Paul Sutton @zleap@qoto.org

Putin is a monster, but the willingness of liberals to blame him for everything rather than consider how the economics that have made life good for them is self-terminating and starting to unravel is quite something

SCAM ALERT: Data centers bring practically zero local jobs. They are a tax break scam everywhere they operate.

"Washington lawmakers approved a tax break for data centers to create more jobs in rural Washington, but they can’t say how many jobs the state actually got. Repeated expansions turned a modest program to bring a budding industry to rural areas into one of the biggest corporate tax giveaways in the state."

https://www.propublica.org/article/washington-data-centers-tech-jobs-tax-break

Italian scientists have, for the first time, discovered a cave on the moon. It's at least 100 metres deep and could be an ideal place for a permanent base. #ShareGoodNewsToo https://buff.ly/3ygZvMe

I was mentoring someone who got feedback that their high standards made them difficult to work with. They thought the feedback was bad since it implied lowering their standards was good.

I pointed out the issue is making it obvious to others they don’t meet your work standards.

Telling or implying to people that the work they did is poor and you could have done it better is counterproductive.

It doesn’t make them work harder or better. It just makes them resent you. Now you have two problems.

“Homosexuality was well known in the ancient world, well before Christ was born, and Jesus never said a word about homosexuality. In all of his teachings about multiple things—he never said that gay people should be condemned.”

- Jimmy Carter, 39th President of the United States

We need more leaders--and people of faith--like Jimmy Carter.

I know everyone is terrified but this is the far right LOSING political power in Britain. They are desperate & angry. Because they have lost control of everything that matters. They will not be allowed to rise this way. They must not be allowed to hijack Britain by terrorising ordinary communities.

@mekkaokereke Hey, would you be willing to boost this fundraiser for Nigerian author Oghenechovwe Ekpeki to attend the World Science Fiction Convention (coming up this month)?

He's really an amazing writer (and editor) who's been nominated for every single #sciencefiction award in a handful of years. Also a friend.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-oghenechovwe-ekpeki-attend-the-2024-glasgow-worldcon

Can MPs, such as Farage, Lowe and Anderson who peddle conspiracy theories that incite riots and public disorder outside Parliament be subject to its scrutiny and disciplinary processes of the Commons Standards Committee?

#FascistNotWelcomeHere

@stux

🤔 People keep saying that Mastodon doesn't have this problem "because no algorithms," but Mastodon absolutely does have this problem.

For example, whether or not a fediverse user sees this post that I'm writing right now, depends on whether or not their admin thinks that they should see posts from hachyderm, or from me in particular. 🤷🏿‍♂️

Someone is still deciding which replies you see and which ones you don't see, presumably for your safety and enjoyment.

Imagine if #Firefox, #Chrome, and their derivatives could render Markdown, AsciiDoc, LaTeX, EPUB, and Gemtext as seamlessly as they handle PDFs. This could revolutionize the way we publish lightweight websites, making it as simple as dropping a text file into a directory.

#smolweb #smallweb #indieweb

#BBCNews - live page: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c0jqjxe8d1yt
UK protests latest: More than 90 arrests after far-right demonstrations turn violent
#ukprotests

@Slender4fun It's not a trendy option, but you could also consider the Castle Game Engine. Write highly portable games in #Pascal. https://castle-engine.io/

But also, to echo @mos_8502, do consider writing for older platforms, 8-bit (e.g. ZX Spectrum, C64, Amstrad CPC, Game Boy, Master System) or 16-bit (e.g. Amiga, Atari ST, DOS, Psion EPOC16, SNES). You'll learn a lot more about how computers actually work, plus find a dedicated pool of retro gamers who will be overjoyed to play your creations.

‘Astrobiologist Nathalie Cabrol: ‘I believe Mars still has some big surprises for us’. It’s going to be exciting when the archaeology turns up! #Mars

In March of 1945, the US Army issued this "fact sheet" to guide conversations with soldiers on the topic of fascism, paying particular attention to the ongoing threat that domestic fascist movements posed to the US. Their analysis of what a homegrown US fascism would look like is interesting.
The central point is that when fascism came to America it wouldn't call itself that, nor would it be wearing a swastika. It would call itself "patriotic" and "100% American."
The first fascistic tactic to look out for is a hate campaign against a particular religious, racial, or ethnic group. Like, for example, let's say a candidate emerges who calls all people of one nationality "rapists" and "criminals," while promising to ban immigrants from only one religious group.
The second fascistic tactic to look out for is anyone who tries to amp up nationalistic animosities toward other nations or peoples, framing attempts to foster international cooperation as forms of weakness. The idea that all humans share the earth as equals is anathema to fascists.
The third fascistic tactic to watch out for is their tendency to label anyone they disagree with who is to their left "a Communist." Fascists claim that they alone can save their nations from "the communist menace." Anyway, the 2024 GOP platform contains the phrase "Christ-hating communists."

https://archive.org/details/ArmyTalkOrientationFactSheet64-Fascism/mode/2up?view=theater