The grubby, vandalised ruin evokes a low-budget hipster Ozymandias.
July 29, 2016 12:03 PM Subscribe
The 27-year-old CEO and founder of Soylent bought a patch of scrub in an area known as Flat Top to begin an “experiment in sustainable living” early this year.
It has not gone well.
It has not gone well.
He did not appreciate Rhinehart hosting parties, including a recent 3am gathering involving a “ton of vehicles” and a type of “inflatable drone”.
a type of “inflatable drone”
wait what
posted by burgerrr at 12:11 PM on July 29, 2016 [5 favorites]
a type of “inflatable drone”
wait what
posted by burgerrr at 12:11 PM on July 29, 2016 [5 favorites]
This is the same guy that killed his gut bacteria so he wouldn't have to poop and sprays bacteria on himself instead of showering, right? Why even bother with the toilet, then?
posted by backseatpilot at 12:12 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
posted by backseatpilot at 12:12 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
RENT doesn't work as well when you make Benny the lead.
posted by GameDesignerBen at 12:12 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]
posted by GameDesignerBen at 12:12 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]
The CEO declined to say for how long, if at all, he has actually lived in the container. Neighbours think he has visited only on occasion.
posted by splitpeasoup at 12:15 PM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by splitpeasoup at 12:15 PM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]
a type of “inflatable drone”
wait what
Probably something along the lines of a Festo Air_ray. Although I don't know how well one would work in wind.
posted by figurant at 12:16 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
wait what
Probably something along the lines of a Festo Air_ray. Although I don't know how well one would work in wind.
posted by figurant at 12:16 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Rob Rhinehart comes of as a real-world Vincent Adultman in his attempts to understand the human condition.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 12:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
posted by Foci for Analysis at 12:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
"Flat Top hill has been a gathering spot since long before I arrived. I would be thrilled if the area became a park, but that has not materialized so in the meantime I have a right to use land that I own,” Rhinehart said via email. “I want a sturdy, lightweight, affordable home.”
Haha. Great. Shoulda bought it while you had the chance, suckers!
Anyway, sounds like he'll get the permitting and etc sorted eventually and he'll have enclosed that bit of commons.
posted by notyou at 12:19 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Haha. Great. Shoulda bought it while you had the chance, suckers!
Anyway, sounds like he'll get the permitting and etc sorted eventually and he'll have enclosed that bit of commons.
posted by notyou at 12:19 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
I mean - shipping container houses and off-the-grid living are totally doable and many people have. This doesn't look like he's even trying.
posted by dnash at 12:21 PM on July 29, 2016 [16 favorites]
posted by dnash at 12:21 PM on July 29, 2016 [16 favorites]
One of the classic symptoms of Engineer's Disease is, in fact, eyesores.
posted by tclark at 12:22 PM on July 29, 2016 [52 favorites]
posted by tclark at 12:22 PM on July 29, 2016 [52 favorites]
Soylent Guy's whole aesthetic is like a gritty/shitty reboot of mid-20th century pop futurism. Amazing Stories and The Jetsons promised us that one day we'd all live in chic modular pods and eat a whole dinner in pill form; Soylent Guy delivers on that promise by exploring living in a rusty boxcar and subsisting on a fetid nutrient slurry.
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:22 PM on July 29, 2016 [79 favorites]
posted by Strange Interlude at 12:22 PM on July 29, 2016 [79 favorites]
Incidentally, "Fetid Nutrient Slurry" is the name of my new punk band.
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:24 PM on July 29, 2016 [33 favorites]
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:24 PM on July 29, 2016 [33 favorites]
What an idiot. You always should build your house just below the crest of the hill, never directly on top.
posted by Capt. Renault at 12:25 PM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]
posted by Capt. Renault at 12:25 PM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]
"The grubby, vandalized ruin evokes a low-budget hipster Ozymandias."
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair, indeed.
posted by Aznable at 12:25 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair, indeed.
posted by Aznable at 12:25 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
“My home was graffitied and the windows were smashed. That’s my fault? Where are the police? I have spent thousands improving the surroundings including cleaning trash, graffiti and cutting grass not just on my land but the whole hilltop.”
So if I go pick up litter and mow lawns on property I don't even own then I can build without a permit?
“My lack of permits is not for lack of trying. Many other cities have elaborate shipping container projects so I am optimistic a single container design could get approved. The intention is to live there, potentially adding more container living modules.”
Ahh I see. He's trying. I might knock down my house and build a 10 story super-dense apartment building. I know I'm in a historic district and they said I can't get a permit for more than two stories and two units per parcel, but hey - other cities do it! I'll try to get permits once it's up.
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 12:26 PM on July 29, 2016 [14 favorites]
So if I go pick up litter and mow lawns on property I don't even own then I can build without a permit?
“My lack of permits is not for lack of trying. Many other cities have elaborate shipping container projects so I am optimistic a single container design could get approved. The intention is to live there, potentially adding more container living modules.”
Ahh I see. He's trying. I might knock down my house and build a 10 story super-dense apartment building. I know I'm in a historic district and they said I can't get a permit for more than two stories and two units per parcel, but hey - other cities do it! I'll try to get permits once it's up.
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 12:26 PM on July 29, 2016 [14 favorites]
This is garbage, especially relative to other sustainable shipping container homes. But damn the mention of "Soylent" is the best dogwhistle for loltechbro holier-than-thou-ness in recent memory. Ask me how I know. (Entering week six of eating it for about half my calories.)
posted by supercres at 12:27 PM on July 29, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by supercres at 12:27 PM on July 29, 2016 [11 favorites]
He's actually devising an enema that will obviate the need for permits.
posted by griphus at 12:28 PM on July 29, 2016 [17 favorites]
posted by griphus at 12:28 PM on July 29, 2016 [17 favorites]
This is the same guy that killed his gut bacteria so he wouldn't have to poop and sprays bacteria on himself instead of showering, right?
Um. I have questions. Like... he doesn't poop? What? I'm not even sure how to look that up on this site.
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 12:30 PM on July 29, 2016 [9 favorites]
Um. I have questions. Like... he doesn't poop? What? I'm not even sure how to look that up on this site.
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 12:30 PM on July 29, 2016 [9 favorites]
Criminal charges? Holy shit, the US really is a different country.
posted by My Dad at 12:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by My Dad at 12:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
also btw, perhaps on a larger scale :P
-Y Combinator plans to start a program of research on the building of new cities
-Google's Parent Company Alphabet Wants to Build a New City From the Ground Up
OCP!
posted by kliuless at 12:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
-Y Combinator plans to start a program of research on the building of new cities
-Google's Parent Company Alphabet Wants to Build a New City From the Ground Up
OCP!
posted by kliuless at 12:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
The debacle comes with an added twist: the entrepreneur who promises to revolutionise eating habits by replacing food with powdered drinks roasted a whole pig at a party on the hilltop, allegedly leaving the site littered with trash and leftover pork.
That's the weirdest thing about this. Pig roasts were part of his childhood, and his fond memories of them were one of the reasons he decided to pursue the Soylent concept. He kept telling that story to reporters when he was first being interviewed a couple of years ago. Why would a guy whose entire life seems devoted to eliminating humanity's need to eat dead animals and plants, throw a roast pig party?
Unless...
posted by zarq at 12:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
That's the weirdest thing about this. Pig roasts were part of his childhood, and his fond memories of them were one of the reasons he decided to pursue the Soylent concept. He kept telling that story to reporters when he was first being interviewed a couple of years ago. Why would a guy whose entire life seems devoted to eliminating humanity's need to eat dead animals and plants, throw a roast pig party?
Unless...
posted by zarq at 12:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
So that's what that is! A while ago I noticed this red thing in the hills from the freeway, have meant to try to get a closer look. It's REALLY visible.
posted by kingv at 12:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by kingv at 12:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [13 favorites]
“My home was graffitied and the windows were smashed. That’s my fault? Where are the police?"
My question is, where was he when all these multiple repeated vandalizations were going on? Also, if he doesn't actually have permits, why would anyone expect the police to protect, in effect, a squatter?
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:37 PM on July 29, 2016 [5 favorites]
My question is, where was he when all these multiple repeated vandalizations were going on? Also, if he doesn't actually have permits, why would anyone expect the police to protect, in effect, a squatter?
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:37 PM on July 29, 2016 [5 favorites]
The grubby, vandalized ruin evokes a low-budget hipster Ozymandias.
Peep my jams, fam, and sadgasm.
posted by rhizome at 12:41 PM on July 29, 2016 [63 favorites]
Peep my jams, fam, and sadgasm.
posted by rhizome at 12:41 PM on July 29, 2016 [63 favorites]
My Dad: "Criminal charges? Holy shit, the US really is a different country."
He apparently ignored a court order to remove the structure. Do they not prosecute such things elsewhere?
posted by octothorpe at 12:42 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
He apparently ignored a court order to remove the structure. Do they not prosecute such things elsewhere?
posted by octothorpe at 12:42 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
Rhinehart said he plans to temporarily remove the container, at the request of neighbours, and then return it, complete with septic tank and greywater shower.
Based on how this has gone so far, I'm sure the neighbours will be thrilled to have that septic tank...uphill from them.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:43 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Based on how this has gone so far, I'm sure the neighbours will be thrilled to have that septic tank...uphill from them.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:43 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
I love that he feels free to ignore municipal building rules but is mad that the police aren't protecting his property. He can ignore the laws but no one else can?
posted by octothorpe at 12:44 PM on July 29, 2016 [41 favorites]
posted by octothorpe at 12:44 PM on July 29, 2016 [41 favorites]
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair.
posted by adamrice at 12:44 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by adamrice at 12:44 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
He apparently ignored a court order to remove the structure. Do they not prosecute such things elsewhere?
Yup. Contempt of court.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:45 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Yup. Contempt of court.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:45 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
I love that he feels free to ignore municipal building rules but is mad that the police aren't protecting his property. He can ignore the laws but no one else can?
Techbro Libertarianism in a nutshell.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:45 PM on July 29, 2016 [35 favorites]
Techbro Libertarianism in a nutshell.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:45 PM on July 29, 2016 [35 favorites]
80 Cats in a Dog Suit, the gut bacteria thing is from 2014 when he decided to do a low-water challenge and, well...
Flush toilets use enormous quantities of water so I needed a way to make it unnecessary.
Feces are almost entirely deceased gut bacteria and water. I massacred my gut bacteria the day before by consuming a DIY Soylent version with no fiber and taking 500mg of Rifaximin, an antibiotic with poor bioavailability, meaning it stays in your gut and kills bacteria. Soylent’s microbiome consultant advised that this is a terrible idea so I do not recommend it. However, it worked. Throughout the challenge I did not defecate.
Here's his blog post about it. It's like he's missing both the forest and trees and is instead just wandering in circles through a marsh.
posted by truex at 12:46 PM on July 29, 2016 [17 favorites]
Flush toilets use enormous quantities of water so I needed a way to make it unnecessary.
Feces are almost entirely deceased gut bacteria and water. I massacred my gut bacteria the day before by consuming a DIY Soylent version with no fiber and taking 500mg of Rifaximin, an antibiotic with poor bioavailability, meaning it stays in your gut and kills bacteria. Soylent’s microbiome consultant advised that this is a terrible idea so I do not recommend it. However, it worked. Throughout the challenge I did not defecate.
Here's his blog post about it. It's like he's missing both the forest and trees and is instead just wandering in circles through a marsh.
posted by truex at 12:46 PM on July 29, 2016 [17 favorites]
But damn the mention of "Soylent" is the best dogwhistle for loltechbro holier-than-thou-ness in recent memory
I will loltechbro from the rooftops, dude. Zero anguish over it!
posted by naju at 12:50 PM on July 29, 2016 [22 favorites]
I will loltechbro from the rooftops, dude. Zero anguish over it!
posted by naju at 12:50 PM on July 29, 2016 [22 favorites]
low-budget hipster Ozymandias.
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair.
His vast and trunkless legs of stone stood in the desert before it was cool.
posted by Celsius1414 at 12:51 PM on July 29, 2016 [25 favorites]
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair.
His vast and trunkless legs of stone stood in the desert before it was cool.
posted by Celsius1414 at 12:51 PM on July 29, 2016 [25 favorites]
Throughout the challenge I did not defecate.
This explains why he's so full of shit.
posted by exogenous at 12:51 PM on July 29, 2016 [31 favorites]
This explains why he's so full of shit.
posted by exogenous at 12:51 PM on July 29, 2016 [31 favorites]
Throughout the challenge I did not defecate.
A significant fraction of human feces is discarded red blood cells.
So I guess what I'm saying is, in addition to being a Libertarian Neo-Feudalist Market Fetishist, he's actually bloodless? But I repeat myself.
posted by tclark at 12:58 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
A significant fraction of human feces is discarded red blood cells.
So I guess what I'm saying is, in addition to being a Libertarian Neo-Feudalist Market Fetishist, he's actually bloodless? But I repeat myself.
posted by tclark at 12:58 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
Oh please. Were I or any of you 27 years old and having a 100 mil. company at our disposal, and presumably the income to go with it we all would have done equally stupid, if not more stupid things.
Oh, and I like how a remote control blimp is now the vaguely ominous "inflatable drone"
posted by Keith Talent at 12:58 PM on July 29, 2016 [16 favorites]
Oh, and I like how a remote control blimp is now the vaguely ominous "inflatable drone"
posted by Keith Talent at 12:58 PM on July 29, 2016 [16 favorites]
We used to joke that our founding CEO never got off a flight without appropriating the craziest idea of the guy sitting next to him and then inflicting it on the rest of us as if it were wisdom he gleaned from the Buddha Himself. I am SO GLAD he never shared a plane with this dude!
posted by mosk at 12:59 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
posted by mosk at 12:59 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
Were I or any of you 27 years old and having a 100 mil. company at our disposal, and presumably the income to go with it we all would have done equally stupid, if not more stupid things.
Sounds like a good argument for not allowing that much wealth to concentrate in the hands of individual people to me!
posted by biogeo at 1:04 PM on July 29, 2016 [41 favorites]
Sounds like a good argument for not allowing that much wealth to concentrate in the hands of individual people to me!
posted by biogeo at 1:04 PM on July 29, 2016 [41 favorites]
Were I or any of you 27 years old and having a 100 mil. company at our disposal, and presumably the income to go with it we all would have done equally stupid, if not more stupid things.
And we'd be (rightfully) mocked for it, especially if we felt the need to tell everyone about our ridiculous ideas.
posted by Dark Messiah at 1:07 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]
And we'd be (rightfully) mocked for it, especially if we felt the need to tell everyone about our ridiculous ideas.
posted by Dark Messiah at 1:07 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]
It doesn't matter how stupid the idea is; with millions of dollars you'd think that Rhinehart would be able to execute on his stupid ideas with a little more clarity and vision. He's supposed to be a disruptor, right?
You don't just slap an unsecured box onto a hill and then wonder why everybody in the neighborhood thinks you're an asshole.
posted by truex at 1:09 PM on July 29, 2016 [29 favorites]
You don't just slap an unsecured box onto a hill and then wonder why everybody in the neighborhood thinks you're an asshole.
posted by truex at 1:09 PM on July 29, 2016 [29 favorites]
Were I or any of you 27 years old and having a 100 mil. company at our disposal, and presumably the income to go with it we all would have done equally stupid, if not more stupid things.
Yeah, my "if I won the lottery" dream since my early 20s of creating a foundation to fund testing of the backlog of rape kits in the US was really off the hook, yo.
posted by Squeak Attack at 1:09 PM on July 29, 2016 [42 favorites]
Yeah, my "if I won the lottery" dream since my early 20s of creating a foundation to fund testing of the backlog of rape kits in the US was really off the hook, yo.
posted by Squeak Attack at 1:09 PM on July 29, 2016 [42 favorites]
Oh please. Were I or any of you 27 years old and having a 100 mil. company at our disposal, and presumably the income to go with it we all would have done equally stupid, if not more stupid things.
If you think my moon base will be that easy to vandalize and/or fuck inside of without the blue keycard, you got another thing coming.
posted by griphus at 1:10 PM on July 29, 2016 [38 favorites]
If you think my moon base will be that easy to vandalize and/or fuck inside of without the blue keycard, you got another thing coming.
posted by griphus at 1:10 PM on July 29, 2016 [38 favorites]
20(?) years ago there was a nice house on top of a hill outside of L.A. Completely built, left abandoned and wrecked. I stumbled on it hiking. I was told that some rich kid had completely built this house even though it was on park land, and never lived there. I always wondered about the whole story.
posted by bongo_x at 1:10 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by bongo_x at 1:10 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
He's supposed to be a disruptor, right?
He's a dipshit who won the lottery and believes he earned his millions because he's thousands of times the superior of the plebes who aren't millionaires. Sneeze in a Sunnyvale Starbucks and you'll probably hit one.
posted by tclark at 1:11 PM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]
He's a dipshit who won the lottery and believes he earned his millions because he's thousands of times the superior of the plebes who aren't millionaires. Sneeze in a Sunnyvale Starbucks and you'll probably hit one.
posted by tclark at 1:11 PM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]
Oh please. Were I or any of you 27 years old and having a 100 mil. company at our disposal, and presumably the income to go with it we all would have done equally stupid, if not more stupid things.
Speak for yourself. Even at 27 I understood things like zoning laws and not pissing off one's neighbors. Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
posted by NoxAeternum at 1:13 PM on July 29, 2016 [16 favorites]
Speak for yourself. Even at 27 I understood things like zoning laws and not pissing off one's neighbors. Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
posted by NoxAeternum at 1:13 PM on July 29, 2016 [16 favorites]
"The grubby, vandalized ruin evokes a low-budget hipster Ozymandias."
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair, indeed.
Cool story, bro.
My favorite parts of the Guardian article: the desolate wasteland photo that has a discarded bottle of .. olive oil in the foreground, and the embedded video that opens with a first impression: "tastes like a sort of liquid cake, not necessarily in a bad way. In a good way." Liquid cake? Sign me up! Oh, except for the warnings from the doctor, and the day 3 comment that he's increasingly irritable around other people because he's still hungry.
Oh god, then Rob talks. "Now I enjoy eating more, because I realize it is just for recreation, just for fun."
posted by filthy light thief at 1:13 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair, indeed.
Cool story, bro.
My favorite parts of the Guardian article: the desolate wasteland photo that has a discarded bottle of .. olive oil in the foreground, and the embedded video that opens with a first impression: "tastes like a sort of liquid cake, not necessarily in a bad way. In a good way." Liquid cake? Sign me up! Oh, except for the warnings from the doctor, and the day 3 comment that he's increasingly irritable around other people because he's still hungry.
Oh god, then Rob talks. "Now I enjoy eating more, because I realize it is just for recreation, just for fun."
posted by filthy light thief at 1:13 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
He's a dipshit who won the lottery and believes he earned his millions because he's thousands of times the superior of the plebes who aren't millionaires.
Right, he's wealthy.
posted by indubitable at 1:15 PM on July 29, 2016
Right, he's wealthy.
posted by indubitable at 1:15 PM on July 29, 2016
a type of “inflatable drone”
Perhaps?
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 1:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
Perhaps?
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 1:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
NoxAeternum: Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
From my prior job as a land use planner, we summed up our experiences with millionaires and billionaires as such: millionaires live within the confines of the law, but they think their money can make things happen faster, while billionaires think they can just pay you to do whatever it is they want to do (or make what they have already done legal).
posted by filthy light thief at 1:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [42 favorites]
From my prior job as a land use planner, we summed up our experiences with millionaires and billionaires as such: millionaires live within the confines of the law, but they think their money can make things happen faster, while billionaires think they can just pay you to do whatever it is they want to do (or make what they have already done legal).
posted by filthy light thief at 1:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [42 favorites]
I had no idea what this guy looked like, so I googled him. the first result is his blog, and this is the meta description:
"I fear falling into the abyss of the phone. Is it really better than the world outside? Electronics used to be a tool. A means to an end. Now they are..."
I think I learned a lot.
posted by FirstMateKate at 1:21 PM on July 29, 2016 [5 favorites]
"I fear falling into the abyss of the phone. Is it really better than the world outside? Electronics used to be a tool. A means to an end. Now they are..."
I think I learned a lot.
posted by FirstMateKate at 1:21 PM on July 29, 2016 [5 favorites]
"I fear falling into the abyss of the phone. Is it really better than the world outside? Electronics used to be a tool. A means to an end. Now they are..."
having not seen a single episode of Mr. Robot, I'm willing to believe this is the opening narration
posted by griphus at 1:23 PM on July 29, 2016 [14 favorites]
having not seen a single episode of Mr. Robot, I'm willing to believe this is the opening narration
posted by griphus at 1:23 PM on July 29, 2016 [14 favorites]
Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
Centuries of recorded history?
Well, okay, maybe the money doesn't make them a dick, but without money, they only have a very small reach. They're micro-dicks. (There was one on the Green just this morning!) Give them a lot of money and they scale up accordingly.
posted by Naberius at 1:26 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
Centuries of recorded history?
Well, okay, maybe the money doesn't make them a dick, but without money, they only have a very small reach. They're micro-dicks. (There was one on the Green just this morning!) Give them a lot of money and they scale up accordingly.
posted by Naberius at 1:26 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
Human beings are wired for pattern recognition.
posted by Pope Guilty at 1:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [22 favorites]
Human beings are wired for pattern recognition.
posted by Pope Guilty at 1:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [22 favorites]
While I don't disagree that this guy is a dick, the roast pig thing is a low blow. His whole shtick is that eating real food should be regarded as a social event you can indulge in occasionally, while the rest of the time you can help the environment by eating slop since you probably don't care what you're eating anyway.
Just one more way in which the lifestyles of the rich will differ from the lifestyles of the poor, according to science fiction writers.
posted by subdee at 1:41 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Just one more way in which the lifestyles of the rich will differ from the lifestyles of the poor, according to science fiction writers.
posted by subdee at 1:41 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Oh, and I like how a remote control blimp is now the vaguely ominous "inflatable drone"
I pictured a balloon with a fan and a very long extension cord.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 1:43 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
I pictured a balloon with a fan and a very long extension cord.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 1:43 PM on July 29, 2016 [8 favorites]
Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
Because of the gap the rich often see between themselves and the little people. I suppose it is the same reaction that many not-especially-rich people have to aggressive panhandlers. "Here is someone unpleasant who wants my money."
posted by ricochet biscuit at 1:53 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Because of the gap the rich often see between themselves and the little people. I suppose it is the same reaction that many not-especially-rich people have to aggressive panhandlers. "Here is someone unpleasant who wants my money."
posted by ricochet biscuit at 1:53 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Do we know it was a remote control blimp and not a bagpipe?
posted by The Gaffer at 1:53 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]
posted by The Gaffer at 1:53 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]
Do we know it was a remote control blimp and not a bagpipe?
You're reeding too much into it.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 1:55 PM on July 29, 2016 [18 favorites]
You're reeding too much into it.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 1:55 PM on July 29, 2016 [18 favorites]
While I don't disagree that this guy is a dick, the roast pig thing is a low blow.
I suspect the problem with the pig roast is less the "Soylent guy spotted eating actual food!" part and more the "allegedly leaving the site littered with trash and leftover pork" part. Especially considering whatever his high-concept pro-environmental motivations for Soylent are.
posted by griphus at 1:57 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
I suspect the problem with the pig roast is less the "Soylent guy spotted eating actual food!" part and more the "allegedly leaving the site littered with trash and leftover pork" part. Especially considering whatever his high-concept pro-environmental motivations for Soylent are.
posted by griphus at 1:57 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
I thought the whole point of seasteading is that it was out to sea. I am afraid that the aquatic techbros are coming inland to spawn.
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:59 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:59 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
Because evidence suggests strongly that it generally does?
posted by blucevalo at 2:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Because evidence suggests strongly that it generally does?
posted by blucevalo at 2:18 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
"For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil but also all kinds of good, and who are we to say, really? I think this is a case-by-case basis sort of thing." - 1 Timothy 6:10
posted by griphus at 2:21 PM on July 29, 2016 [24 favorites]
posted by griphus at 2:21 PM on July 29, 2016 [24 favorites]
I am afraid that the aquatic techbros are coming inland to spawn.
Anadramous techbros?
/new band name
//post-seapunk
posted by the man of twists and turns at 2:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
Anadramous techbros?
/new band name
//post-seapunk
posted by the man of twists and turns at 2:34 PM on July 29, 2016 [10 favorites]
Actually, I think the roast pig thing is a low blow. It's not about trash, it's about a pig, specified "whole". The article does a lot of that, repeating the neighbors' hyperbole. "I don't know if it's prostitution, but..."? I guess I have to disclaim Soylent partisanship now, and even this project of his too, for the most part. But... The first comment in this thread was pretty accurate.
posted by Rich Smorgasbord at 2:36 PM on July 29, 2016
posted by Rich Smorgasbord at 2:36 PM on July 29, 2016
I massacred my gut bacteria the day before by consuming a DIY Soylent version with no fiber and taking 500mg of Rifaximin, an antibiotic with poor bioavailability, meaning it stays in your gut and kills bacteria.
I take Rifaximin for my Crohn's Disease and good lord this is not the way it's supposed to be used and not what it does. It inhibits the growth of gut bacteria, not kills it outright forever. He took 500mg once and "massacred" his gut bacteria? I take 1100mg a day to treat my illness. If I could take one (half!) dose once and be cured forever, I think I'd know by now.
posted by Servo5678 at 2:46 PM on July 29, 2016 [17 favorites]
I take Rifaximin for my Crohn's Disease and good lord this is not the way it's supposed to be used and not what it does. It inhibits the growth of gut bacteria, not kills it outright forever. He took 500mg once and "massacred" his gut bacteria? I take 1100mg a day to treat my illness. If I could take one (half!) dose once and be cured forever, I think I'd know by now.
posted by Servo5678 at 2:46 PM on July 29, 2016 [17 favorites]
In this article, and the LA Curbed post linked within, Rinehart keeps talking about how this is a sustainable living experiment, but there is no apparent evidence that he has used it as anything but a party shack. And now it's a giant piece of trash.
Experiment over, dude, the findings are conclusive.
posted by ejs at 3:00 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Experiment over, dude, the findings are conclusive.
posted by ejs at 3:00 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
greywater shower
While I'm wildly sympathetic to the heart behind trying to not poop in order to save water, I need to know: he's not actually going to shower with greywater, right? Because he simply said something about growing plants with shower greywater and it was misunderstood? I feel justified in saying this, because the internet doesn't seem to want to sell me one, but that entire phrase seems completely antithetical to the universe as a whole.
You gotta think here, pal!
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 3:05 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
While I'm wildly sympathetic to the heart behind trying to not poop in order to save water, I need to know: he's not actually going to shower with greywater, right? Because he simply said something about growing plants with shower greywater and it was misunderstood? I feel justified in saying this, because the internet doesn't seem to want to sell me one, but that entire phrase seems completely antithetical to the universe as a whole.
You gotta think here, pal!
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 3:05 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
What I want to believe is that money will make people want to give back to society and help to fund important government programs. My belief that money instead only stokes greed and stupidity is based not on want, but on many years of observation.
posted by IAmUnaware at 3:05 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
What I want to believe is that money will make people want to give back to society and help to fund important government programs. My belief that money instead only stokes greed and stupidity is based not on want, but on many years of observation.
posted by IAmUnaware at 3:05 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Probably something along the lines of a Festo Air_ray. Although I don't know how well one would work in wind.
According to William Gibson, it could be a factor.
posted by lhauser at 3:06 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
According to William Gibson, it could be a factor.
posted by lhauser at 3:06 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
More whelp than welp.
posted by kidkilowatt at 3:47 PM on July 29, 2016
posted by kidkilowatt at 3:47 PM on July 29, 2016
, I need to know: he's not actually going to shower with greywater, right?
Don't worry. The last I heard, he doesn't shower.
posted by happyroach at 3:54 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Don't worry. The last I heard, he doesn't shower.
posted by happyroach at 3:54 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Because evidence suggests strongly that it generally does?
Guess that depends on your experience. I know a lot of millionaires in tech, and most are not assholes or Libertarians. They support big government and "important government programs" and all that.
Some, of course, are assholes. But I don't see any siginificant difference in the % of assholes across income ranges.
I suspect we hear news about asshole rich people more than nice rich people or asshole middle class / poor people, since it is true that asshole rich people can do more damage.
posted by thefoxgod at 4:27 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Guess that depends on your experience. I know a lot of millionaires in tech, and most are not assholes or Libertarians. They support big government and "important government programs" and all that.
Some, of course, are assholes. But I don't see any siginificant difference in the % of assholes across income ranges.
I suspect we hear news about asshole rich people more than nice rich people or asshole middle class / poor people, since it is true that asshole rich people can do more damage.
posted by thefoxgod at 4:27 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Well-adjusted behavior has a tendency to not make headlines, admittedly.
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:37 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:37 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
Does anybody know the lat lon so I can look at the site in google earth?
posted by bukvich at 5:13 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by bukvich at 5:13 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Cool Camino, Bro
posted by Fupped Duck at 5:23 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Fupped Duck at 5:23 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
LA Times is reporting that the container has been removed
posted by gin and biscuits at 5:52 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by gin and biscuits at 5:52 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
littered with trash and leftover pork
Who leaves a pig roast littered with leftover pork? WTF?
posted by bendy at 6:01 PM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]
Who leaves a pig roast littered with leftover pork? WTF?
posted by bendy at 6:01 PM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]
He is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 7 and faces up to two years in jail and $4,000 in fines, prosecutors said Friday.
I would like to be present at the hearing when he asks to be allowed to consume Soylent exclusively while in prison.
posted by ejs at 6:03 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
I would like to be present at the hearing when he asks to be allowed to consume Soylent exclusively while in prison.
posted by ejs at 6:03 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
Who leaves a pig roast littered with leftover pork? WTF?
Maybe he's really bad at roasting pigs.
posted by emjaybee at 6:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
Maybe he's really bad at roasting pigs.
posted by emjaybee at 6:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
I can't believe that land was only 21k.
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 6:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 6:35 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
I don't know about anyone else, but someone who doesn't want to poop isn't normal. Hell, I can tell how good of a day I'm going to have by my morning poop. I was talking to my psychiatrist the other day about maybe going for a morning walk and the Roald Dahl pram came to mind:
An early morning stroll
Is good for people, on the whole
It helps the appetite improve
And also helps the bowels to move
posted by the uncomplicated soups of my childhood at 6:42 PM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]
An early morning stroll
Is good for people, on the whole
It helps the appetite improve
And also helps the bowels to move
posted by the uncomplicated soups of my childhood at 6:42 PM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]
I thought the whole point of seasteading is that it was out to sea. I am afraid that the aquatic techbros are coming inland to spawn.
There's still time to lay down a freeway.
posted by rhizome at 6:51 PM on July 29, 2016
There's still time to lay down a freeway.
posted by rhizome at 6:51 PM on July 29, 2016
He apparently ignored a court order to remove the structure. Do they not prosecute such things elsewhere?
In Canada if Justin Trudeau asks you to do something nicely, you generally just do it. Anyway, all joking aside, we're generally a less litigious society than the US. I guess when you have so many wackos like this fellow wandering around, you need stronger laws.
posted by My Dad at 7:44 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
In Canada if Justin Trudeau asks you to do something nicely, you generally just do it. Anyway, all joking aside, we're generally a less litigious society than the US. I guess when you have so many wackos like this fellow wandering around, you need stronger laws.
posted by My Dad at 7:44 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
truex: "It doesn't matter how stupid the idea is; with millions of dollars you'd think that Rhinehart would be able to execute on his stupid ideas with a little more clarity and vision. He's supposed to be a disruptor, right?"
I know a guy making so little he doesn't have to pay income tax who has managed to build a viable off grid container home (in climate hostile Interior BC not climate "perfect" LA to boot); how can a guy worth millions not manage it?
posted by Mitheral at 8:18 PM on July 29, 2016
I know a guy making so little he doesn't have to pay income tax who has managed to build a viable off grid container home (in climate hostile Interior BC not climate "perfect" LA to boot); how can a guy worth millions not manage it?
Another city’s possible,” says graffiti, while broken glass crunches underfoot and debris, including jars of organic coconut oil and olive oil, lie outside.Is the type of oil some sort of code or dog whistle for something? It seems like a weirdly specific call out.
posted by Mitheral at 8:18 PM on July 29, 2016
According to William Gibson, it could be a factor.
Between the vandalized shipping container home, the LA zoning disputes, the weirdo tech millionaire and the inflatable drone , I'm beginning to suspect this entire story has been thought up by a neural network trained on William Gibson.
posted by Dr Dracator at 8:31 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
Between the vandalized shipping container home, the LA zoning disputes, the weirdo tech millionaire and the inflatable drone , I'm beginning to suspect this entire story has been thought up by a neural network trained on William Gibson.
posted by Dr Dracator at 8:31 PM on July 29, 2016 [6 favorites]
LA Times is reporting that the container has been removed
"But all that’s left now are empty beer bottles, graffiti-stained dirt and a bunch of lingering bad feelings."
Another great band name!
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:36 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
"But all that’s left now are empty beer bottles, graffiti-stained dirt and a bunch of lingering bad feelings."
Another great band name!
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:36 PM on July 29, 2016 [4 favorites]
... debris, including jars of organic coconut oil and olive oil, lie outside.
Is the type of oil some sort of code or dog whistle for something? It seems like a weirdly specific call out.
Those are usually expensive and upscale cooking oils - especially "organic" - so maybe more loltechbro?
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:39 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Is the type of oil some sort of code or dog whistle for something? It seems like a weirdly specific call out.
Those are usually expensive and upscale cooking oils - especially "organic" - so maybe more loltechbro?
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:39 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
thefoxgod, the research (and history) is that in general poverty makes us kinder and more generous. The more money you have, the less likely you are to share. Poor people give at a higher rate, share food and shelter at a higher rate, foster children and are in general more likely to help strangers.
It's probably because of empathy and a sense of shared circumstances and social network, but yes, a nice rich person is an exception.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:43 PM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]
It's probably because of empathy and a sense of shared circumstances and social network, but yes, a nice rich person is an exception.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:43 PM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]
In Canada if Justin Trudeau asks you to do something nicely, you generally just do it. Anyway, all joking aside, we're generally a less litigious society than the US.
"Litigious" generally refers to civil lawsuits. This guy is apparently being prosecuted by the state (as in the government, not necessarily the State of California). That's not a lawsuit, that's alleged criminal violation of the law.
(As a Californian, I'm used to and accept "omg nanny government!" as a criticism. But let's keep the terminology straight, yeah?)
[And, as a Californian, I'm glad that our environmental/social justice/etc. laws are "stricter"/more optimistic than the general/nationwide laws.]
posted by Lexica at 9:16 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
"Litigious" generally refers to civil lawsuits. This guy is apparently being prosecuted by the state (as in the government, not necessarily the State of California). That's not a lawsuit, that's alleged criminal violation of the law.
(As a Californian, I'm used to and accept "omg nanny government!" as a criticism. But let's keep the terminology straight, yeah?)
[And, as a Californian, I'm glad that our environmental/social justice/etc. laws are "stricter"/more optimistic than the general/nationwide laws.]
posted by Lexica at 9:16 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]
About that "4L of water/day" challenge...
> Throughout the challenge I did not defecate.
QUICK, ALERT THE CATHOLICS!
But seriously though, this guy is full of it.
posted by orangewired at 9:49 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
> Throughout the challenge I did not defecate.
QUICK, ALERT THE CATHOLICS!
But seriously though, this guy is full of it.
posted by orangewired at 9:49 PM on July 29, 2016 [1 favorite]
Why do people want to believe that money will magically make someone a dick?
"We may see the small Value God has for Riches, by the People he gives them to."
"We may see the small Value God has for Riches, by the People he gives them to."
-- Alexander Pope, noted poet, who also famously wrote in his "Essay on Criticism":posted by Celsius1414 at 2:14 AM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
"A little learning is a dang'rous thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring:
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely sobers us again.
Fir'd at first sight with what the Muse imparts,
In fearless youth we tempt the heights of Arts,
While from the bounded level of our mind
Short views we take, nor see the lengths behind;
But more advanc'd, behold with strange surprise
New distant scenes of endless science rise!
So pleas'd at first the towering Alps we try,
Mount o'er the vales, and seem to tread the sky,
Th' eternal snows appear already past,
And the first clouds and mountains seem the last;
But, those attain'd, we tremble to survey
The growing labours of the lengthen'd way,
Th' increasing prospects tire our wand'ring eyes,
Hills peep o'er hills, and Alps on Alps arise!"
There's still time to lay down a freeway.
Is this yet another euphemism for a Soylent-fuelled bowel movement?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 4:14 AM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
Is this yet another euphemism for a Soylent-fuelled bowel movement?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 4:14 AM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
All I can say is, I know more than one person who got seriously rich in the 80s gaming boom, one who was a multi-millionaire by his mid-20s, and none of them became arseholes. That latter friend, who created something for Nintendo you will have heard of, bought a very nice house in a very nice part of town, and another in Juan-Les-Pins, and invested the rest in new business ventures with the team he'd set up for his first company. Not all worked, but some did.
He's still in that house, albeit with a wife and kids, and still throws the best firework parties.
So no, getting a lot of money at a young age does not a tosspot make. You have to be a tosspot to begin with.
posted by Devonian at 6:10 AM on July 30, 2016 [10 favorites]
He's still in that house, albeit with a wife and kids, and still throws the best firework parties.
So no, getting a lot of money at a young age does not a tosspot make. You have to be a tosspot to begin with.
posted by Devonian at 6:10 AM on July 30, 2016 [10 favorites]
Guardian: Could you stomach Huel, the food of the future?
The article discusses other high-tech foods as well.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 1:35 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
The article discusses other high-tech foods as well.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 1:35 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
People are often dicks. Poverty generally restricts the scope of the effects of their dickishness, so you don't hear about it as much.
posted by Bugbread at 7:52 AM on August 1, 2016
posted by Bugbread at 7:52 AM on August 1, 2016
Good for him, for trying something different.
Well, that's the thing. It's not really something different. He failed at something a lot of other people have done successfully.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:11 AM on August 1, 2016
Well, that's the thing. It's not really something different. He failed at something a lot of other people have done successfully.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:11 AM on August 1, 2016
In Canada if Justin Trudeau asks you to do something nicely, you generally just do it. Anyway, all joking aside, we're generally a less litigious society than the US. I guess when you have so many wackos like this fellow wandering around, you need stronger laws.Canada also has both civil and criminal contempt
"Contempt of court is a common-law offence which is preserved by the Criminal Code but is not defined therein.1 Resort must be had to the common law, which broadly defines criminal contempt as words or acts obstructing or intending to obstruct the administration of justice.2 Criminal contempt proceedings, though not codified, are consistent with the Charter.3posted by cnelson at 8:34 AM on August 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Criminal contempt can be distinguished from civil contempt as involving a public injury or offence. Some civil contempts, however, may become criminal in nature where the private contempt escalates beyond the realm of the purely civil; for example, a continuing wilful refusal to obey a court order which tends to publicly depreciate the authority of the court and the administration of justice."
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posted by The River Ivel at 12:10 PM on July 29, 2016 [12 favorites]