Hotter, Badder, and Unpopularer Takes

[John Dule]

On a tangent from that religion debate, here's a hot take: If you only believe in the physical world that can be observed scientifically, then you believe that humans are only nature+nurture, meaning that we're all just chemical reactions responding to stimulus. This in turn means that if you knew the position and velocity of all atoms in the universe, you'd be able to predict the entire future of existence. In other words, you logically have to embrace determinism and accept that humans don't have free will.

[John Dule]

On a tangent from that religion debate, here's a hot take: If you only believe in the physical world that can be observed scientifically, then you believe that humans are only nature+nurture, meaning that we're all just chemical reactions responding to stimulus. This in turn means that if you knew the position and velocity of all atoms in the universe, you'd be able to predict the entire future of existence. In other words, you logically have to embrace determinism and accept that humans don't have free will.

This literally describes my own beliefs.

Good-- I'm not saying it's a negative; I value ideological/philosophical consistency.

[John Dule]

It's one thing if a show implies that people are having sex

Erm, are you against references to the existence of sex?

You realize that you are a reference to the existence of sex, right? (obviously as the product of sex, not a participant)

I didn't say that, but I said shows should not show the sex themselves.  I do wish that they would limit implications of sex to married couples, but I only won't watch a show for something truly excessive like GoT.

I really wish premarital sex would become a massive taboo that no one would openly discuss again.

Define "showing" sex. I've seen every episode of GoT and I can promise you that they never show penetration.

[John Dule]

Game of Thrones is a trash show post season 4.

This is not even remotely a bad take. I can count the number of genuinely good post-S4 episodes on one hand.

[John Dule]

The character of Thanos in the The Avengers series is directly inspired by Hillary Clinton. Recall his "I am inevitable" statement with Hillary's "It's Her Turn." Similarly, Thanos's quest to annihilate half the world's population is reflective of Hillary's full-throated support for abortion (claiming responsibility for the killing of billions – trillions even) and of her murders committed in Benghazi and Seth Rich. Thanos is supposedly the most despicable threat to the human (and non-human) race. Who else could have inspired that?

On a similar note, Captain Marvel is supposed to be Trump. A sexy blonde (they even have similar haircuts in Endgame) who is one of the most powerful and selfless forces in the universe, originating on Earth (Trump's 2000 flirtation with running for President) disappears for a long time to help other planets (Trump and the realm of real estate) but returns to Earth to fight the final fight and defeat Thanos (for Trump, his return to the political arena).

Simply put, The Avengers is a pointed political allegory, our generation's Animal Farm.

Reminds me of this.

[John Dule]

I saw and enjoyed the first season of 24, but the time investment was too much, plus I really hated the main character's wife and daughter.

[John Dule]

Joe Biden will announce between now and May of 2020 that he will not seek re-election if he becomes president.

[John Dule]

I support compulsory voting but only for people at least 16 years old and less than 48 years old. Higher turnout for younger people provides a clear benefit to democracy, but higher turnout for older people provides a more mixed cost and benefit result for democracy.

That's a very hot take. We get bad enough results as it is, when only the people who pay attention to politics vote. Imagine how much worse things would be if you added millions more uninformed apolitical whackjobs to the mix.

[John Dule]

The idea that the intelligence level of the person propounding a position is some direct measure of its value is one of the more inane things you see in society today. Utilitarianism is an awful doctrine and it seems to be exclusively smart people who embrace it.

Mind explaining what is wrong with Utilitarianism? Never seen anyone coming out as strongly against it, though I'm not really one for philosophical debates. Agree with the intelligence part though, smart people can have insane beliefs about certain topics.

To be a pure utilitarian, you essentially have to sacrifice any belief in individual rights or freedoms you may have. I know utilitarians in real life, and this has brought them down some horrible lines of thinking.

[John Dule]

The most convincing argument for abortion rights isn't that it's "her body her choice", it's population control.

Definitely, but if the anti-vaxxers get their way using poorer arguments, there is at least the good side effect of population control. It's also probably the most convincing argument in favour of bombing Iran and the impending Uyghur genocide.

So we need population control in the US, but we should also allow in millions of Latino migrants every year to supplement our aging population? How does this even make sense?

[John Dule]

The most convincing argument for abortion rights isn't that it's "her body her choice", it's population control.

Definitely, but if the anti-vaxxers get their way using poorer arguments, there is at least the good side effect of population control. It's also probably the most convincing argument in favour of bombing Iran and the impending Uyghur genocide.

So we need population control in the US, but we should also allow in millions of Latino migrants every year to supplement our aging population? How does this even make sense?

This has always bugged me too. Media says that people should stop having babies yet encourages mass migration. The agenda is pretty clear at this point.

Jesus Christ. even "moderate" Republicans like you believe in white supremacist conspiracy theories now?

Population growth is being driven almost exclusively by births in third-world countries, while people concerned about "sustainability" tell Americans to have fewer kids, at the same time importing young migrants to prop up the failing Ponzi scheme that is the social safety net. Please explain this contradiction without calling other people names, or don't say anything at all.

[John Dule]

Most forms of bestiality should be legalized in all the states.

uh what the f**k dude

I mean if you own a large farm animal you can kill it with a freaking bolt gun or torch it to label it or something else that has a high chance of not carrying out a swift painless death and those slaughterhouses are pretty brutal. And umm imo bestiality is less torturous than this. If people say like yo, that animal cannot consent to that and it is torturous. I would say that some methods of killing and handling them are far worse, and the animal cannot consent to that either. Plus I feel like if we let this happened, maybe pedos and creeps will harass farm animals rather than people.

Agreed on all points. The bolded part is also the reason why I think sex robots will be a great asset in the future. Might prove a final solution to the Incel problem.

[John Dule]

Joe Biden is the Jeb Bush of the 2020 Democratic Presidential Primaries.

Who's Trump?

[John Dule]

Atlas has become 99% unreadable in the recent months due to a large influx of bigots, and calling it a liberal echochamber is hilarious. We have a guy still prancing around after having a Hitler quote in his sig, and several posters who consistently appear to make the most disgusting transphobic and homophobic comments in every thread vaguely related to these issues. If anyone made these types of comments but with racism, they'd be rightfully banned, but by tolerating them this site is quickly becoming toxic fo LGBT+ people and honestly anyone who is a halfway decent person. Sad!

You called me homophobic yesterday for saying I didn't like drag queen story hour. Simply put, I question your ability to accurately identify bigotry without projecting your own personal vendettas onto others.

[John Dule]

This one is mine, I want a complete and total nazi to run for presidency as an independent with the armband, the hate speech, the hitler salutes, the whole nine yards, and blame Trump and say he is not with the white people etc, and siphon off a point or two from the republicans.

Have you considered that that Nazi could insight violence against minorities from his followers?

Thank you for this inciteful comment.

[John Dule]

There is a very massive chasm lying in between the ideologies of Karl Marx and the ideologies of Vladimir Lenin, of which those 2 ideologies are wholly incompatible with each other.

Sadly, the same argument applies to Paul Ryan and Ayn Rand.

[John Dule]

There is a very massive chasm lying in between the ideologies of Karl Marx and the ideologies of Vladimir Lenin, of which those 2 ideologies are wholly incompatible with each other.

Sadly, the same argument applies to Paul Ryan and Ayn Rand.

Does it? Serious question.

Paul Ryan calls himself a Christian; you can't really be an adherent to Objectivism and still be a religious person. One of Rand's core convictions was the rejection of the immaterial, and she agreed with Nietzsche on Christianity's immoral fetishization of selflessness.

I like Rand even though I disagree with her on a lot of things. Ryan, however, is just a hack who either didn't understand her work or is posing as a person of faith in order to score political points (both are plausible).

[John Dule]

There is a very massive chasm lying in between the ideologies of Karl Marx and the ideologies of Vladimir Lenin, of which those 2 ideologies are wholly incompatible with each other.

Sadly, the same argument applies to Paul Ryan and Ayn Rand.

Does it? Serious question.

Paul Ryan calls himself a Christian; you can't really be an adherent to Objectivism and still be a religious person. One of Rand's core convictions was the rejection of the immaterial, and she agreed with Nietzsche on Christianity's immoral fetishization of selflessness.

I like Rand even though I disagree with her on a lot of things. Ryan, however, is just a hack who either didn't understand her work or is posing as a person of faith in order to score political points (both are plausible).

He said it influenced him, not that he's an Objectivist.

Regardless, I don't see how she could've influenced him in any meaningful way if he genuinely understood what she was saying. While it makes sense to take good ideas from different places, Rand and Jesus are so philosophically different that anyone who claims to hold their values simultaneously gives me pause. It's akin to someone calling themselves a "Nietzchean Christian" or a "Libertarian Hobbesian."

Oh wait, I'm a Libertarian Hobbesian...

[John Dule]

I have no idea what compels people to feel that they have to "give back" to their communities. Community organizers, community service, community activism... none of it makes sense to me. I cannot fathom why anyone would want to be in contact with their neighbors any more than they absolutely have to. I assume that anyone who does these things is either a liar or has an ulterior motive. Either they enjoy having the illusion of power (in the case of certain community positions), or they are being forced to do it for legal reasons. Mostly I assume that they're status-seekers and want to give off the appearance of being kind and virtuous people. I have no patience for anyone who invests that much time in trying to impress others, so I have deep disdain for anyone who does community service for this reason.

This is why I find Andrew Yang so heartbreakingly naive. He's said multiple times that if people have more money and thereby more free time, they'll spend that time volunteering. Every time he makes that claim, I have to suppress my laughter. You're going to give me $12,000 a year, and you expect me to... what? Volunteer at a soup kitchen? Sorry, but whether you give me twelve thousand or twelve million dollars, I'm still going to be the same person I always was. My time is way more valuable to me than the opinions of other people. I don't care if you volunteered to clean up a highway or flew to Ecuador to build houses for impoverished hill people. It's all just virtue-signaling.

[John Dule]

Isn't actually taking action to help society the opposite of what most people mean by virtue signaling?

Yes, but I like the term and I think it should be applied more broadly, to everything from volunteer work to church attendance. For example, I'd say that a lot of people on both sides of the abortion debate are virtue-signalers, simply because they're investing so much time and energy into something that barely even affects them.

Anyway, Parochial is right-- I'm also sick of these perseverance porn stories about a community coming together to pay for little Timmy's chemotherapy bills. Yay, let's celebrate the fact that people in this country can't afford health coverage! Everybody cheer for the race to the bottom!

[John Dule]

John Dule’s, uh, thing is a major reason I turned against libertarianism.

Fair enough. It's a major reason I turned towards it.

[John Dule]

Just like Medicare itself was so unpopular, am I right?

Just change your profile pic already, dude.

[John Dule]

Nixon literally went over the sitting president's head to communicate with a hostile foreign adversary in order to prolong a conflict so he could win an election. Worst president ever, surpassed only by Buchanan (maybe).

[John Dule]

People who couldn't see Dany was going to go insane are terrible at actually paying attention to the show.

This is in no way a defense of the inexplicably awful writing of Season 8, of course.

Both of these takes are correct. It was the logical course for the character and she was always a terrible person. It's just that the execution of it was terrible.

[John Dule]

If you believe in objective morality, you are not very smart.