SkepticalButOpenMinded

joined 2 years ago
[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 1 points 1 year ago

There are legitimate worries concerning the commodification of people’s bodies. We already do not allow people to sell oneself into slavery, and many countries do not allow the selling of one’s own body parts (which is why organs must be donated in many countries).

I’m the only one here who knows anyone who’s used surrogacy, and it was for a legit health reason.

I’m not sure why you think it matters, but my sibling recently had a child through surrogacy. No one is disagreeing about the health case. But more exploitative cases can exist. Not everything should be made into a product.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 4 points 1 year ago

I’m not saying I agree with the meme, but that part makes sense to me. Am I really the only one who has met both types of dysfunctional people? Some people are extremely emotionally demanding, where they need constant reassurance and support, and others are completely detached, so that there’s hardly emotional connection at all.

Being healthy is almost always about achieving the mean between extremes.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

In most existing TCG, artificial scarcity is a meta-mechanic of the game. For many, that’s part of the fun of the “collecting“. It’s fun to collect rare cards because they’re in limited supply.

That said, I think there could be, in theory, an open source way to have artificial scarcity and the fun of collecting. Maybe have a nonprofit that sells official printed cards at cost?

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded -1 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Are you two substantially disagreeing?

When surrogacy is merely a luxury to spare the rich mother the discomforts of bearing a child, it can be bad, and for other reasons such as health and infertility it’s totally fine?

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 1 points 1 year ago

In context, I clearly meant “most apps people use and need”. Almost all the streaming apps, all the corporate social media apps, all the payment apps, etc seem to be problematic.

Remember that the larger discussion is about the viability of protecting your privacy on Android vs iPhone. Sure everything is “possible” if you futz with it enough, you could even code your own OS and all your own apps, but the more you have to futz, the less viable it is for most people.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 1 points 1 year ago (2 children)

No please read my comment again. I know there are alternative stores. In practice, many mainstream apps are not easy to install using these stores. If you had done a 1 minute search, you’d find tons of people complaining about trying to degoogle their phone. I think almost everyone just gives up on at least a few apps.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If you don’t mind jail, physical injury, lack of employment, inability to pay for shopping, or, as you mention, online social exclusion, sure many things are not “obligatory”. Almost nothing is “obligatory” in the sense that you can’t physically move your body to do otherwise. “Obligatory” usually means that, if you don’t do the thing, you’ll face unsavory consequences. The person in the video clearly did not like the life they were living.

Yes, it’s really excellent.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 6 points 1 year ago (4 children)

It all feels bad to me. What feels oppressive to me is the implication that it’s obligatory, not optional. It’s not your choice. In the reality of that video, you can’t function in society and escape the lights, ads, signs, loyalty points, warnings, suggestions, and on and on. It’s like pop up ads on a dodgy website. People who don’t have your best interest in mind have constructed the environment for you.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 1 points 1 year ago

Most commutes are not between major cities, they are within metro regions, so the size of the US doesn’t explain the terrible infrastructure. Besides, for decades now, most of Europe has no political impediments to travel, same as the US. People can commute from Berlin to Madrid as if it were one country. Density matters, but not the size of the country.

As for density, there are many US regions that are of similar density and distance apart as European cities, such as DC-NY-Boston, or Portland-Seattle-Vancouver, SF-LA, etc.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Yes exactly this. Car infrastructure is the most expensive transportation infrastructure per capita possible. It’s why the US spends tons of public money on transportation and has just crumbling highways to show for it.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The Trolley problem doesn’t go away in the air (not that it’s that big of a deal to begin with). In fact, it might even be worse. Your car is falling. Do you crash into the crowded street or the crowded building? Which one? The destructive potential is much higher. If safety is really a concern, don’t you worry about giving every person a missile?

Flying cars “solve” a non-problem, because long distance highway travel is already the least dangerous. Most accidents are at intersections and points of conflicts. But eventually flying cars need to land and be near other cars and people. There will still be traffic jams, vast fields of parking lots, and cities made uncomfortable to actually walk or exist in.

[–] SkepticalButOpenMinded 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Not all liquid moving near the throat is drinking. Drowning, for example, isn’t drinking. It has to be ingested using swallowing muscles, etc. Molten lava would disintegrate the perimeter of your mouth and throat. That’s “drinking” like a shotgun to the face is “eating”.

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