• 3 Posts
  • 229 Comments
Joined 1 year ago
cake
Cake day: October 6th, 2023

help-circle






  • steeznson@lemmy.worldtoLinux@lemmy.mlLinux middle ground?
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    4
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    4 days ago

    I have a gentoo desktop but for a convenient middle ground just put Debian on my laptop. It’s stable, things just work out of the box, maintainers/devs are competent, they haven’t drunk the snap/flatpack kool-aid…

    Switching to Testing is always an option but I’ve not found the need to do that yet when I can install programs from a deb package or just compile from source and install it in ~/.bin in my home directory.





  • Sustainable growth is popular but we are going to need to invest in unpalatable energy sources like nuclear power in order to power it. We also need to make sure recycling actually happens as opposed to local authorities shipping the materials overseas for “processing” (i.e. being dumped or burned).

    Human populations tend to decline as an economy becomes more advanced and people are able to plan their families. We are already seeing population growth stagnating much more quickly than expected in countries like China. That will cause demographic challenges so we are going to need to rethink how we manage immigration so it can happen sustainably with public consent.

    Lastly, increasing economic output doesn’t necessarily mean consuming more resources. If a country becomes more productive, by for example integrating a new technology, then you can increase output with the same or fewer resources.


  • In my opinion it’s because in the past human beings needed to be constantly working or assisting with a group in some capacity in order to ensure mutual survival for the group. Let’s say a village.

    Activity which is not seen as being productive or could be construed as lazy has a stigma around it because it casts doubt on your ability to contribute to society.

    Obviously none of this applies in the same way these days but there is a kind of primal conflation of intoxicants and laziness. Laziness is bad and so consuming intoxicants turns into a moral issue.

    These attitudes are very deeply ingrained and although they can shift a bit as people become more liberal the deep suspicion remains.




  • Blood Meridian is critically acclaimed and you could read it in a day. I only got around to reading it last winter despite my “litbro” friends recommending it for years. It’s very violent but the prose style is really unique and original. The plot is kind of Moby Dick-esque where it examines mankind’s place in nature (mixed with a fair amount of Heart of Darkness).

    Actually Heart of Darkness is extremely worth reading and it is probably less of an ordeal. Maybe start with that if you haven’t read it. Conrad spoke like 5 languages and English was the ~3rd he learned so he has a very interesting prose style.



  • I arrange to do culturally stimulating things in the evenings or weekends like seeing a concert/opera, going to an art gallery or a movie. The rest of the time I’m pouring effort into my career or long term relationship, which are both rewarding in the long term. Sometimes I like “switch-off” entertainment like sports when I’ve got a free schedule.