The responses I received were exponentially more helpful than scouring for the information myself (which I had done).

Everyone here had experience and expertise that I did not, and I had a working solution running on my computer within 10 minutes of asking.

Part of the purpose of a community like this is evident in posts like this.

Your response, though funny, is damaging to the community, and unhelpful at best.

I understand where you were coming from, but please don’t.

This is how I would have done it in 2001.

It is my understanding that the only reason to go this route in this day and age is if you prefer to survive off the tears of cybersecurity professionals.

I’m sold! Setting it up now!

Any suggestions on where to start when looking into buying and setting up a domain?

As averse as I am to spending money on subscription services, having my own domain for less than 30 bucks a year might be worth it.

I think I’m going to try out the tailscale VPN route first before I fully warm up to buying a domain.

*Edit-You’ve definitely got me sold on getting a domain! Thank you so much for all the info!

Got it! I think this is the plan of attack I’m going with

I appreciate your response!

It looks like a VPN is the option I’m leaning towards, but I’ll definitely put the idea of buying a domain in my back pocket for a while.

That is the answer my intuition was leading me to, but I hoped I was wrong. It looks like this is an opportunity to learn something outside of my comfort zone.

That is a new concept to me, but I’ll definitely look into it.

To be clear, your suggesting I set up my home computer as a virtual private Network server that I would connect to from the TV or device outside of my home network?

It exposes a structural disadvantage that plagues liberal politics. The hard right can simply point to images and tell a straightforward story, however true or false. Liberal politicians must choose between explaining context, embracing social complexity, and fussing over minute statistics, or allowing the hard right to gain ground by deferring to their narrative.

This is the crux of the issue. Partially the fact that

A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.

, but also the fact that that reality is complicated and nuanced, while political rhetoric is not.

Conversations inevitably degrade to the level of the dumbest people in the room, and on the internet, that leaves it at about the level of a 12 year old.

Couple that with the fact that narratives are more powerful than data, and it leaves the conservative stance as the most compelling, despite it being the most false and most damaging…