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AmericanSaxeCoburgGothic

Happy to be here! Goal is to post the most exclamation points.

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joined 2022 November 23 20:41:30 UTC

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AmericanSaxeCoburgGothic


								

								

								
								
								

								
							
					
 
				


				
Happy to be here! Goal is to post the most exclamation points.

				
				
				

				

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					joined 2022 November 23 20:41:30 UTC
				


				
					

					
Never on reddit. Never on Twitter.



				

				

				

				

				

					

					

					
					
					

					
User ID: 1919


					
					
					
				

			


					

						
							
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				Culture War Roundup for the week of February 10, 2025
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
One distinction: homosexual men and men who have sex with men (MSM) are different terms. As far as I know, the blood donation screening questions have always been activity based, maybe very early understanding and terminology was fuzzy (GIRDS). So claims of discrimination against homosexual men are conflating terms and missing the epidemiological reason of the bans. On current blood donations, the organization I donate with asks about 'new sexual partners in the last # month', STI questions, if you have ever tested positive for HIV or taken HIV prevention medication. Questions which maybe more finely target the MSM population they want to exclude.


One time when I was donating blood an old-time volunteer about how at one point blood donation was a free HIV test, so some men would donate and then call later and ask the red cross not to use their blood.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of February 3, 2025
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
The main strategic advantage is that those areas aren't Russian or Chinese bases. The pacific territories I think also help with power projection into the Pacific Ocean.


The same reasoning I think is behind the Greenland talk. Where Greenland sits is too strategic if the arctic becomes a widely used shipping corridor. Even if Denmark keeps it but more seriously considers its defense to me that is also a win. A parallel to me is when Iceland was occupied by the British and then Canadians and Americans, to make sure the Germans didn't occupy it.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for January 31, 2025
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Tim Dillon best hits in my opinion: the corporate steak house rant, 'best podcaster in the world', 'leaving austin', describing 'big mike' to Joe Rogan, the unaired TBS tournament of laughs material, his rant on gin martinis.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of January 27, 2025
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Sorry, but as a grad school STEM student you're already eminently employable, it sucks to possibly be the cohort when the music stops (I do not think that will happen here) but the government isn't obligated to dump money in it. As someone who went through grad school unfunded, the whole system is quite unequal, but I saw funded people fail to complete their degrees and still do very well with ABD. I know the argument is that the funding gets people (including smart foreigners who will continue to work in the US after graduation) lucrative employment in the US and they will contribute to the 'scientific powerhouse' as you call it, but given how little people's coursework is often used in their later careers, and how an advanced degree just felt more of slog of mortgaging my youth for money later, I think we should look into this credentialism fueled education cost-inflation run amok and ask if there is a better way.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Transnational Thursday for January 23, 2025
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
A lot of it too I think is parents pressuring children to beget children. More so in the past, a larger family is stronger than a smaller number of family members. So while dalliances of the same-sex variety aren't extremely persecuted you still want your homosexual offspring to marry an opposite biological sex to make the family stronger.


I'm not completely sure on this point, but with same-sex marriage inheritances can fall out of the family easier with the spouse as an heir, something that could occur with opposite-sex marriages but those also have the chance of biological offspring.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of January 20, 2025
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I've often thought while Mark Zuckerberg founded and owns facebook, someone with actual business experience should have been the one running it the whole time. Zuck would have had his martial arts phase a decade earlier, and maybe Cambridge Analytica might not have happened. Having the emotional intelligence of a lizard, might have helped at the start but lately its seems he lacks the ambitious and focus necessary to have really made the company soar; to me he's obviously a weather-vane shifting with political winds. The company to me, is essentially an advertising agency selling market research which wasted its immense money and enthusiasm in its early days on trying to become something like Google, but In my opinion with aimless inexperience and really nothing to show for their wastefulness. If most your profits are from advertising to boomers, what innovation is really necessary or possible? They'll probably stay relevant, QVC is till kicking, but I count them out of tech in my book. Of course I might be wrong, Microsoft has pulled ahead with this AI when previously Google seemed the true tech innovator so who knows.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for December 13, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
One thing I realized in reflection is when Caesar Catalina can stop time, he's a stand in for the director. So the  love story between Catalina and Julia, released in the same year Francis Ford Coppola's wife passed away, and she also has the film dedicated to her, I think can help explain some of the disjointed story.


Another thought, the tone of Megapolis feels like an old-school studio made epic picture. Big name cast (Lawrence Fishburne, Jason Schwartzman, Dustin Hoffman are in total background roles) big name director, very lofty original storyline. But it is a self-produced feature, studios refused to make it (and how much money it lost seems they were right). My thought is there is less of an appetite for studios for original epics, so movie like Megapolis will never be made in the future. Hence we are stuck with reboots rehashes rather than wholly new.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of December 9, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I think merely by paying this at any sort of attention at all you are creating the market for this material.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of December 2, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Happy St. Nicholas (the bishop of Myra) Day all!


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of December 2, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
A correction to point out, Nicholas II certainly has no legitimate living descendants, the communists killed all his family and the remains for all children were identified in and around the mine shaft (Anastasia's spurious survival is disproven). Current pretenders I think are descendants of Alexander III (father of Nicholas II) or Nicholas I (grandfather of Nicholas II).


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Transnational Thursday for November 14, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I had a professor (native Russian teaching Political Science at a US university) who said that Jefferey Sachs deserved to be crucified in Russia for what he did with advising shock therapy. He also said the Russian leadership shared some blame for believing his policies.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Wellness Wednesday for November 6, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Breaking up with someone who hates who you are seems net-positive for both parties to me. I had a friend who dated a girl who cried over a beer-pong game very early in the relationship. She was overly emotional was anxious all the time. To me all disqualifiers to long-term relationship material. But I think my friend thought she would improve, she was best he could get at the time, could fix her (who knows!). But they wasted each others' time dating for several fraught years, where I think they each wanted the other to be someone they weren't, or couldn't be. Now years after the break-up now are both doing much better by all appearances by being with other people much better suited to both of them.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for November 3, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Be prepared for a lame answer, I just have a really positive outlook on life in general, I dont think I'd pay for or opt for any unusual life extension. The last person born in the 1800s died in 2017 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emma_Morano


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for November 3, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
My goal is to live long enough to see three centuries. Beyond that all my money and assets is split between my parents, in the likely event I outlive my parents will change it to my siblings or their children. Funeral-wise my only requirement is a Catholic funeral, if I anticipate having a lot of extra cash, will give money to the presiding priest, servers, pallbarers, and pay for the meal afterwards.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of October 28, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Korolev's also had the benefits of state resources, sharashkas and priority in a state planned economy go a a long way.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for November 1, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Paul Dano as the character I thought was good casting, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_%26_Peace_(2016_TV_series).


Also love the novel.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Tinker Tuesday for October 15, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Let us know how Irkutsk is. I think most non-Russians have only heard of it from the Risk board.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Friday Fun Thread for October 18, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
The key to the mother and child picture is that the child is missing the halo, and any depiction of a regular saint would be more differentiating from Mary 


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Quality Contributions Report for September 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Not so much a rant against your post, but something I've wanted to say. I'll say its different, because it is different. When I was in grad school I remember one of my colleagues said the same thing, no difference between gay marriage and marriage between a man a woman. I wanted to slap her across her face. Such unthinking ally bullshit. To see that a regular marriage can have a physical manifestation of their love that binds them, a child, and her say that my hypothetical marriage between two men would lose nothing by not having any such possibility of that was such an insulting level non-thinking, and really missing the whole point. If my uncle had wheels he'd be a bike.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for September 29, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I liked it, but it does have some significant problems. It succeeds as spectacle but not as a narrative. I want more film-makers to take chances like this, but also this wasn't a masterpiece.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for September 29, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I did see Megalopolis! Its a self-produced, self financed movie by Francis Ford Coppola! There are some superficial culture war elements that are mapped onto this neo-Roman America (death of democracy through appeal to a mob, vestal virginity, question of striving for future utopia vs present concerns?) but they were removed enough from the main storyline and really not presented 'believably' enough (there is no hammered home moralizing of the 'correct' position, and really no demonizing of the 'incorrect' position) that I don't consider the film 'waging' the culture war.


The final dedication at the end of the film, and I think cinema-insiders fears of the future of movie production are why this movie was made now.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of September 23, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I assume non-citizens would hypothetically serve non-combat roles, if there was a need for draft probably would need a lot of ditch diggers.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of September 30, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I do not see concrete proposals from Harris that realistically will be enacted for any of these issues you mention except for abortion access (same for the other candidate). I think you might be buying what the candidate is selling a little too much. If she solves all these issues, then great (except abortion access I differ from her viewpoints on that) but don't tout her as a greater reformer rather than standard democratic candidate 2.0 especially before she's done anything of substance. Its possible I just don't have the information, can you elaborate on Harris solutions for college debt, housing, the opiod crisis or fixing Medicare? Economic stagnation has J. Powell on the job. To me it sounds like every Presidential state of the union type of address where grand vague future plans are proclaimed, but the issues linger year after year.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Culture War Roundup for the week of September 23, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
Checking https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_Service_System it looks like all US male citizens from 18 - 26 are required to register for selective service, as well as resident non-citizens including: immigrants (illegal or otherwise), refugees and asylum seekers. Non-citizens exempt from registration are international students on visas, visitors (lived in the US less than a year) and diplomats. Though if an international student visa lapses they are required to register.


				

				

						

							

								
							

						


						
					

				
			


			

	


			
			
				

			
		

	






		

			
			
				Small-Scale Question Sunday for September 22, 2024
			
		

	

	

	

		
			

			

				

			

		

			


				

					
I think the male exploitation/male victim and male perpetrator definitely has a female audience that is captivated by it. I think it's idealizing a sexuality and preference with an absence of pregnancy scares, where all activity exploitative or otherwise doesn't change a persons mental status, with characters not bogged down by the 'All Women are Wonderful' and allowed to villainous.


Several years ago I rented the film 'My private Idaho' from the library (awful even, with young Keanu Reeves and River Phoenix mixes Shakespeare prose and street urchins to ill effect) where the dvd jacket had a interview with the writer JT LeRoy (I believe pre-unmasking of the author) who gives fraudulent story about her  watching the film while working as a male prostitute in the Castro district (what a bizarre cultural relic).