It’s only depressing if you’ve convinced yourself that you’re something more than an intelligent ape.
If you think about it from the perspective of an animal that had no concept of time, space, ethics, or philosophy just a few hundred thousand years ago, then we’re actually pretty impressive.
We probably won’t have any significant effect on the galaxy, but we sure have an effect on Earth.
That was actually a pretty good prediction. They just didn’t account for one genius who revolutionized farming.
I watched up to the end of season 5, knowing that was the real ending to the story.
I thought I would stop after that, but I can’t help myself, I just keep going. I’m on season 7. It’s not as good, but it still has good stuff. It definitely helped that in season 6 they go to the set of their own show and watch the original showrunner get killed. I have to give them credit for that level of self-awareness. I doubt I’ll make it all the way to the end, but I’m still enjoying it for now.
Yeah, but how often did Bernie himself repeat those conspiracy theories? Did he ever try to violently overturn the Democratic primary results? Every popular person has some shitty supporters, so you can’t just judge people based on their supporters.
Yeah, but how often did Bernie himself repeat those conspiracy theories? Did he ever try to violently overturn the Democratic primary results? Every popular person has some shitty supporters, so you can’t just judge people based on their supporters.
No, you did not bring up a “mens issue”.
You said “historically, shit sucks for men.” That’s such a broad statement that it’s nearly meaningless.
Saying that men could at least vote, historically, is a concrete example where your statement doesn’t apply. Do you have any concrete examples to serve as a counterpoint? I know those examples exist, but you just gave up on the conversation.
Do you know of any real world examples in which a problem has a potential scientific solution and a potential spiritual solution, and the spiritual solution is more effective?
I wish more than anything that there was evidence of alien life that I could see with my eyes or hear with my ears. For now, we just have some dude saying things with no real evidence.
If Ted Chiang could write more than one short story a year, I think he might be the greatest living fiction author. Basically everything he writes is a revelation.
Exhalation isn’t quite as good as Stories of Your Life and Others, but it’s still amazing.
Well, don’t forget that the Good Place is fiction. There’s nothing waiting for you after this except nonexistence, so cling to life and claw every ounce of experience out of it while you can!
I was “in school” until I was almost 30 and got out without any debt. College undergraduate programs are basically theft that is used to pay for people like me and for massive administrative salaries. It’s absolutely a scam.
And yet, big schools, the kind that can afford to really not give a shit about individual students, are some of the only places where true independent research is being done. Cutting edge research generally only happens for profit, for the military, or at universities. Federal grants help pay for it, but another big source of cash is comes from absolutely fucking over 18 year old kids who think they don’t have a choice.
I don’t know what my point is exactly. Just wanted to give you some insider perspective.
My real answer is a book: Slaughterhouse 5. The movie Arrival pretty much does the same thing, though.
It really changed the way I think about my place in time and space, and the meaning of memories. Made me way less sad about death and entropy.
FYI, people’s beliefs can be wrong. If someone’s religion says the Earth is 6000 years old, then that religion is harmful and we should not tolerate that belief.
Obviously there is nuance here. It’s not ok to be prejudiced against religious people, but we shouldn’t let people get away with nonsense by calling it religion.
You know what’s cool about “natural flavors”? They just have to be found in nature to call them that. They can be synthesized in a lab and still be a “natural flavor.”
P.S. don’t fall for the naturalistic fallacy. This comment is about tricky vocabulary used by the food industry. Whether or not a chemical is found in nature has nothing to do with whether it is good or bad for you. Arsenic is natural.
Like I said, humans have had a big impact on Earth. No argument there.
There were also thousands of homo erectus and homo habilis individuals that were clever enough to use tools and adapt to new environments. They’re a part of the process of coevolution between people and technology that we are still experiencing. That’s why we’re special, that process. The process will end at some point, and that’s ok.
There are people in this thread that think their lives are meaningless if they don’t leave some irreversible mark on the fabric of reality. I don’t think that’s a reasonable perspective. I prefer the perspective of an intelligent ape. Intelligent ape is excited about smartphones and antibiotics, even if the Earth is doomed to be swallowed by the sun.