I was on the verge of going on a tirade about how more people would read short fiction if the stuff getting published didn't appeal exclusively to the sort of people who own NPR and New Yorker tote bags, but instead I'll just say thank you <3
I can't put my finger on why, but this short story reminded me a bit of "Nate the Snake." Ever read it? If not, it's literally hosted on it's own site at natethesnake.com. In fact, I recommend anyone reading this comment check it out--maybe one of you can help me figure out why they both gave me such a similar feeling upon finishing them.
I mean, there is a build up of heavy thoughts, to be deflated at the end. Jokes and drama have that in common. If that's not it, there's the implication of condensed time used by an immortal, in Nistok's use of abbreviated tropes, or Sam and Jack's world tour. There's also the 'secretive' nature, because HICSBE is dense enough that few people understand it, but Nate the Snake literally binds one to keep a secret.
Homestuck gets bad. Like Andrew Hussie cleverly invented new ways to troll his audience. Do you like a good jape? I suppose it also thoughtfully explores themes of having online friends that are hard to meet irl.
I like stories where there's puzzles of strange power interactions, and I like feeling I'm in on the joke, and he made sure the people who made the homestuck music and some of the fancomics got paid. And, the fandom is pretty ok if you're on the other side of tumblr.
> Nistok’s reflections on postmodernity and media reads like a treatise on socialism written by someone who’s never cracked open Das Kapital and has no background in economics, but who’s worked in the service industry for over a decade and has ample firsthand experience of being taken advantage of. It’s clumsy and not articulated very gracefully...
I keep banging on about how we need more worker co-operatives / collectives and how unfair it is that Big Corp can lay off thousands because "growth was only 19% instead of the 20% target", but I guess I'll order a copy of Das Kapital (from my local independent book store, of course!) and find some free open course-ware on economics 😂
Well, sure. More power to you. But if you're trying to lay out a sophisticated argument proposing socialism as a systematic alternative to capitalism (and not just kinder gentler capitalism with more labor unions and regulation), it would be sensible to talk about what exactly capitalism is, how it works, and why it *stops* working in the long run. That's a difficult wheel to reinvent starting from scratch and just using lived experience as a blueprint.
BTW, wasn't being flippant - upon re-read of my comment, it seems that way - sorry! You held up a mirror, and I took it as good advice to educate myself a bit more around these issues :)
TBH, there are just so many hours in the day, and one has to be careful about how one spends one's time, so I doubt I'll ever go deep on the whole capitalism/worker thing. Whenever these political issues pop up, I stick my head in the sand, and hope there's someone smarter out there who's got our backs and making these changes.
But, then, maybe I *should* spend the time, as positive change not only benefits me. It already feels like we're robbing the future generation of too many good things. (I have 2 daughters.)
All good. The thing is, you're not wrong: you don't need to read a stack of Marxist literature to sign a union card, or to believe that workers should have a seat at the table in company governance and deserve a larger share of the profits, or to recognize that the way we've been doing things isn't taking us anywhere good.
But yeah, I get it it. If you've really got only two or three hours of flex time in a day, starting Capital's notoriously difficult first chapter (and going online to find annotations, commentary, and clarity) or taking one of Piketty's books or papers for a spin probably isn't how most people would prefer to spend them, and none of it's *immediately* practical—not the least because class-based leftist politics are a spent force in the USA, and have been for decades.
But if you'd like a glancing but good treatment of this stuff, a very smart friend of mine who's a balls-to-the-wall Marxist and works for a union recommends people Vivek Chibber's "ABC of Capitalism" as primer—and as luck would have it, it seems to be available for free! (https://jacobin.com/2020/05/get-a-free-ebook-version-of-the-abcs-of-capitalism)
As someone who loves webtoons this was utterly brilliant.
This is maybe the best short story I've read in a few years. It feels like it was written specifically for me.
I was on the verge of going on a tirade about how more people would read short fiction if the stuff getting published didn't appeal exclusively to the sort of people who own NPR and New Yorker tote bags, but instead I'll just say thank you <3
I can't put my finger on why, but this short story reminded me a bit of "Nate the Snake." Ever read it? If not, it's literally hosted on it's own site at natethesnake.com. In fact, I recommend anyone reading this comment check it out--maybe one of you can help me figure out why they both gave me such a similar feeling upon finishing them.
And I just realize that I took this too seriously. In revenge you just lost the game.
I mean, there is a build up of heavy thoughts, to be deflated at the end. Jokes and drama have that in common. If that's not it, there's the implication of condensed time used by an immortal, in Nistok's use of abbreviated tropes, or Sam and Jack's world tour. There's also the 'secretive' nature, because HICSBE is dense enough that few people understand it, but Nate the Snake literally binds one to keep a secret.
"a build up of heavy thoughts, to be deflated at the end"
This is a much better worded way of saying what was beginning to materialize in my head. Thanks!
Thanks for this! It's a far more concise look at strange fandom than homestuck ever was. UwU
I've never gone near Homestuck and sometimes I wonder if I missed out.
Homestuck gets bad. Like Andrew Hussie cleverly invented new ways to troll his audience. Do you like a good jape? I suppose it also thoughtfully explores themes of having online friends that are hard to meet irl.
I like stories where there's puzzles of strange power interactions, and I like feeling I'm in on the joke, and he made sure the people who made the homestuck music and some of the fancomics got paid. And, the fandom is pretty ok if you're on the other side of tumblr.
Tricked! You had me until the Guilty Gear reference which was a bit too inside the wheelhouse of your wheelhouse to be believable. Well done!
D'AGH. I remember vacillating on that line and deciding to err on the side of stacking the references higher.
> Nistok’s reflections on postmodernity and media reads like a treatise on socialism written by someone who’s never cracked open Das Kapital and has no background in economics, but who’s worked in the service industry for over a decade and has ample firsthand experience of being taken advantage of. It’s clumsy and not articulated very gracefully...
I keep banging on about how we need more worker co-operatives / collectives and how unfair it is that Big Corp can lay off thousands because "growth was only 19% instead of the 20% target", but I guess I'll order a copy of Das Kapital (from my local independent book store, of course!) and find some free open course-ware on economics 😂
Well, sure. More power to you. But if you're trying to lay out a sophisticated argument proposing socialism as a systematic alternative to capitalism (and not just kinder gentler capitalism with more labor unions and regulation), it would be sensible to talk about what exactly capitalism is, how it works, and why it *stops* working in the long run. That's a difficult wheel to reinvent starting from scratch and just using lived experience as a blueprint.
Agreed.
BTW, wasn't being flippant - upon re-read of my comment, it seems that way - sorry! You held up a mirror, and I took it as good advice to educate myself a bit more around these issues :)
TBH, there are just so many hours in the day, and one has to be careful about how one spends one's time, so I doubt I'll ever go deep on the whole capitalism/worker thing. Whenever these political issues pop up, I stick my head in the sand, and hope there's someone smarter out there who's got our backs and making these changes.
But, then, maybe I *should* spend the time, as positive change not only benefits me. It already feels like we're robbing the future generation of too many good things. (I have 2 daughters.)
All good. The thing is, you're not wrong: you don't need to read a stack of Marxist literature to sign a union card, or to believe that workers should have a seat at the table in company governance and deserve a larger share of the profits, or to recognize that the way we've been doing things isn't taking us anywhere good.
But yeah, I get it it. If you've really got only two or three hours of flex time in a day, starting Capital's notoriously difficult first chapter (and going online to find annotations, commentary, and clarity) or taking one of Piketty's books or papers for a spin probably isn't how most people would prefer to spend them, and none of it's *immediately* practical—not the least because class-based leftist politics are a spent force in the USA, and have been for decades.
But if you'd like a glancing but good treatment of this stuff, a very smart friend of mine who's a balls-to-the-wall Marxist and works for a union recommends people Vivek Chibber's "ABC of Capitalism" as primer—and as luck would have it, it seems to be available for free! (https://jacobin.com/2020/05/get-a-free-ebook-version-of-the-abcs-of-capitalism)
Mazel tov on your fatherhood, by the way.