What does it mean “defenders.” Am I a defender if I’ll still go to a concert? Morrissey didn’t start saying stupid things yesterday, he was always stupid. Reading his autobiography which I have done but don’t recommend to others reveals he’s always been a pretentious weirdo without the goods to back it up, expect the musical talent.

It took some time to find its voice but when it did it became so amazing. You’re right there won’t ever be something like it. DS9 was sophisticated and nuanced.

Just compare it to modern Star Trek. In DS9 when the characters learn about Section 31 it’s a multi episode story and several characters almost go crazy from the realisation of what that actually means for the Federation.

In Discovery, everyone knows about Section 31. It’s a bunch of special ops badasses that interfere in sovereign societies’ politics and that’s A okay.

what did you think would happen when unelected elites start appointing Commissioners for Truth?

After all, as many were keen to point out during the EU/Musk row, there’s no free speech in Europe so why should there be private speech?

I see the seasoning police has arrived. It's funny and also sad that you think normal food flavors are "bland." Better drown everything in Lawry's seasoned salt and Dr Buttblast.

Thankfully, my little corner store will remain open during floods and other natural disasters as well as pandemics and such. So it will never be necessary for me to have more than 24 hours worth of food in my house.

They're not wrong. Lemmy across all its instances has a real hall monitor vibe. It's because most people here are both trans and in IT.

It seems like you like vanilla and chocolate and not plant “milk.”

There’s no other solution than to treat them the way we did the first time — with DDT.

Bedbug populations are not necessarily increasing but returning to normal pre-DDT levels.

There’s btw no reason not to use DDT. The cancer fear was overblown. Obviously it’s not a substance that should be available over the counter, but there’s no reason why qualified and trained personell shouldn’t be able to use it.

My tip would be to try finding German instances. Generally, Germans do this fediverse stuff right, they use it for everyday chill stuff in contrast to Americans who just want to discuss politics and gender all day long.

Not sure if anyone’s interested in a very specific gay Eastern European take but…

I think dating apps have fucked the LGBT community in my country.

In a way, politically and socially, these apps have benefited conservatives and homophobes because they keep gay life away from public visibility.

Of course on the other hand the apps do enable gay people who live in smaller communities to be able to meet other gay people at all.

In intimate terms, and this is the impression I also get from talking to western gay people, the apps have affected how people relate to each other. Getting sex is very easy, but getting anything else is hard.

I can count on the fingers of one hand how many gay men wanted to go out on a date from Grindr. As soon you say you don’t just want to hook up they’re not interested.

And apps have also made people very selective not just in terms of what kind of person they want but also what kind of sex. It can get really dehumanising when someone not only asks for a dick pic but also wants to see it in various states and angles before they even decide to come over. And then the “negotiations” on what will each person do to the other… it’s almost like ordering take out.

Apps have also caused physical gay meeting places like bars and club to become more boring. People come, get a drink and take out their phones.

All in all, there’s a lack of spontaneity and flirtatiousness.

For men of my generation who only know apps (I am 34) there’s also a marked deficiency in “game.” Which is to say most gay men have none. They don’t know how to flirt or be seductive or fun. They just know “I want you to fuck me like this and cum on this part of my body.”

I do see a different trend with younger gay people though. Many are either avoiding the apps or deciding not to use them for hooking up but for dating. I think this is a positive development. I don’t date very young men (youngest for me is around 25) but it seems there a lot of gay guys under 30 who do want more than just endless Grindr hookups.

When your job is writing but you can’t write very well… hard to see what can improve. Sadly my employer has a bad selection process.

Reviewing the work of a person I'll probably be firing in a few months. It's never pleasant, and I hate that the responsibility falls on me, even though I am not the one making the decisions.