arrza's recent activity
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza Link ParentAnd what relation does that have to the virtue of one type of organization versus another?And what relation does that have to the virtue of one type of organization versus another?
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza Link ParentI'm not sure what you're trying to say here. Are you saying that you agree it is virtuous for a company to choose profit over protecting the environment provided that there was a possibility that...I'm not sure what you're trying to say here.
Are you saying that you agree it is virtuous for a company to choose profit over protecting the environment provided that there was a possibility that the chosen action had a chance to not turn a profit?
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza (edited )Link ParentMy point in the P&G example is that when presented with the choice- make more money or preserve the environment- they will always choose the former. This is undeniable. For them, choosing the...My point in the P&G example is that when presented with the choice- make more money or preserve the environment- they will always choose the former. This is undeniable. For them, choosing the latter when they didn't have to would be shirking their fiduciary duty in the eyes of their owners. This has little bearing on their economic sustainability. A co-op can make that choice, since they can choose the point at which they're making "enough profit". For P&G there is no such thing as "enough profit".
Going back to your example of a mining company, I can envision a co-operative mining company. Co-ops generally trend smaller, and locally owned. So this hypothetical company has a stake in preserving, somewhat, the integrity of the environment that they operate in since their worker-owners don't want to live in a deteriorating environment. Contrast this with a large multinational mining corporation, which will operate under an economic imperialist mindset, extract as much as you can, as cheaply as you can, environment be damned. If the local government tries to put the brakes on, you sue under ISDS to be able to continue what you're doing.
Now back to the original premise of your post. Which of these do you view as more virtuous? I think you could guess my answer.
ED: a better way of phrasing the question may be- which has the capacity to act in a more virtuous way?
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza Link ParentThis is all well and good, but my comment was limited to the context of access to funds within a retirement plan. Many(a majority I would posit) can't just pick any fund in the world to invest in....This is all well and good, but my comment was limited to the context of access to funds within a retirement plan. Many(a majority I would posit) can't just pick any fund in the world to invest in. We are limited by the plans offered in the plan.
I would never dispute the existence of these funds, but access is limited. Most people don't hold any investments outside their retirement plansnand therefore are unable to choose their investments freely.
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza Link ParentLook at the incentives. Where are the incentives of a corporation owned by private equity(now a majority of corps in the us) or publicly traded corporations? Do they align with environmental...Look at the incentives. Where are the incentives of a corporation owned by private equity(now a majority of corps in the us) or publicly traded corporations? Do they align with environmental sustainability in the communities they operate in? Of course not. They're beholden to their ownership to maximize profits. Does that logic make sense to you?
Take consumer packaged goods like soap. Does Procter & Gamble have an incentive to use more expensive non plastic packaging that doesn't pollute the environment? Having trouble thinking of a co-op CPG company at the moment, but in my mind there would be more motivation in my mind to lessen environmental impact when the owners of the company are local to that company and would see the impacts first-hand.
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza Link ParentThis may be valid from a pure economic extraction paradigm(I am dubious), but there are other considerations. What incentive does a 401k shareholder have to care about the working conditions of...This may be valid from a pure economic extraction paradigm(I am dubious), but there are other considerations.
What incentive does a 401k shareholder have to care about the working conditions of the company they've invested in? Furthermore, what options does this shareholder have to direct their investments towards companies that align with their interests? There are, IME, very few retirement funds, 401 or otherwise, that give you any granularity in your choice of investments. It's just a pool of pre chosen market funds that you can put your money into. The lack of agency in this decision adds a layer of abstraction to whatever you're investing in and forces you to choose the investment which will maximize your return. In the handful of plans I've been a part of, I haven't seen a green energy fund, a unionized shop fund, or anything along those lines which to me would be more "virtuous".
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Comment on Are cooperatives more virtuous than corporations? in ~society
arrza (edited )LinkOne thing I didn't see mentioned in the blog post is sustainability. Cooperatives have a much higher potential to be sustainable, both in the economic and the environmental sense than...One thing I didn't see mentioned in the blog post is sustainability. Cooperatives have a much higher potential to be sustainable, both in the economic and the environmental sense than corporations. Both types of entities have the potential to be extractive, but the severity of the extraction, whether it be economic(excessive executive compensation, dividends to shareholders, etc.), environmental (resource extraction, inproper waste disposal)- I would expect a co-op to have a greater stake in choosing the more sustainable option. Who would you expect to make better decisions where the competing interests are either maximize profits or have an environment that is livable?
I also would like to know why the author chose this framing. Why is "virtue" the paradigm he chose to operate in, and not something more quantifiable? It smells like he had a conclusion and worked backwards from there. ED: I now see why he chose this framing, the author is not a sociologist or economist, but a philosopher. This sufficiently explains the framing for me. Shame on me for assuming bad faith.
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Comment on A Nazi tattoo exposes US Democrats’ greatest weakness in ~society
arrza Link ParentAs it pertains to Platner, I see it differently. He has faced all of these accusations, issues, and allegations head on, and best I can tell, honestly and forthrightly. He had tattoo covered up...As it pertains to Platner, I see it differently. He has faced all of these accusations, issues, and allegations head on, and best I can tell, honestly and forthrightly. He had tattoo covered up and has disavowed those beliefs.
Best case, he wins the democratic nomination, and then gets elected to the senate and we gain another progressive ally. If his opponent in the primary wins(I can't remember her name), it will almost certainly hand the election to Collins as she's just another octagenarian mealy mouthed liberal who thinks she can play boths sides. Worst case, Platner gets elected and he turns into Fetterman. What did we lose? Collins' seat should be an easy flip for anyone who actually wants to help the working class.
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Comment on US President Donald Trump and EU impose new sanctions on Russia: ‘Now is the time to stop the killing’ in ~society
arrza Link ParentNo argument with anything you've said. We live in a world that is truly devoid of justice.No argument with anything you've said.
We live in a world that is truly devoid of justice.
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Comment on US President Donald Trump and EU impose new sanctions on Russia: ‘Now is the time to stop the killing’ in ~society
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Comment on Travel essentials: eight items to pack for your next trip – and what to leave at home in ~travel
arrza Link ParentThat's fair, I suppose in the end it's just a service, you can host it anywhere and just forward any ports you need. But i didn't spring for this nice router with a quad core 1ghz cpu to have it...That's fair, I suppose in the end it's just a service, you can host it anywhere and just forward any ports you need.
But i didn't spring for this nice router with a quad core 1ghz cpu to have it sit largely idle!
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Comment on Forgot Chrome's unusable, any recommendations? in ~tech
arrza Link ParentEven if you don't want to run a physical pi or a separate docker server, you can run it inside docker desktop on whatever machine you're using!Even if you don't want to run a physical pi or a separate docker server, you can run it inside docker desktop on whatever machine you're using!
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Comment on Forgot Chrome's unusable, any recommendations? in ~tech
arrza LinkAnyone with even mild technical inclination should set up some kind of dns level network filtering. It works really well, and works outside of browsers. So far, pi hole has exceeded my expectations.Anyone with even mild technical inclination should set up some kind of dns level network filtering. It works really well, and works outside of browsers. So far, pi hole has exceeded my expectations.
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Comment on D'Angelo, Grammy-winning R&B and soul star, dies at 51 after pancreatic cancer diagnosis in ~music
arrza LinkIm very sad over this one. He was one of the best living funk/r&b performers. Here's a live show he did in 2015. RIP to a legend. https://youtu.be/nOndQVYx7n0?si=9W17HhuawxFaniT5Im very sad over this one. He was one of the best living funk/r&b performers.
Here's a live show he did in 2015. RIP to a legend.
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Comment on Denmark plans social media ban for under-15s – PM Mette Frederiksen links social media use to anxiety, depression and lack of concentration in ~tech
arrza (edited )Link ParentHoly slippery slope, batman! Not to be too dismissive, but good lord. These are all things that have to be considered when implementing a policy. The benefit outweighs the small chance of those...Holy slippery slope, batman!
Not to be too dismissive, but good lord. These are all things that have to be considered when implementing a policy. The benefit outweighs the small chance of those scenarios actually happening.
Damaged or stolen property thats been confiscated has a lot of precedent for courses of action.
If a child is unreachable on their phone during school, well the parent or whoever can.... Call the school.
If there is enough risk to the well-being of a kid that they shouldn't walk home, they can stay at school until a parent can pick them up.
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Comment on Travel essentials: eight items to pack for your next trip – and what to leave at home in ~travel
arrza Link ParentI just need to get off my butt and set up wireguard at home, then i can get pihole and jellyfin. First, i need to switch my house over to linux though. Just so much to do. I swear, when people say...I just need to get off my butt and set up wireguard at home, then i can get pihole and jellyfin. First, i need to switch my house over to linux though.
Just so much to do. I swear, when people say "get a life", its not an insult, it's a curse.
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Comment on Travel essentials: eight items to pack for your next trip – and what to leave at home in ~travel
arrza LinkMy latest addition to my travel kit is a travel router, pi-hole, and a chromecast. I brought it on my last time away and it was great keeping the same ad blocking i had at home. It was also great...My latest addition to my travel kit is a travel router, pi-hole, and a chromecast. I brought it on my last time away and it was great keeping the same ad blocking i had at home. It was also great setting up one device for the network and having everything else working.
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Comment on Charlie Kirk, Ezra Klein, and the cost of civility-theater liberalism in ~society
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Comment on US President Donald Trump’s National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 labels common beliefs as terrorism “indicators” in ~society
arrza Link ParentYou can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into.You can't reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into.
I'd be really interested in your answer to this. I figure since you posted this topic, surely you have some thoughts beyond pedantic quibbling about hypotheticals.