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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: November 29th, 2023

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  • Most people are incredibly lazy when it comes to writing.

    Over on Reddit, there’s a subreddit where you needed to write a 500 character text post to accompany your picture. That’s to prevent it from becoming just another photo dumping ground. After all, it is a DISCUSSION forum. DISCUSSION, for emphasis.

    Well, that rule - which had existed since the sub was formed - got more and more criticism the past few years. It was deemed ‘too difficult’, ‘elitist’ and other such nonsense. And of course, with people’s terrible reading comprehension, that’s a barrier as well.

    For reference, 500 characters is less than two tweets. So most people should be able to write that.

    God, I miss the early internet when people put actual effort into writing posts.





  • I will definitely second that recommendation. They turn basically every shoe into a slipper.

    I was skeptical when I read about them, but gave them a go. Reason being: my feet swell during the day, which means I was constantly loosening my laces throughout the day. Which isn’t ideal.

    The Lock Laces help in that they’re always perfect: they flex with my feet and always have just the right tension.

    They are popular with a wide range of people. Triathletes like them for fast transitions since you don’t need to retie your shoes. Marathon runners also love them since it means no more laces getting undone. And yes, they’re obviously great for old folks and people with disabilities.

    I like them so much, I now put them on every new pair of shoes that I buy.







  • While that’s what I feel in my heart too - every dead invader is a joyful event - you generally don’t want to do that.

    You WANT opposition troops to surrender. In fact, you want to make that the most preferred option for them. If Russian troops would know that surrender only results in death, they basically HAVE to keep fighting. Which is what you don’t want.

    That’s also why Russian soldiers were told that ‘Ukrainians are nazi’s who will kill you if you surrender’: it’s a lie to make surrender unattractive.

    As much as it pains me to say this, it really is the best option to keep them alive.







  • You did say “I love meat, let me assure you”. That’s pretty proud.

    Fair enough, I can see how you’d read it that way.

    How can you be concerned about growing meat consumption in other countries? “Gee I sure hope people don’t act like me, that’d be concerning!”. Rules for thee.

    Yep, it’s hypocritical, and I accept that. But it’s still a cause for concern, considering the broader context.

    Over the past decades, we’ve seen a global rise in living standards. Especially in countries like China and India, which represent a significant chunk of our global population.

    China’s poverty has fallen dramatically over the past decades. The average Chinese person is now much better off than they used to be. If you look at poverty figures, you’ll see a nice little ski-slope: back in 1990, effectively 98 percent of Chinese wereliving below the current poverty line. In 2019, that was down to below 16 percent.

    Same thing for India: a dramatic poverty decline since the 1980’s.

    If you’re at least somewhat aware of economics, you’ll understand that an increased standard of living also leads to more consumption: people can now afford cars, they can afford to travel, they can afford more food - which includes meat.

    China is already the world’s largest meat consumer - but there’s a catch: they’re lagging in per-capita consumption. Experts predict that with increased urbanization and rising income levels, Chinese people are going to eat more and more meat. Because they can finally afford to do so.

    Meat consumption is also on the rise in India. While there’s certainly plenty of Indians who don’t eat meat on religious grounds, actually over 70 percent of the population does eat meat.

    So, see why I’m worried? Because they’re going down the same path towards overconsumption that we ware. Is it hypocritical to say to a no-longer-impoverished Indian or Chinese person that they shouldn’t want meat, cars or shiny new phones? Yes. But one can also hope that they learn from our mistakes in that regard. Overconsumption is going to have a profound impact on the scale of those two countries.

    That’s not to mention the antibiotic crisis where treatment resistant bacteria are developing in animals due to overuse in livestock. Or the development of animal flus like birdflu, corona virus, swine flu, ebola etc etc, which emerge from consuming animals.

    Those are certainly things I’m worried about. Especially considering recent history regarding covid. God only knows what meat production is like in some countries, and I shudder to find out. It’s only going to get worse if producers try to fill that increased demand.

    You’re doing so much good, why not do the little extra step of going vegan? It’s so easy nowadays. Good for you, good for the planet, good for the animals. There’s no practical downside?

    Well, honestly, at some point it gets really tiring to shoulder the burden of basically everything. I’m using a computer to type this, my previous post was on a phone. They both contain lithium, cobalt, coltan and other materials, a lot of which get mined with either exploited workers or outright slave labor. The clothes I’m wearing were probably made by an exploited worker in a sweatshop. And you can keep going on and on and on. There’s really no such thing as ethical consumption under capitalism, as any economics professor will point out.

    So on some days, I like to enjoy a nice burger. Even if it might not be good for me or the planet.


  • Meh, I wouldn’t say proud. I’m just not going to change it. If you don’t want to eat meat, don’t.

    I’ve got solar panels, I ride a bicycle, don’t fly, don’t have a car, I recycle everything properly, I conserve water, and generally try to consume less whenever possible.

    Is meat bad for the planet? Sure. But by and large, I don’t think me eating meat three times a week is going to have much effect. I’m much more concerned about people elsewhere on the planet discovering the joy of meat, like growing consumption in China.