Love the part at the coffee shop. I wonder if what you experience is general all over America. Showy kindness to service workers used to be a requirement of urban liberal manners. It showed you weren't a mean rich person and also not a vulgar poor person. Now I think the balance of power has shifted so much, the young people dispensing the coffee are so surly, the tips requested so excessive, that we're all deciding we've had enough. "Nice to service workers" used to be a mark of good character that people mentioned on dating apps. Now maybe it will be "stands up to service workers."
You're right that urban liberal manners used to entail flagrant displays of warmth and chumminess toward service workers, and it still does, for the most part, though things are creeping the other way. For me, there's an especially bitter irony, in that I worked in service for over ten years and know the hostile attitude all too well. But I'm astounded by how quickly my sympathy has dwindled now that I'm on the other side. I almost feel ashamed for how little I actually did while working those jobs, which isn't to say there weren't difficulties at all, but just how the expectation grew that I should be making a certain amount, receiving tips, etc, when I wasn't even really being of much service
It.. will only get worse it seems, a slow suicide (not with a bang but whimper), there will be no revolution or anything just plain survival of the remaining miserable souls.
As the infrastructure of the Behemoth gets harder to maintain and its precious needed resources gets scarcer, mostly important, oil, which its geopolitical implications, all of which are mystified with ideological/tribal quibbles. Everything that is solid melts into air, nothing concrete is taken seriously, no (creative) activity (natura naturans), only fantasies and fetishes, and ironically to keep those (those low effort illusions that excludes man of the equation, as you pointed out) requires an absurd amount of energy. As we see in the "AI slop" phenomena, "creating" (read: generating) whatever whims comes to mind, while datacenters require nefarious amount of energy that exploits more and more of what remains.
The credibility of things and people will lower (which again are akin to religious cultish belief), those I'm talking about are the vicarious politicians, professional class, bosses, money... everything! - - authorities, the "daddies" (or "benevolent" mommies? The artificial amniotic fluid, the Thalassocracy, those shipments from afar, the cargoes, thankfully the Houthis are maiming, in this case, it is the Whore of Babylon herself) who "does for us" remotely, reifieidly. Childish fantasies. They will all crumble, when people realize they are protagonists in their lives and *spaces*, territory, as Marx said...
As always, I appreciate the additional scholarship, mr idiot savant. Plenty to chew on here. Even if the world is ending, we have to sack up, study up as well.
What a mish-mash. I enjoyed it tremendously as ever, but I have so many questions about the assumptions made about ethical basis for these points.
For example, euthanasia - is it simply state-assisted suicide, as baldly stated here without much thought to the circumstances? Or is it a welcome relief for those who have no other outcome but agonizing pain and abject misery for the grim remainder of their lives? Have you been with a family member in such circumstances, in enormous unspeakable pain, and thought "yeah, that's alright. Uncle Jeb is just experiencing an annealling and valuable ordeal which will be uplifting for all of us"?
In my own case I have a living will specifying euthanasia in certain circumstances and I'm very glad of it.
Other points have been addressed in a separate note, and as ever I would welcome a chat about them whenever you might get a moment or two to engage. Ta ta.
"...the potential of the past lies open still, but return occurs through a bracing future, not weepy reminiscence."
Congratulations on ditching the service industry. Don't look back.
Love the part at the coffee shop. I wonder if what you experience is general all over America. Showy kindness to service workers used to be a requirement of urban liberal manners. It showed you weren't a mean rich person and also not a vulgar poor person. Now I think the balance of power has shifted so much, the young people dispensing the coffee are so surly, the tips requested so excessive, that we're all deciding we've had enough. "Nice to service workers" used to be a mark of good character that people mentioned on dating apps. Now maybe it will be "stands up to service workers."
You're right that urban liberal manners used to entail flagrant displays of warmth and chumminess toward service workers, and it still does, for the most part, though things are creeping the other way. For me, there's an especially bitter irony, in that I worked in service for over ten years and know the hostile attitude all too well. But I'm astounded by how quickly my sympathy has dwindled now that I'm on the other side. I almost feel ashamed for how little I actually did while working those jobs, which isn't to say there weren't difficulties at all, but just how the expectation grew that I should be making a certain amount, receiving tips, etc, when I wasn't even really being of much service
It.. will only get worse it seems, a slow suicide (not with a bang but whimper), there will be no revolution or anything just plain survival of the remaining miserable souls.
As the infrastructure of the Behemoth gets harder to maintain and its precious needed resources gets scarcer, mostly important, oil, which its geopolitical implications, all of which are mystified with ideological/tribal quibbles. Everything that is solid melts into air, nothing concrete is taken seriously, no (creative) activity (natura naturans), only fantasies and fetishes, and ironically to keep those (those low effort illusions that excludes man of the equation, as you pointed out) requires an absurd amount of energy. As we see in the "AI slop" phenomena, "creating" (read: generating) whatever whims comes to mind, while datacenters require nefarious amount of energy that exploits more and more of what remains.
The credibility of things and people will lower (which again are akin to religious cultish belief), those I'm talking about are the vicarious politicians, professional class, bosses, money... everything! - - authorities, the "daddies" (or "benevolent" mommies? The artificial amniotic fluid, the Thalassocracy, those shipments from afar, the cargoes, thankfully the Houthis are maiming, in this case, it is the Whore of Babylon herself) who "does for us" remotely, reifieidly. Childish fantasies. They will all crumble, when people realize they are protagonists in their lives and *spaces*, territory, as Marx said...
"Man is to become mythy again"
Will be painful dat.
May goddess or god Entr道py do something about it!
(For more ideas of the creative activity here is some good stuff https://breaktheirhaughtypower.org/history-and-realization-of-the-material-imagination/)
For doom-esque info (SCIENCE, baby!) about resources, those sites are good hubs:
https://www.artberman.com/blog/the-biggest-risks-of-this-decade/
https://energyskeptic.com/2024/why-you-cant-explain-the-iraq-war-without-mentioning-oil/
https://consciousnessofsheep.co.uk/2024/10/15/or-should-it-be-five-es-and-a-c/
https://www.simonmichaux.com/
As always, I appreciate the additional scholarship, mr idiot savant. Plenty to chew on here. Even if the world is ending, we have to sack up, study up as well.
Better than having to work in what has nothing to do with you, besides money to survive.
Teddy said those are surrogate activities, well, cut us some slack, we can't do anything better... for now!!!
(Vaneigem's formula: "Whatever is not transcended rots, and whatever is rotten incites for transcendence or supersession.")
Other philosophers say the task is "being", to be for me is doing stuff, as in, *verb* to be.
What a mish-mash. I enjoyed it tremendously as ever, but I have so many questions about the assumptions made about ethical basis for these points.
For example, euthanasia - is it simply state-assisted suicide, as baldly stated here without much thought to the circumstances? Or is it a welcome relief for those who have no other outcome but agonizing pain and abject misery for the grim remainder of their lives? Have you been with a family member in such circumstances, in enormous unspeakable pain, and thought "yeah, that's alright. Uncle Jeb is just experiencing an annealling and valuable ordeal which will be uplifting for all of us"?
In my own case I have a living will specifying euthanasia in certain circumstances and I'm very glad of it.
Other points have been addressed in a separate note, and as ever I would welcome a chat about them whenever you might get a moment or two to engage. Ta ta.
Congrats on finally getting out of service, good luck
Thanks, on behalf of Caleb, I'll definitely pass it on to him when next we chat.
Thanks, Tina