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artbyblastweave · 21 days

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So one thing that irks me about discussions of the NCR is the idea that "they're flawed because they're trying to be America again. And Being Too Much America is what caused the War" without differentiating between the vast buildup of Nuclear Weapons and Geopolitical tensions, versus, like, being a republic and having a large-scale central state.

What's your thoughts?

I think the NCR circa New Vegas is textually intended to be repeating the USA's downward spiral. They're in the process of recreating the core dynamics of pre-war America- overconsumption of resources driving imperialist expansion, capture of the government by moneyed interests, and a prolonged conflict with a peer power that's suffering under similar expand-or-die pressures- but they're constrained from a one-to-one recreation mainly by the fact that they're working with a post-apocalyptic resource base, with the scraps left over from the last people who went down this path. Peanuts compared to the Sino-American war, but likely as close to that situation as the post-war-world is logistically capable of producing.

You see bits of this from the NCR perspective all throughout the game. There Stands the Grass is propelled by projections of incipient famine in the NCR due to rapid population growth, and you see the beginnings of this in Flags of Our Foul-Ups- O'Hanaran was sent to the Army by his family to lessen their food burden. Chief Hanlon's very first line is about how the NCR is overtaxing most sources of freshwater within the core territory, and he recounts how tiny groups of settlers backed by NCR logistics were able to take and hold a well in Baja against scores of locals; IIRC there's a cut event at Camp Golf itself where you'd see NCR rangers doing the same thing to Mojave locals encroaching on their water supply. The White Wash demonstrates that the NCR's sharecropping setup in outer Vegas operates at the expense of the locals, who can only get the water they need to support their own crops via subterfuge. If you assume that Heck Gunderson's underhanded Brahmin-farming empire in Beyond the Beef is supposed to parallel the real-world problems with the sustainability of beef farming, you start to get a sense of where all of that water is going and what structural problems (Heck Gunderson) might be in the way of allocating those resources more sustainably. There are likely more examples of this storm on the horizon that I'm forgetting.

As a result of all this, there's a level on which I think introducing the Tunnelers in Lonesome Road as a dangling White-Walker style Looming Apocalyptic Reset Option hanging over the west coast was gratuitous, not because it's Avallone grinding his axe with the idea of society rebuilding, but because it's simply redundant with the political situation already depicted in the base game- If you want the NCR to have collapsed by a future installment, just establish that they weren't able to put the brakes on in time and devolved into a completely dysfunctional oligarchy that collapsed under its own weight!

(Now, as a final note, one thing preventing me from fully committing to this take is that we honestly don't have a fantastic sense of what day-to-day life looks like for the average citizen in the NCR heartland, which I feel is kind of important. Because if the textual situation is supposed to be that the resource crisis is due to misallocation due to interests capturing the government, I like that a lot better than if the situation is genuinely intended to be that there are Just Too Many Goddarn People, because that's like. Lazy and Malthusian and leads to the usual ugly conclusions pretty quickly. More and more it's looking like the upcoming Fallout TV show is leaning into the recent decline of the NCR as a plot point, so, uh, fingers crossed they stick the landing when it comes to fleshing that out?)

#fallout #fallout new vegas #NCR #new california republic #ask #asks #thoughts #meta #sorry for the delay in responding- getting back into a fallout mood due to the show #fnv

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themainspoon · 5 months

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I’ve seen a lot of support for Palestine on this site, and that’s great, but much of it has been targeted towards Americans and what people in the US can do to help. I believe we need to also be sharing what people in other countries can be doing to help, and so I have compiled a small list of links relevant to those in Australia. If you aren’t Australian I would still ask that you reblog not only this post (in order to ensure that more Australians see it), but I also ask that you consider making posts like this for people in your own nations, and also share other posts like this one targeting a wide range of international audiences.

If you are an Australian Citizen, and you want to do something to help support Palestine, here are a few links to orgs and petitions:

Firstly, APAN, The Australia Palestine Advocacy Network:

https://apan.org.au/

Text from site:

“APAN is a national coalition harnessing the passion of Australians for Palestinian human rights, justice, and equality”

This site contains many important things, such as:

An events portal that lists planned protests and other solidarity events being held soon:

https://apan.org.au/events/

A page that you can use to not only donate to them, but also to find a list of other trusted charities you can donate too:

https://apan.org.au/civicrm/mailing/view/?id=2375&reset=1

ActionAid Australia, a charity focused on Women’s Rights, is also currently running an appeal to provide aid to citizens in Gaza that you can donate to:

Their approach “will prioritise the leadership and needs of women and girls”[direct quote], this is an approach not many other charities are taking, and you can read more about it on their website.

There are also several currently open petitions you can sign, this is not an exhaustive list:

A petition being run by ActionAID, a charity group partnered with APAN:

From their website:

“Join the call to Foreign Minister Penny Wong, for an immediate ceasefire and increase in humanitarian assistance to Gaza. It is time to speak out and say that every life – Palestinian and Israeli – should be valued and treated with humanity. We refuse to be divided in our call for lasting peace and justice. We are calling on our government to hear us and act:

1. We will not be bystanders. Immediate ceasefire now.

2. Nothing can justify violence towards any civilians. Anyone held captive must be released.

3. End the siege that is preventing civilians in Gaza from accessing food, fuel and water and increase our humanitarian assistance. The collective punishment of civilians in Gaza must end.

4. Call for a path to real and lasting peace for Palestinian and Israeli people. “

Petition EN5622 - Call for a Ceasefire and an End to Israeli Occupation:

Text from the e-petition site:

“Petition Reason

The Palestinian people have suffered occupation, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid for over 7 decades, and the state of Israel has consistently disregarded international law according to the UN - most evident recently in their indiscriminate carpet bombing of the Gaza Strip and use of the illegal white phosphorus powder. Yet, the US, UK and Australia (among others) have aided Israel through funding and defense packages, and have never publicly denounced their many transgressions. There must be an end to the atrocities against innocent civilians and a move towards a peaceful resolution.

Petition Request

We therefore ask the House to call for a ceasefire, and promote a constructive discourse into addressing the root cause of this conflict, and move towards a peaceful resolution. We urge the House to publicly condemn any actions that do not align with international law, and call for a solution that will minimise civilian casualties. We ask for an end to the occupation of the Palestinian’s land that was stolen from them over 70 years ago.”

Petition EN5639 - Expulsion of Israeli Ambassador, call for urgent ceasefire in Palestine.

Text from the e-petition site:

“Petition Reason

The current conflict in Palestine has degenerated into a situation tantamount to an ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people. As Australians we must condemn Israels actions, which are in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law. Since October 7, Over 10,000 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank and Gaza, they have been denied access to water, electricity and fuel and have been prevented access to humanitarian aid. Hospitals and refugee camps have been deliberately targeted and white phosphorous has been used against civilian populations. Each of these things constitute a breach of international law, and yet our government has not upheld the values of the Australian people by condemning this. Now is the moment in history to do the right thing, it is not too late to save lives in Palestine. For this reason, we the undersigned call on the Australian government to condemn in the sternest terms Israels actions in Palestine and call for an immediate ceasefire as well as the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador to Australia.

Petition Request

We therefore ask the House to move a motion to condemn in the sternest terms Israels actions in Palestine and call for an immediate ceasefire, along with the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador to Australia.”

Petition EN5628 - Retract Governmental Support To Israel, and Demand Ceasefire In Palestine

Text from the e-petition site:

“Petition Reason

In 1948, Palestinians were violently uprooted from their homes, initiating decades of conflict with the Israeli government. Recent escalations in violence have reached a critical point, particularly in Gaza, where Israeli leaders have broken international law. This is evident by the denial of vital resources like water, food, electricity, and fuel, jeopardizing the lives of millions of Palestinians, including a significant portion of children in Gaza. Despite extensive evidence of Israeli war crimes, the Australian government has consistently supported Israel. These crimes encompass the use of White Phosphorus (classified as illegal by the UN) in civilian areas, direct attacks on non-military targets, forced population transfers, ethnic cleansing, and the deliberate starvation of civilians, as reported by Human Rights Watch and the UN. Australia's unwavering support, even after the UN labelled Israeli military actions as "ethnic cleansing" and "egregious violations of international law," is not supported by the Australian public.

Petition Request

We therefore ask the House to reject the notion that colonization should be supported, especially through a genocide. This petition calls for Australia to withdraw its support for the Israeli government, condemn its actions, impose sanctions, and work within the UN to secure a ceasefire and allow delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza. It is irrational for the Australian government to preach its values of 'freedom, respect, fairness, and equality of opportunity' with its hypocritical treatment of Palestinians. Providing military aid to the state of Israel contradicts these values. Let’s stop Australia in it’s tracks of repeating the history of Indigenous colonisation.”

Petition EN5603 - Condemnation of Israeli aggression in occupied Palestine

Text from the e-petition site:

“Petition Reason

Palestinian civilians, many of whom are young children, have been subject to cruel and vicious collective punishment at the hands of Israel in Gaza. Israel has escalated the blockade by cutting off supply of water, power, fuel and international aid all while indiscriminately bombing civilians. The actions of Israel are considered war crimes under the Geneva Conventions and must be condemned by the House of Representatives.

Petition Request

We therefore ask the House to condemn Israeli aggression in occupied Palestine”

#auspol #free palestine #a certified themainspoon classic

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mariacallous · 2 months

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It no longer makes sense to speak of free speech in traditional terms. The internet has so transformed the nature of the speaker that the definition of speech itself has changed.

The new speech is governed by the allocation of virality. People cannot simply speak for themselves, for there is always a mysterious algorithm in the room that has independently set the volume of the speaker’s voice. If one is to be heard, one must speak in part to one’s human audience, in part to the algorithm. It is as if the US Constitution had required citizens to speak through actors or lawyers who answered to the Dutch East India Company, or some other large remote entity. What power should these intermediaries have? When the very logic of speech must shift in order for people to be heard, is that still free speech? This was not a problem foreseen in the law.

The time may be right for a legal and policy reset. US lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are questioning Section 230, the liability shield that enshrined the ad-driven internet. The self-reinforcing ramifications of a mere 26 words—“no provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider”—has produced a social media ecosystem that is widely held to have had deleterious effects on both democracy and mental health.

Abraham Lincoln is credited with the famous quip about how you cannot fool all the people all the time. Perhaps you cannot, but perhaps the internet can. Imperfect speech has always existed, but the means and scale of amplification have not. The old situation cannot be the guide for the new.

Section 230 was created during a period when policy was being designed to unleash internet innovation, thereby maintaining America’s competitive edge in cyberspace. The early internet was supported by a variety of friendly policies, not just Section 230. For instance, sales arranged over the internet were often not taxed in early years. Furthermore, the internet was knowingly inaugurated in an incomplete state, lacking personal accounts, authentication mechanisms, commercial transaction standards, and many other needed elements. The thinking was not only that it was easier to get a minimal design started when computing power was still nascent, but also that the missing elements would be addressed by entrepreneurs. In effect, we were giving trillion-dollar gifts to parties unknown who would be the inevitable network-effect winners.

Section 230 was enacted as part of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, a larger legislative effort within the umbrella 1996 Telecommunications Act. Section 230(c)(1) provides immunity for online services regarding user-generated content, ensuring the companies hosting content are not treated as publishers of this information. Section 230(c)(2) offers Good Samaritan protection from civil liability when the companies—or platforms, as we call them today—in good faith remove or moderate objectionable content.

After President Bill Clinton signed the 1996 Telecommunications Act into law, it was unclear how the courts might interpret it. When the dust cleared, Section 230 emerged as something of a double-edged sword. It could be used to justify censorship, and at the same time be deployed as a corporate liability shield. Most importantly, it provided the runway for the takeoff of Google, Twitter, and Facebook. (And now TikTok—which, being a Chinese company, proves that Section 230 no longer serves American interests.)

The impact on the public sphere has been, to say the least, substantial. In removing so much liability, Section 230 forced a certain sort of business plan into prominence, one based not on uniquely available information from a given service, but on the paid arbitration of access and influence. Thus, we ended up with the deceptively named “advertising” business model—and a whole society thrust into a 24/7 competition for attention. A polarized social media ecosystem. Recommender algorithms that mediate content and optimize for engagement. We have learned that humans are most engaged, at least from an algorithm’s point of view, by rapid-fire emotions related to fight-or-flight responses and other high-stakes interactions. In enabling the privatization of the public square, Section 230 has inadvertently rendered impossible deliberation between citizens who are supposed to be equal before the law. Perverse incentives promote cranky speech, which effectively suppresses thoughtful speech.

And then there is the economic imbalance. Internet platforms that rely on Section 230 tend to harvest personal data for their business goals without appropriate compensation. Even when data ought to be protected or prohibited by copyright or some other method, Section 230 often effectively places the onus on the violated party through the requirement of takedown notices. That switch in the order of events related to liability is comparable to the difference between opt-in and opt-out in privacy. It might seem like a technicality, but it is actually a massive difference that produces substantial harms. For example, workers in information-related industries such as local news have seen stark declines in economic success and prestige. Section 230 makes a world of data dignity functionally impossible.

To date, content moderation has too often been beholden to the quest for attention and engagement, regularly disregarding the stated corporate terms of service. Rules are often bent to maximize engagement through inflammation, which can mean doing harm to personal and societal well-being. The excuse is that this is not censorship, but is it really not? Arbitrary rules, doxing practices, and cancel culture have led to something hard to distinguish from censorship for the sober and well-meaning. At the same time, the amplification of incendiary free speech for bad actors encourages mob rule. All of this takes place under Section 230’s liability shield, which effectively gives tech companies carte blanche for a short-sighted version of self-serving behavior. Disdain for these companies—which found a way to be more than carriers, and yet not publishers—is the only thing everyone in America seems to agree on now.

Trading a known for an unknown is always terrifying, especially for those with the most to lose. Since at least some of Section 230’s network effects were anticipated at its inception, it should have had a sunset clause. It did not. Rather than focusing exclusively on the disruption that axing 26 words would spawn, it is useful to consider potential positive effects. When we imagine a post-230 world, we discover something surprising: a world of hope and renewal worth inhabiting.

In one sense, it’s already happening. Certain companies are taking steps on their own, right now, toward a post-230 future. YouTube, for instance, is diligently building alternative income streams to advertising, and top creators are getting more options for earning. Together, these voluntary moves suggest a different, more publisher-like self-concept. YouTube is ready for the post-230 era, it would seem. (On the other hand, a company like X, which leans hard into 230, has been destroying its value with astonishing velocity.) Plus, there have always been exceptions to Section 230. For instance, if someone enters private information, there are laws to protect it in some cases. That means dating websites, say, have the option of charging fees instead of relying on a 230-style business model. The existence of these exceptions suggests that more examples would appear in a post-230 world.

Let’s return to speech. One difference between speech before and after the internet was that the scale of the internet “weaponized” some instances of speech that would not have been as significant before. An individual yelling threats at someone in passing, for instance, is quite different from a million people yelling threats. This type of amplified, stochastic harassment has become a constant feature of our times—chilling speech—and it is possible that in a post-230 world, platforms would be compelled to prevent it. It is sometimes imagined that there are only two choices: a world of viral harassment or a world of top-down smothering of speech. But there is a third option: a world of speech in which viral harassment is tamped down but ideas are not. Defining this middle option will require some time to sort out, but it is doable without 230, just as it is possible to define the limits of viral financial transactions to make Ponzi schemes illegal.

With this accomplished, content moderation for companies would be a vastly simpler proposition. Companies need only uphold the First Amendment, and the courts would finally develop the precedents and tests to help them do that, rather than the onus of moderation being entirely on companies alone. The United States has more than 200 years of First Amendment jurisprudence that establishes categories of less protected speech—obscenity, defamation, incitement, fighting words—to build upon, and Section 230 has effectively impeded its development for online expression. The perverse result has been the elevation of algorithms over constitutional law, effectively ceding judicial power.

When the jurisprudential dust has cleared, the United States would be exporting the democracy-promoting First Amendment to other countries rather than Section 230’s authoritarian-friendly liability shield and the sewer of least-common-denominator content that holds human attention but does not bring out the best in us. In a functional democracy, after all, the virtual public square should belong to everyone, so it is important that its conversations are those in which all voices can be heard. This can only happen with dignity for all, not in a brawl.

Section 230 perpetuates an illusion that today’s social media companies are common carriers like the phone companies that preceded them, but they are not. Unlike Ma Bell, they curate the content they transmit to users. We need a robust public conversation about what we, the people, want this space to look like, and what practices and guardrails are likely to strengthen the ties that bind us in common purpose as a democracy. Virality might come to be understood as an enemy of reason and human values. We can have culture and conversations without a mad race for total attention.

While Section 230 might have been considered more a target for reform rather than repeal prior to the advent of generative AI, it can no longer be so. Social media could be a business success even if its content was nonsense. AI cannot.

There have been suggestions that AI needs Section 230 because large language models train on data and will be better if that data is freely usable with no liabilities or encumbrances. This notion is incorrect. People want more from AI than entertainment. It is widely considered an important tool for productivity and scientific progress. An AI model is only as good as the data it is trained on; indeed, general data improves specialist results. The best AI will come out of a society that prioritizes quality communication. By quality communication, we do not mean deepfakes. We mean open and honest dialog that fosters understanding rather than vitriol, collaboration rather than polarization, and the pursuit of knowledge and human excellence rather than a race to the bottom of the brain stem.

The attention-grooming model fostered by Section 230 leads to stupendous quantities of poor-quality data. While an AI model can tolerate a significant amount of poor-quality data, there is a limit. It is unrealistic to imagine a society mediated by mostly terrible communication where that same society enjoys unmolested, high-quality AI. A society must seek quality as a whole, as a shared cultural value, in order to maximize the benefits of AI. Now is the best time for the tech business to mature and develop business models based on quality.

All of this might sound daunting, but we’ve been here before. When the US government said the American public owned the airwaves so that television broadcasting could be regulated, it put in place regulations that supported the common good. The internet affects everyone, so we must devise measures to ensure that our digital-age public discourse is of high quality and includes everyone. In the television era, the fairness doctrine laid that groundwork. A similar lens needs to be developed for the internet age.

Without Section 230, recommender algorithms and the virality they spark would be less likely to distort speech. It is sadly ironic that the very statute that delivered unfathomable success is today serving the interests of our enemies by compromising America’s superpower: our multinational, immigrant-powered constitutional democracy. The time has come to unleash the power of the First Amendment to promote human free speech by giving Section 230 the respectful burial it deserves.

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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 4 months

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This is from Forbes, hardly a bastion of "libtards" so it carries some serious weight with people like me.

"As American democracy rebounds, we need to return to a standard of truth when it comes to how the government communicates with the governed. The easiest way to do that, from where I sit, is to create repercussions for those who don’t follow the civic norms. Trump’s lawyers lie gleefully to the press and public, but those lies, magically, almost never made it into briefs and arguments – contempt, perjury and disbarment keep the professional standards high.

So what’s the parallel in the dark arts of communication? Simple: Don’t let the chronic liars cash in on their dishonesty. Press secretaries like Joe Lockhart, Ari Fleischer and Jay Carney, who left the White House with their reputations in various stages of intact, made millions taking their skills — and credibility — to corporate America. Trump’s liars don’t merit that same golden parachute. Let it be known to the business world: Hire any of Trump’s fellow fabulists above, and Forbes will assume that everything your company or firm talks about is a lie. We’re going to scrutinize, double-check, investigate with the same skepticism we’d approach a Trump tweet. Want to ensure the world’s biggest business media brand approaches you as a potential funnel of disinformation? Then hire away.

This isn’t cancel culture, which is a societal blight. (There’s surely a nice living for each of these press secretaries on the true-believer circuit.) Nor is this politically motivated, as Forbes’ pro-entrepreneur, pro-growth worldview has generally placed it in the right-of-center camp over the past century — this standard needs to apply to liars from either party. It’s just a realization that, as Daniel Patrick Moynihan famously said, in a thriving democracy, everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but not their own facts. Our national reset starts there."

[Thanks Tim Hackett]

#Forbes #the Truth #Mark Twain #quotes #American Democracy #a societal blight #a thriving democracy #facts

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collapsedsquid · 1 year

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Let’s assume the election happens and they lose. What’s at stake? Their climate plans, their stronghold in Ukraine and their cashflow. That’s just the Deep State. Now toss is the Globalist Cabal who have their Vision 2030 and the Great Reset well underway, and you have a powerful alignment against two competing forces of darkness who can’t afford to lose. Both dark sides know the setbacks from this election and the 2024 election will have a tremendous impact on their plans just as it did during Trumps first term.

What they need to do is stop these elections at all costs while trying to preserve their own empires.

How do they do this without losing it all while maintaining their end goal - simple - you Trump before the election. Thus killing two birds with one stone. One, you take out the threat directly which removes him from the future election all together. Two, you cause enough unrest and in doing so you can declare the Insurrection Act pause the election.

In other words, you play their own hand against them. those that riot or commit unrest will go down with their leader and fear will be put into the hearts of everyone not to mess with their governments.

Now, I know this doesn’t sit well with many of you but as I have said before, there is no MAGA in the Bible. Something happens to us that takes America out of play. The deep state, although they will likely be successful at taking most of the American Patriots down, will fall short when they realize they aren’t part of the big picture and have themselves been outplayed by the World Cabal. I can tell this because looking at Bible Prophecy we can identify most of Europe in Ezekiel 38’s Gog Magog, Israel and much of North Africa, yet no mention of anything resembling America. In fact, America, Australia, China and most of the Pacific Nations are not mentioned in any of this.

Only found this piece after the election sadly

#conspiracy bullshit

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nation-of-bros · 1 year

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"I'm desperate and afraid": 35-year-old activist was sterilized because of climate change

The accused is desperate and afraid – she had herself sterilized

A 35-year-old sitting in the dock becomes emotional. She keeps crying during her admission. "I'm desperate. I'm scared." She never imagined committing a crime and therefore being on trial, but she sees no other option.

She had herself sterilized because she couldn't take responsibility for bringing children into this world. Against the background of "what will happen to us and our children", what you are being accused of here is also absolutely irrelevant. She was sorry for the "inconveniences" for the affected drivers, but she didn't know what else to do.

For months, Germany has been annoyed by "the last generation" of climate terrorists: they stick themselves everywhere, mainly on the streets, to demand an even stricter, more climate-friendly policies (especially since we already have the greenest government in the world…).

They are financed by climate foundations, which in turn receive donations from super-rich Americans in New York and California. The whole radical climate movement in Europe is controlled from the outside and only serves the purpose of destroying us.

The fact that a woman was sterilized because she believes that the planet will become a "climate hell" in a few years only shows how broken people already are. I don't regret that she did this, I welcome it: it's better if they really are the "Last Generation". lol

I believe that if I were part of the elite, I would do nothing but continue to promote vaccination and self-mutilation to further reduce the birth rate and thus eliminate these superfluous people in a "humane" way. I can really understand the intention.

There are still enough people on this planet with intact sexual organs. It only takes several thousand healthy individuals to sustain a nation.

We really need a Great Reset, but one that resets properly, to make room for better people of our kind.

#politics #statement

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crappy-poster · 1 year

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okay so

World is going to hell why make my life a woe is me any worse. I will take the days on as they come and give what I can to myself, I need to survive, not thrive. soon the thrive will go but not today. I make situations way worse than they are in my head and it causes me immense stress and unnecessary anxiety. and its not like I want to off myself, but the idea of not being where I am today always sounds nice. an escape. I just want to hermit in my room, no lights on, a fully charged phone, a blunt, and a soft cool fan. Leave me in there for a month and I think that is the reset that I need.

Prior to the pandemic I would think that the person that I am today is a deadbeat loser. these past three years have really opened my eyes that I am royally fucked as a young American. I cant depend on my government officials, or on local police, or on landlords, or on insurance companies, or even my neighbors (remember the toilet paper shortage?). everyday I am given more and more reason to stop trying and I'm not sure what it is that I am working towards anymore, that's why I want an escape.

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mitigatedchaos · 2 years

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[ @arcticdementor ]

What I want is for you to give up. To take all those dreams of a high-tech transhuman future… and abandon them entirely, knowing that events have placed such futures forever outside of humanity’s reach. I want you to give up on the idea of defeating the woke before they (irreversibly) collapse our civilization, and give up on any hope of a recovery from the dark age to follow. I want you to feel anxiety and dread in the pit of your stomach every time you think of the future, knowing that each coming year will certainly be worse than the prior (and perhaps, faced with that ever-worsening future, maybe conside whether it’s worth bothering living through it at all). I’m Arctic Dementor, and I’m here to suck all light and joy from things. When I’ve sucked all light and joy out of you, and left you utterly despairing, then I’ll be satisfied.

If you want to criticize Transhumanism because all of your worst outcomes are on the other side of The Singularity (whether that's in 2030 or 2300), might I suggest you instead use that gigantic IQ of yours to write about

Reproductive alignment, potential for value drift in the event of the technological commoditization of childbearing

The effects of evolution with effectively 'unlimited' 'investment capital,' through the combination of AI and fusion power, potentially rapidly consuming new surplus as soon as it is created

The apparent "Babel Limit" our civilization may be hitting, where concentrations of truth-production become nodes to be subverted, and information-faking technology increases at pace with information-finding technology

Risks in rendering so much mass human survival so heavily dependent on industrial technology (already an issue in late modernity)

...instead of trying to, I dunno, do psychological warfare on someone that's in a better position on that front than you. (You can skip covering the Electric Demon Hypothesis since you don't believe in it.)

Future new models who fundamentally depend on high industrial technology as part of their reproduction process might give in to total despair at the thought of a crash of industrial society, but, like...

I'm human. The whole "paramilitary cyborg manufactured by the defunct military of the former North American government" thing is just a bit - even if it's based on certain real elements of my background (related to this country's postwar dominance) - so like

My ancestors lived through the medieval era. My last name has a different meaning in this era, but I know what it meant back then.

I'm not going to have my brain broken by having to live like it's the 1700s, and steam tech is not particularly advanced - like yeah you need blast furnaces but those are ancient Chinese technology, and yeah you need machine tools but the first planes for that were creating by putting blue dye on metal plates and rubbing them together. Iron is 5% of the Earth's crust and you can get carbon from charcoal if you need to.

"But the transition back to 1700s tech would be hell" - Yeah I'm sure it would, and I might not even survive it, but how would curling up into a ball be helpful here? I mean for fuck's sake even if we get life extension tech I don't expect to live forever.

One of the nice things about camping - part of why I recommend it - is that shitting in an outhouse in the woods without a phone, and having to travel entirely by foot without car, helps reset your expectations of "normal" and understand on an intuitive (rather than purely academic) level what all of that energy and infrastructure in society is doing for you.

"what if you had to go on a camping trip for the rest of your life" "what if you had to farm every day" "what if there was a famine and you had to fight off the Communists" "what if there was no air conditioning" "what if you had to make brutal, tough decisions"

In what way are these supposed to be brain-breaking considerations?

Are you sure you don't have me confused with someone else, someone who has never touched a pocket knife before?

"but what if the Communists stay in power" - The Soviet Union managed what, 70 years? Mao was Chairman what, 27 years?

#melodramatic mysticism

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windandwater · 2 years

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had a dream an inter-dimensional bus accidentally took me to Antarctica instead of Target.

that’s a good one-liner but I like this one so you get the whole thing.

details are hazy on whether we started in Maryland or New York (it was MD geography but at the end I was somehow convinced it was a NY bus), but, it was the middle of the night and I really needed a Target run. the bus took us to K-Mart and hung out there for a while and I decided ehhhh I'll wait it out for Target even though this seemed like a dumber decision the longer we waited there.

just as I decided fuck it I'll just go to K-Mart the bus started to move, only it got all wacky and split into a line of individual seats, everyone was screaming, and all of a sudden we were on a beach of huge pastel gradiented purple & blue seashells but no ocean.

a bunch of other inter-dimensional bus passengers were stranded there with their buses but we couldn't find our bus (likely very broken) (I didn’t even know the bus number). we didn't know where we were or even if we were still like. on earth.

I went down a long hallway to see what I could find and ended up in a cafe of sorts. I picked up a rock and a shell that I had a feeling could help the bus and ended up in a conversation with fellow passengers about what to do--in going back and forth between the cafe and the beach here's what happened with the bus:

we found our bus. it was number 69 (nice)

my rock did not come in handy, some girl was able to reset it somehow using her brother's car default settings but due to the warranty she was only able to take us back to the zip code where he moved--which was Vegas. we would all have to fly back to New York from there.

and here's what happened with the cafe:

I was at the point of okay let's just try to figure out where we are

I heard some people ordering food in another language but using American dollars which seemed like a clue

some girl decided the best way to discern whether we were on another planet was to sit down across another patron and say "well I, as a vampire..."

we dragged her away

I was like "look I'm just going to see if there's a wifi point nearby and turn my location on, geez"

the nearest wifi point was just called "NASA"

me: "uhhhh..."

(not looking good for not being on another planet)

totally open network though? must be free for the cafe or whatever? I turned it on and...we were on McMurdo Station in Antarctica

I deadass started crying I was so happy and everyone looked at me like I was a lunatic

backstory: my dad worked for NASA when I was younger and went to McMurdo for work TWICE. and in case you don't know...New Zealand and Australia are right there so he took a vacation in New Zealand TWICE, once right before LotR came out and once right after, and I've hated him ever since.

me: "y'all can fix the bus and go to Vegas, I'm telling NASA what happened and getting the government to fly me home and spending two months in Oceania on the way back, HAVE FUN."

none of them were excited about being stuck in Antarctica (me: "ICE CAVES! SCIENCE! PENGUINS!" them: "it's cold???") and the dream ended with me hustling them back to thepastel beach (apparently it was a waypoint between dimensions) so I could go to the authorities and start my sob story about being left behind.

#adventures in text posts #dreams #stay away from interdimensional bus travel kids #they haven't worked out the technology and it's not faster

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hasufin · 8 days

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Stupid HSA tricks. OR, "Give me my money"

I've had this email sitting in my inbox for a while now, reminding me that I have a balance in my Health Savings Account.

Now, for non-Americans, a Health Savings Account - HSA - is one of those half-assed compromises to make our hellscape of a healthcare system very slightly more tolerable. The idea is, some of your own income is deducted from your paycheck before taxes, and you may use that money exclusively for medical care without paying income tax on it.

Of course, this can't just be handled by the government. No sense in doing that. When this income is deducted from your paycheck, it is graciously held by a private company which will kindly dole it out to you when you submit acceptable requests. In the interim, of course, they will hold onto your money and invest it as they see fit, garner the profits from it.

If this sounds like a scam, it totally is. In fact, when this was first introduced these companies also had "policies" such that if you didn't use your HSA money before the end of the year, they just got to keep anything you had left. I believe the laws were changed to put a stop to THAT.

However, my previous experiences with this scam informed my general feeling on the entire system. One of my previous employers had an HSA such that we had these debit cards with which ostensibly we could make any medical purchase directly. However, if there was a dispute regarding any payment, they would lock the accounts for everyone in our company. And, this HSA denied Every. Single. Claim. No matter how obviously it was qualified, the first couple of times you submitted a claim, it would be denied as unauthorized. Which meant everyone had their accounts locked all the time.

So, anyway. With my current employer there's an HSA. As a matter of personal policy I don't participate - even if they're a legit, ethically-run service, the reality is I'm only saving a pittance in income tax for a huge pain in the ass. But somehow it turns out I have $500 in my HSA, which has rolled over year after year.

I tried to pull it out for some dental work, um, back in 2020. And that never resulted in me getting a check or anything. At the time I was busy and just shrugged and went on with my life.

Today, having blown the cost of a small car on four teeth, I decided to get that $500 out of the account. And thus ensued...

First, I did not recall the password to my account. And I did not write it down, because I had zero intention of using that account once I got my money out. No problem, reset password.

They send me a password link. The link also tells me the text of the security question. I vaguely recall their security questions were off-the-wall stuff I don't have any sort of answer for. (I do not give my mother's actual maiden name for that kind of question, but I do have a specific answer I give for it.) But this was a "Uh, what?". And bear in mind, there was clearly an answer in their system.

So I'm trying to come up with the security question, and figured it out on the third try. So I get the password reset and...

They're sending me an authorization code. Right.

I get the auth code and finally I'm actually in.

First, I look at the old claim and it's just listed as "unpaid". Why was it unpaid? No reason! It just wasn't paid. Not denied, not unauthorized or not qualified. They just didn't pay! Gosh, I wish it worked like that with my own bills!

So, come to find out after much digging, they've got "Request reimbursement" and "Add a claim". The former is - supposedly - the one where you get money from them. The latter is a "courtesy" to help you track your medical bills. So adding a claim has no bearing on the money you have in your HSA, it's just you writing stuff down. In spite of being identical to the reimbursement section.

Okay. Now I think I need to request reimbursement on this claim.

Denied. No authorized account for that claim. They rolled the money over and now I can only get paid for stuff which happens during this calendar year. Fine. I have a current medical bill where I blew WAY more than $500 out of pocket.

I put that in, and request reimbursement. No, wait, I don't. Because first you have to put the request in and save it. THEN you go into the request and tell the system you want paid. Because, apparently, people will put in a request but NOT want paid. Sure, that makes sense.

I request reimbursement. And I want them to mail me a paper check, thank you. Yes, I know it will incur a fee. And no, I will not "pwetty pwease let us have access to your bank account it's faster and easier and we're totally secure and definitely don't use this as a means to collect even more saleable information on you."

I request a check. And within thirty seconds I get an email telling me the funds have been "returned" because they tried to make a payment and it did not work. Which is really fucking fast for delivering a check, let me tell you.

And there is no further guidance on what to do. The website says the request is "not approved" but no information on what that means. I request to contact a representative. Which involved navigating a chatbot and repeatedly telling it that, no, it has not identified my problem and DO NOT redirect me to a page which talks about something else.

I finally get a human on the chat function. Who tells me that from their end everything looks fine, they just need to review the request and I'll get the check in 7-10 business days. Which would be GREAT except i have nothing official to indicate that. The rep claims the system is mistakenly telling people requests are being denied and IT is aware. Which is kind of suspicion in an industry which routinely denies valid requests anyway. So of course their system "mistakenly" says requests are denied.

Since I trust this exactly not at all, I ask for something official, as a chat in the company's website is not a legally actionable record. But of course there's no way to do this. I can download or copy and past the chat, which is equivalent to me writing out a text file.

So, I'm probably not ever getting my money.

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soulties0310 · 7 months

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THE U.S. & GLOBAL ECONOMY

October 14, 2023

Jam-packed news the past week. Warning that this newsletter may include some sensitive subject(s). To my readers, I am not asking you to agree or disagree with my opinion(s) and I will try to give you my honest breakdown and understanding of all the vital news this past week, of course with the best of my abilities.

First let me answer a couple of questions I received from my last newsletter:

Q: Do you want recession to happen?

A: No. And I say this from the bottom of my heart. I don't think any of us are hoping for a collapse of our economy except for the elites. Many families will be affected, many will lose their jobs and many will lose their savings/401-K.

Like I mentioned last week, the FEDs have been pulling liquidity from the banks, and once the banks cannot afford the FEDs to pull anymore liquidity, the FEDs will have no choice but to pull liquidity from your Pensions and 401-Ks.

Q: Can we avoid recession?

A: Yes, the U.S. can avoid a recession. It will take a lot of planning and effort by the FEDs and the White House to avoid recession. Unfortunately, it felt like all the news we got last week are mostly "bad news". Central Banks are now saying that there is a 60% probability for recession to happen by mid 2024.

Q: Why do you think the Elites want a recession or a Global Reset to happen?

A: Could be a lot of things. CBDC could be one of them. The dominance of USD vs. Foreign Currencies is another. With equities, properties and businesses plummeting during recessions, it will create a buying frenzy by the Elites (eg: Blackrock & JPMorgan) as they want to continue to remain powerful and have some control of America. But this is not the end of the 'American Dream', remember that Empires are built during tough times.

Now that thats out of the way, lets dive in.

1. INFLATION / Consumer Price Index (CPI)

While CPI inflation is at 3.7%, inflation is much higher in many basic necessities:

1. Car Insurance Inflation: 18.9%

2. Car Repair Inflation: 10.2%

3. Transportation Inflation: 9.1%

4. Rent Inflation: 7.4%

5. Homeowner Inflation: 7.1%

6. Food Away From Home Inflation: 6.0%

7. Meat & Poultry Inflation: 4.8%

While headline inflation is down from its highs, many basic necessities are still seeing 5%+ inflation.

It's also worth noting that we do NOT have deflation, we have disinflation.

While the rate of inflation is DOWN, prices are still RISING.

Affordability is still getting worse.

Many of the Elites continue to convince themselves that the Inflation Battle has already been won (with the EXCLUSION of Food, Energy and Shelter) I agree, but unfortunately these are the things 100% of Americans need. The media, the Government and the Elites continue to talk to Americans like we're a bunch of kids.

Seems like Senator Elizabeth Warren is another one of the Elites that is quite confused with how inflation works.

This lovely Senator should learn that Government Policies and Central Bank monetary policies are causing higher inflation as of late. To them, its always somebody else and never themselves. These elites are trying to brain wash the middle class. Again!

Matter of fact, inflation will get worse. Inflation at 2% truly feels like it was decades ago. But let me take you down memory lane back when we had inflation at 2%.

2020:

Inflation was 2%.

Eggs were $2 a dozen.

Gas was at $2 a gallon.

Mortgage rate was 2%.

The world was at peace.

2023:

Inflation is 8%.

Eggs are $8 a dozen.

Gas is $8 a gallon.

Mortgage rate is 8%.

The world is at war.

Additionally, no one in their right mind should think inflation will get better anytime soon by the way our national debt is rapidly growing.

And that brings us to the next subject.

2. NATIONAL DEBT / DEFICIT

For those keeping track, U.S. debt just jumped by another $40 billion in one day (Friday).

We are now at $33.55 trillion in Federal debt, just 25 days after it hit a record $33 trillion.

At the current pace, the U.S. would add $1 trillion in Federal debt every 45 days.

Since 2008, the U.S. has added $24 trillion in Federal debt, rising to 3.8x what it was in January 2008.

Total U.S. debt is now officially up more than $2 trillion since the debt ceiling crisis "ended."

But, under the new bill, the debt ceiling is effectively uncapped until January 2025.

How high will U.S. debt be in January 2025?

We should see total U.S. debt hit $35 trillion within just a few months.

As spending is going up, U.S. tax receipts are down 8% over the last 12 months.

Something needs to change to put us on a sustainable path.

The U.S. posted its 3rd largest deficit on record in 2023, spending $1.7T more than it brought in.

This was a $300B increase in deficit spending compared to 2022.

The U.S. is now spending 44% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) per year, the same levels as World War 2. We are now spending a higher percentage of GDP than what was seen in 2008.

U.S. deficit spending is officially higher than what was seen in 2008, one of the worst recessions in history.

Its really alarming on how this is not getting more attention.

In other words, Biden's deficit is actually $2 trillion this year once you control for his student loan shell-game. That's DOUBLE last year's near-record deficit.

Its getting worse. And its getting worse FAST.

3. CHINA BANKS AND HOUSING AT RISK (Will it cause a domino effect in the U.S.?)

A bank run has begun in China at the Bank of Cangzhou on fears that the collapse of Evergrande made them insolvent.

Just a couple of months ago, China's largest poverty developer, Evergrande, filed Chapter 15 bankruptcy.

This week, Country Garden, another major Chinese developer, missed a debt payment.

All China's HY real estate index are down -85% from its high. Housing alone accounts for 25% of China's entire GDP.

China seems to be heading for a recession.

I mentioned major U.S. Central Bank growing concerns in my newsletter last week. They are still available for readers if you still have the link or simply just head over to my Tumblr

4. IRAN VS ISRAEL & GLOBAL CONFLICT

First, let me make things clear. I was asked to write about the war we are witnessing in the Middle East last week and I respectfully declined. I am not going to give you my opinion on which side is right or wrong here. I had a very honest conversation about the war with a loved one only a few days ago, this is a very sensitive and unfortunate matter that needs to be discussed with someone you have a deep personal connection with. This is not a subject for anyone of us to be arguing or disagreeing with. And we have both mutually agreed and came to a conclusion: We have no desire in listening or talking to anyone that would tell you which side to take or anyone that will suggest that any kind of death will make the world a better place.

Instead, we talked about the impact this conflict will have on innocent people. Those innocent people that are getting harmed physically and those who are getting harmed in other ways.

I have to talk about this heartbreaking news, and i'll address this as gently as I can.

It's really hard for me to dismiss that our Government is somehow responsible for this.

REASON 1: Just days before the attack, Biden has sent $6B to Iran in exchange of prisoners. And only weeks before the attack, we had major concerns of the possibility of a Government Shutdown due to the Congress trying to limit our country's spending by putting a stop on Ukraine Aid (until they came to a short-term agreement)

Now the most concerning part of this story is only minutes after I posted this on Twitter (Now X) a lot of users with blue checks (and I refuse to label their occupation) asked me or for the lack of terms, threatened me to take my posts down - Thank you to Elon Musk for allowing freedom of speech.

And days later, the cancel culture is back! They posted a certain article from the Washington Post that stated, BREAKING NEWS: The U.S. and Qatar have both agreed to freeze the $6B asset that was sent to Iran - now I will never make a claim about something that I am not sure about. And sadly, this doesn't feel like its any different. Because one of the well known leader of the Hamas resides in QATAR

Can anyone really be wrong for feeling like we are funding the war?

REASON 2: A handful of members of the Congress have been exposed for buying "WAR RELATED STOCKS" days or weeks before the attack.

If that still feels like a conspiracy theory for you, yet another Congress Member Markwayne Mullin disclosed a stock purchase of Raytheon $RTX placed sometime in September. Which by the way, is the company behind Israel's defense system.

To add a cherry on top, Mullin sits on the Armed Services Committee.

Now that you're aware of these information available to the public, can anyone with an open mind really be upset with me for how I am feeling towards our so-called leaders?

I do not have to add any opinion(s) about the genocide that is happening in the middle east. But I will give you my thoughts on how this war can impact our economy.

First thing that comes into mind, is oil.

Russia and Iran combined are 23% of global exports. Removing even 1/5 of that amount from global oil export markets would drive oil prices to levels that will quickly break U.S. allies in Europe, United Kingdom and Japan. And this can drive a western sovereign bond market waterfall event.

In my honest opinion, Western leaders have repeatedly shown a lack of critical thinking in recent years. Sinking ships by sanctions when you need China factories to prosecute a sustained war against an industrial power was a very poor decision.

5. THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION / UPCOMING ELECTION

Yet another topic I will continue to refuse to argue or have a debate about with anyone. I will always respect anyone's opinion and beliefs (Religion & Political Beliefs). This is not a cry for help. I believe a person will only cry for help if they believe that help is coming. If you have supported our President in the past, I am not asking you to publicly say that you regret supporting our leader. But believe it or not, your voice matters. As more and more Americans publicly speak their disapproval of our President, it has an effect on (his) approval ratings. And as of Friday, (his) Approval Ratings have fallen to its lowest since he took the office.

To make things clear, I am not a Trump supporter. I never was. But I don't say this lightly, Trump did not destroy the Greatest Country in the world. And when I say this, I say this respectfully, Joe Biden has been the worst President the U.S. ever had.

Now that the election is nearing. Let us jump in on how our President ruined the United States of America in a short period of time.

THE BORDER

I know this didn't seem like an issue if you weren't paying attention, until lately of course, im sure you have been paying closer attention to it. I am NOT blaming illegal immigrants (especially those who are working hard to provide a better future for their family) for the rapid rising rate of drug related crimes since the White House lost control of the border. And the worst part is, our border is WIDE-OPEN while we are countering a terrorist organization. Many cities are now on high-alert for potential threats.

Texas for example is experiencing a potential Civil War between Palestinian and Israeli. Police are working overtime reports say. Losing control of the border created a major division in America.

The Administration tried to regain control of the Texas border last week. Why you may ask? The upcoming election. This really is frustrating. They are clearly aware of the things they broke, and are now attempting to fix it as election day nears.

THE C-19 VACCINE

I have always had a strong opinion about the C-19 Vaccine. From the start, I never believed it. And I will not go into details on why I never trusted it. But we have to talk about it, for the Vaccine made it on the headlines yet again last week.

Only a very short year ago, Biden publicly used the "Get Vaccinated" response to almost every issue America were experiencing. And last week, the Biden Administration denied ever claiming the Vaccine to scientifically work. As more studies show that the Vaccine caused more and more complications last week, and as election day nears, the White House continue to deny ever mandating it. Again, this is very frustrating for a lot of people had to leave their jobs for opting not to take the Vaccine.

The Vaccine has simply been a business. A money-grab. And more and more news outlets are showing how the Administration censored most of these studies.

After profiting from the vaccine, Pfizer stock shares have erased all its gains from post C-19 Vaccine back to its lowest since December 2014. Moderna will soon experience the same fate.

ENERGY INDEPENDENCY

Another major asset this Administration have lost, is our Energy Independency.

Biden have cancelled our ability to drill for oil. This have denied Americans access to around a total of 11 billion barrels of oil all for the name of "Climate Change"

The truth is that even one were to take the climate alarmist claims as fact, the amount of carbon dioxide saved by not using this oil would be almost zero.

The next time Biden lashes out about high gas prices, there is no one else to blame but our spectacular Administration.

THE STIMULUS CHECKS / UKRAINE AID / INFLATION

I'll make you realize how ridiculous this Administration have been.

They gave us (taxpayers) $1,400 Stimulus checks, Printed $8T, sent them to their friends, ran up our National Debt to the HIGHEST LEVEL IT HAS EVER BEEN IN HISTORY and left us with inflation.

An honest question to my readers: How many Ukrainians can you confidently say that they know what their country is fighting for?

Have you ever wondered what Ukraine Aid is for? And why its a never-ending cycle? Ever wonder why Iran vs Israel war all of a sudden started as discussion to put a stop on Ukraine Aid started? Simple, this is War Profiteering at its finest! And why is this not upsetting you? With all the innocent lives being taken away, all for their profit!

Now let me break this down for you, maybe you'll realize how this will affect you.

As of today, the U.S. already sent $118B to Ukraine. Thats $672 per taxpayer. And with Ukraine asking for another $100B that would mean additional $595 per taxpayer.

And if the dollar amount doesn't upset you. Ukraine Aid so far resulted in 500,000 casualties, 50,000 amputees, and with all that, Ukraine have only recaptured 1% of its territory in counteroffensive. And I forgot to mention, UKRAINE IS NOT A PART OF NATO! Which is by the way is the reason why Russia invaded Ukraine. Can anybody please enlighten me and educate me why are we sending money to Ukraine?

This is really upsetting that most Americans are not aware and doesn't realize that we are blindly and being forced to fund the war. All for their profit!

As I end this week's newsletter here, I will leave you with this, as we pray for everyone getting directly affected by these wars, pray for our leaders, for their capabilities of making the right decisions, ultimately for humanity.

If this newsletter helped you understand the current events in any way, I dont want you to attack those that may have different views in the situation than you do, rather I ask you to encourage the people you know to understand that these wars are causing division when we are all supposed to be UNITED.

Encouragement works better than Correction.

Thank you for reading! My next newsletter regarding Interest Rates, Housing Market Update, Labor Market and the summary for the past FED meeting will be published on Wednesday, but they are available for you to read as I have posted them today on Twitter as a thread. Have a good weekend and God Bless you and your loved ones.

Vhub Encarnacion

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mariacallous · 3 months

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In an interview with Italian outlet Rai News 24, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that he is considering the possibility of dismissing Ukrainian Armed Forces’ Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi.

“This is a question of the people who will lead Ukraine. Undoubtedly, there’s a need for a reset, a fresh start,” said Zelensky. The Ukrainian president clarified that he was speaking not only about Zaluzhnyi or military leadership, but that he was considering plans to replace a number of government officials.

Zelensky added that for Ukraine to win the war, Ukrainians must have the “right positive energy.” “That's why I’m talking about a reset, about a change; I mean something substantial that doesn’t just concern one person but the direction of the country’s leadership,” Zelensky said.

According to reports in Ukrainian and American media, Zelensky informed Zaluzhnyi of his impending dismissal from the position of AFU commander-in-chief during a meeting on January 29. Initially, the Office of the President of Ukraine and Ukraine’s Defense Ministry denied reports that Zaluzhnyi was going to be dismissed. No official decree on his dismissal has been signed yet.

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justiceheartwatcher · 7 months

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The Impending Bank Bail-In Crisis: A Threat to America's Middle Class and Catalyst for Civil Chaos

This is a critical broadcast to hear. We feature two powerful interviews today: Andy Schectman and Robert Kiyosaki, both warning about the collapse of the US dollar and bank "bail-ins" where the banks confiscate your deposits to keep themselves solvent (at your expense).

The time is fast approaching when the US government, Treasury and banking system will unleash a controlled / engineered banking crisis event that will evaporate the life savings of anyone keeping their money in dollars, in the banks. This will result in mass impoverishment of the American people, followed by a wave of homelessness and a civil uprising revolt that the regime will use to declare martial law and suspend the US Constitution.

You need to hear the full details of this truly evil plan that is being meticulously put in place to make sure the 2024 election never takes place.

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percontaion-points · 9 months

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The Chemist chapter 8

Click to see the rest of the snark & image descriptions

Chapter 8

The pictures that were Daniel but at the same time weren’t.

The holes in the file on Daniel’s history, the missing photos.

Time, dates, birth dates —the easiest small changes to make if you wanted to hide something.

Daniel’s strange reluctance to believe what he was seeing when he looked at the spy images.

His struggles with loyalty.

Those long, long fingers.

“Other Daniel,” she whispered.

Is this book seriously trotting out the “evil identical twin” trope? JFC stop.

She nodded to the photographs scattered on the floor. He seemed to notice them for the first time. He leaned over to examine one, then bent down to grab it. Then the one underneath, and the next. He crumpled t

hem in his fist.

“Where did you get these?” “Compliments of a small department working for the American government—entirely off the books. I used to be in their employ. They asked me to freelance.”

His face contorted in outrage. “This is highly classified!”

“You wouldn’t believe my clearance level.”

And what? He thought that somebody grabbed Daniel, took him to a farmhouse dozens of miles outside of the city, and started torturing him… FOR FUNSIES?!

“Well, since you already know the details, I guess it’s not a huge breach of policy for me to tell you that I shut down the de la Fuentes situation six months ago. De la Fuentes’s death is not common knowledge. What’s left of the cartel is keeping this quiet so they don’t appear vulnerable to the competition.”

Naturally, the mysterious government agency that couldn’t be bothered to find out that Kevin Beach is still alive, also can’t be bothered to find out that the terrorist HASN’T BEEN ALIVE FOR HALF A YEAR.

First things first. She reset the screen saver on her computer to come on after fifteen minutes of inactivity.

I love how she knocks Kevin out, and the first thing she does is the most inane activity imaginable.

Explaining things? Pfft! Not in this book!

Back to Other Daniel. The Batsuit was a chore to remove.

The stupidest thing about this is that as soon as Julie saw him, she identified him as Kevin Beach, Daniel’s supposed-to-be-dead identical twin brother.

SO WHY THE FUCKITY FUCK IS SHE STILL CALLING HIM “OTHER DANIEL” AND “BATMAN”?!

There would be repercussions to deal with. She needed time to rest and heal —time no one was going to give her.

Chapter 8 summary: Julie tells the mystery man (she will not stop calling him “Batman” because he’s dressed in all black; I refuse to stoop to her level of stupidity) that she’s sedated Daniel. The mystery man then ties Julie to a chair, and takes the gas mask off. Julie is surprised that it’s Daniel’s identical twin brother… the one who’s supposed to be dead.

He then finds the photos of him talking to the Mexican drug lord who’s supposed to be in charge of this terrorist attack. Julie spills everything, about the attempts on her life, about being asked to step in to deal with “Daniel”. She guesses from the gun Kevin has that he’s CIA, but that if not even her agency knew Kevin was still alive, that he’s working off the books with this one. Kevin is more angry that somebody tortured his brother than the fact that somebody’s clearly setting both Julie and Kevin up (and using Daniel as bait).

Julie then… somehow or another, gases both Kevin and his giant dog. Julie holds her breath, and despite the fact that her hands are zip-tied behind her back, she manages to put the gas mask on. She frees herself before she locks the dog into a room, and parks the car in front of the door to prevent it from getting out. After that, she checks Daniel’s body all over more closely for a tracking device, and finds one “nestled against his femoral artery”. She figures that it sent out an alert when she started torturing Daniel, which is why Kevin swooped in to save the day.

She then resets her broken nose. And will not shut up about the mysterious chemical concoction she made that she nicknamed “survive”. It’s kept intentionally vague, but the only thing I can think about is that it’s mainly to hide how dumb the entire thing is. She then passes out on the cot.

#The Chemist #chapter 08 #Julie Fortis #Daniel Beach #Kevin Beach #why would you write this?#what is this bullshit?#shitty government is shitty #headdesking

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