🪰 The harder you push, the more stubborn the door—yet it opens when you least expect. ✨️

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Women are generally considered to be the empathetic gender. I can't really confirm that. I think the term benevolence is more appropriate here. I think women tend to be more benevolent, whereas empathy is a skill that can be developed regardless of gender. I think many people don't know the difference between morality and empathy. Empathy means being open to the perspective and needs of others. Morality is an ideal that everyone has for themselves. Forcing this ideal on others has nothing to do with empathy.

One example is that men are often told: You don't need to build muscles. You don't need to reinforce your masculinity. But that immediately makes a judgment, then connects it with a personal ideal and then tries to talk the other person into adopting that very same ideal. That is not empathy, even if it stems from a motive of benevolence. That is moralizing.

In fact, even if the motives are fundamentally different, the effect is not so dissimilar to the infamous gaslighting (a subtle form of violence). As a man, you can become just as insecure and doubt yourself as women and non-binary people. Nobody - regardless of gender - wants to be told what they can and cannot want.

For men, physical strength is not a universal need, but a common one that is in the nature of men. Likewise, dominance or strength through superiority are completely natural drives - which, by the way, also occur in women.

In a society, it is not about setting rules about who can be what, but about everyone being able to live out their needs freely within a socially acceptable framework without being reduced to that or judged as a human being. When we talk about toxic masculinity, we mean a dynamic that is harmful - for example, aggressive behavior that harms others (that is, not socially acceptable). But if we keep talking about toxic masculinity, we must also talk about toxic femininity. Toxic femininity, for example, is the moralizing behavior I described. And if we now separate ourselves from the idea that both things can be stereotypically assigned to genders, we might be able to find a more objective basis for discussion that is not based on demonization but on empathy.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Little Vincent doesn't even try to think about becoming independent ❤️🤭

A man in his fourth decade who cherishes his stuffed animal and carries it playfully in his heart may embody a deeper form of maturity (one rooted in self-care and appreciation) than someone who seeks importance in the lives of others out of self-interest, creating dependencies to secure personal advantages. This latter behavior reflects an infantile craving for the metaphorical milk of gratitude, masked as maturity.

🍼🎖

This contrast highlights the tension between external expectations and internal realities. It does not suggest that all who care for others do so selfishly, nor that every adult who finds joy in a stuffed animal embodies a higher wisdom. Rather, it exposes the superficiality of rigid stereotypes and quick judgments, inviting a more nuanced reflection on what it truly means to grow.

🌱🍂

Another example: What age were you thinking of when I spoke of the fourth decade? In fact, the first decade begins at birth. The probability that you thought of me as 10 years older is very high because few people think in such a nuanced and attentive way.

🤓🔢🤯

Furthermore, does maturity have something to do with the active effort to look behind the facade?

⁉️ 🧱 👥

True maturity involves a conscious effort to see beyond surface-level appearances, judgments, and assumptions. It requires recognizing the difference between what’s projected outwardly and what’s actually going on beneath the surface. This deeper awareness allows for empathy, understanding, and the ability to navigate the world with wisdom. It’s not just about understanding yourself, but also seeing others for who they really are, not just as they present themselves to the world.

🦚🪶🐦‍⬛

The first impulse can be important, but the decision to question it and learn more is the key to a deeper understanding.

🪸🦪🤿

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

There is an agreement between the democratic parties of the Bundestag (German parliament) not to work with extreme parties. Parties that are not on the outer fringe are considered democratic parties. Extreme politics is undemocratic. The fact that such parties can still be elected to the Bundestag is democratic - but it does not oblige anyone to include them in alliances. This principle is not about arbitrary exclusion but rather about preserving democratic norms. The German constitution explicitly defends a defensive democracy, meaning it can and does take measures against parties that threaten democratic principles.

Extreme politics is considered undemocratic because the consequences in their extreme form are disproportionate to the will of the people, which is excluded from a theoretical majority.

If, for example, the party Die Linke were to find a majority for a government, it could mean extreme changes for a large part of the population that would deviate too far from the common consensus.

At the state level, however, there can be no overarching agreement because the respective state levels of the parties make their own rules. This is due to the federalist system. That is why there can be coalitions with extreme parties at the state level, for example with the far-left party Die Linke, but not in the Bundestag. The impact of a party on a state level would not be as big.

The AfD has been classified in parts as an extremist organization by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, particularly due to racist, nationalist, and anti-democratic tendencies. Statements from prominent AfD politicians have repeatedly included anti-migrant, antisemitic, and anti-Muslim rhetoric, which many consider to be fundamentally inhumane.

On the other hand, while Die Linke has some extreme factions (such as those with anti-capitalist or pro-communist leanings), its core ideology is generally based on social justice, redistribution, and pacifism, rather than targeting specific groups of people. This is why the mainstream parties sometimes cooperate with Die Linke at the state level but consistently refuse any alliance with the AfD.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

⚠️ Today, the CDU deliberately collaborated with the right-wing extremist AfD. All other parties made their position clear beforehand. The @cdu cannot pretend to regret it!!!

The CDU's decision today to cooperate with the far-right AfD is a deeply troubling moment in German politics, and it feels like a significant departure from the principles on which the party was founded. As the great-grandson of Dr. Werner Hilpert, a co-founder of the CDU and a political prisoner in the Buchenwald concentration camp for over five years, I am particularly sensitive to the historical weight this decision carries. My great-grandfather and others risked their lives to establish a party that stood firmly against extremism and for democratic values.

By seeking support from the AfD, the CDU risks undermining the very foundation of those values. The AfD, with its radical positions, challenges the democratic principles that the CDU once defended so strongly - such as human dignity, equality, and the protection of minorities. This move represents a break from the firewall that was once firmly in place to keep extremist forces at bay. It’s hard to ignore the historical context in which my great-grandfather and many others built the party: a time when the fight against tyranny and fascism was literal, and their vision for Germany was one of reconciliation, freedom, and democracy.

The consequences of this decision go far beyond a simple political maneuver. It could embolden the AfD, normalize extremist rhetoric, and deepen political polarization across Germany. Once the line is crossed, the danger of a gradual erosion of democratic principles becomes very real. The CDU’s move today risks destabilizing the political landscape, and it may open the door for further compromises with forces that threaten the integrity of Germany’s democratic order. It’s a moment that should make every member of the CDU reflect on the legacy of those who built it and whether they are still living up to those founding principles.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

🚌✨️ Well, I'm sitting on a bus.
Like almost every day.

🥕 And in the right light you can also see that I eat my carrots regularly.

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I have a white background. I am a white man of German descent in Germany. I am discriminated against. But not because I am white or a man, but despite being a white man. I am able to differentiate. If white men in Germany or other Western countries experience structural discrimination, then this is for individual reasons other than skin color or gender. Then it is due to reasons such as poverty, age, physical or psychological characteristics, possibly religion or other characteristics. But not because you are a white man. For being a white man, you cannot be discriminated against in Western countries because white men are structurally and systematically extremely favored.

The abolition of diversity programs also harms white men like me. Because it means that the facts underlying the discrimination are taken even less into account. Poverty-related injustices (homeless mother during my youth), structural disadvantages of neurodiversity (ADHD), stigma (experience of trauma, depression) - all of these are things that diversity programs and outreach are designed to counteract. And this is being abolished because many people are unable to deal with the true circumstances, are possibly blind to their own problems and then perceive the simplest answer as correct by starting to believe that they are being discriminated against because of their light skin color.

In 2020, white males held approximately 85.8% of CEO positions in Fortune 500 companies. Including white women, the total percentage of white CEOs was about 92.6%. If we look at the USA, about 57 percent of the population there is white, but the government is 75 percent white. The world is still dominated by colonialist and imperialist power structures - which on top of that contributes to many people seeking refuge in Western nations. For example, because large European corporations exploit people in other countries and thereby perpetuate poverty with all its negative consequences, such as criminal power structures and acts of war.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Authentic people are generally cautious about making absolute statements. This may make them appear incompetent and insecure in the eyes of some people, but authentic people are happy to accept this - because they prefer to stand by their doubts and caution rather than pretend to be confident. Those who live in harmony with themselves allow themselves to change and develop, sometimes even drastically. Authentic people do not hold on to their values ​​and beliefs out of principle, but because they seem right to them. But new experiences and knowledge can change their perspective at any time.

My next post will be my last for a while. Until then, I'll be devoting myself to another project and a new professional orientation (artificial intelligence). I've been working very intensively on the megagroundsloth project for 6 years now. Over 900 posts and a million characters of program code for my associated website. I've reached an average of 20,000 people a month, but recently everything here seems to have rotted a bit. I'll leave you to compost peacefully for a while, if the world allows it. My next post will give you a taste of what I've been working on conceptually since April and am now putting into practice. I have to be honest and say that I've noticed certain changes in our interaction that I can't really understand. But I'm not going to deal with that. Since my next post is just a poem, an artistic farewell note, I'll say goodbye here with an invisible tear tickling my cheek.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

🦆🦴🥣 Living in a shared space requires compromise, mutual respect, and shared responsibility, but communication barriers can make understanding difficult. I faced this challenge while living with housemates whose actions initially seemed selfish or dismissive. Over time, I began to wonder if their behavior stemmed from challenges related to the autism spectrum rather than narcissism.

🎄✨️🍗 I worked hard to create a welcoming environment, defrosting the freezer, decorating for Christmas, baking a cake, and buying ingredients for our holiday meal. Despite these efforts, I wasn’t informed when the dinner started, and by the time I joined, only scraps remained. To make matters worse, my housemates laughed off my hurt feelings, leaving me feeling excluded and unappreciated.

😡💢🗯 At first, I saw their behavior as narcissistic, but I began to question whether it reflected difficulties in understanding social norms rather than intentional disregard. Neurodivergent individuals often process social interactions differently, which can lead to missed cues or unintentional insensitivity. My housemates may not have recognized my contributions or understood the emotional impact of their actions. Unlike narcissism, which involves deliberate disregard, these behaviors likely stemmed from communication challenges.

💔🤔💭 I tried to express my feelings but realized that clearer communication—such as setting expectations—might have been more effective. I also focused on small positives, like repurposing leftovers into soup, while recognizing that supporting neurodivergent needs shouldn’t mean neglecting my own boundaries. Respect and acknowledgment are essential for everyone.

🗺🧭 This experience taught me to distinguish between selfishness and neurodivergent challenges. Navigating such relationships requires empathy, patience, and clear communication, but also firm boundaries to maintain emotional well-being. Striking a balance between understanding others and respecting oneself is key to healthier, more equitable relationships.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

🦬🦥 Why do I shave a yak? Because you humans bore me to death! – Just kidding! 🙃

🙋 The real reason behind the endless distractions isn’t boredom—it’s ADHD. Yak shaving, the term for getting caught up in small tasks before addressing the main goal, is something many with ADHD know well. It’s not a quirky habit, but how the ADHD brain works.

🕰 For someone with ADHD, even a simple task can spiral. You start cleaning your desk, notice a broken drawer, and decide to fix it. To do that, you need a screwdriver, but the toolbox is a mess, so you begin reorganizing it. Hours pass, and the desk is still cluttered. This is yak shaving: getting sidetracked by seemingly urgent tasks that pull you further from the original goal.

🧠 This happens because the ADHD brain craves novelty and stimulation, making it hard to prioritize long-term goals. While some romanticize yak shaving as a creative process, it’s mostly just a distraction. It’s not a superpower, nor a failure—just a reality of ADHD.

📆 Managing yak shaving isn’t about avoiding distractions, but staying focused on what matters. Writing down your goal, using a timer, and keeping visual reminders can help anchor your focus. When you drift, don’t beat yourself up—just redirect your attention.

🛤 Yak shaving isn’t a whimsical adventure or failure; it’s part of ADHD. With humor and practical strategies, you can navigate distractions and make progress. The goal isn’t to stop yak shaving, but to approach it with patience, so it doesn’t derail you. After all, whether or not the yak gets shaved, the key is to keep moving forward.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.