Pat @Pat@qoto.org

@DeepGreenDesign

>"We need a Time #Einstein."

I thought Einstein was a Time Einstein.

#oil #money #world #crime #accountability #corruption #inflation #Jamal #Khashoggi #JamalKhashoggi #binSalman #Saudi #Arabia #OperationJustCause

A couple of days ago, the Biden Administration announced that the Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Mohamed bin Salman is immune from a court proceeding to hold him accountable for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi because he is a head of state.

In 1989, the US invaded Panama in order to arrest their president, Manuel Noriega, on charges of drug smuggling.

What a difference a few years make. I guess money can actually buy more today than it did back then.

@paul_briley

And the Biden administration has just decided that Mohamed bin Salman is immune from being sued for murdering Jamal Khashoggi.

Anyone with a few coins in their pocket can literally get away with murdering Americans.

@DrFunkySpoon

...a short while in the geologic time scale.

@Romaq

If you've ever wished that you could read people's minds, you might want to think twice about it.

@mikmaqpeek

#climate #ICSEngine #oil #EV

So when did we learn that putt-putt cars cause environmental damage?

At least this long ago...

(fair use clip from the Jack Benny Program, 1955)

@DrFunkySpoon

What's the rush? We've only known that putt-putt cars cause environmental damage for a short while.

#sarcasm

Brains are amazing. That's just about 5 seconds of thoughts and there were several others mixed in there that I didn't write down.

And this goes on constantly, all the time in our brains...

wow.

#random #thoughts

Some random thoughts...

I need to clip my toe nails. That clip of Jack Benny I just posted is funny because it is about the past and future. Benny the dog was frozen and then revived in the future. Vanilla is tasty and the sky is clear.

That's it, no more thoughts.

@freemo
(image CC-BY-NC-2.0, https://www.flickr.com/photos/37815348@N00/5714381683)

#horoscope #JackBenny #USPol #joke

#retrocausality

(fair use clip, Jack Benny Program 1956, and maybe in the public domain due to lack of copyright notice)

@freemo

I don't know what God was thinking. Literally. I don't know.

I know what I think. I think it is sad that all those wonderful birds are killed. I think there is a lot of tasty food available that doesn't hurt anyone.

@Romaq @icedquinn

#nasa #artemis #moon #apollo #spaceflight #BackToTheMoon

"Orion completed the outbound powered flyby at 6:44 a.m., passing about 81 miles above the surface at 6:57 a.m. The spacecraft speed increased from 2,128 mph before the burn to 5,102 mph after the burn. Shortly after the outbound flyby burn, the space craft passed about 1,400 miles above the Apollo 11 landing site at Tranquility Base at 7:37 a.m. Orion later flew over the Apollo 14 site at about 6,000 miles in altitude and then over the Apollo 12 site at an altitude of about 7,700 miles "
- NASA blog, 2022/11/21, 8:19pm

(image from nasa.gov, Artemis I, on the far side of the moon)

@Romaq @freemo @icedquinn

I like turkeys. I think they're cute.
It makes me sad to think that so many of them die because of this holiday.

@LouisIngenthron

It's a rhetorical poll. I'm not actually expecting responses. The point is, that putting democracy ahead of rights exposes people to dogpiling. Assuming that people will always vote against their own personal self-interest and choose what's best for the common good, is to expect people to be angels. If all people were angels, no government would be needed (paraphrasing Madison).

Governments need to be designed to withstand the worst of human nature, because at times people can get really evil. (Here in the US, we just had a few people in the CDC kill over a million Americans, for greed, power or who knows why).

>"The goal, then, is for a society to consistently produce and select new generations who are more reasonable than selfish."

A worthy goal, but I've never seen that happen in the real world. Natural selection in politics supports the opposite -- the most ruthless gain the power.

@Biggles @freemo @Adrasteianix

@freemo

>"With his permission I'd be happy to send you the actual text of the email but since he is unresponsive to any attempts at having a conversation I cant actually get his permission to do so."

This is why modern societies have due process clauses in their laws, and the process is public and transparent. Who knows what info he is being fed from various sources, tainting his perspective and decision-making process.

I just re-read the "covenant" for servers listed in the directory, and federating policy isn't in there. Qoto complies with all of the provisions of the covenant.

This is weird.

@Gargron

@freemo

Well, something doesn't make sense here. Qoto has been around awhile and has been on the directory all this time and has complied with all the requirements to be on the directory and continues to comply. Are you saying he just suddenly, without any notice at all, just removed qoto from the directory?

Can you post verbatim all comms between the two of you here?

It is possible that there is some malicious actor, man-in-middle, who is corrupting comms between you guys?

@Gargron

@freemo

I think you guys need to talk, rather than escalate. At least try to find out why he hasn't responded. I'm sure he's overwhelmed like most admins at this point due the influx from the birdsite.

Also, the directory is big deal, very visible. I think the process for removal should be fair and transparent -- notice; informed of the accusations; opportunity to respond and confront witnesses -- you know, a fair and public trial just how most civil societies operate.

From what you've said about the situation so far, it doesn't sound like the same guy who created Mastodon. More investigation is in order in here, I think.

@Gargron

@Biggles @freemo @Adrasteianix @LouisIngenthron

#rhetorical #poll

Do you agree this new tax law?

Everyone whose username begins with "L" will be taxed at 100% of wealth and earnings and the proceeds of the tax will be evenly distributed to everyone in this thread.

@trinsec @peterdrake

Sweet dreams...