@scy
See! My advantage is that I was shaped by *Bonanza*. Things were pretty wild back then, just like they are today.

@hypolite I agree this is a disaster, you forgot to mention fuel prices as their running the damn things on generators to circumvent power grids. If billionaires are pushing money into this, how far will they go? I won't put any money into it.

Tens of thousands of volunteers have helped raise 108 Buddhist stupas in Bhutan, marking the Himalayan kingdom's ambitious plans for a "mindfulness" city aimed at driving economic growth. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/11/02/asia-pacific/buddhist-monuments-bhutan-mindfulness/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #bhutan #asia #buddhism

@wordshaper @ai6yr This, I've been encountering this style of article for my entire life almost every time I open a major publication and it definitely confirmed my sense of alienation from mainstream society and especially from feminine gender roles.
As a tween/early teen my mother house-sat for someone in exchange for use of the washing machine, and there was nothing for me to do in that house between laundry loads but read their large stock of Cosmopolitan magazines---which consisted pretty much entirely of this sort of drivel plus a few makeup reviews. (Women's Day, at my grandparents' house, wasn't much better but at least had recipes). So at least in the '80s-early '90s, this is what typical women were assumed to generally be like, apparently. If there's anything other than innate biology to make a person trans, having this style of thought attached to my AGAB might be it.

@ai6yr

Walking 15 miles from Central Library to the beach was supposed to be solitary — then I met L.A.

Ah, you must be new to this thing "L.A.". You see, L.A. is short for Los Angeles, the sprawling metropolis known for being the largest metro area in the US, and home to over 18 million people. You are also headed from the downtown area to one of the more well known beach areas along a route that is, quite possibly, the most well visited portions of the city.

You would find a more solitary experience getting on a Tokyo commuter train during morning rush hour.

@andy
If Starfleet gives officers more agency than the contemporary military, then it's just another difference the show makes about society moving toward a utopic path a few hundred years in the future.

I also agree with the comment that the Enterprise is special. Starfleet needs it to function at its peak rather than regularly dispersing its crew to staff the rest of their ships, which seem to generally carry out more mundane missions. Those posted to the Enterprise would know that.

The reason I'm an anarchist is simple: every time I have ever thought "we should improve things somewhat", there have always been rules that make it impossible.

Any time you consider making something more fair, the laws & constraints of our world as it has been constructed by humans make it nearly impossible to accomplish.

We can't stop the destruction humanity is wreaking on the world without rewriting our rules. The rules exist to specifically permit & facilitate destruction & harm.

@ai6yr for context, Brevard County contains Viera and Titusville, known for infestations of affluenza-afflicted, magaty-brain addled boomers.

To say the population there is insufferable is being charitable.

I won't go into the frankly abusive interpersonal behaviour or the copious use of White Lady Tears™️ to launder the Bells' predation and harassment.

But I will repeat that it's past time for indie publishing to warn--and *keep* warning--new and marginalised authors about these bad actors.

@MaddieM4 @hyc @th I learned SQL with paper and pencil.

Because "predatory" is the only word that applies. The Bells use the language of social justice to draw folks in, especially marginalised authors. Then, when their improper business practices (misuse of author royalty monies, for example) are exposed, they suddenly cry "but we're *allies*!"