u/Substantial-Bug-8611

This is something I’ve wondered for years. We know the deep ocean is still largely unexplored and we’re still discovering new species.

Is there any scientific reason an ancient marine lineage couldn’t have survived and slowly evolved in the deep ocean for millions of years? I’m not saying it definitely happened, I’m just wondering if there’s a biological reason it would be impossible, or if it’s just considered extremely unlikely because we’d expect to have found evidence by now.

Genuinely curious to hear what people who know more about palaeontology or marine biology think.

I’ve been thinking about confidence lately not the loud kind, but the kind that doesn’t ask to be understood.

We call things cringe when they break an invisible rule. Not because they’re bad, but because someone is enjoying them openly without checking if it’s acceptable.

There’s something unsettling about sincerity. About liking something without irony. Without a disclaimer. Without first seeing how it lands in the room.

So we perform instead. We learn what to like by watching. What to dismiss by consensus.

Because it’s easier to mock freedom than admit how rarely we give ourselves permission.

Unapologetically liking what you like is a quiet kind of rebellion.
It says, I don’t need permission to enjoy this.
It says, I'm not outsourcing my joy.

And maybe that’s why taste feels fragile now not because we lack it, but because we’re scared to stand alone in it.

So I wonder, are we embarrassed by what we like or by having to choose it for ourselves?