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there's something I find really instructive about the whole thing with the columnist who was scammed into handing over her savings in a shoebox, that I haven't seen many people talk about.

plenty of people have justifiably laughed at her credulity for just accepting that she was dealing with the cia and doing whatever they said, and she mentions herself in the article the sense of crushing mortification that she was so ready to bow to any perceived authority. other people have discussed the value of the piece being its "it could happen to anyone" message, coming from a financial analyst who has written about avoiding scams, which is fine and does have value.

but what I find fascinating is the way it illustrates the secret power of a good scam artist or charismatic leader: they don't have to look or sound convincing to 99% of observers. they just have to be talented at picking up on the specific cues that work on one person. this is why they move so quickly to isolate their targets from everyone around them, and maintain intense pressure with ticking clocks and regular check-ins. the scam is not designed to hold up under even 5 minutes of close scrutiny, it's designed to bypass scrutiny by hitting emotional buttons on a specific individual. the stupider you feel after you cool off, the better they've done their job.

anyone interested in charismatic manipulation, whether scams, cults, or abusive relationships, has heard people say "I'd never fall for something like that". and every victim, in retrospect, says "I never thought I'd fall for something like that". there is no special pattern of stupidity, intelligence, vulnerability or confidence. the pattern is that the perpetrator recognises a thought or behaviour characteristic they can take advantage of. they're the ones selecting you. and that's why teaching people the underlying social mechanics of charismatic abuse is more effective than telling them about lists of individual scams to watch out for. the thing that works on you won't look like anything you've scoffed at, by nature. survival bias plane dot jpeg.

#ahem ahem #this has been a psa #nonsense in general

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I really like dungeon meshi, so take this bit of propaganda

#i need to catch up #delicious in dungeon #recommendation list

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#pfft #peanuts #music

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found em all

#them!! #tmnt #disaster twins #tmnt 1987 #tmnt 2012 #tmnt 2k3 #rise of the tmnt

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tbh au where L just doesn't seem to zero in on light as kira at all and light is smug at first but then starts to get increasingly frustrated as L keeps taking swings and missing completely. gets kinda close and then announces the biggest suspect is sayu yagami. don't worry about the older one, he's just an ordinary boy. L never even makes contact. light's dropping signs and L is picking them up but completely misinterpreting them. light's like this guy's a fucking idiot lmfao?? i could get away with this forever. but then he gets bored with no one to play with and he's irritated that L keeps giving credit to every random idiot for being kira. light starts dropping more and more brazen clues trying to see if this stupid detective can take a hint and then L arrests him off the massive trail of evidence he's been leaving for months

#they would 100% both do this #death note

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knitting tutorial made by a twenty-something knitting influencer: 18 min long, 12 of those minutes being the intro and a sponsor plug, they show the first few steps of the tutorial at the slowest speed known to man, they show the most important steps at a neck-break speed, they stop every five seconds to talk about what they just did, 40,000 comments filled with questions ranging from insightful to “how do i knit”, filmed with a camera that costs more than a car, the tutorial is incorrect.

knitting tutorial made by a seventy-something grandmother: two min long, filmed 17 years ago, shows you what you want with the skilled patient hands of a beloved deity, made with the world’s shittiest camera, the best video on the fucking internet, four comments and 30 views, you lose the video and never find it again.

#resources #arts and crafts #adulting

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"Enjoy the sodium desgraciadas"

#''how i long to take my skin off'' me too bestie #glam kitchen #tiktok #food #random

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#all the really good tools and appliances have personalities

they used to make smackable technology. you used to be able to hit your tv when it didn't work good.

#hmmmm #random #technology

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Escape the pandora vault in a nutshell or something lmao

#you got this buddy mind over matter #dream smp #rivals duo #technoblade #dreamwastaken

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"Scrooge said that he would see him—yes, indeed he did. He went the whole length of the expression, and said that he would see him in that extremity first." - Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

#LOOOOOOOL #charles dickens #the muppets #random

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The devastating difference between how much time it takes to write something vs how fast people read it lol

#good points! #writing

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squishies for when you need a nap

#oh the first and last one thoughhhhhhh #random #hello new reaction image

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my new poster for the 30th Anniversary of Myst, available over at the Cyan store (link in the source and the comments)! This imagery has been indelibly inscribed on the inside of my eyelids since I was a kid, so it was an absolute joy bringing it to life in a more official capacity. 📚

#ah memories~ #myst

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Happy Valentines Day

context:

#incredible #from the man HIMSELF #mob psycho 100 #undertale #crossover

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I will take that rabbit and give him found family whether he LIKES IT or NOT.

Click for higher quality + alt text :)

#it's for your own good you asshole #the amazing digital circus

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"Drown yourself in the digital lake!"

as they should

definitely real tadc plot leak caine told me himself

#rfwierrtuilryjkfrjw #poppy playtime #dank memes

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SMILING CRITTERS ICONS

#cute designs! #i really like Hoppy and Bobby's freckles and Bubba's tusks #are the the white collars and cuffs a fashion statement or something more sinister tho i must know #poppy playtime #icons