It’s true that we evolved in response to an environment, but the actual genetic changes that allowed for that were not developed with purpose. They happened randomly, and the ones that happened to provide a benefit made those individuals more likely to have more kids that those with less beneficial random changes.

Remember, Trump doesn’t say things that are true - or even things he thinks are true - he only says things that he thinks will benefit him to say. So yes, it benefits him to say Jan 6 wasn’t domestic terrorism, and that vandalism of his boss’ cars is domestic terrorism.

Yeah, I voted blue, but I knew this was going to happen regardless of who won.

When I was in college they came out with a bunch of different “pieces” candies. They were just like Reese’s pieces, but for different candies, like Heath and Almond Joy. I loved them, and I loved the fact that you could mix them together to make different flavors. They didn’t last too long, though. I was disappointed when I couldn’t find them anymore after a few years.

Then later I found a new favorite candy in the Butterfinger cups. They were like Reese’s peanut butter cups, but softer and with little Butterfinger pieces in them! I loved them, but they also disappeared in a few years. That’s the issue with gravitating toward new things - so many of the ones I find myself enjoying end up failing since most people just like to stick with what they know.

I did when I was a kid, and I think a lot of us did. That’s the thing - they teach us in school about all the good stuff capitalism has allowed for, specifically so that it takes us longer to realize that they’re cherry picking what they can out of a big pile of shit. But by then hopefully we’ve started a family or a career or something that we don’t want to lose, so they can sell us the lie of complacency and avoid ever having a new revolution. It’s getting harder and harder for them to hide the smell of the shit pile, though, and people are getting radicalized younger and younger.

It’s America. One of the most common reasons for something to exist here is because it makes money, and this is making a lot of money.

I don’t honestly think that would work. They’ve been conditioned to take comfort in not knowing things. I’ve seen the thought process unfold in front of me hundreds of times: “If a republican did it, it was a good thing and part of the plan, even if I don’t understand how yet.” It’s exactly the same thought process that they employ for their religion: “God is good and does good things, even though terrible things happen to people all the time that God must have allowed if he exists, there’s always a plan, even if we don’t know it.”

I was never full-on incel, but I was definitely headed down that path. I was a late-20’s fat guy with severe acne all over my upper body, and I’d obviously never had a girlfriend. I looked ahead in life and just saw it going further and further downhill. I tried dieting, working out, etc, but none of my attempts at making a change ever lasted.

One day I saw a facebook post that one of my old highschool classmates had gotten married. The guy looked a lot like me, and at first I was mad - I had that classic incel thought of “why is he successful and not me?” But after sitting in that dark place for awhile, I realized that the answer to that question is that I can be successful! I realized that I’d never tried to put myself out there because I always viewed myself as not being worthy - I needed to be fitter, more attractive, better at talking to people, etc - but did I really? I wanted to find out, so I made an online dating account, cleaned myself up, got a friend to take some nice pictures of me doing things I enjoyed, and put myself out there.

I made a goal for myself to never start a conversation with “Hey” or something similar - I went through every profile I found and picked something specific to talk about. It took a while, and I missed a lot of opportunities by being awkward, but eventually I got good enough at holding a conversation to secure a few dates, and in only a few months of that, I found the woman who is now my wife!

I’m still fat, but having someone to look good for was at least enough for me to shower more regularly, which cleared up a lot of my acne. I’m still pretty awkward, but so is my wife, and we both find it endearing. Life’s not perfect - there are still issues - but I’m no longer looking ahead at my life and seeing only downhill trajectory; I have a sense of optimism I didn’t have before, and it mostly came from me accepting myself. I’m not sure if other incels are the same as I was - not realizing that the one they actually hate is themselves - but I hope that if they are, they eventually come to the same realization that I did: that they are worthy.