Links 10/11/2023: Google's Secret Payment Deal with Spotify, Another Call to Set Assange Free
Contents
- Leftovers
- Gemini* and Gopher
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Leftovers
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Ruben Schade ☛ My default applications, via proycon
Proycon did a post about his default applications, prompted by some others doing the same. I didn’t listen to the podcast that started it, and I technically my Omake enumarates these already, but I’ll never pass up an opportunity to post a list!
Aside from a sneay “retro emulation” item below, I’ve resisted the temptation to include retrocomputer tools. Maybe that warrants its own separate list.
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Hackaday ☛ Mining And Refining: Graphite
In my teenage years I worked for a couple of summers at a small amusement park as a ride operator. Looking back on it, the whole experience was a lot of fun, although with the minimum wage at $3.37 an hour and being subjected to the fickle New England weather that ranged from freezing rains to heat stroke-inducing tropical swelter, it didn’t seem like it at the time.
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Hackaday ☛ Does Getting Into Your Garage Really Need To Be Difficult?
Probably the last thing anyone wants when coming home from a long day at work or a trip is to be hassled at the last possible moment — gaining entrance to your house. But for some home automation enthusiasts, that’s just what happened when they suddenly learned that their own garage doors had betrayed them.
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Hackaday ☛ Hack A Soda Can To Jewelery
If you’ve ever needed some `
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Science
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Science Alert ☛ Amazing Tiny Brain Implant Translates Brain Signals Into Speech
This is brilliant.
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RTE ☛ RTÉ FOCUSES ON CLIMATE FOR SCIENCE WEEK 2023
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New York Times ☛ Frank Borman, Astronaut Who Led First Orbit of the Moon, Dies at 95
He commanded the 1968 Apollo 8 mission that carried three astronauts farther from Earth than anyone had ever traveled. He later led Eastern Airlines.
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Education
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Students taken aside at CUHK graduation ceremony after uni warns against ‘disruptive’ behaviour
Two students were taken away from the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s graduation ceremony after holding up placards, following an email warning to students against “disruptive” acts on campus. The pair displayed signs near the university library on Thursday morning, where throngs of graduates celebrated and took photos in their caps and gowns.
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University of Michigan ☛ Proposals sought for short online courses on Hey Hi (AI) in the workplace [Ed: Buzzwords in education?]
The Center for Academic Innovation is accepting proposals from U-M faculty to create short courses that empower learning in the era of artificial intelligence in the workplace.
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YLE ☛ Teachers' union plans protest action
Teachers' union OAJ says it is planning protest action over the government's labour market plans.
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Hardware
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New York Times ☛ Silicon Valley’s Big, Bold Sci-Fi Bet on the Device That Comes After the Smartphone
Humane, a company started by two former Fashion Company Apple employees, says its new artificial intelligence pin can stop all the scrolling. Can it live up to the hype?
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Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
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New York Times ☛ Can Hey Hi (AI) and Lasers Cure Our Smartphone Addiction?
A first impression of Humane’s new magnetic Ai Pin: equal parts magical and awkward.
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The Straits Times ☛ China scientists find clues that could crack mystery of long Covid
Scientists have discovered key biomarkers that could help identify high-risk groups and develop treatment.
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YLE ☛ Government appoints Mika Salminen as THL's next director general
People may recognise Salminen from his frequent media appearances during the Covid crisis.
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Dr. Pierre Kory: Sex, lies, and (COVID-19 vaccine) shedding
There are times when I find a topic and know that it’s something I simply must write about. Indeed, when I saw today’s topic, I knew I had to write about it that I seriously considered signing up for a a month of a Substack, even though I absolutely loathe the idea of giving quacks even a penny of my money. Fortunately, for whatever reason, Dr. Pierre Kory decided to take the article out from behind the paywall on his Substack allowing me to see it in all its glory.
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YLE ☛ Hand sanitizer use plummets
Consumers rushed to buy hand sanitizer liquid when the pandemic took hold, but that trend is fading fast.
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New York Times ☛ Dr. Ruth Saved People’s Sex Lives. Now She Wants to Cure Loneliness.
Taking the lessons of pandemic isolation — and her adolescent diary — Dr. Ruth Westheimer, 95, decided she should be New York’s Loneliness Ambassador. And so she is.
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Meduza ☛ All private medical clinics in Crimea ‘voluntarily’ stop providing abortions — Meduza
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Reason ☛ Jesse Singal's Talk on Youth Gender Medicine at UCLA School of Law Now on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmuGdUfmRSM I was out of town, or else I'd have much enjoyed being there as well; but I'm very glad it took place, thanks to the newly formed UCLA chapter of Heterodox Academy. I am told there were no disruptions.
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YLE ☛ Pet owners suspect Musti Group's food caused illness in cats
One pet owner told Yle she had to euthanize two of her cats after they ate the Smaak-branded grain-free kibble.
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YLE ☛ Finnish study: Boredom a major downside to virtual meetings
Previous studies have assumed that fatigue during teleconferencing is caused by stimulation overload. Fresh Finnish research indicates the reason is actually boredom.
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Security
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Privacy/Surveillance
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RFERL ☛ Several International Firms Fined For Refusing To Localize Russian Client Data
A Russian court fined three foreign companies a total of 15 million rubles ($163,200) on November 9 for what it said was a repeated failure to comply with data-storage law, Russian news agencies reported.
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EFF ☛ It’s Time to Oppose the New San Francisco Policing Ballot Measure
Specifically, the ballot measure would erode San Francisco’s landmark 2019 surveillance ordinance which requires city agencies, including the police department, to seek approval from the democratically-elected Board of Supervisors before it acquires or deploys new surveillance technologies. Agencies also need to put out a full report to the public about exactly how the technology would be used. This is an important way of making sure people who live or work in the city have a say in policing technologies that could be used in their communities.
However, the new ballot initiative attempts to gut the 2019 surveillance ordinance. The measure says “..the Police Department may acquire and/or use a Surveillance Technology so long as it submits a Surveillance Technology Policy to the Board of Supervisors for approve by ordinance within one year of the use or acquisition, and may continue to use that Surveillance Technology after the end of that year unless the Board adopts an ordinance that disapproves the Policy…” In other words, police would be able to deploy any technology they wished for a full year without any oversight, accountability, transparency, or semblance of democratic control.
But there is something we can do about this! It’s time to get the word out about what’s at stake during the March 5, 2024 election and urge voters to say NO to increased surveillance and decreased police accountability.
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New York Times ☛ In Mexico, Surveillance Orders That Read Like a Political Power List
The Mexico City attorney general’s office ordered the phone records of politicians and officials, court filings show. Many of the people targeted say they were singled out for political reasons.
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Defence/Aggression
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Barry Kauler ☛ How to protect yourself in the Australian Outback [Ed: EasyOS and Puppy Linux talks about gun ownership]
This applies to anywhere in the world, where you are in a remote region on your own. In the USA, you can carry a gun, which is an equaliser as the other guy is likely to have a gun. A gun will also protect from wolves. Here in Australia though, the citizens are disempowered; we are not allowed to effectively protect ourselves.
I recall a TV ad. from 2006, an Australian TV tourism advertising campaign; a bikini-clad Lara Bingle saying "So where the bl**** he** are you?". The swear words were allowed in Australia as the goverment took the position that they are part of the Australian vernacular; however, the ad. got banned in the UK and Canada.
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ACLU ☛ Rosas v. Luna
Exhibit A to Eliasberg Declaration 255-4: MCJ-00856
Video shows two deputies punching a handcuffed person in the head after that person kicks backward into one of their legs. They continue to punch him in the head and body multiple times even after he has been taken to the ground. Head punches found within policy. Discipline imposed for taking him out of his cell instead of calling for a supervisor, but no discipline for head strikes. Sinclair declaration paragraphs 32 – 34 cover this incident.
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New York Times ☛ This Is What the War in Gaza Looks Like on Instagram
Trapped in the enclave, Palestinians on the social control media platform are documenting and sharing their harrowing experiences of life under Israeli airstrikes and a ground invasion.
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TruthOut ☛ In Response to Growing Solidarity With Palestine, Hearst Censors Employees
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Meduza ☛ Adam Kadyrov, who beat defenseless prisoner on video, awarded highest order of Chechen parliament — Meduza
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The Dissenter ☛ Israel's Assault on Gaza: Growing Dissent At the US State Department
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New York Times ☛ Israel Accuses Freelance Photographers of Advance Knowledge of Oct. 7 Attack
The New York Times said there was “no evidence” to support such claims about its freelancer.
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RFERL ☛ U.S. Approves Potential Sale Of Abrams Battle Tanks To Romania
The United States announced the approval of the potential sale of M1A2 tanks and related equipment to Romania, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement.
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CS Monitor ☛ As world watches Gaza, West Bank sees most violent month in decades
Crackdowns by Israeli authorities and the proliferation of security checkpoints have transformed life in the West Bank, and young Palestinians in particular are struggling to navigate new, dangerous territory.
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The Nation ☛ My Brother Was Slaughtered on October 7. I Know He Would Be Calling for a Cease-Fire.
My brother, Hayim Katsman, was one of the 31 Americans slaughtered in Israel on October 7. A dual citizen, Hayim moved to Holit after receiving his Ph.D in Seattle, continuing his research on religious Zionism while serving the struggling kibbutz he loved. On the day of the attacks, my brother used his body to shield his neighbor, Avital, from the incoming bullets. He saved her life.
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RFA ☛ US, S Korea vow to bolster alliance to confront global challenges
The allies also reprimand N Korea and Russia’s arms trade as ‘blatant breach’ of U.N. security mandates.
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RFERL ☛ Fugitive Moldovan Magnate Ilan Shor Has Left Israel, Interpol Says
Fugitive pro-Russian magnate Ilan Shor, accused by authorities in Moldova of overseeing a scheme to "buy" voters, left Israel this week, but his whereabouts are unknown, an Interpol official said on November 9.
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Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
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RFERL ☛ Putin, Toqaev Discuss Bilateral Cooperation In Astana
Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a rare foreign trip since he launched the invasion of Ukraine in February last year, discussed bilateral cooperation and strategic partnership issues with his Kazakh counterpart, Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, in Astana on November 9.
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Meduza ☛ ‘I don’t want them to turn Ukraine into Putin’s Russia’ Oleksii Arestovych is gearing up to run for the Ukrainian presidency, promising voters peace with Moscow — Meduza
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RFERL ☛ Russian Police Detain Journalist With Kazakh Citizenship After Annulling Residence Permit
Police in the Russian city of Perm on November 9 detained journalist Vladislav Ivanenko, who is a Kazakh citizen and an employee of the Properm.ru website, and placed him in an immigration detention center.
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RFERL ☛ Belarusian IT Expert Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison Over Drone Attack At Military Airport
Belarusian IT expert Dzmitry Mastavy has been sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of treason and collaboration with extremists over a drone attack at the Machulishchy Air Base near Minsk in late February that damaged a Russian military cargo plane.
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RFERL ☛ Founder Of Project Documenting Victims Of Political Repression Flees Russia
Andrei Shalayev, the founder of the Bessmertny Barak (Immortal Barrack) project documenting victims of political repression, has fled Russia fearing for his safety.
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RFERL ☛ EU Says It Expects Moldova To Implement More Sanctions Against Russia
Moldova has to take further steps in aligning itself with the European Union's punitive measures and sanctions against Russia, the bloc's executive body recommended in its annual progress report that advocates the conditional opening of membership negotiations with Chisinau.
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Latvia ☛ Four all-terrain vehicles on the way from Latvia to Ukraine
A unique donation has started its way from Latvia to Ukraine – four two-part all-terrain vehicles “Bangvagen”. It is unique to the society “SOS aid to the Ukrainian Army” as this aid trumps what has been sent to Ukraine so far with donor support, Latvian Television reported on November 10.
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Latvia ☛ Latvia, Estonia stress joint approach on defense and Ukraine
It was all smiles between Latvia and Estonia November 8 during a visit north to Tallinn by Prime Minister Evika Siliņa during a working visit to Estonia.
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Federal News Network ☛ How exporting weapons becomes risky for contractors who make the exports
Because of military aid to Ukraine and, presumably Israel, the U.S. defense industrial base is strained right now. Manufacturers of platforms and ammunition must deal with a list of regulatory and legal challenges. For more, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with attorney Justin Chiarodo, a partner at Blank Rome.
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teleSUR ☛ Russia's Baltic Fleet Conducts Large-Scale Live-Fire Drills
Meanwhile, the new Slovakian government rejected a 14th package of military aid for Ukraine.
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The Strategist ☛ Sustaining peace in Ukraine: the Sinai model
The timing and nature of a negotiated peace, or truce, in Ukraine are the subject of uncertainty and speculation. Adding to the uncertainty is the question of how to sustain peace if it were achieved.
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The Strategist ☛ The enduring impacts of Russia’s 2008 war on Georgia
When contemplating various scenarios for how the conflict with Russia might end, Ukraine’s leaders can take clear lessons from Moscow’s brutal military campaign against another one-time Soviet state, Georgia.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Will the EU get new members soon? Here’s what you need to know.
Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia just saw their bids to join the twenty-seven member bloc boosted by the European Commission. Atlantic Council experts explain what it means for EU enlargement.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Panikoff in The White House Statements & Releases: WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: President Biden Gives Oval Office Address on the United States’ Response to Hamas’ Terrorist Attacks Against Israel and Russia’s Ongoing Brutal War Against Ukraine
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Atlantic Council ☛ Historic progress: Ukraine receives green light for EU membership talks
The European Commission this week recommended opening EU membership negotiations with Ukraine. The move represents historic progress at a time when Ukrainians are fighting to defend their independence and their right to choose a European future, writes Peter Dickinson.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Rebooting the Russian oil price cap
Atlantic Council experts weigh in on how to improve the price cap on Russian oil imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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RFERL ☛ Border Crossings Jammed As Polish Truckers Protest Entry Permit Waiver For Ukrainians
A protest by Polish truck drivers is causing long delays at border crossings along the Polish-Ukrainian border, officials said on November 9 with few signs that the truckers’ complaints are being addressed.
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RFERL ☛ Zelenskiy Signs Laws Extending Martial Law, General Mobilization As Russia Hits Civilian Targets
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on November 9 signed laws extending martial law and a general mobilization by 90 days as Russia launched two missile strikes at Ukrainian civilian targets.
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RFERL ☛ Ukrainian Lawmakers Approve 2024 State Budget Increasing Army Funding
Ukraine's parliament approved the 2024 state budget on November 9, allocating more than half of the funding for the army to withstand Russia's ongoing invasion.
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Latvia ☛ Former Soviet monument park to be reopened to public on Saturday
The park which for many years held the association with a giant obelisk, red tulip carpets and Russian songs on May 9, the Soviet 'Victory' day, has acquired a new identity. It will be opened to the public on Saturday, November 11, Latvian Television reports.
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Meduza ☛ European Parliament asks countries not to confiscate Russians’ personal belongings, including cars, upon entry into E.U. — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Weighing the fallout Even after the riots in Dagestan, the Kremlin doesn’t believe Russian anti-Semitism is at a crisis level — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Founder of political repression commemoration project leaves Russia after facing arrest, surveillance, and intimidation — Meduza
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RFERL ☛ Belarusian Police Detain Self-Exiled Writer's Father
Police in Belarus detained the father of self-exiled Belarusian writer Sasha Filipenka without explanation after searching his apartment on November 9.
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Meduza ☛ ‘Thank your son’: Belarusian authorities search home of anti-Lukashenko novelist’s parents and detain his father — Meduza
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Latvia ☛ Latvia launches bid for UN Security Council seat
On November 9, 2023, the Ford Foundation Center in New York hosted the official launch of Latvia’s candidacy campaign for an elected seat on the United Nations Security Council.
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Environment
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Energy/Transportation
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Ruben Schade ☛ Transit to office campusus
Way back when, friends and I used to fantasise about where we’d like to work. The usual suspects kept coming up, but one thing that struck me was just how isolated their buildings were. We’d look them up, and they’d always be in some far flung “campus” somewhere; surrounded on all sides by parking, and a motorway off to the side. But look, trees!
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Tom's Hardware ☛ U.S. Government Proposal Aims to Outlaw Chinese Crypto Networks, Blockchains
A new bipartisan bill under the title "The Creating Legal Accountability for Rogue Innovators and Technology" (CLARITY) Act aims to blanket-ban Chinese blockchains from being interacted with by U.S. government officials, citing possible threats to national security.
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Wildlife/Nature
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Pro Publica ☛ Historic Claims Give These California Families Guaranteed Access to Colorado River Water
Craig Elmore’s family history is the stuff of Westerns. His grandfather, John Elmore, a poor son of a Missouri preacher, arrived in California’s Imperial Valley in 1908 and dug ditches to deliver water to homesteaders.
Thanks to his marriage to a citrus magnate’s daughter, reputed good fortune as a gambler and business acumen, he amassed the Elmore Desert Ranch, part of roughly 12,000 acres that two branches of the family still farm.
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The 20 Farming Families Who Use More Water From the Colorado River Than Some Western States — ProPublica
Tens of millions of people — and millions of acres of farmland — rely on the Colorado River’s water. But as its supply shrinks, these farmers get more water from the river than entire states.
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Overpopulation
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RFA ☛ Displaced villagers face food shortages after attack in Myanmar
Tens of thousands are fleeing after airstrikes in Sagaing region
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Finance
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The Straits Times ☛ Why foreign degrees have lost their lustre for Chinese graduates
With a record 11.6 million new domestic college graduates, soaring youth unemployment, and companies scaling back hiring post-pandemic, the odds are stacked against young job hopefuls.
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Off Guardian ☛ Russia’s Finance Ministry says (again) that the digital ruble will replace cash
Riley Waggaman Alexei Moiseev, Russia’s deputy minister of finance, is the world’s most candid space lizard. When he announced in a September 2021 interview that “the digital ruble is a replacement for the cash ruble”, skeptics and haters spread hurtful rumors that Moiseev’s refreshing and award-winning honesty had been taken out of context.
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Pro Publica ☛ Warren Buffett Privately Traded in Stocks Berkshire Hathaway Invested In [Ed: Pro Publica should focus on the far greater (actual) crimes of Bill Gates, but instead Pro Publica took bribes from Gates]
It was the kind of endorsement most companies dream of. Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett, the legendary investor known as the Oracle of Omaha, repeatedly sang the praises of Wells Fargo in an interview with Fortune. The bank, Buffett said, “has come closer” to an effective business model “than any other big bank by some margin.” He detailed the ways in which Wells Fargo was more valuable than it seemed and compared its chair to Walmart founder Sam Walton.
The interview was published on April 20, 2009. Banks were still reeling from the financial crisis, stock markets were turbulent, and Buffett was the kindly white-haired billionaire who had assured Wall Street, the U.S. government and the public that America would be just fine. It was Buffett who had proposed the idea that turned into the $250 billion federal bailout that had propped up America’s banks (including Wells Fargo).
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Latvia ☛ Main banks in Latvia acting "like a cartel" says former Finance Minister
The way in which the four largest commercial banks in Latvia have reacted to proposals by the Budget and Finance Committee of the Saeima for the support of mortgage borrowers resembles the operation of a cartel, said the head of the committee Jānis Reirs (New Unity) in an interview with Latvian Television's program "Rīta Panorāma" (Morning Panorama) November 9.
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Latvia ☛ 'Golden horses' collector coin to be sold for 125 euros
The Latvian central bank (Latvijas Banka, LB) has published details of its latest collector coin, which comes with an equine theme and was designed by Ivars Heinrihsons.
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Mexico News Daily ☛ What got more (or less) expensive in Mexico in October?
Mexico's annual headline inflation rate continued to decline in October, but the Bank of Mexico decided on Thursday to maintain its 11.25% key rate.
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YLE ☛ Unemployment fund membership gets slight discount
Paying into an unemployment fund enables people to claim earnings-related benefits if they lose their jobs.
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New York Times ☛ ‘Timepiece Gentleman’ Swindled Customers Out of $3 Million, U.S. Says
Anthony Farrer, 35, who ran a consignment store in Beverly Hills, used money from the sale of customers’ luxury watches to finance a lavish lifestyle for himself, federal prosecutors said.
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AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
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The Straits Times ☛ ST Picks: Can Taiwan’s opposition strike a deal to win the presidential race?
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The Straits Times ☛ China's ambassador to US says Sino-US relations still face severe challenges
China's ambassador to the United states, Xie Feng, said the most important thing is to find the right way for China and the United States to get along.
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The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan, facing Chinese pressure, to stress importance of peace at Apec summit
Taiwan will stress the importance of peace in the region at next week's APEC summit, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Friday, one of the few international bodies both Taiwan and China are members of and where their officials meet.
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The Straits Times ☛ Top EU, China climate officials to hold talks next week
The European Union and China's top climate change officials will meet in Beijing for talks next week, ahead of the United Nations' COP28 climate summit, an EU official told Reuters.
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TruthOut ☛ Trump Must Turn Over His Private Attorney Communications or Lose His Key Defense
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TruthOut ☛ Former Sanders Adviser Slams GOP Debate’s “Knuckle-Dragging Hawkishness” on Gaza
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Mint Press News ☛ John Pilger: We are Spartacus
The bravery of those who dare to resist has allowed many of us, who might despair, to understand the real meaning of a resistance we all share if we want to prevent the conquest of us, our conscience, and our self-respect if we prefer freedom and decency to compliance and collusion. In this, we are all Spartacus.
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TruthOut ☛ UN Report Details Rampant US Human Rights Violations at Home and Abroad
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Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda
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France24 ☛ France slams Russian networks for 'exploiting' crises with posts of Star of David graffiti in Paris
The French foreign ministry accused Russian online networks of attempting to "exploit international crises to sow confusion" in France and in Europe by sharing photos of the Stars of David appearing around Paris, graffiti that has been widely suspected of being an anti-Semitic statement.
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Cloudbooklet ☛ YouTube Ad Block Popup: What It Is and How to Get Rid of It
YouTube Ad Block Popup is a new message that YouTube shows to users who use ad blockers on its platform. It blocks the video player and asks you to either disable your ad blocker, subscribe to YouTube Premium, or try again later. Learn how to bypass this annoying message and enjoy ad-free videos without paying for YouTube Premium.
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New York Times ☛ International Olympic Committee Says It Was Target of Elaborate ‘Fake News’
Olympic officials said the effort included fabricated quotes about the Israel-Gaza war and a four-part, Netflix-style documentary.
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University of Michigan ☛ Should you trust Wikipedia? [Ed: Not anymore. Most topics there have been undermined by those who stand to gain from marketing and bias.]
The internet is dominated by giant companies — Google, Meta, Yahoo, Amazon and Microsoft. These technological hegemons have become increasingly powerful in the digital age. Among the most used websites in the world, one sticks out like a sore thumb at No. 7: Wikipedia. >
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France24 ☛ Fake story about assassination attempt on Mahmoud Abbas goes viral
A video supposedly showing an assassination attempt on Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, has been circulating widely on X (formerly Twitter) since November 7. However, it turns out that the video actually shows a police drug raid on a refugee camp near Ramallah in the West Bank on November 7.
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Censorship/Free Speech
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ACLU ☛ We’ve Defended Trump’s First Amendment Rights, but his Latest Jan. 6 Indictment Claims are Nonsense
Does the First Amendment shield Donald Trump from prosecution for conspiracy to obstruct the 2020 election results?
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University of Michigan ☛ America’s war on free speech
On college campuses, feeling unsafe has often been used as a trump card to prevent discussion of contentious topics, a notion that has only been exacerbated by the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Many comments offering historical support for Israel have been branded as anti-Palestinian hate speech [...]
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Techdirt ☛ NY Post: Emails Show DHS Censored Speech! Actual Emails: Show Exactly The Opposite
Look, I get that Rep. Jim Jordan is going to just keep on Jim Jordaning up the joint, and making statements that are blatantly untrue in an effort to chill speech he doesn’t like. But, for fuck’s sake, the media doesn’t need to repeat it. Of course, in this case, “the media” is the NY Post, which has been prone to doing the same sorta shit, but the latest is preposterously stupid.
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Techdirt ☛ NFL Sends C&D To University Of Houston Over Homage To The Oilers’ Uniforms
One of the longest standing jokes in professional sports is labeling the NFL, or National Football League, the No Fun League, instead. This typically has to do either with the way the league has legislated a lot of what fans love about the game off the field in the name of player safety, which isn’t a horrible thing, or the way it also has tried to control exuberant player behavior on the field, which is generally lame. But the NFL is the No Fun League in Techdirt-ian ways as well, as a short review of our posts on the league will demonstrate. The league is one of the most voracious trademark defenders, or bullies, out there. And not just for its insane game of make believe the league plays when it comes to its trademark rights for the Super Bowl, but in general.
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Craig Murray ☛ Twitter Account Hacked
My twitter account has been hacked.
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New York Times ☛ Hungary Fires Museum Director in Crackdown on L.G.B.T.Q. Depictions
A government campaign against what it calls “homosexual propaganda” is unsettling booksellers and has resulted in the firing of the director of one of the country’s leading museums.
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Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
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IT Wire ☛ Sixteen US politicians urge Biden to set Assange free
The letter comes shortly after a visit to the US by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during which he was reported to have repeated Australia's stance on Assange to Biden.
The letter said: “It is the duty of journalists to seek out sources, including documentary evidence, in order to report to the public on the activities of government.
“The US must not pursue an unnecessary prosecution that risks criminalising common journalistic practices and thus chilling the work of the free press. We urge you to ensure that this case be brought to a close in as timely a manner as possible."
Other politicians who signed the letter were Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jamaal Bowman, Ayanna Pressley, Greg Casar, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, Rashida Tlaib, Eric Burlison, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Paul Gosar, Jesús García, Pramila Jayapal, Matthew Rosendale,and Rand Paul.
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Civil Rights/Policing
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New York Times ☛ Omegle Shuts Down as Founder Acknowledges Crime on Video Chat Site
Omegle’s popularity surged during the pandemic. But critics said that it let online sexual predators go unchecked.
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teleSUR ☛ US Artists and Studios Reach Tentative Deal to End Strike
The strike officially ended at 12:01 a.m. on Thursday, bringing an end to more than seven months of labor unrest in Hollywood.
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TruthOut ☛ Striking Actors Reach “Extraordinary” Tentative Deal With Hollywood Studios
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RFERL ☛ Group Of Iranian Students Suspended For Organizing Mixed-Gender Events
Iran's Qom University of Medical Sciences has imposed academic suspensions on several students for organizing mixed-gender parties, accusing them of "undermining the social and educational structure and promoting permissiveness through social control media activities."
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The Nation ☛ How Do You Put a Price on the Loss of Autonomy From Forced Sterilization?
Leesha Gooseberry was ready to start over when she got out of prison at the Central California Women’s Facility in 2012. She had gone to prison at the age of 19 for killing her abuser, a drug dealer who had forced her into a relationship when she was 15. Gooseberry shot him after he raped her in front of their infant daughter. She spent 26 and a half years behind bars before the University of South California’s Post Conviction Project was able to get her released as a victim of domestic violence.
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Reason ☛ May Judges Consider Law Clerks' Political Speech in Hiring or Firing Decisions?
As Keith Whittington noted, some judges are refusing to hire students who they see as endorsing murder of civilians (or threatening to withdraw offers to such students): Judges are looking at student actions in the wake of October 7th and drawing a line in the sand for those who would want to clerk for them.…
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Stanford University ☛ Provost condemns hate speech in remarks to GSC
Following a speech from Provost Jenny Martinez, the GSC voted on several funding requests and deliberated on income and spending reports, at its Tuesday meeting.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Stage lights emitting UV rays the likely cause of vision problems at Bored Ape NFT event in Hong Kong, organisers say
Stage lights emitting ultraviolet (UVA) rays were “likely the cause” of burning eye pain and vision problems suffered by some 20 attendees at a festival last Saturday, the organisers have said. Yuga Labs, the parent company of the NFT collection Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), said on Thursday that it had investigated social control media reports...
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong police charge 2 men with property damage over alleged disruption of organ donation register
Hong Kong police have charged two men with criminal damage to property, after they were arrested in June for allegedly disrupting the city’s organ donation register following controversy over opening it up to mainland China.
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Meduza ☛ Latvia legalizes same-sex civil partnerships — Meduza
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Techdirt ☛ Appeals Court Confirms Judge Gets No Immunity For Personally Searching Someone’s House
We’ve dealt with plenty of outlandish government behavior here at Techdirt over the years. But, every so often, something clears that high bar — something that hits you square in the jaw and makes you take a step back.
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TruthOut ☛ South Carolina Is Ripping Infants Away From Their Mothers Over Pot Use
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TruthOut ☛ Poll Finds 70 Percent of Americans Back Legal Recreational Marijuana Use
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Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
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Techdirt ☛ Error 402: You Will Click On Internet Ads, Oh So Many Internet Ads
Last week in our Error 402 series on the history of web monetization, we covered how early paywalls for content almost universally failed. We’ll explore a bit more of the why later, but first we need to talk about internet ads. Because they basically sucked up all of the oxygen in the online monetization world. As this series pretty clearly notes, when the early web was being developed, the very fact that a 402 “Payment Required” status code was created and was slotted in before things like the much more well known 403 “Forbidden” and 404 “Not Found” shows that it was intended to be a core part of the web.
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IT Wire ☛ Optus offers 200GB of data as compensation for outage
Telco Singtel Optus has offered eligible post-paid customers, both businesses and consumers, an extra 200GB of data as compensation for the massive outage on Wednesday.
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Digital Restrictions (DRM)
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Digital Music News ☛ Google Doesn’t Want to Talk About Its Payment Deal with Spotify
In the Surveillance Giant Google v. Epic games case, it appears Surveillance Giant Google doesn’t want the world to know about its billing arrangement with Spotify. The Verge has been keeping track of this court case, with Surveillance Giant Google attorney Glenn Pomerantz suggesting the court should seal portions of its User Choice Billing agreement with Spotify.
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Monopolies
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Patents
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JUVE ☛ 11 South Square adds barrister from Hogarth to its ranks [Ed: This is SPAM. This is pure SPAM. "Marketing". There is no reason why this should be "news", but JUVE takes bribes from those firms to push their patently illegal agenda and then spam for them, too.]
Edward Cronan (33) began his career in 2015 in the London IP practice of Hogan Lovells, focussing on patent monopoly litigation from day one.
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Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ BREAKING: The EPO is able to listen [Ed: EPO is still deeply corrupt and its tribunals are dysfunctional by design. It needs scrapping.]
…well, at least the EPO’s Boards of Appeal, represented by their President Mr. Josefsson, are. Mr. Josefsson announced in the Boards of Appeal and key decisions 2023 conference just a few minutes ago that in view of the feedback received by users (including yours truly) he will no longer pursue the planned shortening...
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ The Debate Over the PREVAIL Act in PTAB Patent Reform [Ed: So two bribed politicians, bribed by the litigation 'industry', try to demolish science for the sake of more lawsuits; the patent extremists still give them a platform.]
On Nov 8, the US Senate Judiciary IP Subcommittee held a key hearing on the PREVAIL ACT – The “Promoting and Respecting Economically Vital American Innovation Leadership Act.” PREVAIL is a bipartisan proposal from Senators Coons (D-DE) and Tillis (R-NC) who are looking to strengthen the power of patents. The proposal here is directed toward AIA trials — generally attempting to make it more difficult to invalidate patent monopoly claims via IPR. Key provisions include:
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IPQC founder seeks political backing after EPO no-show
The EPO declined to attend the latest meeting organised by the Industry Patent Quality Charter, a group that has called on the office to grant higher-quality patents
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Trademarks
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Techdirt ☛ Trademark Dispute Ends Up In Partnership Between Parties, Rather Than A Fight
Usually when we’re talking about a trademark dispute, never mind a lawsuit, there is some level of anger, frustration, or animosity between the two parties. The reason for that is pretty obvious: nothing puts you on negative footing towards another quite like getting sued or getting threatened with a lawsuit. But, and I cannot stress this enough, it does not have to be that way. If more people and organizations out there could prioritize being human and awesome towards one another, they might just find new opportunities to engage in, rather than being in a fight to the intellectual property death.
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Copyrights
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Techdirt ☛ FTC Gets Fair Use Backwards, Claims It’s Somehow Anti-Competitive?
This is what I get for praising a move by the FTC earlier this week. It repays me by pushing out a batshit crazy statement regarding AI and copyright. As we’ve been discussing over the past week, the Copyright Office’s request for comments regarding AI and copyright has been leading to some odd comments, including Hollywood saying that it doesn’t want to expand copyright laws (?!?) for AI or the newspaper industry’s trade group highlighting how it wants to demand free cash from AI companies. And, of course, there’s the comment that we filed in the proceedings, highlighting how the right to read should never be blocked by copyright.
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Techdirt ☛ Streaming TV Prices Double As ‘Enshittification’ Takes Root, Likely Driving Users Back To Piracy
Amazon is now charging Prime customers an extra $3 a month to avoid ads that didn’t used to exist. Netflix is charging password sharers extra for sharing passwords, in addition to yet another looming price hike. Apple just doubled the price of Apple TV on the heels of price hikes by Disney, Hulu, and ESPN. HBO Max just announced it would be charging users more money if they want to enjoy content in 4K.
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Public Domain Review ☛ Chromolithographs of Paper Lanterns (ca. 1880)
19th-century German chromolithographs of paper lanterns, the kind used to celebrate St. Martin's Day.
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Techdirt ☛ 9th Circuit Advances Lawsuit Over Fortnite ‘Emotes;’ Says Dance Moves Are As Protected As Songs
As the completely normal parents of two completely normal teen boys, I was sincerely hoping I would never have to write about Fortnite again.
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Digital Music News ☛ More Layoffs Hit Amazon Music Following Amp Shutdown: ‘Some Roles Have Been Eliminated’
A little over one month following live-radio app Amp’s shutdown, Amazon is making a new round of cuts on the audio-entertainment side, this time affecting an undisclosed number of Amazon Music employees.
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Gemini* and Gopher
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Personal/Opinions
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Today has UHaul written all over it
In this moment online seems NPC word collision. I've often wished it could be more. But that wishing was devoid of understanding much about so-called selfhood. And of course I'll forget that understanding somewhere along the line and be back online hoping for it to be so much more This Time. And then the familiar first creeping, then accelerating disillusionment.
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Today has UHaul written all over it
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🔤SpellBinding — BDYNRUG Wordo: ILEUM
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eatspace got busy
meatspace got busy
gemini? not so much
words. so many words.
to me one of the funniest
things i can read online is
about how broken vessels called
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The who in charge of entropy in a desperate belief
The clock doesn't beat anymore, it ticks in silently precise interruptions, but I can tell the crows outside are beginning to shiver in the lick of the early eastern wind.
It's an unusually long drop. The molten brown spills inbetween the transistors and the drooling fools, who prick away at circuitry with paperclips shaped into tiny swords, barely notice the creeping wave. The machines whisper in tongues they were ordered to understand. The mustard on the wall has long since dried.
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Technology and Free Software
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The gift of time
Maintaining a free software project is spending years of your life to solve a problem that would have taken several hours or even days without the software.
Which is, joke aside, an incredible contribution to the common good.
The time saved is multiplied by the number of users and quickly compound. They are saving time without the need to exchange their own time.
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* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.