normalaccess

While at the same time our tax dollars are supporting literal Nazis in the Ukraine.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azov_Brigade

I'm amused that it's so hard to see but as a single example take the current situation happening in the UK. There have been organized child human trafficking rings that have been allowed to operate with complete impunity due to the race of the participants.

If you speak out about the injustice you are deemed a far right extremist and a raciest and given a harsher sentence than the pedophiles that are raping children.

Now you might see that as unrelated but In my option it's exactly the sort of thing that is emblematic of the radical left being in power. There is an inversion of justice to correct for the "demon of whiteness".

It’s interesting to see how polarizing views about Musk have become. People often overlook the fact that Musk was, and in many ways still is, aligned with traditional liberal values. He’s been a long-time supporter of initiatives like universal basic income, environmental sustainability through the green movement ect... Yet, the moment he expresses support for ideas that deviate from the more extreme edges of left-wing ideology, he’s vilified and treated as a pariah by those who once championed him.

Regarding X, I still see plenty of left-leaning content, but the dynamic has undoubtedly shifted. What’s changed is that the platform no longer artificially amplifies one ideological perspective at the expense of others. Previously, algorithms seemed to prioritize content aligned with extreme left narratives while outright blocking opposing views. That system gave the impression of a dominant left-leaning consensus, that was entirely artificial.

At the end of the day, it's impossible to remove all bias so whatever system maximizes free speech is the best one.

Trump is the "solution" to the problem of militant radical Neo-Marxism or whatever you want to call it. He exist in a world where the Overton window sits comfortably over the destruction of the entire western world by the hand of communists bent on burning down the world to rule over the ashes. When everything is bent into identity politics, for good or ill those that can manage their image will thrive. And Trump is very good at managing the Trump brand.

Where are the measurements being taken? Cities are heat islands and really skew the data.

Take your Vitamin D. It's the most powerful steroid hormone in the human body.

Personal anecdote: Since I've started taking 10,000 to 20,000 IU a day I haven't gotten a severe cold or flu (viral or otherwise). Only a sniffle once or twice a year.

Link for nerds, from the man who coined the term "Spyware": https://www.grc.com/health/vitamin-d.htm

Eugenics 2.0.

  When care becomes killing, we'll have no incentive to save. The weak and the poor are rushed to their graves

Distinguishing reality from fiction is useful, but it doesn’t shape our desires or define our values. As a culture, we’ve grown colder and more detached. Think of the first Dracula film—audiences were so shaken by a simple eerie face that some reportedly lost control in the theater. Compare that visceral reaction to the apathy we feel toward far more shocking imagery today.

If media didn’t profoundly affect us, how could exposure therapy rewire fears? Why would billions be spent on advertising if it didn’t work? Why would propaganda or education exist if ideas couldn’t be planted and nurtured through storytelling?

Is there any meaningful difference between a sermon from the pulpit and a feature film in the theater? Both are designed to influence, persuade, and reshape our worldview.

As Alan Moore aptly put it: "Art is, like magic, the science of manipulating symbols, words, or images to achieve changes in consciousness."

In my opinion the old adage holds true, you are what you eat. And we will soon be eating unimaginable mountains of artificial content cooked up by dream engines tuned to our every desire and whim.

I'm still waiting on the future waves of PTSD from hyper realistic horror games. I can't think of a worse thing to do then hand a kid a VR headset (or game system) and have them play a game that is designed to activate every single fight or flight nerve in the body on a level that is almost indistinguishable from reality. 20 years ago that would have been the plot to a torture porn flick.

Even worse than that is when people get USED to it and no longer have a natural aversion to horrific scenes taking place in the real world.

This AI stuff accelerates that process of illusion but in every possible direction at once.

As much as people don't want to believe it, by beholding we are indeed changed.

100% correct. Nature does not blink and boop. Just like a drugs out devices hijack people's natural feedback mechanisms and produce an experience that's hyper-real.

A two year-old with an iPad becomes unable to handle reality because it's dull by comparison.

Relevant social commentary (timestamped): https://youtu.be/k1BneeJTDcU?t=176

It's not my problem I am merely volunteering an alternative view point in a public form (unless my tax dollars are paying for it then it is my problem).

As mentioned above we already have a 100% effective solution. Problem == solved, however the solution is unacceptable to our modern society. The fact that people balk at the idea shows that they care more about base desires than their own health then turn around and demand that someone else fixes their mistake.

I mean for goodness sake, we are decriminalizing knowingly infecting other people. That's the opposite of helping. How can someone give informed consent if their partner is allowed to lie about their condition?

https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/new-california-law-r...

Don't want lung cancer then don't smoke. Don't want STIs then don't have promiscuous sex.

It literally cannot be easier to understand.

I'm of the opinion stigmatization of unhealthy risky behavior is exactly what we need.

Yes, and a ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

No one is stopping you from being celibate or monogamous if you so choose. But that changes noting about the logic of the situation.

It is impossible to avoid cause and effect:

Celibacy = 100% success against STIs Non-monogamy = 79.85% Chance of catching an STI (Using numbers from the NYC STD CENTER)

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

Then stop it in its tracts by removing it's ONLY current transmission method. Say what you want about morality, I'm not talking about that. Just the cold hard facts that if you don't have sex you can't get STIs by definition.

imagine a world where there was no casual sex... ALL STIs would disappear in a single generation.

If the mom didn't sleep around that would fix two problems then...

Who is talking about prostitution? All I'm saying is that not sleeping around is 100% effective at preventing STIs. And it is... There is no arguing that logic.

It's not my problem that our culture can't keep it in their pants.

I didn't say Abstinence-Only Education... I said not sleeping around is 100% effective.

And it is.

If we're talking about people then we are talking about people. Slapping the word cooperation on a group of does not (should not) change their inherent rights against improper search and seizure.

As much as I dislike corporations I dislike a tyranny even more. A cooperation is not magic, they are just collections of people. Each person in a cooperation should be afforded the same rights as each person outside a cooperation. Are your personal phone records, emails, text messages stored /just in case/ you commit a crime?

Once you define a class as having less rights (for better or worse) you've created a breach.

The 4th and 5th Amendment:

  4th: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

  5th: No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

I'm ok with this because it's going to keep American money in America. The cheep prices we are used to are fueled by slave labor. That Chinese hammer that is $5 less at wal-mart was produced in a sweat shop by underpaid and overworked workers.

The tariffs level the playing field and allow us to afford to produce goods at home by effectively banning slave goods. Besides, when you produce local its better for the environment because you're not sending everything on massive cargo ships.

And it's why better than someone calling it chat gip-uh-dee (pronounced with a J sound like GIF :) )

Yeah, me too. And if you squint your eyes and tilt your head you can kind of make the connection. Any large Language Model is made of the "chat" from billions of messages floating around on the internet.

So when you ask chat a question you are in reality asking an algorithmic simulation of mass internet communication.

In my mind the connection works, which is convenient with the new chat.com domain and all...

My coworkers also watch a lot of twitch so chat was already something they said before.

It's for sure something I say...

Every time I go to chatgpt.com I type chat into the address bar and it autocompletes to the correct site. Also when talking to my coworkers it's taken the same status as "googling" something. We just call it "chat". So yes, I also feel it's odd to see chat.com go to chatgpt but it's the shorthand some people are already using.

Examples of what my coworkers and I say at the office:

  "What does chat have to say about x?"
  "Did you ask chat"
  "Did chat find the answer?"
  "Yeah, chat scripted that one."

I have no strong opinions about Uber itself, but as far as data management is concerned I am ok with this. I don't want police gathering my data via a third party for no good reason.

From the Article: "A spokesperson for Kalanick said the kill switch was “not designed or implemented to obstruct justice”. She said it was used to “protect intellectual property and the privacy of […] customers, and ensure due process rights are respected in the event of an extrajudicial raid”.

His lawyers said because no data was permanently deleted in the process, authorities could still obtain it later."

With both sides being deeply corrupt, I'm supersized that number isn't higher.

thosearerookienumbers.gif

On a related note people tend to massively overestimate the global "white" population. People do the same, put it at 25%-50% when it's only about 7%-10%.

This chart isn't broken down by ethnicity but it will do in a pinch. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/worlds-7-5-billion-people-c...

I believe the problem lies in clustering and assimilation. In some areas of the USA, the immigrant population exceeds 30-40%, and these tend to be the loudest voices.

Small towns are hit the hardest, but even large cities are not immune to sudden, rapid population fluctuations and the strain this puts on local resources (just look at New York).

The history of the Irish in the United States serves as an excellent example. Driven by the Potato Famine, they poured into the US in massive numbers. When too many people from unrelated cultures arrive too quickly, conflict becomes inevitable.

Add 10 to 20 million people over a four-year period, and you have a perfect storm for conflict.

This ^

Having sites auto-load into different containers elevates the experience from the occasional handy tool into essential component.

I fear the day Microsoft forces Edge for Azure administration.

My current role requires several Microsoft cloud account and Firefox's tab containers has been a godsend. It's a little to get set up but once it is you get a single pane of glass that remembers your settings per site.

I can't recommend it enough.