Damaged vending machines. "No change" messages on broken ATMs. Pepsi ads sponsoring diabetes research. These images may have little in common, but transmit a widely shared yet subtle sensation — they’re the unsettling reminders of a dark and strange twist in the reality we find ourselves in today. And unfortunately folks, it’s also a pretty bleak one.
Let me present to you the 'Boring Dystopia' subreddit, an online community dedicated to "chronicling how Advanced Capitalist Society is not only dystopic, but also incredibly boring." In case you've never heard of this term, it was coined by the late British academic and cultural theorist Mark Fisher. It refers to the feeling of unease in the form of mildly coercive signs that flourish in a late-stage capitalist society.
We at Bored Panda scoured the online group and handpicked some of the most vivid examples that illustrate there's something not quite right with this world. Continue scrolling and be sure to share your thoughts with us in the comment section below. And after you’re done reading this piece, take a look at our earlier compilations full of dystopian madness right here, here, and here.
This post may include affiliate links.
We're All Just Profit Potential
It's so well-written as well, sounds like a passage from a dystopian novel, but the dystopia is our reality.
From A 7-11 In Allen, Tx
Real Nice System We Have Here
To learn more about boring dystopia, we reached out to Macon Holt, Ph.D., a researcher at Copenhagen Business School and author of Pop Music and Hip Ennui: A Sonic Fiction of Capitalist Realism. He told Bored Panda this phrase is related to Mark Fisher’s critical term capitalist realism, "which he used to describe the pervasive belief that capitalism is the only viable form of the political, social and cultural organization following the end of the cold war."
It may be difficult to wrap your head around the term "boring dystopia" but once you get the hang of it, chances are, you’ll start seeing it everywhere. "[It] is more about the aesthetic experience of living in capitalist realism at a point in time when the system appears ever more unsustainable (ecologically, [politically], and in terms of increasing inequality and decreasing standards of living) but in which no other way to organize society has emerged," Holt explained.
“If I Had A Super Power, It Would Be To Fly. I Would Tell Other Children From Around The World To Come And Play With Me And My Sisters, And To Drink Tea Together!” – Mohamad, A Syrian Refugee In Lebanon
Sadly, This Situation Is Only Gonna Get Worse
It's sickening how screwed up the economy is. All we can do is hope it gets better in time, but unfortunately, that seems like wishful thinking. I'm so used to living in apartments (and now a trailer in a trailer park because rents for apartments are ridiculously high) that I have no idea what it's like to live in a house. Maybe one day I'll be lucky enough. But only maybe.
Wait? Am European Lol
While freedom is still a glorified statement against healthcare or weapon laws- my mind humming some lines of Bobby McGhee. and it 's gettin louder everyday
Although most of us grew up imagining a dystopian future full of terrifying end-times scenes, brutal police states, and decadent rulers, it is more likely to consist of mundane and unappealing scenarios. Holt mentioned exciting movies like Blade Runner or The Matrix from the '80s and '90s that offered depictions of going out with a bang, "But as the years in which those images came around, none of the dreams or nightmares came true," he said.
"Instead, space travel is becoming the hobby of billionaires while they ignore the ecological crises they could perhaps help with, AI and robots seem either to be surveilling us while they vacuum or when we click on a link, and the VR worlds of the metaverse are just ways to charge us more rent for spaces that we can't actually occupy."
"Letting The Cat Out Of The Bag", From United Auto Worker, October 1937
This one made me kinda smile, but it is sadly true. 1937 authors knew what was up!
Normal Country
Cool Era We're Living In
The media needs a dose of reality. (also, yes we should allow trans bathrooms)
Typically, the most evident samples of boring dystopia are senseless ads and ordinary images of broken machinery. When asked about other examples of this experience, Holt mentioned we can find it in bureaucracy, "like the terms of a rental contract that forbid tenants to use cooking oil on the stove, so a landlord can keep the deposit if a single drop is found on the extractor fan hood."
"NFTs are perhaps a good example of boring dystopia,” he continued. "If a sci-fi writer were to dream up a situation in which people paid the money they had earned doing actual work for a certificate of verification that they own a .jpeg of a bored ape, their editor would probably say the world the story depicted would be too depressing to publish."
Sign Here
One Day The Masses Might Cotton On
You’re Not Wrong
He also noted that outlets such as Bored Panda draw attention to the conditions of contemporary boring dystopia in its name and try to break up the monotony of the everyday. "In boring dystopia, people are often anxious about work, housing and the future of the planet, and there's very little to alleviate this. As Mark Fisher put it 'No one is bored, everything is boring.'"
Unions Are Needed!
The American Dream: Move Out
Don't assume it's all peaches and daises in Europe, people are broke here too, with the same ridiculous housing costs and everything else, In the U.K. for example we just have universal healthcare, no guns and nowhere near as much racism but it isn't perfect by any means.
2% Of Musk's Wealth Could Help 42m People
Actually he did go reply to this mans request by giving $6.6billion to people who needed it.
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Thank you. The UN is useless. Maybe they should stop ignoring Taiwan.
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Trust me, in the grand scheme of things, he is not the enemy. Sure he has a big mouth and he tends to put his foot in it (a lot) but the culprits are probably the nameless, faceless, and often heartless reptiles that run your big corporates. Guy’s trying to do the right thing - make electric cars the norm, building a spaceship for the common man, and living his childhood, geekazoid dreams. Give him a break please!
And you see him as a spoiled child. I say he needs a financial azz whooping. His cruelty is on par with the child pulling wings off of butterflies. He can do good... But it is more fun to manipulate and torture.
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What about Oprah? Bezos? I don't see them feeding people. You can't just nag on one rich person for this.
Lol who said we were only blaming one rich person? Any man who wants to be a billionaire has a small penis guaranteed
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So we take 6.6 billion divide by 42million and we get 157... So each of these 42 million get 157.15 dollars that's barely a single person food grocery bill for a month is you stretch. That would make it about 5 dollars a day for three meals ... Somebody please correct my maths, but surely even if it's 1570 dollars per person, it won't solve starvation in areas where all the food and clean water and cooking equipment is non existent. Those areas have bad infrastructure, unfriendly environment for crop produce....
If he uses all of his wealth, he must sell everything he has to have that money on his accounts, pay the tax on the amount he received from the sale, and then give it to 42 million people. While removing him from his companies, most investors will pull out investment, which causes companies to shut down, creating job loss and more poverty, more ginger. When those site close all other services they used from outside will lose a massive client, therefore they will cutback, make staff redundant or downright close down, more poverty. And he will also become an average worker who has talent and potential, but now he can't so he will also join the unemployed. Now after the people have eaten from this billionaires wealth, and money is gone. Crops still don't grow, there's still no infrastructure to help those people, it's dry, hot climate. This is a temporary fix and more should be done to allow local produce to excel than food package
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Amazing fact: You can´t end starvation just by sending money or food at people. Maybe you can do it by educating them... "Give a Man a Fish, and You Feed Him for a Day. Teach a Man To Fish, and You Feed Him for a Lifetime". Hope it helps.
While I think saving people from Staving is obviously a good thing Elon offered the 6 Billion if they could show that it was really that easy. But they couldn’t and it would take much more money and not just only money but a change of infrastructure and a continued x amount of dollars for ever
So on other sites this subject has been quite the discussion. The jist is that throwing money at this dilemma has been tried, would not work and doesn't help anyone. Elon has already said he would do it in a second if someone would come up with a plan. But there isn't one. Your post is idle thought for the ignorant.
Give a Man a Fish, and You Feed Him for a Day. Teach a Man To Fish, and You Feed Him for a Lifetime
He offered the money if the U.N. would give him a budget and how and where the money would be spent, they never provided it! Talk to the U.N!
Regarding people with that kind of wealth, I have no idea how they live with themselves, knowing that their vast fortune could help millions of people. Of course, they are under no obligation to do so, but guilt would consume me if I were in that position.
It wouldn't for me. Because people aren't entitled to your money or help. They would suck you dry, then curse you when you don't give them what they want.
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If only they could actually pull out 6.6B out of bank, but first no bank has that, and also no networth in a bank account anyway. It's all assets they would have to sell to have that kind of money.
Oh, look! Another billionaire becomes more of a billionaire when people are starving and living in poverty their whole lives! Bravo!
He replied to the guy's requests by giving 6.6 billion to people starving and in poverty.
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Starvation isn't a money problem, it's a logistics and culture problem. Musk actually offered to pay a lot of money if someone could come up with a way to SOLVE hunger, not just give people food for a day or whatever. Not a Musk fan really, he's whatever, but he offered money to solve things if someone can actually come up with a way to do it.
Who cares what he does with HIS money? You should worry about what the government is doing with YOUR money. What an evil billionaire trying to preserve free speech! At least he hadn't been sued by Congress for anti trust and then puts all his money into vaxxscenes and farmland. Wonder why adverse affects are killing everyone? Wonder why all the food is drying up and the food factories are all catching fire? Hmmmmn Elon is evil though. Hahahahahahaha you sheep will believe anything. Inflation is Putin's fault too. Hahahaha If you believe that...can I interest you in a time share?
Omg. It's his money, he can buy what he wants. 99% of people talking trash about this NEVER helped anyone in their lives. It's not political as the cry babies claim. Also, stop obsessing over penises. Who have any of you well off people helped, I think we all know the answer. You can always pick out a side until someone cries about liberals or republican. Stfu about it. No one here is smart enough to accomplish a fraction of what he has, let alone donate.
You guys are talking s**t about someone doing good for the world and yet everyone in the US government is way more corrupt and evil than any thought elon has had, haters gonna hate.
Elon Musk reply to that tweet: "If WFP can describe on this Twitter thread exactly how $6B will solve world hunger, I will sell Tesla stock right now and do it". Another reply from Musk "But it must be open source accounting, so the public sees precisely how the money is spent".
Musk isn't "worth a whopping $221B". But his stock holding might be valued at that. This national or global re-distribution of wealth idea misses every important point and is, in addition to being utterly infantile, utterly unworkable. As for Musk's penis, I doubt that ownership of Twitter is a cure for microphallus.
I'm pretty sure Hillary Clinton didn't need to spend a million dollars on her daughters wedding either. And the bidens don't need 5 homes. And the Obama s should donate the millions they made off netflix...lol. don't be dense
You're falling for his scam there. They made way more than that and did nothing with it. Anything that would benefit the ppl he's talking about would have to be grass roots. That's another rich guy tricking you, be better than that
I'm middle class as f**k but if anyone ever actually wanted to help these ppl I'd help you make it work. We don't give to charity because we took the time to track our money and it only goes to the rich, just like everything else you're complaining about here. You guys aren't wrong on this.
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And the former Twitter owners, the ones musk paid, can now end world hunger right?
Musk said ''OK, but i want to see how you spend that money''. And they stopped asking.
There’s enough food in the world for everyone. Problem is their governments producing false famines and starving out the populations due to war or conflict. Elons wealth would not fix that unless he created an army to overthrow those governments.
The U.S. government spent $10 trillion last year... $4 trillion on anti-poverty measures.
The federal government (excluding your local government) spent $6.8 Trillion last year.....
Just imagine-20% could probably fix our economy , BUT AMERICANS DON'T OUR ECONOMY TO THRIVE, THAT'S WHY THEY S**T ON PRESIDENT TRUMP! MAYBE NEXT TIME WE HAVE SOMEONE TO HELP US-DEMOCRAT WILL HELP US ALL BY SHUTING THE F**K UP AND LET OUR ECONOMY HEAL!!!!! (I hope the idiots lose their homes to Biden since they voted for him knowing that he's a thief!
I never understand why these people are so charitable with other people's money. How many people has this guy helped?
Or here's an interesting thought he can do whatever the f**k he wants with his own money who's weird concept huh?
That only comes to $157 per person. I think they are still gonna starve as $157 doesn't but much
People, before you get all huffy about a very rich man, doin rich men things.. so what? Look up the U.N.'s RAPE problem, I mean their very soldiers of 'peace', have raped into existence a whole new generation, on their own..it's disgusting.. NEVER TRUST THE U.N!
The best part was Elon agreeing so long as they show a breakdown of how they'd solve world hunger with just $6B and....*crickets chirping*
Better hurry before A.Heard starts crying for Elon to pay her legal bills
The wealthy and rich could give 10% of their money to end poverty, homelessness, and famine
Elon replied 'sure, get me a budget and action plan'. When they did he called it garbage and told them to fix it and come back. They didn't. Of course, he industrialized electric cars, invented space internet to serve the world, invented a fully reusable rocket, etc etc etc. He definitely owes the world something.
If I remember right, musk answered that he would if this guy would tell him how exactly. Never got an answer ... (Plus he helped the Ukraine! Let's not forget that! )
Nah, Elon got a response and evidently lost interest by then
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They don't wish to listen. They just want free hand outs.
Load More Replies...Boring dystopia tells us that while capitalism is often labeled as the most efficient economic system out there, it is not necessarily geared toward human flourishing. "Depending on who you ask, it can be argued that in some particular corners of the world at a certain point in history when there was a relatively strong welfare state and high tax regime, capitalism was part of what brought a good number of people out of poverty."
Siri To Stop Bad Cops
Back To School
Honestly heartbreaking that they have to take precautions like that.
Validating Your Employees By A Pointing System
If my boss tried any of that s**t (not that she would), I would sue the company to the ground, holy s**t!
However, other people will point to the historical and contemporary violence, the destruction of the environment, and the inequality and exploitation required to make such "market dynamism" possible. According to Holt, capitalism has only ever been efficient at producing more capital. But "capital doesn't care who holds it. How it is made, what it is spent on or invested in and who gets to decide these things have always been political questions. And the answers to these questions have been, largely, deferred to the market for a long time, which has produced a world of increasing inequality, anti-democratic power structures, ecological ruin and boredom," he told us.
Glad Critical Medical Care Is Being Taken Care Of By Private Companies That Definitely Give A S**t
American Healthcare In A Nutshell
After The Government Let Companies Influence School Curriculums, My Exams Now Look Like This
For some, pictures pointing out our dull dystopian reality could be a source of entertainment. For others, they may create a daunting sense of a lost future. Speaking of the latter one, Holt said that the material things that make people feel that way (skyrocketing housing prices, student-loan debts, insane medical bills — the list goes on) stem from actions at various levels of society. "It is just what happens when the interests of people with power align," he added. "Boring dystopia is the experience of our faith in the future having been betrayed. There is not a quick fix. Instead, to quote Donna Haraway, we have to "stay with the trouble" if we want to commit to a future we can flourish in."
Epstein's Homie
Capitalism At Its Finest. Smh
the $150 is a fair price, giving that they need to do a mass amount of tests (aids on of them) and store the blood. They also do a lot of non-profit support. But charging thousands for a blood transfusion is criminal
Found On Linkedin. Fantastic
"One piece of advice that is really easy for coming to terms with and starting to imagine a way out of boring dystopia would be to read Fisher's Capitalist Realism: Is there no Alternative? It is an incredibly accessible piece of critical theory and is only about 86 pages long. It is a great jumping-off point for finding out more. Read it with friends and talk about it after. It is a great way to feel less alone in a world that seems to be ever more isolating," Holt concluded.
Gen Z And Millennials Are Ruining This Country! How Dare They
Capitalism Leads To Concentrated Wealth. Concentrated Wealth Means Concentrated Power. Therefore Capitalism Is Incompatible With Real Democracy, Which Requires Dispersed, Not Concentrated Power
A Grim Reality Sets In
I feel this. You just work and work everyday with the aim of life or economic status getting better. But it feels as though it never does.
The Way Most People Engage In Online Discussion Today Is On A Handful Of Centralized Platforms Owned And Operated By A Few Very Large For-Profit Tech Companies
Don't Solve The Problem, Just Spend Tons Of Money To Ignore It
Reality Is Often Disappointing
Supercops
Walmart Is Selling “Support Local” Shirts
In The Modern Dystopia, You Become The Ad
State Trooper Fired For Disloyalty Simply For Speaking Out And Telling The Truth
How Might This Have Happened
Reddit, I Just Discovered The Meaning Of Life
Arrested For Holding Up A Blank Sign
Facebooks Re-Brand Did Nothing
Anti-Ai Face Paint
There's an AI technique called universal perturbations which subtly changes pixel values which are entirely indistinguishable to humans but completely mess up classification algorithms. You can even train them to cause the algorithm to mistake you for something specific: like a panda! 🐼
Whoever Made This Billboard Can Shove It Up Their A**
Texas Lawmakers Posing As Human Beings, After Passing The New Abortion Ban
After Working From Home For Two Years, "Return To Work" Today
Nbc Is Turning Water Into Thousands Of Pounds Of Real Snow For Their 'Once In A Lifetime' Superbowl Coverage... In Southern California... During A Drought
Haha, There Was A Tussle At The Rich People's Gold-Statue Party
“I think I’ll just watch from here. From my balcony. In my million dollar mansion”
Yea... Let's Go Ahead And Bring Back Slavery
Note: this post originally had 130 images. It’s been shortened to the top 45 images based on user votes.
If you are a bit too mad here is a cat to lower your bp. imagesqtbn...sqpCAU.png 
Im honestly scared for the future right now
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And sadly our govt might have a escape clause but if anyone decides that they wish to redo our govt people will be hurt
Load More Replies... I hate how in society, especially American society, everyone is just another cog in the machine, and people aren't treated like actual people.
Every time I read or watch a movie about an apocalyptic future, or those articles about "what would you do in a zombie apocalypse?" I'm like "Die. I would happily die. Hopefully fast enough. Why would I fight to live in a frickin' apocalyptic world plagued by creatures who kill everything that makes a sound?!" (A bit off-topic? Mmm, maybe... But that's what this article made me think of, soooooo... 🤔)
oh what the hell. I hate these articles because they make me feel so hopeless and useless but I always read them. I'm scared, so scared for the future. I'm really into sci-fi and dystopia right now, and those realities keep seeming a little more realistic :(
You live in the wealthiest and safest time in the universe.
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Don't have kids. Don't force them into this horrible world.
Load More Replies... If you made it to the end and haven't realized more government isn't the solution, go back and review the pics. And then your life...
This is not about distopia, it's mostly stupidity, and some of them are simply not understanding how the society works, or not understanding that people are living from money. I think mostly collected by r/antiwork, what i basically like, but there are some wild ideas connected to it :D
Today I was explaining a conspiracy theory to my husband (not supporting it just telling him) I found he had never heard of Q Anon, and he had missed the story about the White House invasion. I think I might change to his news source
I was feeling pretty bad today. Depression and anxiety really has its grip on me at the moment. And then I read this article. It reminds me how I can't treat my depression and anxiety issues properly. So I feel a lot worse. I shouldn't be here.
I'm in the same boat. This really makes me feel hopeless, like I'd be better off gone than living on this horrid world
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And only one or two was even about Ukraine. There's so much more that isn't on the list.
I realized today that most everything is "rant -able" nowadays. Except for cat videos, discussion of the real world leads directly to a rant. Every example above is rant -worthy. So, cat videos!
Is this the world we want to live in? Is this the world we want to leave for our grandchildren/grandpets?
Nope. So I'm not having kids. It's the kindest thing you can do. #antinatalism
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My appendix was in the process of bursting yet I had to sit waiting in a shi**y plastic chair in front of a woman to fill out forms on a messed-up computer before being eventually wheeled back for emergency surgery. Had to wait for her computer to go back online with the internal system before I could "complete the intake paperwork" - ie: deal with the financials. I didn't, and still don't, have insurance...
All of this was heartbreaking. This is our reality. What are we leaving for the next generations? Woke? Are we really?
" Holt mentioned exciting movies like Blade Runner or The Matrix from the '80s and '90s that offered depictions of going out with a bang". - - - - I think Holt has not watched Bladd Runner.
I'm about to head into the workforce 2 years... I REALLY don't want to rn
Hahaha, lies, propaganda and fear mongering, 1st world problems as usual. People rather complain then see how good they really have it. =XD
Whataboutism, "appeal to bigger problems" fallacy. Many of them are simply things that are expected in modern Western democracies. America just sucks too much to provide them.
Load More Replies... Left-wing Americans: too proud to learn a trade, too lazy to get a useful college degree, but stupid enough to think socialism/communism will work.
daniel280456: too ignorant to understand the current situation in society, too lazy to look into it, but self righteous enough to speculate societies problems.
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If you are a bit too mad here is a cat to lower your bp. imagesqtbn...sqpCAU.png
Im honestly scared for the future right now
Load More Replies... And sadly our govt might have a escape clause but if anyone decides that they wish to redo our govt people will be hurt
Load More Replies... I hate how in society, especially American society, everyone is just another cog in the machine, and people aren't treated like actual people.
Every time I read or watch a movie about an apocalyptic future, or those articles about "what would you do in a zombie apocalypse?" I'm like "Die. I would happily die. Hopefully fast enough. Why would I fight to live in a frickin' apocalyptic world plagued by creatures who kill everything that makes a sound?!" (A bit off-topic? Mmm, maybe... But that's what this article made me think of, soooooo... 🤔)
oh what the hell. I hate these articles because they make me feel so hopeless and useless but I always read them. I'm scared, so scared for the future. I'm really into sci-fi and dystopia right now, and those realities keep seeming a little more realistic :(
You live in the wealthiest and safest time in the universe.
Load More Replies... Don't have kids. Don't force them into this horrible world.
Load More Replies... If you made it to the end and haven't realized more government isn't the solution, go back and review the pics. And then your life...
This is not about distopia, it's mostly stupidity, and some of them are simply not understanding how the society works, or not understanding that people are living from money. I think mostly collected by r/antiwork, what i basically like, but there are some wild ideas connected to it :D
Today I was explaining a conspiracy theory to my husband (not supporting it just telling him) I found he had never heard of Q Anon, and he had missed the story about the White House invasion. I think I might change to his news source
I was feeling pretty bad today. Depression and anxiety really has its grip on me at the moment. And then I read this article. It reminds me how I can't treat my depression and anxiety issues properly. So I feel a lot worse. I shouldn't be here.
I'm in the same boat. This really makes me feel hopeless, like I'd be better off gone than living on this horrid world
Load More Replies... And only one or two was even about Ukraine. There's so much more that isn't on the list.
I realized today that most everything is "rant -able" nowadays. Except for cat videos, discussion of the real world leads directly to a rant. Every example above is rant -worthy. So, cat videos!
Is this the world we want to live in? Is this the world we want to leave for our grandchildren/grandpets?
Nope. So I'm not having kids. It's the kindest thing you can do. #antinatalism
Load More Replies... My appendix was in the process of bursting yet I had to sit waiting in a shi**y plastic chair in front of a woman to fill out forms on a messed-up computer before being eventually wheeled back for emergency surgery. Had to wait for her computer to go back online with the internal system before I could "complete the intake paperwork" - ie: deal with the financials. I didn't, and still don't, have insurance...
All of this was heartbreaking. This is our reality. What are we leaving for the next generations? Woke? Are we really?
" Holt mentioned exciting movies like Blade Runner or The Matrix from the '80s and '90s that offered depictions of going out with a bang". - - - - I think Holt has not watched Bladd Runner.
I'm about to head into the workforce 2 years... I REALLY don't want to rn
Hahaha, lies, propaganda and fear mongering, 1st world problems as usual. People rather complain then see how good they really have it. =XD
Whataboutism, "appeal to bigger problems" fallacy. Many of them are simply things that are expected in modern Western democracies. America just sucks too much to provide them.
Load More Replies... Left-wing Americans: too proud to learn a trade, too lazy to get a useful college degree, but stupid enough to think socialism/communism will work.
daniel280456: too ignorant to understand the current situation in society, too lazy to look into it, but self righteous enough to speculate societies problems.
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