phikshun

Why are so many leaders in the USA not just evil, but like cartoonishly evil? Like bond villain level evil. If this is the result of a free and fair democracy then maybe democracies are overrated. It is basically a popularity contest, which when you think about it, basic means who ever has the most money is probably going to win.

That's not a plug for any other "-ism" btw so all you tankies can settle the f*** down.

It's just that you never just see a normal Joe on the podium. They're always the same kind of person. The same wide smile, charm, and smooth talk. I'm starting to think that we as a species need to evolve to the point where we savagely kill people like that on the spot.

That's obviously a joke, but also, why are humans so bad at spotting the most egregious grifters? Why are we so compelled to follow a "leader" anyway? Do we actually need one or is this just a hangover from the last few thousand years of monarchism? Maybe we're not as creative as we think.

People sometimes say that democracy is a bad system, it's just that all the other ones are worse. I think that's convenient for those people because you don't have to think any further than that. If you do, you start to wonder... Semi-modern humans have been around for a few hundred thousand years at least... And during that period there have been some very clever humans, surely many that aren't in the historical record... Is this really the best idea we have on how to get large groups of humans to work together toward common goals?

I don't buy it. Look I'm not saying I have the answer. But this has all gotten so ridiculous. America, please get your shit together. If you haven't noticed it's getting a bit hot in here and we have some very real common goals (like not going extinct) that we need to address, and like soonish m'kay.

PS. Gay people exist. Trans people exist. It's fine. The bible is just a book. All your politicians serve one master: money. It isn't a conspiracy, they're pretty open about it. The earth is round. Water is wet. Reality is here folks, it's all around you. Put down your phone and go outside.

Yeah but who cares? Twitter was dead the second Elon bought it and we all knew it.

Nah I can't do supplements, and the B12 in nutritional yeast isnt naturally occuring. Some microorganisms do produce B12 but not the ones they use to make nooch. I know, I was surprised to.

I did some more research though, and I do have a source of B12. Remember I said I was using seaweed for fertilization?

Boom: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11430774/

I can just eat the seaweed. 😂

In fact, it appears my people have a long history of eating seaweed: https://www.wildwalks-southwest.co.uk/all-about-laverbread/ (didn't know that existed!)

So I guess I'll go vegan. You win. The crickets will be disappointed that they're getting evicted but I'm sure they'll get over it.

I'm going to go 6 months eating just seaweed and potatoes, while doing blood work to check my nutrient levels. I'll let you know if I don't die 😅. Thanks for all your help.

So full economic collapse then...

Can I just say... It is a joy to argue with you. I mean that sincerely.

Okay, I read up on what sentience actually is and a few studies on insect sentience, social lives and capacity for pain. Having spent a lot of time with the little critters, I can see their point. Like they're obviously social for one. Sometimes they really seem like they're thinking. I don't know.

Let's say in principle I agree with you. How am I supposed to not die of anemia from lack of vitamin B12? I didn't want to do laying hens for obvious reasons. Mushrooms have some B12 and I do grow them, but it's not gonna be enough to keep you healthy long term. And don't say supplements or fortified foods... I need something I can grow or forage locally.

What am I missing here?

PS. I dunno know about the taste buds thing, they're okay but not delicious 😅

What if I'm not though... Can I get a few more happiness rations?

I'm nice to my crickets though. You don't have to hurt them, you just place them into the freezer and they fall asleep like it's winter time. And then you roast them and mill them into flour. Okay that part does hurt them, but they're asleep. Seems kinda peaceful.

I get that hurting a mammal with complex emotions is very unethical, but where's the limit?

What about fermented food? Tiny bacteria are alive when you eat them. They probably don't feel pain but I can't imagine they're thrilled to meet their doom.

How about mushrooms? They aren't plants, and they apparently communicate with the trees. How do you know they don't possess some kind of sentience?

What about harvesting plants? Everytime you run a combine through a field it's like an insect genocide. Even if you're only eating plants you're still eating insects because they get caught by the harvester and milled into the final product. The FDA allows up to 50 insect parts per 1/4 cup cornmeal.

What about hurting a tree? They're not sentient and cannot feel pain but I still believe it is unethical to harm a tree. Do they not deserve our empathy because they lack our human conception of sentience?

Being a good human is hard. I feel like in principle you're right but I don't know how to exist and not hurt anything ever. You're right, I don't know you. Maybe you're just a better person than I am.

I raise my own crickets on the farm and grow my own vegetables. It's basically a closed system, I compost everything. I add additional nutrients using seaweed.

How far do your plants have to travel to get to your plate? Last time I checked so-called modern farming uses a lot of petrochemicals. Organic farming isn't any better--they use so much plastic to block weeds and pests.

Also, most plant material I grow is not edible by humans. I cannot eat corn stalks. Maybe you can. It seems wasteful to compost all this biomass as there is still so much nutrition left over.

Sounds to me like your carbon footprint is higher than mine. Maybe you should try to create a farming system yourself. One that yields 100% of the daily nutrition humans require. It is not so easy.

I am glad you are vegan. Much better than eating cows. They drink too much water.

Dietary fiber. No seriously. 95% of Americans don't get enough, which leads to an unhealthy guy, which leads to inflammation and gut-brain axis disturbance.

Processed food is processed to remove fiber. Americans that eat a higher percentage of fast/processed food (ie. The poorer ones) get less fiber and more sugar, which is a bad combo for gut health.

Ever seen what other apes eat? Leaves, flowers, seeds, shoots, roots, insects, fruit and occasionally meat. In other words, they eat fiber and lots of it.

Yes. You don't have to use fish fertilizer, any nitrogen fertilizer should do the trick. I find fish fertilizer helps build good soil over time though. Also, it won't burn your plants, so it's a bit more user friendly than chemical fertilizer.

Usually it comes in a plastic jug and you have to dilute it quite a bit before using. Just follow the instructions on the package.

Once the pumpkins start growing it's gonna get pretty potassium hungry. You can switch over to a seaweed fertilizer to get nice big pumpkins. But it needs lots of leaves and plenty of sun first, to fix the necessary carbon.

Either low on nitrogen or the soil pH is way off. You should have a lot more leaves before it starts flowering, and they should be greener. Some fish fertilizer might pep it up.

No it can't