I typically feel pretty disconnected when a major public figure passes away, but this one really got to me. Dr. Goodall was one of my heroes... I read a couple of her books when I was much younger and had dreams of being a primatologist.

It was so gratifying to see her turn into a global leader in conservation, compassion, and peace. I had a former supervisor who got to meet her personally at a conference on wildlife conservation in Africa several years ago (I was quite jealous)... I was fortunate to see her speak publicly though.

RIP Jane Goodall!

Wow, you've really got it out for Carl Sagan (of all people)! Why is it required that he be something other than a "mediocrity" in philosophy and theology? He was an astronomer and (more importantly in my opinion) an incredible science communicator. That doesn't necessitate also being an expert in the study of religion, faith, and philosophy.

> Why is it required that he be something other than a "mediocrity" in philosophy and theology?

Because as a general rule, if you're going to engage in commentary of a subject matter, you should know what you're talking about. Many people, including many scientists (certainly among the vocal ones), fail to mind the bounds of their narrow domain of expertise and tread unwittingly into philosophical territory, all the while believing their views are scientific in nature. This happens all the time with materialism, which is not a metaphysical position entailed by science, but nonetheless is often presented as if it were and sold to the public as a package deal. Sagan was certainly guilty of that, that and his whiggish view of history.

Huge fan of Sly and the Family Stone, sorry to hear about this loss. "A Family Affair" is one of my all time favorite songs (and one of my go-to karaoke songs :)

You're right on the money here. One could argue that much of our current administrative "direction" is coming from either a combination of Project 2025 and whatever the current programming is on Fox News.

The project 2025 stuff is pretty much all they have to go on. Literally, they are looking any plan whatsoever, and this was the 'whatsoever'.

If you want to steer the next admin, go grab the $20/mo Claude subscription, work with it for about a month, and make 'Project 2027' out of it. Make sure to me all macho about it too, the more silver screen and 1980s bicep movie images, the better. Use lots of quotes that mean mostly nothing, but sound good. Really, most boomer FB pages are already there. Copy the project 2025 boilerplate formatting.

Then, look, these guys are just like bulls with rings in their nose. They'll google about for about 30 seconds and just go on the first hit there. Make sure your project 2027 is the first hit for the SEO words you think they'll use.

You can put pretty much whatever you want in that. Why? Because no one else is doing this. If you are willing to put up with the smell, you can make a lot of change for the post-midterms admin. These guys are morons, yes, but above that, they are lazy

Good lord what if I feed Claude a diet of Trumpwave

Off topic to the thread, but that was a surprisingly good movie!

I think the author's main argument is interesting, and despite the good counter arguments already made in this thread (health care, car dependency, social isolation), it does make me think a bit about where I could possibly retire. I live in a smallish, highly-desirable city just north of Seattle that - while being pleasant to live in - is becoming extremely expensive.

For me, one of the biggest issues with living out in a small rural town like this is the culture. From my experience, the majority of rural areas in the United States are now extremely politically conservative. Going anywhere outside of the Puget Sound metroplex always reminds me of this reality... lots of MAGA and confederate flags, billboards promoting the latest ultra right wing candidate, etc.

But you also can't just cut taxes forever. The tax cuts being proposed by the current Republican budget are projected to add even more to the deficit.

I don't disagree with you - I'm in favor of both slashing spending and increasing taxes.

It seems as though republicans like to decrease both spending and taxes while democrats like to increase both spending and taxes. Both strategies are not helpful when it comes to national debt. Perhaps when democrats come to power again they will be wise and raise taxes without restoring all the spending/programs Trump cut.

"The dystopic open-air homeless cities of the west coast"? Hyperbolic much?

My on-the-ground experience visiting Portland, Seattle, and LA in just the last few years showed me all I needed to know. I'm not being hyperbolic. Compared to the rest of the country, it's not even a contest.

I assume your being facetious?

No? Small businesses like that are what make cities great.

If you think “garage coffeeshop” is a fast track to wealth, boy do I have news!

Am I not going to make it in the next YC class with that pitch? Guess it's time to start from square 1

- Subscription model that gives you guides and connects you to vendors to open a 3k garage coffeeshop under a shared name. You can be your own boss and we collect beautiful / plentiful / gracious MRR.

Coffee, reimagined with Ai crypto. Cryoffii.

It's not about monetizing friendship, it's about providing comfortable places where events like this can happen all over the city/country. People want this community but it kinda sucks to do (and mostly won't happen) if you're meeting up monthly on chairs in a city street. If small neighborhood pubs and coffee shops were legal to build...

I have heard about areas in rural Wisconsin where front porches have been converted into very small bars. Low overhead, serving primarily to your neighbors, and no doubt creating community.