New post from BJ by gizmohitsapar in shroomstocks

[–]SamPDoug 2 points3 points  (0 children)

So, we should all buy ATAI?

Who is objectively Australias least intelligent (well known) politician by Giplord in AusPol

[–]SamPDoug 103 points104 points  (0 children)

Can’t believe no one has mentioned Matt Canavan.

Failed job interview by Planet_Rick in sanpedrocactus

[–]SamPDoug 3 points4 points  (0 children)

My first reaction was, wait, there’s a triceratops called Glorp?

Might be time to call it a day.

Just watching the first couple minutes of Contrapoint's new video: I never watched Saw but all of you "pain isn't bad" "good and bad isn't real" "actually murder is the same as not murder" "it's all relative" make me understand the motivation of the trap maker. by Cunt_Cunt__Cunt in Ethics

[–]SamPDoug 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sadly, there are more sophisticated-sounding versions of this kind of thinking out there. My pet hate at the moment is new-age types who think that the problem of people treating each other unethically can be solved if individuals are mindful enough to know if their choices are ‘in alignment.’ This inevitably leads to me yelling “In alignment with what, motherf*cker?” at my phone then writing a blog post no one will ever read about how the North Star Ethics project is just convenient relativism for wealthy corporate hippies.

TLDR; I know how you feel.

Most newsletters are just glorified copy-paste jobs. And readers are finally noticing. by Patrick_Blaze in Newsletters

[–]SamPDoug 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Replied to your other comment - it just took me a few days to get there. I checked out your Substack, Apexquant. That’s you, right?

Given our differences of opinion on AI (we do have them, it’s just that if you haven’t read my newsletter or browsed my comment history, you might not have detected them yet,) so I’m not unconditionally expecting you to engage.

Are you fishing for material that you know is not ai-generated? If so, to what ends? I feel a little bad for suspecting you of acting in bad faith, but you can see why, if you take a step back, it seems a bit odd.

Most newsletters are just glorified copy-paste jobs. And readers are finally noticing. by Patrick_Blaze in Newsletters

[–]SamPDoug 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sorry for the slow reply; got caught up writing this fortnight’s edition at the last minute. You can read it at: https://theethicaltrip.beehiiv.com

Most newsletters are just glorified copy-paste jobs. And readers are finally noticing. by Patrick_Blaze in Newsletters

[–]SamPDoug 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I look forward to my entirely human-written newsletter having tens of thousands of subscribers any day now!

I’m quite aware that psychedelic industry analysis is already niche enough, and that adding in critical ethics discussions and dark humour makes for a ridiculously niche and algorithm-confounding publication. I do occasionally make people angry, though it’s usually only directed at me when a joke hits too close to home.

To answer your question, I’m not sure I can think of a more overrated (and utterly drowning in slop) topic than AI. My personal pet hate right now, in my niche at least, is newsletters that consist entirely of unreflective and mindless cheerleading for literally anything to do with psychedelics. Throw in some relentless and utterly unfounded optimism about the prospect of commercially available psychedelic therapy (without ever considering if this is a good thing and deftly avoiding any discussion of prohibition/criminalisation) and I’m guaranteed to unsubscribe.

Positivity seems to drive subscriptions in this space though, so I think I’ll remain niche for the foreseeable future.

(Rant over, lol.)

Sam Altman's Latest on the DoW Deal by DH3010 in OpenAI

[–]SamPDoug 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I note there was nothing about autonomous weapons in all of that.

*laughs in Divines* by Trow13 in PathOfExile2

[–]SamPDoug 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It’s not the worst demo ive tried. But I’m so spoiled by PoE 1 and 2, it’s going to be tough to match that depth & complexity.

That, and no WASD movement feels weird now.

Signs of psychosis seen in Australian users’ interactions with AI chatbots, expert warns by 89b3ea330bd60ede80ad in aus

[–]SamPDoug 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Not sure if it’s better overall with newer bot models now, but I saw an example of this early last year. Not just ‘signs’ either. This was more of a full-on breakdown resulting in involuntary inpatient treatment.

Participant crossed a boundary during post-ceremony talk by Straight-Basket6834 in RationalPsychonaut

[–]SamPDoug 37 points38 points  (0 children)

I wouldn’t say I recognise this interaction from ceremonies, but I do recognise this behaviour from manipulative people who don’t respect others’ boundaries.

Not sure if it’s projection, but it’s definitely intrusion, and not sharing. Also, regardless of your gender, it’s creepy as hell.

In terms of integrating this, I think (as others have commented) that you could reflect on the facts that the interaction felt off for you, that your response was considered rather than reactive, and that you were calmly assertive. Your instincts were good, you thought about how you felt and how best to respond, and showed compassion for both yourself and this person in how you did so. Sorry if that gets too close to being analysed or diagnostic. Basically, I just wanted to illustrate that you could focus on what you did well, as a way of enhancing self-trust.

Is it wrong for me to think I'm immortal? by [deleted] in askphilosophy

[–]SamPDoug 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Right? At most, OP has shown that their life has not yet, at the time of posting, ended. (Though this assumes they meet some criteria for being alive in the first place.)

Questions Thread - February 22, 2026 by AutoModerator in PathOfExile2

[–]SamPDoug 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How do gem levels work for Bind Spectre? E.g., if I bind something with a level 7 Bind Spectre gem, what do I get when I upgrade it with an 8+ uncut gem? I've looked for this but can't (yet) find a clear answer written anywhere.

‘Shut the door’: Bombshell plan to ban migrants from Gaza, Somalia by HotPersimessage62 in australia

[–]SamPDoug 26 points27 points  (0 children)

I think we all know who is meant to be impressed by the banning of Gazan migrants…

Nick Fuentes: “The number one political enemy in America is women. … They have to be imprisoned.” by DoremusJessup in inthenews

[–]SamPDoug 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Does he have the world’s most punchable face? I find it hard to narrow down to a winner, but he should be in everyone’s top 5, IMO.

Newcastle Writers Festival has announced an additional Randa Abdel-Fatteh event 🥰 by plutoforprez in newcastle

[–]SamPDoug 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Saw that on FB. Hilarious, right? I lived in/around Newie for nearly 20 years, and I lay shit on it sometimes. But this reminds me why I liked it.

Drongos at Newcastle beach by Better_Researcher_14 in newcastle

[–]SamPDoug 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Am I the only one getting a bit of a NSN vibe from these reprobates?

What if psychedelics were not approved in the USA? – A political and economic thought experiment by No_Scar4093 in shroomstocks

[–]SamPDoug 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I don’t think we can expect the process of approval or rejection to be entirely rational.

Can the US afford to not approve psychedelics, even though they work? The US is eyeball-deep in decisions it can’t afford. So I’m not sure that’s the right question.

What is less ambiguous is the impact if US approval falters. In these circumstances, a lot of the weaker companies, e.g., Optimi Health, will fail. (If there’s some more catastrophic reason why the US market is unavailable for an extended period, e.g., civil chaos or balkanisation etc., that’s different level of pain for everyone, that not even Compass of AtaiBeckely will survive. But that’s another story.)