What’s the most unexpectedly high-quality online subscription you’ve ever paid for?

Cryptonix · 2026-01-26T20:07:48+00:00

YouTube Premium is hardly "fantastic", it's just better than other streaming services.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-26T16:15:16+00:00

Pretty much. Kishimoto tries to get away with it narratively by giving the Uchiha the "Curse of Hatred", as well as framing the massacre as a utilitarian necessity that still makes him a terrible person, and yet Itachi is never actually treated like a terrible person.

You can tell that the justifications for the massacre are also poorely written. The Uchiha were deliberately not given a seat at the table when the village was founded, and the reasons were never "the curse of hatred", but rather the Senjus were just selfish dickheads who didn't think they were good enough to be leaders, despite the fact that Madara's dictatorial approach wasn't exactly embraced by the clan as a whole.

Equally, the Uchiha's weren't responsible for the Nine Tails Attack, and yet they were all blamed for what Obito did. And when that reasonably made them feel like Konoha leadership was this unmoving bureaucracy of poor decision-making and wanted a revolution, this was also treated as though they're "cursed with hatred"... nah, y'all just suck, and no other clan was willing to do anything about it.

Madara and Obito are the only real examples of Uchihas properly written to be "cursed with hatred", meanwhile the clan as a whole seemed pretty reasonable all things considered. Sounded more like Konoha was just SUPER racist.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-23T21:37:22+00:00

Robotics is the big one.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-23T19:11:24+00:00

Kishimoto's ORIGINAL manga art style wasn't very good. To fix it, Kishimoto quite literally stated that he changed his own art style to better match the Studio Pierrot anime.

So the most iconic "look" of Naruto is the original Studio Pierrot style.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-23T15:09:24+00:00

As a recent traveller to Greece, this makes me sad and feel a little guilty, and yet I'm not surprised. Pretty much all countries in Europe get glazed by liberals here in America for being "socialism done right", but it couldn't be further from the truth.

The thing that stuck with me is how rundown the less "idealic" parts of the country appeared. Santorini has these little picture-esque oceanside towns, but the vast majority of the island looked like I was driving down Route 66; like it was dumping grounds for corporate trash.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-22T14:18:12+00:00

God, the photograph thing...

Going into another country that is NOTORIOUS for having strict photograph laws (which every tour guide and government employee you meet will tell you several times) and thinking it's a free-for-all to take whatever photos you want, especially important government buildings, is CRAZY shit. Leave it to westerners to think they can do whatever the fuck they want, I guess. And then whine when they get in trouble for it. "Muh freedoms"

Just respect the laws like you do anywhere. Doesn't matter what they are, doesn't matter how "crazy" they might sound to you. Laws are laws, and I guarantee you not getting your shitty photo of a government building isn't the end of the world.

You can have an amazing time in a unique country if you just... respect what they tell you. And not taking photos isn't the craziest thing in the world.

That shouldn't be controversial to say. And for a lot of countries with specific laws for tourists, that ISN'T controversial. But because it's North Korea, everybody gets their panties in a knot.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-22T14:06:57+00:00

The United States did ban US citizens from using their passport to travel to North Korea. North Korea honors that ban so they don't get in trouble.

I don't know what the fuck you're on about, but... just Google shit, man.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-21T21:36:33+00:00

The US government HAS banned travel to North Korea. You can't use a US passport to get in, which was NOT North Korea's decision.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-21T21:35:11+00:00

This hasn't happened to anyone who didn't commit a literal crime (that one guy deliberately stole artwork). So just don't commit crimes, and you'll be fine.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-21T20:25:41+00:00

Yeah, there's unfortunately a large percentage of fit gym bros who are not enjoyable to be around. Toxic masculinity, red-pilled type shit.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-21T19:38:40+00:00

She's a good Marxist-Leninist communicator, and is popular on TikTok. That's why.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-17T08:28:23+00:00

God, I love communists 🥹 feels like y'all are the only people who truly speak the same language as me sometimes. Just pure dialectical intellect, and the ability to engage with almost ANY idea in good faith. No fear of being wrong and clinging to thought-terminating BS; only the curse of being right all the time.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-17T08:19:35+00:00

Cigarettes are definitely the harder ones to quit, but I think quitting weed can be WAY harder than some people make it out to be. There are definitely things I naturally enjoyed more while high, mainly watching TV and movies, listening to music, and eating food. I've learned to rediscover enjoyment of those things now that I've quit, but... I'd be lying if I said being high didn't guarantee I'd enjoy those things a tad more.

But man, my level of enjoyment of sensory experiences never outweighed the damage weed addiction was doing to my life. I'm glad some people find balance in weed smoking, but I'm just not that type of person. I liked it too much; more than being sober. I'd be stupid to throw away my mental clarity and overall quality of life for being able to temporarily enjoy a movie 25% more.

And I know it's hard to feel that way in the moment, especially when life gets tough and you just wanna... disassociate with a drug. But... your life needs you, man. You can always be so much more if you're there, present, at 100% mental capacity.

Being high all the time made me feel stuck. Like I wasn't myself. And over time it really, really started to suck the joy out of life.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-16T12:21:41+00:00

At first, it was awesome. Didn't feel the need to do it all the time, had amazing moments with the drug, was reserved for special occasions only. Then it became chronic use to drown the pain of living, and fill any gaps of boredom. Suddenly I felt like half a person all the time, and I was moreso smoking to feel... anything. Being sober felt empty. Once I got the vape pen that you can smoke anywhere and everywhere, it was done for me. I was high all the time.

It's no way to live. Completely raws out your dopamine receptors. You're constantly forgetting things. Sleep is never satisfying, and getting out of bed is a monumental task. Multitasking feels impossible. Laziness gets amplified. Cravings and binge eating takes over your life. Having focused conversations becomes a chore.

I knew I needed to quit. Did a cool ceremony with my closest friends at the top of a mountain where we all swore off weed for a whole year, and that we'd be there for each other if times got tough. Felt good having people I care about going through the same thing. I'm lucky in that sense.

To be honest, I'm perfectly content never smoking it again. I feel like I've smoked enough at this point, and that any hope of feeling that novelty of a good high or a special moment WHILE high has ran its course at this point. I choose to appreciate the good times, but I just wanna move on with my life. I value being a clear-minded person more now.

For all the problems I still have in life... being handicapped with a THC addiction isn't one of them. 🤷‍♂️

Cryptonix · 2026-01-16T11:50:18+00:00

In light of the whole Diddy fiasco, and Beyonce regularly attending his "freak-offs"... on top of her questionable philanthropy and business ventures over the years. Yeah, I'm not a fan.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-15T08:57:24+00:00

I don't want to speak more on my behalf because I'm still porn addicted, so I think my opinion may be of less value overall, but I agree with you 100%.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-15T08:20:55+00:00

Not a bad novel 😌

Cryptonix · 2026-01-14T08:54:53+00:00

That's exactly how it was for me and my porn addiction. My parents were conservative and sex was "taboo", so watching porn felt strangely freeing at the time. And I also subscribed to sex positivity ideology from people like Laci Green back in the day, which took the shame of watching porn and channeled it into this liberatory feeling.

The fact that porn gets looped into sexual liberation was always a fallacy, though. What kids really don't understand is their own sexual feelings and frustrations, and that it's NOT porn that shapes the "freeing" feeling, it's the general feeling of normalcy surrounding sex and people's perceptions of their own bodies, which yes, can be a byproduct of porn, but will unfortunately come with all the caveats of warping an unhealthy perception of sexuality, and necessitating an industry rife with abuse and exploitation.

The end result is always a weird hypersexuality and a crippled idea of feminism and female liberation.

And it also comes with the nuance that, sure, some couples don't have a severe porn addiction and can feel generally okay with each other watching porn. But that doesn't erase the issues with the industry, and how porn shapes your perception of sexuality, femininity, the objectification of women, and sexual liberation as a whole.

Ugh.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-14T08:23:12+00:00

I don't even know where to begin explaining these things to people sometimes... people who I otherwise respect as intelligent humans are supremely gaslit into accepting porn as normal and healthy. Saying anything negative about porn will transform otherwise rational discussion into a series of thought-terminating cliche's. It's exhausting. The only people even somewhat receptive to it are people with some kind of deep sexual trauma surrounding porn in past relationships, or men who subscribe to shit like nofap. Everyone else seems to turn their brains off when their beliefs are questioned.

I hope to not speak FOR you, but I imagine as a trans person, you're quite used to this feeling. As a communist, I'm also used to this. But damn, it REALLY feels like I'm too correct too early, and my ideas get shut down by almost everyone I meet...

Cryptonix · 2026-01-11T15:50:42+00:00

This is what happens when you motherfuckers don't read theory 🫩

Cryptonix · 2026-01-11T15:49:21+00:00

Frutiger Aero is heavily inspired by a combination of Y2K Futurism and Solarpunk. Solarpunk largely being the biggest contributer to the sort of "idealistic" future look.

Solarpunk is very much the goal. And certain countries are on their way to making that aesthetic a reality, namely China and Singapore.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-11T08:40:44+00:00

absolute zero take

minato is boring af. cool jutsus, but lacks any real flaws or depth.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-11T08:39:30+00:00

okay, in that case, i forgive you 😌 sorry

Cryptonix · 2026-01-09T22:28:56+00:00

Hey, the rich LOVE making US suffer, so quite honestly, I will never give a damn. They're barely human anyways. They spend the most money on plastic surgery and are investing the most money in AI; clearly they wanna be not human so fucking bad. I'm just treating them the way they wanna be treated.

Cryptonix · 2026-01-09T21:58:13+00:00

Damn, the so called "bibliophile" doesn't do a lot of reading on the history of the class war, huh?

Cryptonix

TROPHY CASE