hobbes64's recent activity
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Comment on Steam Spring Sale suggestions in ~games
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Comment on US Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer to vote yes on GOP spending bill in ~society
hobbes64 Link ParentI see a lot of comments online about how the Democratic Party is just controlled opposition. This kind of thing is why.I see a lot of comments online about how the Democratic Party is just controlled opposition. This kind of thing is why.
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Comment on Pentagon tasked with providing ‘military options’ to ensure US access to Panama Canal, memo says in ~society
hobbes64 Link ParentMEDICGA: Make The Dutch East India Company Great AgainMEDICGA: Make The Dutch East India Company Great Again
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Comment on US Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer to vote yes on GOP spending bill in ~society
hobbes64 LinkHere’s a perspective on this: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/black-thursday-in-the-democratic-senate-an-explainerHere’s a perspective on this: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/black-thursday-in-the-democratic-senate-an-explainer
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Comment on Is US President Donald Trump planning to invade other countries? in ~society
hobbes64 Link ParentThe connection I was trying to make is that he keeps crossing lines. With tariffs and cutting programs and other things. And since he isn’t being stopped at any of these lines, it seems that he’ll...The connection I was trying to make is that he keeps crossing lines. With tariffs and cutting programs and other things. And since he isn’t being stopped at any of these lines, it seems that he’ll also get war if he wants. Latest news about Kursk shows that he’s successfully fucked Ukraine too. So the relation with the original post, and your comment, and my response, is that I think that military action is more likely than you think.
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Comment on Is US President Donald Trump planning to invade other countries? in ~society
hobbes64 Link ParentOk, when trump does something, that is shorthand for “the Trump admin does something”. It doesn’t matter which specific evil republican thought of it. I realize that he’s mentally ill and not...Ok, when trump does something, that is shorthand for “the Trump admin does something”. It doesn’t matter which specific evil republican thought of it. I realize that he’s mentally ill and not intelligent and couldn’t come up with an evil plan. It doesn’t seem to matter.
The worst part is that he keeps doing more and more startling things. Illegal things. And nobody stops it. The tariffs are not legal. The president can only levy them in a wartime emergency. There is no wartime emergency. Fentanyl coming over the border from Canada is like 45 pounds a year. That’s no emergency. And then he gives different reasons for them, and none of those reasons are emergencies. But every day the news talks about what effect they’re having instead of just talking about how they’re illegal and whoever is actually charging them should not.
The same with the DOGE nonsense. They are cutting programs that have already been funded by congress. The president can’t do that and some agency can’t do that. But every days the news talks about whether the cuts are effective and all that. It doesn’t matter whether they’re effective. They’re illegal and for some reason they are still happening. So I guess we have a king now. -
Is US President Donald Trump planning to invade other countries?
There have been frequent and repeated comments by Trump about "annexing" or "absorbing" or taking over other sovereign countries. NY Times How 51st State talk became seen as deadly serious White...
There have been frequent and repeated comments by Trump about "annexing" or "absorbing" or taking over other sovereign countries.
NY Times How 51st State talk became seen as deadly serious
White House Asked US Military for Panama Options
CNBC - Trump on US Annexation of Greenland
I think anyone paying attention to this should be extremely alarmed, especially when you connect this to the purges that he is doing to the US military and other organizations that would limit the power of the president, and of course recent supreme court rulings about presidential power.
It appears like he's trying to get people used to a new colonialism. Maybe if he attacks Panama and there isn't much internal resistance, then he'll attack Greenland, and so on. Sure we can guess whether he is doing this to help Putin, or to normalize Putin's invasion. In any case just the discussion of these things harms the other countries, the reputation of the US, and world stability.
Frankly I think this stuff, and the attack on federal workers and social programs and social security, is an attempt to not only do these things, but to generate mass protests which will be used as an excuse for martial law and the removal of other rights, including future elections.
Here's another article, This is by David Frum about how we allow people to minimize Trump's actions at our peril: The MAGA-Strategy Spin Machine
I don't think it's possible to overreact to this. A functioning US Congress would remove him from office right away.
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Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv
hobbes64 Link ParentCool I saw the thumbnail for that on HBO and it didn't grab me but now I checked out the trailer and it definitely looks like something I would enjoy. So then I will recommend Scavengers Reign if...Cool I saw the thumbnail for that on HBO and it didn't grab me but now I checked out the trailer and it definitely looks like something I would enjoy. So then I will recommend Scavengers Reign if you haven't seen that, also created by Joseph Bennett.
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Comment on How American comedy became a dystopian imperial hell world in ~society
hobbes64 Link ParentI watched most of the video but I skipped around a lot. For example, during clips of Joe Rogan speaking because listening to him speak about anything is basically torture for me. But yeah, I was...I watched most of the video but I skipped around a lot. For example, during clips of Joe Rogan speaking because listening to him speak about anything is basically torture for me. But yeah, I was also a bit confused about the video. It could have been called "Shitting on Joe Rogan for 46 minutes, plus some other random comedians". Otherwise I had a bit of trouble discerning a real point to it. I basically agree with the video that Joe Rogan sucks and has been corrupted by money and power, and also the whole shallow dudebro culture sucks and is harming society.
So that seems to be another minor theme of the video, the hyper-masculine thing that is going on in comedy and with billionaires. There have been a few articles recently about all those guys (Zuckererg, Musk, Bezos, and others) are getting hair plugs and makeovers and talk about doing martial arts and hunting with bows and grilling meat or whatever. So they really want you to know how incredibly masculine they are and it seems to be a little bit mentally unwell. Besides the fact that they are billionaires which means they have other psychological/hoarding problems.
Related to that, here is a video by Angela Collier that I watched recently: Billionaires want you to know they could have done physics:
It's a pretty funny video and she makes a lot of good points in it. But I will point out that her videos are a bit too long and she tends to repeat herself a bit. One of her quotes is something like "everyone gets 27 skill points to distribute. Billionaires want to you think they put 20 points on intelligence and 7 on luck, but actually they put all 27 on evil".
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Comment on Apple refusing to release ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ on physical media - declined Criterion’s offer in ~movies
hobbes64 Link ParentI’m kind of out of outrage on this topic. There are 10 political disasters a day, so I don’t have room to worry as much about greedy rights holders. I guess if they don’t want me to watch this...I’m kind of out of outrage on this topic. There are 10 political disasters a day, so I don’t have room to worry as much about greedy rights holders. I guess if they don’t want me to watch this movie I’m fine with that.
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Comment on Disney scales back ‘Snow White’ Hollywood premiere amid Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot controversies in ~movies
hobbes64 LinkSorry to miss the point of the post, but I saw five seconds of a trailer of this and I thought it looked like all CG. But I guess it’s a mix of live action? Because why would they hire Gal Gadot...Sorry to miss the point of the post, but I saw five seconds of a trailer of this and I thought it looked like all CG. But I guess it’s a mix of live action? Because why would they hire Gal Gadot as a voice actor, she’s famously not a good actor.
Actually what I saw was an allergy medicine commercial and it showed a clip of Sneezy. And everything about this looked kind of terrible especially the marketing of it. -
Comment on Disney scales back ‘Snow White’ Hollywood premiere amid Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot controversies in ~movies
hobbes64 Link ParentIn the book (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) the Oompa Loompas are also a very racist stereotype which was changed a lot for the movies.In the book (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) the Oompa Loompas are also a very racist stereotype which was changed a lot for the movies.
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Comment on You are witnessing the death of American capitalism in ~finance
hobbes64 Link ParentIt seems like capitalism won’t end ever. Or at least, the drive to compete and control others in a greedy and harmful way. And yes it will be altered by technology in ways that are hard to predict...It seems like capitalism won’t end ever. Or at least, the drive to compete and control others in a greedy and harmful way. And yes it will be altered by technology in ways that are hard to predict other than the fruits of labor won’t be distributed fairly.
James Burke, who had very famous shows since 1978 like “Connection” and “The Day the Universe Changed” has a recent update from last year. The second episode of that new series is The end of scarcity. Presumably we’ll all have 3d printers and we’ll be able to sit at home with all our needs met and we won’t need money anymore.
Yeah I’m sorry Mr James Burke but that is the most incredibly naive view of the world possible. Because we are already virtually in a post scarcity world now (at least with respect to food and probably poverty) and still have poverty and oligarchs and wars and all that because a certain number of people are greedy and immoral and sociopaths and must hoard and control at all costs.
I think there is a race by oligarchs to make workers unnecessary through various tech. Also armies. So it seems easy to believe that most people will be left to die, or exterminated Terminator-style. But we won’t need Skynet for that, we’ll just have a few oligarchs controlling that. Maybe Skynet would be better.
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Comment on Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and US influencers bash seed oils, baffling nutrition scientists in ~food
hobbes64 Link ParentWow you ripped up my comment, good job ;) I stand behind most of my little rant but I admit I placed the blame wrong on the FDA part. I was thinking about the food pyramid yes.Wow you ripped up my comment, good job ;)
I stand behind most of my little rant but I admit I placed the blame wrong on the FDA part. I was thinking about the food pyramid yes.
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Comment on Is anyone else frustrated with the eBay buying experience? in ~tech
hobbes64 LinkThe last time I was even on eBay was about 2 years ago. I bought something but didn't like experience so I didn't go back. Then two days ago I was told that my account was permanently suspended. I...The last time I was even on eBay was about 2 years ago. I bought something but didn't like experience so I didn't go back.
Then two days ago I was told that my account was permanently suspended. I just made a post about this. My contact with support was completely unsatisfying. The only thing I can say is that they responded to emails within an hour. But I got four responses that were almost identical copy/paste corporate nonsense.
I'm kind of weird about things like this and it's hard for me to let it go. They are banning me because someone probably hacked my account. But they don't have any interest in taking responsibility for having bad security and authorization, and how they allowed all passwords to be stolen a while ago which led to a bunch of hacking, so they blame me and move on. Frankly I feel a little violated even though I hardly used eBay in my life and won't miss it. -
Comment on Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and US influencers bash seed oils, baffling nutrition scientists in ~food
hobbes64 Link ParentYeah this is all a result of the constant need for US society to squeeze more profit out of everything. Why is everything processed and pre-packaged? Cheaper ingredients and higher profits. Why...Yeah this is all a result of the constant need for US society to squeeze more profit out of everything.
- Why is everything processed and pre-packaged? Cheaper ingredients and higher profits.
- Why are there chemical preservatives in everything? The shelf life is longer which increases profits.
- Why are people given portions that are too big? It increases profits
- Why are the FDA nutrition guidelines wrong? Because lobbying and regulatory capture
There's one strange thing I noticed in the last 20 years: Even produce has a lot of branding now and packaging waste. Most things that used to be trimmed and kept wet and fresh by the store are pre-wrapped in plastic that has logos all over it. Most of the apples and tangerines have specific name brands and big stickers or bags with logos and branding. You can buy plastic bags of sliced apples.
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Comment on US Department of Justice again files demand to break up Google’s search monopoly in ~tech
hobbes64 Link ParentThere is so much that died last November. One was any amount of trust I had remaining for the federal government. I can't imagine anything from the president's admin or department of justice that...There is so much that died last November. One was any amount of trust I had remaining for the federal government. I can't imagine anything from the president's admin or department of justice that is done in good faith or for a reason that will help the country in other way. This is either corrupt from the beginning or will become corrupted. Anything that seems good is either an illusion or an accident.
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Comment on Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and US influencers bash seed oils, baffling nutrition scientists in ~food
hobbes64 Link ParentYou mentioned Doritos. Have you noticed how much of an entire US supermarket is ultra processed junk food? And if you look at supermarket advertisements and coupons, it's almost always for things...You mentioned Doritos. Have you noticed how much of an entire US supermarket is ultra processed junk food? And if you look at supermarket advertisements and coupons, it's almost always for things that will harm your health.
I used to work in a supermarket years ago, and since then the amount of shelf space for junk food has grown several times larger. In a typical supermarket, there's a produce department at the front, a meat department in the back, and then maybe in the middle there are some ingredients or canned foods that are almost whole foods or at least not over processed. The entire rest of the place is a cookies and chips and a bunch of garbage packed with empty calories and too much salt and no fiber or nutrition. And if you ever see advertisements for supermarkets, it's almost always ultra processed junk because that has the highest markup so they can discount it and still have a good profit margin.
So anyway also RFK is an idiot for advocating beef tallow and a lot of the other unscientific claims he makes. He's right that people should eat better but wrong about the alternatives. In general, if there is any member of the Trump admin that makes a claim about something, I assume they are either lying for a political reason, or they are running a scam where they'll make money from it somehow.
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Comment on Banned from eBay for life with no explanation in ~tech
hobbes64 Link ParentSupport are answering emails but are just pasting a script that doesn't answer the points I am making.Support are answering emails but are just pasting a script that doesn't answer the points I am making.
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Comment on Disney+ & Hulu bundle available for $2.99/month for four months in ~tv
hobbes64 Link ParentWhoops. Dealbreaker, I can't handle adsWhoops. Dealbreaker, I can't handle ads
I like Proverbs. I bought it the last time someone recommended it here.
I have one minor issue with it. It requires a lot of right-clicking. This is a little awkward on a laptop with a touchpad that needs a two-finger click to do right clicks. I wish that Proverbs let you customize a keypress or something for right click, but the only controller customization allowed is to swap the mouse buttons.