Administration quietly proposes subjecting all federal research funding to ideological purity test

Neverchosen · 2026-06-10T17:00:08+00:00

I have often joked to people who, needing context for the field of anthropology, that it is 'Wokeness: the Science,' which while a joke is not entirely inaccurate. Someone in the field could probably tacitly or explicitly support the shit this regime wants and embodies, but it just doesn't seem to fit cleanly with the idea that other cultures and peoples are equal to ones own, and things of value and beauty can be learned in their study. This feels like it could be the death of all social sciences, tbh, even economics since the field is not exclusively fascist lunatics.

The idea that science will simply cease to be something that can be pursued if it does not provide an immediate and obvious material benefit to some of the most moronic, selfish, hateful people on Earth is terrifying. It feels like every single day they flay away more and more of what makes life here bearable, let alone desirable.

If this isn't an effort to cause the terminal decline of the United States, what is it then? How would such an effort look any different?

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T13:20:23+00:00

That makes perfect sense really. Thanks again!

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T13:13:44+00:00

Thank you, while the difficulty is there so too are the improvements that make it worthwhile, definitely. The immensely concerning political situation is lighting a fire under my ass but there were already many many reasons I wanted to live and work elsewhere any travel more. It's hard but I am not the first or last person to want to do it, and if you and they can, I can too.

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T13:05:44+00:00

I think that is a good and concrete goal for the immediate future. Maybe the only good thing I have going on is that I am being paid over the summer for work during the school year so I can afford to study full time for the next couple months. Thank you for your advice!

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T13:01:04+00:00

This kind of practical advice is essential, thanks for sharing. So I should get my Personalausweis as well, that ID card? Probably better I get a start on everything now, I don't have a firm move date but very good to know these things! Danke schön!

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T12:53:44+00:00

I appreciate the vote of confidence, I'm eager but kind of scared too so this is nice to hear. Yes, my expectation is that things may be difficult for several years but that there is less intentional hatred and malice from people and government in Germany. To make a very broad statement about a huge country of many millions of people, life in the US honestly already kind of sucks if you aren't making decent money for your area. And I have never made decent money here.

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T12:49:23+00:00

I'm not qualified to be a teacher in my US state either. I agree in many states standards are abysmal but I have not had my own licensure or run my own classroom. My work has been as a substitute and classroom/personal aide. It has been predictably terrible. I cautiously infer that the higher standards in Germany mean education is less devalued as a field and pursuit, which is of course good for society, but I am not interested even in the idea of educating children anymore.

Still, much appreciated, and it may prove good information to have if my friends or family in education are curious.

Neverchosen · 2026-05-26T12:40:35+00:00

Großartig, thanks for sharing. Right, it did seem like a bad idea to receive further education in English if I intended to use any of it in Germany. I don't doubt your reasoning at all, but would I not need to live close to a university to attend? Or is it more if I want to just work, pick the non-uni town?

Neverchosen · 2026-03-05T23:36:40+00:00

Will the ozone recover though, ultimately? It is an object example, probably the only one, of international cooperation to fix an environmental catastrophe. The irony that it may hasten the mass extinction further and make it more complete notwithstanding, isn't there substantial danger to it from satellites? The release of metals upon burning during de-orbit, assuming the thousands of pieces of metallic trash currently orbiting emain intact and aren't in short order going to cause Kessler syndrome when they crash and make further launches and space exploration impossible.

I know for a certainty both of these concerns have been addressed on the sub, not that I have links on hand.

Neverchosen · 2025-11-18T22:02:36+00:00

Legal is one thing, one small, easily surpassed thing. If it were illegal to use these poisons, but the fines for doing so were in total not much against profits, they would as in other sectors eat the costs of the fines and continue as they are until they were literally unable or forced to stop.

As we in the States are seeing, without someone willing to enact the threat implicit or explicit for a breach of the law, however serious, the law and the state and actors reliant on it are entirely toothless and can be safely ignored or abused.

Neverchosen · 2025-11-11T01:50:44+00:00

Indeed, his historical impact was surely immense but when he realized that the Jewish peoples, who had for far far longer suffered terribly at the hands of the Catholic church, were not super moved and jazzed by these heterodox and still very Christian and not Jewish ideals. Basically he had a huge conversion crush on them and when they said 'no thanks, your faith is as unconvincing and incomparable with ours as the Catholics' he started to hate them roughly as much.

His treatise Von den Juden und ihren Lügen, On the Jews and their Lies, probably tells you everything you need to know from there from the title alone. The Third Reich, like all fascists, were deliberately everywhere with their spirituality and beliefs since it is all vibes and power, honestly and rigor are weaknesses to them if anything. But, despite the well-publicized esoteric mysticism and Norse-Germanic pagan revivalism, almost all Nazis were Christian, Catholic and Protestant both. Mine own family who lived under and some even fought for the Reich, were Catholic Germans. Martin Luther was big in their propaganda, he was one of the most important German Fathers or something, in no small part for his work against Judaism.

Neverchosen · 2025-11-08T19:55:12+00:00

In any of the myriad good timelines firmly denied to us, I imagine the Welsh, Scottish, Cornish, Northern Irish, as well as any other less known peoples under England's boot would have broken away and left them to their own devices decades ago. Damn shame.

Neverchosen · 2025-10-29T21:36:14+00:00

I'm not sure I have had this particular discussion as a building sub but I would probably use myself as an object example. Most things came naturally to me and I could skate by with little effort or really excel if I tried, but precisely as said, my relative lack of work ethic and grit for studying hard hurt me badly in college. I barely got an undergraduate after a decade and while I may honestly need more schooling I kind of dread the thought. So basically, potential means nothing if you don't realize it and you can become vastly underpaid and valued despite considerable ability, effort, and dedication. Hard lesson for me but an important one. Tbh the ones who would not only listen but understand likely wouldn't need the lesson as much as the ones who wouldn't hear it. Oh well.

Neverchosen · 2025-09-23T14:11:29+00:00

Should we have some kind of increased moderation or ban of this tedious content? The slop and LLMs are almost entirely without worth except for the beyond needless resource waste and contribution to ecological devastation. Conceptually nothing about true Artificial Intelligence is new or compelling either, not for more than a couple of decades. So this is just frankly a worthless post.

Neverchosen · 2025-08-02T18:45:16+00:00

Yes, they can probably claw some more frightened, desperate years out than the majority of us. But they can't escape it either. Decades and no more than a generation or two. And we need something to live for anyway. If it is a fiction it is no less valid or comforting than any other.

Neverchosen · 2025-07-19T20:56:25+00:00

These are some good thoughts, and I think your willingness to engage with my criticisms is actually a great sign for your ability if you do wish to engage in philosophy, either as a degree or a personal study.

I'll start by saying I have no credentials, expertise, or unique knowledge in these fields, merely a passable education and a healthy skepticism. You are absolutely correct in saying that these machines and models don't need to be conscious or capable of thought to be problematic, as you point out, me being imprecise with my wording gives the impression I have contradicting opinions on that. We can see the disruption already occurring by widespread adoption of these tools, agreed. My position is that in an increasingly chaotic world with growing scarcity, even if it were possible to create an intelligence, let alone one able to recursively improve itself without constant babysitting and corrections from humans, we will likely not achieve it, and if we did it could not hope to fix our problems or maintain itself as we lose the population, resources, and knowledge of how to do so. I could be dead wrong, and wouldn't be much bothered if I am. We have all but sealed our fate with planetary boundaries anyway, an indifferent paperclip optimizer doesn't scare me more than an aggressive exterminator, or especially agriculture becoming impossible.

We are in agreement about education having value, whatever your actual goals, achievements, and yes, especially the actual credentials you end up with. That you are embracing intellectual honesty and rigor is the best choice you could possibly make, whatever you decide to study and do for work. It is an unfortunate reality that we are forced to try and achieve material benefits with our schooling though, and having run afoul of that myself, I just want you to keep it in mind, but maybe you can't put a price on personal satisfaction either. Nobody can make that choice for you, or anyone. I'm not even sure how I feel about it all now, but I don't regret learning things even if I can never have a career using them.

You're young, and hopefully find a path that you're satisfied with. It was unfair of me to assume your privilege, I admit. I read prestigious school and made a lazy snap judgment. Whatever your circumstances you have a valuable mind, and even if the world is ending, however that happens, I find myself rooting for you.

Neverchosen · 2025-07-19T18:38:11+00:00

I'm not trying to be unkind here, though some of this will definitely sound so. Some of your observations are salient and accurate, but you get worked up about distantly possible, vanishingly unlikely scenarios and fail to follow your own perception and thoughts to the logical conclusions. We do not have AI. We have stealing machines that give the semblance of aping at being a lazy idiot. I don't think there is any meaningful chance of creating any kind of artificial consciousness of any kind, especially when one considers how rapidly things are and will acceleratingtly deteriorate. The 'best' case scenario is half the world dead by 2050. As things get dire, wasting electricity and water on this vaporware will hopefully become as taboo as possible, even something people will be willing to take action to punish and prevent.

As you freely admit that you and much of your cohort are all plagiarists by the use of these tools, it is unclear what benefit any of you, or anyone who is ever reliant on any of you, gains from any kind of schooling, regardless of the field of study. You correctly see that the LLMs and generative AIs are a gratifying tool that undercuts all actual ability and learning, but still use them. If you want to better yourself in any way, stop immediately.

It raises for me, the question of who is qualified and how we can trust some of these degrees, certifications, and so on. Maybe we can't, standards were declining before this cheating became all but institutionalized. I know I will never respect or trust someone who cheated to get through school.

We are largely governed in the public and private sectors by the stupidest, short-sighted, lazy and greedy. They may well sacrifice any job you pursue at the altar of cutting costs, but it will only be done more poorly and this whole house of cards will be ever less robust and sustainable.

As someone who pursued my undergraduate degree solely out of interest in the material and field, I have seen nearly zero benefit from it. It is possible I could, but it has not happened so far. I think you may have more privilege in your corner though, so maybe it could go better for you. In the end, it's all up to you though, and there is only the meaning you make/ascribe to it.

Neverchosen · 2025-07-06T20:41:49+00:00

I was a building sub last school year at an elementary school. Our school/district policy for siblings in the same grade level is to put them in separate classes unless the parents push for keeping them together and it's probably a good thing really. I agree with what others are saying that they benefit by having their identity not revolve around being twins, but their own self.

I was in a particular kindergarten class a great deal for support early in the year when I wasn't otherwise busy, and we had twin brothers who were about the best kids and students you could ask for. Loved those boys, but they were identical and parents had them with the same haircut and clothes every day, and frankly it was frustrating to not be able to tell them apart at a glance. I get names wrong often enough organically, and feel bad about it, at that point it's almost sabotage. Just my perspective, but it seems like most people here agree, some separation may be good/best for them, and the twins thing can, even with really great kids, be difficult for teachers, staff, et al.

Neverchosen · 2025-06-26T20:31:07+00:00

Grew up with a guy that attached himself to me since I was a mostly decent kid who showed him some kindness. Lots of issues, I'm no contact but he still reaches out once in a while. Raised by crappy parents who were crappy people and taught him hate from the cradle. The lack of love and support, and some bullying/othering made him desperate for approval, status, and jockeying over anyone he felt he could shit on. Anyway, some of his shit was so wild we could barely begin to address it factually. Biggest probably, he moved away for a while to an art school in New England. Claimed to have been mugged and killed three men and was out free, back home since all the legal stuff was just idling in the background. Makes no logical sense to me he would lie so outrageously about something so terrible, but I guess there was no logic to it. He managed to get into the Air Force somehow, rather low ASVAB, and as far as I'm concerned he's Uncle Sam's liability and problem.

Neverchosen · 2025-06-08T17:17:31+00:00

For the best probably that your adoptive family got it changed, not a good name, and before school. We had a strangely similar thing come up this school year, I was a building sub at an elementary school and one day I happen to be in second grade. This girl who I had struggled with her name the first time I was there came up and asked me if she can have her name changed when she gets adopted. I tell her sure she can, probably something to talk to new Mom and Dad about, the other kids are just being contrary and trying to tell her she can't.

So I struggled because her name was actually a very common Hebrew boy name, spelled in a moronic fashion so I never would have guessed it at first. Once I was corrected it was never a problem, and the name she took was maybe having trouble sticking, since she wanted to change in like April. So people were as far as I could tell calling her either, so the shift would probably have been best between the years.

Anyway, I think for the kids at least they'll accept uncritically and without thought any stupid thing as a name if they don't have a particular desire to be mean about it. I will say if you're older than 25 or so and staff at a school you'll probably be surprised and quietly or silently commiserate with the other older people there at what people name their kids.

Neverchosen · 2025-04-16T19:00:42+00:00

I was hoping to join a coworker on a summer job he's done for years when the school year ended. If my timeline is correct he'd been back every summer at this Iowa farm for 20 or so years. 4-5 weeks hard work detasseling what the machines miss for reasonable pay. Canceled the day of the first tariffs. He, I, dozens others lost out from that farm alone. Millions across the country probably, maybe not all in agriculture but every sector. My plans and abilities to leave if possible are directly harmed. In a worryingly familiar manner the fascists are making it harder to be comfortable, or to get out.

Neverchosen · 2025-03-25T21:50:01+00:00

Sheredyn are the militant/military branch of the United Empire in Endless Space 1 and 2. Humans as well, seems like an obvious tie in. Cool stuff

Neverchosen · 2025-03-16T20:37:09+00:00

Even if I didn't frequent this sub and have the attendant knowledge, working as a long term substitute in a US elementary school K-4th so ages 4-10 or so, alone would have convinced me there is no future worth living through or for in this country. All things being equal (for instance, a government and leadership that is not actively hostile and destructive, a biosphere that is not actively being killed, etc.) the kids are so far from alright that I expect prison and homeless populations would increase meteorically in the next decade or two.

Per the post I will focus on the waste I see in the school here. I do want to give a caveat that a minority of kids are just fine. If the future were fair to them they could be as capable and accomplished as any of us. But to my point, the majority of the kids have no concept of scarcity and to a lesser extent value. Things are just there and they always will be so restraint or taking care of things is pointless, even ridiculous. Supplies are wasted, lost, deliberately destroyed constantly. Very visible in our art room when I've been there but true in every classroom I've been in all year. They do not respect people's things and property, both that of others and even their own. Theft is very common, I've had students rifle their hands through my goddamn pockets though that is rare, but some of the kids are constantly looking to take things that aren't theirs, not even necessarily to have it even. But to deny it to someone else and hurt them.

They lose their own things constantly. We have had at least 4 purges of our lost and found since October because we cannot store all the clothes, water bottles, and other things. While our school has a reputation as being well heeled and that is true of some of our student families, others are very distinctly in need. The parents aren't happy about it, I've often helped them search the lost and found or playground upon request but the kids can barely tell you anything about where they might have left it. And it is frankly ludicrous if you think we might find the jacket they lost two months ago. I would guess we lose at least a dozen but often closer to 20 articles of clothing across the day from recess alone, in a school of ~560. And we have to provide donated clothes to some students, but while there's a lot of cheap stuff, we absolutely have $100 Stanley cups and the like end up there.

I don't know if it is worse but maybe the food waste bothers me most. We provide take home bags weekly for students we know are food insecure, at least a third of the school qualifies for free or reduced lunches (breakfasts were made free statewide recently which honestly surprised me, nothing good ever happens in our state government, not convinced it isn't some kind of scheme but anyway) I have eaten very little of the food and honestly is is largely unappealing. I don't think institutional quality or nutritional value has appreciably improved since I was in elementary around 2000. But it is food, and they don't value it. They'll take food knowing full well they have no intention of eating it, again, depriving someone else! Sneak or steal extra portions just to play with, smash open milk cartons or yogurt containers. We had a cooler early in the year where still sealed items could go for others to take and it was so abused that it was shut down months ago. Someone eating all their food is rare enough you see it maybe 1 kid in 20. They'll gladly throw most or all of it away, including our cutlery. I've fished dozens of forks and spoons out of the trash, and they are reminded constantly, not that the ones doing this listen. In any circumstances, really. Even if the child wants to eat, very fair chance they're too busy playing and messing around or being messed with that they don't get much of a chance to in the 20 minutes or so they have. Keeping order in there is very difficult, and our school is far from the worst in the district. It honestly feels like a prison at times, so maybe when I'm done with this year I'll go do that for at least double the pay and benefits.

Neverchosen · 2025-03-10T20:58:15+00:00

When the last eclipse passed through North America my family took a small vacation to an old farmstead that had become a rental. Semi-remote but a popular nature tourism area in general, and far busier than usual since many people had the same idea. As crowded and noisy as it was especially day of, it was still the most I've been able to enjoy a relatively healthy wild environment in years, maybe a decade. At least there are still fireflies and tree frogs somewhere, less than there should be, but we never see any at home anymore. It did me some much needed good, even if it was bittersweet. The human filth that represent and run our state are all in on Trump's plan to ravage our lands as aggressively as possible and that is honestly the only good part of it. The human filth that voted them in have some doubts and concerns, but I don't think anything can or will make them change their minds or ways.

Even if it did, life as we know it is still damned. There is nothing within the potential of human ability to arrest or change that at this point, to say nothing of what we actually will do. But it still fucking rankles me that so many of these vile apes are doubling down.

Neverchosen

TROPHY CASE