Personally, I have to haul heavy loads across the whole country.

You know what would work better for that though?

Trains. High speed electric trains.

I do not like having to pay off this expensive ass truck.

These freaks are really bringing me around to the idea.

Better aluminum than plastic.

But there’s plenty of that down there too.

I’m not sure any good advice I grew up with applies to this future we’re stumbling into. Learn practical skills like gardening and fixing your stuff. Buy as little as you possibly can. An affordable set of basic tools is a great thing to keep for life. Consider the state of the world long and hard before you decide to bring children into it. Never talk to the police.

Correct, Boot Camp is a filter to get rid of people who are unfit for the military, and the quote on the article at the top says “I was not made for war.”

It sounded to me like you were smearing all those men who felt they were unfit for war as all cowards, and it still does. You and I both ought to know that not everybody is fit for war. If some of them are wise enough to realize that fact, that is not cowardice. Some people are not fit to fight and that doesn’t reflect poorly upon them. That’s simply how it has always been. Some are warriors. Some are not. If we dishonor those who are not, that reflects poorly on us, not them.

Really? Because when I went to boot camp we lost almost 5% of the division due to mental health issues and behavioral problems. Only a couple of people got removed for physical issues.

Do you not believe in mental health problems or something? Is cowardice literally the only thing you think you understand?

Well it seems like you think you know these people you claim you don’t know. For instance, you keep accusing them of being fearful, and that being the only reason you can think of why people would not be willing to go to war.

Can you think of no other reason why people would be unsuited for the military and combat? Because I assure you, boot camp weeds out people who volunteer, and that the military finds unsuitable. Do you think cowardice is the only thing they look for?

Perhaps you lack imagination.

Many people cannot, correct. And that does not reflect poorly upon them simply because you can’t understand it. That’s why boot camp weeds out so many people who volunteered but still can’t hack it. Many people don’t even realize they don’t have what it takes. And you think it’s a bad thing for wiser people to recognize it in themselves?

There are plenty of reasons that make a person unsuited for combat besides fear. The unwillingness to kill another person is a big one. The awareness that you simply don’t have that kind of thing in you. Seriously, there’s no call for you to smear them like that.

I still don’t have a 4k TV either. The PS5 is friggin HUGE. My space is at a premium.

You know what? I barely play the games I already have. I should just go to the gym.

Someday, parts of what used to be you almost certainly will.

Gas giant planets, ice giant planets, rocky planets, dwarf planets.

I don’t see what the big deal is.

I’m not convinced they’re visiting us. None of the reports I’ve seen appear credible. But non-interference is often critical to scientific study. They could just be doing a decent job at hiding from us.

If they’re out there, I’d be shocked if they wouldn’t visit. Our solar system has been showing life signs for 3.5B years, and technological signs for about a century or so. There aren’t apparently many planets like ours around. We are a very tempting target for study.

It appears to be quite difficult to develop a spacefarring civilization. But there are credible models for sailing light beamed from stars, and even gravity surfing orbiting black hole pairs. The vast energies required for interstellar travel should be impossible to conceal. We ought to already be able to see them out there, if they’re close.

13.5B years is an eyeblink in the potential age of the Universe. We developed early. Perhaps not first, but very early. Intelligence and technology are difficult and expensive to develop. Our hubris may destroy us. We might easily be alone in our local neighborhood. Technological civilizations may still be rare. But once they go interplanetary, there are few ways for such a civilization to go extinct.

I’m fairly confident they’re out there somewhere. I’m sceptical that they’re close. We may be the first in our galaxy, or even the Local Group. Who can say? I don’t know.

We already had it. Musk took it away.

What right were you looking for? The right to call certain people certain words?

Jesus warned his followers to beware wolves in sheep’s clothing, only there to prey upon the flock from within.

So who else would they be besides con artist preachers?

If you’re talking about his hair, you’re not discussing his policies. He’s derailing the dialogue before it can happen, and all he has to do is deliberately look like an idiot.

“Haha, jokes on them. I only wear this haircut to look stupid ironically!”

I’d like to support solarpunk development. I just want to live a simple life, with high tech in cooperation with the environment. We need it badly. I would fund so many community libraries. Don’t misunderstand me though. I still want space travel, but I no longer trust capitalists with it.

Well, those who most benefit from the status quo also understand those concepts quite well, but oppose them.

An iron fist is certainly one way to encourage creative thinking.