Depends. If you’re streaming Dire Staits on a $250,000 stereo. You’ve probably missallocated funds approaching a moronic level from a functionality perspective. However, if you’ve got half a billion in the bank, I’d say it’s a far more wholesome idiocy than for example, real estate. Money inherently means less to rich people. The difference of a few thousand to tens of thousands are, bewilderingly, fairly inconsequential to many people. I’d just assume they put that money into listening to music rather than super pacs or something. Hell, maybe they’ll actually hear what the musicians are saying and they’ll actually grow a little.

The issue with audio is the same issue with all hobbies. Spending a lot doesn’t make you an automatic expert, let alone even know what you’re doing. An expensive bat doesn’t make a bad player good, an expensive stove doesn’t make a bad cook good, expensive clothes doesn’t make an ugly person beautiful, an expensive running shoes don’t make an out of shape person healthier.

I find shitting on audiophiles particularly annoying because it’s smugness on both sides of the equation. The people who buy in think they’re better than everyone just like the people who see the con think they’re better than the rubes. If I had to pick a side though, I’d honestly pick the audiophiles, because at least they’re having fun.

I don’t know why I thought of this, but they make telescoping poles for wasp spray. I wonder if any other type of aerosol can would fit in them, or why you would even want to do that?

Am I missing the article link?

The “lesson” will be that the truly wealthy will stay so, and the rest of us will be pushed farther away, the discrepancy between our stations will diverge even further, and the relative wealth of the tippy top will increase just that much more. Don’t think for a minute that this bubble, or any bubble for that matter, is not egged on by those insulated from it’s poppings consequences.

organized riots

Huh?

You’re more right than you may know.

An actual city wall existed on the street from 1653 to 1699. During the 18th century, the location served as a slave market and securities trading site, and from 1703 onward

Well, with inflation this will inevitably become true. Be careful what you wish for.

At this point he probably doesn’t even know where he is at any given moment with adequate consistency, let alone where he’s going to be, or why. He’s played so fast and loose with the truth for so long that as dementia takes its hold, he probably can’t even tell what’s bullshit anymore. He’s buying into his own illusions. Such as his uncle telling stories about having the unibomber as a student, even though the unibomber wasn’t identified until well after his uncles death.

This hard drives so big, that two people can access it at the same time and never meet.

It’s so frustrating to watch this regime try to kill the messenger. They are objectively wrong about so much. And get mad at the people who “point it out”. And so attempt to muzzle people who are factually correct. Which even if successful, is just going to mean they know less and less, and are increasingly wrong. Which will make them even madder, and muzzle more. Which will make them wrong even more. And so on. It’s the stupidest feedback loop.

It’s like they can’t drive, and rather than practice and learn, and actually become better drivers, they’re trying to change the roads themselves to accommodate their shortcomings. But they’re still going to be bad at driving no matter how much they change the roads. Meanwhile the roads are getting harder to use for everyone else. It’s only a matter of time until something really important catches fire and emergency services can’t put it out because the roads are all too fucked up.

Happiness breeds self esteem, self esteem breeds confidence, confidence breeds learning. Education, confidence, self esteem, and happiness are all antithetical to fear and obedience. We’re much easier to rule if we’re stressed out. Plus, the real reason for return to office is real estate value. It has nothing to do with worker morale or productivity.