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   Quinn Norton (quinn@social.circl.lu)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 00:27:23 JST Quinn Norton

   • Evan Prodromou

   @evan my answer was yes but... if i can see a fatal flaw quickly and clearly, I usually don't chase down all the details. This fails occasionally, but as a heuristic it's effective and efficient.

   • Embed this notice
     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 00:27:21 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     @quinn what if it's a Big Idea, for example, a popular current book? Or even a classic.

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 00:51:10 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     @quinn ha! I am older than you and I read shitty books all the time.

     But I meant something like "The Technological Republic" by Alex Karp. Assuming you like me are not a technofascist, is there any value in reading a book arguing for an idea we think is bad?

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     Quinn Norton (quinn@social.circl.lu)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 00:51:11 JST Quinn Norton

     in reply to

     • Evan Prodromou

     @evan Life is all opportunity cost, and I am not young.

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     Quinn Norton (quinn@social.circl.lu)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 00:51:13 JST Quinn Norton

     in reply to

     • Evan Prodromou

     @evan If I *have* to do work on it, sure. But the popularity of, for instance, Dan Brown's ouvre doesn't compel me in how I spend my limited time under the sun.

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 01:46:59 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     @quinn "execution" meaning Gantt charts or guillotines?

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     Quinn Norton (quinn@social.circl.lu)'s status on Wednesday, 01-Jul-2026 01:47:01 JST Quinn Norton

     in reply to

     • Evan Prodromou

     @evan not unless it has some link to execution. Reading isn't innocuous, and I'm not eating poison without being a plan and a purpose. This evil is meant for people like me, and I'm not going to pretend otherwise. Until I have a reason, no.