May 19, 2024
On the Deconstruction of Fallen Stars
Issac Young over at Trantor Publishing has been publishing essays on the erosion and corruption of our culture as well as the formidable (and often overlooked or mocked) issues that young people are facing.
In this thoughtful essay he gets down to brass tacks on WHY so many of the "wokefied" changes to beloved I.P.s are so egregiously, bewilderingly bad...to the point of being jarring and hurtful to the bottom line. This seems particularly confusing in cases where adding representation would not normally be controversial in the least (such as Star Trek, where one of the THEMES of T.O.S is Infinite Diversity Through Infinite Combinations) and in franchises like Warhammer 40,000 where there WAS representation but the new examples shatter canon.
Put simply, diversity and inclusion are humiliation rituals. If they happen to fit in the established canon, then so much better. It’s plausible deniability to gaslight those who don’t know any better. But as the internet autists rush to say whether the representation does or does not fit in the lore, the rest of us know the real reason behind these changes.
It’s to flex.
It’s to say this thing that you love is no longer yours. It’s ours, and there is nothing you can do about it. And it isn’t a mistake or a well-meaning push for a broader audience. It’s to cause outrage. It’s to scorn the people the Left despise. It’s civilizational trolling, and it’s done because not only won’t they face consequences, they know they’ll be rewarded for it.
I confess I've come to much the same conclusion. I suspect that a good deal of this dynamic is related to Yuri Bezmenov's thesis on demoralization.
The way forward is often proposed to be to get new, more traditionally themed franchises off the ground, but this runs into a few issues. First, "message fiction" is tendentious and generally unenjoyable whether it is woke gay space commie propaganda or a preachy After School Special. Attempts to do counter-programming are frequently just as big a turn off to audiences as Mary Sue Triumphalism, but, without the huge advantage in infrastructure/marketing/financing that the big media companies enjoy more individualist endeavors just flop. Another issue is Conquest's Law "Any organization not explicitly right wing soon becomes leftist" This is likely due to the inherent tendency towards social parasitism that is manifest in those with a mindset that thrives in a bureaucracy.
Young notes another hurdle in a very long, but literate essay.
Video Games are actually the medium of all literature and culture nowadays. Forget getting the younger generations to read, their minds can't process a film let alone a multi-episode series. This is due to the neurlogy that these people have developed s a result of social media, smart phones and the risk averse, mental illness inducing education these people have gotten.
The myriad problems that young people face are different from the very real issues that many of us and our parent's generation had to overcome. but because of the structural nature of some of these challenges and the important cultural and family based tools that the young generation are missing, these issues are not fully appreciated. These issues feed into the larger cultural problem exacerbating those dynamics, reinforcing them.
We were outmaneuvered in a two pronged assault. The first is that reality has steadily become less meaningful, while the second is that simulacra has become more addicting. In my lifetime, I know I will see the rise of sexdolls not unlike what is in Blade Runner 2049. And that will probably be the genetic bottleneck which will crush anyone who isn’t some sort of fanatic. I guess the silver lining in all of this is that only true believers will inherit the Earth. They get to live in the ruins because everyone else sterilized themselves.
Later in his essay, he delves into the importance of basket weaving....
I urge you to read the whole thing because I would not have thought that digression could actually make sense...and yet it does.
Not only because we'll still need baskets after a civilizational collapse, (he doesn't mention that, but we will) but because we have to do something to create an IRL space to socialize people.
These issues are going to be very tough nuts to crack. There will be some debate about why we should...
After all, old farts like me have been ranting and raving about "THESE HERE KIDS TODAY" since Aristotle.
However, a failure of cultural continuity IS a thing that sometimes happens historically, and it can lead to societies collapsing, either through decadence or a lack of cultural competency. This is the GOAL for the left, who are confident that they will sculpt a Utopia from the rough clay of man....but if one looks at the past societies where these self assured technocrats have succeeded, one will shudder in terror at the suffering, both physical and psychic that always seems to result.
Thus we should take this threat seriously and that means to take the challenges that young people today face with thoughtful consideration, for they did not create the absolutely insane world in which they find themselves, and they did not chose to trained by their educators to make only the wrong decisions.
President Reagan noted that freedom is a fragile thing that is never more than one generation away from extinction He further noted that it is not inherited, but must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation. That ability to fight and defend something depends on knowing what it is, on one having values that were passed down from one's forbearers.....We have denied our youth the tools and the skillset to do what they must.
Some have, like Cassandra warned us:
"In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.” -C.S. Lewis
We have our work cut out for us.
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May 17, 2024
HAH! SILL NOT DEAD!
Come join the channel at 8:30pm EST / 12:30am UTC as I celebrate unlocking the achievement 8 days out of the hospital. We'll be continuing to pursue eldritch horrors and annoying puzzles far beneath the Earth's crust......or whoever's crust Teyvat has...as we explore the enigma that is THE CHASM. Come for the scuff, stay for the cringe at https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet .
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May 12, 2024
"TAP...TAP" Is This Thing Even On?
I'm Out of the Hospital! I'm Sitting in Front of a Computer.
OH NO! I JUST UPDATED OBS!
Let's See if I Broke Everything!
Let's See If I Can Still Stream!
Let's See If I Still Know How To Game!
Stop by , say "Hi!" and LEARN VALUBLE LESSONS as I Go Over Why I Was Gone Last Week.
Then Point And Laugh as I Attempt to do EVERYTHING I was Told NOT to Do in This Huge Crater Wasteland I was Sent to West of Liuye. (What is Happening With This Game!?)
See you in 10 minutes over at https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet
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RIP-Roger Corman :
He was a huge influence on U.S. cinema and because he was indie in the machine dominated Hollywood of the day he was able to (and did) find, elevate, and give room to fly many iconoclastic talents that would have been ignored or buried by an industry that could not abide their out of the box thinking and styles. Martin Scorsese, Jack Nicolson, James Cameron , and many others got their starts because of him. He had another, albeit indirect effect on American Pop-Culture. As the head filmmaker for the indie studio American International Pictures he was instrumental to introducing the American audience to several Kurosawa films, popularizing & legitimizing Japanese cinema in the eyes of the U.S. general public (as opposed to the hoity-toity art house set). Because of his Corman was (very) tangentially involved in bringing over another movie that had similarities to his own radioactive monster films.
Godzilla opened the door to Japanese sci-fi, and a decade later the first Americanized anime.
This, in turn, set the great historical pachinko machine in motion in that particular set of "clicks" that resulted in...
WEEBERY.....
Thank you Roger Corman.
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May 11, 2024
Wait....What World Did I Wake Up In!?
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May 10, 2024
Where I've Been the Last Week
So my Mom was traumatized at a young age by a relative dying of sepsis. Every time I'd get a cut..."It'll become sepsis!"
Every time I go to the ER...""It's sepsis isn't it!?"
Of course it's never sepsis.
Tuesday however, I had to call Mom, rub my foot on the ground and say Mom....you were right again....
I told myself I would get up, make some anti-doxxing adjustments and photo the nurses info panel, but by the time I was both un-hooked from the IV and had the energy to walk across the room, "explain sepsis" had been removed the nurses to-do list.
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May 01, 2024
A Couple of Videos
Discuss:
This last one's not really political, but it's wild and messed up.
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April 26, 2024
I'm BAAAACK!
Join us tonight at 7:30pm EST/ 11:30pm UTC for the triumphant return of the Brickmuppet to streaming. I'm OUT of the hospital and raring to go all Mathew Perry on Inazuma! We'll clear a few Spiral Abyss floors as well, so mosey on over to https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet , grab a drink and a snack, as you come for the scuff & stay for the cringe!
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April 22, 2024
I Hab a Code
No stream tonight.
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April 20, 2024
Rage Stream!
I have lost two blog posts into the ether. So in a fit of rage and pique, I'm going to do a rare Saturday stream. Join us at 8:00pm EST 00:00 UTC as we have a laid back, chill Genshin Impact stream poking about in Inazuma and try to get the teleporters to work. If we get them working, then after doing daily's who knows? Main storyline? Chat engagement collabs? I don't know either, so let's find out!
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April 11, 2024
Stream Adjustment
The IRL-RNG has necessitated a rescheduling of tonight's Disgaea stream. However, the Zomboid Collaboration stream will go on as scheduled.
Join us tonight at 10pm EST / 2AM UTC for a PROJECT ZOMBOID theme mission. What's a "Theme Mission" , you might ask. Well I have no idea, SO LET'S FIND OUT! Join me and 8 other V-tubers as we explore the remnants of post apocalyptic Tennessee at Brickmuppet: https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet
Hyasynth: https://www.twitch.tv/hyasynth_live https://kick.com/hyasynth
Niveksirrah https://www.twitch.tv/niveksirrah
Imitation Orange https://www.twitch.tv/imitationorange
Spicy Spykstr https://www.twitch.tv/spicy_spykstr
Action Points https://www.twitch.tv/actionpts
Cooks117 https://www.twitch.tv/cooks117
The Osakan https://www.twitch.tv/the_osakan
Eccentric BlueByrd https://www.twitch.tv/eccentricbluebyrd
Niveksirrah https://www.twitch.tv/niveksirrah
Imitation Orange https://www.twitch.tv/imitationorange
Spicy Spykstr https://www.twitch.tv/spicy_spykstr
Action Points https://www.twitch.tv/actionpts
Cooks117 https://www.twitch.tv/cooks117
The Osakan https://www.twitch.tv/the_osakan
Eccentric BlueByrd https://www.twitch.tv/eccentricbluebyrd
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April 10, 2024
In Lieu of Any Actual Creative Content in This Space, Here is A Video of 2 Big Brains Kibitzing
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Rumors of My Alive-idness Were Slightly Exaggerated
The house got struck by lightning, frying one of the wiring legs and keeping me off the computer for a week. The past week has seen everything fixed (mostly) streaming resume and 2 attempts at blogging get eaten by the Minx monster. (I THINK Mee'n you still uses Minx)
Now I have a broken tooth, meaning that everything is back to normal and the end times are not upon us.
So rejoice!
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March 21, 2024
I'm ALIIIIIVE!
Join us tonight @https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet, as the channel celebrates my return to streaming and associated escape from the hospital for a Thursday night double feature! First at 7:30pm EST/ 11:30pm UTC We are doing an item world run in DISGAEA:HOUR OF DARKNESS Then at 10pm EST/ 2:30am UTC we will be collaborating with numerous other streamers as we face the horrors of an apocalyptic world so broken that even the dead cannot rest, as we fight, survive, and COOK WITH STYLE in a very special episode of PROJECT:ZOMBOID.
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March 18, 2024
Side Effects...
... of Cephalexin include diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, and stomach pain.
I rolled a critical success and got them all.
No strim tonight.
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March 17, 2024
Ack!..."Thud"
I've been spectacularly ill off and on since Thursday afternoon (why I haven't streamed). Early this morning, I ran to the ER. It turns out not to be the flu, COVID or KNOXitis, but a bacterial kidney infection. The local pharmacies are out of the prescribed antibiotics due to the current shortages, but they've ordered some & in any event I've been on IVs for hours, so I feel a lot better.
Still weak though.
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March 14, 2024
Fireworks in 10 Minutes!
T Minus 10 Minutes! STARSHIP LAUNCH!
AD ASTRA LETS GOOOOOOOO!
https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet
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March 10, 2024
Adventures in Game Mechanics
OK...This Morning, While Doing our Dailys, we Learned an Important Lesson About Adventure Levels. We're Suddenly Level 31 and Can Proceed With the PLOT! Join Us Tonight at 7:00pm EST /11pm UTC @ https://www.twitch.tv/brickmuppet
(That's in 11 minutes if you forgot to set your clocks)
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March 08, 2024
"AAAAAAAAA!" I Made It!
I JUST walked in the door. We'll be streaming Genshin Impact tonight in a few minutes. Join us as we try to solve the mystery of a god's death, pursue more Archon Quests and roll the dice and do some pulls.
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March 07, 2024
Streaming Resumes
Join us tonight at 7:30pm EST / 12:30am UTC as we return to the grind in Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, then after a brief intermission, pop in around 10:30pm EST / 03:30am UTC as we join other streamers in contemplating the cold equations of post-apocalyptic survival in Project: ZOMBOID.
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