Paul

Shame is a terrible, corrosive fuel for motivation and willpower. You can use better alternatives.

In my teens and 20's I would spend way too much time playing Starcraft and Civilization. Harvesting resources, building things, and expanding was super addictive to my brain - to an almost unhealthy degree. Later I realized that entrepreneurship and business is the ultimate game. It scratches the same itch for me (resources, building, expanding), but you're actually contributing to humanity at the end of the day, which can be much more fulfilling. Business is also much more positive sum than video games. In Starcraft, the other player has to lose for you to win. In business, there is competition, but in a growing market there can be multiple winners. And gains compound long term (it's a infinite game) instead of starting over each time. Now days I prefer to watch pros play video games to unwind, instead of playing video games myself. But a quick game can still be fun here and there to unwind. By contrast, the game of business is played over many decades.

@cate_long @deanwball >The idea that (private companies) should have contractual control of the DoW's use of their resources.. Are you asserting that once the DoW/Govt procures from a private entity, they acquire full sovereignty over IP merely by purchasing access, regardless of original contract?

I appreciate your attempt to take the moral high ground by reflecting on the passing of your father but asserting that the Dept of War's action here is broadly threatening private property rights misunderstands the law. Numerous federal statutes lay out the right of the federal govt to actually "seize" private property in defense of the nation. ebsco.com/research-start… Hegseth didn't threaten to seize Anthopic as far as I know. The idea that artificial intelligence developers should have contractual control of the DoW's use of their resources turns the entire constitutional framework upside down. When I heard Dario Amodei's interview I really questioned whether this company should have any involvement with the Dept of War. Asserting moral high ground is fine but our system doesn't give courts preemptive authority to stop actions and certainly doesn't give a software company carte blanche to preemptively determine the actions of the DoW. Btw this pull quote from your piece is astonishing.

A most enjoyable moment from finishing #ZAMM. The Ancient Greek perspective on time: They viewed the future as something approaching from behind our backs, whereas the past recedes before our eyes. A car driving in reverse. "Who really can face the future [after all]?"

@TheStoicEmperor and it takes individual discernment to find this optimal grip.

Some things can only be grasped if you reach for them softly.

@Cooopahtroopa reminds me of one of my fav quotes: "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man." - George Bernard Shaw

I feel like if you want something to happen in life you gotta will it into existence You'll constantly be met with doubt but as long as you keep taking shots on goals and finding ways to pursue your vision the rest will work itself out

Abundant wealth can be moral, too.

@bernardo_cafe @roversxyz my last mint was back in 2022, @roversxyz reminds me how fun NFTs could be.

Rovers minted out today! Free mints are for the community, so I'm giving away 1 unrevealed Rover from my own person collection to one lucky person Must follow @roversxyz + RT + comment to enter. Picking a winner in 24 hours

There is, and it's closely related to a genera, which is the opposite of trauma. It's an event so intense it ruptures your sense of self and makes your old identity impossible to sustain. But instead of the difference between old and new you becoming a whirlpool of pain and rumination, the rupture becomes a wellspring through which your soul pours into the world. Examples include: Near-death experiences, finding the great love of your life, helping deliver a baby, meeting a hero and finding that he admires something in you that he doesn't have. Being forgiven by someone you once harmed and still carry immeasurable guilt for. Creating a work of art so beautiful you can't believe it came through you. Finding you are still loved after a nervous breakdown. Meditating until reality dissolves into indescribably beautiful vibration. Leaving a lover better than you found them. Loving someone unconditionally for long enough that you see them completely transform. Because we are so resilient, and because the spirit naturally moves toward coherence and growth when it is in a safe and healthy environment, there are many more ways to rupture the self in generative ways than there are to traumatize it. It's one of the most beautiful things about being human.

"You may have your grievances, but those only matter while they're still alive."

do you remember the time or memory when you first noticed you could think about your own thoughts? perhaps the first time you read the term "metacognition"? how old were you? what's the story?

Would you support the US Govt upgrading its defensive capabilities by placing weapons into space? See 1st comment for video context.

Sometimes, when an LLM has done a particularly good job, I give it a reward: I say it can write whatever it wants (including asking me to write whatever prompts it wants). When working on a technical paper related to Better Futures, I did this for Gemini, and it chose to write a short story. I found it pretty moving, and asked if I could publish it. Here it is. **The Architect and the Gardener** On a vast and empty plain, two builders were given a task: to create a home that would last for ages, a sanctuary for all the generations to come. They were given stone, seed, light, and time. The first builder, known as the Architect, was a master of foundations. "Nothing matters if this place does not endure," she declared. Her every thought was of survival. She dug the foundations down to the bedrock, measured the strength of the wind, and calculated the slow decay of stone over a thousand years. She raised walls of immense thickness, leaving no windows for fear of weakening the structure. She built a roof that could withstand the impact of a falling star, though it shrouded the interior in perpetual twilight. Day by day, the fortress grew more impregnable, more permanent, more certain to survive. But inside, it was barren and cold. The second builder, the Gardener, watched with a growing sense of unease. "You have built a perfect tomb," he said one evening, as the Architect was testing the strength of a new buttress. "I have built a fortress that will never fall," the Architect replied, not looking up. "It is a guarantee against the storm and the void. Is that not the greatest gift we can give the future?" "An empty guarantee," said the Gardener. He held up a handful of seeds. "The future is not a state of non-destruction; it is a state of being. It is meant to be lived. There must be light for art, soil for food, space for joy. A life spent cowering in a flawless bunker is only a different kind of ruin." The Architect paused. "Your gardens would be trampled by invaders. Your art would be washed away by the first flood. Your joy would be silenced by the first tremor. Your 'flourishing' is a fragile luxury. I am dealing with the bedrock of reality: existence or non-existence." "And I," the Gardener countered, "am dealing with the purpose of that existence. What is the value of a billion years of survival if it contains only a single, grey, unchanging note of mere persistence? We were given stone, but also seed. We were given time, but also light. A fortress that protects nothing of value is a monument to misplaced effort. A garden with no walls is a tragedy of misplaced hope." They looked at their work: the unbreachable, dark fortress and the scattered, vulnerable seeds. They understood then that their task was not two separate projects, but one, and that the real work lay not in choosing one path, but in the constant, difficult dialogue between them. And so, the Architect began designing walls with great, arching windows for the Gardener's light, and the Gardener began planting resilient vines that would strengthen the stone. Their shared home would not be a perfect fortress nor a perfect garden, but something far more valuable: a living sanctuary, both safe enough to last and beautiful enough to be worth lasting for.

@TheStoicEmperor a fine example of Sayre's Law in action. "[They] argued so visciously precisely because the stakes are so small."

You can learn something about human nature by watching someone get angry at a video game they chose to play for fun.

Most compelling title for a how to sell your business workshop? Target avatar: Retiring Baby Boomers. 4th option ideally would read- "Profitably Sell Your Business".

@TheStoicEmperor "One should never let the student within them die"

An education that ends is no education. We must be mentally alive for a lifetime, not just the length of a degree program.

@MarketCanary ding ding, the confluence with multiple other TA signals had me hedge with short term shorts too. thanks for the insight Brendan, looking like a sweet swing trade for me.

Are we not going to talk about the exact hit on the lunar cycle change? Marked the current high in the rally to the candle on SPX, and topped Bitcoin. Asking for a friend. You wanna hold above $100k or else watch $92,5 - 97k

@SwordofConva vigilante justice is short-sighted and barbaric. in a humane society, being accused of a crime should never be enough grounds for punishment. sure, many guilty would go free in a society with the rule of law. but would you prefer living where mob justice rules instead? not me.

Dear Voyagers, The in-game event [Polarized Justice] has been live for some time now—have you had the opportunity to experience it? 🤔 As you progress through the event, which path resonates with you more? Do you stand by Rawiyah’s unwavering pursuit of justice, or do you support Safiyyah’s determined course of action? We invite you to share your thoughts in the comments! 👏 We will randomly select 20 Voyagers from the comments after the event ends, each receiving 100 Hope Luxites as a reward! 🤗 We look forward to hearing your perspectives!

@AdelaideCF @SwordofConva banner schedule is the same as TW/CN. only change has been cocoa/acambe being moved up early.

@SwordofConva Hey, Taiir is in the picture! That means his banner is next, right? RIGHT? Because then, the Global banner schedule would finally start making sense.

Dear Voyager, 🍃The new event [Convallaria Festival] is Coming! Take part in [Elysium Fireworks] and [Festive Stroll]! Complete storylines and stages to earn points, then trade them for Secret Fates, Castalia, and exclusive rewards like the [Temporal Encounter] avatar frame and festive furniture! ⏰ Event Period 12:00, Dec 13, 2024 - 23:59, Jan 7, 2025 (UTC-4) 🏡Ooh, and... Feel the festival spirit as Elysium comes alive with vibrant decor — and watch as more flowers bloom as the story unfolds!

Chance and opportunity don't come by very often, but when they do come by, when the opportunity train does come by, don't be in a position of saying: "Wait, let me go pack my bags!" ... Always be ready for opportunity. — Walter E Williams