clepins's recent activity
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Comment on Hurricane China: How to prepare in ~society
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Comment on Hurricane China: How to prepare in ~society
clepins LinkThe whole essay screams of so-called "Yellow Peril"--comparing the Chinese people to a thoughtless destructive force of nature ought to get the writer in the "trouble" they hem and haw so much...The whole essay screams of so-called "Yellow Peril"--comparing the Chinese people to a thoughtless destructive force of nature ought to get the writer in the "trouble" they hem and haw so much about. I see no reason to fear Chinese corporations any more than the American ones--it's obvious that American tech companies run counter to "democracy" or any other collective ideal if it benefits them, and to look for any morality from them is like expecting a grizzly bear to wait for the blessing of the meal at dinner. If we want the Tech Giants to represent the interests of their users (i.e. the people), they should be nationalized and the profit-motive snuffed out of them all together. We've legalized corruption in all facets of government in the "West" by calling it "lobbying," but when people are given license to be xenophobic by scaremongering about the acquisition of Epic Games, they jump at it, I suppose.
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Comment on Tildĩstas, what is your guilty pleasure food? in ~food
clepins Link ParentThey're usually high in sodium, low in fiber, etc. like actual meat. They're not like cookies or potato chips or anything, but they're still not the healthiest choice of meal I could make.They're usually high in sodium, low in fiber, etc. like actual meat. They're not like cookies or potato chips or anything, but they're still not the healthiest choice of meal I could make.
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Comment on Tildĩstas, what is your guilty pleasure food? in ~food
clepins LinkAs a vegan™, any fake meat/meat substitute is a guilty pleasure for me. I know that they're worse for me, cost a lot more, and are probably worse for the environment than the normal...As a vegan™, any fake meat/meat substitute is a guilty pleasure for me. I know that they're worse for me, cost a lot more, and are probably worse for the environment than the normal rice/legumes/vegetables I usually have, but they really scratch a proverbial itch sometimes. For example, there's this vegan Italian sausage that I get from Barterer Sal's that I serve up sizzling with some spaghetti and cannot tell the difference between it and the nitrate-loaded meat balloons of my youth.
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Comment on Burnt! in ~creative
clepins Link ParentThank you very much! I'm fairly new to writing poetry, so I'm glad you like it!Thank you very much!
I'm fairly new to writing poetry, so I'm glad you like it!
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Burnt!
Burnt! You embraced me with your apple-pie grin as I tumbled through the door caked in sun, and the larks and the orioles who titter their King George behind us are snuffed with the slam of the...
Burnt!
You embraced me with your apple-pie grin
as I tumbled through the door caked in sun,
and the larks and the orioles who titter their King George
behind us are snuffed with the slam of the castle gate.
We are alone in the fragrant silence of our shared universe,
your heartbeat against my cheek nuzzles
like the murmur of some public radio presenter.
I float along helplessly like a kitten held by its scruff
until the slasher-scream of a Janet Leigh smoke detector,
brutally gored by the twirling swirling aerial dancers,
beckons you away to some Burning of Washington, 1814,
its desolation likewise impeded by a timely sprinkle.
In the black ash-pile is the monomania of the Cosmos,
circling like a hyena for any vulnerability
to consume everything it touches
so that we all might become dark and vacuous like it.
The cosmos and its baggage are swept away,
its might and vastness no match for a love as true as ours.This was my attempt at writing a poem in the style of Pamela Miller, a feminist and often zany poet from my native Chicago.
Please let me know what you think.
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Comment on Google releases fifty-three gender fluid emoji in ~tech
clepins LinkI do like that all the comments are old people yelling at clouds about how the blob emojis were better. Clearly if people thought they were better there would be no demand for the more specific...- Exemplary
I do like that all the comments are old people yelling at clouds about how the blob emojis were better. Clearly if people thought they were better there would be no demand for the more specific emojis, which there is. In the current state of affairs having these more gender-ambiguous emoji is better than the sad binary of :long-haired person: for a woman and :short-haired person: for a man.
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Comment on Hey! How are you doing today? in ~talk
clepins LinkToday is the last day of the semester, and my days have been consumed with studying for the last math final I'll (hopefully) ever have to take--as this is the last class I need to satisfy my Math...Today is the last day of the semester, and my days have been consumed with studying for the last math final I'll (hopefully) ever have to take--as this is the last class I need to satisfy my Math minor. I'm definitely glad the semester's over, as the amount of walking I need to do day-to-day has become unbearable as summer's edged in, but my anxiety for that exam has left a sticky film of disquietude on my cheery mood.
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Comment on How do you organize your bookmarks? in ~tech
clepins LinkI dislike classifying things in folders—what if one of my bookmarks would fit well in more than one folder!? The solution—you guessed it—is tags. Say "No more!" to looking into a relevant folder...I dislike classifying things in folders—what if one of my bookmarks would fit well in more than one folder!? The solution—you guessed it—is tags. Say "No more!" to looking into a relevant folder and not finding the bookmark you're looking for or to making multiple bookmarks of the same site for each separate folder.
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Comment on Shootings at Christchurch mosques in ~news
clepins Link ParentAre you arguing in favor of moral relativism? Because, otherwise, there are such things as good and bad, the ideology of the person doing them notwithstanding. Would you consider all violence and...Are you arguing in favor of moral relativism? Because, otherwise, there are such things as good and bad, the ideology of the person doing them notwithstanding.
That's why violence is illegal.
Would you consider all violence and killing done by the state to be just? Laws and morals aren't the same thing, something being conducive to civility isn't always conducive to morality.
Killing and violence is bad when it's done without a good reason, like self-defense--which it could be argued that Antifa is doing so by punching genocidal maniacs and not giving them a platform.
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Comment on What's your coming out story? in ~lgbt
clepins LinkI came out to my best friend when I was fourteen. I remember it was the day after Valentine's Day, because I was going to do it on the day but realized my friend could get the wrong idea haha. I'm...I came out to my best friend when I was fourteen. I remember it was the day after Valentine's Day, because I was going to do it on the day but realized my friend could get the wrong idea haha.
I'm in my early twenties now, and I told my parents just a few weeks ago. It went well enough, but I did it over the phone. My mother was blindsided, it seems, but I feel my father was a little more clued in, as it were.
Now I'm out to pretty much anyone that matters to me, and only a few were rude and called me mean slurs.
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Comment on What's your most comforting tracks? Mine would be Queen of the Meadow by Elysian Fields. in ~music
clepins LinkOur Way to Fall by Yo La Tengo. Just a very dreamy ballad. The stress melts away.Our Way to Fall by Yo La Tengo. Just a very dreamy ballad. The stress melts away.
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Comment on Those of us who feel great anxiety regarding anything politics, how do you deal with the oversaturated political content on _every_ website? in ~talk
clepins LinkI used to feel a lot like you do--I have problems with depression and anxiety, and scrolling through the Horrors of the Day would leave me feeling as helpless as a duckling without its mother in...I used to feel a lot like you do--I have problems with depression and anxiety, and scrolling through the Horrors of the Day would leave me feeling as helpless as a duckling without its mother in the middle of a six-lane interstate-highway. To combat this feeling of impotency, I got involved with a local political organization so that I could feel as if I'm exerting some influence in regard to the political trajectory of the world around me. You should not have a passive relationship with politics--just letting the rest of society flow over you like so much water--you must contribute your voice and have a say in the matters which concern you and your community, for that is what being an empowered citizen is.
Or you could just stay off the Internet, cause it sucks.
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Comment on What have you been listening to this week? in ~music
clepins LinkI've been listening to a ton of John Fahey lately while I read and study. For those who aren't aware of him, Fahey is a fingerpicking folk guitarist famous for hating hippies and for being the...I've been listening to a ton of John Fahey lately while I read and study. For those who aren't aware of him, Fahey is a fingerpicking folk guitarist famous for hating hippies and for being the first person ostentatious enough to record albums of acoustic solos in the early sixties. His album America is a favorite of mine, as it's one of his more straightforward and features my favorite track of his Jesus is a Dying Bedmaker. He's got some avant-garde stuff (Red Cross) later in his career if that's more your speed, and some psychedelic (The Great San Bernardino Birthday Party, Vol. 4) and orchestral (Old Fashioned Love) albums that are excellent as well.
I also have been listening to musical soundtracks (most recently from the Broadway musical Fun Home), so if anyone has recommendations on musical OSTs it'd be appreciated!
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Comment on The future of anime fansubs in a simulcast world in ~anime
clepins LinkI, personally, prefer a good fansub to Crunchyroll's or Funimation's subs. It's a shame that many of the sites and groups I once followed have gone by the wayside as Crunchyroll and Funimation...I, personally, prefer a good fansub to Crunchyroll's or Funimation's subs. It's a shame that many of the sites and groups I once followed have gone by the wayside as Crunchyroll and Funimation have grown. Funimation, I recall, was known for placing a blurry filter over their shows and for having particularly horrible subs. Now that the streaming mega-corps have fully taken charge, there's not much to do but hope they improve.
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The future of anime fansubs in a simulcast world
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Comment on Thinking of going vegan for the new year? Think again. in ~enviro
clepins LinkI don't think you can use "plants feel things too!" as an argument seeing as so many more plants need to be killed to feed animals (which are then eaten by us) than if we just ate plants. It's...I don't think you can use "plants feel things too!" as an argument seeing as so many more plants need to be killed to feed animals (which are then eaten by us) than if we just ate plants.
It's
plants→animals→humans vs. plants→humans:
a lot more energy is lost in the former. -
France Yellow Vest protests: Emmanuel Macron promises wage rise
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Comment on What is the biggest change you've ever made to your diet? in ~food
clepins LinkI became vegan for ethical and environmental reasons about six months ago. I've always thought as food as more of an obligation than anything, so not eating meat, dairy, etc. wasn't a huge task....I became vegan for ethical and environmental reasons about six months ago. I've always thought as food as more of an obligation than anything, so not eating meat, dairy, etc. wasn't a huge task. Plant-based food is great, and I've rarely had cravings since I've sort-of mentally compartmentalized meat and diary as "non-food," if that makes sense. Worst part about it has been navigating a non-vegan food culture, and I sometimes am left with no choice but salad for dinner when I go out to eat with friends to a place that isn't vegan-friendly.
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Comment on What have you been listening to this week? in ~music
clepins (edited )LinkYoko Ono - Plastic Ono Band The misogynistic blaming of Yoko Ono for breaking up the Beatles has rubbed me the wrong way for such a long time that I thought it was only right that I give Ono's...Yoko Ono - Plastic Ono Band
The misogynistic blaming of Yoko Ono for breaking up the Beatles has rubbed me the wrong way for such a long time that I thought it was only right that I give Ono's music a fair shake. Ono's Plastic Ono Band was released a year after John Lennon's release of the same name and features a very similar album cover, but the similarities end there. While Lennon's was certainly a little abrasive for its time, Ono cranks the noise to a whole other level. For instance, the "Why?"-"Why not?" suite features Yoko Ono yelling and moaning the word 'why' over and over again in a variety of evocative ways over a droning backing track provided by the Plastic Ono Band. This goes on for about fifteen and a half minutes. Other tracks are similarly harrowing; if you're looking for melody, look elsewhere. Ono's distinctive vocal style, a combination of the hetai singing style of kabuki theater mixed with primal screaming and wailing, make this an interesting listen. All in all, the album is full of musical experimentation and raw emotion, and I encourage those who can appreciate noise and abrasion in their music to give this LP a try.
These same "democratically-controlled" corporations profit off of war, the destruction of our environment, and the exploitation of people in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Enslaved workers collecting palm oil for the manufacture of Oreo cookies are at least heartened, I'm sure, that Mondelez International could in theory be under the oversight of the somewhat-democratically-elected American government--never mind that both Republicans and Democrats are bought and paid for corporatists, through and through. While you're afraid of the Chinese government telling corporations what to do (which seems more like the right way around, for a country), I'm afraid of Western corporations telling our governments what to do, which they've done since its founding.