RoyalHenOil's recent activity

  1. Comment on How 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' ruined lives in ~tv

    RoyalHenOil
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    This reminds me of a couple of visits I made to Detroit with a previous boyfriend. We stayed in a spare room at his brother's house: an absolutely gorgeous 3-storey, 5-bedroom Victorian house with...

    This reminds me of a couple of visits I made to Detroit with a previous boyfriend. We stayed in a spare room at his brother's house: an absolutely gorgeous 3-storey, 5-bedroom Victorian house with original leaded glass windows, in a beautiful leafy neighborhood filled with row upon row of similar houses – and most of these were in various states of abandonment. It was obvious which homes were still in use because the occupants employed various strategies to reduce the costs of ownership. For example, plastic was commonly stapled over windows to effect double or triple glazing, and many rooms (often entire floors) were boarded up and orphaned from the main living areas.

    The house where we stayed was in a similar state. One of the most striking things to me was the dumbwaiter: it was no longer functional because the shaft had been co-opted for electrical conduit, extension cords, and Ethernet cables. The contrast of historical luxury with modern utility gave me distinct post-apocalyptic vibes.

    While we were in Detroit, we wandered through a variety of neighborhoods (we both loved looking at old architecture). When we walked through communities with much smaller, more modest homes, they seemed to have a much higher occupancy rate and better maintenance. My then-boyfriend's brother told me that it probably would have been financially wiser to buy a smaller house, even though they were on the expensive side, but he had a particular love for these old Victorian houses; it was his dream to some day to restore his and properly care for it, but he just didn't have the income yet.

    Since then, I have thought a lot about the gentrification in the formerly low-income neighborhood where I grew up. Modest 1950s ranch houses filled with working class families are rapidly being knocked out and replaced with enormous McMansions (on par with the Victorian houses I saw in Detroit). They sell for exorbitant prices, but a large portion of them just seem to be bought and sold repeatedly without ever being occupied. When a new family does move in, they usually sell again after just two or three years, and I find myself wondering: are they flippers as well, or did they bite off more than they can chew?

    23 votes
  2. Comment on I hate the new internet. I hate the new tech world. I hate it all. I want out, and I can't be the only one. in ~tech

    RoyalHenOil
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    It's not as bad as it looks. This is no time to be complacent (on the contrary!), but these are shock-and-awe tactics designed to make their victory seem inescapable. They mean to cow us before we...

    It's not as bad as it looks. This is no time to be complacent (on the contrary!), but these are shock-and-awe tactics designed to make their victory seem inescapable. They mean to cow us before we can discover how much of it is bluster.

    For example, they're claiming that they've muscled Panama into a one-sided agreement, but this is an outright lie. They want us to think that Panama, Canada, Mexico, etc. are falling to their demands like dominoes.

    These are not the tactics of someone with a strong hand. These are the tactics of someone who's studied their cards and decided their best strategy is to terrorize the table into folding.

    2 votes
  3. Comment on I hate the new internet. I hate the new tech world. I hate it all. I want out, and I can't be the only one. in ~tech

    RoyalHenOil
    (edited )
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    It's important to stay abreast of the situation, but don't let it demoralize you; use it to boost your fighting spirit and direct it in useful ways. And, of course, use that information to protect...

    It's important to stay abreast of the situation, but don't let it demoralize you; use it to boost your fighting spirit and direct it in useful ways. And, of course, use that information to protect yourself in the short-to-medium run (for example, building up savings or switching from high-risk investments to low-risk investments in the event of a recession).

    Every war has some battles won and some battles lost, and the aggressor almost always takes the lion's share of early wins; that's just the nature of making the first move. But that doesn't make shock-and-awe tactics good strategy for winning the overall war. There's a tendency for aggressors to become addicted to the glory of overwhelming their enemies, and then they start making blunders and spreading themselves too thin.

    I hope this video can give you as much comfort and resolve as it has given me. They're sprinting in a marathon and hoping that will be enough to convince us to quit; this is their moonshot.

    2 votes
  4. Comment on Worried about my US treasury bills in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
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    This and the FDIC are what I have been fretting about. I'm scared I'll wake up one morning and I'll suddenly be unable to withdraw money from my US bank account. I'm just grateful I have an...

    This and the FDIC are what I have been fretting about. I'm scared I'll wake up one morning and I'll suddenly be unable to withdraw money from my US bank account. I'm just grateful I have an Australian account, too.

    5 votes
  5. Comment on DeepSeek R1 reproduced for $30: University of California Berkeley researchers replicate DeepSeek R1 for $30—casting doubt on H100 claims and controversy in ~tech

    RoyalHenOil
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    I completely agree with you. Unfortunately, China is an authoritarian regime, and the US seems to be rapidly turning into one. Access to this technology might be the best shot that smaller...
    • Exemplary

    Maybe I'm just paranoid, but that does resonate with me. I don't like the idea of authoritarian regimes having access to powerful LLM AIs.

    I completely agree with you. Unfortunately, China is an authoritarian regime, and the US seems to be rapidly turning into one. Access to this technology might be the best shot that smaller democratic nations have at protecting themselves. I really don't know.

    8 votes
  6. Comment on Is there a reason that we aren't seeing pushback to US President Donald Trump's blitzkreig? in ~society

  7. Comment on Is there a reason that we aren't seeing pushback to US President Donald Trump's blitzkreig? in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
    Link Parent
    When you say that this is the Democrats' fault, it implies that you believe the Democrat Party failed to be as good as the Republican party. Is that really how you feel? That the RNC was the...

    When you say that this is the Democrats' fault, it implies that you believe the Democrat Party failed to be as good as the Republican party. Is that really how you feel? That the RNC was the better pick this election?

    3 votes
  8. Comment on Snacks that aren't just sugar or crazy salty in ~food

    RoyalHenOil
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    I'm not sure how much sugar you're trying to avoid, but I like to snack on fruit. Oranges are my particular preference when they're in season. I also grow a lot of berries (raspberries,...

    I'm not sure how much sugar you're trying to avoid, but I like to snack on fruit. Oranges are my particular preference when they're in season. I also grow a lot of berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, and gooseberries) that I like to go outside and snack on each day when they're in fruit.

    I also have some small bowls (I think they are called rice bowls) for preparing mini meals. They're good for pouring myself a tiny bowl of cereal, warming up some leftovers, making some quick chia pudding, etc.

    5 votes
  9. Comment on What are some favorite books with themes of grit, endurance, resilience, living through hostile circumstances? in ~books

    RoyalHenOil
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    Thank you for this recommendation. This is something I have wanted to learn more about for a long time. I knew a survivor of the Bataan Death March (my childhood best friend's grandfather), and he...

    Along similar lines, Tears in the Darkness: The Story of the Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath...

    Thank you for this recommendation. This is something I have wanted to learn more about for a long time. I knew a survivor of the Bataan Death March (my childhood best friend's grandfather), and he had some horrendous experiences with it that he would only discuss in roundabout ways. I know that he witnessed the murders of other American POWs that he knew extremely well, and I know that he starved and had to catch rats to survive, but he would not elaborate any further.

    The one thing he did love to talk about, however, was how he was rescued by Filipinos. For the rest of his life, he regularly traveled to the Philippines to meet with his rescuers and the other Filipino survivors who escaped with him. He had a thick photo album full of their pictures as they aged over the years, and he loved to tell us about these friends and enthuse about the Philippines in general.

    1 vote
  10. Comment on Why is AI slop so easy to spot but hard to detect? in ~tech

    RoyalHenOil
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    Generating AI slop and detecting AI slop are essentially two manifestations of the same problems, aren't they? Our current generation of AI models can't model human behavior perfectly. It's no...

    Generating AI slop and detecting AI slop are essentially two manifestations of the same problems, aren't they? Our current generation of AI models can't model human behavior perfectly. It's no surprise that the neural networks that do model human behavior accurately (i.e., our own human brains) can both produce human behavior and identify human behavior far more effectively.

    9 votes
  11. Comment on Moving to the other side of the Earth in ~life

    RoyalHenOil
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    I immigrated to Australia (from the US) in 2012, and I have gotten know quite a few immigrants from Europe. Do you know which city or town the office would be opened in? Your experiences may vary...

    I immigrated to Australia (from the US) in 2012, and I have gotten know quite a few immigrants from Europe. Do you know which city or town the office would be opened in? Your experiences may vary depending on where you move.

    As a general rule, Australia has a very large immigrant population; approximately 25% of Australian residents were born overseas, so this is very well-trodden ground. It is also my experience that first-generation immigrants, regardless of country of origin, feel a strong connection to each other and will readily help each other navigate the system.

    Most local Australians are also used to immigrants and are generally very accepting. Australia has extremely high election participation rates, so the high rate of immigration is a reflection of the people's generally welcoming attitude toward immigrants. Mind you, xenophobia certainly does exist and anti-immigrant Australians can be a lot more blunt than you may be used to, but it's usually directed at the most common nationalities (Indians, Chinese, Americans, Brits, and handful of others). As a Danish person, you would likely encounter very little of this, so don't let it deter you.

    I don't know how these issues compare to Denmark, but there are a few other things to be aware of:

    • There is currently a major housing shortage in Australia. Depending on where you move, finding a place to rent may be quite difficult. You should definitely find out if this is something your company can help out with. If not, you may need to live out of an AirBnB until you find your footing. I would strongly recommend against renting an apartment without inspecting it first, unless someone you trust can inspect it for you.
    • Australian buildings are very badly insulated, the weather is very changeable, and the sun is very harsh (due to the ozone hole). However, the wildlife is not nearly as bad as everyone makes it out to be.
    • Australian education standards are... well, kind of all over the place. If you move here, I recommend searching for a school that employs teaching strategies that are proven effective (such as phonics) and that has a student body that is academically motivated. You may also want to supplement your daughter's education, particularly in writing and mathematics.
    • Australians have a very casual, informal culture. They dislike both arrogance and humility; they prefer to everyone to behave as equals. They are reserved and will generally not be the first to say hello to a stranger, but they almost always really like it when strangers say hello to them. They don't like it when people are pushy about their opinions or argumentative. They use a lot dry, satirical humor with a straight face — so if someone says something that sounds off, don't assume that they mean it seriously. They tease each other a whole lot and they like it if you join in; if you're not sure how to navigate this without hurting anyone's feelings, just tease yourself (Australians love self-deprecation humor). But be aware that Australian culture also has a bullying problem, and bullies often use teasing for the sake of plausible deniability. If you feel like you are being teased too harshly, stand up for yourself; self-respect is admired in Australian culture.
  12. Comment on The cultural ascendancy of the new young American right in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
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    I'm actually particularly interested in the opinions of the Republican party's conservative base — the ones who are pushing to ban abortions and contraception, cut access to porn, promote...

    I'm actually particularly interested in the opinions of the Republican party's conservative base — the ones who are pushing to ban abortions and contraception, cut access to porn, promote traditional Christianity in schools, etc. How do they react when they see their message for personal moderation and family values not merely opposed by their political enemies, but actively co-opted and inverted by their supposed political allies? Maybe most of them think that they can use these allies now and discard them later (or maybe even convert them), but I imagine at least some of them must sense that they are witnessing the last few nails in the coffin.

    7 votes
  13. Comment on Restaurants close across China in ~food

    RoyalHenOil
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    China has a very different culture and very different political system from western English-speaking nations. It makes sense to me that they would discuss certain topics with different frequency....

    China has a very different culture and very different political system from western English-speaking nations. It makes sense to me that they would discuss certain topics with different frequency. There must also be a lot of commonly-used English words that translate to rarely-used words in Chinese, simply because we talk about those concepts more than they do.

    To large extent, of course, it will also just come down to the arbitrary preferences of people who write translation dictionaries. I can imagine that a dictionary writer might prefer the uncommon "auspicious" over the much more common "promising" simply because the meaning of "auspicious" is less ambiguous. I'm guessing that this kind of issue comes up a lot more often in unrelated languages with few cognates.

    3 votes
  14. Comment on If eyes emitted light, could they still see? in ~science

    RoyalHenOil
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    In principle, I don't see why this couldn't work. After all, our bodies emit heat, yet we can still perceive heat from other sources. The brain accounts for ambient temperature (including our own...

    In principle, I don't see why this couldn't work. After all, our bodies emit heat, yet we can still perceive heat from other sources. The brain accounts for ambient temperature (including our own body temperature) in order to pick signals out of the noise.

    There are a number of deep sea fish that emit light directly from their eyes or from bioluminescent organs directly adjacent to their eyes. In many of these cases, it appears the fish have effectively evolved bioluminescent flashlights: that is, they emit light in order to see what bounces back.

    8 votes
  15. Comment on What are the strengths of the left in US politics? in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
    Link Parent
    I'm sorry for my delay in responding. I have been busy. I grew up in a low-income neighborhood of Atlanta, and the vibe was definitely very different amongst the leftwing in my community compared...

    I'm sorry for my delay in responding. I have been busy.

    I grew up in a low-income neighborhood of Atlanta, and the vibe was definitely very different amongst the leftwing in my community compared to what you are describing. There was a general distrust of business interests and people who pursue extreme wealth, and they instead encouraged small, decentralized businesses (e.g., using slogans like "shop local"). Now, the Libertarians I knew certainly held views similar to what you are describing, but progressives and Libertarians in my community were at odds and argued constantly. While they agreed on things like gay marriage, they still nonetheless came to these conclusions from subtly but fundamentally different first principles (namely fairness versus non-intervention). It sounds like if the progressives from my circle had met the progressives from your circle, they would have identified them as Libertarians and disagreed with them strongly.

    From my perspective, using these terms as I understand them, it sounds to me like your social circle had a lot of Libertarians (or perhaps centrists without a cohesive underlying political philosophy) who enjoyed the aesthetic of progressivism (e.g., dressing like hippies), but did not actually adhere to progressive principles. I have no idea why our experiences here are so different; maybe different socioeconomics, maybe different regional influences, or maybe we just fell in with different crowds? I can certainly understand why you found them frustrating, however, because I don't think I would have been able to handle that, either.

    There was one other point I wanted to address in your earlier comment:

    Hey we're pro immigrant, but also leave your dirty views about trans people and abortion behind isn't exactly compatible. Or are they just pro educated anglosphere immigrants? Sure seems that way sometimes.

    My neighborhood had a very large immigrant community (I grew up in a section of the Buford Highway Corridor where recent immigrants from Latin America and Southeast Asia outnumbered locals), and while the progressives in my community certainly disagreed with those immigrants who had conservative views, they were still very welcoming of even the most conservative immigrants because their major guiding philosophical principle was that everyone deserves a fair shake in life, regardless of creed. This same community was also very concerned about poverty in Appalachia, for example, despite full acknowledgement of wildly divergent political views.

    Unfortunately, I can't say what this community would be like today because it was essentially destroyed by gentrification. However, I do see a lot of people today who claim progressive ideals, yet do not actually seem to understand or care about the philosophical arguments underpinning those ideals; they just adopt the popular opinions around them, and they would just as readily express conservative ideals if they were in a more conservative space. In the 90s and 00s in Atlanta (at least in my corner of Atlanta), progressive philosophy was not the default like it is in many places now, so the quality of progressive thought was much higher there than I see in most left-leaning communities today.

    8 votes
  16. Comment on Live updates of day one executive orders / actions taken by US President Donald Trump in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
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    Me too! I have been dutifully answering surveys, writing letters, etc., to try to encourage it along. Especially now that the US dollar is so strong against my own currency (Australian dollars),...

    Me too! I have been dutifully answering surveys, writing letters, etc., to try to encourage it along.

    Especially now that the US dollar is so strong against my own currency (Australian dollars), reporting my Australians assets and income to the IRS and FinCEN has become a bigger financial burden than ever.

    I'm deeply grateful that I opened up my Australian bank account in 2012, just a few years before US reporting requirements ballooned out of control. I'm not even sure I would be able to open a new bank account today; American citizens are such a bureaucratic headache for foreign banks, and it's usually not worth it for them unless the customer is rich.

    4 votes
  17. Comment on What are the strengths of the left in US politics? in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
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    I don't recall Musk ever being the golden child of the left. There was a lot of leftwing enthusiasm for Tesla for environmental reasons, but I don't recall much interest in Musk himself except...

    Musk used to be the golden child and silicon valley elite and their cult around FAANG has always been a thing in left circles.

    I don't recall Musk ever being the golden child of the left. There was a lot of leftwing enthusiasm for Tesla for environmental reasons, but I don't recall much interest in Musk himself except from Libertarians and from Silicon Valley. Silicon Valley itself has been criticized by the non-Silicon-Valley left since at least the 00s (when I first heard of it). Big tech did not receive as much criticism as, say, the oil industry — but that doesn't mean it was beloved.

    Not even left-friendly billionaires like Warren Buffet escape criticism from the left; I think most see him as relatively harmless, or even politically useful in some ways, but certainly not as their champion.

    I am very curious to know where your perspective on this has come from. Are you perhaps basing this on observations from within Silicon Valley?

    5 votes
  18. Comment on Live updates of day one executive orders / actions taken by US President Donald Trump in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
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    There is currently a bill in the works that would loosen tax reporting requirements for average US citizens who live permanently overseas. Such a bill has a lot of potential for unintended...

    There is currently a bill in the works that would loosen tax reporting requirements for average US citizens who live permanently overseas. Such a bill has a lot of potential for unintended knock-on effects, so a bipartisan team of lawmakers have been working out the kinks for years. It is expected to come up for a vote soon, maybe even this year.

    Trump caught wind of this and decided to add it to his platform so that he can claim credit, even though he has nothing to do with its existence. His only role is to sign it, which is something any other Democratic or Republican president would do; it's not in any meaningful way a controversial bill. It's just a tricky one to write.

    9 votes
  19. Comment on US President Donald Trump to issue executive orders to end birthright citizenship, limit gender identity — incoming official in ~lgbt

    RoyalHenOil
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    Even the X and Y chromosomes themselves can get messy. Due to DNA translocation, it is possible for some X chromosomes to have a copy of the SRY gene (the gene that triggers male development) and...

    X and Y are binary, but...

    Even the X and Y chromosomes themselves can get messy. Due to DNA translocation, it is possible for some X chromosomes to have a copy of the SRY gene (the gene that triggers male development) and for some Y chromosomes to lack it.

    9 votes
  20. Comment on US President Donald Trump to make historic move towards revoking birthright citizenship in ~society

    RoyalHenOil
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    Reinterpretations are not without cost. If we decide that they are not subject to the jurisdiction of the US, we are effectively saying that the law does not apply to them. In effect, we are...

    Reinterpretations are not without cost. If we decide that they are not subject to the jurisdiction of the US, we are effectively saying that the law does not apply to them. In effect, we are granting diplomatic immunity to anyone who enters the country illegally.

    16 votes