What is the appeal of Soylent?

Anonus

It seems like it would be useful as a non-perishable item to be taken, like, camping or something, or for people who had difficulty eating solid food.

But why have Reddit types seemed to glom onto it?

Obā-san

because it replaces food, allowing you to become future

Anonus

but it's just so boring

Anonus

and now I'm thinking of the food pills from The Jetsons

Obā-san

more pertinent to the interest of redditors: it provides all of the nutrients your catboy needs whilst being easy to serve in a dish on the floor

Anonus

hm?

Obā-san

Anonus said:

but it's just so boring

SELF-DENIAL IS A VIRTUE

Obā-san

ANONUS WHY DO YOU INSIST UPON LIVING IN SIN

Anonus

because I'm not a masochist?

Obā-san

oh of course

Toolsie

never heard of it apart from that film

Obā-san

(*Harrison Bergeron voice*) Soylent Green is petplaaaayyy

Obā-san

man that short story always pissed me off

i found it in a compilation at a tender young age and thought it sounded like the work of a crotchety old republican political cartoonist so I never read another thing of Vonnegut's

Obā-san

that may be unfair

after all, at least Mallard Fillmore has some sex appeal

Obā-san

thank you thank you, I will be here until I pass out

Obā-san

Today is Tomorrow said:

more pertinent to the interest of redditors: it provides all of the nutrients your catboy needs whilst being easy to serve in a dish on the floor

I wonder what r/petplay is like

Obā-san

there is no r/petplay

I thought there was a subreddit for everything

Anonus

Toolsie said:

never heard of it apart from that film

https://www.soylent.com/

One-Winged Eagle

The appeal is that you can now fucking engineer out all human weakness because Rob Rhineheart is afraid of kitchens and feels that cooking is an experience analogous to being tortured.

Mandelbrot

http://www.vox.com/2015/5/12/8590673/soylent

Tre

(If it turns green, run!)

sunn wolf

Today is Tomorrow said:

there is no r/petplay

I thought there was a subreddit for everything

i dare you to start r/petplay

MetaFour

Today is Tomorrow said:

man that short story always pissed me off

i found it in a compilation at a tender young age and thought it sounded like the work of a crotchety old republican political cartoonist so I never read another thing of Vonnegut's

What's funny is "crotchety old Republican" is about as far from Vonnegut as you can get. 

Yes, that's a reasonable interpretation to draw from "Harrison Bergeron", but the story's really a huge outlier in Vonnegut's work. So much so that some critics try to argue that Vonnegut was secretly mocking the viewpoint that the story was allegedly pushing. You know, a "stealth parody".

Klinotaxis

start with the premise that you put zero effort into eating. you eat as cheaply as you can, either in the form of fast food, or buying instant ramen that's half salt in bulk.

with that restriction, something that is supposedly actually nutritious is a huge improvement

Sredni Vashtar

MetaFour said:

Today is Tomorrow said:

man that short story always pissed me off

i found it in a compilation at a tender young age and thought it sounded like the work of a crotchety old republican political cartoonist so I never read another thing of Vonnegut's

What's funny is "crotchety old Republican" is about as far from Vonnegut as you can get. 

Yes, that's a reasonable interpretation to draw from "Harrison Bergeron", but the story's really a huge outlier in Vonnegut's work. So much so that some critics try to argue that Vonnegut was secretly mocking the viewpoint that the story was allegedly pushing. You know, a "stealth parody".

Pretty much this. Aside from his scepticism about abstract art trends of the '60s-'70s (which came from a different place than the typical conservative critique anyway), he was pretty progressive and held no truck with things like trickle-down economics.

Obā-san

MachSpeed said:

The appeal is that you can now fucking engineer out all human weakness because Rob Rhineheart is afraid of kitchens and feels that cooking is an experience analogous to being tortured.

that bit in cyberchase where they were cooking the souffles

Salix Babylonika

Mandelbrot said:

http://www.vox.com/2015/5/12/8590673/soylent

This is quite possibly the actual dumbest thing I've ever read.

Salix Babylonika

I am angry right now.

Sredni Vashtar

I disagree. It's an interesting point, and while I love to eat and love to cook, I can understand the particular brand of neurosis on display here even if it is, indeed, a neurosis.

Salix Babylonika

I am not willing to meaningfully engage with someone who thinks they're above eating.

Tachyon

i didn't think it was dumb

it got sorta weird towards the end there

Crystal

I'm really not a fan of how patronizing that article is, never mind how it overcomplicates what are, to me, overall basic and easy things to do (provided you can walk on to the store and get all that you need for meal prep, etc).

I'm not very hot on Soylent, since it's just not my style, but some of those arguing against it definitely aren't convincing me that it is Just Bad, or what-have-you. Of course it'd be better without mold or risk of mold, which is just kinda dumb.

Sredni Vashtar

^^^ Not "above" eating, just doesn't enjoy it and would rather be doing something more enjoyable.

You have this habit of projecting contempt for your life choices on things that you strongly disagree with or don't understand. AU does it, too, and it honestly weirds me out and strikes me as... unhealthy.

Tachyon

>"But cooking is fun!" you say. Wow. Wrong. Cooking is a tedious process that can result in you stabbing yourself or burning your house down. It's awful.

i can kinda relate to this part

Salix Babylonika

Sredni Vashtar said:

^^^ Not "above" eating, just doesn't enjoy it and would rather be doing something more enjoyable.

You have this habit of projecting contempt for your life choices on things that you strongly disagree with or don't understand. AU does it, too, and it honestly weirds me out and strikes me as... unhealthy.

If you can read that article as not being contemptuous than you are simply infinitely more patient with people than I am.

Salix Babylonika

Also like i already have problems with what I can and can't eat I don't need someone comparing it to other less pleasant bodily functions, thanks.

Tachyon

i really didn't get contempt out of it but idk, sometimes i miss that

this part seemed like a fair point:

The question isn't "Is this easier than trying to roast Brussels sprouts?"; it's "Is this easier than walking five minutes to the nearest takeout?"

Soylent is definitely not easier than walking five minutes to the nearest takeout.

Tachyon

Jane said:

Also like i already have problems with what I can and can't eat I don't need someone comparing it to other less pleasant bodily functions, thanks.

well i mean, eating is kinda gross when you stop and think about it

i mean soylent actually seems a lot grosser to me than regular food, but still

Tachyon

i'm like, i like flavour

flavour is the good part about eating things

why would you take away the good part

Salix Babylonika

Tachyon said:

Jane said:

Also like i already have problems with what I can and can't eat I don't need someone comparing it to other less pleasant bodily functions, thanks.

well i mean, eating is kinda gross when you stop and think about it

Precisely why I need people to not point that out.

Section42L

I agree with you, honestly.

I can't eat milkshakes without wanting to throw up, so I can't imagine being able to ingest soylent.

Tachyon

^^ when you put it that way i get you

but idk if that makes the author of that article contemptuous for pointing that out

it sounds more like for whatever reason they've got stuck on the idea and can't *not* think about that

Sredni Vashtar

Jane said:

Sredni Vashtar said:

^^^ Not "above" eating, just doesn't enjoy it and would rather be doing something more enjoyable.

You have this habit of projecting contempt for your life choices on things that you strongly disagree with or don't understand. AU does it, too, and it honestly weirds me out and strikes me as... unhealthy.

If you can read that article as not being contemptuous than you are simply infinitely more patient with people than I am.

This is not the best example, but it is certainly not the first. I have no intention of reading you the Riot Act over something that really doesn't affect anyone here, but you're getting mad bitter over someone else's weird hangups.

^ Exactly. I feel kind of bad for them.

Tachyon

tbh also i just can't get over the name of the stuff

like who in their right mind names their product 'soylent'

just, why

Salix Babylonika

Sredni Vashtar said:

Jane said:

Sredni Vashtar said:

^^^ Not "above" eating, just doesn't enjoy it and would rather be doing something more enjoyable.

You have this habit of projecting contempt for your life choices on things that you strongly disagree with or don't understand. AU does it, too, and it honestly weirds me out and strikes me as... unhealthy.

If you can read that article as not being contemptuous than you are simply infinitely more patient with people than I am.

This is not the best example, but it is certainly not the first. I have no intention of reading you the Riot Act over something that really doesn't affect anyone here, but you're getting mad bitter over someone else's weird hangups.

^ Exactly. I feel kind of bad for them.

I'm not "bitter", it just pissed me off and I don't want to read any more of it.

You have a habit of assuming I'm way madder than I actually am.

Sredni Vashtar

Attempting to show a sense of humour about their product, although they might have missed the mark.

Tachyon

it's a bit too visceral to be funny, for me

you don't joke about something like that and still expect me to ingest your product

just no.  NO.

Section42L

Sredni Vashtar said:

Attempting to show a sense of humour about their product, although they might have missed the mark.

The thing about Rob Rhinehart is that he already exhibits a classic engineers' arrogance (as exhibited here), so naming his product "Soylent" just comes off as trying to seriously play God rather than being a joke.

Bee

The shit's kinda gross.

Like, I get that it's unusually nutritious.

But it tastes like ass and in my case would result in more thrown up than ingested.  Turns out shoving a bunch of essential vitamins, proteins, and assorted nutrients into a chunky slurry that resembles something your infant son spit up does not constitute food.  I'll stick to the risk of stabbing myself and/or burning my house down, because unlike the writer of that article, I'm not one of those dipshits in a 90's cell phone commercial who fucking hogties himself in his phone cord.

I'm not even a particularly good cook, but Jesus Christ people.

Does sound like something useful for mountain climbing or emergency aid or something, but ultimately it's not food -- it's feed.

Tachyon

also like the joke is that his horrible SF dystopian product resembles a horrible SF dystopian product

which it does, because that's what it is

not much irony there, it's a plain fact, the product is indeed horrible

so he gave it a name that suggests it's even more horrible, to make it even less appealing

???

Tachyon

i mean i suppose i should give him some credit, it was a pretty ballsy move

but that doesn't make me want to try it