Batfort

Style reveals substance

Tag: crippling youtube addiction (page 1 of 7)

On Quitting YouTube for Lent

It’s true, I quit watching YouTube 30-something days ago.

It was time. My attention got sucked into YouTube, away from the things I wanted to be doing, like writing blog posts and doing printmaking workshops and getting my house in order.

There were a few ground rules. First, it wasn’t just YouTube. It was also Vimeo, or Bitchute, or any other streaming video service (like Unauthorized.tv, which was launched at the most inopportune time). Second, regular TV and movies were allowed, because I don’t get sucked into them. They are discrete packets. Third, I could access YouTube at work for work purposes only—watching a replay of a webinar, but not listening to Pewdiepie in the background. There was also one (1) time when YouTube was accessed when I was in a group setting.

The transition was not nearly as difficult as I thought, although I did struggle for a bit at the beginning filling my evenings with sound—to drown out the quiet—as I had become used to the endless chatter of the tellybox. Not the way I want to live my life.

I appreciate the silence now. It gives me space away from the rest of the world. I only see what I choose to see.

I also discovered some pretty great internet radio stations.

You don’t notice, often, when something creeps its way into your life and grows roots. YouTube was certainly like that for me. Here are some ways that removing it revealed pain points:

  • By far my biggest practical frustration is not being able to use YouTube for “how to” videos. There have been a few times when I’ve encountered a problem and known I could find the answer on the ‘Tube. But, no. I have to do it myself, the old fashioned way, by reading the instructions. Similarly with product reviews.
  • It’s awkward telling someone in your life that you can’t watch the video they just excitedly sent you, because you quit YouTube for Lent. I have a whole list of things built up to watch now, which almost defeats the purpose of quitting in the first place.
  • Western fans of K-pop are very dependent on YouTube. I still haven’t reviewed NCT 127’s “Wakey Wakey” because it just got uploaded to Spotify, instead of a month ago when the music video was posted. The lack of video content has also highlighted how much of k-pop is a visual experience.

Mostly, these are first-world problems. I will probably continue to keep YouTube to a minimum in my life, even after the season of Lent is over. The sheer amount of time that I have to be productive is amazing.

I did find myself, occasionally, after finishing an episode of Cadfael, hover over the “browse” button. My brain wanted to settle in to a good session of moving-picture-theater. The temptation is real. So I closed out and did something else.

If anything, the YouTube ban has shown me that I can, in fact, be in control of my YouTube watching habits.

Gotta show the restlesss spirit who’s in charge.

More on Magazines

I’ve been exploring the question of whether magazines have always been propaganda. I think it’s safe to say that the answer is YES.

At the very least, they are a very convenient meme vector for propagandists such as Edward Bernays, the inventor of PR and nephew of Sigmund Freud. He pioneered the “hall of mirrors” technique by orchestrating an “environment of consent” around his products. This included pitching a different “exclusive” story to all the different women’s magazines.

The Reader: Woke Capital, Right-Wing Fashion Trends, and a Trip to Barcelona

Schizophyllum Commune

Some days I’m productive. Some days I get lost in research. Some days I spend way to much time trying to decide if I’m an INTP like I always thought or if I’m an Ni-Ti INFJ instead, which would make sense given my predilection to symbolic thinking and getting overwhelmed under a sea of intuition. None of it really matters, except not knowing bothers me greatly. I’ve mostly made my piece with not knowing my exact IQ, but personality….

Perhaps this is a case of “if you can’t understand the world, try understanding yourself instead.” Or, it’s just me avoiding doing the work.

 


 

» If you are concerned with truth and are at all into fairies, conspiracy theories involving aliens, or hallucinogens of any flavor, run—do not walk—and read Owen Cyclops’ observations on demons. I’m not kidding.

» Hello, this is me trying to psyche myself up again, but: How to Make Money Online Starting Today

» On Woke Capital

So, people always bend the knee. People often take the path of least resistance. Corporate PR is used for both purposes, to show Power that the corporation recognizes its authority. It’s no coincidence that WokeCapital’s bio has read “Speaking Power to Truth, one tweet at a time”. That’s all that’s going on there, really. And recognizing that Power lies on the Left, and not on the Right, corporations take advantage of this asymmetry. You can never go wrong by signaling too far left, but you can afford to piss off righties, who have near zero cultural, political, or legal power. Just note how they go after Trump, who is ostensibly CEO of the country, when he rocks the boat!

» The retro-future is now: Bitcoin has been transmitted via HAM radio

» Cambridge Analytica Used Fashion Tastes to Identify Right-Wing Voters

“It’s all about learning who your supporter base is,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst of the NPD Group and the author of “Why Customers Do What They Do,” in an interview during the 2016 campaign. “How do they live? What are their trigger points? What words resonate with them? It’s worth its weight in gold, in the political arena just like the consumer arena. We call it demographic profiling, because voter profiling sounds like a dirty word, but that’s what it is.”

Fashion profiling is another facet of this approach, using data analysis to identify the way brands are perceived — and it should not come as a surprise to anyone.

Assessing value systems, and goals and priorities, via the clothes people wear has been a part of professional life for years. The “dress for the job you want” adage is an expression of fashion profiling. Calling someone a “Gucci person” or a “Celine person” is fashion profiling; opting for Levi’s over Rag & Bone makes a statement about associations and history and opens one up to fashion profiling — albeit in a manner that generally leaves much unsaid. Cambridge Analytica preyed on that human reality via algorithm, using data from the Facebook profiles of more than 50 million users without their permission.

» I haven’t listened to this podcast so I cannot endorse, but I’m intrigued: The Mysterious 1965 Death of Dorothy Kilgallen

» How to Break 5 Soul-Sucking Technology Habits

» Italian Vanity Fair looks to be doing some interesting things. I’m taking notes.

“We don’t have to close ourselves to our golden tower,” he said. “In Italy, we are living an era of populism and I can see the suffering of big newspapers because they are closing themselves into a very niche and snobbish explanation of reality.” He views the “simplification of complexity” as the opposite of that populist movement. “Philosophy can be very pop.”

Marchetti describes his strategy for Vanity Fair Italia as an “opera in three acts.” The first priority is online content, where he wants to publish exclusive songs, videos and content that will hopefully be newsworthy. “The goal is to become the center of the conversation in our country,” he said.

Next comes Wednesday’s print issue, which he has redesigned with creative director Massimo Pitis to have a more collectible, independent magazine aesthetic. It’s an approach he said he’s learned from fashion brands like Gucci: just because something is intended for wide audiences doesn’t mean it shouldn’t have the sophistication of a niche product. And the third act represents his ambitions for events.

» Crispin Glover asks a bunch of questions.

» I have a soft spot for Marc Jacobs because we share gut-ailment experiences, and sometimes you just need to read some good fashion writing.

 


Enjoy the YouTube recs now because I’m giving it up for Lent this year….

 

 

 

 

 

One of these things is not like the others

Looks like there was a little glitch with YouTube this morning.

 

But don’t worry, YouTube fixed it.

 

 

I wonder when they’re going to fix this one:

 

 

A week or so ago, I was looking for a clip from one of the Trump/Clinton debates. I usually try to watch political topics on MAGA-friendly channels, but I couldn’t find a single one in the search. It was all mainstream media.

Just like the media piled on those Catholic high school boys and then made fun of them for not being sufficiently sophisticated in dealing with the media, things like this expose the twisted mentality behind so much of what’s going on in our world today.*

“The algorithm” pulls stunts like this expecting we won’t notice, and then when we DO notice we’re deemed paranoid.

 


*Yes it’s a weird sentence structure, but it’s there for a reason. I blame the underlying pattern—and the architect of that pattern—more than I blame the people who are carrying out the pattern, who are usually useful idiots.

 

It’s gotta be exhausting

…the way these wannabe wizards run around casting spells all day.

They repeat these words over and over and OVER like their words will somehow shape reality.

The interesting thing is that, while I do believe that words have impact on reality (especially the reality in our own minds), ultimately words are just…well…words. Especially when you’re up against someone who is better at words than you are, and someone who has millions of prayers at his back.

The circus around Trump has birthed some really great compilation edits, so I really can’t be too mad.

Exposes these clowns for who they really are.

vox day owen benjamin did nothing wrong youtube

Since my first post on search results was so much fun to write, I wanted to do another one. Since then, I’ve paid more attention to what people are search, and have also started getting more traffic.

The combination has produced some great searches.

 

nct taeyong regular irregular

Don’t lie. You were looking for pictures of Taeyong’s glorious sandy-blond mullet, weren’t you. It’s okay. There’s no shame in loving a k-pop mullet.

 

kimye 2018

The one time I had no idea what to post so I posted a pic of Kim and Kanye….

 

measurement of creative achievement chronbach

I learned something new today: “Cronbach’s alpha is a measure of internal consistency.”

If we apply that to the Creative Achievement Questionnaire, a Jordan B Peterson product, I’m going to guess there’s probably not much.

 

imagehosting pol

I’m flattered, but if you have to search that phrase you probably shouldn’t be on /pol/ in the first place.

 

chanyeol fashion 2018 style

Chanyeol’s style in 2018 is about what it’s been in past years: Vetements, Vetements, Vetements.

(Disclaimer: Chanyeol is my bias.)

 

howcan you ward off scurvy in a carnivorous diet

Trick question—you don’t have to. (Also, the phrase “ward off” makes it sound like scurvy is a vampire, stalking through the night on its way to hunt you down and reveal all of your past wounds. Muahahahaah.)

 

jordanetics review

I got you covered: A Very Personal Review of Vox Day’s Jordanetics

 

exo bad dream vocal appreciations

I kind of regret not waxing more poetic about this song when I reviewed the album. It’s by far my favorite, and shows off their vocals in a musical context where you might not expect it. The harmonies are stacked thick. Baekhyun’s enunciation is pleasing to the ear. But most of all, Chen gets to show off with a cadenza that interrupts the entire song.

(Disclaimer: Chen is my bias wrecker. He might wreck his way into becoming my actual bias.)

 

never use literally

Literally” has become a filler word, a word that is complicit in turning the meaning of things upside-down. “Literally” does not deserve this fate.

 

kicking carbs going straight carnivore diet

Go for it, dude. I will warn you: the keto flu is real. If you are at all sensitive to wheat, brace yourself. Withdrawl is not for the faint of heart. I’m not as tempted to cheat because I don’t want to go through that again.

 

npc meme

if(man.Color) == (man.Orange)
Man.Bad==true;

 

vox day owen benjamin did nothing wrong youtube

I’m not going to ask how in the world did you ended up at my blog instead of on Vox’s stream, because I appreciate the click. Why not both?

 

Appreciation Post: Dog transformation videos

Some days are below average. Maybe you have a caffeine headache. Maybe you just got started on antibiotics. Maybe there’s an extra-pushy guy trying to convince you that you should go on another date after you said you weren’t interested.

For those days, there are dog videos on YouTube.

There is something about these, where they take a rescue dog who’s in bad shape and love them and heal them, that just speaks to my suburban-raised, earnest little heart.

Really tho, I appreciate the time and effort that it takes to rehab these dogs—mostly because it’s something that I’m not suited for. The first and last time I volunteered at an animal shelter….well, let’s just say that I’m not good with dogs who aren’t friends.

Even though they’re dogs, seeing stories like these illustrates how important your health is, and how long the healing process can take. Dogs that look older than their chronological years—dogs with no energy—dogs who are sad—they all have a chance to feel better, to run and play and be happy.

It just takes time, and healing. In healing there is hope.

The Reader: Funding the future of research and sushi for cats

Meghan Caughill

New year…same ol’ me. Have you ever felt that making a big change to your lifestyle—like moving or getting a dramatic new hairstyle—will also change you on the inside? I’ve been guilty of that for many years. Surely THIS TIME I’ll get my new apartment decorated and keep it in impeccable shape. It never comes to pass. I keep repeating patterns of thought and behavior, so of course the past repeats itself! I hadn’t yet done the work to change.

I have high hopes for 2019, but so far I’ve been lying low. I’m avoiding the work—the early stages are always so painful. But like sore muscles after the gym, you (and I) have to work through the discomfort to get somewhere worth going. I have muscles now, after going through the gym. What will I have after going to art gym for 6 months? Let’s find out.


» How gorgeous are these cyanotype notebooks???

» Michigan State is a bellwether for things to come in academia. Universities are full of people who like to avoid responsibility and making difficult decisions. Structurally, the fiefdom model (only each discipline has the authority to oversee itself) provides lots of room for shady things to develop. Combined with the cult-like devotion that most universities foster, any misdeeds open a powder keg of bad emotions.

For colleges and universities, tragedies of this scale more commonly take the form of fatal accidents or mass shootings. In such cases, campus communities tend to pull together rather than split apart. The failure of a leader as a moral actor, however, elicits a different kind of grieving. This is an angry grief, a confusing sorrow that tempers enthusiasm for the institution with a kind of quiet shame. It is a phenomenon that finds its singular historic parallel at Pennsylvania State University, where top administrators were criminally charged with covering up the crimes of a serial sexual predator.

As at Penn State, where Graham B. Spanier served for 16 years as president before he was fired and later convicted of endangering the welfare of children, Michigan State struggles to come to grips with what the Simon era means now. Her prosecution brings that struggle to the fore in ways that her long-serving colleagues had not fully anticipated, opening a dam of emotion and ambivalence.

» Ignore all the art-school-ese and this is some pretty cool internet-based art.

» You reap what you sow: “My daughter asked me to stop writing about motherhood. Here’s why I can’t do that.” Check the comments; they’ll say everything that you’re thinking and more.

» Investigators are starting to root out the infiltrators of the alt-right (aka the ones designed to make the alt-right look and act more extreme than they really are)

» I’m not a fan of any type of feminism but this article makes some very good points: “This is everything wrong with mainstream feminism

» That isn’t to say that I don’t love women. Many women are doing cool and interesting things, like Riva-Melissa Tez. I like her ideas about funding research, and that she’s actually doing something about it.

We really need to improve incentive structures between groups. How can we give other people access to fundamental research? When you read academic papers, researchers are incentivized to keep private the exact details that would explain the breakthrough. I’m opposed to people being private about discovery, even though I understand it would be suicide to do the opposite. I love today’s emphasis on being open source, but we need more incentives for following through. Right now, you need to be altruistic or charitable to be open source. There is no cost benefit. We don’t live in a world where individuals get rewarded for contributing to society. Instead, the message is, contribute to your own thing and you’ll be rewarded for it. Then use that money to contribute to society. That process is too slow in my mind.

» “Gen Z Is Forgoing College To Attend Trade Schools

» If you’ve ever wondered why the world is a hall of mirrors, this article will help explain why. (Please note that I do not endorse all of the theology. The bit on mimetics is great, tho.)


 

The Reader: SUB PEWDIEPIE, loud restaurants, body transformations, and changes in the fashion sphere

I’ve been sick(ish) this weekend, and watching more YouTube than usual, so there’s some fatty videos at the end of this post. It’s one of those times when I can’t tell if this is a real upper respiratory infection, if my body is processing out yet another round of SIBO toxins, or if it’s something else—perhaps the physical manifestation of a mental transformation? Weird, I know. I still wonder. I’ve watched my mind and body chase each other around enough times that it’s not outside the realm of possibility.

Anyway, there’s lots of interesting stuff on the internet this week.

» Literally everybody is getting behind the SUB PEWDIEPIE campaign (btw, while you’re reading this, consider subscribing to Pewdiepie)

» The “Why I left Buzzfeed” of the beauty industry. Fashion and beauty editors are discovering the power of the personal brand, and are “defecting” to join the ranks of bloggers that they once railed so hard against.

Some editors say they ask their managers before agreeing to appear in a campaign or post sponsored content. Others say they often agree to work with brands and ask for forgiveness afterwards, especially if the brand is from outside their beat.

Steinherr did not ask for permission from Condé Nast to sign with the agency Storm Models in 2016, but she informed them afterwards and says the company was always supportive of her partnerships with third parties, which she identifies with “#ad.” “I have my own code of conduct,” she says. “I don’t find it difficult because I’m used to it — to say this is editorial, this is advertising — to me, there are no blurred lines.”

» From the other end, ROOKIE is shutting down. Tavi was a blogger who became the editorial establishment, so we’re kind of coming full circle.

» We all knew it was coming: CRISPR babies. Pray for these children.

» True confessions of a trans person. I appreciate the honesty, even though I can’t begin to wrap my head around how this is a good thing. Then again, I have spent my life getting my body to heal, so it’s unthinkable to deliberately inflict a wound upon myself.

» The media’s credibility is dead (but we already knew that)

» This one is long, but worth it (and funny to boot): On diet, health, and the wisdom of crowds

» Overly obsessed k-pop stalkers (sasaengs) are nightmare fuel

» Why restaurants are so loud (hint: you’ll see this pattern in other arenas as well)

The merger of fine and casual dining seems to show no signs of abating. As a result, even moderately quiet restaurants have become few and far between. Things have gotten so bad, there’s even an app for helping potential diners find quieter places to eat. The culinary establishment once aimed to dismantle the stuffiness and high cost of dining out by blurring the line between casual and fine dining, eliminating classist dress codes, and make dining a more collective experience. But ironically, that democratization of eating out has produced a new and more hidden tyranny: making people tolerate unhealthy, distracting noise for good food—and then duping them into spending more, drinking more (along with the risk of vulnerable situations that can result from alcohol), and shouting over the din to socialize. By comparison, the worst thing that could happen at one of the upscale establishments of old was using the wrong fork or running afoul of the dress code.

» Reverse Foundation tutorial…but really an interesting ramble on personal beauty.

 

» I like how Gabbie Hanna describes the process of change. It’s never linear, and always includes setbacks. The mental transformation is the toughest part. If you’re going through any sort of major change, you might find this helpful.

 

» Gary Vaynerchuk always provides food for thought (edited slightly for clarity):

There’s a reason that people are struggling mentally, and I’m telling you: everybody wants to blame social media. It’s bullshit. It’s parents creating fake environments for children. We’re building zoo animals. When you take a tiger from the Bronx zoo and you put it in the actual jungle, he dies in one second—because he’s not grown up in the actual environment.

You take kids who think they’re good at baseball, because in school up until 12th grade everybody’s good, and then you actually go and play baseball and get struck out 900 times in a row, you go back to your dorm room and start doing cocaine.

“Oh come on, Gary, it doesn’t work like that.”

That’s exactly how it works. …

Creating fake environments is an issue that needs to talked about much more. “[Don’t create] fake environments” doesn’t mean be mean, just don’t create delusion.

The Reader: Human beings are important and the emptiness of leaning in

Red Velvet repack coming soon. This image of Yeri is amazing.

» Melania Trump goes after the haters in a way that Sarah Palin never did on that scale. Respect.

» Speaking of the Trumps, Barron is getting really tall!

» Bullshit jobs and managerial feudalism (or as I like to call it, “petty turtle battles”)

» Favorite performances in k-pop (feat. Taemin and TOP)

» The truth about Cheryl Sandberg and “lean in”

“Lean In” is not fundamentally a feminist manifesto. It is a road map for operating within the existing system, perhaps changing it at the margins to make it easier for other women to, well, operate within the system. Sandberg does not spend much time asking whether the system is so screwed up that pushing against it might be the better route toward meaningful change.

» Always learn more biology

» “We are not servants of an economic system. We are human beings.”

 

» The infrastructure behind the influencer beauty industry (Seed, the company behind Colourpop and Kylie Cosmetics, is one to watch):

Landver believes that the next big lifestyle brand—the next Tory Burch or Martha Stewart, say — will be founded by an influencer. Or several, actually. “As opposed to looking at one big hundred million-dollar brand, we’re looking at building many ten million dollar brands,” says Landver. “I say longtail five times a day. The future is going to be many more small brands focused on smaller segments.”

» Further proof that SM Entertainment’s audio engineers are the real MVPs

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