Damn inflation is everywhere now, even the transcendentals :'(

I really think these MAGAt types are feeding off Boomer-era Cold War trauma, milking geriatric delusions for all they’re worth. Think about it, how many Americans under 50 are daily concerned about communism? For most of our lives it has been a complete joke, there has been literally no reason to think communism was going to supplant capitalism in America, in any way. It’s always like “oh communism, yeah sure I’d love to live in Cuba, China, or North Korea heh”.

I think a more valuable and relevant lesson would be the history and dangers of authoritarianism, anti-democratic politics and gestures, but maybe that hits a little too close to home for the MAGAts?

IMO, as depressing as the thought is, we are rapidly transitioning/declining to a post-Constitution America. It makes sense, because conservatives have never really embraced the notion of a secular document as the law of the land, which can be used to shield individuals and minorities from their abusive moralistic patriarchal regimes. Now they have a chance, many chances in fact, to “right the wrongs” they suffered as a matter of enlightened compromise made in good faith. And we are seeing it everywhere.

Typewriters… ratatatatatatatatap click ding whirrr

Two I can think of, luckily neither was that bad.

Firstly I got impatient and bought a new DSLR camera kit off eBay, thinking I would save money and get a good deal. It came with two decent lenses, supposedly, and a bunch of other accessories. Very highly rated seller.

After I made the purchase, I get a message to expect a phone call from such-and-such number. Strange, I thought. They call and immediately I can tell it’s a bait-and-switch. They tell me what they’re going to send, but it’s not what was in the listing. Only one lens, instead of two, and some other shenanigans like substituting inferior brands and cheap shit. I called them out and said either you deliver what was promised in the listing, or I’m opening a dispute, and it won’t be a good look that you tried to change the deal over the phone.

Anyway I got what was listed, but overall it was a disappointment. Grey market items from overseas, not official US licensed gear, so I had no warranty. But I ended up paying as much or more than if I had walked into a local shop. It wasn’t counterfeit, but just left a bad taste in my mouth. The seller disappeared from eBay not long after that…

Second time: I received one of those emails with a password in the subject. It looked familiar, and was in fact an (old) password I had used. Someone took a hacked DB and just fired off countless emails with the passwords to the matching email addresses. But the tone of the email was what spooked me. It said, I have had full access to all your emails, I have figured out how to reset accounts and hacked into your webcam and have some very interesting photos. Either you pay this amount to this bitcoin address or I send the photos to all your contacts and your life will be ruined.

In the moment, I panicked like oh shit this is legit. Even though I couldn’t imagine what photos they referred to, it was still scary being blackmailed. I thought about it, discussed with some people, and they helped calm me down. After a few days, I realized it must be a scam. It was so generic. Surely if it was real, they would mentioned specifics… my name, or what I looked like, or some other unmistakable details.

Over the years, I received a number of other variations with the same jist, and different passwords (my email address was in several major leaks in mid-2000s). I’m glad I didn’t fall for that shit, regardless of how serious it seemed in the moment.

Why stop there? Shut it all down. Pull the plug.

Um deleting all evidence from the world except two supposed photos (which btw have different cornucopia designs) and a tiktok video… sounds like far more than anything a PR team could manage. All the three-letter agencies combined couldn’t pull that off, as the action itself would leave evidence.

I think what is really happening is seeing or discussing the fake cornucopia version implants that false “memory” in our minds, because it seems so appropriate. It would almost be a better logo, IMO.

But I can’t say that I would have mentioned a cornucopia associated with the brand before seeing this post. Very interesting psychological phenomenon none the less.

And will they be Russian, or more human trafficking victims?

Also remember the nearest comparison to building a website, was a book, magazine, or newspaper. So just plop those text and images down as if it was a book, only ever intended to be viewed at one fixed resolution (say, 800x600). No smartphones yet. No apps to inspire us. No web 2.0. No emphasis on minimalism or dynamic content.

Unexpected and unpleasant things should happen with different browsers, window sizes, etc.

That site would have been considered remarkably beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. As such it’s not quite realistic.

Much too legible. I recommend less contrast for the text.

I don’t see you playing with alignment? I would like more centered text personally. And long lines of text without breaks.

Why not throw in some “lorem ipsum” placeholders.

Are you using a WYSIWYG editor?

Where are your dancing hampsters?

Also is this before or after it became trendy to copy/paste all sorts of scripts into the html? Remember scrolling text on the status bar, how about those ascii things that follow your mouse around?

I’d keep an eye on your page’s size, remember we would be loading this on 56k dialup modems… if we were lucky!

Amazon always hiring. McDonald’s always hiring. Hell just about every service industry employer is hiring here.

No problem! I feel like I needed to cite everything for anybody thinking “oh, yeah right” lol. But if anyone asks, I can probably dig those up.

I’m taking note of all the prominent individuals and organizations which chose to remain on the fascist platform and thus implicitly support it.

Mhmm “trans people can’t be parents!” just like “gay people can’t be parents!”

Still waiting to learn why that is, or could it be unadulterated bigotry?

Hi, trans woman here!

There are two aspects that affect fertility specifically for trans people:

• hormone treatment (HRT) involves replacing the body’s endogenous sex hormones with those of the desired sex.
• “the surgery” or bottom surgery, which in most cases involves removal of the testies or ovaries/uterus, in addition to possible construction of desired genitalia.

The fact is most trans people don’t have access to surgery. It’s too expensive, or there are other concerns like not receiving support from doctors or therapists. Some people are simply afraid of the risks or undesirable results, which are very real as with any surgery. But it will put a final end to reproductive capacity. For now. Some of us hope one day science and technology will allow eg trans woman to conceive and carry a pregnancy.

HRT is far more accessible, and from a younger age, maybe 16 for puberty-blockers with parental consent in some areas – but this is the exception. Most trans people can’t get HRT until they are 18 and really I would say it’s more common later in life. The 20s-30s can be a particularly distressing time (sex characteristics become even more defined) when trans people find motivation and means to medically transition. But this leaves time to have children, I know many trans people who had children before transitioning.

HRT obviously will put an end to reproductive capacity, at least while taking it, and in fact may become permanent. It’s not unheard of for trans people to pause hormone therapy in order to attempt conceiving with their partner. Sometimes it works.

A better option would be freezing sperm, or I presume eggs, before starting medical transition. It’s an expensive process, and so again not affordable to many trans people regardless of their desire for children.

It should also be stated that regardless of desire for children, quite a few trans people choose to not transition, for social, career, or personal reasons. Children and marriage are a commonly given reason I’ve seen.

I guess the Vatican and far-right don’t know this, or maybe they do and pretend not to understand, although knowledge is something both claim to value. Then again I never considered the Catholic church to be experts on any sexual matters. They are usually centuries behind what science discovers in all fields. It turns out the bible isn’t a great reference book for the human endocrine system.

The best option is not only improved access to gender-affirming care (this makes trans folks happier), less discrimination and scapegoating, but also increased education about and funding for preserving fertility. Being trans doesn’t have to mean being childless.

Rural America is mostly a wasteland. It’s either where people of means deliberately choose to live away from society, or it’s people who are too ignorant, poor and/or drug-addled to have much choice. Neither group is going to be left-leaning… and that’s why when you look at electoral maps, you see all that red.

Pick a highway, any will do, travel along it and tell me what you see. I already know. One little failed town after another. They might have a dive bar or ancient gas station, but most commercial buildings will be long abandoned. If you need anything, you’ll have to find a decent city with a generic walmart, dollar general, mcdonalds, etc. Long gone are the mom-and-pop grocers, general stores, etc.

The irony is these are solid red Republican districts. Cities have major problems too, but they are full of action; plans, projects, hopes of a better future. There is no future for the average rural American.

They are frustrated and angry, as well they should be. Too bad they can’t see the forest through the trees.

I feel ya.

I’m lying here alone right now, in my noisy hovel of an apartment, scared shitless, trying to block out the sound and light, to sleep as wave after wave of sorrow washes over me. The pills really aren’t working so well lately. Hooray for “the weekend.”

For the first time in my life I’m considering substance abuse. The world mostly just disgusts me right now.

Saaaame, happy for you <3

It’s a scary world right now but we got this.

I think it’s hilarious that people are still using DOS in 2024!

Sim City 2k was the first time I used Windows 95. One of the teachers in my sixth grade class had it on their computer, and they let us take turns playing it. It seemed really amazing to those of us who grew up with more primitive computers, like Apple IIs, even Macs, various x86 clones running DOS, or occasionally Windows 3.1.

My first PC in 1998 even had Sim City 2k “Network Edition” pre-installed. Played the shit outta that game!