Ben Taylor @VoxDei@qoto.org
Software Engineer, Trade Unionist, Gamer, Geek, Dad. Lives in Devon
Joined Nov 2022
@cstross But but but... he says none of the money is going to Trump for Presibwahahahahaha...
Sorry, I couldn't keep my face straight while I said that.
Ben Taylor
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Every time I see some nob going on about 'cancel culture' I immediately suspect one to many of the following is true:
1. They were a complete ass to someone before they were 'cancelled'
2. I would not be welcome to speak freely in their spaces
3. They don't understand 'free speech' means you are free to talk – while others are just as free to ignore you; actively if necessary
4. They are narcissists and everything they say – including about cancel culture – is all about THEM
@freemo You haven't been short tempered with me that I recall, but just to say sorry you've had all that and glad you're (from the sound of it) on the right track now
"Yet, for all that, Hong Kong flourished... under the aegis of empire. ... Though denied full democratic rights, its people eventually prospered."
Simon Tisdall in the Guardian decrying China's destruction of Hong Kong's democracy by, er... harking back to the British Empire's undemocratic treatment of Hong Kong. China's treatment of Hong Kong is a disgrace, but I'm not sure this is the killer argument Tisdall seems to think.
@lucas @JaxVent I'm with @drandrewv2 on this in that I'd go with Prospect (and like her I'm a former Prospect rep - stopped when I moved to a non-unionised employer). Specifically because relevant to @lucas 's point, Prospect have members at National Grid (as well as being good for tech in general).
On the reviews, I'd say:
* The local branch does the heavy lifting. You will have a good experience if you have a good branch
* Prospect is less militant than some other unions in general. If a fight is called for, fine, but it's not the first tool in the box. Some won't like that.
* Prospect as I recall came out against the 999 operators' strikes a year or two back (Prospect represents managers at BT but not rank and file staff, I believe). That didn't go down well in some quarters, might be some bad reviews from that.
@janbartosik @bookstodon @scifi @knihy Vinge was a fantastic author, the Zones of Thought books I loved, but also A Deepness In The Sky is one of my all-time favourites. I hadn't heard he was gone, I am sad. RIP. :-(
Ben Taylor
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† Vernor Vinge (79)
Rest in peace. Loved the Zones of Thought series.
#books #amreading #reading #kindle #literature #bookwyrm #booktoot #book #books #knihy #scifi #sff @bookstodon @scifi @knihy
@lowqualityfacts Ah, well, that's supply and demand for you. Can't stop progress. But I can sell you this fine box with a button on it if you want to try. Look, the button says "Stop" and everything. That'll be another $100 please.
Ben Taylor
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“We want to make sure that we’re not leaving any pricing on the table. We want to take as much as we can.”
—CFO of Constellation Brands, producer of popular beers like Corona and Modelo
Corporate price gouging has gotten so bad that they aren't even trying to hide it anymore.
@drandrewv2 Michael Gove is secretly a militant communist and this is the culmination of his years working under deep cover to get the Tory party banned from the inside.
Ben Taylor
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Rancher faces prison for trying to breed absolute unit of a sheep
Ewe-nique endeavor aimed to create Jurassic Baaa-rk experience for hunters In a case that could have been lifted from a bad movie about a "mad scientist," a Montana rancher has pleaded guilty to wildlife trafficking charges in his quest to genetically engineer an ubersheep for hunting.…
#theregister #IT
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/03/14/rancher_hybrid_sheep/
Ben Taylor
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OMG!!!
For years, the antivirus software company #avast harvested information from users’ web browsers without their consent.
And SOLD that data!
Though I have never used any of their products, I pray that this company is sued into oblivion.
What an abhorrent deception! https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/22/24080135/avast-security-privacy-software-ftc-fine-data-harvesting
@artemis I think it's actually worse. The palantirs are neither good nor evil, they are just tools. They can be a blessing or a curse, which it is is entirely down to the user.
I think that's what Thiel is saying. Palantir is a tool, it (the company) does not care who uses it or for what purpose. Make its abilities available to anyone who can pay.
To a certain type of libertarian nut, this is presumably a form of ultimate freedom, freedom from moral considerations as to his actions.
Ben Taylor
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Palantir is looting the UK’s National Health Service, under cover of vulture capitalism’s Big Lie: “There is no alternative.” — @pluralistic https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/08/the-fire-of-orodruin/
@freemo My favourite was when the European Space Agency rolled their own security questions on a new satellite data portal a while back. The questions were a mix of changeable answers ("When did you last water your plants?") and yes/no answers. The minimum field length was three characters.
@freemo Does that mean there are two carbon atoms in there? C2(Head)(Hand)2(Foot)2?
Ben Taylor
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As someone who did her PhD on consent I just want to flag a few things in the bsky bridge discussion. One: medical style disclosure based consent (terms and conditions, EULAs etc.) is totally inappropriate for this sort of situation and has been for decades. But it serves the needs of slow-moving legal requirements and companies that like people to forget they signed up to stuff (or were coerced into doing so for social or other reasons). See https://liedra.net/thesis for more details. (1/n)
Ben Taylor
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Canada's 10 seasons:
Winter
Fool's Spring (we are here)
Second Winter
Mud, Potholes and Allergies
Hope
Summer
False Fall
Second summer
Fall
Hello darkness my old friend
I see the Guardian is going for the could-have-been-published-by-the-Nazis look this morning.
(Going by the associated headline I think it's supposed to represent Iran. Separated from the headline, it's awful.)
Software Engineer, Trade Unionist, Gamer, Geek, Dad. Lives in Devon
Joined Nov 2022
