#el problema!!!! es el capitalismo!!!!!!!

[karmaphone]

when ur just trying to enjoy ur day but

[lindamccartneysstrap]

there really is a weird trend on here where people want to dunk on vegans so hard they become like. capitalism bootlickers like. Theres no ethical consumption under capitalism!!! Unless it's about animal welfare or environmentalism then OF COURSE profit-driven mega farms are the exception they would NEVER EVER abuse animals or migrant workers or cause environmental harm 😌

[wifegideonnav]

the worst part of long term depression is how fucking boring it is. like im on my knees begging my asshole brain to just let me be interested in something, anything, i don’t care what it is i just can’t take another day where the time crawls by excruciatingly slowly and i still have to do it all again tomorrow.

[thephooka]

I've been dreaming of making a webcomic for nearly half of my life, and I've just started actually working on that, but... do you think it's worth it for me to start even with the decline of the scene? White noise is quite possibly my favorite piece of media, period, and it's in a format I love, so I figure you're a good person to ask the thoughts of.

(In reference to this post, I am guessing.)

ABSOLUTELY! 100%! MAKE YOUR WEBCOMIC!! Please don't let the whinging of us old heads deter you from making a project that you're passionate about.

I think it's important to ask yourself what would make it 'worth it' in your mind. What do you want out of making a webcomic? Is it that you want to experience the act of creation? Do you have a story you need to get out? Is your goal to get a book printed? To have a large audience? To improve your artistic and storytelling skills? To make a living on your artwork? To make merch? Some of these are way harder to do today, but some of these are goals that you will reach simply by making your webcomic.

If it helps at all, I had to do a lot of this kind of talk to myself when I was starting in 2011 (less because of the scene and more because I was low in self-confidence.) The only way I could get myself to start posting WN on Smackjeeves was to remind myself that I was doing this for myself only, and maybe no one would read it, and that would be ok, because if nothing else I would be making something I love and I would learn a lot doing it. 13 years later and I'd consider my goals met, even if I stopped WN before I'm truly done with it.

(Which speaking of, I feel very strongly that unfinished or abandoned webcomics are not a waste of time for either the reader OR the creator. Just because a story doesn't get an ending--or gets an ending you don't like--doesn't mean it's without worth!!)

The webcomic scene is not going to fully disappear anytime soon--it's just suffering the same corporatization that has gripped almost every art scene at some point in some way, and I think that problem has been compounded by the consolidation of the internet into a few social media platforms. But those platforms will crumble, and the corporations will bail once they can't squeeze any more money out of webcomics. The scene won't ever been the same as it was in the 2010s, but that's how time works, and that doesn't mean it won't ever get better than it is or that there's not gems to be found now. The only way it gets better is if more people make and read webcomics!

[ukulelekatie]

one of the most annoying things about this dystopian trend of drugstores in my area locking up their toiletries and other personal care products behind glass cases in an attempt to prevent shoplifting is that it takes away your ability to just shop around. like if I go in wanting to try a different kind of shampoo, how am I supposed to pick up a bottle and read the info and ingredients on the back and make sure I like how it smells before deciding whether or not to put it in my basket? I guess I can still do that but then I have to do it with an audience watching me which makes me extremely uncomfortable, not to mention that I’d be wasting the time of a retail worker who is probably too busy and not paid nearly enough to stand there and supervise me committing Chidi Anagonye levels of indecisiveness over a bottle of shampoo

[bitchfitch]

it is once again that time of the month where I go through the sysiphean torture maze that is Walgreens and my insurances war on me getting my meds consistently.

I just got out of my pill shrink appointment and she, the best doctor on the planet, had the brilliant idea to send off the refill request at the beginning of the appointment, and then call them while on the line with me at the end of it to make sure it gets through

And. It's so funny listening to a doctor chew out the poor insurance guy. "So this medication, which is not controlled, has no significant side effects, and is covered under your policy is being denied why?" "Bc he hasn't taken Adderall -" "he had a heart attack last month and has a history of strokes." "I see that note. I'm pushing it through for approval... it should only take a few days before it's sent off to the pharmacy" "And the Prozac? (a controlled substance that is known to cause addiction)" "Oh yeah the pharmacy is showing that'll be ready tomorrow." "Do you see the disconnect here?"

Anyways we're now trying to see if ordering the qelbree in 3 month supplys reduces the number of times I have to do the sysiphean torture maze that is trying to get my fucking adhd meds.

I don't even take any of the fun ones.

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

you can say this about literally anything that people do to make money just like. btw.

[jadesage]

I don't mean to complain, and I know that so many people have things worse.

But I just wish I could be comfortable.

That I didn't have to worry about whether or not I could pay all my bills or get groceries if I'm sick or my Sister is sick.

That I could have enough money to be able to have savings for emergencies like hospital visits, or car problems.

That I could have enough money to deal with all my medical issues, instead of constantly putting them off (and hoping that none of my medical issues get so bad I have to deal with them anyway, and get into more debt).

That I could get myself little treats every so often without worrying that I only had extra money because I forgot an important thing I needed to pay for.

That I had enough money where I could buy gifts for my loved ones without having to plan months in advance and scrimping and saving and having less food for a while so I could afford them.

That I could afford to travel to our Family Reunion every year (again, without having to scrimp and save for half a year to afford the hotel/gas/food for the trip).

Or even be able to afford to go on trips that weren't just limited to Reunions or Funerals.

It would be nice to have a small home, just enough space so I can have a bedroom and an office/art studio. That I wouldn't have to constantly worry about a landlord pricing me out of my home, because every years prices go up, but wages stay the same.

I know I am very fortunate with what I have; but I just want so much better, for both myself and everyone.

I hate that it feels like so many are suffering and struggling, both financially, mentally, and physically. It's not right that so many people are just barely surviving.

[oattoast]

im just flabbergasted that californians voted the opposite of me in most propositions on the ballot. we voted NOT to abolish prison slavery. we voted against a minimum wage increase. we voted against rent control despite skyrocketing housing costs and homelessness. we increased penalties for nonviolent theft and drug crimes (walking back a measure that lowered them to misdemeanors and saved taxpayers untold amounts and kept people out of prison). we voted to punish an HIV/aids healthcare nonprofit and restrict how it spends its money (a measure brought onto the ballot by landlords and housing developers as retaliation for that org supporting housing related causes like the rent control measure). just about the only progressive thing that passed was the repeal of the same-sex marriage ban we passed in 2008 (my first election, where i obviously voted no. "no on h8!" poor teen me; if only you knew what was coming). note we do not actually have enshrined same sex marriage (yet...? <- the question mark wouldn't have been there before i saw the 2024 election results).

this is one of the more progressive states, right? i am astounded at how many californians voted against our own interests and the interests of our citizens. is everyone a landlord? is everyone rich? does everyone have stakes in prison slavery? we couldn't say no to slavery. actual slavery.

this. this is real life.

i feel like grimes clowntweeting musk "this isnt your heart" when. of course. obviously this is the ugly beating heart of a state, and a nation, founded on violence, subjugation of the other, and bigotry.

california hasn't answered for the violent mission system, and the native tribe in my area, the tongva, are not federally recognized and their lands and sacred sites are routinely violated. as children in the public school system we had lessons on the california missions and how they "converted" and "anglicized" the natives, making it sound like spanish colonization was a quaint settlement of ranchos where the natives and the spanish worked side by side to make california a "civilized" place. we built models of our favorite missions and wrote cute little reports and took field trips to these sites where uncounted people, kidnapped from their families and used as slave labor by the spanish, are still buried in unmarked graves. craft stores sold model kits of these sites. we have streets named after and statues depicting the colonizer who led the charge. in 2015 he was made a saint by the catholic church. after one of the missions was intentionally set on fire (and after a statue of the saint/colonizer was toppled) many local latinos mourned the damage of a building where countless people, some of them their own ancestors, suffered, because that's where they attended church or got married or baptized.

not to mention more recent history. our beloved dodgers who won the world series this year have their home stadium built on land seized from poor mexican american families. "chavez ravine" is the former neighborhoods of la loma, bishop, and palo verde. families who had been pushed to the poor neighborhood by racism and redlining, and thus had nowhere else to go, were violently forced out of their homes for a baseball stadium. and now their descendants wear blue caps and set off fireworks for the franchise that makes millions off of them and gives nothing back to the community (besides financial support to one of the most violent police departments in the country... and a statement in support of israel's genocide...)

this is a picture from the LA Times in 1959 showing aurora vargas, one of the very last holdouts of the battle for "chavez ravine," getting carried out of her family home by LA sherrifs deputies. i remember this image whenever my fellow poor or working class latinos spend $$$ on dodgers merch or paint dodgers murals or celebrate in the streets when they win games.

as i get older and grow more and feel more empathy and learn about our real history, i get more radical, not less. it doesn't make sense to me that my community is getting more hateful and conservative, but there is an obvious basis for it. it's ingrained, despite a popular perception of working and middle class californians being liberal and accepting. it feels like i'm fighting against a riptide. my uncle, an immigrant with dark skin who speaks broken english, is a trump supporter, and i only found out today. do i even have the right to be surprised or disappointed?

i am obviously going to retain hope, and fight where i can, when i can. i just have to be mindful of where i come from and what we are capable of when we are enmeshed in and misled by powerful, deep-seated forces on this blood-soaked land.

[carby]

I just want to run an ethically-questionable labor farm made of various animals I collected under dubious circumstances and train them to use machine guns. But instead I am required to send emails and join Teams meetings

[the-acid-pear]

Thinking of my latest fixations

[donaldtrumpsrightear]

The Monopoly Go ad interrupting my podcast: Live out your billionaire fantasy! Make money! Rent out properties!! Lavish on a passive income!!!

Me, remembering that monopoly was originally developed as a satirical socialist game to teach people there’s no way to succeed in capitalism without screwing over your fellow man and was specifically extremely anti-landlord:

[roseworth]

when god made me she said "now lets do a silly one!" and created a girl who was not built for this world

[bluberimufim]

This is gonna be a rant!

I don't usually make this kind of post but whatever. When I was like 13/14 I used to be really into this visual novel/dating sim called The Arcana. I remember being very invested in the story and the art was really pretty and inspired me a lot at the time. I ended up never finishing the game for reasons I don't remember but the other day I was feeling nostalgic and wanted closure for the central mystery bc I never actually got that far.

Except when I started playing it yesterday, I noticed that the 5 prologue chapters were different from what I remembered. Namely, they had been shortened by A LOT. And I'm sure this isn't a case of my memory being warped by 6 years of not touching the game.

Yesterday, I finished the entire prologue in an hour, but I remember it taking me much, much longer in the past. It took me days to get to the reveal that Portia and Julian are siblings and even more days to get to the meeting with thosr counselors with similar-looking names (I have a bad memory for names, sorry). And I did all of that in 45 minutes. I also remember there being scenes in the prologue that are simply not there or were rushed through. I remember spending much more time in the palace library, or hanging out with Nadia in the gardens or the balcony, or there being a whole scene where the mc stumbled into Lucio's wing a second time, followed by a choice of possibly sneaking out of the palace and having a much longer conversation with Julian at the tavern where I think you actually got a point towards his route?

And the thing I noticed is that the game now seems much more interested in pushing "premium choices" that require coins to unlock (which you can earn as you progress but you mostly buy with real money through in-game purchases). The prologue used to have two or three when I played it for the first time?? And now, in those 5 (now short) chapters, there's around 10. And coupled with the rushed-through prologue, it feels like the game is purposefully putting its plot behind a paywall. And idk how it is with the routes, but when I was 14 I got halfway through Asra and Julian's routes and there were only 2 or so premium choices in what I played.

I just got to the part where you can choose the routes and I honestly don't know if I wanna keep playing. Like, I still want to solve the mystery and see at least one ending but with all this, idk if I have it in me. I just feel so disappointed by how this game has changed over the years.

Sorry for this long rant, I'm just kinda sad.

[lookingfornoonat2pm]

[sad-emo-dip-dye]

Akutagawa August……tomorrow…….