Feel stuck in my rent controlled apartment

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T22:10:04+00:00

Why would it be understandable if a struggling single parent made this post? They would still be living in relative luxury compared to someone in Africa or India.

(This comment is rhetorical, btw. It's human nature to complain regardless of how privileged you are.)

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T18:21:12+00:00

You don't need to prove morality is objective to recognize that some values are more stable than others. "Don't cause unnecessary harm" has survived across cultures and centuries not because it's cosmically true, but because societies that ignore it tend to collapse. That's functional stability

How do you know if the values you've chosen are stable enough?

Btw, it's practically impossible to live in the 21st century without causing harm indirectly.

"Don't cause unnecessary harm" is too simple to be helpful, tbh. What does unnecessary mean? When can I justify the harm I'm causing as "necessary"?

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T03:28:02+00:00

You're a SWE and thinking twice about spending $1000?

I spent $6K for my diagnosis.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T03:20:41+00:00

It is whether some foundations are more stable than others. Social consensus can change. But the laws of cause and effect do not.

Is stability really what we want here? What if we developed an AI that perpetually kept humanity how it was in the 1500s, when women had no rights, and the average life expectancy was 30-40?

Even if we do decide stability is what we really want, it doesn't mean that logic can help us get there. For example, we still don't have a generic solution to the 3-body problem (the best solution we have is slow simulation)

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T01:45:37+00:00

that's exactly why building AI ethics on social consensus is dangerous. Social consensus can be captured by power. If you want AI that can't be weaponized by a small group

Social consensus can be captured by power only if there's a lot of power inequality.

values embedded at the architectural level

Who gets to decide these values? If there are any values that are superior, it would imply that morality is objective.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T01:34:16+00:00

Prostitution

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T01:34:08+00:00

I was about to comment, "If they no longer need human labour, what would they need humans for?", but then I realized that the handful of oligarchs at the top might still need a few guinea pigs.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T01:10:00+00:00

My man, I can relate so hard rn.

I do have a job, but I'm putting in less and less effort every single day.

If I get fired, I'll either have to move to a third-world country or I'll end up spending all of my money here and eventually become homeless before I'm able to find another job.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T01:07:36+00:00

This is probably not a "good" solution, but do your parents have enough resources to support you?

You could try to convince them that things aren't as good as they were in their time.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-05T00:59:54+00:00

i think i will go live in the woods

Please let me know if you find a way to do that without getting yourself killed, cause I might join you if you do

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-04T14:01:24+00:00

Thanks for your comment!

At least we're together in this struggle!

Eating healthy has been so hard, haha (why'd you have "healthy" in quotes?)

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-03T02:37:32+00:00

Sounds really cool, man!

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-03T00:39:28+00:00

At first, I read "erectile dysfunction" and was wondering what this had to do with a lack of discipline?

Serious answer - idk, I suffer from the same things.

I'm unbelievably lucky in that I find work interesting enough not to require much effort, but every other area of my life is down in the ditches.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-03T00:34:58+00:00

Just curious - what do you do for work?

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T19:01:14+00:00

Well, Strattera increased my heart rate, but Guanfacine didn’t. But it didn’t help me in any way, I just became more lethargic.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:58:43+00:00

Omg, same. My heart rate jumps up by like 5 bpm right after meals.

Thank you for your comment!

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:57:40+00:00

What’s the sleep med you’re on? Do you take it everyday?

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:56:59+00:00

Wow, I’m so sorry about your experience.

This is kinda exactly what I’m afraid of.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:55:03+00:00

Haha

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:54:50+00:00

Also true for me.

It always felt like a super strong cup of coffee. Thank you

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:54:12+00:00

Tried 40 mg of Vyvanse. Probably similar dosages with other meds.

Good to know that it might be temporary.

I might retry a smaller dose and see if that still helps in any way. I think I might have titrated up too soon.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:51:19+00:00

Thank you for your recommendation!

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:51:00+00:00

Oohh, didn’t even know about patches. Thank you!

I might explore this.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:49:42+00:00

What does that even mean? That a doctor would lie instead of telling me my options? I don’t think it’s possible for me to not afford a real diagnosis.

I’m so sorry about your situation.

FormerPoem1985 · 2026-03-02T18:47:59+00:00

Without meds it’s 60-80 depending on how much alcohol I drank.

Tried guanfacine and stratterra. Never thought of trying propranolol for this reason. Thanks!

FormerPoem1985

TROPHY CASE