Andy Lowry @AndyLowry@qoto.org
Retired SysAdmin living in the high country of Arizona, USA. I enjoy learning about physics, cosmology, genetics, neurology, and suchlike. Deeply confused by worldwide trends towards authoritarianism. I thought we'd already learned about that stuff. But I guess not.
Joined Nov 2022
@jeffmartins@masto.ai
A convincing argument could be made either way as to whether Zen/Chan is a religion or not. 
I don't think I actually view it that way, though there are plenty who do. There isn't a required belief system or ontology to adopt, which I think of as a necessary component to qualify as a religion (nor anything supernatural, another biggie).
To get a good introduction to the basics, I"d recommend Steve Hagen's "Buddhism Plain and Simple." Hagen is a contemporary Zen teacher and founder of a Zen center in Minneapolis.
@paulknightly
Ah damn, I had that wrong! Thanks for the correction, and my apologies for my mistake.
Andy Lowry
boosted
You should listen to Rep. Maxwell Frost when he says Ron DeSantis is a more dangerous threat to our nation than Trump. From my interview of Rep Frost who is yelling from the rooftops about DeSantis embrace of FASCISM! https://deanobeidallah.substack.com/p/you-should-listen-to-rep-maxwell
Andy Lowry
boosted
Apple implementing iMessage previews for Mastodon is a pretty good sign that the network has “made it”. I guess we’re relevant enough now. Hurray! (?)
@jd
Wow. I don't think I would have even bothered to try making spokes, though it looks like he had the same thought about halfway through..
Andy Lowry
boosted
In America, they say the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.
But that just sounds like someone trying to sell two guns.
Andy Lowry
boosted
Andy Lowry
boosted
Bunch of new followers so I guess I should do one of those #introduction things.
I’m Tim, an iOS Engineer who works on the Music App at Apple.
I’m currently located in Barcelona. I mostly post about tech things, films, and books. And maybe some other stuff in between.
@timroesner
Glad to have you here, and I look forward to seeing what you have to say!
@paulknightly
Also worth mentioning is that it is one of the Navajo's four sacred mountains. The four mountains act as the tribe's boundaries; going outside their perimeter is unsettling to them. (Spent a lot of time with Navajo people as part of a former job.)
Andy Lowry
boosted
Fox News Loses Bid To Shut Down Voting Tech Company's Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit | Smartmatic accuses the conservative network of spreading lies that it helped “steal” the 2020 election from Donald Trump.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/fox-news-lawsuit-voting-tech-company_n_63ec97a6e4b02c2573799946
@alanthwaits@noc.social
Back when I had motorcycles, I did notice that there were times when they just kind of called out to me. I'd be at home reading a book or something and all of a sudden could see the bike in my mind's eye. There was no other option but to go ride it, sometimes for a couple hundred miles through the farm country surrounding my city.
Late evening was the worst for this.
Andy Lowry
boosted
Apropos everything, I’m reminded of this from Douglas Adams:
1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.
2. Anything that’s invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.
3. Anything invented after you’re thirty-five is against the natural order of things.
@dangillmor
As an Arizonan, thanks for bringing attention to unbelievable-story-about-Arizona #7739172.
Andy Lowry
boosted
The most talked-about recent technological innovations are:
1) Social media, which empowered fascists, & gave everyone else the attention span of a gnat.
2) Cryptocurrency, which enriched a handful of rich grifters, & impoverished people who really couldn't afford to lose the money.
3) "AI", which looks set to "flood the zone" with a novel kind of bullshit, & destroy once & for all our ideas of what is real or true.
I'm pro-tech, but it's all starting to look like a bit of a mixed blessing.
@_4_d_4_m_
I was confused because the motorcycle didn't actually get to say anything.
@ReticentTurnip@universeodon.com
Well, the good part is that it will take a minimum of three months to even see somebody who will let you decide which unbearable thing you want. So that's a plus.
Andy Lowry
boosted
Nice proof-of-concept, this search index for Mastodon, totally opt-in. Please boost.
#Search #Tootfinder https://www.tootfinder.ch/index.php?join=1
@science_quotes@c.im
Fair enough, and sorry for the complaint. Still seems like a woman making the rank of admiral in her day is noteworthy in itself.
Retired SysAdmin living in the high country of Arizona, USA. I enjoy learning about physics, cosmology, genetics, neurology, and suchlike. Deeply confused by worldwide trends towards authoritarianism. I thought we'd already learned about that stuff. But I guess not.
Joined Nov 2022
