In my view prosperity theology is much more despicable than Ponzi schemes or blessing scams. A Ponzi scheme is purely a financial scam. A blessing scam is just boils down to simple theft. Prosperity theology is so much more than this. The victims look to these preachers as spiritual leaders, and these preachers abuse this absolute trust to suck out as much wealth as possible. At least with Ponzi schemes and blessing scams there comes a point where most victims realize that they were deceived by an asshole. But prosperity theology? If the wealth they were promised never comes the victim will see this as a personal failure, or as being unworthy of being blessed. What choice would they have but to double down their investment? Anything less would be seen as having a lack of faith, and a lack of faith will send you straight to hell. Financial scammers and thieves are shitheads, but at least they don't rape and shit all over your sense of value and self worth in the process.

In the past two years two of my credit card numbers were involved in three security breaches at three separate retailers. And as entertaining as this Ashley Madison episode is (40 MILLION MEMBERS?!?), one has to wonder at what point to people lose confidence in the security of traditional financial services companies. I mean, there are alternative currencies out there, and while they have their own issues they seem far more secure than the traditional checking and credit card system. One has to wonder if there is some tipping point at which confidence in credit card and information security is so low that it starts a mass exodus in favor of cryptocurrencies. This would have huge ramifications, not just to Visa, Mastercard, and American Express, but for world financial markets and global currencies as a whole.

I find this whole porn label for photos of urban decay to be a bit of a stretch. I'd wager that most people that are into this kind of thing are into it for deeper reasons than liking the aesthetics.

Granted, when I walk past an abandoned building I don't think of the socioeconomic and criminal costs of having that abandoned structure in a community. I do find myself wondering about the people that lived and worked there and passed on and how the life of the building shaped the lives of its caretakers and that of their future generations, and how that reflects my own existence in that life passed from these buildings leaving a ruined shell and so to will that soon happen to me. So for me this medium allows me to think on the tenuous nature of my own existence.

Now is that pornographic? I guess that depends, some would certainly view excessive self-reflection as masturbatory. They might be right, but I'd like to think that its deeper than that.

I remember that too. It was 2004 and the internet was rife with all sorts of apocalyptic projections of our future without cheap oil. Peak oil was immanent or even in the rear view mirror and life was going to be really uncomfortable for everyone within a decade from now. This was alongside discussions of Detroit's conspiracy to kill the electric car and conjecture about fuel cell cars and the future hydrogen based economy.

Last week I was drafting up a budget and crunching the numbers to see how much I should set aside for a new car when my current one craps out in about 5 years or so. Looking into it I found that if I purchased an electric car I could save about $1,500 a year on the cost of fuel alone. I realized that the savings accrued over the life of the car would easily pay for the uptick for a Tesla model 3 when it comes out and I was pretty excited about it. I was then struck by how mundane my internal debate was between a gasoline or all-electric car; like I was choosing between different brands of toasters or khaki pants.

Seconded. Also, 2 guys 1 hammer, any of the ISIS decapitation videos, self mutilation, etc. I'm aware that some of these things exist in the world, but that doesn't mean I have to see it.

Edit: there was one of these horrible videos I saw that I think was worth it in the long run, and that was the inside footage of The Station nightclub fire. It's easily the worst thing I've ever seen. And it's strange because I've frequented Rotten.com back in my younger days and this video had no gore or anything like that, but somehow it's more than the sum of its parts and will stick with you long after you've seen it. On the flip side, after having seen it every time I enter a crowded event or building I am mindful of all exits and potential escape routes. So I guess seeing it is worth gaining a level in perception. You might feel differently, so be warned. Note: the link above is to the wikipedia page. If you want to see the video that's on you.