-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
-
We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.
Is he the one that wrote that one weird final post on GAF where he was talking about how he'd get some anime-esque revenge on some random poster? Like it was full of things like "you know who you are, and I will find you" or something? And then it turned out he just wrote down some shit he read in a Halo novel?
Its the same people who thought Walter White was the hero.
I don't agree with these ones -
For one, I don't see 'the world' as a monolithic entity, and more so I view it as a variegated realm that while at times predictably disappointing can also display components of say the opposite of this statement here. I've found that at times one can encounter people that give back to you and help out or just care. Those people are part of 'the world', so to me it's more how you orient your mind towards these things. It doesn't have to be black and white like that statement implies.
I've had times of self loathing while I've been doing really interesting or important things.
Not really. Sometimes frustrating people can be an end goal in producing something. On one end you get trolls out of this, but on the other you can get really strange or challenging art that may not 'benefit' in the direct or traditional sense and keep people in a weird place of not quite understanding. To imply 'the world' is centred around value judgement is an anthropocentric perspective that ignores a side of reality that is oblivious to value. It's a challenging place to get to, or find, but I think the world this person is talking about is capitalism.
It's a bit of a cynical outlook on life, and the tough love style gets old halfway through, but there are some grains of truth in it. You do need to offer things to receive things you want. Life is an exchange where you get out what you put in.
That being said, I don't like the thought of every relationship boiling down to what people get out of each other. There are periods of any relationship where one person needs more from the other than they are offering. That's the whole point of supporting each other.
That being said, I don't like the thought of every relationship boiling down to what people get out of each other. There are periods of any relationship where one person needs more from the other than they are offering. That's the whole point of supporting each other.
Probably the same people who were inspired to go into Wall Street by Gordon Gekko .
This is pretty bog-standard rugged individualism. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps and make yourself useful to society/your betters. With a heaping helping of "I'm not saying they're right to vote for Trump, but...", which is what got him banned on NeoGAF. But hey, maybe he should try again over there. They'd probably eat this shit up now.
The articles themselves are somewhat insufferable, even aside from the ideology. The style is rapid-fire and full of weak/caricatured objections to his points that he can easily bat away. It's frustrating to read even points you agree with because they're expressed so dishonestly.
The articles themselves are somewhat insufferable, even aside from the ideology. The style is rapid-fire and full of weak/caricatured objections to his points that he can easily bat away. It's frustrating to read even points you agree with because they're expressed so dishonestly.
The only Cracked article's that were worse than "David Wong" were those from John Cheese. You won't find them on the site anymore, there's a reason for that...
I guess my issue with it is that it's trying to motivate you into doing something and being productive, but as a disabled person and someone who struggles with major depression it's not really something that can resonate with me. The article states you have to have some kind of use to society or the moment but not all of us can. I can't do more than half the jobs available to people and that most would deem worth doing for society or whatever.
Maybe I'm just taking it a bit more personally than I should though since it sounds like the kind of crap that my counselors in High school would try and spin on me.
From what i remember, his last few posts were attacking people for being okay with punching nazis when that video of the nazi with the armband getting punched came out
Then he started comparing muslims to nazis
It's like poetry. He even mentions the same thing in the article at the end. I read through all of it and thought about certain things in my life and it's mostly true.
I'm really worried to ask what happened, I remember when I read Cracked for a few years he had bit of a history with being nasty to commenters.
Really cold, unempathetic world view there. I nodded with the part about intentions being less important than actions, because actions are how the world perceives you not your intentions, but the rest, phew.... I guess they do set out there stall early on saying it's an article for [heterosexual, white] 20 something men, so I shouldn't be surprised at the tone and content.
Not every interaction is a life or death scenario. Not every interaction is a transaction. Do some people see the world this way? Absolutely. And our culture totally normalizes these thoughts (articles like this help normalize it). But that doesn't mean everyone sees the world this way.
You are enough. Dignity and respect are not things that should to be earned, and fuck anyone who says "what's in it for me?" before talking to you.
With that said, this article is totally useful, in the same way the "48 Laws of Power" is useful, not as advice for how to view the world but as a window into how some people view the world.
You are enough. Dignity and respect are not things that should to be earned, and fuck anyone who says "what's in it for me?" before talking to you.
With that said, this article is totally useful, in the same way the "48 Laws of Power" is useful, not as advice for how to view the world but as a window into how some people view the world.
100%. It broke my heart when I first came across this article many years ago and so many men were taking its words as the *truth*. We can do better than this sociopathic shit.
The advice basically boils down to "have something to offer and offer it." It's not bad advice.
My issue is that his definition of "skills" is a little muddled, and he leans too heavily on more traditional skills like being able to write, program, cook, etc.
But "soft" skills have value too, like interpersonal skills. Being a good conversationalist, being funny, being able to engage in a shared hobby. The value that someone offers to me on a personal level is that they're enjoyable to talk to, not that they possess some cool skill like being able to juggle. The article kinda touches on this but not enough.
My issue is that his definition of "skills" is a little muddled, and he leans too heavily on more traditional skills like being able to write, program, cook, etc.
But "soft" skills have value too, like interpersonal skills. Being a good conversationalist, being funny, being able to engage in a shared hobby. The value that someone offers to me on a personal level is that they're enjoyable to talk to, not that they possess some cool skill like being able to juggle. The article kinda touches on this but not enough.
This article is a piece of shit, it was written by a piece of shit, and anyone who bases their life on the philosophy espoused by the fucking Blake speech in Glengarry Glenn Ross are probably pieces of shit too.
6. false, people care about each other in many other ways and collaborate to improve each other in a daily basis, people who are good to you are part of the "world" or "real life" too
5. false, hippy culture has been established and parts of it are scattered around and still survive even if the counter culture itself is no longer solid/delineable
4. not a harsh truth, this is what allows everyone a chance to contribute and space to find what they're good at
3. not scalable, this isn't true for everyone
2. this is strange, it also matters what it keeps you from doing
1. nope, people can and are driven to improvement, does not apply to everyone
5. false, hippy culture has been established and parts of it are scattered around and still survive even if the counter culture itself is no longer solid/delineable
4. not a harsh truth, this is what allows everyone a chance to contribute and space to find what they're good at
3. not scalable, this isn't true for everyone
2. this is strange, it also matters what it keeps you from doing
1. nope, people can and are driven to improvement, does not apply to everyone
Are the arguments against the article that it's not reflective of reality, it that it shouldn't be reflective of reality?
I mean, he specifically states with examples throughout the article that by value, he's not talking about shareholder value.
He even uses hobbies as an example of how you can make yourself into a more interesting person that people will want to spend time with as an example of "value." So did everyone ranting about capitalism in this thread actually read beyond the list headers and opening bit about closing?
I imagine it's stuff like this that probably keeps him alienated from the work that a lot of former cracked writers have gone on to do in documenting the alt right.
I'm a little bit disappointed. As far as asshole manifestos go, this isn't quite sociopathic enough to make me laugh and shudder in disgust.
I dunno about the all of these points but 1 and 3 are definitely true for me. It's been hell working on my self-improvement (weight, education, art skills). I was always coming up with excuses not to do shit about them. I am now and honestly I feel like shit but it still feels better than not doing anything
I think this piece and the last psychiatrist resonate when you're prone to bitterness, narcissism and have a hard time motivating yourself. With people who at times care more about how they're perceived than about what they've done. This is certainly true for myself and articles like this have helped me confront those parts of myself. On the other hand, the approach is definitely flawed and empathy and (self-)love are ultimately better at helping you self-actualize. So I get the criticism but I'm not seeing the supposed capitalist propaganda.
No that was someone else. I remember the Halo novel post but I can't track it down. It wasn't David Wong though.
Money is a means to an end to which society can live without. It's not so you can wiggle the feathers on your ass to impress people. (in reference to the clip) who cares if you have a BMW or a fancy watch? That stuff means jack shit. It's just stuff. It makes you look like a loser with more money than sense to flaunt around that you buy stuff for status. That money isn't going to stand by your bedside and hold your hand while you're sick. It isn't going to look you in the eyes and tell you it loves and cares for you deeply.
That speech is a scam to trick people into being selfish and greedy. Because although you might get the motivation for yourself to do more, what happens if you're successful and start demanding it from others who wouldn't be so lucky? You'll start looking down at less weathly people as lesser than you. Unless of course you've already drank the kool-aid and don't believe success has anything to do with luck? (all you need is a "small" loan from your father right?)
That speech is a scam to trick people into being selfish and greedy. Because although you might get the motivation for yourself to do more, what happens if you're successful and start demanding it from others who wouldn't be so lucky? You'll start looking down at less weathly people as lesser than you. Unless of course you've already drank the kool-aid and don't believe success has anything to do with luck? (all you need is a "small" loan from your father right?)
Last edited:
I finally found the GAF thread where it happened. It basically devolved into a back and forth re: punching nazis like the guy in the clip, that violence in general should not be a means to an end, and finally him trying to make a point that you can't trust people to use violent means to deal with modern nazis because innocent people would be collateral damage.
To bolster that point, he gave a comparison where he asked if the pro-punch-nazi people would also be okay with violent efforts to eliminate radical islam (i.e. that no, it would not be okay because innocent people would suffer), and that's about it (he was banned shortly after that).
All this is not to defend anything - just to lay out what happened.
Definitely some shreds of truth in that article, but I can't really say I learned anything from it.
One of the managers at my old job used to wear a "coffee is for closers" shirt. He was a pushy asshole. Go figure.
Then maybe use a Western name like David Smith or David Jones instead of an Asian name?
Yeah, I almost regret clicking the link to see what this was about, but, I think I can safely say this is most try-hard, edge-lord crap I've read in a while.
Weird how this point is IN THE ARTICLE
"*Focusing on the Messenger to Avoid Hearing the Message"
If that isn't this thread in a nutshell lmao
"*Focusing on the Messenger to Avoid Hearing the Message"
If that isn't this thread in a nutshell lmao
Articles like this usually do that kind of preemptive argument to try to absolve the writer as if the writing wasn't theirs or representative of their views.
Let's just say he was even worse to women in the office...
That's not really the purpose in this case, as I read it. It's to get people to engage the content rather than saying the author sucks and therefore the article can be ignored. Which, to their credit, some people in this thread have avoided.
I mean, I think generally some of this is true but we also have to keep advocating for a more caring and inclusive world nonetheless and we're not going to get there by falling victim to or propping up this manner of thinking.