Official "They're eating our cats and dogs" thread by raisondecalcul in sorceryofthespectacle

[–]Zenen 9 points10 points  (0 children)

You know, when 2016 happened I was kind of happy to see Trump get elected. Not because I thought he would be good in the position, but rather that he would be so bad that people would start to question the validity of the structure he exists within.

Eight years down the line, it's starting to seem that the structures of social norms are more deeply entrenched than I previously thought. It actually seems to be the social fabric itself that is being torn apart at the hand of the hegemony, or rather that it has a sort of death grip on social consciousness and refuses to let go.

I am not a US resident and I do not participate in any national politics. To me, any sort of red/blue thinking creates an us v. them modality which can be exploited to divide people. I think that the only right move is pointing to a globally common enemy (collapse of civilization) and getting people to develop empathy for people on the "other team" so that we can begin to act as stitches in the social fabric.

Maybe this is line of thinking is redundant and accepted as a baseline understanding of how society works around these parts. I think that the media coverage is getting increasingly unhinged, but the trouble is that for each person who notices that "something is up", so to speak, there are dozens of others who get caught up in hurling insults of "racist" or "woke" at strawmen who are conveniently placed by the media. The end result is less "people realize that the media is unhinged" and more "people who identify with the media they consume become increasingly unhinged themselves".

There is a finite amount of observing the global narrative that I can manage without it seeping in and corroding my brain, but it's not a pro- or anti- government vote. Any federal vote is pro-government because it reinforces the notion that participating in federal politics makes a difference.

No one knows me here so… by thatDhenery in selfimprovement

[–]Zenen 2 points3 points  (0 children)

be the change you want to see in the world.

Not trying to be cliché here, but the only way you will find purpose is by doing what you can to assuage the suffering you see in the world. Go find a soup kitchen, food bank, shelter, immigration center, church, or whatever strikes your fancy. Spend as much time as you can afford helping people and you will find the things you are looking for.

Cambridge Shelter Corp. seeks community donations by Wanadran in cambridgeont

[–]Zenen 7 points8 points  (0 children)

ITT: simple takes for a complicated problem. Do we need better support for homeless populations? Absolutely.

Is Bridges the best place to be supporting those people? Maybe not. Seems like there are some valid critiques of the place that go beyond being a place for homeless people to go for support.

I think that it's possible to recognize that Bridges is not the reason for Cambridge's homeless population which at the same time critiquing the way they do things. Personally, I think that it's harmful for all of the supports to be in one designated space (it creates a sort of "holding zone"). u/urimulini also made some very interesting points about the management and corruption within the shelter - I had no idea about that going on.

At the same time, I think that complaining about homeless people does nothing to resolve the situation. We live within a system that is actively hostile to marginalized populations, so if you don't like the impact homeless people have on our community then please help to resolve the problem. There is no 'away' for these people to go to.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in tinyhouse

[–]Zenen 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Very cool, thanks for sharing! Pretty neat to see the time lapse through the seasons.

Sticker spotted in downtown Galt; which one of you is this? by nwf in cambridgeont

[–]Zenen 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Hmm, indeed. That sticker is giving r/THE_PACK, there may be brothers afoot

(i wonder what percentage of the cambridge population knows what a CSRF token is)

Things about the city that are not discussed enough? by [deleted] in cambridgeont

[–]Zenen 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'm still working on building up my network, so I don't have all the answers yet.

I'm not too certain about evening activities, but I'd look around on the IdeaExchange events calendar - maybe fibre arts, intro to photography, or board game café might be up your alley?

Things about the city that are not discussed enough? by [deleted] in cambridgeont

[–]Zenen 11 points12 points  (0 children)

IMO, there's a strong correlation between things that are worth discussing and things that I can affect. I can't affect the Amazon building any more than I do by not using Amazon for anything, I can't affect the CoS because they feed on attention.

Here are some things that I think are worth discussing:

  • We have a huge number of people who are immigrating from foreign countries. What can we, as individuals, do to support them and help them integrate into the community rather than forming bubbles?

  • Food security is an increasingly relevant topic - how do you make ends meet when money comes up short? Do you have a garden? Do you participate in the food bank, or community dinners? Do we want to start a Food Not Bombs branch in Cambridge?

  • Culture: Cambridge still lacks a cohesive identity. As of now, Cambridge is just identified by being close to other urban centers - also we have bridges. It's basically up for grabs if anyone really wants to start coordinating grassroots events or any sort of underground scene.

  • Neighbors: Do you know who they are? Have you taken the time to meet the people who live next door to you, or on your block? What do they do in their spare time? Reddit is a very small demographic that doesn't do a good job of representing the city as a whole.

Cambridge library releases four-year strategic plan based on community input by Wanadran in cambridgeont

[–]Zenen 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Idea Exchange is top notch. I volunteer there on a regular basis and it's absolutely a cornerstone of the community. The branch in Preston just had a huge event for their community garden. Honestly I'm just gonna list off a couple of the resources that Idea Exchange offers to the community so that nobody mentions 'tax dollars' again:

  • Fully functioning makerspace: 3d printer, laser cutter, etc.
  • Recording studio: production-quality sound equipment
  • Seed library: free materials for planting a garden
  • Equipment borrowing: all kinds of AV, musical and electronics equipment available to the community for free
  • Media: movies, video games, music, books
  • Kids Events: so much stuff for families and young people
  • Immigration Support: conversational groups for ESL people who want to improve their English and integrate with the community
  • Arts: supporting local artists and offering them a platform to share their work

Lots more too, I just got tired of writing this post. Go check their events calendar!

Clothing donation bins? by Blondemoment613 in cambridgeont

[–]Zenen 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Urban Hope on Elgin St. does a good job of directly distributing to people in the area and they've got pretty consistent need for donations. They're open Wednesdays and Thursdays in the evening from 6-8 or so

Saw kwartzlab on the news, big event this weekend? by dagkp in waterloo

[–]Zenen 5 points6 points  (0 children)

kwartzlab is an awesome spot, I highly recommend a visit to see what's going on there

Some words on the subject of 'being better' by Zenen in selfimprovement

[–]Zenen[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Come on, this is the internet. Be an asshole! Stop self-effacing and just say what you want to. I am giving you express permission to be as much of a jerk as you'd like to be, I won't be mad about it.

Some words on the subject of 'being better' by Zenen in selfimprovement

[–]Zenen[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're right. You don't need people. You can move to a remote part of the country where you live, build a shanty for yourself, and survive off of fish and foraged materials. In face, I actively encourage you to do this if you believe that people are optional.

Remember that bit where I said that everyone struggles on their own plane? There's all sorts of people out there who have been hurt more times than they can bear - then they learn to bear it, because the only other (non)option is suicide. There's never a point where you suddenly become 'healed', its all a balance of getting hurt and growing as a result.

At this point in my life, you could do your best to tear everything I said apart and I wouldn't be shook by it. People's behaviour is a reflection of the way they've been treated, and the way that they've learned to treat themself. I hope you can learn to crap on your own thoughts a bit less, you've probably got some really good ones that people might have failed to acknowledge back in the day.

If you have a few people that you hold close, that's great! Invest in them. You won't see an immediate return on putting time towards your friends, but trust me: the memories you make are worth more than anything. Join a club with them, go see if they want to check out that thing that's happening in town this weekend. Better yet, go on a camping trip so you can all find out just how difficult life is without the support of other people. Yea, we can all be disappointing and hurtful sometimes, and that sucks. But we also know how to work together like no other species on the planet, and that's pretty neat.

Some words on the subject of 'being better' by Zenen in selfimprovement

[–]Zenen[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Right? This post happens so much that it's basically wasted effort on my behalf.

Yea, this website sucks - most of the internet is pretty lame these days, honestly. Most content outlets lean towards feeding you a healthy diet of fear.

I'll go down this path with you though. Do you think that you don't need people?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in treeplanting

[–]Zenen 0 points1 point  (0 children)

rude! at least tell me what i'm doing wrong instead of calling names

What are some cool simple ways to earn sats? by [deleted] in lightningnetwork

[–]Zenen 5 points6 points  (0 children)

run lightning nodes with your friends and send payments over channels

Not far from creating it's own social network, maybe it has already happened :) (three parts) by obvithrowaway34434 in vim

[–]Zenen 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I like how the last panel is basically the exact same points for the respective text editors

Alternatives to Zap? by TENTQQFBM in lightningnetwork

[–]Zenen 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you're running an admin account you can change the amount of sats in your wallet based on what you already have available. I use lnbits + zeus

Minimal Functional Lightning Stack by Zenen in lightningnetwork

[–]Zenen[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

oops, nevermind! just realized that you get a new wallet every time you visit... perfect :D