a thoughtful web.
Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking.   Login or Take a Tour!
xenophon's profile
xenophon

x 3

stats
following: 8
followed tags: 41
followed domains: 3
badges given: 0 of 1
hubskier for: 4377 days

recent comments, posts, and shares:
xenophon  ·  3811 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: THE NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA IS BLACK.

He looks badass.

xenophon  ·  3811 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: THE NEW CAPTAIN AMERICA IS BLACK.

I think Cap being black makes way more sense than Thor being a woman. Thor is the name of a (mythical) person who has been a (mythical) male for 3,000 years. Cap is a persona, so it makes sense for Cap to be the best man (or woman or otherkin or whatever) for the job.

I have no skin in the game because I haven't read comic books since I was young, but making Thor a woman seems like pandering to me.

xenophon  ·  3812 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: How can I pick out the best Swiss Army Knife?

That's a really good deal for a super classy knife. I might just pick one up...

I got an Ontario RAT from Amazon for like $26. It's been in my pocket for months now, and I love it. It's nice and slim so it doesn't bulge in my pocket, and the blade holds a good edge. I have owned nicer (and significantly more expensive) pocket knives, but for the price, I'm really pleased.

It's $29 right now but it usually hovers around $25 or $26:

www.amazon.com/Ontario-8848-Folding-Knife-Black/dp/B0013ASG3E/

xenophon  ·  3812 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Into the North

Nice. Have a good time!

xenophon  ·  3812 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: How can I pick out the best Swiss Army Knife?

Maybe mention something about having it in your car in case you break down or just need a screwdriver when you're away from home. IMHO, everyone should have one (as well as a Maglite) in their glovebox at all times.

xenophon  ·  3812 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: How can I pick out the best Swiss Army Knife?

It's great. I use it all the time. I've also owned a Gerber multitool and a SOG multitool, and I prefer the Leatherman. The SOG feels clunky in my pocket and pulling out the attachments is too complex, and the Gerber didn't feel as solid as the Leatherman. The knife on the Gerber was sharper out of the box, but I used the Leatherman more because it felt more solid as I used it.

xenophon  ·  3813 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: How can I pick out the best Swiss Army Knife?

I've owned both (and a SOG multitool). Anecdotally, I thought the Gerber blade was sharper, but I liked the overall function of the Leatherman more. The SOG was a little more complicated than necessary and, in my opinion, didn't really have any advantages over the Leatherman.

xenophon  ·  3813 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: How can I pick out the best Swiss Army Knife?

Gotta agree with the others--go with a Leatherman. This is what I've got:

http://www.amazon.com/Leatherman-831102-Tool-300-Multitool-Sheath/dp/B002KKB0AW/

Love it.

xenophon  ·  3814 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Third Bi-Weekly Give Me a Quote from Something You've Been Reading Lately

    Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement. For even the very wise cannot see all ends. I have not much hope that Gollum can be cured before he dies, but there is a chance of it. And he is bound up with the fate of the Ring. My heart tells me that he has some part to play yet, for good or ill, before the end…

I'm re-reading The Lord of the Rings for probably the 10th time. I love that book. (This is a quote from Gandalf in The Fellowship of the Ring)

xenophon  ·  3814 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Whats your result?

I agree. So far I'm one of two people who scored right-leaning and I definitely felt the test was biased. There were several questions that were leading, several questions that had no answer for persons of a more conservative bent, and several questions where I didn't agree with the initial assumptions.

xenophon  ·  3814 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Is Hubski An Echo Chamber?

Hey, sorry for the delayed reply. I think it's more me than hubski--so far hubki's conversation level seems very high, and I don't think anyone would be rude or mean-spirited. I do see a lot of passion around certain topics, however, and I wind up keeping my opinion to myself because I'd just rather not engage and spend all my time on hubski defending my viewpoints instead of using hubski as a jumping-off point for the greater internet. And I don't want to mute anyone (at least not yet) because while I may totally disagree with someone's perspective on feminism or basic income, I might still want to hear what they have to contribute to a conversation on colonizing Mars.

The Personal Curation Algorithm (tm) is kind of a double-edged sword in that way--while I may prevent someone from going off on me for my regressive attitude toward tax policy, I also prevent myself from experiencing all the other positive things they contribute to the site. Hence, I choose to keep my opinion to myself when I'm obviously and dramatically outnumbered on a particular issue.

Edit: Also, I tend to be a lurker more than anything. I'm trying to get better about it, but I can't post much from work, and I don't have internet access at home. Makes it difficult.

xenophon  ·  3816 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Is Hubski An Echo Chamber?

Also see https://hubski.com/pub?id=162336

As the sole right-leaning person (so far) in the thread you linked to, I will say that I often don't feel comfortable posting thoughts or opinions on hubski because I am obviously in the minority and I don't want to spend all my time on hubski debating or defending my perspective. I just don't care for it. I prefer to post cool science news or read stuff from hubski's arty side.

I definitely think hubski would benefit from intelligent, respectful, active commenters of varied political persuasions; I'm just not sure where they'd come from. Seems like most hubskiers are reddit refugees, and reddit has a solidly liberal, progressive userbase.

xenophon  ·  3816 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Whats your result?

I don't know why I hang out with you hippies....

xenophon  ·  3817 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: HUBSKI: Chapter 10

That's awesome. Only getting awesomer.