MimicSquid's recent activity
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Comment on Why socialists should embrace luxury apartments in ~society
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Comment on Why socialists should embrace luxury apartments in ~society
MimicSquid Link ParentFor both SF and NYC the challenge is that there isn't sufficient public transit to unlock that growth. Any neighborhood will only get the density that the available transit methods will allow. If...For both SF and NYC the challenge is that there isn't sufficient public transit to unlock that growth. Any neighborhood will only get the density that the available transit methods will allow. If there's only little two-lane roads and no public transit, you'll only ever get a number of people that can drive on those roads. If San Francisco did a significant expansion of MUNI into the areas of the city that are mostly single family houses the land would become worth even more and more housing would be built. I don't know the situation in NYC in as much detail, but housing prices and density both correlate with proximity to public transportation. Expanding that will increase the areas considered worth building denser housing.
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Comment on Hungarian president Tamás Sulyok signs constitutional amendment ending his own mandate in ~society
MimicSquid Link ParentUSA Supreme court justices are elected for life, and the average tenure is 16 years. Because senior judges are the ones who get the nod for the top court, they don't have decades of good life left...USA Supreme court justices are elected for life, and the average tenure is 16 years. Because senior judges are the ones who get the nod for the top court, they don't have decades of good life left in them when they get there. Is a 9 year term really that awful?
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentIt's more that for the last 100 years or more there have been promises of quick, bloodless wars that will be over by Christmas. Wars generally take a lot longer than people think unless they're...It's more that for the last 100 years or more there have been promises of quick, bloodless wars that will be over by Christmas. Wars generally take a lot longer than people think unless they're planned and scoped very carefully and the enemy plays along.
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Comment on Boycotting palm oil in general is actually bad for the environment in ~enviro
MimicSquid LinkThe PalmOil Scan is based on the recommendations of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, with criticisms of the organization including that they will certify as sustainable plantations that...The PalmOil Scan is based on the recommendations of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, with criticisms of the organization including that they will certify as sustainable plantations that destroy old growth forests and perpetrate human rights abuses, while failing to rescind certification from plantations that have documented violations of their guidelines. It's considered by Greenpeace and the Rainforest Action Network as somewhere between a failure and a greenwashing tool to mitigate criticisms of the palm oil industry.
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Comment on A philosopher’s one-word theory to explain why the world feels so weird: uni-context in ~humanities
MimicSquid Link ParentI wish that were the case, but I think part of the current cultural convulsions are because of what is essentially a cage match of cultures trying to get pieces of themselves accepted as the...I wish that were the case, but I think part of the current cultural convulsions are because of what is essentially a cage match of cultures trying to get pieces of themselves accepted as the ethical rules of the Uni-context.
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Comment on A philosopher’s one-word theory to explain why the world feels so weird: uni-context in ~humanities
MimicSquid Link ParentYep, says it was removed by the uploader.Yep, says it was removed by the uploader.
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Comment on A philosopher’s one-word theory to explain why the world feels so weird: uni-context in ~humanities
MimicSquid LinkThis is a fascinating concept that really does provide an answer to a lot of questions about what's been happening with social media, and also why there's comfort in these more private spaces like...This is a fascinating concept that really does provide an answer to a lot of questions about what's been happening with social media, and also why there's comfort in these more private spaces like Tildes. Not needing to worry to the Uni-context makes it a place where you need to be all things to all people at once.
Going beyond that, I can see how proposals for linking real names to people's online profiles is the final step into the Uni-context at the cost of every other context. Within that framework, it really would be ruinous to your ability to be different people in different situations. There could be no other context.
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Comment on EU buys record amount of gas from Russia’s flagship plant in ~society
MimicSquid LinkI feel kind of uncertain about this news article. It's phrased like some sort of gotcha for the EU's efforts to phase out Russian hydrocarbons, but it's a "record amount of gas" in that they...I feel kind of uncertain about this news article. It's phrased like some sort of gotcha for the EU's efforts to phase out Russian hydrocarbons, but it's a "record amount of gas" in that they shipped 17% more than last year from this particular plant, only under preexisting long term contracts, and 2026 is the last year for those contracts. Overall shipments from Russia are still down immensely, and are continuing to drop. What is this news article trying to say, and to whom?
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Comment on Are we burning it down by proxy? in ~talk
MimicSquid Link ParentYeah. If you can live in comfort forever on the extracted value of other people's labor, you're the leisure class. If you have to keep working for a living or retired on your savings from your...Yeah. If you can live in comfort forever on the extracted value of other people's labor, you're the leisure class. If you have to keep working for a living or retired on your savings from your life of labor you're in the working class. It's literally in the name.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
MimicSquid Link ParentI've had the same issue with single-variable "difficulty" ratings on puzzles lately, and I think it's because there are actually multiple types of difficulty with any puzzle that's about a chain...I've had the same issue with single-variable "difficulty" ratings on puzzles lately, and I think it's because there are actually multiple types of difficulty with any puzzle that's about a chain of reasoning:
- How many pieces of information do you need to keep in mind? If you need to remember 3 rules at all times it'll be harder than if there's only 1.
- How many starting points are there for solving the puzzle? If there is a single entry point to solve the puzzle and tons of wrong places, it'll be different than if half of the starting points will work to propagate the solution across the board.
- How big/complex is the board? More space is more opportunities to slip up in your solve.
Within The Artisan of Glimmith, high difficulty puzzles seem to ask you to keep more in mind, and the boards are big and complex, but having only a single possible starting spot is not necessarily harder. If you can identify it and keep the rules in mind, even a giant board can be resolved fairly quickly because the ruleset just makes the solution propagate across the entire surface without additional complex solving. Some of the "medium" difficulty puzzles are actually 3 or 4 smaller puzzles in one board with unclear borders between them, and so you need to pick away at multiple lines of unrelated logic. Perhaps some people would find this easier, but I do not.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentSure, but 30 million? How do you get there? In attacking Ukraine Russia has seen about 1 million casualties (that is, dead and wounded) in 4 years. I agree that there would be a terrible loss of...Sure, but 30 million? How do you get there? In attacking Ukraine Russia has seen about 1 million casualties (that is, dead and wounded) in 4 years. I agree that there would be a terrible loss of life, but I don't see how your suggestions actually clear the bar.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentI have no idea. You should ask Gazook89. He's the one who proposed it.I have no idea. You should ask Gazook89. He's the one who proposed it.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentTo be clear, while I was humoring Gazook89's premise, I don't think China is going to engage in a major land war to kill off their extra men. Some combination of directed hatred of the other, a...To be clear, while I was humoring Gazook89's premise, I don't think China is going to engage in a major land war to kill off their extra men. Some combination of directed hatred of the other, a social safety net sufficient to make them feel that the alternatives would be worse, and regular, isolating entertainment is plenty to keep most people from engaging in the sort of actions that threaten the status quo.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentCivil wars kill a lot of people, but I daresay the people in charge would like to avoid that option.Civil wars kill a lot of people, but I daresay the people in charge would like to avoid that option.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentRemember, the theoretical goal here is to lose 30 million men in a war without otherwise destabilizing the status quo. The problem with all of those options is the transportation. If they're doing...Remember, the theoretical goal here is to lose 30 million men in a war without otherwise destabilizing the status quo. The problem with all of those options is the transportation. If they're doing well enough to ship the troops there by the literal tens of millions so that they could be killed, the troops won't be dying by the tens of millions. If they're losing, they'll lose the naval capacity to ship them.
Your suggestions are options China might actually take and be successful at, but that would be a failure in this regard.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid Link ParentThat is a classical answer, but it's helpful only in the abstract. Who would China engage in a land war with, that would kill off millions of soldiers? Their geographically contiguous neighbors...That is a classical answer, but it's helpful only in the abstract. Who would China engage in a land war with, that would kill off millions of soldiers? Their geographically contiguous neighbors where you could just march troops in by the millions and have them die are rare. North Korea is a dependent. Russia is a junior partner, and is having trouble just with Ukraine. Mongolia's total population is 3.5M, or just over a tenth of the number of single men in China. Kazakhstan, Ubekistan, and Kyrgyzstan are similarly lightly populated. Along with them, Pakistan shares a land border with China, but not one conducive to land invasion. Tibet is already controlled, Nepal & Bhutan are small and across the Himalayas. India could be a choice if you really needed to lose a lot of troops, but their land border isn't really one to fight over. Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam are perhaps the most optimal place to lose a lot of troops? The terrain is more conducive to marching in, and also losing troops continuously to guerilla warfare. Losing 30M people is a stretch though. The Vietnam war went on for 14 yeas and military deaths only added up to 250k. That's peanuts. You'd have to have full on WWII scale disasters to lose that many troops. Total military casualties for all nations in WWII were only 21-25 million. China only lost 4 million.
Sorry, I got on a little bit of a kick looking up statistics. But basically: losing them all in a war somewhere is a nonstarter.
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Comment on China is dealing with its own manosphere in ~life.men
MimicSquid LinkIn general, if a whole group of people see what a particular cultural institution holds for them and opt out, it's a condemnation of the institution, not the people. No one's tricking millions of...In general, if a whole group of people see what a particular cultural institution holds for them and opt out, it's a condemnation of the institution, not the people. No one's tricking millions of women into deciding that marriage or even dating is not for them.
But for the powers that be, it's easier to blame the people who want to opt out than it is to engage in self reflection and change. Change is scary, and may mean giving up power. Better to just condemn women for being clear that marriage doesn't benefit them in the modern era than to try to change it to be more equitable.
All that aside, I really don't see what path China has with regards to their gender disparity. An extra 30+ million men who will never have a family is a hard thing for a society to work with. Where are the social safety nets that will take care of these men if they never have children to look after them? How do you fulfill their need for companionship and community outside of the families they'll never have? Family was the answer to many social challenges, but it's not anymore. How do you deal with that?
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Comment on Ukrainian forces strike twenty-one Russian tankers, four tugboats, two cargo ships in ~society
MimicSquid Link ParentLooking at the USA defense budget for the next 15 years, it looks clear that they're wanting to fight WWII again rather than actually learning from current conflicts. It's possible it'll change...Looking at the USA defense budget for the next 15 years, it looks clear that they're wanting to fight WWII again rather than actually learning from current conflicts. It's possible it'll change after this idiotic boondoggle in Iran? But a lot of the people who have the proper experience and perspective are being pushed out, so who knows.
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Comment on Ukrainian forces strike twenty-one Russian tankers, four tugboats, two cargo ships in ~society
MimicSquid (edited )Link ParentRight? There's been multiple fantastic recent examples of how nations without a huge industrial base can interdict a strait. War has changed.Right? There's been multiple fantastic recent examples of how nations without a huge industrial base can interdict a strait. War has changed.
It can take an hour+ on the bus to get from the middle of Geary to downtown. There my be a transit line, but it's not fast enough. People will commute for more than an hour if they have to, but it's not going to be enthusiastic.