birdwing

@birdwing@lemmy.blahaj.zone

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK: starting Feb. 1, passengers arriving at US airports nationwide without a REAL ID or another acceptable form of identification, such as a passport, will face a $45 fee⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  People in the EU/EEA can fly within the EU using an European ID, rather than passport.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨PSA⁩ ⁨⁨7⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  The important indicator imo isn’t dysphoria per se, but euphoria. If you for example were to feel fine either way but feel happier being a guy, then that’s a good one.

  The way I came out was basically figure out how certain I was of it, then tell to my most trusted people, then spread outward.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨deGoogle Your Life⁩ ⁨⁨7⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  Would add PeerTube for youtube replacements

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨deGoogle Your Life⁩ ⁨⁨10⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  Very good list, this is recommendable.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Deuterostomes⁩ ⁨⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  According to Wikipedia:

  In a multicellular organism, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in a structural unit to serve a common function.

  Following that, the oldest organ that forms, is actually the trophoblast on day 4-5, which will give rise to all non-embryonic parts.

  But let’s ignore that and only look at organs that one generally has with them for life, and only once the organ starts to actually form together as separate from pre-organ and ‘cognate organ’ cells. In other words, once the organs form as standalones.

  Correct me if I’m wrong, but that would then make the heart, as it forms by Carnegie stage 9, 25 days after fertilisation. This is before the skin proper is developed.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨PSA⁩ ⁨⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  Yep, that’s correct.

  Ironically I myself might fall under the group she allegedly thinks exists. But a critical part she (probably intentionally) misses, is that I didn’t “turn” trans because of online communities. People don’t “turn” trans, but explore their identities and figure it out, it’s a long process.

  Before exposure to more queer stuff, I already knew I didn’t like having body hair, and longed for having a womb, and so on… but I didn’t have a “name” for those together. I only knew I felt meh in my body and didn’t really feel ‘at home’.

  To take a parallel. Just because formal English doesn’t distinguish “thou” and “you” anymore*****, it doesn’t mean that English speakers don’t understand the concept of multiple people.

  • Yeah, I know of 'you lot, tha, yinz, ye, etc., shuttup shuttup ඞ. Bear with me for a second.

  Or like how Hungarian, Chinese, and Estonian do not distinguish gendered pronouns, instead having a neutral one. That doesn’t mean those people don’t know what a man, woman, or enby is.

  And to hit the nail in the coffin even more. If a language like Russian distinguishes ‘blue’ and ‘breen’ (blue-green) as standalone colours in their own right, does that mean they can distinguish them and anglophones can’t?

  No. People are familiar with them. It’s just that not all know the concept yet, and so it’s time for a nice xkcd (explanation included for the lazy).

  I don’t care if I’ve ranted too much, get a nice cookie here and enjoy. 🍪

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨PSA⁩ ⁨⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩:

  Checked Alejandra Caraballo, she is apparently a civil rights attorney and pro-queer.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What if the Epstein files are the distraction?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  There’s something that will unbrainwash a fascist, actually. It’s called a weapon.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Question for the Americans. If Canada, Venezuela, Mexico, or Greenland dropped a nuke on Washington DC, would you be angry at the bomb dropper, or would you think we had that coming?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Nice try, fed

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why there is no clock that displays time 4:20:69 ?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  In the decimal time I designed, this should be possible.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK how to protect yourself at a protest⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Leopold II, King of the Belgians, wants to know your location

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Are there any women here who felt they didn't deserve to be called women?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  A trans man doesn’t identify as a woman though.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨I consider myself as a left-libertarian who supports limited government and direct democracy. Can left-libertarians support limited government?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  You might be interested in anarchist and council communism then, perhaps

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If the 2028 United States presidential election was held today, who would you vote for?⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Not if a certain orange is held at gunpoint.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If the 2028 United States presidential election was held today, who would you vote for?⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  The constitution didn’t prevent a felon and rapist from becoming a president. I say the constitution is dead and needs to be replaced by one in where socialism is prevalent.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If the 2028 United States presidential election was held today, who would you vote for?⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Mamdani.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What are some ways to fight for socialism from the comfort of your room?⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  There is no establishing of any ideology without action. So I’m not gonna list stuff you can do with just sitting there. But some of them are easier than others, that is true.

  That said, here are ten points. I’m using “socialism” here in its nigh broadest sense possible, covering anything from anarchist communism to social democracy, but excepting totalitarianist forms insofar they are anti-worker.

  You don’t need to do all of these; any of them helps. And to me, anyone opposing fascism and totalitarianism, is my friend.

  1. Become a member of a socialist/pro-worker group, e.g. of a socialist party or work at a worker co-op. Alternatively and maliciously, become member of a more right-wing party, and vote more left on issues.
  2. Become a member of a trade union and strike along when necessary. Consult them for labour matters.
  3. Promote socialism, whether it’s putting up socialism-promoting posters on far-right posters, removing fascist stickers, or discussing it online (you don’t even need to call it by its name, but you need to distinguish it from the broken stuff that’s there).
  4. Support and use socialist media and products. Ironic as it sounds, you can subscribe (whether paid or not) to one, like that of Jacobin, support anarchist publishings as well. Buy from socialism-friendly/neutral countries, or if there’s no other option, from socialist states such as China, Cuba, and so on. Read works from authors like Kropotkin, give it some thought.
  5. Don’t give fascists a podium. Don’t cite them, don’t promote them, don’t read their nonsense and only keep yourself informed to the extent necessary to keep yourself and your loved ones safe. You already know.
  6. Question fascists and their “allies”. If you notice anyone in your circles being far right, and you stand strong in your convictions, and know to not be convinced by their arguments: question their thought. Don’t criticse, but question. Do this very gradually. Make them feel like you’re a hearing ear. Talk about socialism without talking about it as socialism. When they eventually might break with their fascist thought, and want pointers, gradually nudge them to the left.
  7. Only invest in socialism-friendly incentives. This applies especially if you’re wealthy and rich. Those can be certified B corporations, worker co-operatives (they have certificates rather than stocks), unionised companies, and support a socialist party. Keep in mind that it costs less to have a society with great wellbeing, than to pay for a lot of guards which may or may not be corrupt.
  8. Don’t buy from fascists. Don’t buy from (big) companies that are anti-union, anti-privacy, have a techbro for a CEO, yadda yadda - you know it. Buy local, buy small.
  9. Be armed, trained, and prepared. Know where and how to keep yourself safe and hide, seek out the vulnerable and help them. Krav Maga is something you can train at home.
  10. Direct action. Be that charity, protesting, insurrection: all is legitimate. Seek out the vulnerable and lonely, and help them. Don’t talk all about socialism to them, just help them. That will give better effect in the long end.

  And remember: whoever is not a fascist and tolerates social democrats and socialists, is your friend!

  We don’t need to constantly criticise them nor people from our ranks too harshly, when they’re there. What we need, is to focus on what we share: and to focus on defeating fasicsm.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Can socialism or communism have incentives (even without markets)?⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  A gift economy is not market socialist. Let’s visualise it with a few examples, on a spectrum. I’ll add a few remarks on the politics.

  Anglo-Saxon model
  Close to “free” capitalism, in that companies experience relatively little regulation (or consequences when they behave against the general wellbeing, such as dumping sewage in rivers, and the CEOs not being held responsible). The economy is highly linked to supply and demand, but this can be very variable and thus crashes and crises will be worse for the public, and peaks as well.

  In there, hierarchy and private property play a large role; the boss ‘owns’ the machinery, through which their employees actually do the hard work to generate profit, which mostly goes to the boss. The US and to a lesser extent, the UK, are examples of this. The police and politics frequently are under the leadership of former company leaders, who earn their political power through bribery thanks to the power of companies. As such, they have an interest to repress socialism.

  Rhine model
  In there, labour union, company, and government leaders, often collectively negotiate with each other. Generally, regulation is higher, with an accent on family, friends, and social workers first taking care of the impoverished and disabled, and after that, the state. The market does play a role, but there is a relatively greater degree of social security - Germany is an archetypical example of this. These seem to mostly occur in countries that do not have a political duopoly, since groups have to negotiate more often to govern.

  Mediterranean model
  Similar to the Rhine model, although with a strong accent on care for the elderly with high pensions. I unfortunately do not know much of this one, otherwise. Italy and Spain are examples. Co-operatives and family companies tend to be very common in these.

  Nordic model The most extensively socialised form of a capitalist market economy; it has strong wellbeing and labour protections, and provides a “from the cradle to the grave” model. The Nordic countries are good examples of these.

  In good years, the state saves up the profit so that in bad years the state may be able to cover the fall; the public as thus does not experience much of financial crises. In my opinion, this is one that has worked very well; but my main criticism for this model (although much less than on other models) is that economical leadership is still in the hands of CEOs. Were these to be supervised by e.g. trade unions instead, and were labour decentrally organised, I think this model would go a long end towards democratic market socialism. And thus we enter;

  Market socialism Which functionally encompasses just that; like the Nordic model, it increases socioeconomic equality by a great extent; but the problem is that it does not change the pattern of ownership too fundamentally. Supply and demand also still influence the market, and that might be g

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Can socialism or communism have incentives (even without markets)?⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Labour vouchers are different. They’re a bit of the “work an hour, you can buy something that takes an hour to work for it with it”.

  The upside they have, is that unlike money, such labour vouchers are not transferrable from person to person, nor for any means of production. Therefore, they can’t become capital. It also ensures that there’s no way to accumulate money by having a lot of money - you either work for the voucher or you can’t buy.

  The issue with such labour vouchers however, is that they still tie your worth to a sort of wage. It’s money, just by another means. So people who work 60 hours a week and burn themselves out, would have an advantage, whereas people who couldn’t work, would have issues. Sure, that could be taken into account, but essentially it retains a form of wage labour.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Can socialism or communism have incentives (even without markets)?⁩ ⁨⁨6⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  There’s the principle of “give it forward” which could be used in a gift economy.

  If you want something at a bar, you don’t order for yourself, but for someone else. It fosters solidarity.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If the color of the Sun was orange, wouldn't the clouds and everything white also be orange? My friend is adamant that 30 years ago the "real" Sun was orange but got replaced with a white LED.⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  Good point, thanks for the addition/correction. I didn’t know A existed, you learn something new everyday :)

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If the color of the Sun was orange, wouldn't the clouds and everything white also be orange? My friend is adamant that 30 years ago the "real" Sun was orange but got replaced with a white LED.⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  No, the sun’s real colour image is white, but due to our nitrogen-oxygen and ozone layer atmosphere filtering certain light, it comes out blue, iirc.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK: Europe Can Wreak HAVOC On America Without Firing a Bullet.⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  While it economically can, we should also be able to military defend all Europe ourselves.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨The more you learn about human biology and childbirths, the more you'd realize how shitty and inferior this form of existence is...⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  That’s the same reason for me, I want to birth children even though I sadly can’t due to lacking a uterus. I actually like the idea of undergoing pregnancy.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Tradition is just bullying by dead people⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  List of things the fictional God did that broke their own commandments, or hypocritical moments:

  • God claiming to be the sole God (in the Bible itself, references to other deities with apparent powers exist such as Ba’al)
  • God claiming that people shall worship no other gods: see above. Insecure, much?
  • No making of images (while they make humans in their image)
  • No taking their name in vain (scorns others regularly)
  • Remembering and observing the sabbath (doesn’t even do it themselves)
  • Honouring parents (doesn’t even have any parents themselves)
  • Thou shalt not kill (literally the whole flood, firstborn kills, Sodom and Gomorrah, etc.)
  • No committing adultery (God doesn’t even do sex themselves I think)
  • No stealing (they steal immortality from humanity)
  • No lying (lies to Isaac to make him offer his own son)
  • Don’t be envious of other peoples’ partners and stuff (didn’t like that humans became self-conscious, handicapped the garden’s snake for givinf that, killed people in Sodom and Gomorrah because they were probably queer)
  • Set up stones bc I said so (if God is almighty then why do they not simply put this thought into everyone?)

  In a nutshell, God is a raging insecure hypocrite.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨To independently invent the concept of writing in which sounds are encoded into symbols from which an infinite number of words can be assembled, you must be a genius⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  Writing was invented independently across multiple places and times.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨xkcd #3184: Funny Numbers⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Ah then it’s prbably one of the sign languages, mine does not do it like that.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨xkcd #3184: Funny Numbers⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  I don’t get the 258 and 84 one, also deaf.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If president abductions are something that can apparently just happen how come Putin or Kim Jong Un aren't in some foreign prison right now?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  also, kim has nukes.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If the protests in Iran win/topple the government what will it look like immediately afterwards? Also what would be the good or bad about installing a monarchy again?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Bad: someone being ruler purely for being born out of a specific cunt.

  The good would be that it’s slightly less theocratic, probably.

  True democracy can only come with workplace democracy - that being one in where you have no boss and can decide along in the workplace.