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While there is progress in certain areas and certain things are better now than in previous historical times, the need to look out for the downside of various processes is undeniable and possibly more urgent than ever, for the simple fact that power becomes dangerous without developing one’s responsibility accordingly.

No wonder some of the mental or real-life pictures of the contemporary world can leave us feeling… dystopian. These can include the massive amount of non-nature-friendly trash being produced and dumped all around the world, or attempts to imagine the implications of AI on our near future if we don't take the necessary precautions to play it safe.

People online stepped up, trying to raise awareness, answering one Redditor's question: "What's something that is accepted as normal, but is really dystopian when you think about it?"

More info: Reddit

#1

35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Jailing people for stealing food while throwing away tons more every day.

Vegan_Harvest , Markus Spiske Report

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Spencer's slave
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sell by and use by dates are guidelines that are considered law in many countries. There's no real health science behind it as most foods are absolutely fine until opened. Reduced sticker shopping is perfectly fine if you eat or freeze the product. If supermarkets don't sell it all they should be legally required, as in France, to donate it to food banks and shelters.

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    #2

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Advertiser friendly language in daily life. Like people getting used to not being able to say words like "dead" on Tiktok because advertisers don't like it, so then you see a bunch of people saying words like "unalive" in real life.

    Foxlikebox , Daniel Thomas Report

    #3

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online All of those "Feel good stories" about people working extra super duper hard just to barely scrape by.

    "Kids make business to help another disabled child buy a wheelchair"

    "Teacher runs out of PTO days fighting cancer so the whole school district started to donate sick days"

    "Man walks 15 miles for a job interview, community raises money for a bicycle."

    Eyruaad , Avi Richards Report

    #4

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Working full-time for a wage that won't support a family.


    A family?? How about 1 person.

    Famous_Bit_5119 , Maxime Agnelli Report

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    VidGam4
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Every job should have a wage high enough that just one person working that job can support a family (food, housing, clothing, childcare, etc) without having to work multiple jobs!

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    #5

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Corporations being considered people and having more rights than real human beings.

    anon , Pixabay Report

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    madbakes
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Businesses should not be able to make campaign donations, no exceptions.

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    #6

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Subscription for everything

    NotToast2000 , alleksana Report

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    Kathryn Baylis
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Never being able to own anything online. Used to be, you paid for it once and it was yours. Now you can’t do that— and you’re paying the same amount every year that you used to pay to buy it and permanently own it outright.

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    #7

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Claiming drag queens are child predators, and ignoring all the abuse going on in the church, cause that, and all the new laws being proposed...seems kind of dystopian.

    Spankywzl , Greta Hoffman Report

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    Bec
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The anti-LGBTQ activism reminds me of the Satanic Panic 40 years ago, it is a big nothing burger but real people are getting hurt

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    #8

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Privatized-for-profit prisons, healthcare, and education.
     
    Corporations and foreign entities buying up all of our land and housing.
     
    Lack of Congressional term limits and self-oversight of Congress and Scotus.
     
    2A absolutism.
     
    Forced sex, forced birth, forced sterilization, and the medical community treating women as if being female is a "condition" while using male bodies as the standard.
     
    Outlawing the act of collecting rainwater, while charging for the amount of runoff attributed to your property (my city has both of these).

    phoebeluco , RDNE Stock project Report

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    #9

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Homelessness in countries with enough money to keep it from happening

    AlthorsMadness , MART PRODUCTION Report

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    StrangeOne
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Homelessness is a complicated matter, though, and is not always caused by not having money. Some people make themselves homeless, while others have become homeless based on their lifestyle and consequences. There are people out there who want to be homeless. They don't view paying rent, having their own home to go to every night as a worthy thing.

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    #10

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The existence of billionaires whilst so many people are living in poverty. Justified cause they supposedly "work harder" or "earned it".

    intellectkills , cottonbro studio Report

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    MagicJacket
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I know of one billionaire that indeed did earn it, by providing joy to millions. Sir Paul McCartney! There may be a FEW others. I don't THINK Paul got his riches by exploiting the lower classes and stepping on the necks of others in a mad rush for cash like most billionaires. I hope I am right!

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    #11

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Ads everywhere you look 24/7

    chopsthedrummer , Jose Francisco Fernandez Saura Report

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    Malfar
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And some mpeople actively ranting about "If you block ads the internet will die, all your favorite content makers will starve and there will be no fun in the world".

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    #12

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Credit scores.

    raytaylor , Paul Felberbauer Report

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    Spooky Scary Skeletons
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Credit Scores are a zero sum game. If you use your card you'll get dinged on your credit score. If you don't use your card you'll get dinged on your credit score. Even if you pay your bill on time you'll get dinged on your credit score.

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    #13

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The cost of rent. Or mortgages. Or the wealth gap. And the way minimum wage was ignored for decades while the top 1% took higher and higher raises and bonuses while paying very little to no tax. Trickle down economics.

    Graceland1979 , https://unsplash.com/photos/xlCmFoIS3oE?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditShareLink Report

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    #14

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The way women have control legislated away from their own bodies. Not even just abortion, but abortion laws that prevent women from being able to get medical care for their own conditions. Women who have to get close enough to death to get treatment, regardless of their present suffering or other long term effects. Prostitution laws. Certainly parts of them make sense but why is it illegal for some stay at home mom to give handies for spending money at home while the kids are in school?

    Melvolicious , Manny Becerra Report

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    Apatheist Account2
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I've never understood why prostitution is illegal, particularly since there is no longer a need to increase the population for the species to survive, and contraception is so easily available.

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    #15

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The amount of trash we humans produce. How distanced we are from the natural world.

    biscaya , Jas Min Report

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    Fabian Bernard
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sadly old as civilisation...I heard there is a big hill in Roma, that is in fact made of Antique Roma trash: broken amphoras etc...

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    #16

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online American burial traditions. Spend thousands of dollars to preserve the body, pack it in an expensive box and bury it, sometimes in a concrete vault. To keep it from naturally decomposing? Why?

    kateinoly , cottonbro studio Report

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    Fat Harry
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Not just American, but burial in general. Why do we bury the dead? What an utter waste of space.

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    #17

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Anti-intellectualism.

    Potential-Ostrich-82 , Markus Spiske Report

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    Ross “Sarcastic Dad”
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I remember when Obama was first running for President, and the commentary was, "He thinks he's better than us." He's running for President. He SHOULD be better than us!!

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    #18

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Working until you’re in your late sixties when 50 billionaires control most of the wealth in an entire country.

    bkornblith , cottonbro studio Report

    #19

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Health insurance.

    Rare_Cranberry_9454 , Negative Space Report

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    Freya the Wanderer
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Healthcare should be, if not free, at least affordable. Basic preventive care should be free, as well as emergency care. When over 500,000 people in your country go bankrupt every year due to medical bills, and especially when 3/4 of them HAD HEALTH INSURANCE, that's f---ed up.

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    #20

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Reality TV.

    Muadib333 , cottonbro studio Report

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    assdog
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I wrote a post a few months ago when i worked on a "reality TV" show. I can 100% confirm that it is all fake as f*k. If you were behind the scenes like me you wouldn't/couldn't keep a straight face of how these "actors" "work"!! I can't mention too much but......they have to learn their lines and have to hate/love certain people on the show. Then when the cameras are turned off it's like.....sup dude/girl. Then they go off to stay with their boyfriends/girlfriends in the hotel. Fake as f*k

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    #21

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Food and housing insecurity in a world in which other people are billionaires.

    tangtheconqueror , Siegfried Poepperl Report

    #23

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Factory farming. Utterly horrific.

    Singly-Errancy143 , Mark Stebnicki Report

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    StrangeOne
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    These poor cows. I'm not a vegetarian nor vegan, but I can't stand how little consideration of the live animals there is in the farming industry. They're not thought of as living souls. Just a commodity, money and food machine.

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    #24

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Normalization of debt

    Atotallyrandomname , rc.xyz NFT gallery Report

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    Emily M
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Debt for a mortgage or car has been normal a long time. However, I do not know a single person under the age of 35 that does not have large student loan debt, credit card debt, or both.

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    #25

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The fact that we cannot do much on the internet without consenting cookies.

    icsulescu98 , picjumbo.com Report

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    Ace
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The EU has made the mandatory use of non-essential cookies illegal. When will the US catch up, I wonder?

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    #26

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The way big companies have conditioned us to say things we pay for are free.

    "You can watch it for free on netflix"

    "It's free if you purchase this bundle"

    "They keep updating the game, the next DLC is free!"

    Anytime you go to say something is free, try saying "it's included" short for "included in the base price"

    Altimely , Venti Views Report

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    Kathryn Baylis
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Or advertising it as free, but forgetting to mention it’s only free during the initial trial period. If it was truly 100% free, they wouldn’t be asking for your credit card number when you sign up.

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    #27

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Tying healthcare to employment

    heyodi , National Cancer Institute Report

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    Jon Lee
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm in the UK, I have had around 10 operations for various things, I see healthcare professionals when I need and, due to my medical condition, I receive free prescriptions. I also do my best to stay healthy, I eat well and exercise regularly but age and genetics can be a bit of an embuggerance.

    Who cares what I think, but...
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm all for universal health care in "America", but at least big companies are paying for health care. Doesn't that tie in with the complaint that "companies don't pay enough in taxes"??

    Foffy Skrimshaw
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Companies are not paying for healthcare, the workers are. I get it automatically taken out of my check every pay period. Companies are just able to get insurance discounted in packages from the insurance companies, so it's a bit cheaper than individuals getting it on their own.

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    René Sauer
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The same as tying unemployment benefits to your former employment. I don´t really how it works, but I often read stories online where companies are apparently able to block employees leaving them from being able to apply for unemployment benefits. That´s insane.

    Coralee Hicks
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There are not for profit hospitals that have a mandate to accept all patients. Once admitted social workers assist the patient in finding insurance.

    Coralee Hicks
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The finance department will reduce or wave charges based on income. Govt taxes plus charities make up the costs.

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    #28

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The complete lack of privacy we have in 2023. People can record you in public for their TikTok, and everyone will say “BUT ITS LEGAL!!”

    cruelsummersadness , Wendy Wei Report

    #30

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Homeless people

    Refugee boats and sinking

    Anyone anywhere being hungry

    Bombing civilians

    buckwurst , Eric Masur Report

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    Freya the Wanderer
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Caring about five ultra-rich people who perished in a submersible more than 500+ refugees who perished when their boat capsized. And they were already suffering horrific conditions before the capsizing, after paying a fat price to escape.

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    #31

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Militarization of local and state law enforcement.

    Strong_Somewhere_985 , Diego González Report

    #32

    Obesity - everywhere... causing death, deceases and low quality lifes and btw impacting environment badly.

    lavipeDK Report

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    Yali-girl with weird name
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Being obese is bad. It’s not fatphobic its a fact. It’s bad for your health and it needs to stop being normalised.

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    #33

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Having to work more than one job.

    DanMontie , Annie Spratt Report

    #34

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Cameras everywhere.. "1984".

    CommissionOk9233 , Reuben Hustler Report

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    Nonna_SoF
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    My "favorite" are the security cameras that point right at debit card reader. So anyone who has access to the video can see your pin.

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    #35

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The rhetoric and life behind social media. It's totally a landscape that determines your worth by how others feel about you. It's kinda scary the more you see its use.

    GabeBlue180 , https://unsplash.com/photos/NFvdKIhxYlU?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditShareLink Report

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    #37

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online Censorship.

    ifonlythiswasreal403 , Michael Dziedzic Report

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    PattyK
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I wish people would stop censoring books. Every time I hear a book has been censored, I feel a moral obligation to read it — and I’m way behind!

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    #39

    Don’t even know where to start… but when thinking about how much of the meat we eat daily is actually produced and how the animals we eat are actually treated is really sick to think about.

    Also adding how normal it is to buy things “made in china” or other countries where it’s so clear that the people who produce our c**p is practically living as slaves on huge factories where they don’t even earn enough money or get paid at all to feed themselves, and often die early but in a very slow and painful way…

    trickortreat89 Report

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    Deborah Rubin
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It is hard to buy made in America even when you want to. Remember when everything was made in Japan?

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    #40

    Working at all just to have shelter is dystopian. Whats even gonna happen when all the jobs are done by robots? Yeah more tech related jobs will open up. Whats going to happen to everyone else? Either the governments starts giving people free shelter or everyones going to be homeless.

    I-dont-like-pizza Report

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    Dodo
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is why I can't write stories set in the future. Because I can't see a way it works out well for anyone but the 1%. Really the only question is whether the rest of us die slowly or are culled.

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    #41

    40 hour work week

    ExeTheHero Report

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    Nicole Weymann
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    For some people living off a single 40 hour/week job is more of a utopia - they either work multiple "small" jobs or do a lot more work than they're paid for.

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    #42

    35 Things That Sound Perfectly Normal Until You Realize How Dystopian They Are, As Listed Online The News.

    Muadib333 , Filip Mishevski Report

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    StrangeOne
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Unless I know something went on and want more info, I ignore the news, now. My mental health has improved a bit.

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