The alleged shooters final words posted in full
The second amendment means I am my own chief executive and commander in chief of my own military. I authorize my own act of self-defense in response to a hostile entity making war on me and my family.
Nelson Mandela says no form of viooence can be excused. Camus says it’s all the same, whether you live or die or have a cup of coffee. MLK says violence never brings permanent peace. Gandhi says that non-violence is the mightiest power available to mankind.
That’s who they tell you are heroes. That’s who our revolutionaries are.
Yet is that not capitalistic? Non-violence keeps the system working at full speed ahead.
What did it get us. Look in the mirror.
They want us to be non-violent, so that they can grow fat off the blood they take from us.
The only way out is through. Not all of us will make it. Each of us is our own chief executive. You have to decide what you will tolerate.
In Gladiator 1 Maximus cuts into the military tattoo that identifies him as part of the roman legion. His friend asks “Is that the sign of your god?” As Maximus carves deeper into his own flesh, as his own blood drips down his skin, Maximus smiles and nods yes. The tattoo represents the emperor, who is god. The god emperor has made himself part of Maximus’s own flesh. The only way to destroy the emperor is to destroy himself. Maximus smiles through the pain because he knows it is worth it.
These might be my last words. I don’t know when they will come for me. I will resist them at any cost. That’s why I smile through the pain.
They diagnosed my mother with severe neuropathy when she was forty-one years old. She said it started ten years before that with burning sensations in her feet and occasional sharp stabbing pains. At first the pain would last a few moments, then fade to tingling, then numbness, then fade to nothing a few days later.
The first time the pain came she ignored it. Then it came a couple times a year and she ignored it. Then every couple months. Then a couple times a month. Then a couple times a week. At that point by the time the tingling faded to numbness, the pain would start, and the discomfort was constant. At that point even going from the couch to the kitchen to make her own lunch became a major endeavor
She started with ibuprofen, until the stomach aches and acid reflux made her switch to acetaminophen. Then the headaches and barely sleeping made her switch back to ibuprofen.
The first doctor said it was psychosomatic. Nothing was wrong. She needed to relax, destress, sleep more.
The second doctor said it was a compressed nerve in her spine. She needed back surgery. It would cost $180,000. Recovery would be six months minimum before walking again. Twelve months for full potential recovery, and she would never lift more than ten pounds of weight again.
The third doctor performed a Nerve Conduction Study, Electromyography, MRI, and blood tests. Each test cost $800 to $1200. She hit the $6000 deductible of her UnitedHealthcare plan in October. Then the doctor went on vacation, and my mother wasn’t able to resume tests until January when her deductible reset.
The tests showed severe neuropathy. The $180,000 surgery would have had no effect.
They prescribed opioids for the pain. At first the pain relief was worth the price of constant mental fog and constipation. She didn’t tell me about that until later. All I remember is we took a trip for the first time in years, when she drove me to Monterey to go to the aquarium. I saw an otter in real life, swimming on its back. We left at 7am and listened to Green Day on the four-hour car ride. Over time, the opioids stopped working. They made her MORE sensitive to pain, and she felt withdrawal symptoms after just two or three hours.
TOWARDS BETTER SOCIAL MEDIA: THE MANIFESTO
Let’s bring back respect and trust.
I. SOCIAL MEDIA IS BROKEN. We thought social media would bring us together and it’s tearing us apart instead.
II. SOCIAL MEDIA IS BREAKING PEOPLE. Humans need genuine connection with friends. Fake influencers, piles of spam, and internet road rage are changing who we are.
III. CANCEL CULTURE SUCKS. Everyone deserves their own voice. No more enforced silence. Your friend's authenticity is different than yours - live with it.
IV. THE FEED IS TOXIC. We need the power to choose what to ingest. Without cutting off our friends.
Time to change. The future of social media is friendship.
@Kelly_McKernan Someone in my DMs wanted to give me $50 to do 5 pages of illustrations for their children’s book and acted like I was being ungrateful when I said nah man I’m not interested.
Robin Williams had a remarkable practice of providing employment opportunities to individuals experiencing homelessness while working on various film projects. Throughout his career, it is estimated that he engaged around 1,500 different homeless individuals. In the accompanying photograph, Williams can be seen alongside Craig Costaldo, an individual who faced homelessness in the 1980s but has since become a celebrated figure in the New York movie industry.
@steveolivas I never really liked Jelly donuts either, until I had a Shady Maple Rasberry/Cream jelly donut. It’s the only jelly donut worth eating. That’s just like my opinion tho.
There are no points for playing on hard mode. Just like a video game, you can influence the degree of difficulty before the game begins.
Over the long term, the average person who puts themselves in a good position beats the genius who constantly finds themselves in a poor position.
What looks like talent is often good positioning. And the best way to put yourself in a good position is with intelligent preparation.
If I hadn’t spent the last 15 years working in media and public relations, I too would interpret the media silence around covid and new covid research/science as a sign that there is nothing to worry about. But I have. So here are some things you should know🧵