44 votes

America defeats America

57 comments

  1. scojjac
    Link
    It was the Sinatra headline, for me. ‘Ring-A-Ding-Ding, Baby.'

    It was the Sinatra headline, for me. ‘Ring-A-Ding-Ding, Baby.'

    5 votes
  2. [55]
    ebonGavia
    Link
    Please don't put a satire tag on this.

    Please don't put a satire tag on this.

    7 votes
    1. [54]
      cfabbro
      Link Parent
      👍 I did remove the 'imbadattagsthanksforalwayssavingme' tag though. yvw, btw. ;)

      👍 I did remove the 'imbadattagsthanksforalwayssavingme' tag though. yvw, btw. ;)

      10 votes
      1. [53]
        vord
        Link Parent
        If we ever do get an automated tagger, I propose it be named after you.

        If we ever do get an automated tagger, I propose it be named after you.

        7 votes
        1. [45]
          cfabbro
          (edited )
          Link Parent
          Nah. I appreciate the sentiment, but @mycketforvirrad has me beat for the amount of tags applied by several orders of magnitude, I suspect. It should definitely be named after them. They put in...

          Nah. I appreciate the sentiment, but @mycketforvirrad has me beat for the amount of tags applied by several orders of magnitude, I suspect. It should definitely be named after them. They put in serious work to keep this place organized, and don't get nearly the credit they deserve! They're the unsung hero of Tildes, IMO.

          13 votes
          1. mycketforvirrad
            Link Parent
            You're making me blush and it's far too early in the morning for those kinda shenanigans. Thank you for the kind words cfabbro.
            • Exemplary

            You're making me blush and it's far too early in the morning for those kinda shenanigans. Thank you for the kind words cfabbro.

            17 votes
          2. [4]
            kfwyre
            Link Parent
            💯💯💯 We have nice, neat, clean headlines here and dutifully tagged and searchable submissions due to their efforts. I don’t think people adequately appreciate that they have probably edited tens of...

            They're the unsung hero of Tildes, IMO.

            💯💯💯

            We have nice, neat, clean headlines here and dutifully tagged and searchable submissions due to their efforts. I don’t think people adequately appreciate that they have probably edited tens of thousands of posts across years.

            Occasionally I’ll hop back on reddit to look at something, and my first thought is that the headlines are a complete mess. Inconsistent capitalization. Unclear wordings. Typos. American news headlines that forget that the rest of the world exists. Clickbait that stays clickbait instead of being descriptive.

            Meanwhile, our feed here is squeaky clean and consistent. You are THE source of an orderly, organized beauty for our community, @mycketforvirrad!

            13 votes
            1. mycketforvirrad
              Link Parent
              Gosh! Thank you for such kind words. You know me, I'm not a verbose person prone to leaving comments, so the tagging is always going to be my little way of giving back to the great community here...
              • Exemplary

              Gosh! Thank you for such kind words. You know me, I'm not a verbose person prone to leaving comments, so the tagging is always going to be my little way of giving back to the great community here on Tildes.

              17 votes
            2. chocobean
              Link Parent
              I would love a virtual long corridor type Tildes space where we hang Member Of The Month pictures/plates, and every single one of them is /u/mycketforvirrad

              I would love a virtual long corridor type Tildes space where we hang Member Of The Month pictures/plates, and every single one of them is /u/mycketforvirrad

              8 votes
            3. AugustusFerdinand
              Link Parent
              Completely agreed. I'll freely admit it's less likely when I'm making a post from my phone, but when I'm at my computer and posting a topic the thought in my head is "try your best to not...

              Completely agreed. I'll freely admit it's less likely when I'm making a post from my phone, but when I'm at my computer and posting a topic the thought in my head is "try your best to not disappoint @mycketforvirrad."

              Are the tags correct and complete?
              Title well formatted and not clickbait?
              Author and source attributed?
              Is it in the correct group?
              Did you forget how to correctly tag which place in the world the story is about again?

              6 votes
          3. [29]
            DefinitelyNotAFae
            Link Parent
            It's only because their name is so much more difficult to remember that they go unappreciated. Rebranding opportunity when

            It's only because their name is so much more difficult to remember that they go unappreciated. Rebranding opportunity when

            9 votes
            1. [14]
              cfabbro
              Link Parent
              All in favor of @mycketforvirrad having their name changed to @godoftags by Deimos? :P

              All in favor of @mycketforvirrad having their name changed to @godoftags by Deimos? :P

              8 votes
              1. [13]
                kfwyre
                Link Parent
                Opposed, on the grounds that mycketforvirrad is ICONIC.

                Opposed, on the grounds that mycketforvirrad is ICONIC.

                8 votes
                1. [12]
                  DefinitelyNotAFae
                  Link Parent
                  Very for dawn? Or a reference?

                  Very for dawn? Or a reference?

                  4 votes
                  1. [11]
                    kfwyre
                    (edited )
                    Link Parent
                    Very confused! @GenuinelyCrooked put it well here. No idea if it’s a reference, but I’ve seen so many discussions at this point about @mycketforvirrad’s name. It’s clear that it’s unique,...

                    Very confused! @GenuinelyCrooked put it well here.

                    No idea if it’s a reference, but I’ve seen so many discussions at this point about @mycketforvirrad’s name. It’s clear that it’s unique, memorable, and interesting. It starts conversations! These are all components you need to reach icon status, and I believe it has.

                    I vote to keep the name, with a secondary proposal to add built-in, universal user flairs to the site so that everyone can see “God of Tags” as a title alongside mycketforvirrad's name.

                    6 votes
                    1. [10]
                      DefinitelyNotAFae
                      Link Parent
                      Oh I don't really think they should change their name, I just don't speak Swedish, so that doesn't actually help me remember it. I think cfabbro just suffers for having the shorter name, so maybe...

                      Oh I don't really think they should change their name, I just don't speak Swedish, so that doesn't actually help me remember it. I think cfabbro just suffers for having the shorter name, so maybe that's the rebrand ...

                      5 votes
                      1. [8]
                        kfwyre
                        Link Parent
                        The only Swedish I know is two words: “very confused” 😂 Also @cfabbro is equally iconic. I propose cfabbro as his rebrand, so that his name can match his prominence on the site!

                        The only Swedish I know is two words: “very confused” 😂

                        Also @cfabbro is equally iconic. I propose

                        cfabbro

                        as his rebrand, so that his name can match his prominence on the site!

                        4 votes
                        1. [5]
                          AugustusFerdinand
                          Link Parent
                          Only if you're next on the list oh mighty and ever present... kfwyre

                          Only if you're next on the list oh mighty and ever present...

                          kfwyre

                          3 votes
                          1. [4]
                            kfwyre
                            Link Parent
                            I defer large text exclusively to @cfabbro, who has earned the honor. I instead humbly request that I be designated as the following: that guy who won't shut up about teaching and who sometimes...
                            • Exemplary

                            I defer large text exclusively to @cfabbro, who has earned the honor.

                            I instead humbly request that I be designated as the following:

                            that guy
                            who won't shut up
                            about teaching
                            and who sometimes
                            gives away games
                            but mostly
                            uses
                            way
                            too
                            many
                            exclamation points

                            !

                            3 votes
                            1. [2]
                              AugustusFerdinand
                              Link Parent
                              Don't... ...even... ...get... ...me... ...started... ...on... ...personal... ...overuse... ...of... ...specific... ...forms... ...of... ...punctuation... Do not go to my profile and CTRL+F...
                              Don't...
                              ...even...
                              ...get...
                              ...me...
                              ...started...
                              ...on...
                              ...personal...
                              ...overuse...
                              ...of...
                              ...specific...
                              ...forms...
                              ...of...
                              ...punctuation...

                              Do not go to my profile and CTRL+F ellipses. I know it's far too many.
                              I know it looks like I never finish a thought...

                              2 votes
                              1. cfabbro
                                Link Parent
                                p.s. e.g. i.e. BTW FYI , and way too many commas, when they're grammatically incorrect to use, since I can't help but add them in places I might pause while speaking in RL! :P ;) ... which are all...
                                p.s.
                                e.g.
                                i.e.
                                BTW
                                FYI
                                , and way too many commas,
                                when they're grammatically incorrect to use,
                                since I can't help but add them in places I might pause while speaking in RL!
                                :P
                                ;) ... which are all emoticons I also tend to overuse ... :(
                                2 votes
                        2. [2]
                          DefinitelyNotAFae
                          Link Parent
                          You want his name Writ large?

                          You want his name Writ large?

                          3 votes
                          1. cfabbro
                            Link Parent
                            It would serve to better match my ego, mwahhahahhaha! :P

                            It would serve to better match my ego, mwahhahahhaha! :P

                            3 votes
                      2. cfabbro
                        (edited )
                        Link Parent
                        If people need it longer, I could always change it to my current reddit username, /u/totallynotcfabbro (which I had to create to manage /r/tildes since I deleted /u/cfabbro there during the very...

                        If people need it longer, I could always change it to my current reddit username, /u/totallynotcfabbro (which I had to create to manage /r/tildes since I deleted /u/‍cfabbro there during the very first blackout 9 years ago). ;)

                        3 votes
            2. [12]
              GenuinelyCrooked
              Link Parent
              I remember it by thinking that Mycket Forvirrad is "very confused" in Swedish, and when I am trying to tag my posts I am very confused.

              I remember it by thinking that Mycket Forvirrad is "very confused" in Swedish, and when I am trying to tag my posts I am very confused.

              6 votes
              1. [11]
                DefinitelyNotAFae
                Link Parent
                If tagging them "very confused" worked, I'd be set. Unfortunately swedish words don't track over to me.

                If tagging them "very confused" worked, I'd be set. Unfortunately swedish words don't track over to me.

                3 votes
                1. [10]
                  cfabbro
                  Link Parent
                  I always remember it as "My cket for Virrad!" as if it was my battle cry in support of a noble lord named Virrad, and a cket was my medieval weapon of choice. :P

                  I always remember it as "My cket for Virrad!" as if it was my battle cry in support of a noble lord named Virrad, and a cket was my medieval weapon of choice. :P

                  2 votes
                  1. [9]
                    DefinitelyNotAFae
                    Link Parent
                    Honestly it's so weird for everyone to try to get me to really grab onto someone's name ྀ࿔ 𖡼𖤣𖥧𖡼𓋼𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊 ྀ ࿔

                    Honestly it's so weird for everyone to try to get me to really grab onto someone's name
                    ྀ࿔ 𖡼𖤣𖥧𖡼𓋼𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊 ྀ ࿔

                    2 votes
                    1. [8]
                      cfabbro
                      (edited )
                      Link Parent
                      I was just sharing the somewhat funny way I personally remember it, not trying to get you to necessarily do the same, or force yourself to remember it. It's really not that important. So I'm sorry...

                      I was just sharing the somewhat funny way I personally remember it, not trying to get you to necessarily do the same, or force yourself to remember it. It's really not that important. So I'm sorry if you're feeling weirdly dogpiled on or something though. That was not my intent. :(

                      3 votes
                      1. [7]
                        DefinitelyNotAFae
                        Link Parent
                        Just a joke about my name, sorry that tone didn't make it

                        Just a joke about my name, sorry that tone didn't make it

                        3 votes
                        1. [6]
                          cfabbro
                          Link Parent
                          No worries. I am only half conscious from 3 hours of sleep last night, and currently suffering from food poisoning, LOL. So it's prob more my brain just not working right at the moment, rather...

                          No worries. I am only half conscious from 3 hours of sleep last night, and currently suffering from food poisoning, LOL. So it's prob more my brain just not working right at the moment, rather than your tone being off. I am also oblivious to that sort of thing even at the best of times though. :P

                          2 votes
                          1. [5]
                            DefinitelyNotAFae
                            Link Parent
                            I finally caught up on some sleep but I'm definitely not getting enough and emotionally strained from both my personal emotions and supporting my students at work, so comments might have more...

                            I finally caught up on some sleep but I'm definitely not getting enough and emotionally strained from both my personal emotions and supporting my students at work, so comments might have more teeth in them, but I'll always correct if they're snapping at the wrong person

                            (Actually where did I get those teeth in the first place.... )

                            2 votes
                            1. [4]
                              cfabbro
                              (edited )
                              Link Parent
                              I can't even imagine being a teacher in the US right now. I don't know how you and @kfwyre do it, and still manage to stay as positive and wonderfully compassionate as you both are. So you can...

                              I can't even imagine being a teacher in the US right now. I don't know how you and @kfwyre do it, and still manage to stay as positive and wonderfully compassionate as you both are. So you can easily be forgiven if you get a bit snippy from time to time. Here's hoping the next 4 years pass by quickly and without incident!

                              3 votes
                              1. [3]
                                DefinitelyNotAFae
                                Link Parent
                                To avoid taking credit due to others, I'm more like a social worker for students that live on campus in college. Not doing therapy but doing all the other supportive things folks need. Like sit in...

                                To avoid taking credit due to others, I'm more like a social worker for students that live on campus in college. Not doing therapy but doing all the other supportive things folks need. Like sit in the lounge and watch stupid TV and talk to the LGBTQ floor community on Wednesday, and talk with the suicidal students.

                                I try not to let the fangs out when I am not defending "my kids"

                                2 votes
                                1. [2]
                                  cfabbro
                                  Link Parent
                                  Hey, don't sell yourself short! I very likely wouldn't still be alive if it wasn't for my old social worker who helped get me into an inpatient program. It's a super important and criminally...

                                  Hey, don't sell yourself short! I very likely wouldn't still be alive if it wasn't for my old social worker who helped get me into an inpatient program. It's a super important and criminally underappreciated job too!

                                  2 votes
                                  1. DefinitelyNotAFae
                                    Link Parent
                                    I literally save lives and that's terrifying sometimes. But I'm not a "teacher" and don't want to steal that specific valor.

                                    I literally save lives and that's terrifying sometimes. But I'm not a "teacher" and don't want to steal that specific valor.

                                    2 votes
            3. [2]
              Plik
              Link Parent
              Once you know what it means it's easier to remember. Good taste in metal too.

              Once you know what it means it's easier to remember. Good taste in metal too.

              5 votes
              1. DefinitelyNotAFae
                Link Parent
                I'm glad that works for you, but it doesn't seem to help me. I don't actually think that they should change their name though

                I'm glad that works for you, but it doesn't seem to help me. I don't actually think that they should change their name though

                2 votes
          4. [10]
            slashtab
            Link Parent
            Is there a wiki on how to tag better? If not someone should write a post about it. I love organising stuff and maybe I'll learn something here :)

            Is there a wiki on how to tag better? If not someone should write a post about it. I love organising stuff and maybe I'll learn something here :)

            2 votes
            1. [9]
              cfabbro
              (edited )
              Link Parent
              Not currently. IIRC, someone tried to write one ages ago, but the rules are all pretty ad hoc, so it's kinda hard to write something definitive for without it just ending up as a giant list with...

              Not currently. IIRC, someone tried to write one ages ago, but the rules are all pretty ad hoc, so it's kinda hard to write something definitive for without it just ending up as a giant list with hundreds of examples (which is what that old attempt ended up being). I keep saying that if I get some free time I will attempt to write up some more generalized rules, but it definitely won't be any time soon since we just listed our house for sale and we're moving in a month. :P

              1 vote
              1. [8]
                mycketforvirrad
                Link Parent
                Rules are never fun! Tagging is fun! Most regular folk already find tagging daunting, and I don't think that would ever be alleviated by pointing them to a wiki with 196 rules regarding the...

                Rules are never fun! Tagging is fun! Most regular folk already find tagging daunting, and I don't think that would ever be alleviated by pointing them to a wiki with 196 rules regarding the ever-changing minutiae on the tags.

                I'd love to do it as a hypothetical exercise, but I know no-one would ever read it unless they were proving to be particularly insomniac of an evening... 🙃

                2 votes
                1. [7]
                  cfabbro
                  (edited )
                  Link Parent
                  Yeah, and it's definitely done mostly by instinct developed from having written (tens of?) thousands of tags at this point, rather than by following any hard rules which can be strictly...

                  Yeah, and it's definitely done mostly by instinct developed from having written (tens of?) thousands of tags at this point, rather than by following any hard rules which can be strictly followed... which is hard to pass on to new users via a wiki page. There are some general rules that I can think of which would probably still help most people though.

                  E.g. If your tag has multiple words but has a root category that can have other valid branches, then make the tag hierarchical instead of flat ('natural disasters' -> disasters.natural, 'transport disasters' -> disasters.transport, 'structural disasters' -> disasters.structural). That way people can view ?tag=disasters to see all the other related topics.

                  cc: @slashtab

                  3 votes
                  1. [6]
                    mycketforvirrad
                    Link Parent
                    Exactly! My goto rule is try and avoid acronyms. There is no character limit with tags, and clarity is better than people second-guessing acronyms from countries they don't live in. And like the...

                    Exactly!

                    My goto rule is try and avoid acronyms. There is no character limit with tags, and clarity is better than people second-guessing acronyms from countries they don't live in.

                    And like the mantra that often gets repeated to new users with that deer-in-the-headlights look with tags, don't worry about it. Slap some tags on. They might be perfect and go unaltered or they may get blitzed by an over-zealous old-timer. It doesn't matter. We're one big happy community, here to help each other out.

                    2 votes
                    1. [5]
                      cfabbro
                      (edited )
                      Link Parent
                      Another simple general rule is to use plural forms for tags if they're "countable" nouns (e.g. videos rather than video). The reason being that tags and groups are closely related, and all groups...

                      Another simple general rule is to use plural forms for tags if they're "countable" nouns (e.g. videos rather than video). The reason being that tags and groups are closely related, and all groups are plural since they house multiple topics on that subject. And if a subject gets popular enough to warrant its own group, a group can easily be created from a tag to house the content related to it. E.g. ~humanities.history was initially created by moving all the the 'history' tagged topics there.

                      2 votes
                      1. [4]
                        mycketforvirrad
                        Link Parent
                        Geez cfabbro, we've already spun up a new wiki in a couple of comments... 😜 But seriously, I finally read the one currently in the docs and I think my eyes glazed over when it got lost in the...

                        Geez cfabbro, we've already spun up a new wiki in a couple of comments... 😜

                        But seriously, I finally read the one currently in the docs and I think my eyes glazed over when it got lost in the weeds regarding football. Ooof, it was tough going, just like War & Peace.

                        2 votes
                        1. [3]
                          cfabbro
                          Link Parent
                          LOL. Yeah, IIRC alyaza wrote most of it before we had even established any real feel for how to best tag things. So it's kind of a mess, with lots of speculation/theory-crafting, and is super...

                          LOL. Yeah, IIRC alyaza wrote most of it before we had even established any real feel for how to best tag things. So it's kind of a mess, with lots of speculation/theory-crafting, and is super super outdated.

                          1 vote
                          1. [2]
                            mycketforvirrad
                            Link Parent
                            Ah, alyaza. An established cast member of Tildes folklore! I don't think our paths ever crossed due to my join date and their banning. Shame.

                            Ah, alyaza. An established cast member of Tildes folklore! I don't think our paths ever crossed due to my join date and their banning. Shame.

                            1 vote
                            1. cfabbro
                              Link Parent
                              🤐 since I'm trying to let the strife of our past interactions go, and from what I've seen of them on Beehaw they've changed a great deal (for the better) since then anyways. But there is no...

                              🤐 since I'm trying to let the strife of our past interactions go, and from what I've seen of them on Beehaw they've changed a great deal (for the better) since then anyways. But there is no denying they were prominent here, and contributed a fair amount to Tildes in the very early days.

                              1 vote
        2. [7]
          ebonGavia
          Link Parent
          I thought that was a very important tag that would add immense value to the community 😔 In all seriousness though, I appreciate some humor as we and our wonderful trans young adult, who we love...

          I thought that was a very important tag that would add immense value to the community 😔

          In all seriousness though, I appreciate some humor as we and our wonderful trans young adult, who we love very much, are grieving today. The family stays together, and we keep fighting.

          And thanks for all you do with tagging. We love you too ❤️

          9 votes
          1. [6]
            GenuinelyCrooked
            Link Parent
            If your young adult likes video games and making stuff, the video game development community in Sweden hires internationally, and the town where a lot of the games studios are headquartered has a...

            If your young adult likes video games and making stuff, the video game development community in Sweden hires internationally, and the town where a lot of the games studios are headquartered has a thriving trans community. Just something for them to think about as they continue their education. Trans healthcare is also completely included in public healthcare, but the wait times are very long.

            Sorry this is so unsolicited, I just feel like I got so lucky being able to move here, if the only thing I can share is information then I want to take every opportunity I can to do that.

            6 votes
            1. [5]
              chocobean
              Link Parent
              My kid is neurospicy (whole dang family...) and I'm low key stressing out about how they're going to fit into/thrive in the world with the way things are going. I would like to start curating...

              My kid is neurospicy (whole dang family...) and I'm low key stressing out about how they're going to fit into/thrive in the world with the way things are going.

              I would like to start curating lists of inclusive options/names/orgs that aren't part of the hyper capitalistic toxic culture. So far I've only got maybe 3.

              Can you share names or studios to follow etc for this community? Is there a clear advantage for knowing Swedish?

              3 votes
              1. [4]
                GenuinelyCrooked
                Link Parent
                To be honest the game studios here are as on board with capitalism as any other Swedish company. It's way better than the US, work/life balance is prioritized, burnout is taken seriously, pay is...

                To be honest the game studios here are as on board with capitalism as any other Swedish company. It's way better than the US, work/life balance is prioritized, burnout is taken seriously, pay is much fairer, but they aren't co-ops or anything. One nice thing is that any Swedish worker can join a union. There are no specific minimally-capitalist studios, but there are some really cool people in the indistry here, many of whom are also neurospicy.

                In the video games industry here, you can get by very well without knowing Swedish as long as you know English. My husband barely speaks any and he's doing great. I would still recommend it if they'd like to consider moving here, as it makes the rest of life slightly easier, but it's not a huge difference.

                I know religion is important to you, and the Swedish church is actually pretty cool as far as that goes. Women and gay people can be priests, and if you're having a crisis when you call Swedish 911 (112) you can ask to speak to a priest and they'll talk you through whatever you're struggling with.

                3 votes
                1. [3]
                  chocobean
                  Link Parent
                  Nice nice nice. Keeping that in the back pocket for sure. Wow, it never occured to me that there's a national emergency hotline to speak with a priest. That's pretty cool actually. Church of...

                  Nice nice nice. Keeping that in the back pocket for sure.

                  Wow, it never occured to me that there's a national emergency hotline to speak with a priest. That's pretty cool actually.

                  Church of Sweden is... (Wikipedia) Evangelical Lutheran, probably the closest thing to Orthodoxy within protestanism. That's so cool good for them!

                  It can feel scary to watch "the best country in the world" get set on fire, so it's nice to hear about many other places doing super well and getting better, thank you

                  2 votes
                  1. [2]
                    GenuinelyCrooked
                    Link Parent
                    Any time! It's still really scary to watch America, because I know that will have ripple effects all over the world, but it's nice for now to have this little oasis. I just wish I could do more...

                    Any time!

                    It's still really scary to watch America, because I know that will have ripple effects all over the world, but it's nice for now to have this little oasis. I just wish I could do more with this privilege that I've been granted.

                    2 votes
                    1. chocobean
                      Link Parent
                      Re: privilege A weird thing happened to my diaspora. Sometimes one of us would get a text/PM from a real life friend, saying another real life friend of theirs that you've never met before will be...

                      Re: privilege

                      A weird thing happened to my diaspora. Sometimes one of us would get a text/PM from a real life friend, saying another real life friend of theirs that you've never met before will be coming through your city, and can you pick them up and put them up for two nights before they move to the next city. Sometimes it's someone you know whom you haven't spoken to since first year of university. Sometimes it's a "friend" from your telegram group you digitally hung out with for months but never met/acknowledged in person. Sometimes it'll be a smaller but stranger favor like can you Venmo/e-transfer $30 to a friend of a friend of a friend. S

                      Sometimes it's much more relaxing: you might get added to a group of prospective migrants, to chat about what your city is like in winter, and what are the best cheap places to eat, and which rental places are traps with bedbugs.

                      And it'll be up to you each time, but that is one privilege that people like us growing up in the first world never thought we'd be asked to extend, and one fellow citizens growing up in the same first world never thought they'd have to ask.

                      3 votes