Spoom's recent activity
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Comment on I am angry at Google and wanted to share (rant) in ~tech
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Spoom Link ParentSame, actually, both the game and the level 3. It's one of those games that hinges on twitch timing, so I'm not sure if I'll actually be able to progress, though it looks like they spoilerallow...Same, actually, both the game and the level 3. It's one of those games that hinges on twitch timing, so I'm not sure if I'll actually be able to progress, though it looks like they
so maybe it won't be too bad.spoiler
allow you to start from at least level 2 once you fix the elevator, and maybe further down -
Comment on What happens when the internet goes out at your work? in ~tech
Spoom Link ParentI'd say "same" as I work for a FAANG now but to my knowledge, this has never actually happened here since I joined in 2018. I gotta imagine they have multiple redundant backhauls.I'd say "same" as I work for a FAANG now but to my knowledge, this has never actually happened here since I joined in 2018. I gotta imagine they have multiple redundant backhauls.
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Comment on Flush with cash and soaring with hubris, Donald Trump appointees are supersizing US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in ~society
Spoom Link ParentMy view is that countries should be able to control their borders, and they should be able to deport folks who don't follow the procedures / don't meet the bar to get in. When removal happens, it...My view is that countries should be able to control their borders, and they should be able to deport folks who don't follow the procedures / don't meet the bar to get in. When removal happens, it should be quick and humane.
If I were implementing this as a policy:
- I'd invest heavily in eVerify, making it easy to use, free, and mandatory.
- I'd largely keep the immigration laws on the books as they were in the Biden administration, but I would invest somewhat more in removal operations than Biden did. I think it's important to keep our national identity as the shining city on the hill, and I think allowing carefully considered humanitarian visas for wartorn countries (e.g. the TPS program) is a worthwhile endeavor.
- I'd invest more in USCIS first and foremost, and perhaps somewhat more in ICE than Biden did. Make the immigration process faster and simpler, and more folks would interact with it.
- ICE would have professionally trained officers who follow the law with accountability. Mandatory body cams. No general warrants or whatever racism SCOTUS is allowing these days. Targeted warrants only.
- I'd make it easy for folks who were out of status to either regain status (through forms, fees, and examinations by USCIS) without facing the likelihood of a multi-year bar, or to leave the country at their own cost (again, preserving the privilege of entry as long as they follow the steps and don't break the law). This would apply only to folks out of status; folks with a criminal record or who would otherwise be inadmissible would not qualify.
I'm sure there are many reasons these policies would not work, but something like this seems to make more sense to me.
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Comment on McDonald’s redraws battle lines on subminimum wage in ~food
Spoom Link ParentI think the idea is that Chile's is saving massively on labor costs since they only have to pay as low as $2.13 per hour in some states, which McDonald's feels is unfair (and, well, I kind of...I think the idea is that Chile's is saving massively on labor costs since they only have to pay as low as $2.13 per hour in some states, which McDonald's feels is unfair (and, well, I kind of agree with them). I'm just glad that McDonald's isn't pushing to consider their employees tipped as well.
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Comment on I tried to protect my kids from the internet. Here’s what happened. in ~tech
Spoom LinkMy opinion and strategy with my own kids is to protect them from the things that are relatively easy to protect against via client-side controls. Once they start trying to break through that,...My opinion and strategy with my own kids is to protect them from the things that are relatively easy to protect against via client-side controls. Once they start trying to break through that, we'll have an in-depth discussion about what they are likely to find, and what the law says. They already know that they must have clothes on in front of a camera, and generally the reasons why that is (in an age-appropriate way).
I think it is the parents' responsibility, and shouldn't be the companies'. Free speech is more important than your need for family protection, and setting up laws that require certain protective censorship conduct essentially always chills free speech in the short to medium term. I hear that setting up these client-side systems is hard to do, but that hasn't been my experience, in either the Apple, Google, or Microsoft stack (which we have some of each). I don't expect the systems to be perfect, I expect them to protect against unintended access to things that aren't meant for kids.
Maybe I'll feel different as they get older, I don't know.
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Comment on Amazon to end commingling program after years of complaints from brands and sellers in ~finance
Spoom Link ParentEven if commingled, Amazon would need to know which seller's item they just sold in order to credit them, no? And if they have that information, they should be able to separate the inventory.Even if commingled, Amazon would need to know which seller's item they just sold in order to credit them, no? And if they have that information, they should be able to separate the inventory.
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Comment on What is a business/org that is great and ethical in so many aspects that everyone should consider using? in ~life
Spoom LinkI get my coffee from Dean's Beans, a fair trade employee-owned coop. They became employee-owned when the founder retired, which is pretty cool. They support growers around the world and help with...I get my coffee from Dean's Beans, a fair trade employee-owned coop. They became employee-owned when the founder retired, which is pretty cool. They support growers around the world and help with their local projects.
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Comment on How a single US consulting firm extracted $282 million from a network of spam PACs while delivering just $11 million to actual campaigns in ~society
Spoom Link ParentI unsubscribed from these in the Obama days because they were just over-the-top, all the time. Everything was an emergency, and the only way to solve it was money. I'm still voting for Democrats...I unsubscribed from these in the Obama days because they were just over-the-top, all the time. Everything was an emergency, and the only way to solve it was money. I'm still voting for Democrats (because they are as close as I can get to my preferred policies) but it certainly doesn't look like they're very good at actually running things.
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Comment on El Salvador won’t return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the wrongly deported Maryland resident; Department of Justice will leave it up to El Salvador in ~society
Spoom Link ParentRight, by my understanding, he was time-barred on the asylum application since it was beyond one year, as you stated. He filed an application for withholding of removal which was granted. Court...Right, by my understanding, he was time-barred on the asylum application since it was beyond one year, as you stated. He filed an application for withholding of removal which was granted. Court order here (PDF), if you're interested.
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Comment on Volodymyr Zelenskyy offers to step down if Ukraine can join NATO in ~society
Spoom Link ParentJon Stewart is my ideal US President. He's gotten a lot done for veterans and first responders even without elected power, and he knows firsthand how the government does and doesn't work. Alas,...Jon Stewart is my ideal US President. He's gotten a lot done for veterans and first responders even without elected power, and he knows firsthand how the government does and doesn't work. Alas, he's said several times that he won't run. I wouldn't mind a Daily Show guest or two subtly bringing it back up though.
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Comment on Does anyone want to talk about stocks/options? in ~finance
Spoom Link ParentYeah, I've heard that from a lot of my colleagues who aren't in the automatically sell on vesting camp... but I think I'd still feel very anxious having all my eggs in one basket, who also happens...Yeah, I've heard that from a lot of my colleagues who aren't in the automatically sell on vesting camp... but I think I'd still feel very anxious having all my eggs in one basket, who also happens to be my employer. That's a lot of risk all in one place. (Besides, my employer makes up a not insignificant part of the US stock market anyway, so my index fund holdings still have a lot of them.)
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Comment on Does anyone want to talk about stocks/options? in ~finance
Spoom Link ParentThis is me. I hold VTSAX primarily, which tracks the entire US stock market, and about 10% of VTIAX, which tracks the entire international stock market. I get RSUs from my job that I immediately...This is me. I hold VTSAX primarily, which tracks the entire US stock market, and about 10% of VTIAX, which tracks the entire international stock market. I get RSUs from my job that I immediately sell and reinvest in the above funds. My 401K is in a Vanguard target date fund which is mostly 80/20 stocks to bonds, so it has a little less risk tolerance than my regular brokerage account. Essentially, the Bogleheads' three-fund portfolio weighted more heavily toward equity since I have a relatively aggressive risk tolerance.
Show me an active fund that consistently beats the market, pricing in all fees, and I'll consider moving some of that.
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Comment on US Republican Party representative introduces bill to amend the 22nd Amendment, seeking to allow a third Donald Trump term in office in ~society
Spoom Link ParentI love the specific anti-Obama carveout they were careful to make. "No no, not that kind of third term."I love the specific anti-Obama carveout they were careful to make.
"No no, not that kind of third term."
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Comment on US federal judge temporarily blocks Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship order in ~society
Spoom Link ParentNah, they'll say they were never really citizens to begin with.Nah, they'll say they were never really citizens to begin with.
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Comment on US federal judge temporarily blocks Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship order in ~society
Spoom (edited )Link ParentIMHO the EO was always expected to go to SCOTUS, where they'll reverse Wong Kim Ark, make this retroactive (because without Wong Kim Ark, the EO isn't even necessary), and ensure that no future...IMHO the EO was always expected to go to SCOTUS, where they'll reverse Wong Kim Ark, make this retroactive (because without Wong Kim Ark, the EO isn't even necessary), and ensure that no future law could overrule them short of a Constitutional Amendment.
Fun fact, by my understanding of the fallback in the absence of WKA, dual citizens would also be automatically excluded since they are "subject to a foreign power". That includes me.
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Comment on Your favorite game OSTs in ~games
Spoom Link ParentIMHO you should try playing Undertale, it's not a big time investment but it was still one of my favorite games in the last few years. (And it is indeed a big part of the game. Toby Fox did...IMHO you should try playing Undertale, it's not a big time investment but it was still one of my favorite games in the last few years. (And it is indeed a big part of the game. Toby Fox did essentially the entire game and soundtrack himself, with art contributions from Temmie Chang. The titular Undertale track comes with a big emotional gutpunch in the storyline that I don't want to ruin.)
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Comment on If our worst fears about Donald Trump play out, how will we know when it's time to leave? in ~society
Spoom (edited )LinkI have a wife and two kids. I'm a white, cis man. I have the incredible privilege, among my many other privileges, of having dual citizenship with Canada. I've prepped to the degree that I have my...I have a wife and two kids. I'm a white, cis man.
I have the incredible privilege, among my many other privileges, of having dual citizenship with Canada. I've prepped to the degree that I have my certificates of Canadian citizenship for each of my kids (who are dual citizens by birth), and we've researched the options for immigration for my wife, should it come to it (tl;dr: sponsoring her would not be too difficult, and the Canadian government is likely to let us do so from inside the country). I'm also employed by a large multinational with offices in Canada, so relocation is probably a thing I could do.
I've been thinking about this a lot, recently. As a naturalized immigrant, the deportation rhetoric scares me a bit, but whether or not I take it seriously depends on who's doing the deportation. If it's organized ICE agents, I'll probably be fine since I am a documented, naturalized US citizen with a very clean past. If it's a mob of unaccountable state or national "guards", or Trump or his cronies build a program like Texas's that deputize citizens to round folks up, we're getting the fuck out of Dodge.
Other things I'm looking for:
- If elections stop happening in any real way, or are otherwise watered down to the point that we essentially have an Orbán-style autocracy
- If political persecutions start based on what someone has said or done outside of criminal law, or the law is redefined to enable these
- Similarly, if they start similar things for immutable characteristics such as race or gender, or belief structures
- If certain key Supreme Court rulings are overturned: Obergefell, Griswold, Lawrence, others similarly
- If denaturalization starts happening on any broad basis beyond the existing handful of cases per year where citizenship was ostensibly obtained through fraud
It seems like a tipping point. I'm worried, but I'm not actively running away yet. (In fact, I'm getting more involved in local government so I can say that I at least did something beyond voting. Check out Run for Something if you're interested.)
Call me a coward if you want, but my family always comes first. At least Canada has a long history of being exactly this kind of relief-valve for the US's most terrible impulses.
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Comment on Donald Trump's team mulls postponing Ukraine's NATO membership for at least twenty years, WSJ reports in ~society
Spoom Link ParentI'm convinced this is Trump's play. Get a meeting with Zelenskyy, make it clear that all arms shipments are stopping now, and tell him in no uncertain terms to accept surrender to Russia or the US...I'm convinced this is Trump's play. Get a meeting with Zelenskyy, make it clear that all arms shipments are stopping now, and tell him in no uncertain terms to accept surrender to Russia or the US will make things far worse somehow.
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Comment on Saluting the Chromecast, one of the great HDMI dongles in ~tech
Spoom Link ParentChromecast Ultra is 4K if you can find one.Chromecast Ultra is 4K if you can find one.
Another +1 for Fastmail. I use them for my personal email and have for around a decade plus now. Highly recommended.