I am M28 from Pakistan, and I am tired of this shit.

I just want to vibe. I have no agenda no big aspirations for controlling the world. I don't hate India / Hindus / Jews /West / Africans / Afghans.

I just want to vibe. Why are people so quick to judge & associate all these views with me.

Bro I just want to vibe, watch the sunset & have a good time.

I don't care who you are bro. Just let me vibe

JUST LET ME VIBE BROOOOOO

“lEaRn A tRaDe BrO!” I did. I went to trade school to become an electrician.

“u NeEd ExPeRiEnCe!” OK, then how can I get experience if every position requires experience?

”jOiN ThE uNiOn!” I tried, I am perpetually on the waitlist.

In 2026, there is no shortage of tradesmen. There are TONS of us trying to break in. There IS a shortage of intelligible tradesmen that are willing to pass their knowledge on to the next generation.

After struggling with social anxiety and being homeschooled I finally started going out and trying to socialize but it has only led to me being ignored. Of course I thought the problem was my social skills and anxiety but even pushing through that and doing my best to be communicable, polite, and show i’m open to converse no one has shown an interest in getting to know me further than saying hi if I am lucky. In fact people will be down right rude to me as if to let me know I am being excluded. Walking in front of me when I am talking to someone else, ignoring me if I talk directly to them, even if I am one of the only people around I will be ignored. People I don’t know, men and women my age don’t seem interested in even talking to me. I have overcome so much of my social anxiety just to realize no one even wants to know me in the first place. I know I am a funny, compassionate, generous person but I can’t share that with anyone in a meaningful way.

This is pissing me off so much I’ve heard at least three people now within the past few weeks whispering are those meta glasses he’s wearing when I walk past. Three old pricks of men walked past me an hour ago and I could hear them going “… yeah they’re filming with them nowadays and you can’t even do anything about it” and by the time it had registered in my brain that they were talking about me and assuming I was filming them with my glasses (why the fuck would I want to film a couple of stupid old men anyway?!?!?) i was already quite a distance down the street but I strongly felt the urge to turn around and confront them and say look these are prescription glasses I need to wear for my poor vision, how dare you gossip about me and label me as some sort of voyeur.

Like I said by the time it had clicked they were gossiping about me they’d turned around a corner and I just let it go but the next time someone assumes that I’m filming them with meta glasses I will cause it’s really bugging me at this point. I live in a country where we don’t get much sun out side of winter, it has been raining today and I could understand maybe people might think it a bit odd to wear sunglasses in the rain but to me it’s just a thing I need to be able to see where I’m going and I prefer wearing them to my reading glasses.

I shouldn’t have to justify what I wear to any body anyway but it’s just really getting to me at this point because I don’t like people assuming I’m some sort of creep filming them without their permission which of course is completely wrong and I don’t think meta glasses should be so discreet anyway.

Is anyone else who wears glasses or sunglasses a lot experiencing a similar issue since meta glasses have become a thing?

My adult son has ADHD and autism. He can’t seem to shower, clean up after himself, or do anything without being told or reminded millions of times. He’s had many years of therapy and skills sessions. He’s had far more opportunities and education that I’ve had and constantly makes excuses on doing the bare minimum.

He moved out and stiffed his first roommate and was forced to pay an excessive cleaning bill on his second roommate. He moved back home after we had to tear apart his room with how disgusting it was left (kept that video). Nothing has changed. Always an excuse and it’s just quite frankly just selfish and entitlement at this point.

So I also have a myriad of neurodivergence that I had to learn to navigate on my own. I had to create my own coping techniques because no one else was going to diagnose me or give me support in the 80s and 90s. Hell, I didn’t even really have parental guidance because I was left to my own devices young and had to take care of myself and the long ass list of chores to have done everyday.

I’m just tired that all the coping techniques in the world and all I hear are excuses from people of “sorry I’m late, I have ADHD” or “sorry I can’t clean up after myself or wipe the 💩 and pee off toilet because I’m autistic” or “taking a shower is too hard so I don’t care if my stench bothers you”.

It’s just selfish and entitlement at this point. I’m ready to be the AH parent and say “I’m sorry, I no longer can parent you. I have my own crap to deal with and I don’t have time to keep parenting you at 22”.

(He has no developmental delays or actual impediments to being a functioning adult. He’s made his own LLCs, built his own businesses, taught himself many things and did very well in school. He just can’t be bothered to basic hygiene or clean up after himself or help around the house without being told. He will watch people struggle and he just does the dead eye stare)

Ever since like march this year I've been feeling less myself. I don't enjoy playing games, talking to new people, or just doing anything in general. And then at the end of the day I feel upset that I didn't do anything. At the same time it feels like time is going faster and I am not experiencing it the way I should.

Last like 3 months I've been drinking lots and playing games and while it was fun in the moment, ultimately it gave me no solid friendships. With alcohol I can slightly enjoy games more but I was drinking so much to the point where I got at least tipsy almost every night. Obviously that's not a good thing so I stopped. I just feel numb now though and don't even want to touch my games.

Stop asking people what they do for a living within 5 seconds of meeting them. Being unemployed for an extended period of time made me realize that this question comes up an insane amount of time. It’s also arguably insensitive because of the current state of the job market where I live. It’s exhausting having to explain yourself over and over again to random strangers. Allow people to disclose what they want about themselves and stop prying when you know that you’re not gonna be of any help to them in the end😬😬. Ask neutral questions and allow people to share as much or as little as they’re comfortable with. Having to switch topics is exhausting. And now I’m rude for straight up walking away from the conversation when the question comes up. This applies to many other questions too, ask yourself, is this too indiscrete to ask someone I just met 5 seconds ago?

Math is such an annoying thing to do in college, like I get it, basic Math skills and Yada yada, but for some people that struggle with math abd thought they would be free of the math nightmare in college only to see that once again it is a required class....its just devastating.

Genuinely crying while looking ay my grades right now cause evry other class is passing byt then yiu look at math wich is required class and that shit is in the mid 40'a going lower.

You need math to graduate and I hate that. If I was president for a day I would make a law that says math is not required for graduating college and if you dont want to take it, you dont have to.

By the way this is my first year in college and I am crying more then I have ever have in my life.

I rent. The place comes with a large yard, and I want it to be green with life, so I buy the hoses and spray nozzles to do it.

Large yard, large hose. Hoses are expensive, and the nozzles wear out yearly and need to be replaced.

Why do they need to be replaced so often? Well...

Maintenance. Painters. Concrete guys. Guys being paid by the landlord to do who knows what. About eight years, completely different people, but in the end they're all the same: they just can't help themselves from throwing the nozzle straight down to the concrete when they're done using it, and CAN'T STOP LOSING THE FUCKING GASKETS.

This year has been particularly bad. Landlord is renovating units so tons of people have been coming through. I started the season with two new nozzles. I'm ending the season with two busted-ass nozzles that leak uncontrollably and look like they've been dragged behind a truck. When I was home I'd hear it; the solid 'clink!' of weighted metal smacking the concrete.

You can always tell it's been used, because the hose that was once a neat roll is either half-assed back or just left in a pile.

I gave up saying anything. These rude bastards don't want to be corrected; say anything, and they'll just drop it from even higher when you're out of sight. "Normal wear", riiiight. We can all enjoy the leaky nozzles together I guess.

But the gaskets. The FUCK-ING GASKETS. Why is it so FUCKING hard to keep track of the gaskets when they decide to link hoses or switch out the nozzle or whatever the fak. I can't even tell you how many times I've turned the water on to discover it gushing out at the connection and - surprise! No gasket. Poof, gone. Sorry sucker.

I have more gaskets, I could easily put in another one. But it's the end of the season. Tonight I unscrewed the last bedraggled nozzle and put it away. They still have work for the rest of the week, and it involves water.

But now, no nozzle for you, my guys. Hope you brought your own.

Hi,

I had a best friend till 7th std, and she moved to another city in 2013. We talked initially and then we lost contact and I have been trying to find her since then. I am good with finding people on internet. Along the years I had contacted my old school, her father's workplace archives to find his number, any profile on insta or facebook with her name, old school records, toppers of different schools in her locality, everything, but couldn't find her.
In last desperate attempt I posted on insta, and got to know she hu*g herself after one year of leaving, and I can't thinking about it. She was so ambitious, the smartest person I knew. She made me who I am today, I am doing really well in career. You know the last gift she gave me while leaving was a study lamp so I could study during light outs, the prettiest gift I had, I was living in a village. She would call and remind me to bring books and I wanted to be as smart as her. Her cousin and friends said she was acting out, she had mental illness, she was just 13, she felt she was burden on her family. How could a 13 year old feel that. I don't know who to talk about this, because people seem to not care at all. I tried to talk to my classmates and they are like ohh okay. I am not able to process this somehow. I can't find anything about her anywhere. I always imagined I would meet her someday and she would be doing so well in her life by now. Out of all the possibilities I never thought she would not get to be an adult at all. I just feel so sorry, and somehow can't stop blaming myself if only we had continued talking maybe she had someone to talk to.. maybe she hadn't felt so lonely.

Please stop telling us to relax. It’s not helpful.

Also please stop saying “well maybe it isn’t meant to be, you need to prepare for that” like no crap it’s not a gurantee? Is anything in life a guarantee??

Would you tell a women who recently got pregnant, “You know you might have a miscarriage, they are really common in the first trimester, so prepare for that” NO because that’s cruel.

It amazes me how people think they have such original thoughts. You don’t think everytime my period comes I think if it will ever happen?

Stop offering your kids, “Oh you can have mine!” no I don’t want them.

And stop suggesting adoption or surrogacy.

And if it was easy for you to concieve AWESOME! But why are you telling me this as I just told you in struggling?

Where’s the empathy people.

* ALSO these conversations are usually always started by the OTHER person. Yeah no one takes joy in just randomly discussing TTC, only a handful of ppl in my life know and I wish they didn’t tbh

Over the weekend I was on an overseas flight with a coworker. I travel quite often and have pretty much everything I need in a carry on. He told me he started to feel ill and felt cold.

We’ve traveled together before and he knows I keep a hooded sweatshirt in my carry on. He asked if he could borrow it. I said yes, but unless something serious happens please don’t wash it and definitely don’t put it in a dryer.

I wash it by hand with cold water and Woolite Dark detergent. Then I air dry by hanging it up and use a fan. Since it is usually worn over another shirt it rarely gets too dirty.

Well he just returned it to me. It is now a size smaller and the deep black color now has a white film to it.

I said, you washed it in hot water and dried it in a dryer didn’t you? He said yeah I wanted to give it back to you clean because I was sick. I’ve had it for years and it still looked new. I told him to keep it because it doesn’t fit anymore. He sorta stared at me confused and I insisted he keep it.

I left my office to go meet with someone who was waiting.

I’ve had this hoodie for over 10 years. People really piss me off.

Rant over. Thank you for hearing me out.

With everything going on in this world I was hoping autumn would give me respite. I'm in Ohio and it is late October and it still is hot. I can't do anything outside because mosquitoes are still active and at this time I should be outside exploring and doing the things I want. October is my favorite month and I feel robbed of it. I want my cool moody days but all I get is bites and isolating myself indoors. I just want some relief and being able to enjoy myself.

My mum constantly belittles my father. Calls him worthless,tells him that he is disgusting, tells him that she never loved him and only married him because of his job. When I tell her he will feel hurt she says that he doesn't feel much.

My father on the other hand, keeps telling mum he loves her and treats her gently. He's emotionally unavailable and has never been very present , but he has never belittled her. Usually when they fight he keeps apologizing. Recently this has turned into him punching walls and other objects, while my mother usually ends up screaming in a very shrill way.

I think my mum is quite depressed, she has been showing most signs of depression. My father is very emotionally disconnected with himself, so it's difficult to tell what he's feeling.

Over time, I have stood up to my mother for behaving the way she does, and told my father to stand up for himself more. Usually this ends in both of them scolding me for not understanding that this is their way of "loving".

I don't think this is going to end well, and they seem to become worse as they age. I don't know what I should do, or if I can even do anything atp.

You’d think given that one has a curved C shaped snout and one has a narrow A shaped snout, the obvious choice would be to give the one with the C shaped snout the name crocodile BUT NO, THEY GAVE THE ONE WITH THE A SHAPED SNOUT THE NAME CROCODILE AND ITS JUST NOT OK

My dog Ponchi, has been my best friend for 14 years. 14 years of coming home to a wagging tail and excited zoomies. 14 years of runs, walks, bike rides, cuddles on the couch, learning and forgetting tricks, knowing each other so well that we know what all of each other's tones, gestures and habits mean.

3 weeks ago we went to the vet and he got a perfect bill of health. Heart, lungs, organs, blood work, all excellent! Then over the weekend, he started acting weird. Yesterday I took him back to the same vet sheepishly, expecting to be gently told that I worry too much, but instead they told me to rush him to the animal Hospital. They took a sample of his lung tissue and he has advanced lung cancer. The same lungs that were "great" 3 weeks ago.

I'm so mad. I'm mad at the young vet who saw him 3 weeks ago and should have noticed something! Or tested more! I'm mad at myself for not taking him in sooner, not pushing for more tests, for not seeing that he was in pain.

I'm mad that he's gotten sick so suddenly. He was meant to gradually become a stiff sore old grandpa, slowing down over years and then getting put to sleep when the multitude of ailments got too much. He was meant to be some ridiculous age like 22.

I'm mad because he is due to turn 15 in December. We were going to take him to the dog cafe, he was going to wear his fanciest bowtie. It was going to be adorbs.

I'm mad for not cherishing every day with him. The number of times over the years he came to me for a pat but I was busy, tired or... just took him for granted. times I went somewhere fun and left him at home because "it's too much trouble bringing a dog". I should have taken him every possible place, every day.

I'm not even mad really, I'm just so, so sad.

SHUT THE FUCK UP SHUT THE FUCK UP SHUT THE FUCK UP

There's nothing wrong with using trendy terminology and expressions, but oh my god, stop with this type of shit. It's every fucking comment section, every goddamn website. SHUT THE FUCK UP. Just say something original, from your soul, your own mind! None of you grew up using these fucking terms. Be a genuine human being, stop putting on affectations and regurgitating stupid internet speak like a fucking seven year old robot child.

I don't know why it pisses me off so much. It just reads as pure inauthenticity and makes me feel like everyone else on the internet is a stupid teenager. I'm stupid too, but it's so isolating and just feels like everyone's repeating the same asinine shit day in and day out. Have some variety! Stop trying so hard to fit in. These expressions were funny for like a week. Please do something else.

A lot of these positions are already being paid 2, 3, 4, 5x minimum wage, and bitch and moan if they dont get their 4% raise to match inflation. Half of all full time workers out there are getting paid literal fucking scraps but unionized workers always make it sound like theyre being fucked over if their raises dont exceed inflation numbers. Dont get me wrong, i believe everyone should be getting raises that match inflation, but its absolutely absurd so many people already have WAY better wages than others, and still only care about themselves.

Today, he just fought for the right to fantasize about other women and somehow my "read" of the whole argument is wrong.

We were talking in bed about how stepping out on each other is a huge dealbreaker. Great, we both agree. I wouldn't expect any less in a long term relationship, and while I'm already 20 weeks pregnant with his child.

But it is also not a crazy expectation to want your partner to be truly committed and have the decency and respect for you to NOT fantasize about other people, to wonder to yourself "what if".

He says he doesn't do that, but in the same breath calls that expectation "controlling" and suddenly gets offended.

It's only "controlling" if I'm limiting something he already does. So why not stop at "I don't do that"?

Unless, he does fantasize about other women.

Very contradictory as well to say "I don't have a type, but I prefer blondes", no?

I feel like I am mothering some lustful loser's child. I seriously do not understand why defend something if you know it's not in you to do it.

If you're unhappy, just take the deadbeat route and spare the child trauma of watching her father be an asshole to her mother while burying his face between some bimbo's legs.

I have 11 years in the hospitality business and have done everything from bussing to bartending. I’ve been a bartender for the last couple years and it’s always been an easy job to find the next gig. I just moved states and thought it would be really easy to find a bartending gig. I’ve been applying for three weeks and have only had 2 interviews and 0 call backs. This is crazy. I’m looking on indeed for something else I could do and anytime I see a decent pay it requires well above asking (degrees/certifications/years of experience). I know everyone complains about the job market but when I see a job that pays $19 and you need a degree for it I feel like I’m losing my effing mind

I turned 26 in mid-August, which meant it was finally time to say goodbye to my parents' health insurance and enroll in my company's insurance plan.

WHAT. IN. THE. ACTUAL. FUCK.

I have been on this insurance for approximately TWO MONTHS, and I am already convinced this entire industry was designed by Satan himself as some kind of elaborate psychological torture experiment.

Let me paint you a picture of the absolute NIGHTMARE that has been my existence.

ACT ONE: THE GREAT INSURANCE DISAPPEARING ACT

I turned 26 in August. I submitted ALL of my qualifying life event paperwork. I did EVERYTHING I was supposed to do to get enrolled.

And then?

NOTHING.

Radio silence. Apparently, my paperwork was launched directly into the fucking void.

August comes and goes. September comes and goes.

MID. FUCKING. OCTOBER.

THAT IS WHEN THEY FINALLY GET ME INTO THEIR SYSTEM.

TWO. ENTIRE. MONTHS.

But don't you worry, because you know what WAS working flawlessly that entire time???

THEM TAKING MONEY OUT OF MY PAYCHECK.

OH, SO YOU CAN FIGURE OUT HOW TO TAKE MY FUCKING MONEY, BUT YOU CAN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO GIVE ME THE INSURANCE I'M PAYING FOR???

FASCINATING. TRULY GROUNDBREAKING STUFF.

ACT TWO: THE PROVIDER HUNGER GAMES

Now that I FINALLY exist in their system, I think, "Great! I can finally schedule a doctor's appointment!"

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh, you sweet, stupid, optimistic little fool.

I go to the website my insurance company provides to find an in-network doctor.

I find one! I call!

"We don't accept that insurance."

Okay. Weird. Whatever. Moving on.

Find another one. Call.

"We don't take that insurance."

...Okay?

Third provider.

NOPE.

FOURTH PROVIDER.

ABSOLUTELY FUCKING NOT.

FOUR. FOUR PROVIDERS LISTED ON MY INSURANCE COMPANY'S OWN WEBSITE WHO APPARENTLY HAVE NEVER HEARD OF MY FUCKING INSURANCE.

At this point, I'm starting to wonder if my insurance is even real. Am I paying for an elaborate subscription service to NOTHING??? Did I accidentally sign up for a monthly donation to some CEO's yacht fund???

ACT THREE: THE WEBSITE THAT WAS A LIE

I decide to call my insurance company.

Because SURELY there must be some kind of explanation for this.

I explain the situation, and they inform me that...

THE WEBSITE THEY DIRECT YOU TO FOR FINDING PROVIDERS ISN'T EVEN THE CORRECT FUCKING WEBSITE.

I'M SORRY.

WHAT?

YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT YOUR OWN WEBSITE, WHICH YOU PROVIDE TO YOUR OWN PAYING CUSTOMERS, SENDS THEM TO A PROVIDER DIRECTORY THEY AREN'T EVEN SUPPOSED TO BE USING???

WHO IS RUNNING THIS COMPANY???

THREE RACCOONS IN A TRENCH COAT???

So they give me a NEW website.

Okay. Fine. Wonderful. Maybe the nightmare is finally over.

ACT FOUR: THE PHONE NUMBERS FROM HELL

I go to the CORRECT website.

I find providers.

I start calling.

THE FUCKING PHONE NUMBERS DON'T WORK.

THE NUMBERS.

DO. NOT.

WORK.

WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO??? SEND A FUCKING CARRIER PIGEON??? COMMUNICATE THROUGH SMOKE SIGNALS??? MANIFEST A DOCTOR THROUGH THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING???

I AM BEGGING. BEGGING ON MY HANDS AND KNEES. PLEASE JUST LET ME GIVE SOMEONE MONEY TO LOOK AT MY MEDICAL PROBLEMS.

ACT FIVE: THE FINAL STRAW

By some divine miracle, I find a phone number that ACTUALLY WORKS.

A REAL HUMAN ANSWERS.

I COULD HAVE CRIED.

We start scheduling an appointment.

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. The heavens are opening. Angels are singing. For one fleeting moment, I believe there might actually be a God.

The scheduling lady asks for my insurance.

I tell her.

THE. LINE. GOES. FUCKING. DEAD.

...

I genuinely just sat there staring at my phone.

I HAVE NO WORDS.

NONE.

I AM 26 YEARS OLD. I HAVE BEEN AN ADULT FOR YEARS. I PAY MY BILLS. I HAVE A JOB. I PAY MY TAXES.

WHY DOES SCHEDULING A FUCKING DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENT FEEL LIKE I'M TRYING TO DEFEAT THE FINAL BOSS OF A VIDEO GAME THAT WAS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED TO MAKE ME LOSE MY WILL TO LIVE???

I HAVE JUMPED THROUGH EVERY HOOP. I HAVE CALLED EVERY NUMBER. I HAVE VISITED EVERY WEBSITE. I HAVE GIVEN THESE PEOPLE MY MONEY.

AND FOR WHAT???

FOR FUCKING WHAT???

I DON'T WANT A YACHT. I DON'T WANT A MILLION DOLLARS. I DON'T EVEN WANT GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE ANYMORE.

I JUST WANT TO GO TO THE FUCKING DOCTOR.

IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK???

WHY DOES THIS INSURANCE COMPANY EXIST??? WHAT PURPOSE DOES IT SERVE OTHER THAN TO COLLECT MY MONEY AND SYSTEMATICALLY DESTROY MY LAST REMAINING SHREDS OF SANITY???

I HAVE BEEN ON MY OWN INSURANCE FOR TWO MONTHS, AND I AM READY TO FILE FOR EMOTIONAL DAMAGES.

If this is what being 26 is like, I would like to return it. I have the receipt. This product is defective.

TL;DR: Turned 26. Got company insurance. Took two months to get enrolled despite them taking my money the whole time. Their provider website lists doctors who don't accept my insurance. Insurance company tells me it's the WRONG WEBSITE. New website has phone numbers that don't work. Finally get someone on the phone, tell them my insurance, and the call drops. At this point, I am convinced my insurance policy is actually just a monthly subscription to psychological warfare.

I tried to go eat lunch at a park, but I have a tiny bladder and have to go to the restroom very frequently. I passed by three different parks that all looked very nice with lots of picnic tables and space, but not a single one had a restroom!

I'm not asking for much. It can be a shitty porta potty. But parks should have restrooms! So many kids go to the park. And guess what a 3 year old potty training needs? Fast access to a restroom! Kids often don't remember or recognize the cues until they're about to wet their pants. At bare minimum all popular places that kids visit should have a public restroom

I'm not gonna freak out at the city or anything. I'm just frustrated because I just assumed the parks would have a place to go to the bathroom and was very disappointed that I was wrong. I wish that this would change

This is such a dumb and stupid thing but as an adult (26f) this Is also just very annoying to have to worry about.

When my best friend (28f) and I were getting closer, we on occasion would do “group orders” on online websites just so we could get to the free shipping threshold or for some stores “she” had a higher status so she would get better benefits and would ask me if I wanted to do a group order with her. A

In the beginning I used to because it was a little more convenient and sometimes an additional 10% off is nice. So I would do that and then obviously Venmo her for my portion. But then she started to let it slip that these accounts were her mom’s accounts. I started to realize that my best friend wasn’t paying for a single thing she was ordering because she was using her MOMS CREDIT CARD. Of course I pay for my stuff because it’s my stuff I’m ordering but for some reason it feels so off for my best friend to then take my money and pocket it for herself. I know she isn’t giving the money back to her mom. So my best friend is getting all free product while making extra money off of me.

When I realized this, I just stopped doing group orders with her. It really is as simple as that but now that I’ve stopped she’s been extra pushy and is constantly asking if I want to do an order with her. I haven’t told her I knew what she was doing but I think it’s so Intresting how my own best friend wants to “scam” me for my money lol.

Imagine your neighbor installs a bright light that shines directly into your bedroom at night. He tells you it's a ward against evil. When you complain that it's keeping you awake, he responds, "I don't have to justify my personal beliefs." You don't care what he privately believes. You care that you can't sleep.

Another neighbor was the first on the block to install one. His light only illuminates his own yard. "I'm just following what the brochure says," he explains. Your neighbor says the same thing, but they can't agree on what the instructions actually mean. Meanwhile, the second neighbor's light has never bothered you.

At what point are you entitled to question their beliefs? Are the beliefs still purely personal when their consequences affect you?

Now imagine your neighbor starts lobbying the HOA. Soon, everyone in the neighborhood is required to install these lights. The entire policy rests on his testimony about their evil-repelling properties and a sales brochure from 1991. When evidence emerges that the lights may actually cause headaches, the HOA refuses to reconsider.

The second neighbor asks if he can keep his light as he had it before so that it only illuminates his yard and doesn't disrupt the local insects too much.

No. The HOA president is friends with your neighbor, and most residents have already been convinced that the wide-angle lights are essential and find his interpretation of the brochure most sensible.

You point out that the lights don't seem to do anything.

"They provide a deeper kind of protection that can't be measured."

Then how can you prove they are working?

"You can't prove they aren't though."

If they ward off evil, why has the neighborhood had an uptick of break-ins and maulings?

"Perhaps their protection works by allowing bad things to happen for reasons we can't understand."

Could we at least demand better evidence before making these mandatory?

"Why are you discriminating against people who want to ward off evil? My wife's boyfriend has used these for decades, are you calling him a liar?"

Meanwhile, you still can't sleep. Your kids get headaches. You can't understand why your neighbors are so convinced, and you just want the light out of your window.

Bonus after-credits scene - The lights become so entrenched that better lighting technology is dismissed as incompatible with the neighborhood's sacred traditions. Research stalls and innovation is discouraged. The insect population, already on its knees, plummets further due to light pollution.  generations continue living under an inferior system because questioning it has become socially unacceptable. This is a caricature, but there are ripple effects.

Your neighbors are free to believe in spiritual protection and install whatever lights they want on their own property provided they respect others' rights.

When you try to impose rules on everyone else while treating the beliefs underlying those rules as exempt from scrutiny, that isn't going to work.

This should be obvious, but your right to believe in something without evidence is not everyone else's obligation to live by it.