Sven Slootweg @joepie91@pixie.town

"Noah Lyles' collapse underscores our collective COVID denial"

"The 2024 Olympic Games are serving up some less-than-subtle metaphors for how poorly we handle public health. "

https://www.salon.com/2024/08/10/noah-lyles-collapse-underscores-our-collective-denial/

Is there a term for “digital anachronisms” like this: in 2010 I used an iOS app named Elements to edit text notes on my iOS devices. It stored the notes in a folder called “Elements” on my Dropbox, and now 14 years later my notes folder is still named “Elements” even though I have not used that software in at least 10 years.

@joepie91 while I think the codebase/engine will take a long time to go from idea to a working product, I think the sooner that project starts building a community is the key factor in surviving. Right now the level of uncertainty with Firefox has people looking for alternatives so starting to build that community now will probably be easier than after people have been forced to settle for a Chromium based browser.

It is actually wild that the Steam Deck has probably been the first "full fat desktop Linux" device for over a million people. I've heard many stories of people using the KDE environment on it, being happy with it, and eventually moving their main desktop away from Windows. Thank god the Deck cuts a good first impression.

Masks keep you safe.

Vaccines work.

Never Again means Never Again, no matter who does it.

Global Warming is real.

Billionaires are an existential threat to society.

This is just your periodic reminder that you are sane and the gaslighting isn't working on you.

Okay I'd written an entire thing about how golly tim walz is nice, wholesome, loves kids and cats, feeds the hungry, is a gis nerd, and supports the trans youth

and has shown that he's willing to use the force of the state to crush dissent

because, y'know, the point is that no matter how nice a professional politician is, no matter how much they "sympathize with the protestors", they protect the state's legitimacy and the interests of capital first

and I included this whole bit about "well what was he supposed to do??" that I felt was basically beating on a helpless scarecrow so I trashed the post

then I flipping saw a thing making the rounds literally pulling a "well what was he supposed to do?? the mayor of minneapolis called for aid???" and

great

love that

love treating people entrusted with governance and power like they're helpless cogs in the machine of state, good people just following orders

"I think basic human decency is too radical because it might piss off the fascists and disrupt life in my comfortable little bubble"

Hey, you got any of those new Micpo ND cards?

I wish more people would understand how quickly support disappears when you don’t “get better.” Even those who say they’re going to stick around eventually grow tired of the fact that you’re “always sick.” They grow bored of you. One by one they disappear.

It ends up being a lonely life - and the pandemic has only intensified those feelings. If you’re lucky enough to have people stick by you - you have to constantly risk assess whether they might infect you with a virus that will disable you even further. It’s exhausting.

All these pitfalls and landmines take an incredible amount of energy - and its energy most of us simply don’t have to spare. It’s hard to fault someone for not admitting they have Long Covid when the admission could upend their world.

If you don’t tell others you’re disabled - you can at least TRY and pretend that everyone in your life will stand by you. That they aren’t ableists who view people like us as “less than”. If you tell them the truth you’re risking a tremendous amount of pain.

That brings us back to the Olympians. People who are revered the world over for their physical prowess. For their strength, fitness and ability to perform. Their entire careers are based on health status - on being the best of the best. On being able to “power through.”

Their Covid infections are also very public - with the entire world hearing about each positive test, setback and missed opportunity. They’re already setting up the “inspirational narrative” of the Olympians sick with COVID who “overcame to win a medal.”

Because that’s what society wants. They want the story of people pushing through against the odds. They don’t want the story of the person who ends up bedridden because they were too stubborn to wear a mask. That story doesn’t make people feel good.

For these reasons I’m skeptical that any Olympians will admit it if they end up disabled by Long Covid. They will simply quietly disappear. The same way many of us who aren’t in the spotlight have been quietly disappeared from our own lives.

People have forgotten we exist. They stop calling. They stop visiting. They unfriend & unfollow. They don’t have to face the fact that we’re still here - but we’re very sick. They don’t WANT to face it. We end up slipping away with very few people left to witness our decline.

The disappearing of disabled people is exactly WHY others remain convinced they don’t know anyone with Long Covid. Why they’re so sure no Olympians will develop it. We need more visibility. To emerge from the shadows and have people confront the realities of chronic illness.

I sincerely hope that when an elite athlete is left disabled from covid -
They’re able to get a firm diagnosis and tell the world. I hope they will stand up and admit that their career is over due to a virus that everyone has decided is “mild” and not worth worrying about.

Perhaps if someone influential was willing to put themselves out there & risk the judgement and ridicule so many of us already face - we could begin to see positive changes. We could begin to see recognition of the severity of Long Covid. Of the need to reduce spread.

The need to protect our children & vulnerable populations from forced infections. The need to clean the air. The need to stop normalizing constant sickness.

When we finally DO recognize all these needs - real change can happen and healing can begin. 2/2

Getting tired of white folks shutting down BIPOC critiques of Harris/Walz by referencing detention camps as a Trump scare tactic when we've got massive numbers of disproportionately Black folks enslaved in labor camps in every state in the nation RIGHT NOW. We don't call them that, but that's what they are.

Oh, and if you're wondering what I'm on about with the #rescueTransRescue hashtag, there's going to be a digital art exhibit to raise funds for @trans_rescue . The details aren't all figured out yet, but what *has* been can be found here:
https://leecat.art/rescue-trans-rescue

Deutschlandticket adventure to Luxembourg: very fun, would recommend

I want to send YOU a free mix CD, and here's why:

Years ago, I knew a guy online, who went by the handle The Rev. He was a good guy who died too young, and I still miss him.

The thing is, he did a little cool thing, on occassion; he'd put up a post on his blog offering to send out mix CDs. I love that I have a little something to remember him by. It's a tradition that's worth bringing back.

Recently, I've been thinking; hey, I have a couple CD burners, and a stack of unused CD-Rs that are probably still fine, and I'm not scrimping for every penny so much that postage would be a problem. So, I'm thinking maybe I'll do this! I'm currently in the process of putting a track listing together.

If anyone would be interested, either reply below, or DM me, or contact me through my site. If you can give me a UK postal address, I will try to send out a CD, no charge. If you're outside the UK or don't feel comfortable giving me an address, that's cool, I'll give a link to grab the tracks online instead.

This is a while-stocks-last kinda offer, but while this post is up, the offer is on, and I would love for you to take me up on it! Boosts are also welcome.

And if anyone else thinks this is cool and would like to carry on the tradition, now or in the future, I think that would be wonderful! May I suggest we use the following tag for it:

#mixCD

Love you Owen.