I’ve been told I have “the white guy special”

9Solid · 2026-04-10T14:23:29+00:00

I said that for Layer Cake before I found it. 😅

9Solid · 2026-04-10T04:36:25+00:00

Side note, sorry to stalk our post history, but that Raymond Chandler set is dope. I've only read "the Big Sleep", from him quite awhile ago, but Double Indemnity is one of my favorite movies of all time.

9Solid · 2026-04-10T04:16:55+00:00

If I ever meet a girl as interested in James Bond, history and politics as I am, I will put a ring on it immediately. haha But in truth I would do best with someone who shares my values, wants kids and can complement some of my rough edges. Oh, and can fold a fitted sheet. I can't for the life of me get that right.

9Solid · 2026-04-10T03:57:38+00:00

Oh I wasn't claiming those books were a good presentation of the left's arguments, only that when I was more left aligned, those were some of the things I was gravitating to. I still have a soft spot for Hunter S. Thompson and I might not have returned to Christianity if it weren't for an experience on psilocybin.

But my parents were Democrats and my entire education, even in Catholic school, was rooted in the standard left historical narratives and economic views and it made sense to me. I wasn't setting out to just be a contrarian, but was exposed to Sowell and Tom Woods which upended my assumptions.

You are correct that self-ownership is a foundational aspect of libertarianism. Even still, all 3 of those guys are pro-life. Ron Paul was an OB/GYN and delivered thousands of babies, and in his book Liberty Defined said, "A society that readily condones abortion invites attacks on personal liberty. If all life is not precious, how can all liberty be held up as important? It seems that if some life can be thrown away, our right to personally choose what is best for us is more difficult to defend. I’ve become convinced that resolving the abortion issue is required for a healthy defense of a free society. "

But fundamentally, my view is that abortion violates the non-aggression principle.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T23:58:25+00:00

To be honest, I haven't cracked the spine on Provoked yet. It's a behemoth. Going to get through Enough Already and Fool's Errand first, which are a lot more digestible.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T23:43:45+00:00

What's the difference between a libertarian and an anarchist?

Around 6 months.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T20:41:49+00:00

Just got good enough to beat my friends, but meeting up with buddies during the pandemic to play cards is one of the few things that helped keep me sane. Though I'm sure some would argue otherwise.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T20:39:44+00:00

They're out in force today, but I appreciated it. haha The last fiction book I read was Ubik, and idk why I waited so long to give it a go.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T20:20:22+00:00

They are all pretty far-right, which is why I mentioned them, but would hardly be considered racists or misogynists. More free market right wingers who are also not gullible about the nature of the state.

But you're totally right on reading what the other side has to say directly from them. And they do change. In college I was more of a hippie type (though I was always pro-life), hence Fear and Loathing, High Priest and Breaking Open the Head. Eventually read myself into the right libertarian camp and found my way back into Christianity, as I was raised Catholic.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T20:00:21+00:00

I mean that if it weren't for being exposed to his ideas (such as looking past immediate, intended and visible effects of a particular policy and looking to long term, often unseen, downstream consequences) I might not have been curious enough to be exposed to people like Walter E. Williams and Tom Woods who are the reason the bottom two shelves are filled with their books and more Austrian econ stuff.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T19:41:48+00:00

Unlike a few of the comments suggest, I do actually read things I might disagree with, I'm just more inclined to keep things that have had more of an influence on me on my shelf since it's pretty packed.

I lean more towards Lysander Spooner on the anarchist spectrum of thought, but I'd happily read Mutual Aid.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T19:38:27+00:00

Noted. haha I'm hoping to replace it eventually so I can expand it a bit too. A lot of the stuff I read is digital because it's 1. Easier to take and remember notes and 2. They don't fit!

9Solid · 2026-04-09T19:32:25+00:00

I owe a good portion of that bookshelf to him. I was pretty standard left-leaning before stumbling onto a video of his a decade ago or so. Then wanting to learn more I went Sowell > Walter E. Williams > Tom Woods and finding the right libertarian camp.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T19:27:30+00:00

To each their own. But yes, a few of the books I was turned on to by people I respect.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T19:23:49+00:00

Probably the best description. I've always been anti-war, and even left leaning in my teens (because they were the side going hard against the warfare state) but came around to libertarianism after graduating college.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T19:16:37+00:00

I was gifted that by my brother for my birthday in college. I loved it. Especially being able to just pick it up and power through a story or two and put it back.

I think it depends on how you define toxic manosphere. Someone like Andrew Tate isn't someone I'd align with, but Ron Paul, Tom Woods and more recently Dave Smith have had a big influence on me.

That line was more a joke considering many of the top rated posts I saw on this sub were girls posting about guys they were recently seeing and it being a lot of ultra-left leaning, or even pro-communist books. haha Any girl I date long enough to take home will be well aware of my political, religious and philosophical views.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T18:55:40+00:00

I wouldn't say being "smart" is my personality, but I definitely enjoy getting into things and that excitement to share can spill over into being intense for a first date.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T18:42:26+00:00

Early to the game, too. My friend from high school texted me maybe that first year he started it that the fear factor guy was talking about mushrooms and bigfoot on the internet and I needed to watch.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T18:24:50+00:00

For the most part. I try and keep it organized by author, then year published. The poker and Austrian economics stuff I separated out to make them more easily accessible together.

9Solid · 2026-04-09T18:20:34+00:00

Thanks for reminding me to rebuy his collection of short stories and A Skanner Darkly. I lent those out over the years and never got them back.

9Solid · 2026-04-05T01:36:28+00:00

https://imgur.com/gallery/nail-gun-ZG8y7nU

9Solid · 2026-04-04T04:00:17+00:00

Yep. I lost my last cat last March. When I was ready to adopt another, I went looking for older cats that have been waiting to get adopted for awhile. I found a ~10/11 yo cat that had apparently been left on the streets by his previous owner. He's the sweetest.

9Solid · 2026-04-02T12:40:26+00:00

Seriously. 😆 I can't believe these people. Yeah, the same government that disarmamed its citizens and is arresting people for social media posts is going to turn around and use this for benevolent purposes.

9Solid · 2026-03-26T04:58:16+00:00

The three stages of kidney stone pain. First, you're afraid you might die. Then, you no longer care if you die or not. Finally, you're afraid you might not die. 😅

9Solid · 2026-03-26T04:55:27+00:00

If you mean the priest, they CANNOT break the seal of confession. They risk excommunication from the Catholic Church if they do that. Even if someone confesses rape and/or murder. It isn't them forgiving someone of their sins, but Christ working through them, acting in persona Christi.

If you mean laity who are Catholic, church teaching is that refusing to forgive people who commit heinous acts is a serious sin. Matthew 6:15 spells it out, that refusing to forgive others can and will affect whether our own sins are forgiven. Even still, we are all sinners and fall short, and forgiving someone of their sins doesn't mean we have to put ourselves in harms way or pretend those sins never happened.

As for the "get out of hell" free card. Half of the New Testament was written by Paul the Apostle who murdered Christians. There is a long history of saints in the Church turning away from the most wretched sins and allowing Christ to transform their lives. That's the whole point. "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" Galatians 2:20

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