pksebben

16 ms·

181.
by pksebben 1y ago
Friendly reminder that all polls are biased based on a willingness to engage in polls. Response rates are stunningly low (10% is normal [0]) so whatever your polls are saying, they're saying it specifically about a statistically insig
182.
by pksebben 1y ago
Ranked choice being the differential, and though a Democrat, Mamdani is a political outsider. Perhaps not the best example for the argument due to the affiliation but a pretty clear picture of the system's antibodies at work
183.
by pksebben 1y ago
For real. I feel like we need a PSA about how many of us aren't supporters of the opposition just because we don't like 'your guy'. Ronald Reagan was a trash goblin who destroyed our economy to enrich the wealthy. So wa
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by pksebben 1y ago
So we ought to be thankful we're not in NK. Got it. Glad your bar is so high. It's apparent that you're decided but other folks will read this so let's break it down barney style. The 'third parties' argumen
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by pksebben 1y ago
In what way is this country ruled by the people? You're periodically given a non-choice between two options that have equal disdain for your actual concerns, who then go on to play games to see who can get the most bajiliionare backin
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by pksebben 1y ago
I think it might even be more boring and straightforward than that. Get power => cause market instability, make trades and bets on volatility (or have your friends do it) => offshore your gains
187.
by pksebben 1y ago
the 1950s comes to mind...
188.
by pksebben 1y ago
To bang a fairly weathered drum, this is largely a matter of conservative policy. Psychedelics were far more common in leftist circles (some might argue that this is cause as opposed to effect - mind-expanding experiences tend to shift pol
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by pksebben 1y ago
Given the structure of hierarchical orgs, both can (and likely are) true. Moustache-twirler A: We've identified these metrics that correlate with increased shareholder value Moustache-twirler B: But what do those metrics say about user
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by pksebben 1y ago
I dunno, that reads a little too simple to me. People aren't magical black boxes of mysterious drives and unfathomable causes, they're components of a larger system and reflections of their environment. Speaking as a reformed &#x
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by pksebben 1y ago
The workaround for this, ironically, is more tech. "Sorry, I've got like 20 lith-ions in there. I can pull them out if you'd like to see them." cue shiteating grin and grumping from the airline staff. On the one hand I
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by pksebben 1y ago
This reminds me of the story of Frank Lorenzo, union-busting airline exec who effectively fabricated the story of how airlines were all "struggling" as businesses to force government support of anti-union practices. It's a b
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by pksebben 1y ago
Because eventually you're going to need a senior dev who actually has an understanding of the underlying system, when the one you have retires. The human junior will eventually become that, while it would be foolish to rely on the ine
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by pksebben 2y ago
Wait, though. It's not that there are too many voters. It's that the system of voting we use doesn't connect the vox populi to the means of social control. If you're given the choice between two bad options, you aren&#
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by pksebben 2y ago
Not quite so, ballot initiatives are actually the best bet. They've been successful in local politics primarily so far, but the initial results are promising (1). You're right, that the closer you get to that core of federal powe
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by pksebben 2y ago
...which does just about as much as voting (that is, precious little). If we're ever going to claw ourselves out of this (or any) mess, we need ranked choice or something like it. The giant douche / turd sandwich dichotomy needs
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by pksebben 2y ago
It's also entirely possible that the flagging is being done by a small minority. I don't know precisely how flagging on HN works as I've never done it, but I can't imagine it's terribly difficult to game and there&
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by pksebben 2y ago
> And what happens when ISPs can charge whatever they want - again a natural monopoly - should the subsidies increase, You're making an assumption here. It worked fine when we did it for healthcare. /s
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by pksebben 2y ago
For real. In my area, you can choose between xfinity or comcast and if you don't like those hope you enjoy satellite for way too much money and awful latency. Spoiler for the uninformed: Xfinity and Comcast are the same entity.
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by pksebben 2y ago
> there's been quite a bit of discussion about wokeness on the left. This perception is a constant cause of concern for the actual left, and it's created by liberal politicians attempting to co-opt the movement, because it
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by pksebben 2y ago
I'll offer a slight adjustment; "Finance in general encourages risky behavior". It is an industry explicitly dealing in moving and dealing in risk. We periodically become very aware of this. See financial news in 1893, 19
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by pksebben 2y ago
I think Maslow would have a point to make, here. Privileged societies are more medicated because the most pressing issues to them are (somewhat) soluble using medication. Because they are not imminently worried about housing and sustenance
203.
by pksebben 2y ago
Could you expound on this a little more? I think I've totally misunderstood you. Like, who would you consider an 'Elite'? AFAICT, someone who's 'an Elite' thrives off of inequality, by definition. Without sa
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by pksebben 2y ago
I'd agree with this, but it's missing something; why is this the case? From what I know, it's a lot tougher to tease out the cause of this malfunction in our society. Do we have an undereducated populace because of povert
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by pksebben 2y ago
there are semi-competent arms of the US security apparatus that are not principally theatrical, that I would find shocking to be hit. The NSA comes to mind. If anyone ever hit the TSA I'd just laugh at their piss-poor targeting. Than
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by pksebben 2y ago
> whatever activities the employer chooses This is wrong. Your employer cannot ask you to engage in things that compromise your safety or otherwise illegally put you in harms way. The thing at question here, is whether the implicit thr
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by pksebben 2y ago
Would've said that about writing and text, about three years ago.
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by pksebben 2y ago
I wish we'd drop it ourselves. It's excruciating living amongst people who will pick up torches and pitchforks when anyone under 18 is remotely exposed to sexual content, but shrug and look stupid when that same cohort goes on a
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by pksebben 2y ago
Made me think of these, and then I remembered to spread the meme: Systems Thinking, Jamshid Gharajedaghi https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/592861.Systems_Thinking When I read it like a decade ago it was The Tome
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by pksebben 2y ago
I'd be more on board with this take if it were artists engaging in these lawsuits. Elsevier doesn't elicit the same sympathy, though. 'Stealing' from a company with 2B in profit (much from publicly funded research), Lib

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