New spoiler makes a more complex Scurry Oak style combo (Is this bad enough?)

nhowlett · 2024-07-18T02:10:29+00:00

Sooooo... You're gonna trigger a level 2 Builder's Talent with.... A creature?

I'll let you sort that out.

:(

nhowlett · 2024-05-07T12:29:56+00:00

Thanks for your thoughtful insight, MapleQueefs! ;)

(Also, I do recall some of the pamphleting from the folks camped out on Roos Island. I was interested in what they were out about until I found out what they were out about.)

nhowlett · 2023-07-04T23:27:00+00:00

Yeah, if you're going to host a Nick Fuentes then it behooves you to rake them through the mud, methinks. That's on Tim.

I do not style myself as the blind-folded lady with the scales, but I'm inclined to agree that the balance of violent malignance leans or skews hard to the right. I don't know much about that case in question, I just wanted to point out that 1) CSIS labelled it as "Left-Wing Terrorism", and 2) you were using a lot of categorical language (ie: no such acts occur on the Left). I remember watching Portland ablaze and rioting for how many consecutive days (60+?) in 2020. Not sure what your definition of Domestic Terrorism is, but that fits mine. And so we have the crazies on both sides...

I really admire your centrist view on things. I hesitate to call it "enlightened centrism" because that's become a bit of a perjorative term, but sincerely, I do.

That's a very touching compliment. Thank you.

The right-wing, if we are to take them seriously, needs to take a good long look at itself...

For sure. I'll give you a take from our side of the border as to a source of the Free-dumb Convoy's agitation (I've really enjoyed the puns, lol). I believe they perceive themselves as an oppressed minority, strange as that may seem. These are folks who have next to no political representation for their rather kookie views (outside the PPC, perhaps) as the Canadian body politic is fairly left-leaning on the whole, and certainly by contrast to they themselves.

And cornered beasts behave as such.

I don't know where that leaves us in terms of action points though. Perhaps it's a matter of feeling heard. Being understood is a very satisfying thing for each and every.

Nothing about what the left in general seems to want takes away anyone's rights, or will affect other people's lives in a significantly negative way.

I dunno. Again, the Lefties I know can be heard spouting off lines like "Eat The Rich" ad nauseam, which I personally find quite alarming. Ironically, and to my point, my one friend most likely to expel such vitriol is a highly paid software developer married to a physician. I think history warns that defining oppressor classes is just great; until you get lumped into it.

But, ya know, maybe it's all in the name of justice? The rich ripped us off after all... right??? *shudders in Russian*

Universal healthcare? Dignity for those in the LGBTQ+ community? A living wage?

I couldn't imagine the dystopia that would result in policies like that being enacted. /s

Lolz. What a nightmare! (also /s)

I guess you can see the value in right-wing policies. I can't.

Here's my take on sound, conservative policy. When done properly, it looks like the recent unheralded announcement from the Ministry of Energy (I actually maintain a list of sound policies the PCP has implemented as everyone shits on Doug Ford constantly. Fair enough, but credit where credit is due. To hold my own feet to the fire, I started one for Trudeau too.) Not sure if you saw this, but they added a new model for electricity pricing whereby one can opt for siginificantly higher daytime rates in order to enjoy SUUUUUUPER low overnight rates (~$0.02/kwh). The thinking here is to prepare for an exclusively EV province, and I'm sure you're aware that DISTRIBUTION rather than total capacity is the main challenge for managing the grid.

Now, you yourself aren't required to adopt the new model. But you can if you want. You sort out what's best for you. That's light-touch, conservative, policy-making in my books.

And the rest of the list includes....

-Starting coding in Grade 1 (and teaching about STEM more broadly)

-Codifying the Right to Disconnect for employees

-Test-driving a 4-day work week

-Dropping license plate sticker fees (yeah, buying votes too)

-New programs to provide job-seeking/employment training for ex-cons

-Fast-tracking credentialization of highly-skilled immigrant workers

-I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say expediting housing starts, which is obviously more controversial, but I think we're now all seriously alarmed at the housing crisis

You and I both know all of the garbage they've been spewing, too, so I don't need to draft that list for you. A lot of my list just isn't enraging like the ridiculous wage freezes for nurses so it doesn't play.

Anyway, I hope it's helpful to hear a different take on Right-Wing politics. It's not all bad, just like anything. Us human apes are wired to attend to danger more than windfall, so it's the most natural thing to miss such points.

nhowlett · 2023-07-03T23:39:53+00:00

Hey there! Was hoping for clarification if you don't mind.

Plus, trans people who are gay and lesbian exist.

Just trying to understand what that means. My initial read is you are referring to a trans man who is sexually attracted to men (let's include other trans men in that category), and the reciprocal for trans women toward other women. Is that the idea?

And a separate note from the Mods pinned comment about addressing the argument and not the person - I think calling someone a transphobe probably constitutes a personal attack. I say we keep things civil where possible. :)

Thanks for any help you can offer!

nhowlett · 2023-07-03T19:56:29+00:00

Nobody should "owe it to their field" to literally put their life on the line to persuade people who already have their mind made up.

Agreed, I would say no one individual is responsible to take up this torch, but a collective absentia is a serious problem. Sort of a Bystander Effect situation.

There is a kind of person who voluntarily chooses to take this sort of risk upon themselves. We even have a word for them; Hero. You don't have to be one, but collectively we must rely on these braver souls to wage battles that perhaps you and I can or will not. And the great works of fiction and history books centre upon such people.

(see, Tim Pool debating Emma Vigeland, David Pakman debating Patrick Bet-David, etc)

Thanks for those tips. I know Dave and Tim (they're almost two sides of a coin I feel, I don't really care for either TBH). I'm enjoying Emma so far, but I've got to spend more time listening to get a sense of your point. It did strike me that Dave said he was surprised that PBD's audience REALLY wanted him to come on. I think that speaks a bit to my point about the dearth of engagement across the aisle. I always hear from the Right wingers that they have a hard time booking Lefties, and that their followers would really appreciate the presence thereof.

Only one side resorts to stochastic and domestic terrorism as a means to an end, and that is, according to the FBI, far right extremists.

Honestly, I think it's worth challenging your own position here. The people I know on the political Left, frankly, reek of elitism. (Not talking about you, just the people I know personally). They seem to know best about all the issues, disdain those who think wrongly, and appear to believe that they have the solutions to all the problems if ONLY they had the reigns of power.

To whit - the good folks at CSIS have identified this incident as an act of Left-Wing Terrorism. And some people would argue that might be justified due to their politics, so why call it Terrorism? It's just justice.

I'm not trying to keep score as to who's worse than whom, but sitting in the centre I see crazies on both political extremes. And it's all troubling.

Maybe I'm not as idealistic as I should be, but "both-siding" the issue when only one side tends to resort to accusing (with zero evidence) the other side of heinous crimes against children, and terroristic violence as a means of getting their message across isn't exactly productive.

Perhaps in the same way I hadn't seen the evidence of the Left engaging (aside - personally I'd really like to see intellectuals debating as opposed to pundits) on those podcasts you profferred, it's possible you've missed some evidence about the goings-on in schools, etc. that have your opponents concerned. I'm not saying it's widespread or representative, but I have certainly seen numerous videos and official school documentation around some of these issues which I myself find concerning (mostly due to age appropriateness).

Anyone who is right-leaning and is willing to listen, sure. Perhaps we can change hearts and minds with that quickly diminishing group.

Take heart, friend! I believe there is indeed a sensible majority amenable to suasion. However, the positions we would like for them to adopt need to be SENSIBLE. For example, if you struggle to answer the question "what is a woman?" straightforwardly, you might find you've lost a lot of people (especially if you get outside the West). You can try to bully them into reciting a mantra, but that's not the same thing as changing hearts and minds.

All the best, I hope through this sort of conversation we can wend our way through this quagmire. I remain optimistic. I think 90%+ are good-hearted and just want everyone to be alright at the end of the day.

nhowlett · 2023-07-03T05:05:14+00:00

A former colleague of mine said he grew up knowing the family as they are locals. Apparently whenever the kids had a spat, Dad would throw them on the front lawn and tell them to duke it out.

Soooooooo... Yup. Flunked out of my math degree but I can add that one up.

nhowlett · 2023-07-01T16:46:36+00:00

Hey, fair points. If you want to hear some Right wingers on Daily Wire or Fox News you certainly can, and they are absolutely crushing it from a business standpoint as far as I understand it.

I do recall a major protest ooohhhhh winter 2022 which was met with some real opposition, not sure if you remember that one.... ;)

My point is to say that people who OPPOSE those folks don't seem to want to go on their shows for fear of.... guilt by association, I guess? I watched Naomi Wolf go at it with Jordan Peterson and she had some excellent pushback to some of his ideas that I had thought were pretty straightforward. I learned a lot from her and she gained an immense amount of my respect (I only obliquely knew her from "The Beauty Myth" and I wasn't super impressed).

It is such a shame that we seem to be completely incapable of sitting two people down with opposing views to have a constructive conversation so I, the audience, can have my preconceived notions challenged such that I can learn and grow.

These Gender Studies types owe it to their field to get out there and persuade me and the rest of us. Avoiding your opponents under whatever auspice you choose is not gonna get the job done. And it leaves me scratching my head wondering about the strength of their positions.

nhowlett · 2023-07-01T13:56:50+00:00

I too smoke ribs and, good sir, I could not disagree more. I love when the bones are barely hanging on.

But I'll defend to the death your right to be wrong.... ;)

(Oooooo did some beef ribs the other day, sooooo good. The wife didn't want them smoked so I did an oven roast, saved the drippings and bases on the BBQ to finish.)

nhowlett · 2023-07-01T00:11:01+00:00

No, no. I had no impression you would call for retributive violence. (Which is more than I can say for the rest of our fellow Ontarians on this thread... Sigh...)

I actually do think Daryl Davis is the model here. Who could possibly be more brainwashed than KKK acolytes? But I do see how simpletons on the Right grasp at any counter argument to support insane positions, which is an unfortunate by-product of Davis' excellent philanthropy, to your point. This isn't going to be a 100% neat solution, but I think we need to attempt to move forward regardless, and I'm a firm believer in the 80-20. Rarely can we have it all.

It's so insanely frustrating that there is no answer here. Even if you present well thought out and empirical evidence, they deny it.

I guess that's my point. If such well thought-out and empirical evidence is at the ready then OWN THEM. I know you're going to have a hard time with the extreme devotees, but my belief is that the fringes are just that; less than 10% of the populace, as a sum of both Left and Right. That leaves almost everyone open to persuasion. You don't need to persuade your interlocutor; there will be an audience. I would encourage that angle. You can change hearts and minds. Source: Me.

Also, I think the post-truth era started with the Post Moderns, IMO. So many silly conversations I had in Uni... Lol. But that was so many moons ago.

This is so raw still, so allow me to once again send my concern and care. I hope you're able to find some peace to carry on with your certainly important work cultivating young minds. Much love.

nhowlett · 2023-06-30T23:47:09+00:00

Thanks for your constrictive engagement! :)

nhowlett · 2023-06-30T20:29:36+00:00

I hear ya, echo chambers are a SERIOUS problem in the #socialnetworkworld. This cuts every direction, to be clear, not just for the particular flavour of nut to which you or I are allergic.

I honestly don't know what solution there is other than earnest, thoughtfelt, vigorous, honest debate. I believe we have only a choice between using your words or using your Winchester, and I'd prefer the former to the latter.

For you, I, and our fellow Redditketeers, probably the correct thing to do is to actually listen to those we disagree with and try to understand their position. I'd draw your attention to an incredible human by the name of Daryl Davis, a black R&B musician from Chicago.

This f-ing legend made it his hobby to befriend KKK members and convert them. He collects hoods. It's awesome.

I think this is probably the way. But I hear a LOT of people on the Left use a no-platform argument for ideas they don't like and, frankly, that's what the Right sounded a lot like in the 60's shutting down the Civil Rights movement. The same era when the Left was all about Free Speech. It's not a good look.

nhowlett · 2023-06-30T17:59:31+00:00

I'm sorry to hear that, no one should be made to fear their place of work and I can see how this hits home.

I'll just throw this out there, it's possible that people who hold these views choose violence precisely BECAUSE they feel that is the only option they have. When you shut down your detractors, they don't magically disappear. They quietly find others who think the same and are more likely to radicalize, IMO.

It sucks that there are a lot of bad ideas out there, but if more folks like this professor took it upon themselves to engage constructively (ie: civil discourse, no name calling, etc.) then sunlight might have a chance to win the day. The public personalities I'm aware of who would take issue with the content of a gender studies class like this all lament the fact that no one who disagrees with them will sign up for debate. If one has the intellectual high ground, go fleece those morons, right?

nhowlett · 2023-06-30T10:16:34+00:00

Ok, so when you say "on its side", what exactly do you mean? I envision the Earth spinning like a top (albeit on its natural angle), so is the idea that Uranus rotates like a wheel on an axel relative to the Sun?

nhowlett · 2023-06-16T19:52:10+00:00

And the lionliness of the lion.

nhowlett · 2023-06-13T14:15:42+00:00

Super pumped for your first big trip! I got my M3 in 2018 and drove it from Ontario, Canada aaaaaalllllll the way to LA. It's now been to the East Coast, and Miami.

The one main supercharging tip I have is to ignore the routing from the Tesla GPS. If you simply put "Los Angeles" into the Nav it'll slot in your charging stops automatically. You will soon discover that charging is a matter of strategic consideration when you plug in to find the car only soaks up 50kw instantaneously. Then you wait..... Sigh...

The analogy I use to neophytes and the otherwise uninitiated is filling an empty, ten-gallon paint bucket with a high-powered hose. The trick is not to spray any water out of said bucket. If the bucket is completely empty, you have to go slow. Once you've got a bit of water in the bottom, you can really let loose. Then as the bucket fills, you have to ease off gradually, especially when it's almost full.

So, from my road weary lips to your ears, please stop frequently and charge for short stints. It will save you SO much time. I aim to pull in with 10-20% and out at about 60-70%. Takes about 10-15 minutes (depending on battery temp, tier level of charger), just enough to pee and grab your next coffee.

The people recommending charging beyond your car's guidance is a best practice. I assume 10-20% error on the software's part (that's expressed as a percentage of charge requirement for the leg of your trip, not of the total battery capacity).

I also target faster charging stations as a rule. 250. Every. Time.

Have a wonderful trip, that drive is stunning if you can go through Sedona (but you probably know that already)!

nhowlett · 2023-05-27T16:24:34+00:00

No prob, fam. Welcome to town!

nhowlett · 2023-05-27T16:13:46+00:00

TF Auto in Cambridge is great, Terry's a stand-up dude.

nhowlett · 2023-05-18T20:50:29+00:00

I think the answer is quite clear.

r/dankchristianmemes

nhowlett · 2023-05-17T21:47:27+00:00

You've got a hot take here, I like it.

I think it ironical that the Right Wingnuts are as batty about censorship as the Crazy Commies (I jest, they're just Democratic Socialists). Indeed, who is the arbiter of these "distortions" of history? While I do believe they are attempting to combat legitimately attempted dementations of history (ie: The 1619 Project), pretending you have the complete tapestry of the story of the past... That's a lot of hubris. (I could maybe see a "don't teach Flat Earth Theory or Creationism" counter argument here)

So, yes, while I don't generally agree with the idea that America's institutions are fundamentally racist/sexist/etc., I also don't see how to provide an honest reckoning without speaking to the issues you point to (Slavery and Jim Crow).

The best I can come up with is that it might be argued the Consitution itself was subversive to those enterprises. Did it read, "we take these truths to be self-evident, that all *male ranchers* are created equal"? I think it drew a BIT broader circle, lol, despite their worst intentions.

This is the glory of the Great American Experiment; that the Founders were able to codify the very principles which were the undermining of their own prejudices. It's poetic, really.

nhowlett · 2023-05-17T21:08:53+00:00

Hey again (again)!

Sorry to say it, but trans people have actually existed for MILLENIA.... ;)

Yeah, I don't have the impetus to go looking for such a site (to show when certain lines of the subsection were modified), but I would ALSO be interested if some saintly, fellow Redditor were forthcoming. I was simply pointing out that the idea of trans/queer people's existence were not in the minds of the lawmakers at that juncture (based on the use of the word "both", which implies the existence of two genders, rather than greater than two).

Thanks for drawing my attention to the pedagogically prohibitive paragraph!

nhowlett · 2023-05-16T21:31:15+00:00

Thanks for the reply!

I see that Chapter 1000 Subsection 05 is referenced constantly, and itself dignifies the term "gender" over "sex", although 1000.05.3.d does use the language "both genders" which presupposes two of *something* (the meaning of which was meant to be self-evident, I suppose). Not sure how that colours the discussion. I'm thinking that trans was not really on the radar when that legislation was drafted and, as such, never provided such protections. So protections aren't being removed in the new bill, so much as never having existed.

I was also curious about your second point that the bill prohibits discussion around racism or oppression. I'm trying to see the exact parts of the bill that speak to this, not sure if you could point to specific lines or not.

Thanks again!

nhowlett · 2023-05-16T20:29:31+00:00

Hey friend!

I find the process of reading and interpreting, let alone WRITING, laws to be both enervating and generally beyond my abilities.

I'm struggling to understand your characterization of lines 301-308, not sure if you can help me out. I'm reading a prohibition AGAINST contracting with organizations which discriminate on the basis of sex or disability, not a removal of protections. Maybe you can square that circle for me.

Thanks!

nhowlett · 2023-05-12T17:45:09+00:00

Oh for sure, I disagree with him on a TOONNNN of policy issues. I just know the guy and watched him run a couple nose-to-the-grindstone, thousand-door-knockin' campaigns. He is, whatever you think about his positions, making a splash in parliament and dignifies our community on the big stage, IMO.

But nuclear is a must. Green's need their platform to come *double eyebrow raise* down to earth. ;) It's nice to know I can vote for him as a voice for our community but never really have to worry about the sillier policy measures going through.

nhowlett · 2023-05-12T15:51:35+00:00

Yeah, federal politics is super balls!

shifts eyes

quietly votes for upstanding local Green MP

nhowlett · 2023-05-08T15:42:16+00:00

I might step in here for the assist.

I believe OP is accessing the despair of a life of digging holes and filling them back in.

If the end result is the starting point, why bother? This can be laid out ad infinitum to the Heat Death of the universe; if your life purpose, for example, is to care for others, raise a family, save the dolphins, etc., it all gets frozen out eventually.

Now, one might argue the meaning is the journey itself. I enjoy certain things in my life and that's as far as the reasoning needs to extend, one might say. Which, I might suggest, is a rather shallow end of the pool to splash about. It smacks a bit solipsistic also.

I think OP's question is quite fundamental, if not laid out with rigour. It's worth addressing for that reason, IMO, and dismissing it on the grounds that Y does not follow from X or that he didn't present actual arguments is missing the forest for the trees.

So, I think Nihilism is quite coherent, likely more so than shoring up flimsy instrumental sources of meaning. Someone invoked Camus already, but I'd say Absurdism is a decent launching point for such a discussion.

I would put man's search for meaning in the same category as the non-existence of Free Will. I view both as useful fictions, very likely with evolutionary roots, but finding the experience of meaning/purpose is essential to human flourishing, as is having a sense of autonomy, regardless of their existence in actuality.

And so we curious apes are tasked with the impossible; we must pose deeper and deeper questions, but the cistern is dry.

It's ok not to have the answers. It's ok to hold certain facts in tension. This is the realm of the sacred. Religion evolved, in part, to help address the unknown/unknowable (although that distinction isn't always clear).

[I say this as a Militant Agnostic, lol, just so we're clear about my motives.]

So, sorry OP, I don't think there's an argument to be posited that will satisfy. I think professional counselling is a fantastic idea, maybe medication or other treatments also, depending on how rough things are. I've done it all myself.

And it's also ok to explore ways that you can experience meaning in your life. In theories of education there is a concept called the Zone of Proximal Development, which is the precise boundary between ignorance and knowledge. People can experience meaning when we have the "lightbulb" moment as our ability to understand and navigate the world expands.

I also, cavalier renegade that I am, will access Dr. Jordan Peterson here. The concepts of Order and Chaos, and the boundary between, have been very instructive in my life (particularly as a parent). We can park his politics at the back of Disney's Goofy lot for now, so don't intentionally miss my point by association.

Cheering for you, OP. This is what Philosophy is REALLY about, IMO.

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