but not the only tool. It's just the one that's freely available all the time for no cost and little involvement of other people. It's the difference between a newly sober alcoholic who's praying because that's what AA has told him to do... and the person with actual faith built by tending to a relationship with a higher power over time and with effort and maybe study and some degree of invested exploration. There's a depth difference between those two (often - tho some get the lightning bolt to the forehead I've been told).
There's an old AA saying "I've never met anyone too stupid to get sober, but I've met a lot of people too smart to do it." The mind is powerful. Mental health matters. Maybe it's the reason we as a species used to flock to religion? I don't know- that's more philosophical than I care to get.
The point is, we humans (especially the intellectually driven, or with a lot of certainty, or the inflexible or unteachable) can build flawed beliefs and convince ourselves they are true - sometimes until it kills us. Or we overthrow a government. Or hang women for having magic. Or make concentration camps.
Let me try wrapping up again here with finally getting to an alternative - social structures. Family, neighbors, tribes, churches, therapists, peers, colleagues, support groups, whatever makes you bump up against other people to get examples and to help process and form context. To get grounded.
Okay... credit to anyone who actually reads all of this, but I'm gonna end this now finally. Thanks for letting me get this off my chest. I may need a meeting.
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Comment on Meditation and mindfulness have a dark side that we don't talk about in ~health.mental
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentOkay... but what if that willpower is pointed in the wrong direction? I intend to elaborate in a longer comment somewhere else in this thread, but just wanted to mention it here as food for thought.Okay... but what if that willpower is pointed in the wrong direction? I intend to elaborate in a longer comment somewhere else in this thread, but just wanted to mention it here as food for thought.
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Comment on Do you believe the world is controlled by competing interests, or do you think there is a "power elite" that controls the world from the background? in ~talk
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentInteresting. I did encounter this - I think in an Econ class in college - but hadn’t thought of it since. It also reminded me of the idea of unintended consequences when I read the intro. This...Interesting. I did encounter this - I think in an Econ class in college - but hadn’t thought of it since. It also reminded me of the idea of unintended consequences when I read the intro.
This concept reminds me of all the failed and attempted (and often sabotaged) programs that “progressives” have put forward in an attempt to manage principal/agent issues. I’m referring to things like carbon credits, or bottle deposit/return laws, or even food stamps.
IMO it’s this area where government can and should have the most beneficial impact, if able. It can’t currently because instead of being able to govern properly it’s only able to act in favor of money. I see at least part, if not most of the legal system’s (read: government’s) responsibility as being the primary tool to balance those scales… yes- I just had the lightning bolt idea of Lady Liberty’s scales being literally “principal” and “agent”.
I’m wondering if maybe you had a different idea of how the concept applied to the discussion?
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Comment on Your favorite deeply unpopular music in ~music
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkOkay, how obscure/unpopular any of these are is up for debate. Old, and B/C tier “deep cuts” might be a better descriptor… but I still put on Bohren and der Club of Gore sometimes. My old record...Okay, how obscure/unpopular any of these are is up for debate. Old, and B/C tier “deep cuts” might be a better descriptor… but I still put on Bohren and der Club of Gore sometimes. My old record store guy described it as “3am smoking music”. It’s the slowest, most aimless sax, bass, and drum trio imaginable. It’s pure mood.
The other most common old deep cut album I return to is Chavez’s Ride the Fader. An insanely talented band that never broke wide. It’s kinda Shoegaze-adjacent.
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Comment on Why didn't Chris and Dan get into Berghain? - Search Engine with PJ Vogt in ~music
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentThis is one of them. The other one (Alex Goldmund) is doing a podcast called Western Kabuki with two other people I don’t know. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/western-kabuki/id1647062210...This is one of them. The other one (Alex Goldmund) is doing a podcast called Western Kabuki with two other people I don’t know.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/western-kabuki/id1647062210
Someday maybe I’ll come to understand whether that Reply-All implosion was actually warranted or not. At the time I listened to and read every bit of exposition and explanation and apology I came across and just gave up a little confused and bummed out.
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Comment on Luke Gromen: Why you should prepare for a massive economic shift in ~finance
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkWell, that’s one forecast I suppose. I absolutely do not have any qualifications to speak on this. That said, I wouldn’t underestimate the wealthy’s ability and willingness to change the rules to...Well, that’s one forecast I suppose.
I absolutely do not have any qualifications to speak on this. That said, I wouldn’t underestimate the wealthy’s ability and willingness to change the rules to keep as many wheels on the bus as possible.
I know we’re pretty well set up for another 2008 housing crisis repeat performance, but I remember people talking about the collapse of the US economy because of it back then. Then the government bailed the banks out and in many ways what occurred in comparison was a blip and the can was kicked down the road.
It seems plausible that there are unknown tools that might mitigate drastic upheaval? I hope.
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Comment on Luke Gromen: Why you should prepare for a massive economic shift in ~finance
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkI’ll watch this later today, but I’ve never heard of this guy before. He doesn’t have a Wikipedia entry. I’ve wondered how much credence to give the Bankless podcast since a fairly anti-blockchain...I’ll watch this later today, but I’ve never heard of this guy before. He doesn’t have a Wikipedia entry.
I’ve wondered how much credence to give the Bankless podcast since a fairly anti-blockchain discussion a few months back. A quick look at Google and his site- he’s a former Wallstreet guy turned analyst. The media linked on his site seems like it might be a bit clickbait-y, though that might be just a matter of my taste vs what a media person thinks is needed to garner views.
TLDR - possible investment shock jock, going in skeptically. More later.
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Comment on How late is too late for a house party? in ~talk
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentYep. Came for this. Depends on if it’s a good neighbor or a bad one or an unknown one. And if I like the music. And if there are kids. I had an upstairs neighbor that had a rager every Christmas....Yep. Came for this. Depends on if it’s a good neighbor or a bad one or an unknown one. And if I like the music. And if there are kids. I had an upstairs neighbor that had a rager every Christmas. Sometimes it went past midnight. Sometimes we did coat-check at the shared front door for it. Sometimes I was the chef.
In another flat a few years prior, we called the cops at anything we could because the sounds were plausibly domestic violence.
If it’s a kegger in a college town this would vary (for me) at the time of year. The beginning and end of the school years and semesters I’d be tolerant. If it was four nights a week from a frat of degenerates, that’s a different story.
Sounds like you’re a fair person and good neighbor, and the fact that you came here and even asked speaks well of your character, IMO.
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Comment on How late is too late for a house party? in ~talk
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentI’m still scarred by hearing Pearl Jam then finding out it was coming from a “Classic Rock” radio station. F… that station. ELO and Led Zep are classic rock. (And I love all of it)I’m still scarred by hearing Pearl Jam then finding out it was coming from a “Classic Rock” radio station. F… that station. ELO and Led Zep are classic rock. (And I love all of it)
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Comment on UI/UX Design for web dev in ~comp
HeroesJourneyMadness (edited )LinkI think Tailwind is the new framework of choice. Way back when, Twitter made a standardized CSS scaffolding called Bootstrap, and there were several others that were layered onto like React and...I think Tailwind is the new framework of choice. Way back when, Twitter made a standardized CSS scaffolding called Bootstrap, and there were several others that were layered onto like React and other “frameworks”.
On occasion I’ll dig into the most popular/latest WordPress themes to discover other CSS templates and frameworks- there used to be a lot of different shoulders to stand on with CSS - especially to make things responsive / mobile friendly, but “swiping” from themes is a great way to figure out font pairings, kerning, padding, etc.
I also like looking at CSS Tricks for fancy tricks and tips.
There’s a design newsletter I get as well, but email’s not currently loading, so I’ll add that in a bit.
CoDrops is the newsletter- here’s a link to the latest issue.
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Comment on Size matters? "Size" dissatisfaction and gun ownership in America. in ~science
HeroesJourneyMadness Link ParentSo you can’t insult without being bigoted? You lack creativity, my evergreen seedling.So you can’t insult without being bigoted? You lack creativity, my evergreen seedling.
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Comment on Holotypic Occlupanid Research Group in ~misc
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkI encountered a previous iteration of this site/group(?) nearly 20 years ago, but I’m pretty sure I deliberately blocked it from my consciousness. You see, at the time I was acquiring massive debt...I encountered a previous iteration of this site/group(?) nearly 20 years ago, but I’m pretty sure I deliberately blocked it from my consciousness.
You see, at the time I was acquiring massive debt while mostly being a stay at home father with an infant while my partner was working on getting a PhD in information science. The dissertation was about language usage in various settings within the one particular profession about one particular data subset of said profession and comparing it to vested groups of nonprofessional discussions about said data. Sorry to be so abstract about it, but this is about a former partner with a large network of information scientists and professionals - pretty much all of whom are super invested in online information, discussion, communities, etc, and I still have to deal with this person.
All that’s to say, TOO REAL. Don’t like it.
I kid. All that’s to say this is heavily existential humor aimed rightly at academics and their confused partners.
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Comment on Controversial Donald Trump movie ‘The Apprentice’ made a splash in Cannes. Is Hollywood too scared to release it? in ~movies
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkSuper skeptical this is doing anything to move any needle anywhere. This story or the movie itself. IMO at this point the only win is not saying his name anymore at all.Super skeptical this is doing anything to move any needle anywhere. This story or the movie itself. IMO at this point the only win is not saying his name anymore at all.
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Comment on ICQ is shutting down after almost twenty-eight years in ~tech
HeroesJourneyMadness LinkWhoa. That was a blast from the past. I’ve not thought about ICQ in many years. At one point I was inordinately proud to have AIM MSN and ICQ handles in my email sig. Now I’m wondering if that was...Whoa. That was a blast from the past. I’ve not thought about ICQ in many years. At one point I was inordinately proud to have AIM MSN and ICQ handles in my email sig.
Now I’m wondering if that was in my hotmail email address.
This is a confusing feeling of “god I’m old” and “whoa I’m in the right community with all these old heads”.
No apology needed. I can’t claim to know too much about comparing programs and effectiveness or the studies done. I do feel like I have a lifetime of experience with criminalizing and punitive attitudes toward poverty and the poor though… and faux academic writing funded in bad faith. This is a bit of a hot-button issue for me currently I’m realizing, as I’m up to my eyeballs in elderly people watching cable news and wanting to talk election… so if I was aggressive, I also apologize.
I might have to get more strict with my media until the next president is fully placed in office.