951–960 of 1001 posts
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no, it doesn't. With the labor productivity and automation, it is not obvious we need to maintain the current population, especially because the current social contract seems to be working class being exploited by oligarchs, while their taxes go fund boomers' retirement and overseas wars
How is it supposed to work when every working age person has two retirees to support?
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Real humans are also fake and they are also traps who are waiting to catch you when you say something they don't like. Then they also use every word and piece of information as ammunition against you, ironically sort of similar to the criticism always levied against online platforms who track you and what you say. AI robots are going to easily replace real humans because compared to most real humans the AI is already…
Real humans are real. Their flaws are real. Your emotions around them are real and so are the benefits to socialising. Accepting people as the flawed actors they are is a part of becoming a mature adult.
Everything I am reading here is consistent with the perspective of someone with a difference in ability (probably neurodevelopmental) that has experienced persistent social rejection as a result. People systematically fail to recognize or emphasize with this.
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Parks and trails are/were non commercial meeting spaces. City recreational parks in America used to have water fountains and cool stuff like climbable sculptures for kids and decommissioned Korean War era fighter jets in sand pits. That all went away with the helicopter parents.
I think a culture which views suing for everything as legitimate and the very peculiar and frankly weird specificity which enabled it to - the existence of punitive damages and them going to the other party - has a lot more to do with it than helicopter parenting. I always find it surprising that American lament the death of shared spaces - because that’s what public spaces are - when it’s pretty obvious that they do…
It seems in many places that are free or cheap, there are many more types of people that show up and it sometimes gets weird.
This has led to less women and children going to open spaces, which leads to less men in my observations.
This varies greatly depending on the exact neighborhood, and it may not be obvious if you spend most time in a wealthier or more homogeneous part of a city/town. Although they are not immune, it strongly depends on the forces allowed to keep the others away.
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> Play volleyball on the free net at the local park instead of signing up for pickleball and buying great. Coincidentally, my neighborhood just put up its first volleyball net a week or so back. It was stolen within two days lol
That’s unfortunate. Generally the poles are metal and permanent. It’s common for people to bring their own net when they bring their own ball. A basic net is cheap
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The library has become a place for drugs addicts and homeless people who use the free computers to look at porn. It’s no longer a nice or safe place to go.
Your city sounds depressing. Mine (US) is not like this at all. The libraries near me are not like this at all. One library has some homeless people but anyone being disruptive is quickly removed. We take the kids to the libraries all the time and it’s fine.
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Parks and libraries are always full where I live, a metro area of 1.5mil.
Phew! I thought I was weird or something? Parks, public pools, libraries and museums are the main things we do as a family. We also live in a metro of about 1.5 M. Maybe other metro areas charge for parks, libraries and museums? Especially museums now I think about it? Museums in small metro areas can be free. Likely because there's nothing in them. (Still fun, just not as many exhibits as museums in large metro area…
Parks around here, one is safe during the day with many people, it is divided up in many sections well, and you don't notice the drug dealing and needles until the ratio changes after dark.
Most of the other parks, I'd say a majority of women do not feel comfortable, which leads to less use by women and men, which changes the ratio of people that do go there. Some of the parks have been charging and increasing the fees to try to reverse that.
Libraries are the only real bastion of third space that seems to have a mostly neutral vibe imho. Although the downtown libraries have had to change some of what they allow to try to stave off the changing ratio of unshowered, just as several of the starbucks now have number pads on the bathrooms to access.
Libraries are not the best place for socializing as they normally have a keep it quieter vibe in my experience, but it's still doable to meet someone. The lack of open hours is a real limiting factor. I'd like to open a library that is more like a social club and open 24 hours.
Museums have gotten pretty expensive around here, and I don't see them as a great place to socialize. I imagine it's great to bring a family, but replacing the social connect that malls and bars at once had, not really. I also can't imagine people going to the local museum every friday night.
> Even in a world brimming with easy distractions—TikTok, Pornhub, Candy Crush, Sudoku—people still manage to meet for drinks, work out at the gym, go on dates, muddle through real life. They actually don't. Everything from dating and fitness to manufacturing and politics is in decline in activities, and more so in effect and understanding. You can't convince (enough) people anymore that it is even important as many…
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> If I could find a way to live without working I absolutely would. No, no you wouldn't. Yes I am telling you how you feel. The propagandized image of a welfare queen is just that - a propaganda image. In reality, they live off of very little and have hard lives. You would really prefer getting a few sheckles a month while you have no arm and legs and a family to feed? No, you wouldn't. Listen, I hate work as much as…
Most of this comment is a non sequitur. Giving people money doesn't change how many arms they have. I have my own unique struggles in life, maybe you owe me money for those.
Disability isn't "oh I feel bad for you, here's some money so you feel better".
It's a capitalist bandaid. In a capitalist system if you don't work, you die. We don't want people to die. So if they can't work, we give them money. So they don't die. It's actually a very simple system so I'm not quite sure how you made it so far in life without grasping it.
For people who CAN'T work, there's no other option. So please, don't even try to suggest other options.
I mean, do you want to scrape bodies off the street? No, right? Okay, then we're on the same page. Thank you for agreeing with me.
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Most of this comment is a non sequitur. Giving people money doesn't change how many arms they have. I have my own unique struggles in life, maybe you owe me money for those.
I don't think you understand how welfare works. Disability isn't "oh I feel bad for you, here's some money so you feel better". It's a capitalist bandaid. In a capitalist system if you don't work, you die. We don't want people to die. So if they can't work, we give them money. So they don't die. It's actually a very simple system so I'm not quite sure how you made it so far in life without grasping it. For people who…