SomeAmateur

@SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How do people force themselves to write something, even if they're NOT inspired?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Just like when you feel like not doing anything else, you just get going and sometimes just starting anyway pays off and you get into a good flow

• "youraislopbores.me" a site that functions like AI chat sites, but with users taking turns prompting and replyingyouraislopbores.me ↗
  Submitted ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩ to ⁨internetisawesome@sh.itjust.works⁩ | ⁨1⁩ ⁨comment⁩
• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why is us rail travel so expensive?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  It sucks because trains are great, but money and regulations are the general answer. Air travel gets tons of kickbacks from the government, and most airlines don’t even pay taxes on fuel. Also planes fly on the air but trains need rails, land to put it on and maintenance to keep it running.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨I worry that reading through Marxist books would be boring. Are there any fun and exciting ways to study without losing focus or getting bored quickly?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  I agree, to keep with the athlete analogy that was used earlier a teacher is like a coach.

  You don’t need them really, you could put in all the work yourself and get results. But a good teacher/coach can help you set priorities, avoid common setbacks and keep you on track.

  Learning something new is never easy, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make it way less difficult with help

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Sometimes I use ChatGPT to generate the stories that I would write but can't. Does anyone have tips on writing better after using ChatGPT for generating stories?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  My apologies, in that case it was a different Dylan!

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Sometimes I use ChatGPT to generate the stories that I would write but can't. Does anyone have tips on writing better after using ChatGPT for generating stories?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Once there was a commenter named Dylan.

  Dylan wanted to become a writer. Oh, the tales he wished to weave! The worlds he could build! But there was a problem. He didn’t quite know how to write. Now, though he was no dummy. He could use a pen and paper or type on a keyboard just like you and me, if not better! But the problem was stories don’t write themselves. That takes practice and effort.

  “How dreadful!” He thought. “But I have an idea! I’ll ask friend Chad to write for me. He’s a clever lad! He’s read everything ever put to into writing so he’ll know just what I’d like to do.”

  So the next time they met, he asked him. “Chad, I’m trying to write a story…” And he would describe the tale he sought. The world that seemed so vibrant in his head. Chad set to work and finally handed him a page. “Like this?”

  It wasn’t quite what he wanted. Not at all. It was rather bland, to be honest. Chad was smart all right, but he was no mind reader and was more inclined for cubicle work anyway.

  Chad apologized “I’m sorry Dylan, but if you ever find the type of story you’re looking for I’d love to read it!”

  So Dylan set off for home, dismayed. “How…” he thought. “How can I get these stories out? I still have never written a story in my days!” he wished for an easier way. Some way to unleash his thoughts…

  He set to it. He sat down with a pad of paper and a keyboard and his favorite drink and he dared himself. “20 minutes. That’s a start. I’ll sit here and write for 20 minutes and we’ll see.”

  The minutes goaned by and his brain seemed to creak and sputter. Like the dust of ages wearing off and tiny sprouts of beauty taking their place, but not blooming. Soon there it was.

  And it was horrendous. It was like a stick figure. No, not even. A rough sketch of a stick figure. But it was his. And from then on, he wrote when he could or when inspiration struck. Sometimes when he thought inspiration would never be seen again but he sat down anyway out of spite.

  He took notes when ideas did eventually sprang up, like that brilliant one on lunch break! He made characters and gave them life. One page turned to a few. Revisions were made, how foolish he was at first! He formed and shaped his world. Add a little, take some away. Again, again!

  In time, his good time he had it. A complete tale! And it was beautiful, not because it was new or revolutionary or witty. But because it was his.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Are defense attorneys ‘good people’?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Look at how many arrests take place in the US. Basic googling gives me 10mil in 2019.

  People talk shit on how bad police departments are. So how many people got arrested, accused of something they truly didn’t do?

  That’s why. Their job is to provide pushback, to play devils advocate to make sure a case is more than just blind accusations. A defense attourney is there to keep a prosecution from turning into a witch hunt.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Sway⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Same!

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What is hubris as an adjective?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Prideful?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Hooch!⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Grandma’s couch and cell structures, the only places UCP works

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What's the deal with people liking old devices?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  1. Cheap. Why spend the high prices of modern stuff when you can salvage old things for little to nothing. People will give you tons of outdated things if you ask nicely.

  2. Less wasteful. If you can keep old stuff going, you keep it out of a landfill. It also means less new production is needed. In other words…

  3. Says fuck you to corporations. Right to repair is a thorn in the side of many greedy business models that push cheaply made products made to be tossed and replaced over and over.

  4. It’s someting to tinker with. Some people just want plug and play, but others want to rig up some crazy rigs and keep them going just to challenge themselves and get bragging rights

  5. Vibes. Some people are into old school film cameras, or arcade cabinets, or classic cars, or retro fashion. Playing with relatively ancient technology is just another way of keeping the good parts of the past alive.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If I decided to convert from [insert lack of religion] to Amish, would they allow me to bring my Casio graphing calculator to continue my math studies?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  The thing about amish is they accept or reject a tool or technology based on whether the community will benefit or not. So a few may have cell phones, or get to use tractors etc.

  But it varies a lot from community to community. I’ve seen amish run electronic distribution companies (miller tech), side by sides, e scooters and even one amish guy tearing it up on a One Wheel.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨That's how the world works.⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  That’s the thing, they didn’t think society was going to fail, even though they’d been through the depression, a world war, the oil crisis, blizzards etc. They weren’t the only ones either, they were essentially in a suburb and they knew their neighbors well

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨That's how the world works.⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Prepping gets a bad rap from the crazy people building bunkers and zombie traps that people saw on reality tv.

  I look at what my grandparents had. They had a garden and canned quite a bit of stuff. They had tools and enough stuff on hand to do basic maintenance and repairs on roofs, plumbing and cars. They sewed quilts and baked their own bread regularly. They had enough cash saved to make sudden purchases for anything else. They had a shotgun for emergencies.

  That doesn’t sound crazy or paranoid, but resilient. I know most people can’t do all of that but it would be nice to get closer to the mindset that governments and companies are nice but may not always be able or willing to help you.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨I am an American. I used to be proud of my country. Now it feels like a turd circling the drain. Is there anything going on behind the scene that America is actually doing good in?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  The US military is well known for flushing money down the drain in contracts and keeping old systems running beyond their intended lifespan. The US production of replacement ships and aircraft is taking a long time.

  China is building new ships and aircraft like crazy. For example in 2025 the US Navy commissioned a whole 2 ships, a sub and a frigate. China built 18, including a new carrier.

  GDP or not, China is making it happen.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨I am an American. I used to be proud of my country. Now it feels like a turd circling the drain. Is there anything going on behind the scene that America is actually doing good in?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  They better figure defense out too, China isn’t building a massive military for nothing

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why are people so rude on Reddit compared to the Fediverse?⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  yep the smaller subs feel like a whole different website. The main pages have so much political doom and rage bait in my experience.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How come in American classrooms they make another language an elective. Why not teach our kids as many languages possible that way if we go somewhere we will kind of have uper hand?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  We do, but like anything else you learn the basics and a few classes won’t make you fluent. You need immersion to get good and if you don’t use it you lose it.

  The people that use it are already in a multi language home and took the class because it’s super easy. Just about everyone else won’t use it at all outside of the classroom so everything they learn fades quickly

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How come in American classrooms they make another language an elective. Why not teach our kids as many languages possible that way if we go somewhere we will kind of have uper hand?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  Go on radio.garden and try to find foreign language music. My point is it’s wild how much English has become a common language worldwide, even if it’s not the first language

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨learning to play an instrument on your own, but how/what?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  Kazoo for the meme videos

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How does one country prepare to fight the other? With out spies? Like Iran is fortifying against a US strike. But how do they know what we will strike with and vice versa all thru history?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  War gaming, which is basically thought experiements with some rules and writing down results.

  If red team had this stuff and blue team has that stuff what would you attack and how would you defend it. If you lost it what would you do to make up for it?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What does the process of disobeying illegal military orders look like? [US]⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  You get orders to do a thing (“blow up that orphanage soldier!”)

  You ask for clarification (“that looks like a civilian target, do you mean the outpost next to it?”)

  Get claification that confirms unlawful order (“No the orphanage full of kids, level it.”)

  You are OBLIGATED BY YOUR DUTY TO INTERNATIONAL LAWS OF WAR to reject the order (“Negative, I cannot do that”) and to report others who obey unlawful orders, outside of your chain of command if neccesary (“Fine, I’ll get someone else to destroy it, you’re finished.”)

  Then you’ll likely be pulled from your unit, and face court matial where the situation will be investigated like most other court cases. (“There was an outpost nearby but the orphanage was not a legal target”)

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Is it weird that whenever there's an internet disruption, the first thing that I assume is happening is war, civil unrest, or government censorship, or some sort of conspiracy happening?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  Nope! If other nations can do it so can the US. They might be more localized and subtle or maybe they can track traffic on the internet well enough that they would prefer not to.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The fifth pocket⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  Instead of mandatory military service have mandatory conservation service?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The fifth pocket⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  It also works for zippos, airpods, pocket watches, meshtastic nodes, hand warmers, and dime bags!

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why do some car lovers oppose bike infrastructure, when more bikes would mean fewer cars on the road?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  They don’t ride bikes and they don’t see many people riding them for practical uses (work, shopping etc) so for them it’s hard to sell the idea of bike infrastructure (that they think is for mainly recreational riders) making their commute slower and not the best use of tax money.

  I get how this is flawed thinking and I want more pedestirian and bike friendly areas, but that is their perspective.

• Isometric NYC!cannoneyed.com ↗
  Submitted ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩ to ⁨internetisawesome@sh.itjust.works⁩ | ⁨1⁩ ⁨comment⁩
• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Does anyone else feel like "analog" stuff is more "tangible"?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  Right a big selling point for digital was the ability to make a ton of copies and not have to physically store it in a file cabinet or something

  Back in the day there was a fire where they stored military records and a ton of “permenant” records went up in smoke

  Really you need the ability to have both in case one fails

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If WWIII broke out tomorrow do you honestly believe america would win?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  Some people think it goes to nukes immediately. I don’t think so. It will stay sidelined like chemical weapons that were used in WW1 but avoided and unused in WW2.

  The US does not have the industrial capability that it once had and has struggled with manufacturing of electronic components. Now maybe that can be changed, but maybe not fast enough to matter. But as far as current capability they can still kick ass and are the only nation that has proven ability to project military power worldwide. As long as logistics keep up they can kick serious ass.

  China makes a ton of stuff already, and that would make a hell of a wartime production rate that can scale too. Their military is untested, but large, new and growing. They are the gorilla in the room.

  But there’s also the chance of everything falling apart where most nations desintigrate into a long term state of fracture with infighting and homeland problems overriding any possibility of winning a global fight, and therefore preventing a large world war like we’ve seen in the past. Rand calls it neomedievalism

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What do all the subgenres of music mean? How does anyone make sense of them?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩:

  everynoise.com