a thoughtful web.
Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking.   Login or Take a Tour!
rd95's comments
activity:
Sorry, this comment is private.
Sorry, this comment is private.
Sorry, this comment is private.
user-inactivated  ·  2123 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Gosh darned bookthread time.

Curently Reading

------------------------------

Locking Up Our Own by James Forman Jr. is interesting so far. It's a pretty weighty book and I don't feel like I have the proper insight to discuss it, but it's both dense and briskly written, touching on many ideas at once. It feels like if he wanted to, the author could have stretched everything out to multiple books.

While gathering up books to donate, I stumbled on The Phenomenon of Religion by Moojan Momen. I didn't know I had it and I don't ever remember buying it. I'm suspecting it was my father's and it somehow ended up in my book collection and that it's one of those things where I've seen it on my shelf so many times that I've somehow mentally overlooked it for years. It looks pretty big and imposing, but I think I might thumb through it. Edit: Just cracked it open and read the introduction. Looks worth perusing. Edit 2: Actively reading it now.

Might Read

------------------------------

I was pretty excited when I picked up Mustard and Passage's translation of Parzival because I didn't know it existed at the time and thought it would be great to read. I've yet to crack it open and I keep on admonishing myself about that every time I glance at it on my book shelf. Honestly though? Because they're drenched in metaphors and symbolism, these kinds of books require a certain mood and receptiveness to enjoy them and I'm just currently not in that frame of mind lately. So I think I'll hold onto it, until I am. Maybe if I stumble on a reading guide for it, I'll be motivated to read the two together.

An Aside

------------------------------

Anyone ever tempted to write in the margins of their books? Ideas or emotional responses to what they've just read? References to what's going on in life or other things that they've read that relate to what's in the book? Do you?

On the one hand, I think it would make reading more interactive and almost journal like. On the other hand though, I worry about ruining the book.

user-inactivated  ·  2123 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Who Lives At Home?

An interesting intersection between housing issues and health care, I know a couple who is currently looking at buying a duplex. One half for them is to live in, the other half is to rent to one of their parents. It addresses not only the issue of affordable housing, but also gives the couple an opportunity to care for the parents as they start to age. It seems like they're not the only ones with similar ideas. If you google "multi-generational housing" you'll get a lot of hits from various sources and perspectives.

user-inactivated  ·  2125 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Outrage over Cartoon Network’s Thundercats reboot: ‘CalArts style’

I understand where you're coming from. I also understand where the critics are coming from. That doesn't mean I think what the animators are doing is blasphemous for the following reasons.

1) Exaggerated, easy to draw characters are nothing new to animation. They've been around since pretty much the beginning. Felix the Cat, Betty Boop, Mickey Mouse, etc. and they make resurgences every few decades, Animaniacs, Ren & Stimpy, Powerpuff Girls, The Grimm Adventures of Billy and Mandy, etc. Animators know that it's a great art style to build off of when you want to tell humorous and or light hearted stories. All of that is en vogue right now, which is fine, trends are cyclical.

2) Trying to be efficient and saving time and money in animation is also nothing new. The classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons are a great example, just look at Super Friends or The Herculoids in particular. I understand why people get upset with some of the more recent animation techniques looking cheap, but even compared to the lower budget stuff from a few decades ago, we've come a long way.

2a) As an aside, people tend remember cartoons being better than they really were. For example, it's kind of popular to criticize Teen Titans Go! for being so cheap compared to the original series. I watched the original series quite a few times. I own the whole series on DVD. It doesn't hold up as well as our memories would like us to think. The first season in particular suffered from very simple sounds and animation low in background details. Lots of cartoons don't hold up as well as we remember. I think DC's Timmverse and Samurai Jack are two very good exceptions.

3) Most importantly though, this is just a cartoon series. Something someone is making to tell a story and to make a corporation money. They have control over the property, they can do what they want with it. Once again, I understand why people might not like the art style, but the creators of the series want to tell a different kind of story and the new art style matches the tone I think they're probably gonna take. It's not the end of the world. The original cartoons still exist and just because there is something new that has come about, it doesn't mean what was ceases to be. If something isn't your cup of tea and you fear it runs the risk of ruining your impressions of what you love, ignore it. I've joked on here before that The Matrix Sequels and the Star Wars Prequels were never made and that Iron Man 3 and Fallout 4 are both high budget fan projects and not official canon.

If there is one thing I've learned from comics, it's that sometimes people are gonna take properties we love and take them in directions we don't want them to go. It's fun to gripe a bit about it here and there, but it's important to exercise detachment. If we love a property so much that changing it in such a way causes us to feel grief and frustration, we need to step back and really consider whether or not our relationships with what we consume are being healthy.

user-inactivated  ·  2131 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Outrage over Cartoon Network’s Thundercats reboot: ‘CalArts style’

We're gonna have to agree to disagree, and this is why. I like that poster. It's colorful, it's stylistic, it's playful, and you can clearly see the DNA from the past material it's building off of. Because I clearly like it and because you clearly don't, we're not going to be able to agree on this issue. Which is fine.

    Or at least acknowledge that Japanese animation largely resembles humans.

Realism is not the only qualifier for what is and isn't good art. It can be an aspect of it, but to what degree its embraced is up to the artist and how well the final result is received is up to the person absorbing it. None of these look remotely like real tigers. I think each one is absolutely fantastic though. Their uniqueness helps them stick out to me, makes them memorable.

If I looked at 10 western paintings of tigers, realistically drawn, but with nothing else about them that grabs my attention, I'll quickly forget about them no matter how realistically and skilled they are. It's a balancing act and we each have different preferences as to where we want the fulcrum to be.

user-inactivated  ·  2131 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Outrage over Cartoon Network’s Thundercats reboot: ‘CalArts style’

I can't believe a comment on a pop culture discussion is what drew me out, but what ever. It's a three day weekend and I'm a bit board.

I agree mostly with what you say, but comparing Steven Universe to Family Guy is like comparing Grave of the Fireflies to Naruto. I'm being a bit hyperbolic, but you get the drift. I've been watching Cartoon Network on and off since it first came on the air and through the years they've had some real hits and some real misses. That said, Adventure Time, Steven Universe, Regular Show, Clarence, and The Amazing World of Gumball are all solid story telling shows. The people who complain about Teen Titans Go! and who will eventually complain about Thundercats Roar! are the kind of people who don't want to acknowledge that they're watching a different kind of cartoon with a different story telling goal than the source material. The visuals fit the storytelling and are appropriate. Me personally? I love TTG and I'm kind of excited to see Thundercats Roar just out of curiosity, even though I'm not a Thundercats fan.

Anyway, the people complaining about this kind of stuff don't understand that tastes evolve and with them so do stylistic elements and storytelling techniques. You know what all looks the same at first glance? Midieval Illuminated Manuscripts. You know what else all looks the same at first glance? Filigree and scroll work on antique silver. Know what else all looks the same at first glance? Comics from decade X. I could literally go on forever, but you get the idea.

Just as much as this stuff is similar, once you get to notice them and pay attention to them you can start to really pick out distinct differences and styles.

I bet half the people who are complaining about this loves Japanese Cartoons. You won't hear me say how those all look the same, because I know they don't. But if I did, they'd be quick to tell me how wrong I am.

user-inactivated  ·  2150 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Pubski: May 9, 2018

I don't want to spoil anybody's party today and I don't think there's an easy way to do this, but I think I'm gonna head on out guys. I honestly and truly love and appreciate every last one of you, but the outside world is calling my name and I think that's where I need to be.

Just know that you're all amazing people and you're all capable of amazing things. Be mindful, be compassionate, and be on your best behavior. The world is lucky to have each and every last one of you and I felt similarly lucky to share your friendship here on Hubski.

~rd95

user-inactivated  ·  2151 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: veen’s reviews #1: Conspiracy by Ryan Holiday

Yeah. It's a really interesting question, isn't it? On the one hand, I think conspire or not, secret or not, that if people strive for betterment, more often than not that'll be the end result. Provided they do it with care and conviction.

I think one of the interesting things to question is, is striving to do good in secret a good way about it? On the one hand, I think transparency is an important tool because if you're open about what you're doing and why, no one can claim anything bad about your efforts. On the other hand though, if you're open about what you're doing and why, maybe it makes it easier for others who disagree with you to interfere with your efforts.

Like I said, I don't think I've ever heard the word "conspired" in reference to this kind of question, usually because "conspiracy" tends to have a nefarious connotation.

You and lm gave me two absolutely interesting Wikipedia articles to read. They were awesome.

An outdoor antenna is basically the second thing on my list to buy when we get our own place. The only thing that's above it is a plunger, because lets be honest, you don't want to be without one of those.

Hey. I literally used it correctly, both in definition and context. ;)

It was more frustrating than anything. I was also momentarily concerned that maybe since today is Sunday a bunch of local stations got bought up and turned into relay stations or something and they switched over. Fortunately, it turns out that wasn't the case. But it kind of makes me want to see if I can't get some kind of indoor antenna with an even longer range. It'd be cool to get some more channels on purpose.

user-inactivated  ·  2152 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Happy Saturday Hubski. Have some chatty coyotes.

I love the yipping and the howling of them. Where I used to live, I would have a handful of lucky nights throughout the summer where I could on the steps of my apartment and hear them off in the distance. Obviously I was never afraid, cause they were never right near by, and the door to the apartment was literally just a couple of paces away. In fact, after posting this video, I've probably played it at least a dozen times already, because it makes me nostalgic for those nights.

Coyotes get a pretty bad rap. The attacks they have that involve humans are literally just a handful a year (compare that to the seemingly countless number of dog attacks each year). They're a very intelligent and versatile species, so they're pretty much everywhere and even in a lot of cities believe it or not. While they're used to us they're still very much more afraid of us than we are of them. People also think they're big things, like wolfs, but they're actually pretty small. Most are about twenty to forty pounds or so and come about knee high. You still gotta respect them, because they are wild animals capable of defending themselves, but even knowing how small they are in my head I was still surprised when I saw my first one in the wild. Dude was small.

Chances are, the guys were communicating with each other about your presence or something else, but I don't want to speculate because I'm not a biologist. I can definitely see why it'd put the hairs on the back of your neck up on end though. Especially in the dark of night, it was probably pretty damn scary to be in the middle of all that activity. I'm glad you, the barn animals, and your wild neighbors all survived the encounter though. When I heard a fox howl for the first time, I literally thought it was a woman screaming in the woods. It scared the ever loving crap out of me.

You can't blame me. If you heard that, and didn't know what it was, you'd be scared too.

user-inactivated  ·  2153 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: veen’s reviews #1: Conspiracy by Ryan Holiday

Interesting review. Thanks for writing it.

    But, more importantly, he ends the book by asking a question that I’ve been pondering about:

    What would the world look like if more people conspired to change things they thought were immoral?

    .

    .

    .

    "I’m inclined to answer the question with “better”.

I don't think I've ever heard the word "conspired" in regards to this question, but it's a question I think about a lot and always love to hear what other people have to say. If you're willing, I'd love to hear more of your thoughts in regards to this question.

user-inactivated  ·  2154 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: ‘I had to guard an empty room’: the rise of the pointless job

To add a third layer to this, because you and kleinbl00 have very good points, but I got a very different take away from this article.

It's from my experience that people need work, and not for the pay, but to give them something to do with their lives and a sense of meaning. I was very fortunate to meet someone recently who is a social worker who helps people with mental health and substance abuse issues find work. One of the things that they told me about is that many people who have been out of work for a long time feel listless and despondent. So as a result, while they're helping these people find jobs, they're also helping them find volunteer work to get them out of the house and get them moving again. Apparently, among the benefits of creating a weekly regimen, contacts, and work experience for these people, it has a profound impact on their mental health in a positive way. A lot of people truly enjoy work.

When I read this article, my mind replaces "bullshit" with "meaningless" and I can't help but wonder if seemingly meaningless work is just as psychologically unhealthy as no work. It could maybe even be worse.

user-inactivated  ·  2157 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Americans Are A Lonely Lot, And Young People Bear The Heaviest Burden

The past year or so I've been more active with my local Baha'i Community and a local church. I make it a plan to have dinner with a friend or a group of friends at least twice a month. I call my relatives and other friends on the phone more frequently and often talk for an hour or more. I try to go to special events, whether they're art exhibits, sporting events, or what have you whenever I have the time and the money. Most importantly, I try to get Dala involved in things whenever possible and when it's not possible, I be sure to do things with her one on one, even if it just means sitting on the couch for an afternoon reading while our dog sits between us.

All of this has made an immense difference in my mental health and world view and every single day I find myself waiting anxiously for the next time I can get out of the house and interact with people. In fact yesterday I found myself feeling a bit melancholy just because I went to such an amazing picnic over the weekend that I think I was crashing from a bit of a high.

There's a whole world out there people and it's fucking amazing. Gather your family, gather your friends, and go explore it. You don't know what you're missing.

user-inactivated  ·  2158 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: One third of Amazon employees in Arizona need food stamps to feed themselves.

    Programmers would disagree with your sentiment. And they will be the ones with the most job opportunities, along with engineers, and others in applied sciences in the near future.

Programmers, engieneers, and scientists are not immune to automation. Neither are people in the legal or medical fields. That shit is coming for all of us.

The CEO of GitHub, which caters to coders, thinks automation will bring an end to traditional software programming

"My group at work consists of six engineers. I'm certain that by 2030 it will be no more than four getting more work done than today. Automation won't replace us all right away, but it will reduce staff."

    Meanwhile tangible goods will be created by robots, robots that are made by engineers and programmers.

I used the words "tangible" and "durable," which implies things like handmade, well crafted, made to last. Artisinal stuff, not factory built junk that you can get for cheap off of Amazon.

    What you're talking about -- finding work that is personally satisfying, is something people would and should do as a hobby,

When analysts talk about work, two words that often come up for happy employees is "satisfying" and "meaningful." They're key components to what are perceived as good jobs and important for worker satisfaction.

The world's happiest jobs

Malcolm Gladwell Says All Great Jobs Have These 3 Qualities

That said, serious question, why should we not find our work to be satisfying?

    once something like UBI is in place.

The chances of UBI happening are pretty slim, at least here in the states. We can't even get our healthcare or housing straight.

user-inactivated  ·  2161 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Your job is killing you

We work in different fields, but from where I stand it doesn't feel like employers are going out of their way to foster a work/life balance or healthy, stable work environments. Speaking of work/life balance, this article (also from The Week) talks about how flexible work hours might benefit employers and hurt employees.

user-inactivated  ·  2161 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: One third of Amazon employees in Arizona need food stamps to feed themselves.

It's completely grounded in fantasy, but I kind of have this hope that more people will go the route of learning real skills again and find employment focused around local communities, creating durable goods, etc.

I was talking to some really good friends the other day and we were talking about how much more satisfying and engaging work is when it's something physical. Not only is there a tangible product when you're finished, but you can see the progress you're making as you're doing it, motivating you to continue. I think there's probably similar effects when your job is community focused, because you can see first hand day in and day out the difference your job makes in your immediate life.

Can people who do something like data processing say the same about their jobs?

user-inactivated  ·  2161 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Welcome to Hubski

Okay. First of all, don't sweat it too much. It happens from time to time and some users are quicker to use block than others. Some use it liberally, while others rarely use it, if ever. Me personally, I only use it on overt, unashamed trolls (of which we get pretty much none of).

Second, kantos and keifermiller both jumped in and commented in the time it took me to hunt down a single video. If anything, that should illustrate this place is pretty inviting, so don't let a single negative experience discourage you. If it helps, I personally think some of your comments are well thought out and I'm interested to see what you have to say down the road.

Lastly, watch that video up there real when you're done reading this post. It's a pretty good metaphor for what you're experiencing right now. You're like that warthog. You're in a new environment, and not only are you getting used to your surroundings, you're also getting to know the residents and they're getting to know you. Know why it's such a great metaphor for this place? Because that Savannah exhibit is full of different animals and here, with the exception of a few common traits, we're actually really diverse. We have people from different countries, different classes, different ages, and different education levels all mixing it up. Even with such a small site where we know each other relatively well, with such a diverse user base sometimes signals get crossed. It's normal.

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Welcome to Hubski

    Thank you, and does anyone happen to have any pointers for someone just starting out?

It's a relatively small site. This impacts conversations in a few ways. Two ways which you don't see in other sites are

A) When you see heated arguments, it's not because we're all being anonymous jerks to each other. It's because we know each other well enough that two people can vehemently disagree in one thread and heartily agree in another thread. You'll still get some conversations that go too far from time to time, that might lead to hurt feelings, but they're very much a rarity around here. Because it's a small site and because of that dynamic, if you find that there's someone you just butt heads with often, it's best to exercise some self restraint and interact with them on the minimum.

B) Don't be surprised if it takes days for a conversation to unfold. For example, I might make a comment, get a response from someone, and might not respond back for hours and sometimes even days. For that matter, thread necromancy and referring back to threads that are literally years old is a normal thing around here.

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Some thoughts on discussion, opinion and spaces
user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ford plans to stop making all cars except the Mustang in the North American market in favor of trucks and SUVs

Yes, but don't EPA standards have less to do with how the car is engineered and more with how it's classified?

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: One small passage from "No Future Without Forgiveness" that really stands out to me.

    [T]hese days one has to wonder whether forgiveness has any value if it was given for free.

I have read so many pieces and heard so many lectures on the value of forgiveness over the years, from the practical and mundane to the spiritual, that I can't help but think that we actually under appreciate the amount of power it can have.

I think the best way that I often see it, is that it doesn't mean there will be no punishments or retributions, because one is a necessary deterrent to keep things from going wrong and the other is a necessary tool to help right things after they've gone wrong. What it does mean though, is that it gives us the power to make the conscious decisions to not let the past negatively affect our present and therefore limit our future. By forgiving someone, we're giving them the ability to continue with their lives and not let their past mistakes weigh them down. More importantly though, by forgiving someone, we're giving ourselves the ability to continue with our lives and not let their past mistakes weigh us down.

As a really clunky metaphor, let's pretend we're swimming in an ocean, lost. In one hand we're holding a brick labeled "anger" and in the other hand we're holding a brick labeled "resentment." We want to hold onto these bricks because we're emotionally and psychologically attached to them. Is it possible to keep swimming while holding onto them? Yes. Would it be easier to keep swimming if we let go of them? Yes. Now lets pretend a ship is passing us by and they throw down a rope so we can climb aboard. Is it possible to climb the rope while still holding onto the two bricks? How much easier would it be if we let go of one? How much easier would it be if we let go of both?

No one can tell us to hold onto the bricks or let them go, or when or how or why we do it. That's all left up to us as individuals. But if and when we choose to let go, and really let go of them, we might find ourselves more capable of navigating the world around us and seizing opportunity when it comes our way.

This was a beautiful post by the way.

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ford plans to stop making all cars except the Mustang in the North American market in favor of trucks and SUVs

    It will be interesting to see how ford will make their fleet average mileage numbers without cars though.

The EPA is entertaining the idea of rolling back future target mpg standards. Ford has been playing with the idea of dropping sedans for a while and maybe they think now they'll be able to if the pressure from the EPA for efficiency targets is let up a bit.

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ford plans to stop making all cars except the Mustang in the North American market in favor of trucks and SUVs

Subaru famously got around it by putting seats in the bed of the BRAT. They were totally removable, which was good, because their safety was questionable at best.

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ford plans to stop making all cars except the Mustang in the North American market in favor of trucks and SUVs

It'll be a different beast than the Ranger you remembered. Bigger, but also probably more refined. Today's Civics for example dwarf Honda Accords from the '90s but drive a lot better and are even more reliable. You'll see something similar with the new generation of Ranger.

If I recall, they stopped selling it in the states because it cost only slightly less than the entry level F-150 and had only slightly better gas mileage. They figured, pretty correctly, that it wouldn't hurt their sales too much to cut it out.

It's death didn't really come as a surprise. Light Trucks kind of faded from the American market due to a mix of reasons, namely a combination of The Chicken Tax and CAFE standards.

user-inactivated  ·  2162 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ford plans to stop making all cars except the Mustang in the North American market in favor of trucks and SUVs

They were kind of leaning this way, then kind of not, and now I guess they're going all in. The Ford Sedans, like the Ford Mustang, are about brand loyalty and getting people onto the lot. In raw numbers though, Ford sells trucks.

According to Wikipedia, last year they sold in the North America alone over 1 Million Ford F-Series trucks, 300k Ford Escapes, and 270k Ford Explorers.

In comparison, last year they sold about 48k Fiestas, 170k Focuses, 209k Fusions, 40k Tauruses, and 81k Mustangs.

There's your difference in raw numbers.

I can't think today, so here are some random thoughts.

1) I see more Ford SUV police vehicles on the road than I see Sedans. I know police officers, everyone I talk to hates the sedans Ford, Chevrolet, and Dodge makes because they're too cramped but everyone loves the SUVs. The guys repairing them miss the hell out of Crown Vics though.

2) During the '80s, '90s, and early '00s, Ford's cars had a dodgey reputation where their trucks were often still highly regarded. Which would you be willing to buy? A Ford Fusion or a Honda Accord? Why?

3) Fleet sales are probably a factor here, but that's more than I know how to look up.

4) There's a larger profit margin in Truck sales than Sedan sales. Don't ask me to explain why, cause I don't know, but that fact is part of the reason why GM gave Pontiac and Saturn the axe when they were restructuring but decided to keep GMC even though everyone and their mother pointed out that Chevrolet, Pontiac, and Saturn all sold different cars while GMC trucks were basically upbranded Chevrolet trucks.

5) The Mustang, like the Corvette, like the Toyota 86, like the Mazda Miata, is a flagship car. It's not about sales numbers or profit margins for those cars. It's about keeping the brand in your mind by creating excitement when you see them on the road and letting you know the company exists through T-Shirts, Calendars, Magazine Ads, etc. The Mustang is core to Ford's image. The day they announce they're gonna stop making Mustangs is the day they decide to announce they're taking the company in a completely different direction.

6) The Mustang is cool. The Ford Focus RS is fucking sick.