Reach for the Stars @antares@qoto.org

How Canadians confuse the world ¯\_(ツ)_/¯:

We measure outside temp in Celsius & oven temp in Fahrenheit
Length in meters & our height in feet
Produce is weighed in kilograms, but people are in pounds
We speak like Americans, spell like Brits & randomly throw in French words
We measure driving distance in hours instead of kms.
Liquids are in litres, unless it's for a recipe - then it's in cups.
Property is measured in hectares, but house size is by square footage
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ¯\_(ツ)_/¯¯\_(ツ)_/¯

https://reclaimthenet.org/nikki-haley-demands-an-end-to-online-anonymity
This would be a clear violation of the First Amendment. The First Amendment protects anonymous speech (and rightly so).

Anonymity is important for free expression, and activism.

https://qoto.org/@olives/111407938871651520
I've covered why "age verification" (which is similar to this) is problematic here. The arguments there also apply here. As I've mentioned elsewhere, scammers are also known to impersonate "age verification" providers.

"The First Amendment of the US Constitution protects freedom of speech and expression. Mandatory ID verification on social media could be seen as a form of censorship, limiting individuals’ ability to speak freely online. Historically, the Supreme Court has been protective of anonymous speech as a vital part of the freedom of expression, as seen in cases like Talley v. California (1960) and McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Commission (1995). These cases underscore the right to distribute anonymous literature and the protection of anonymous speech, respectively."

"Related to the First Amendment, there’s a historical precedent for the right to anonymity in political speech. In the Federalist Papers, for example, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay wrote under the pseudonym “Publius” to argue for the ratification of the Constitution itself. Without the right to anonymity, there would be no America as we know it."

#privacy

@drmaddkap
I reconcile it thus:

Its creator who created spec 87a was allowed to be a doofus and decree that it be pronounced like peanut butter, because he created it.

But then CompuServ came out with 89a.

By all the nonexistent authority vested in me, "GIF" (with a soft G) refers explicitly to 87a, and "GIF" (with a hard G) refers to all versions of the format including and subsequent to 89a.

Important one to remember. #chatcontrol

What should I work on?

Fans of Connections, rejoice! Rebooted classic sci-doc series returns with original host

Ars chats with host James Burke about his "connective" approach to science history.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/11/fans-of-connections-rejoice-rebooted-classic-sci-doc-series-returns-with-original-host/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

I so, so, so don't want to drive any new car that can do this:

A federal appeals court refused to bring back a class action lawsuit alleging four auto manufacturers had violated Washington state’s privacy laws by using vehicles’ on-board infotainment systems to record and intercept customers’ private text messages and mobile phone call logs.

The court ruled that the practice does not meet the threshold for an illegal privacy violation under state law, handing a big win to automakers Honda, Toyota, Volkswagen and General Motors, which are defendants in five related class action suits focused on the issue.

The plaintiffs had appealed a prior judge’s dismissal. But the appeals court ruled Tuesday that the interception and recording of mobile phone activity did not meet the Washington Privacy Act’s standard that a plaintiff must prove that “his or her business, his or her person, or his or her reputation” has been threatened.

A suit filed against Honda in 2021, argu[ed] that beginning in at least 2014 infotainment systems in the company’s vehicles began downloading and storing a copy of all text messages on smartphones when they were connected to the system.

An Annapolis, Maryland-based company, Berla Corporation, provides the technology to some car manufacturers but does not offer it to the general public, the lawsuit said. Once messages are downloaded, Berla’s software makes it impossible for vehicle owners to access their communications and call logs but does provide law enforcement with access, the lawsuit said.

Many car manufacturers are selling car owners’ data to advertisers as a revenue boosting tactic, according to earlier reporting by Recorded Future News. Automakers are exponentially increasing the number of sensors they place in their cars every year with little regulation of the practice.

https://therecord.media/class-action-lawsuit-cars-text-messages-privacy

In case you have the appetite for really depressing pearls of wisdom from Netanyahu and Begin's ideological master Jabotinsky... in the 1920's Revisionist Zionism pronounced what #Zionism didn't dare to speak (in public). It also set the foundations for Israeli security doctrine.

"There can be no voluntary agreement between ourselves and the Palestine Arabs. Not now, nor in the prospective future. I say this with such conviction, not because I want to hurt the moderate Zionists. I do not believe that they will be hurt. Except for those who were born blind, they realized long ago that it is utterly impossible to obtain the voluntary consent of the Palestine Arabs for converting "Palestine" from an Arab country into a country with a Jewish majority."

"[...] But the only way to obtain such an agreement, is the Iron Wall, which is to say a strong power in #Palestine that is not amenable to any Arab pressure. In other words, the only way to reach an agreement in the future is to abandon all idea of seeking an agreement at present."

--- The Iron Wall... translate to English from the original Russian, Razsviet, 4.11.1923.

http://en.jabotinsky.org/media/9747/the-iron-wall.pdf

@israel
@palestine
@academicchatter
#IsraelHamasWar

The GOP has introduced a bill to EXPEL Palestinians from the United States. I cannot read such things without remembering what happened to my own family after Pearl Harbor. After we and 120,000 other Japanese Americans were incarcerated in prison camps for years, without charge or trial, my own mother was very nearly expelled to Japan because of racial prejudice and hatred. Only the brave actions of a civil rights attorney saved her from being sent away. #NeverAgain

Why do I believe #Biden will lose in 2024?
1. Most people voted for him because they hated Trump.
2. The lack of voter enthusiasm sealed Hillary's fate in 2016. Trump has many die-hard fans; Biden doesn't.
3. His blind support of Israel will not give him more votes from conservative Jews and will give him fewer from Liberal #Jews. He will lose many votes from #Muslims.
4. Most Gen Y and Z believe he is too old.

#genocide #palestinians #gaza #Israel #warcrime

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/11/03/biden-support-israel-dividing-democrats-palestinians/71395618007/