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PaperclipPerfector  1yr ago (text post)   2728 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for July 7, 2023

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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Too much value available from actual work, relative to hobbies? If I had a stronger sense that the time I expend on hobbies could be directly traded off into significant improvements in my and my family's standard of living and prospects, I'd probably hobby less and work more.

It's not that we don't have hobbies, but they're usually not as involved, or certainly not as physical or craftsmanship oriented.

This is especially the case for men, since women tend to have hobbies here that would be unremarkable in the States.

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A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


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