Lobachevsky's recent activity

  1. Comment on Any Tildeans who have lived in China or Russia and the West? What were the differences in the daily lives of average people? in ~life

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    When you have a work permit, you have minimum residency requirements. Meaning if you spend too much time outside of the country, you risk being refused an extension.

    When you have a work permit, you have minimum residency requirements. Meaning if you spend too much time outside of the country, you risk being refused an extension.

    2 votes
  2. Comment on Any Tildeans who have lived in China or Russia and the West? What were the differences in the daily lives of average people? in ~life

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    I personally never paid a bribe and actually never got a driver's license partially for that reason (it's not that you cannot do it without paying, but it was a factor for me). Now I regret that,...

    Does bribery feel "unjust?" Or did you go into most situations thinking, "okay, they're probably expect a bribe of X rubles", you paid, and then everything went fast after?

    I personally never paid a bribe and actually never got a driver's license partially for that reason (it's not that you cannot do it without paying, but it was a factor for me). Now I regret that, because getting one in Sweden is extremely expensive. In that sense what is more unjust in your opinion, normalized bribery where some officials pocket the money or government taxing the crap out of you legally for which you end up paying way more? I guess it is just that I overpay for everything and that money goes to someone else who ostensibly needs it more, but at the end of the day my quality of life suffers because of it and that doesn't feel just at all. But rationally speaking, in the case of a bribe the money is going into someone's pocket vs being spent on something useful like infrastructure, so in the end corruption isn't the way.

    I appreciate any and all information I get on living there! It's very interesting. I also only want people to share with they're comfortable with. On this question, though, I was curious if people look at the media and trust it. Or if people assume the media is not honest and don't bother.

    Lots of people do blindly trust the mainstream media, but me and my circle basically stopped paying attention years ago, since it's all entirely propagandized. Otherwise people pick their flavor of alternative media, basically like everywhere else.

    If I may ask, what are these restrictions? And is a lot of it made specific to those from Russia? I work with a lot of foreign nationals in my industry. I assume it's quite tough for them, but I also have only a limited understanding of it.

    Oh don't get me started on restrictions specific to Russian citizens. My parents lost their pension savings due to their investments being frozen, I basically had to start from 0 after moving because it's not possible to safely and legally transfer significant sums of money - the banks just won't take it. Some of my peers got lucky and managed to use some loopholes through "friendlier" countries in time, but I'm stuck with all my livelihood trapped in Russia, being devalued and facing uncertain future. I'm very lucky I have a secured job in EU, but this also means my financial life got reset close to my 30s. By the way, none of this is at all helpful in winning the war or whatever, it's just forcing me to pay extra taxes in Russia and keep a significant part of my devaluing wealth there. It's just nonsensical politics that nobody will touch now for years as far as I'm concerned. I'm also lucky that Sweden is chill on political side of things - my friend living and working in Czech Republic for almost 5 years wasn't too thrilled about news of denying dual citizenship specifically to Russian citizens...

    Then there's regular immigrant stuff like being unable to freely move around, having a hard time finding housing, having a hard time socially, wives and husbands being unable to find jobs, casual racism in the job market, being unable to see family, etc, etc.

    7 votes
  3. Comment on Any Tildeans who have lived in China or Russia and the West? What were the differences in the daily lives of average people? in ~life

    Lobachevsky
    Link
    I've lived in Russia well into my adulthood, currently residing in Sweden. So the differences from fxgn's reply would be: I'm older (lived through a different Russia as well), I've lived in...

    I've lived in Russia well into my adulthood, currently residing in Sweden. So the differences from fxgn's reply would be: I'm older (lived through a different Russia as well), I've lived in different, smaller cities, as well as big ones, and I've lived in EU as opposed to just visiting. Also, this post isn't necessarily factually accurate and mostly represents my personal experiences and knowledge generalized to some degree.

    At first, I'm gonna mention that modern (post-soviet) Russia has been very different throughout its existence. 1990s were in general an extremely tough time, with poverty, scams, organized (and not really) crime, lack of basic goods, corrupt and unregulated dealings. This era also gave rise to oligarchs (friends of powerful people buying up huge industries) and of course Putin (the guy who at least in public perception lifted the country out of this). Then there were (broadly) 2000s characterized by increased wealth and liberal values. I'm gonna label 2010s as the increase in state power, gradual limitations of freedoms, with 2020s being the ruinous culmination. These are broad strokes but this is how I see having experienced most of it.

    What things felt free to do and not free to do? Was that a quality of law or society? (e.g., freedom of speech, gay relationships, zoning, running a business, jaywalking, etc.)

    Only in recent years has there been any real limitation of freedoms and most people don't really experience it. It mostly has to do with limits on protesting and internet censorship. You may also be unlucky and be one of the people to be made an example of (these are your Navalny's and random kids who posted something online). But for most of the modern history and (very importantly) further away from big cities, the freedoms you have are actually higher than in EU. For example, it's difficult to own a house in Sweden (instead in most cases you buy a permission to live in it and can be forced to sell it under certain conditions). Taxation is MUCH higher. Hard to find a driving instructor among your friends. Things like that. Part of it is due to being an immigrant, but the reality is that if you go to a small village, you will almost have no laws at all, except for something like murder. Essentially go far enough and you can actually build yourself your own libertarian safe haven. It's just a really really really large country and thus impossible to police in its entirety.

    Now, in big cities things are more tight, but the system is also corrupt and there's a whole cultural mentality around the understanding that you can buy your way out of most anything. The bribes to pass a driving test for example aren't even hidden, they're basically part of the system and are collected openly by driving schools.

    So basically if you don't visit weird websites (well I guess nowadays they're really pushing the internet censorship angle) and protest against the government, you may never notice any government interference at all. I think for business owners it's much different though, or basically anyone getting any kind of power or money - they probably have to deal with the aforementioned corruption or even the risk that some of their business will be taken over. But I have no experience in this.

    Trust or reliability in government

    Again, highly depends on where you are and who you are. You can find crazy libertarians who will defend their porch with a shotgun (or at least say they will) and you can find a grandma who prays for Putin every night while living on scraps. Both have their reasons to exist. The services range from excellent in big cities to awful/non-existent in rural ones. In particular healthcare if you earn an okay paycheck is just better in big cities than in Sweden in my opinion. Lots of Russians and Ukranians living in EU go home for "medical tourism" because it's just much cheaper and high quality. Dental especially is prohibitively expensive (hundreds of euro for basic cavities) in Sweden unless you're a kid in which case it's free. Russia also has free government sponsored healthcare (including dental) and a range of private clinics for faster/sometimes better care, combining both options in a very good way in my opinion.

    Anyway, you should notice by now the trend of bigger cities = more government oversight but better infrastructures and services, smaller settlements = the opposite. The salaries and prices are also much different. The country is just damn large municipal governments are generally lacking in resources and get away with more skimming off the top.

    Educational quality

    Once again, it HIGHLY depends. I've been through several schools and they range from kids in 11th grade being unable to do basic math (not exaggerating btw) to high schoolers having university grade teachers and smashing records. In general it's really easy to get SOME kind of university degree, without even really doing anything. Or pay your way through university. It all depends on where, who, how much money is involved, how much do teachers give a crap. Money will get you private tutors, better schools or just easier time in general. Bigger cities aren't necessarily better, though they will have better opportunities to find something better.

    Relationship to the media

    Not sure what you mean. Older people watch TV, younger people use runet (any website with .ru domain and in Russian) of their preferred choice. Some people use the internet outside of that, provided they speak English. Certain services like youtube, instagram or tinder are/were quite popular at least until they get banned (which is a very recent phenomenon).

    What luxuries people tended to have (e.g. modern imported gaming consoles, domestically produced products, number of cars, etc.)

    As the country was coming out of the 90s, people started to have everything that westerners did, just with some delay as the amount of wealth caught up. Middle class and above can have just about everything, poorer ones can be limited to something like an old TV and a radio. I don't think it's common to have more than one car unless you're doing well for yourself, or you live in a rural area where you need it (and then it's a very old Russian/Soviet car). Again and again, you'll see a range of just about anything depending on class, wealth, location.

    In general though, if not for the (overall fairly recent all things considered) government overreach, Russia would honestly be a fantastic place to live for many in my opinion. It pains me to see it go down this way, but I guess at some point it was inevitable. I will also add that a life of an immigrant adds a lot of pain and restrictions in almost any aspect of life. I thus completely understand the people who stay in Russia and simply make the best life possible there. I got somewhat lucky and I still hate living in EU sometimes. I personally most definitely have fewer freedoms currently than I did in Russia, which is counter-intuitive, but the reality is that being an immigrant just kind of sucks, even being a high-skilled immigrant with a cushy job lined up. Can't imagine what more desperate folks have to go through.

    The main benefit of EU that I personally enjoy is the ability to cross borders freely (though I have limits on that) and the mix of different people and cultures that comes from that. It was awesome how I could meet students from all over the place, and those are the moments I really wish I grew up in this environment. As an adult, I find that most opportunities that Europe provides for you are already just... gone.

    31 votes
  4. Comment on What moderate countries are left to emigrate to? in ~travel

    Lobachevsky
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    The job market is bad. You might be able to get a tech job if you're a skilled senior, but then you'll earn way less than basically in any other western country because of progressive taxation....

    The job market is bad. You might be able to get a tech job if you're a skilled senior, but then you'll earn way less than basically in any other western country because of progressive taxation. Everyone else will have a really hard time getting a job. By the way, the rich avoid this taxation because there's no inheritance or gift tax, and capital gains tax is flat. Sweden has low income inequality but very high wealth inequality - basically the only way to get rich is to be born rich or marry into a rich family. This also means that middle class subsidizes everyone else.

    Healthcare is bad if you're from anywhere where it was decent. Queues are long, emergency rooms are 6 hours wait unless you're literally about to die. Yes the costs are capped (not free), but you'll have to really convince your doctor to do anything other than "take paracetamol and rest" by claiming your symptoms are worse than they are (it seems that doctors know this so if you tell the truth they assume it's actually even less bad). I've had friends vomiting blood who had to get a ride from someone because the ambulance wouldn't come. No free eyesight checks, dental is free until 24 years old then extremely expensive for anything whatsoever and the government subsidy is small.

    Social life is extremely bad, you will have a very difficult time of befriending locals. It's also racist, I've heard from several people that changing their surname to the Swedish one after getting married radically changed the number of responses to their job resume.

    Night life is horrible outside of some illegal student parties or raves. Alcohol is crazy expensive, clubs are all pretty bad and elitist.

    Getting an apartment is difficult because of rent controls. You need to be in the queue for decades to get anything "good", otherwise you're renting "second hand" which means usually no more than a year contract after which you most likely have to move out and search for a new one again. This is specific to Stockholm but I'm guessing that's the most popular destination anyway.

    Most of the year there's little sunlight, especially outside of office hours.

    The country is English speaking, but not really. You must know Swedish if you want any chance at having a social life apart from other expats.

    Basically I would only recommend Sweden if you're starting a family (childcare is well subsidized), or want to retire in the 8 months of darkness for whatever reason, or if you're already fluent in Swedish. Maybe if you already have kids, though it may be difficult for them to adapt. Or maybe your other options are worse (this was the case for me). Feel free to ask anything else about expat experience in Sweden.

    28 votes
  5. Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link
    So essentially the language models that they trained performed exceptionally well at finding routes from A to B (97% accuracy of finding the shortest path), but when supplied with 2 different sets...

    So essentially the language models that they trained performed exceptionally well at finding routes from A to B (97% accuracy of finding the shortest path), but when supplied with 2 different sets of directions leading to the same exact place, the models mostly failed to proceed in the same way after that point. The implication being that this indicates the model not "understanding" that it's the same exact place.

    Well I wonder if it isn't a consequence of training? If anything this just tells me that claims of "AI bad" or "AI good" will depend entirely on the way it's used and trained. And I think it's rather impressive that a "fancy autocorrect" is able to get 97% accuracy on giving directions despite having no explicit senses of space or navigation.

    4 votes
  6. Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Yes.

    Regulators in Australia, Denmark, the U.S., and the U.K., among others, are exploring potential age restrictions, which, if enacted, would also eat into the user counts of Meta’s apps.

    Yes.

    3 votes
  7. Comment on Character.AI faces US lawsuit after teen's suicide in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    What makes it different? Any mental condition is "who you are", because who you are is determined seemingly by the brain.

    Which, again, isn't a disease. Or a problem to be fixed. Autism is the same as being gay, bi, being black or white or latin, being young or old. Autism is who you are. It is incredibly offensive to be told who you are is wrong, and you need to cut it out.

    What makes it different? Any mental condition is "who you are", because who you are is determined seemingly by the brain.

    7 votes
  8. Comment on Inside the TikTok documents: Stripping teens and boosting 'attractive' people in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    You didn't have to go through her phone to do so. You mentioned before that you do check the phone on a somewhat regular basis or intend to. So not sure what the way that actual situation played...

    We weren't specifically checking for nudes. We were responding to the school asking us for screenshots of some group chats which were linked to allegations of cyber-bullying, and in the process discovered that she'd been posing naked for pictures.

    1. You didn't have to go through her phone to do so.
    2. You mentioned before that you do check the phone on a somewhat regular basis or intend to.
      So not sure what the way that actual situation played out has anything to do with anything. It's not the point.

    It's just a breach of privacy from my point of view. I wouldn't read my kid's diary type of thing, even though the kid may be confessing to doing something "inappropriate" on those pages.

    6 votes
  9. Comment on Inside the TikTok documents: Stripping teens and boosting 'attractive' people in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    You've also taught her that she'll be punished for certain things. I thought that was clear.

    You've also taught her that she'll be punished for certain things. I thought that was clear.

    4 votes
  10. Comment on Inside the TikTok documents: Stripping teens and boosting 'attractive' people in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Indeed, the kid should feel comfortable telling you that someone creepy is talking with them. How will they do that if you're gonna punish them for doing "something inappropriate"?

    Indeed, the kid should feel comfortable telling you that someone creepy is talking with them. How will they do that if you're gonna punish them for doing "something inappropriate"?

    6 votes
  11. Comment on Inside the TikTok documents: Stripping teens and boosting 'attractive' people in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Ideally the kid needs to come to their own conclusion that these things are not good for them. Otherwise they won't follow whatever order you're trying to get them to follow. I feel like if they...

    Ideally the kid needs to come to their own conclusion that these things are not good for them. Otherwise they won't follow whatever order you're trying to get them to follow. I feel like if they choose a particular road despite being educated then it's their mistakes to make. That's not to say you're doing anything wrong necessarily, and perhaps for your child it's the best approach. Parenting is difficult and sometimes there isn't anything you can do.

    I do feel like checking your daughter's phone for nudes is a bit much though.

    6 votes
  12. Comment on Inside the TikTok documents: Stripping teens and boosting 'attractive' people in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Indeed, and it's not the natural halo effect, allegedly they intentionally tweaked the algorithm to artificially boost people the company deemed attractive.

    Indeed, and it's not the natural halo effect, allegedly they intentionally tweaked the algorithm to artificially boost people the company deemed attractive.

    4 votes
  13. Comment on Inside the TikTok documents: Stripping teens and boosting 'attractive' people in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Sounds like an absolute nightmare for a growing teenager's social life and privacy and I say this as someone who hates social media with passion and doesn't use any that show faces or personal...

    Sounds like an absolute nightmare for a growing teenager's social life and privacy and I say this as someone who hates social media with passion and doesn't use any that show faces or personal details. A good way to breed resentment and avoidance strategies too.

    17 votes
  14. Comment on AI artist says he’s losing money from people stealing his work in ~arts

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Good to know. Of course those are completely accepted by society so there's not much to talk about here. Agree to disagree.

    Good to know. Of course those are completely accepted by society so there's not much to talk about here. Agree to disagree.

  15. Comment on AI artist says he’s losing money from people stealing his work in ~arts

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    I hope you're consistent then and are against Photoshop's generative fill and iphone selfies also.

    I hope you're consistent then and are against Photoshop's generative fill and iphone selfies also.

    1 vote
  16. Comment on AI artist says he’s losing money from people stealing his work in ~arts

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Is typing on a keyboard not physical or can't be done with intention? Not to mention that attribution has nothing to do with who did the physical work, as already has been discussed in this...

    Is typing on a keyboard not physical or can't be done with intention?
    Not to mention that attribution has nothing to do with who did the physical work, as already has been discussed in this thread. Sol LeWitt is being credited for his art executed by others even after his death. The art world has settled this way before the AI hate train.

    2 votes
  17. Comment on Thoughts on the friendzone in ~life

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Disagreed. I personally know women who self admittedly keep a bunch of men on a short leash to get favors from them. While it's true that these men could leave, victims of manipulation and abuse...

    Disagreed. I personally know women who self admittedly keep a bunch of men on a short leash to get favors from them. While it's true that these men could leave, victims of manipulation and abuse don't always do. It's one of those things where if the genders were swapped people would be outraged, but since it's men who are affected, it's their personal responsibility.

    10 votes
  18. Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    Wasn't the CSAM label specifically differentiated from CP so that it describes actual abuse materials? Sounds like you're just using the term to refer to CP here. I can't really wrap my head...

    Wasn't the CSAM label specifically differentiated from CP so that it describes actual abuse materials? Sounds like you're just using the term to refer to CP here. I can't really wrap my head around AI generated stuff being abuse materials I guess.

    2 votes
  19. Comment on Fed up, singles are DIYing their own dating apps in ~life

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    I didn't say to appeal to as many users as possible, I said the exact opposite: My point is that authentic reality isn't very appealing for almost everyone. Dating profiles and social media offer...

    I didn't say to appeal to as many users as possible, I said the exact opposite:

    the best possible strategy is crafting a coherent persona that your preferred matches will like.

    My point is that authentic reality isn't very appealing for almost everyone. Dating profiles and social media offer a sanitized, curated version of it. Well posed, well lit, taken at the right angles, wearing outfits you probably don't wear every day, with hair and makeup and whatnot done, doing something you probably don't do every day.

    3 votes
  20. Comment on Fed up, singles are DIYing their own dating apps in ~life

    Lobachevsky
    Link Parent
    You're giving matches to good profiles that look authentic. Sure.

    You're giving matches to good profiles that look authentic. Sure.

    1 vote