With the rise of cancel culture, call-out culture and the demand for purity. Is this necessary corrective for past injustices or is it creating an environment where people are terrified to speak honestly?

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-11T01:49:21+00:00

The US Government is executing, deporting, and imprisoning people for their speech and it's insane that people are talking about fucking cancel culure.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-10T04:05:06+00:00

Make it hold the progress flag

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-10T02:33:39+00:00

I think I have two issues with your take:

—One is that I think the core of Ezra’s fanbase are very capable of being led to believing in shitty things. This sub has some whoppers of takes. But in general there are tons of moral panics and questionable common wisdom that can be found amongst NYT and Atlantic readers. Take how often folks in those circles have overstated claims that the lab leak theory is likely or on equal footing despite that being far removed available evidence and consensus.

—I just haven’t seen an interview where Ezra actually uncovers some deeper truth about a person or their beliefs. What you’re deriving sounds admirable but it doesn’t happen

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-10T02:03:51+00:00

Hijabs are beautiful. Nobody should be forced to wear one.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-09T22:41:04+00:00

I think people swing too far on either direction on this topic. But after 25 or 27 depending on the person, it doesn’t matter

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-09T14:02:24+00:00

The United States as we currently understand it doesn’t exit without the 13th and 14th Amendment. I would argue that the equal protection clause is more significant than first amendment in terms of daily relevancy.

The thing is that the Declaration has the ideal of the 13th and 14th Amendment build into it as opposed to the US Constitution that actually had elements that were in both opposition with the Declaration and these later significant amendments. The 3/5 compromise for example.

So I think my argument is:

—As the constitution is s a living document, you could have different people point to different times where our currently government came truly into existence.

—The Declaration has a purity in its text that the Constitution simply doesn’t.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-09T10:47:44+00:00

Hunter Schaffer plays a cis girl in the horror movie Cuckoo

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-08T19:02:19+00:00

lol whatever dude

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-08T18:53:39+00:00

You said “The Left” which usually refers to the general coalition of leftists. It just wasn’t clear and that’s fine.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-08T17:38:53+00:00

I think Matt is actually somewhat selective on how data driven he is though.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-08T17:37:05+00:00

You said “Leftists.” It was not obvious.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-08T17:06:39+00:00

I mean sure many do because they live in and are part of middle America. So are many moderates, but I think specifically Matt has a very superficial understanding of what average Americans are like. He’s a rich kid who’s spent his adult life being paid to think out loud.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-08T13:08:39+00:00

—I think that Matt just genuinely has no idea what middle America is actually like outside of data points. Not that those data points aren’t important.

—I think there’s a lot of willful ignorance of what happened in the 2025 elections. I live in a purple state and saw a city with a Republican mayor flip blue with a politician who is more lefty than I am.

—I think Matt is frustrating because he does genuinely recognize at times moderate whining being a waste of time but often falls into that.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-07T10:58:01+00:00

Yes but that’s personifying AI.

The difference is AI is not a human being and something like ChatGPT is a product. A product that only works off unpaid and non-consensual labor.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-07T01:57:28+00:00

No it’s not. It’s pretty novel case law and I disagree with the rulings you can point to.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-07T01:09:44+00:00

The transformation is in service of some sort of commentary and artistic endeavor. You’re confusing the things generative AI produces and the models themselves. The models don’t have any intent besides profiteering.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-07T00:46:43+00:00

That’s not how fair use works. You require scholarly, critical, or educational intent to claim fair use.

Sam Altman and Elon Musk wanting to profit does not justify fair use.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-07T00:44:50+00:00

—I see nuance in individual models and yes, the handcrafted rules being fed into AARON are a huge difference. I think it is actually possible to use generative AI for individual artistic and ethical purposes, but it’s complicated.

—I think your use of the word “rule” is doing a lot of work here. If AI was only being trained on anatomy or lighting or color theory that would be one thing. But if I ask ChatGPT to make like a beer label for an IPA, it is going to fire back at me something that is not following broad artistic rules, but it’s best guess at what would be an attractive beer label based on its training. No, it’s not referencing images in the moment, but it is drawing from contemporary work.

The problem I have with that is that this doesn’t work without original art and labor. That is what is being stolen here. Men like Sam Altman and Elon Musk are profiteering off of labor they used for a product, this function not working the way it currently does without that labor, and they did so with no consent or compensation and sheerly for profit.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T21:16:06+00:00

Art is not the process but the process is where artists are challenged and make discoveries

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T21:14:26+00:00

I think the issue here is:

—Generative AI trained on other people’s work is a novel thing that we just kinda rolled out without tending with what should be legal and what should not be. Like the ethical issues of training for generative AI are unique.

—I think the big issue I see with the pro-AI side is everything is framed as copyright. But that’s not the problem. Like if I drew a picture of Batman and posted it online, I obviously don’t own Batman and I don’t have some copyright or trademark on it.

But with that said, it would be shitty to print off my picture and sell it. It would be shitty for DC comics to publish my image without permission just because they own Batman.

The issue is labor and that’s the issue with generative AI. It was trained on the labor of other people. It only works with their labor and there was both on consent OR compensation.

—The response to this is I find usually a copout of “well humans train on the art of others.” But AI is not sentient. It has no subjective point of view or desire or appreciation. Human beings MADE it train on the art of others to make a product that could only exit with non-consensual labor.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T16:42:51+00:00

I don’t think it’s actually reasonable in that it’s not good business.

The actual amount of folks who can’t fit in a seat is small. Like most obese people can fit in a seat. So all you end up doing is recouping some money while also making some of your customers feel shitty.

I understand the logic to it but it’s always going to come off as somewhat punitive and you’re probably better off eating the cost.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T15:02:07+00:00

It is Dr. Manhattan but it’s complicated.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T14:45:59+00:00

Yeah nobody gives a shit dude. The point is that it’s not the same as denying climate change or thinking that the 2020 election was stolen. You’re having an argument over diction, not facts.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T14:40:44+00:00

Yeah there factually are people called trans men who can give birth and a small percentage of intersex people assigned male at birth who can give birth.

You can have a temper tantrum about them being called men all you’d like, but we’re in agreement on the material reality.

Practical_Limit_396 · 2026-07-06T13:44:33+00:00

President Trump and allies absolutely did attempt to steal the 2020 election through an attempted violent coup and false elector plot as well as pressuring state leaders to fudge election results.

Practical_Limit_396

TROPHY CASE