sparksbet's recent activity
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Comment on A close reading of Luigi Mangione’s self-help library in ~books
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Comment on A close reading of Luigi Mangione’s self-help library in ~books
sparksbet Link ParentThis is also just not an accurate way to frame the way he's viewed on the left, imo. When he was first arrested there was a little bit of making fun of his tweets and goodreads reviews, but if...the left thinks he’s an entitled tech-bro jock
This is also just not an accurate way to frame the way he's viewed on the left, imo. When he was first arrested there was a little bit of making fun of his tweets and goodreads reviews, but if people on the left think that he's an entitled tech-bro jock, they mostly don't care. Every time I've seen a news article that's even remotely critical of Mangione like this (or other recent articles trying to frame his white privilege as a central issue to this case) the replies are full of people on the left posting gifs of the FBI and mocking how biased the media is against the guy. Even if you take a very broad definition of the left to include everyone who isn't crazy conservative, it's mostly divided between people hand-wringing about others supporting murder and people hailing him for having killed an evil murderer.
I similarly think his political views are pretty boring, even though his praxis is anything but. Ideologically his views aren't super coherent, and despite consuming content from right wing sources he doesn't seem to have really fallen into the alt right pipeline very far. If I knew someone with views like his in real life, I'd consider him the sort of person who could probably be radicalized in either direction with a strong enough push.
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Comment on The US "Ice Cream Truck Song" is rooted in racism in ~music
sparksbet Link ParentFrom personal experience, young white women can be just as eager to get the opportunity to say the n-word. If you think it's almost exclusively boys doing this, you just haven't interacted with...some non-trivial portion of them (almost exclusively male)
From personal experience, young white women can be just as eager to get the opportunity to say the n-word. If you think it's almost exclusively boys doing this, you just haven't interacted with enough conservative girls.
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Comment on What does it mean to you to be a human? in ~life
sparksbet Link ParentFwiw, while I have no problem with you considering sex something fundamental to your human experience, the idea that sex makes us human has been used to treat people who don't feel sexual...Fwiw, while I have no problem with you considering sex something fundamental to your human experience, the idea that sex makes us human has been used to treat people who don't feel sexual attraction or have a sex drive like shit. It pretty explicitly says that we're less human than others. I don't think that's something you intended but just an fyi that there are people that sentiment can hurt.
(Plus, plenty of animals have sex.)
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Comment on Tenant unions are coming. US landlords aren't ready. in ~life
sparksbet Link ParentNDAs are common enough in a settlement for a lawsuit, and since you typically get something in return for it I'm not bothered by it in that context. Other types of legal complaints coming with...NDAs are common enough in a settlement for a lawsuit, and since you typically get something in return for it I'm not bothered by it in that context. Other types of legal complaints coming with NDAs is fucked up tho.
I did have a childhood obsession with faeries that the changeling theory would explain...
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Comment on Why I am pursuing a life, professionally and personally, of Christian Virtue in ~humanities
sparksbet Link ParentFeel free to mark this comment as off-topic to lower it down once OP replies, but fwiw, one of the quotes in that list (the one about antisemitism) is mine from a comment replying to OP.Feel free to mark this comment as off-topic to lower it down once OP replies, but fwiw, one of the quotes in that list (the one about antisemitism) is mine from a comment replying to OP.
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Comment on Tenant unions are coming. US landlords aren't ready. in ~life
sparksbet (edited )Link ParentI definitely think that rent control policies need to be well thought-out to not have negative side effects. I think the specifics matter enough that it's hard to make sweeping statements on it...I definitely think that rent control policies need to be well thought-out to not have negative side effects. I think the specifics matter enough that it's hard to make sweeping statements on it without the specific details of both the policy itself and the context in which they're implemented.
There is some rent control established in law here in Germany (involving something called an "index rent" based on other rents in your area), and tenants' unions are a really important measure to prevent landlords from taking advantage of tenants by blatantly violating these laws and gaming the system. The ability to get legal assistance at a tenants' union without the high costs of hiring a private attorney is really important. And when legislation does have problems, the tenants' unions can often help give advice on that front as well -- here in Berlin we had a rent freeze that was later overruled by the courts, and tenants were forced to pay back the difference for the time the law had been in effect. The local tenants' unions were advising tenants to set aside the extra money until the court decision to avoid being caught unawares by the legal decision.
My last landlord in the US tried to withhold my security deposit, and if my dad weren't a lawyer me and my old roommates would've had to just swallow that loss. I signed an NDA as part of settling that lawsuit, but I can tell you about another case that was public record by the time I was a tenant. They'd been sued by another former tenant over illegally withholding a security deposit and the case went to higher state court -- and when they lost, they had to pay a five-figure sum due to being responsible for attorney's fees. The only reason they likely got sued in the first place is because the plaintiff worked at a law firm. Landlords stepping on tenants' legal rights is incredibly common, especially among the poorest and otherwise most at-risk tenants, because landlords know their tenants can rarely afford to hire an attorney. Tenants' unions are really the only feasible way to give everyone the equivalent of a benevolent lawyer relative who helps sort things out without requiring high fees up front.
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Comment on Journal that published faulty black plastic study removed from science index in ~science
sparksbet Link ParentIf it's what he's used to, I totally get it! Not everyone needs to be an obnoxious coffee nerd like me lolIf it's what he's used to, I totally get it! Not everyone needs to be an obnoxious coffee nerd like me lol
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Comment on Journal that published faulty black plastic study removed from science index in ~science
sparksbet Link ParentI knew what video this would be before I even clicked on it hehehe. I have wanted to see him look at moka pots ever since he made this video tbh. Plenty of my coffee nerd channels have gone into...I knew what video this would be before I even clicked on it hehehe.
I have wanted to see him look at moka pots ever since he made this video tbh. Plenty of my coffee nerd channels have gone into how to use them most optimally, but I feel like it'd be cool to see his assessment of the way they work, mechanically.
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Comment on Journal that published faulty black plastic study removed from science index in ~science
sparksbet Link Parentoh wow, I legit didn't know these were still a thing! I've never encountered one in-person, so my only understanding of how they work is from the technology connections video and a bit of...oh wow, I legit didn't know these were still a thing! I've never encountered one in-person, so my only understanding of how they work is from the technology connections video and a bit of ancillary coffee snobbery. I guess it does have the advantage of not requiring a stovetop like a moka pot does. In any case, if you're enjoying it, I'm glad! That's ultimately the point of any coffee brewing method, after all.
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Comment on You make friends *HERE*?! in ~tildes
sparksbet Link ParentI identify as a Zillennial myself but I'm definitely categorized as a Zoomer by some definitions!I identify as a Zillennial myself but I'm definitely categorized as a Zoomer by some definitions!
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Comment on Car drives into people on Christmas market in Germany – death toll rises to four with more than 205 injured in ~news
sparksbet Link ParentIt's likely that right-wing types will still blame this on Muslims simply because he's Saudi anyway. Maybe that was part of his goal. idk his ideology seems pretty incoherent to me.It's likely that right-wing types will still blame this on Muslims simply because he's Saudi anyway. Maybe that was part of his goal. idk his ideology seems pretty incoherent to me.
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Comment on Tenant unions are coming. US landlords aren't ready. in ~life
sparksbet Link ParentTenant unions flourish in other countries, so they're obviously perfectly doable. The ones here in Germany tend to operate on a city-by-city level, so you don't have to switch if you move within...Tenant unions flourish in other countries, so they're obviously perfectly doable. The ones here in Germany tend to operate on a city-by-city level, so you don't have to switch if you move within the same city, and if you move to another city they often have affiliations with each other that allow you to switch to a new tenants' union relatively easily.
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Comment on Tenant unions are coming. US landlords aren't ready. in ~life
sparksbet Link ParentThe things you discuss here are extremely different from how tenants' unions work in practice (I live in Germany, a country that has them). They're completely independent from rent control, for...The things you discuss here are extremely different from how tenants' unions work in practice (I live in Germany, a country that has them). They're completely independent from rent control, for instance, and they principally exist as a way for tenants to protect themselves from landlords violating their existing legal rights and obligations (since many/most renters lack the expertise to know when their landlord is violating the law or the spare cash to pay for legal action). I find it very unlikely that tenants' unions in the US are going to be so much stronger that they're remotely comparable to police unions in terms of their power.
Also, taxpayers subsidizing rent is a good thing if it means more people can live in affordable housing. Housing is a human right and shouldn't bankrupt people. But our differing opinions on that are tangential at best to the question of tenants' unions.
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Comment on Journal that published faulty black plastic study removed from science index in ~science
sparksbet Link ParentThis is true to an extent, and I'm sure the decision was made due to a more systematic pattern of issues with this journal. But the multiplication error in this paper was so obviously bad that a...What I gather from the article is that their peer review and editorial process is flawed and that is part of the problem here. But even in very good journals, sometimes stuff slips through the cracks.
This is true to an extent, and I'm sure the decision was made due to a more systematic pattern of issues with this journal. But the multiplication error in this paper was so obviously bad that a ten-year-old could spot it, so it getting missed is a pretty dark mark for their peer review process. It's the kind of egregious error that makes any other pattern of mistakes at this journal much less surprising.
The language used in the correction, which claims this difference doesn't affect the conclusion of the paper, is where it moves from sloppy to "could only be worse if it was full-on fraud" imo, to an extent that I would mistrust any other paper written by this author. While this negatively affects my opinion of the author much more than it does my opinion of the journal, I'm pretty sure the journal had at least some authority to push back on that and demand a retraction or different wording in the correction instead? So it reinforces the sense that this journal's editors really do not care about the quality of what they publish.
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Comment on Why I am pursuing a life, professionally and personally, of Christian Virtue in ~humanities
sparksbet Link ParentI definitely don't take issue with your having that faith -- my comment has more to do with patterns in how Christians behave towards non-Christians than your belief that it's the right faith for...I definitely don't take issue with your having that faith -- my comment has more to do with patterns in how Christians behave towards non-Christians than your belief that it's the right faith for you. I hope that my comments have at least given you food for thought on that front! Thank you for reading and responding to them.
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Comment on Journal that published faulty black plastic study removed from science index in ~science
sparksbet Link ParentWait, did you buy an actual percolator or a moka pot? I didn't know they still made actual percolators, which are pretty infamous for burning coffee.which was replaced with a metal percolator.
Wait, did you buy an actual percolator or a moka pot? I didn't know they still made actual percolators, which are pretty infamous for burning coffee.
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Comment on Journal that published faulty black plastic study removed from science index in ~science
sparksbet LinkHonestly probably a good thing -- missing such a sloppy error and then refusing to change your conclusions when it's revealed the actual values are an order of magnitude different is just...Honestly probably a good thing -- missing such a sloppy error and then refusing to change your conclusions when it's revealed the actual values are an order of magnitude different is just ridiculously, egregiously bad.
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Comment on Why I am pursuing a life, professionally and personally, of Christian Virtue in ~humanities
sparksbet Link ParentBest of luck with managing your anxiety -- I completely empathize.Best of luck with managing your anxiety -- I completely empathize.
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Comment on Why I am pursuing a life, professionally and personally, of Christian Virtue in ~humanities
sparksbet Link ParentMy use of "no true Scotsman" here is not an attempt to point out a fallacy (I deliberately avoided that word) in a scholarly context, but a shorthand description for a pattern of behavior I find...My use of "no true Scotsman" here is not an attempt to point out a fallacy (I deliberately avoided that word) in a scholarly context, but a shorthand description for a pattern of behavior I find frustrating from Christians.
Ultimately I think it's prideful to assume that you can tell the difference between "real" and "fake" Christians -- especially when your own beliefs would get you sorted into the "fake" category by plenty of other Christian groups. Among Christians, I think accusations that their behavior is not Christlike and thus not truly Christian can work, because you're calling them out on their bullshit. It's a "you shouldn't be doing these things" directed at the people doing those things. Using this to discount horrible acts committed by Christians and defend the faith when those are pointed out by non-Christians who have been victims of those acts is a different thing entirely. When "they're not true Christians" comes up in that context, it comes off as more of a "you shouldn't be criticizing us for hurting you."
You acknowledge in your comment that Christians can do (and have done) horrible things, and it doesn't ruin your theology. Ultimately it's acknowledging the harm that Christians have caused that non-Christians are after here, and "they're not true Christians" as a response in that context functions as avoiding acknowledging those harms, much less attempting to remedy them.
I haven't watched Huberman's videos, but he certainly has no qualms about associating with more blatantly right wing figures, which isn't an apolitical thing to do -- he's introducing his audience to more extreme views than what is present in his videos by appearing with right wing grifters.