VPN with a double hop ending in France or Brazil usually works for me.

inv.nadeko.net is the most reliable one, followed by yewtu.be. It gets broken every once in a while, but it always bounces back. I gotta admire that about the Invidious folks.

I haven’t gotten FreeTube to load anything in forever. What tricks are you using?

Invidious is what I’ve been using forever. On mobile, PipePipe and a VPN set to Brazil or France is the best solution.

I took him seriously. I was a teenager when Snowden leaked those documents, and I took it seriously.

Why do you think I’m here today?

Israel. It was Israel. Go figure.

🤬 Why am I not surprised?

You know what’s worse?

Being a hearing child of deaf parents.

Just … just go to a doctor. wtf. it is the 21st century.

I heard this parable for the first time in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, believe it or not.

It was during Fast Forward, one of the less popular later seasons of the 2003 show. They get blown a hundred years into the future, and have to fight the evil clones that their nemesis-of-the-season keeps throwing at them (it’s superhero sci-fi, just go with it).

Leonardo’s clone–who, much like Frankenstein’s monster, never got a real canon name–was captured and the guys tried to take the chance to show him more mercy than he’d shown them. Leo believes that since the clone is, essentially, mostly him, he is capable of change. He delivers the parable, and then asks, ‘Are you a scorpion? Or a turtle?’ Then, like an absolute madlad, deliberately gives him a chance to betray them as a test of his ability to grow. He fails… mostly. There’s a bit at the end that gives it some ambiguity, leaves the question open-ended.

Honestly, one of my all-time favorite moments in turtles, bar none. It’s rare to see such deep questions about nature and nurture asked and explored in a kid’s cartoon.

I envy that kind of freedom. But I understand having the curse of itchy feet. Some people can’t stay still.

Unpopular opinion.

People who are obsessed with winning at everything all the time, are bad at receiving criticism. They see every single miniscule issue that can arise and see only a way to make more short-term gains instead of pacing themselves, exercising patience, or being able to forgive themselves and others for their shortcomings.

People who line their walls with trophies need their egos constantly stroked, or there’s something wrong, and they take it out on everyone else.

I think you’re confusing excellence with exceptionality. I’d rather have a kid who is happy to do good in the world than a kid who’s happy to be better than other kids.

Spam musubi is one thing.

Putting this on the same level as spam musubi is an insult to spam musubi.

So cannibalize the last of your species in an imaginary race to the top that ends up being a zero-sum game? Not, “Hey, screw this dude, let’s build our own boat so all three of us can survive”?

Character from a video game (Dark Urge, Baldur’s Gate 3). Canonically one of the most evil people to have ever lived. This sleep paralysis demon has made a grave mistake.

Speaking as a punk, it’s about keeping a community a healthy, welcoming place for the 99% of people who aren’t assholes. There’s a reason why we say ‘Nazi punks fuck off.’ It’s not just a slogan or part of a song, it’s a declaration that this house will not be used as a gathering place for people who want to tear it down.