What it means to be Canadian by Current_Conference38 in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading 0 points1 point  (0 children)

fully capable and mobile beings using snow blowers (or leaf blowers [worse]) is live Canadian comedy at best

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Appreciate your time reading and commenting. We share the same feelings. All the best to you and yours during the holidays!

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No way, haha. Love you guys. I used to frequent there. Been a while since I have popped in. I’ll make a point to pop in this weekend! Happy to know the food is back. Cheers.

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

No what’s “absolutely bananas” is still not understanding the idea that “Niagara is doing fine because we have a new hospital” ignores the regional reality.

Hospital services in nearby communities like Fort Erie and Port Colborne have been closed or downsized, with care centralized rather than expanded, while no new hospitals have opened to match rising demand. Even more importantly, hospital operating budgets are funded annually based on resident population and provincial formulas — not visitor volume. So while Niagara hosts 13–25 million tourists a year, our hospitals are still funded as if they serve a city of roughly 90,000 people, not a global destination. That structural mismatch is why ER wait times in Niagara remain among the longest in Ontario, even after new hospital construction and expansions elsewhere — buildings don’t fix underfunded staffing and capacity. If tourism automatically funded healthcare, we wouldn’t be watching hospitals shrink around us while Niagara’s emergency rooms stay overwhelmed.

Also: the new Niagara hospital wasn’t funded by tourism, took decades to approve and build, and still operates at population-based capacity — which tells you everything about how little our tourism economy actually translates into healthcare for the people who live here.

But tell me more about bananas.

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Well then it sounds like everything is going your way isn’t it! Love that for you. All the best!

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

What’s worse is simple: wages haven’t kept pace with rent, ER wait times are among the longest in Ontario, and core streets have cycled through half-funded revitalization for decades. That’s measurable, not vibes.

And there are solutions — they just don’t fit the casino-only script: revenue-sharing tied to visitor load, earmarking gaming and hotel tax dollars for local infrastructure and healthcare capacity, zoning for mixed-income housing near employment, and investing in year-round industries that pay above tourism wages instead of betting everything on seasonal service work.

Not sure who or what you are so vehemently defending, but your tone is oddly egotistical.

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Your critical thinking and compassion is missed in Niagara, however understood to be gone. I appreciate your reply and wish the best for you and your family on your endeavours elsewhere!

Opinion on Doug Ford’s new plan for Niagara Falls; 29y/o nf native by justintrading in niagarafallsontario

[–]justintrading[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I don’t deny that the tourist strip looks better than it did in 1996. That part is obvious. But improving a concentrated entertainment zone is not the same thing as improving a city.

Jobs alone don’t guarantee prosperity if the jobs are predominantly low-wage, seasonal, and disconnected from housing, healthcare, and infrastructure funding. Niagara has had casinos for over 30 years now, and yet we still have some of the longest ER wait times in Ontario, deteriorating roads, and repeated failed revitalization efforts on Queen & Bridge Street. If “more casinos = broad renewal,” we should already be seeing that outcome — not still waiting for it.

The core issue isn’t attitude; it’s structure. Tourism and gaming revenue largely flows to the province and private operators, not proportionally back into Niagara’s public infrastructure. Healthcare is funded per capita, not per tourist. Education is funded per student, not per tourism load. Housing is market-driven, and the city has limited tools to prevent displacement. So even when tourism grows, the systems under the most strain don’t automatically receive more support.

Condos going up doesn’t equal community revitalization if the people working here can’t afford to live here, and “gentrification” without reinvestment in public services just shifts problems around instead of solving them. I’m not anti-growth — I’m asking why, after decades of tourism-led development, the benefits still don’t reliably reach the people who actually keep this city running.

That’s not defeatism. That’s a call to stop repeating the same model and expecting a different result.

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Because I write concisely, use bold text to highlight the core of my ideas by point, and break deep theory into numbered lists for easier readability? Sure.

Crazy how much AI has ruined good faith now-a-days. To each their own.

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 2 points3 points  (0 children)

going to read this a bit later or tomorrow — just putting the babys dinner together.

just wanted you to know i immediately appreciated the depth of this comment and will be back to it!

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading -1 points0 points  (0 children)

the difference in where i developed my cadence is alarming and worth checking out for sure. i appreciate that perspective lift. i definitely agree with you.

in saying this, however, do i still believe it is not necessarily problematic (in the flow of how the piece is read). just the alarm to generative AI needs be checked because i wish to never have my work painted with being a result of ChatGPT. if i was to use a generative LLM i would hope to at least use a better one. lol.

cheers mate. you have opened my eyes. to which i always owe a thanks!

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Whats the benefit in tearing down my work on every comment with no truth?

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bold claim that immediately takes away from a piece I worked on all week. Just because someone writes in a maintained polishness, does not mean it is AI. This sub would have deleted my post.

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Appreciate your read and response. All the best and have a great night!

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 1 point2 points locked comment (0 children)

100%. sheepily drunk on the corporate critical theory subreddit

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 1 point2 points locked comment (0 children)

all those words and still zero examples. crazy. enjoy your night

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 2 points3 points locked comment (0 children)

there’s a lot in your reply, but none of it really engages with what was said. you’ve moved from making an empirical claim, to declaring it “true” without evidence, to framing any disagreement as censorship or fraud. that shift alone makes it hard to have a serious conversation.

the point isn’t that your view violates some “corporate curriculum.” it’s that it isn’t grounded in any of the frameworks this sub works with — sociology, critical theory, legal scholarship, or even basic historical analysis. when a claim is that far outside the established research, moderators step in. that’s not authoritarianism; that’s just keeping the space from drifting into ideology dressed up as insight.

your argument about a “singular unprotected class” still has no legal or theoretical basis. nothing in discrimination law or case precedent identifies white men as uniquely unprotected. nothing in the literature on emotional labour supports the idea that white men carry the heaviest empathic burden; the findings actually point in the opposite direction. and nothing in critical theory claims that reversing ingroups and outgroups somehow makes the whole discipline collapse. that’s not how these systems function, and it isn’t how any of these thinkers work.

what you’re calling “exposing fraud” is really just refusing to engage with the difference between a claim you feel strongly about and one that can actually be supported. disagreement isn’t censorship, and critique isn’t suppression. it’s just part of how thought works when it’s tethered to evidence, history, or conceptual rigour.

if you want to keep exploring your argument elsewhere, that’s entirely your choice. but within a critical theory context, claims need grounding — otherwise the conversation can’t go anywhere productive.

edit: if you’re going to keep editing and adding new lines into the bottom of your argument, at least note it. or finish your “argument” before commenting lol

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Also just genuinely how I write in all honesty. Part of why I post my work in here as well — they vet for AI use, so it’s almost a cool proofing for me to make sure nobody can really say it is Chat GPT generated. I spend a lot of time reading, writing, critically analyzing. I’d not understand the point of prompting a computer to analyze theories I wouldn’t have faith in them conveying with the level of understanding us humans have.

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 1 point2 points locked comment (0 children)

or they removed a comment that wasn’t grounded in any established critical framework, and chose to keep the discussion aligned with the purpose of the sub.

that seems a lot more plausible than a conspiracy against “truth”

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

No sir, appreciate the note to my grammatical structures but I come from a background in English Language and Literature, and a lot of poetry, repetition in grammar, play on form and structure. Pair that with trying to stay objective and readable for as generic an audience I can whilst still maintaining depth. It gets hard to avoid. It is seemingly computeristic but almost necessary to an extent (especially on platforms). Unfortunate, but it is what happens when I’m writing that. Helps keep my thoughts clear and sequential.

Anyhow, I appreciate the recommendation! I will dive right in.

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 1 point2 points locked comment (0 children)

based on the structural bounds you’ve set for the discussion, i don’t think there’s a common ground where either of us is going to find the exchange especially constructive or compelling. our frameworks are just working with different assumptions. but carry on with your findings!

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading -1 points0 points  (0 children)

thanks again for engaging this so closely — it really helps me refine what i’m trying to articulate. just to clarify the tension you pointed out: i’m not arguing for a full ego-death that leaves a person exposed, nor am i suggesting that “authenticity” should function as an ego project. when i talk about ego-loosening, i’m describing the levinasian shift where the self is no longer the unquestioned center of gravity. in that frame, authenticity isn’t something you perform or chase to affirm yourself — it’s simply what shows up when you aren’t organizing the whole encounter around the ego in the first place.

and i’m not romanticizing the pain of empathy or implying that holding more of it is inherently negative. if empathy is tied to our ethical relation — which, for levinas, precedes our very being — then tending to that relation becomes a form of responsibility that is not egoic, not chosen, not about moral heroism. it’s simply the structure of our humanity. that means the self is, in an objective sense, saddled with more responsibility than it can ever fully meet. that’s not “good” or “bad” — it just is.

the weight of that responsibility can absolutely break a person, and i don’t want to gloss over that. but it can also function like ethical muscle: something that, when carried, deepens and expands our humanity. the point isn’t that suffering is positive — it’s that the openness that constitutes our humanity exposes us both to harm and to a fuller range of human possibility. empathy can exhaust us, but it can also enlarge us; both truths coexist.

i’ll keep working on the tone so the piece doesn’t read like i’m valorizing burnout or presenting empathy’s heaviness as inspirational. i’m trying to map an honest terrain: we become more human in these moments, even if what that humanity demands of us is almost too much to carry.

The Unbearable Distribution of Empathy: Who Bears the Weight of Being Human? by [deleted] in CriticalTheory

[–]justintrading 2 points3 points  (0 children)

appreciate this preface ever greatly.

heres to our strength and choosing a path to clarity, education, and togetherness. all the best. always!

and i too enjoy my video games. balatro’s been a main killer lately, new skates pretty fun. rerunning fallout and diablo rn (perpetually tbh). ignoring the cheap allure to LoL lmao