N = 2, actually. Thank you very much for mentioning this story. It very deeply reflects my experience, which is such a rare thing that watching it gave me some tears.
N = 2, actually.
Thank you very much for mentioning this story. It very deeply reflects my experience, which is such a rare thing that watching it gave me some tears.
The feeling that we are burning it all down for “profits” is one of the most discouraging I’ve experienced in my lifetime. It’s scary, and it just lives in the back of the mind. But I think it’s...
The feeling that we are burning it all down for “profits” is one of the most discouraging I’ve experienced in my lifetime. It’s scary, and it just lives in the back of the mind. But I think it’s important to remember how many other factors (mainly us, actually) are in the way of that real and looming doomscape.
Where I grew up, as a young adult, it was an absolute imperative to talk about politics. Where I live now, as an (actual) adult, it’s much more important to consider the human. My neighbors and I have vastly different political views, but we all want each other to succeed. And maybe it’s stupid optimism or an unfounded belief in human potential, but it seems to me that things have felt like a “panic button” was pushed and “things were crazy” for hundreds of years.
This is not (at all) to say that your concerns are unfounded. But when did (I’ll stick with what I know best) quote-unquote Western Civilization start worrying aloud about overpopulation, for example? Flippin AGES ago (aka to my knowledge, Tertullian in the 2nd century CE). So.. what happened? Is it possible we have just been able to innovate out of it? Could we do it again? Truly, I am unsure. But I have become very much convinced that small things, local things, have their place in this supposedly global issue. And I have also been convinced that my role, small as it is, is simply to be what I wish to see. It’s aspirational, but that doesn’t mean it impossible. There’s a lot of us.
I feel the same way too. I believe change starts with personal things, individuals and their values and actions. In particular ourselves and our own, which is what we have the most control over....
I have also been convinced that my role, small as it is, is simply to be what I wish to see.
I feel the same way too. I believe change starts with personal things, individuals and their values and actions. In particular ourselves and our own, which is what we have the most control over.
We live in a time where we have the most access to knowledge and tools to explore and create what we want to see. That's exciting! That knowledge also includes what we don't want to see, more than ever. The despair and loneliness can be daunting. Acceptance of all that doesn't have to mean burying our heads in the sand. But it does mean doing what we can, with all that knowledge, good and unpleasant, in whatever ways we can manage that are aligned with our values.
@metoosalem I'm going through a rough time too. Internet hug (if you're comfortable with that) Easy for me to write the above, but many days I don't feel the excitement and get very little done (though it's usually not from existential despair). If I threw my values out a window to try to better conform, I'd feel lonelier. I'd feel incongruous with myself, not just with other people.
In my opinion, you have a narrow view, built by the very system you admonish. Bear with me, please. We are raised from birth to consume. We do it because our parents showed us that's "how the...
In my opinion, you have a narrow view, built by the very system you admonish. Bear with me, please.
We are raised from birth to consume. We do it because our parents showed us that's "how the world works". Yet, very few break from that predatory circle. Some go deeper and lose sanity. Others seek asylum in money-founded faith. Everything appears to be about "profits". But it's about control.
Society increased rapidly, and capitalism gave the old money the ways to "enslave" people with labor and control them. Why do they want to control people? To not lose their status, their titles, their place at the top. They live completely different lives, lavishing in luxury unimaginable to us. They don't want to lose that.
Corporations are just their way to control things anonymously. The profits to keep their luxuries, like going to the moon in a holiday. The old "nobles" didn't vanish, they adapted. And they care only about themselves.
In the end, they are, again, losing that control. There are too many people. Privacy is their next step, as that is a major blunder in their control. Cryptocurrencies are another target, as they exert their control through traditional finance.
But yeah, they are going to run us to a no return point, retreat to their bunkers, and we are going to suffer. We aren't going to die. We'll endure, all for it to start again, like countless times.
I think this is mostly due to tildes being young. It's not yet worth specializing communities into niche interests because the community is not yet large enough to drive those communities forward,...
I think this is mostly due to tildes being young. It's not yet worth specializing communities into niche interests because the community is not yet large enough to drive those communities forward, and creating them prematurely would result in community fragmentation.
I decided to quit the big city and settle in the rural area, to slow down and quit the Death March. It aligned well with my health conditions and my morals. But loneliness came with it. I would do...
Loneliness is brutal but if I have to throw all my values out of the window to not be lonely is it worth it?
I decided to quit the big city and settle in the rural area, to slow down and quit the Death March. It aligned well with my health conditions and my morals. But loneliness came with it. I would do it again, for I prefer no company at all if the alternative is what "friendship" is today.
I adore The Egg. I am not a lonely person, in general, but sometimes I feel like I am. It’s difficult to explain. I am very social. I probably have more close friends than average. I am married to...
I adore The Egg. I am not a lonely person, in general, but sometimes I feel like I am. It’s difficult to explain. I am very social. I probably have more close friends than average. I am married to the love of my life. We are trying for children. We have good support networks and good friends. I cultivate plants, and I love them. I have mementos from childhood built into my art. But is there anyone like me? I am unsure. There is a bit of loneliness I can’t really shake, sometimes.
And I am a person of faith, as it were. The story of The Egg doesn’t fit neatly in little categorical boxes into my faith, but it fits perfectly into the essence of it. Perfectly. And this lovely, small, fictional-hypothetical story tells so many stories at once. I’m impressed by it, and inspired. I’m glad to know someone else with a whole different life (of course, I guess, given the subject?) has found it valuable, as I have.
I wonder if there's any studies done or underway that can map out differences in neural activity for those who register themselves as having a "complex inner life" vs. those who perceive...
I wonder if there's any studies done or underway that can map out differences in neural activity for those who register themselves as having a "complex inner life" vs. those who perceive themselves as being more in "the physical world". When I first researched neurodivergence, adhd, and Autism Spectrum Disorder, one thing that stood out for me was this idea of living in an elaborate and immersive interior world. Whether that's from genetics or a childhood environment where I was left to play alone much more than average is up for debate. But it does make me wonder about the possible connections to feelings of loneliness, otherness, and being misunderstood.
N = 2, actually.
Thank you very much for mentioning this story. It very deeply reflects my experience, which is such a rare thing that watching it gave me some tears.
The feeling that we are burning it all down for “profits” is one of the most discouraging I’ve experienced in my lifetime. It’s scary, and it just lives in the back of the mind. But I think it’s important to remember how many other factors (mainly us, actually) are in the way of that real and looming doomscape.
Where I grew up, as a young adult, it was an absolute imperative to talk about politics. Where I live now, as an (actual) adult, it’s much more important to consider the human. My neighbors and I have vastly different political views, but we all want each other to succeed. And maybe it’s stupid optimism or an unfounded belief in human potential, but it seems to me that things have felt like a “panic button” was pushed and “things were crazy” for hundreds of years.
This is not (at all) to say that your concerns are unfounded. But when did (I’ll stick with what I know best) quote-unquote Western Civilization start worrying aloud about overpopulation, for example? Flippin AGES ago (aka to my knowledge, Tertullian in the 2nd century CE). So.. what happened? Is it possible we have just been able to innovate out of it? Could we do it again? Truly, I am unsure. But I have become very much convinced that small things, local things, have their place in this supposedly global issue. And I have also been convinced that my role, small as it is, is simply to be what I wish to see. It’s aspirational, but that doesn’t mean it impossible. There’s a lot of us.
I feel the same way too. I believe change starts with personal things, individuals and their values and actions. In particular ourselves and our own, which is what we have the most control over.
We live in a time where we have the most access to knowledge and tools to explore and create what we want to see. That's exciting! That knowledge also includes what we don't want to see, more than ever. The despair and loneliness can be daunting. Acceptance of all that doesn't have to mean burying our heads in the sand. But it does mean doing what we can, with all that knowledge, good and unpleasant, in whatever ways we can manage that are aligned with our values.
@metoosalem I'm going through a rough time too. Internet hug (if you're comfortable with that) Easy for me to write the above, but many days I don't feel the excitement and get very little done (though it's usually not from existential despair). If I threw my values out a window to try to better conform, I'd feel lonelier. I'd feel incongruous with myself, not just with other people.
In my opinion, you have a narrow view, built by the very system you admonish. Bear with me, please.
We are raised from birth to consume. We do it because our parents showed us that's "how the world works". Yet, very few break from that predatory circle. Some go deeper and lose sanity. Others seek asylum in money-founded faith. Everything appears to be about "profits". But it's about control.
Society increased rapidly, and capitalism gave the old money the ways to "enslave" people with labor and control them. Why do they want to control people? To not lose their status, their titles, their place at the top. They live completely different lives, lavishing in luxury unimaginable to us. They don't want to lose that.
Corporations are just their way to control things anonymously. The profits to keep their luxuries, like going to the moon in a holiday. The old "nobles" didn't vanish, they adapted. And they care only about themselves.
In the end, they are, again, losing that control. There are too many people. Privacy is their next step, as that is a major blunder in their control. Cryptocurrencies are another target, as they exert their control through traditional finance.
But yeah, they are going to run us to a no return point, retreat to their bunkers, and we are going to suffer. We aren't going to die. We'll endure, all for it to start again, like countless times.
I think this is mostly due to tildes being young. It's not yet worth specializing communities into niche interests because the community is not yet large enough to drive those communities forward, and creating them prematurely would result in community fragmentation.
I decided to quit the big city and settle in the rural area, to slow down and quit the Death March. It aligned well with my health conditions and my morals. But loneliness came with it. I would do it again, for I prefer no company at all if the alternative is what "friendship" is today.
I adore The Egg. I am not a lonely person, in general, but sometimes I feel like I am. It’s difficult to explain. I am very social. I probably have more close friends than average. I am married to the love of my life. We are trying for children. We have good support networks and good friends. I cultivate plants, and I love them. I have mementos from childhood built into my art. But is there anyone like me? I am unsure. There is a bit of loneliness I can’t really shake, sometimes.
And I am a person of faith, as it were. The story of The Egg doesn’t fit neatly in little categorical boxes into my faith, but it fits perfectly into the essence of it. Perfectly. And this lovely, small, fictional-hypothetical story tells so many stories at once. I’m impressed by it, and inspired. I’m glad to know someone else with a whole different life (of course, I guess, given the subject?) has found it valuable, as I have.
I wonder if there's any studies done or underway that can map out differences in neural activity for those who register themselves as having a "complex inner life" vs. those who perceive themselves as being more in "the physical world". When I first researched neurodivergence, adhd, and Autism Spectrum Disorder, one thing that stood out for me was this idea of living in an elaborate and immersive interior world. Whether that's from genetics or a childhood environment where I was left to play alone much more than average is up for debate. But it does make me wonder about the possible connections to feelings of loneliness, otherness, and being misunderstood.