One reason I’m enjoying watching people go hypomanic on AI is it’s the first truly funny sight in a decade, but also wholesome and charming. Hypomanic vibecoders make me think of the Perfectly Normal Beasts from HHG.

It’s a refreshing change. The Trump age is generally an utterly humorless age. They mistake combative mockery of political adversaries for humor and studiously ignore the absurdities of life, the universe, and everything.

It’s notable that the neoliberal era gave us Comedy Central. For all their political sketchiness, The Daily Show and SNL were genuinely funny. Even right-wing comedy then was good-natured and funny (blue collar comedy, git ‘r done stuff, Home Improvement). All of it was capable of laughing at itself.

During maga-ascendant times we got… a stillborn right-edgelord comedy scene in Austin and endless spinoffs of Yellowstone.