We'll all be dead anyway. And I won't be having kids.

LET IT BURRRNNN

if it's anyone's fault, it's humans'

science is only a process

just like humans

#yolo

Science comes from the Latin scio "I know".

The more you know!

Orrrrrr

The more scis!

The thing about science is, it could be used for good things, but once men and women are able to influence the direction of research, we just gets loads of anti wrinkle creams, cosmetic surgeries, formula one racing cars, submarines, and laser hair removal.

'once'?

how much science happens in the absence of people?

well none.

it was a lazily constructed sentence...my mind was only half on the job. I meant - if we were worth saving, we'd use our scientific knowledge to figure useful stuff out and put it into practice. But for some reason, the humans in control of how and why we use scientific methods and knowledge, have given us laser hair removal, breast implants, jet skis and the xbox.

Yeah because the knowledge to make game consoles (I mean computer science) hasn't had practical uses. And it's not like lasers were invented for the sole purpose of removing hair. Or that jet skis were a scientific breakthrough ("eureka! I have found a way to make a small single person boat! the nobel prize is mine!") I think a lot of these are byproducts of actually useful scientific research/advances. Like LSD was a byproduct of researching drugs for migraines (well it kinda worked anyway, one hit of LSD and you'll probably forget about whatever headache you were having)

well I'm not disputing that.

Just that jet skis and xboxes and laser hair removal and fake boobs and anti wrinkle cream are pretty useless but we spend a lot of time developing them, transporting them, marketing them, retailing them, using them...we could be planting various hybrid seeds to test for resiliency to changes in soil acidity, or working out why humans are always fighting with each other and trying to prevent that. But we're not. We're too busy exfoliating or jacking off to porn, or playing video games, or eating mass produced food.

I think we have worked out why humans are always fighting with each other. One if the big reason being religion (though truthfully that's just linked to humans fearing difference but whatever). Look, you walked into that one

yeah you are so right. it's all about religious beliefs. at our core, we are very spiritual beings who take religious matters extremely seriously - to the point where the main reason we fight with each other is because we can't agree on which unseen forces are real and which ones are not. I've been thinking that myself, for ages now!! Great minds eh??!!!

It has never had anything to do with resource supply, a desire for security, a natural urge to balance cooperation with competition. We're more than animals - we fight about you know, higher order stuff.

This constantly-reinforced-through-the-hypersexualization-of-women-in-media lust isn't gonna alleviate itself, this middle class born white male existential angst isn't gonna numb itself and this conditioned-since-birth hunger for salt fat and sugar isn't gonna satiate itself. What am I supposed to do? Give these all up to dedicate my free time to thinking about all that is wrong with the world and how as (now) poor lower class I am utterly inefficient at changing any of it? I don't think so. Now if you'll excuse me, i've just had two smothered in corn syrup frozen waffles for breakfast and I feel just about ready for my daily game of Minecraft.

that's not science. That's capitalism

why did you delete your cat avatar?

I think I started a trend. Reprise is next

sounds good. I just ate a whole bunch of chocolate and I'm now posting at this here message board on a machine I could use to plan a permaculture garden. At the same time I'm watching a terrible movie that should never have been made.
I've thought about where to get my hair cut about 50 times in the last couple of days.

We r all so useless. #yolo, if you're poor, just take what you can get.

You arent poor

I think the correct term might be "broke," or "cash poor."

it might be a good time, though, to have a flame war over what constitutes poors in Western societies

fuck the poors. i got mine

HOODY HOOO

My government defines me as poor. Meaning under 25 000$ a year for one person. And i'm well under that.

I definitely don't make anywhere near USD25k a year, and I still get by okay. Though that's probably made easier by not having any dependencies.

http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/14poverty.cfm

these seem too low to me but i am also not very worldly

I just learned the poverty value for 1 person is below $12,000. I thought it'd be like $22,000. How anyone can live on that little money is unsettling.

They are way too low and no one can live on that unless absolutely everything they use is subsidized (housing, food, medical care) and they have no car.

really depends on COL in your area.

but yeah minumun wage really shouldn't be below $13-18 an hour.. thanks obummer

I also love that if you add a kid to your family the poverty line only goes up 4k.

I guess when I lived in the boonies I could get rent for $250 a month. But then you spend lots of $$$ on gas and you absolutely have to have a car to get to the closest town with a grocery store that's 30 miles away.

$13 an hour is above $20k and that is livable, if you actually have a full time job and subsidized health care.

I make about that but I have to pay $250-450 a month on medical costs (plus $105 for my health plan) and have to ask my mom for about $1k a year when I get stuck with a big expense.

I'm not complaining and I do ok, but I have cheap rent (that's going up to $500 next month) and am good at shopping with coupons for food and waiting for clearance and stuff for clothes and basically being aware of what I will need soon and taking advantage of good deals. I don't have much disposable income, I have Netflix and spend money for my cat's food/health and that's it. But I'm happy.

...point being that $12k as the poverty line is fucking stupid. If my medical costs are $5k per year (they are usually a bit more with my 20% coinsurance for regular checkups, my other stuff being chronic illness stuff), say I live on $16k and I don't really make it with that, I need help from my family.

i'm okay with small businesses having shitty minimum wage, as long as workers are willing

but like wal mart or [insert evil corporation here].. you can't siphon some off for the lower totem pole?

not that that's a groundbreaking assertion in minimum wage discussion. but whatevs

That got me to recheck the Canada one, I guess its actually 18 000. Or was 4 years ago. I don't make that even though. Probably maybe 13 000 to 14 000. Not sure. If this was American dollars I wouldn't be considered poor! good to know..............

I have to say though, nowadays people call themselves poor and yet they have fridges and Tv's! Come on! those are luxuries! And then they want handouts!? You're not poor, you have ways to keep your food cold!