Jackoraptor's recent activity
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Comment on Bob Iger found Disney in ‘worse shape’ than he expected, now ‘overwhelmed and exhausted’ in ~movies
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Comment on What's your favorite dinosaur? in ~science
Jackoraptor (edited )LinkI'm a big fan of dinosaurs, specifically theropods (the meat-eaters) - my living room is decorated with dozens of figurines. But my favourite has always been Velociraptor in spite of the Jurassic...I'm a big fan of dinosaurs, specifically theropods (the meat-eaters) - my living room is decorated with dozens of figurines. But my favourite has always been Velociraptor in spite of the Jurassic Park movies' misconceptions and all the more impressive and enormous dromaeosaurid options. They're just so damned cute with their little upturned snout. I'd imagine they'd act pretty damned cute too when they're not ripping animals apart with finely-serrated knife-teeth that replace themselves like sharks' teeth, and all those huge curved claws on every limb that may have been terrifyingly flexible.
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Comment on On "bullshit" jobs - New data supports the idea that some jobs are "so completely pointless, unnecessary, or pernicious that even the employee cannot justify its existence" in ~life
Jackoraptor Link ParentIt seems to me that our modern financial system is moreso a way to quantify those incentives, as opposed to money representing an incentive in and of itself.It seems to me that our modern financial system is moreso a way to quantify those incentives, as opposed to money representing an incentive in and of itself.
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Comment on Get the lowdown on 'e/acc' — Silicon Valley's favorite obscure theory about progress at all costs, which has been embraced by Marc Andreessen in ~tech
Jackoraptor LinkIf I recall correctly, the idea behind this is that any amount of selfish money-grubbing and grifting is justified if you pinky promise you're gonna do a philanthropy at the end when you've made...It's a bit of a play on effective altruism, the social movement focused on an evidence-led form of philanthropy, which was infamously embraced by Sam Bankman-Fried
If I recall correctly, the idea behind this is that any amount of selfish money-grubbing and grifting is justified if you pinky promise you're gonna do a philanthropy at the end when you've made enough money. What defines that end or what "enough money" means seems to be rather fuzzy, shockingly enough.
"Technocapital can usher in the next evolution of consciousness, creating unthinkable next-generation lifeforms and silicon-based awareness," the post said.
This is about advancing human civilization for the benefit of the people actually living in the society these tech bros belong to... right? It seems obvious that who they value as people, and what falls under their idea of advancement/philanthropy, doesn't align with what most of us schlubs believe. If a technological leap "at all costs" comes at the cost of the viability of the human species, is that a-OK so long as whatever "silicon-based lifeforms" means get to enjoy the results?
It's patently clear (and rather terrifying, to be honest) that these (mostly) men see themselves as inherently superior to the unwashed masses they claim to work for the benefit of. The narcissism they flippantly put on display is astounding, like they've managed to objectify and infantilize the entire rest of the human race. Like a man who married his sweetheart, and immediately chooses to work away from home in a soul-stealing job that he despises, rarely spending time with his wife and kids and raging at them when they object, simultaneously bragging and complaining to everyone he meets. The kind of man who fully expects his family members to fall on their knees in gratitude when he presents his retirement fund, and if they don't - well, they simply don't get it the way he does. Then at the end, when his health is failing, and his time is up, and he has no one to share the fruits of his technocapital investments with, he'll whine to the long-empty house: "But I did it for us!"
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Comment on Dust management? in ~life.home_improvement
Jackoraptor LinkI absolutely adore my Shop Vac for dust control. I put an attachment with a soft bristled brush on it and use it on absolutely everything. Mine is a wet/dry and the dry vac function is compatible...I absolutely adore my Shop Vac for dust control. I put an attachment with a soft bristled brush on it and use it on absolutely everything. Mine is a wet/dry and the dry vac function is compatible with a (washable!) HEPA filter - they're meant to clean up things like drywall dust, so nothing's getting out of that. It's lightweight with a crazy long hose and it's so much easier to roll around on its 4 little castor wheels than any regular vacuum, canister or stick. You'll likely need a roller vacuum for carpeting, but for everything else including those same carpets when there's a mess or spill, I strongly suggest getting a little Shop Vac and giving the place a once-over on the daily. From the top of the fridge, to the inside of the fridge, to baseboards and shelves and vents, that thing is by far my most valued cleaning weapon. And they're so much cheaper, especially for the quality and durability, than your average vacuum advertised for household use.
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Comment on YouTube is testing a three-strikes policy for ad blocking in ~tech
Jackoraptor Link ParentThis is why I personally stopped paying for cable and swapped to streaming when Netflix was like 8CAD, and why I'll repeatly refresh a video until I get a skippable ad or they give up (they're...only to be screamed at
This is why I personally stopped paying for cable and swapped to streaming when Netflix was like 8CAD, and why I'll repeatly refresh a video until I get a skippable ad or they give up (they're always in pairs at the beginning, and usually begin with a 15-sec unskippable) if adblock isn't available. I don't mind the 5-sec (I think they're actually 6-sec...) ads nearly as much. But the sudden, jarring interruption of an irrelevant company throwing itself across my screen with loud music and shouted marketing buzzwords has pissed me off since I was a child. That went double for kids' ads, because they're twice as loud and obnoxious.
It really does sour my mood - and any immersion the video might have achieved - to have a sudden !!!ADVERTISEMENT!!! in the middle of a serious or intense video, especially if the subject matter is also serious and intense. Then, if it IS a skippable ad, and you don't get to the controls in time, you might be served an unskippable ad for the second one, punishing you for not being constantly on your toes and just wanting to relax. They've pushed the timing on ads over the years, seeing what users will put up with, and calculated what people with put up with versus what they'll pay. Pause in the middle of an ad or in the video itself, either way you'll be served a fresh round of screaming when you return. Removing Adblock is just another step on their path to enshittification. In turn I find myself feeling far less than charitable when it comes to the prospect of paying YouTube almost $15/month, not because I want to or because they've proved they're worth hundreds of dollars over a couple years, but because they've intentionally made the data-stealing "free" model less and less usable, straight-up.
Nebula provides a working model of an alternative for a more than reasonable cost, and I hope we'll see more services like that and Patreon going forward. I might well pay for premium and cancel another service, but it won't be truly willingly, and the second I have an actual PC to work with, I'm going sailing on a regular basis.
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Comment on The questionable engineering of the Oceangate Titan submersible in ~engineering
Jackoraptor Link ParentThe whole situation also provides an interesting look into the mind of a wealthy businessman fully seduced by and absorbed into capitalist thinking. He so thoroughly had to convince others -...The whole situation also provides an interesting look into the mind of a wealthy businessman fully seduced by and absorbed into capitalist thinking. He so thoroughly had to convince others - including the rest of his company and other wealthy businesspeople - of his merits in engineering, innovation, and entrepreneurship that he believed his own myth and utterly sabotaged his perspective. I think that it spells out the relevance of the old adage of never assigning blame to malice when stupidity will suffice, in a world where the inherent malice of greed is already lurking behind every decision.
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Comment on Let's add (and rearrange?) some groups + a few notes about other short-term plans in ~tildes.official
Jackoraptor Link ParentAbsolutely zero offense intended - in fact, thank you for triggering these thoughts! - but I think the idea of a group that could be called "women" being called "tildettes" is a good example of...Absolutely zero offense intended - in fact, thank you for triggering these thoughts! - but I think the idea of a group that could be called "women" being called "tildettes" is a good example of the precise opposite of what I'd personally like to see from Tildes. I would love a space specifically to discuss women's issues but more importantly for myself personally - read discussions regarding women's issues and have a place where topics are approached from a feminist lens. I'd say that applies to any topic of interest I have that could pop up as a group or sublabel of some kind, but being a woman myself, this one obviously hits on the disparity between the two approaches. I'm equally interested in the topic of gender studies as a whole, including men's issues, as well as all things related to sex and sexuality and gender identity, despite being straight myself, so trying to find a balance is important to me.
The vast majority of any site's population are lurkers who are there to consume content, not create it, and direct participation in the comment section is something of a bonus, or at least less common than simple consumption. The ability to group content in a clear and concise manner from the perspective of a user looking to browse for a bit seems more valuable to me for the site than labeling groups in the name of general discussion space for people of specific identities or interest groups, especially with Tildes' system of democratic grouping. We can't make a direct comparison, but to help get my clumsy point across - ~science isn't for scientists, but posts that fall under the topic of science, and the nature/culture of the site and participation should be what ensures that actual scientists' comments and opinions are given the respect they deserve, and that representation doesn't fall under the wayside. I'd honestly be more comfortable as a woman with a group about women, that inherently recognizes the value of women's voices in particular, instead of one for women. I think there is a lot of value to be had in introducing the idea of expanding the ~talk grouping that would be relevant here.
Iger was the one who groomed Chapek for leadership and picked him as the one to hand the reins over to, no? Perhaps he was mentoring Chapek to make/continue his own decisions and follow his plan.
I've never bought into the "single CEO ruins the company/turns the entire company's fortunes around". Though there are obviously exceptions, especially with a company as large as Disney there are too many moving parts and far too much momentum for any one person to possibly take the blame. But part of a CEO's job is to be the fall guy when things go wrong (hence the golden parachutes). One single figurehead to point to, one person to let the media squabble over - and one focal point for the public/shareholders to pin their hopes on - or concentrate their outrage.