Fake it till you make it: the wolves of Instagram

Post by sah2ed » Thu, May 03, 2018, 10:07 PM UTC

TallGuyShort wrote: post #61

smacktoward wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's because film is a visual medium, and in these movies the protagonist always looks cool . He may be doing terrible things, but he's wearing hip clothes and driving a gorgeous car while he does them. The visual language is all screaming "this guy's great!", and it ends up overwhelming the message the story is trying to tell. If you want to know what most people will think of a character in a movie, watch the movie…

I don't think it's just the visual element. I mean Scarface looks pretty terrible by the end of the movie, and people idolize him. I suspect it's more that stories are now told purely for short-term entertainment value. We don't focus on the substance of the story or the moral, we focus on the kind of clips that end up in a trailer. You see similar trends in popular literature too.

Post by gowld » Thu, May 03, 2018, 10:12 PM UTC

tlrobinson wrote: post #153

jiveturkey wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

isn’t there an implied, “in order to generate revenue”?

Maybe so, but that's very different than "Beat the system and make tons of money". See some of pg's early essays: http://www.paulgraham.com/wealth.html http://paulgraham.com/good.html Entrepreneurship is one of the least zero-sum activities you can participate in.

Post by mlindner » Thu, May 03, 2018, 10:23 PM UTC

themagician wrote: post #182

RIMR wrote: post #79

I am always amazed by how many people get into this "Beat the system and make tons of money" mindset. If there's anything that has proven itself time and time again, it's that people who seek immediate wealth, and who fantasize about their "million dollar idea", are absolutely not the kinds of people who become successful and wealthy. The people who become devoted to a field or a technology - who make the business th…

> You can't just make money by trying really hard to be rich, unless, of course, your business model is funneling cash off of suckers with a predatory get-rich-quick scheme. More wealthy people make their money this way than you might realize. Rare indeed is the person who became wealthy by actually creating something of value. Much more common is the person who cheated someone (or many someones) out of something. Ma…

Post by mlindner » Thu, May 03, 2018, 10:27 PM UTC

joosters wrote: post #170

triviatise wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you dont understand his strategy if you think it is out of date. 1) he buys equity in the private markets not in the public markets 2) he has capital to buy entire companies 3) he can evaluate a company based on the people, not based on financials 4) he commits to not meddling in operations. Today's tax structure forces entrepreneurs to sell because of huge tax implications of passing down a privately held company. 5…

People are forced to avoid tax on their profits? Oh the humanity!

Post by gowld » Thu, May 03, 2018, 10:30 PM UTC

burkaman wrote: post #62

ysavir wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interestingly, American Psycho isn't on that list. Nor should it be. It's easy to come up with a few theories as to what sets it apart, but I would love to see a proper analysis of how it tackles the subject matter without glorifying the lifestyle unnecessarily--and what other films should learn from it if they aim to accomplish the same

Aside from Patrick Bateman committing gratuitous murders on screen, the major difference is that he hates his life and he never looks like he's having fun. Jordan Belfort might be doing terrible things (although not as bad as serial murder), but he looks and acts like he loves every minute of it. Bateman doesn't. You could also compare The Hangover and Leaving Las Vegas. One makes a drug-filled weekend in Vegas look…