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Because people generally will not pay for others to "be". And they will not give you food or shelter if you don't pay. And the money has never been more concent

by avaer 1mo ago

Because people generally will not pay for others to "be". And they will not give you food or shelter if you don't pay. And the money has never been more concentrated away from the people who would prefer to just be. If you don't self-impose, society will structurally impose it on you.

Gecko4072 1mo ago
Well of course but there are many ways to survive very close to “just being” that are seen as not fulfilling potential or a wasted life. It’s not a full binary but living close to one end is shunned and we internalize it as a waste of space when really it is more sustainable for the planet and mind.
- avaer 1mo ago
  I lament the state of the modern world too. Unfortunately, the modern world is run not by empaths, but by psychopaths. Even if we get to a state where we look out for each other, I fear it would be quickly subverted.
- andai 1mo ago
  I saw this video of an American tourist in the Mediterranean, stunned that people would drink one coffee for hours and didn't feel pressured to order more. He said, back home, he would have been getting dirty looks, if he wasn't constantly justifying his existence in a place by either consuming or producing something.
  - inigyou 1mo ago
    That coffee shop isn't paying much rent. When your local leech increases the rent, you have to sell more coffees, and kick people out who don't buy more coffees.
    - ssivark 1mo ago
      To expand on this: rent is a manifestation opportunity cost for a gated resource. So one person lounging around drinking coffee is no more judged on their activity in and of itself, but compared to the other "industrious" person who might have taken their place and been more productive. This is why marginal spaces/resources not being optimized for economic output are so important to exploratory and risky endeavors: https://paulgraham.com/marginal.html https://paulgraham.com/marginal.html
    - andai 1mo ago
      I think they own the place. Another nice thing about being Mediterranean.

by avaer 1mo ago

Gecko4072 1mo ago

Well of course but there are many ways to survive very close to “just being” that are seen as not fulfilling potential or a wasted life. It’s not a full binary but living close to one end is shunned and we internalize it as a waste of space when really it is more sustainable for the planet and mind.

avaer 1mo ago
I lament the state of the modern world too. Unfortunately, the modern world is run not by empaths, but by psychopaths. Even if we get to a state where we look out for each other, I fear it would be quickly subverted.
andai 1mo ago
I saw this video of an American tourist in the Mediterranean, stunned that people would drink one coffee for hours and didn't feel pressured to order more. He said, back home, he would have been getting dirty looks, if he wasn't constantly justifying his existence in a place by either consuming or producing something.
- inigyou 1mo ago
  That coffee shop isn't paying much rent. When your local leech increases the rent, you have to sell more coffees, and kick people out who don't buy more coffees.
  - ssivark 1mo ago
    To expand on this: rent is a manifestation opportunity cost for a gated resource. So one person lounging around drinking coffee is no more judged on their activity in and of itself, but compared to the other "industrious" person who might have taken their place and been more productive. This is why marginal spaces/resources not being optimized for economic output are so important to exploratory and risky endeavors: https://paulgraham.com/marginal.html https://paulgraham.com/marginal.html
  - andai 1mo ago
    I think they own the place. Another nice thing about being Mediterranean.