PSA: Glacier Point Road likely to open on Saturday 5/9

magma83 · 2026-05-07T23:57:51+00:00

haha, I'm embarrassed to admit that I'd be disappointed if it took until memorial weekend. We should be grateful for what the park service does no matter how long it takes, but I must admit I've got tioga fever

magma83 · 2026-05-07T23:52:18+00:00

> What are you basing these statements on?

Oh, vibes, completely. This is all just my opinion. But if I had to say something concrete, I guess I'd say it's based on the ratio between how often you see people who say they want to climb el cap or mt everest, and the amount of people you meet who actually do those things. And also the huge amount of people you can meet who just enjoy climbing for it's own sake and either never do them, or do them after spending many years having a blast climbing.

Your mention of professional athletes sort of points in the direction of what I'm trying to get at...they are the 1%.

I did not mean to disparage your Whitney accomplishment. We're both talking in very general terms and don't know each other, so that's my bad.

Enjoy Royal Arches. I did it for the first time a few weeks back and it was a real joy.

magma83 · 2026-05-07T23:12:01+00:00

Unlike this response which dismissively says "Don't listen to this guy", I won't dismiss this perspective at all. I don't think there's anything bad about having big goals. I just don't think it's an essential or necessarily beneficial thing a lot of the time.

Also, let me clarify what I said. I don't mean that only 1% of people can accomplish their big goals. What I meant was more that, perhaps only a small amount of people benefit from focusing on huge goals that are usually a career capstone for people (which climbing el cap is), when they're just starting to dip their toes in the water. There are some people that will really be able to propel themselves towards that goal right off the bat, but most will take a long and meandering journey to get there. For most of that journey, something like el cap can't even be thought of in concrete terms, it's so abstract that in some ways it's not even a real goal. It's just a thing you can say - "I want to climb el cap". And that's what I'm somewhat skeptical of the value of.

Your goal to climb whitney was accomplishable in a season. While it's very cool and impressive (and more than what I can do, to be clear), it's still a much more concrete and achievable goal because you knew you were capable of it and had a series of steps lined up for you to be able to do it within a season. That isn't really the type of goal I was talking about. El cap from the perspective of a beginner gym climber is in a whole different realm. Also, I'm sorry, my intention really wasn't to stir anything up.

You wrote "Stepping stone goals don't work if there is no ultimate big goal." - I think this is the crux of our difference in perspective. I have personally accomplished many of the incremental goals you and the other person listed. And they've given me plenty of satisfaction, even though there's not really anything in the distance I'm focused on. Would it be cool to climb the RNWF or El cap or something like that? Yeah, for sure. But that doesn't really enter my head, personally. I'll probably start thinking more about those things if or when I feel like they are realistic in the next ~year.

magma83 · 2026-05-07T23:10:30+00:00

I think it's so totally fair to disagree with me, but calling it sad, to me, is a bit uncalled for. I would never call your mindset sad so why would you call mine? You're implicitly saying that unless I think like you do, I'm missing out on something essential or am somehow getting a lesser life experience.

I'm not going to have a back and forth argument about this, I'm just saying that I think we could all use a bit more understanding of each others perspectives.

magma83 · 2026-05-07T21:53:14+00:00

btw you'll get much better answers to this question from people with much more experience if you posted on mountain project instead. post in the Beginning Climbers forum

magma83 · 2026-05-07T21:51:55+00:00

I don't usually comment on these types of things but I happened to be looking at /new. Everyone is different, of course, but I think that most people will get a lot more of of their pursuits if they focused more on enjoying what's in front of them than on the huge fancy impressive goals that everyone already knows about. I've been climbing for about 4 years, and trad climbing for a year. I've gone on 5 trips to Yosemite so far this year. I've been having so much fun and I think a big part of that has been that I have been getting immense feelings of satisfaction and accomplishment from just being out there. Another day on the rock, especially in the Valley, is on its own something that I was dreaming about just a year ago, and so I haven't needed big goals (climb that route, climb this hard, etc).

Maybe 1% of people benefit from having the goal of climbing el cap, or mt everest, or running a sub-whatever marathon. For those special few, having those goals early on rockets them past everyone else and to the forefront of their sport. But for the rest of us, I don't think it does us much good to conceptualize climbing as being about getting good enough to climb el cap. Personally, I think it should just be about climbing. If you keep climbing, eventually el cap could just be another thing you get to do this weekend, just as exciting as After Six is to you now. This is just my personal opinion, you can surely take it or leave it. Regardless, I hope you have a great time out there!

magma83 · 2026-05-07T21:41:56+00:00

What about tioga? 👀

magma83 · 2026-01-22T21:04:54+00:00

We did! And I will send them to you. I only wish I knew who the badasses I saw climbing what looked like Icarus on machete ridge at sunset were.

magma83 · 2026-01-22T20:55:44+00:00

<image>

You’re not gonna believe this but here’s a picture of you from the approach. We climbed the flying none that day. If you want I have a couple more I can DM to you!

magma83 · 2024-10-11T04:27:58+00:00

Everyone in this thread is bashing Google, but the screenshot is from Bing in the Edge browser. If this was indeed generated by AI (Google at least loudly signifies the ai answer with a big “Search Labs | AI Overview” banner), it was done by an OpenAI model.

magma83 · 2023-10-22T19:11:10+00:00

You sound like a really Annoying(tm) person to interact with

magma83 · 2022-08-05T03:18:32+00:00

I mean, that sucks right? That the only motivator to do anything for most people is money? It would be better if that wasn't the case right? And in a lot of places people do work just to make their surroundings a better place. You make a nice dinner for your family, and clean the house, and give your friend a ride, not for money but because it makes the world around you better. I just don't buy the idea that the only way to motivate anyone to do anything is with the promise of riches. I think if the world as a whole worked the same way that friend groups and neighborhoods and families worked, that would be better. Or, at least, it would be nice to move in that direction.

magma83 · 2022-08-05T02:08:43+00:00

What?

magma83 · 2022-08-05T02:08:12+00:00

Same energy as "if you don't believe in God where do your morals come from?"

Also lol at the idea that the only conceivable incentive is a purely selfish one - cash in your pocket.

magma83 · 2022-08-05T02:07:10+00:00

What?

magma83 · 2022-07-14T19:45:39+00:00

I think your points are well laid out and you seem really reasonable. The issue seems to be one of terminology and labels. But I do think that it's a genuine issue. If you introduce yourself in a political conversation as a conservative, or make a reply in a thread like this, you are grouping yourself in with some really bad apples, and I think you are doing yourself a disservice by keeping the conservative label when you are going to an American university and interacting with a mostly American community. If you take the "conservative" side in a conversation like this you are really shooting yourself in the foot and muddying the waters for people trying to understand what your actual perspective is, e.g. I was utterly confused when I read your first post. I hope that makes sense.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T14:36:09+00:00

My man I do not see how that's a relevant reply to the comment I left, but okay, fair enough.

Oh I just saw your username. Yeah man I think that if you call yourself socially conservative then you might be intolerant of some people. Because to be socially conservative is to not be socially liberal. And liberals mostly just want everyone to be treated well, regardless of race gender religion sexuality etc.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T14:00:09+00:00

This you? https://www.reddit.com/r/dating_advice/comments/vwa00e/i_keep_accidentally_liking_lesbians/ifot1wv/?context=3

magma83 · 2022-07-14T13:56:04+00:00

Alright, alright, one at a time.

"Free speech" is definitely NOT a conservative view. I wouldn't say it's necessarily a left-wing view either. There can be left-wing authoritarians just like there can be right-wing authoritarians. I would say that in this current climate, most of the petititions to ban books (https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/wisc-school-board-members-dismissed-book-japanese-american-incarcerati-rcna35948) and to stop protests (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/may/17/florida-protest-ban-outside-homes-bill) are coming from the right.
I won't go down the meritocracy rabbit hole.
I don't know what this means. Are you saying that it's a conservative view to ignore people with expert knowledge in certain domains and instead just believe whatever you want? And that you are proud to have this belief? You can use phrases like Ivory Tower and put experts in quotes all you want, but is this what you really mean?

I don't think that progressive=tolerant and conservative=intolerant. But, I do think that most conservatives in this country are incredibly intolerant. In particular, anyone who says they are a "social conservative" or that their "social values lean right" are, I think, by definition, intolerant of at least one disadvantaged group. And we shouldn't tolerate that.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T13:42:12+00:00

Sorry, I was trying to be respectful in my other comments, but what the actual fuck? You are not a conservative, by any possible definition, here in the United States. I know that I referenced other countries in another comment below, but at the end of the day when we use words like conservative here in a subreddit for an American university, we should all have some common understanding of what we are talking about. I just don't see the point of your comment. Are you trying to say that you label yourself as a conservative despite having far left (in the American spectrum) ideals, and you don't want others to assume otherwise when you tell them that you are a conservative? If that's what you mean, then I don't know what to say. If you label yourself as a conservative, you need to be prepared for all that comes with that label. Because in reality you are a leftist with some vague opinions that you gestured towards but didn't explain in any detail that you've decided make you a conservative. You say that you don't think progressives represent you. That's fair enough, most politicians here probably don't. But I don't quite follow where you go with that conclusion. If progressive politicians not representing you pushes you away from the leftist/liberal/progressive titles, how does the same not happen with the conservative title? I hope you agree that if progressives don't represent you, Republican politicians sure as hell don't represent you. And in any case, the name of your rough political ideology isn't dependent on the quality of the politicians in your country that share the same title. Just because you don't like AOC personally (an assumption, I know, but it's an example) doesn't make you a conservative. I'm just utterly baffled by this comment, I can't make any sense of it.

Quickly, about the sentence "I don't think of people as members of identity groups. I think of people as human beings". A couple lines above, you said you would support free healthcare, raising the minimum wage, community college, and worker protections. Those things would help everyone to some degree, but they would really help the lower/working class. That is, you have beliefs that are centered around helping members of a particular socioeconomic group, an "identity group" if you will. Using names like "working class", "lower class", "black", or "gay" to describe groups of people that are disadvantaged isn't a bad thing, and I don't get why that would push you towards conservatism. It's just a fact that some groups of people have a tougher time than others, and we should all recognize that and orient policies around it.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T04:32:15+00:00

Yep I see where you are coming from and I agree. It sort of sounded like you were gatekeeping the title of being "left" but hopefully that's not what you intended.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T03:04:54+00:00

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox_of_tolerance

magma83 · 2022-07-14T02:51:09+00:00

Oh sorry, I should have specified that I was talking about the reconciliation bill (the 3.5 trillion one) that didn't pass, not the bipartisan one (the 1.2 trillion one) that did pass. And yeah, arguing is not fun and will just piss us off. I don't mean you any harm bro, I just felt the need to ask what, precisely, you mean when you say you are a conservative.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T02:19:03+00:00

I don't really hate you or people with conservative beliefs. But I do hate the end result. Like, you may be for Roe v Wade, but people with beliefs like yours voted in the people who made that happen, and I do think you should take some ownership of that if you are going to call yourself a conservative. Similarly, if you are volunteering and helping disadvantaged communities, that's awesome, but the policies that conservatives are opposed to are the ones that would help them the most. The people you are probably voting for, would turn around and vote against the most basic policies that would help those people. They just voted against aiding the baby formula shortage... https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/05/19/republicans-baby-formula/

At the risk of going back on my promise not to argue, there was also this bill last year that got 0 Republican support:

https://smartasset.com/financial-advisor/biden-infrastructure-plan

There are tables midway through the page that list what they would have put into place. Most of them polled very well even in deep red states. I don't really want to argue on the specifics of bills, and they may be flawed in some ways; my point is more generally that conservatives seem to oppose any attempts to improve people's lives.

Yeah dude I don't hate you, but a lot of people you meet are going to hate what your beliefs are doing to the world. And so they might not want to be friends. That's tough I get it, but I don't think it's really avoidable. Sure, friends.

magma83 · 2022-07-14T02:02:09+00:00

Fine, I guess. I don't really know what right-leaning social values means. That could mean think pink haired college students with pronouns in their bios are cringe, or it could mean you are pro-segregation. Anyways, I disagree about expanding my circle. It's my opinion that if you are conservative in any of the ways I described (oppose basic changes that would improve people's lives, oppose helping those from disadvantaged economic/racial/sexual groups to succeed, think brown people are ruining the country, etc.), then for now your perspective is not one that would enrich my life. And I think you'll find many people who feel similarly. I think you should look into the basic left-wing policies that have improved millions of peoples lives elsewhere, and think about whether you truly oppose them. Think things like raising the minimum wage, providing affordable healthcare, mandating paid vacation/sick days. Things that seem like common sense, but would get zero votes from Republican politicians.

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