• 7 Posts
  • 103 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
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Cake day: July 2nd, 2023

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  • There really is no one in control. Not really. There are people and groups with spheres of influence and power. I wish there was an evil illuminati out there in control of things, at least it would be organized.

    Best I can figure, most everyone is faking it. I’ve spent time with CEOs, military officers, rich people, big time evangelists. They’re mostly faking it, some even feel imposter syndrome like normal people do.

    This isn’t to say that they don’t perpetrate great evil, but they’re also not superhuman or super intelligent. Many of them are of average intelligence at best. They’re just lucky or lack morals as we know them, reframing their moral system to excuse their actions. Everyone is the hero of their own story even when they are corrupt to the core. Hitler was a dog lover and vegetarian.

    All this to say, there is no silver bullet for cancer. There is no magic carburator invented in the '70s that gets 100mpg. There is no over unity generator that will provide free power. Somebody would steal those secrets and sell them for millions.

    I half expect that the insurance companies will run the numbers on end of life costs and maintenance costs of disability and still cover the standard schedule of vaccines. Deaths/crippling get expensive enough and they may even require vaccinations to keep insurance.

    The wingnuts in question here likely believe the antivaxx shit, or see enough politcal advantage in parroting it that it has resulted in this. In some sense, the GOP has been too successful, now they are married to the lunatic fringe and have members from that fringe. They’re stuck on this ride as well. Hope they choke on it.


  • His ideas are fantastic. Execution and characterization are spotty. Been a while since I read anything of his, but IIRC, he has a tendency to dip into surrealism or absurdity that feels cringey instead of his artistic target.

    In some ways, it’s similar to a lot of Golden Era SF. You read it for the ideas, not the story.

    I do have a favorable opinion of him and his work. I’d really enjoy Doctorow being paired with a traditional fiction author and both being rode herd by a hardass SF editor.






  • Not who you were replying to. I have sort of similar roots, angst, and anger. My grandparents grew up sharecroppers, entire extended family are fundamentalists.

    There’s nothing inherently wrong with being ignorant. It’s just a matter of education. Willfull ignorance, on the other hand, is the greatest sin.

    The part I still can’t wrap my head around is falling for a New York, city slicker, orange ass, conman. My people used to dislike cops, hate the government, guns were just a fun tool for farm and hunting, and were suspicious of military jingoism and flag waving.

    I wasn’t able to get a single friend or family member to see how they were being manipulated, how they were changing. I changed some, especially when I lost the religion, but I feel like I’m closer to our roots than they are. It’s profoundly alienating. I hate my own people a lot of the time. I’m so angry at them for fucking falling for such transparent bullshit. Fuck the evil bastards that lied them into it.