atchemey's recent activity

  1. Comment on Jet Lag: Hide + Seek Japan | Trailer in ~hobbies

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    I think it'd be a kind of dick move sadly. I loved the most recent episode, but we should wait until it's public for all so they don't get spoiled :)

    I think it'd be a kind of dick move sadly. I loved the most recent episode, but we should wait until it's public for all so they don't get spoiled :)

    2 votes

  2. Comment on Japan forges ahead with plan to release Fukushima treated wastewater into sea (2023) in ~enviro

    atchemey
    Link
    This article is almost two years old. I'm literally a nuclear scientist. This stuff is not the waste to worry about. They dumped it a long time ago, it's now diluted and spread everywhere. There...

    This article is almost two years old.

    I'm literally a nuclear scientist. This stuff is not the waste to worry about. They dumped it a long time ago, it's now diluted and spread everywhere. There wasn't enough tritium to make it a threat when diluted (or, arguably, even before), but it is still the sort of thing that we rightfully have regulatory oversight on. If an operating reactor keeps dumping tritium, something is wrong... Obviously that's not the case here.

    3 votes

  3. Comment on Portland Airport grows with expansive mass timber roof canopy in ~transport

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Having been there, my main takeaway was that it was a place for people. It feels warm and welcoming and even cozy - not words I usually associate with modern air travel.

    Having been there, my main takeaway was that it was a place for people. It feels warm and welcoming and even cozy - not words I usually associate with modern air travel.

    8 votes

  4. Comment on What’s your “I didn’t know I needed that” item? in ~life

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    They also make a magical thermos that kept my coffee hot for two days when I forgot it. Not warm. Burned my mouth hot.

    They also make a magical thermos that kept my coffee hot for two days when I forgot it. Not warm. Burned my mouth hot.

    2 votes

  5. Comment on How Donald Trump won, and how Kamala Harris lost in ~society

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    The eternal revolution against an amorphous and shifting enemy is one of the hallmarks of totalitarian governments. It is also a specific and common manifestation of fascist movements.

    The eternal revolution against an amorphous and shifting enemy is one of the hallmarks of totalitarian governments. It is also a specific and common manifestation of fascist movements.

    8 votes

  6. Comment on Meat and poultry is wildly expensive now — and it could be due to price fixing in ~food

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Hell no. Do you know what companies do with record profits? They tend to turn them into lobbying dollars to entrench their gains and prevent alternatives from being adopted. That's how you get...

    Hell no.

    Do you know what companies do with record profits?

    They tend to turn them into lobbying dollars to entrench their gains and prevent alternatives from being adopted. That's how you get pizza classified as a vegetable. It would be FAR better to have a tariff where the funds went to programs like education, reduced costs of vegetables, or even funding green meat alternatives or new eco-responsible meat production methods.

    Companies are not incentivized to be responsible with profits, they are incentivized to make more profits. Hopefully the government can once again be different.

    23 votes

  7. Comment on Kamala Harris's speech killed any hope she would end the Gaza genocide in ~society

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    It's bad policy. It's fantastic politics. I disagree with it as policy. If she gets elected, I trust her to use force judiciously. I cannot say the same for her opponent.

    It's bad policy. It's fantastic politics.

    I disagree with it as policy.

    If she gets elected, I trust her to use force judiciously. I cannot say the same for her opponent.

    9 votes

  8. Comment on <deleted topic> in ~talk

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Not to brag, but I can alternate back and forth between them smoothly, keeping tone and timbre. I use it to whistle tunes without audible breathing for long smooth periods of time. I guess that...

    Not to brag, but I can alternate back and forth between them smoothly, keeping tone and timbre. I use it to whistle tunes without audible breathing for long smooth periods of time. I guess that would be my skill!

    2 votes

  9. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    They're further north than we are going this trip, but we are definitely going to come back for a trip focused on AKL/north.

    They're further north than we are going this trip, but we are definitely going to come back for a trip focused on AKL/north.

    1 vote

  10. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    You answered my question from another person - much appreciated! I will do when we approach - thanks!

    If you're from the US you probably expect to drive 10-15 over but that's not how it works there the speed limit really is the limit.

    You answered my question from another person - much appreciated!

    meaning of all the roadsigns.

    I will do when we approach - thanks!

    1 vote

  11. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Hot Water Beach sounds great! I'll definitely add it to the list :) Definitely of interest to us - we're going to start in WLG and see some national things, will probably try to see something...

    hot water beach

    Hot Water Beach sounds great! I'll definitely add it to the list :)

    Māori culture

    Definitely of interest to us - we're going to start in WLG and see some national things, will probably try to see something there!

    Rotarua

    Ah shucks, sorry to hear that XD

    1 vote

  12. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    Many thanks! EDIT: Answered by someone else :) In the US, people entering roundabouts yield to people in the roundabout. Is that the convention in NZ as well? Much appreciated, will obey. Thanks...

    Many thanks!

    The speed limit is a limit, not a target.

    In the US the "natural convention" is to drive 5 mph over the notional limit without being stopped - I got in trouble on my driving test because I didn't realize it was not the law XD Then again, now that I live in Oregon, most folks follow the limit exactly. Is the "natural convention" exactly the speed limit? I am happy to drive the limit, but only if it is safe to do so in the driving context!
    EDIT: Answered by someone else :)

    Roundabouts exist. Scan left-to-right, go when it's safe

    In the US, people entering roundabouts yield to people in the roundabout. Is that the convention in NZ as well?

    Sharper corners//zipper merge//pedestrian right of way

    Much appreciated, will obey. Thanks again!

  13. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    An excellent and comprehensive set of suggestions! I'd enjoy the hot springs but I don't think my wife would tolerate sulfurous smells, sadly. Any guidance or things to read about the highway...

    An excellent and comprehensive set of suggestions! I'd enjoy the hot springs but I don't think my wife would tolerate sulfurous smells, sadly.

    Any guidance or things to read about the highway network? I'd love to make sure I know what we're dealing with before we go!

    2 votes

  14. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    May? Isn't that early in the winter for them?

    May? Isn't that early in the winter for them?

    1 vote

  15. Comment on Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand in ~travel

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Much appreciated!

    Tongariro

    Ponsonby road

    Much appreciated!

    1 vote

  16. Seven days in the North Island of New Zealand

    ~travel Ask (recommendations)
    Hey folks, My wife and I saw a great flights deal on Delta and bought tickets for March 2025. We know that we have day 8 in Hobbiton just before we leave (which is a solid 50% of the reason she...

    Hey folks,

    My wife and I saw a great flights deal on Delta and bought tickets for March 2025. We know that we have day 8 in Hobbiton just before we leave (which is a solid 50% of the reason she wants to visit New Zealand), but we wondered what else we should plan on for the first 7 days! I bet we spend a couple days in Auckland on the way in, and a bit of the evening of the 8th day, so anything local is great too.

    We like a mix of (moderate) outdoorsy things, cultural/historic things, nice city things, etc. We definitely at least one day at the beach (preferably with a nice restaurant nearby) and are taking advice about where to do so. We will have a rental car beginning on Day 2 or 3, and would love to explore as much of the North Island as we can!

    Any "can't misses"? Any local/regional museums or zoos/aquaria that are exceptional? We are absolutely willing to drive even as far south as Wellington, but prefer more days of smaller driving, so we don't just have a full day of driving in the middle there.

    Much appreciated!

    14 votes

  17. Comment on Vegetarians only: Dietary surveillance prevents Muslim citizens in India from finding secure homes in ~life

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    White Anglo- Saxon Protestant

    White
    Anglo-
    Saxon
    Protestant

    6 votes

  18. Comment on How makers of nonconsensual AI porn make a living on Patreon in ~tech

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    The problem is that the market is the strongest form of the "independent creator" model that I think has evidence, and you are taking the strongest position of the bunch that Patreon is in no way...

    The problem is that the market is the strongest form of the "independent creator" model that I think has evidence, and you are taking the strongest position of the bunch that Patreon is in no way responsible for anything on their platform...I am not convinced. It seems to me that they are selling some hybrid situation, as so often happens online, and that the analog analogue (couldn't resist) is not a perfect replacement scenario. Indeed, if there was a market that had a regular subset of vendors that sold things like drugs or unmarked weapons or fake IDs, it would likely be immediately actionable, because such endeavors have some limited liability for ensuring compliance with laws. This situation is more difficult still because the predatory Patreons are victimizing people in a space that is poorly defined - AI manipulation of sexual representation. There is a likely strong First Amendment (in the US) argument that it could be protected, which must be balanced against rights to privacy and self-identity/bodily autonomy...and all of it online and thus not simply a physical location.

    I think it's more complicated than you give credit.

    1 vote

  19. Comment on How makers of nonconsensual AI porn make a living on Patreon in ~tech

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Gotta say, I didn't think about it that way, but it's technically within what I said, well done xD I included the "profit from the work" because technically Patreon creators don't work for the...

    own stock

    Gotta say, I didn't think about it that way, but it's technically within what I said, well done xD

    I included the "profit from the work" because technically Patreon creators don't work for the company, but they do make profit, as you noted.

    I don't agree with you that the creators are also customers... Even if we agree that they are not formal employees, they fall into some nebulous independent contractor or contracted supplier role that doesn't really exist in the physical world, but there are analogies. The creators are providing a resource of great value that the company then sells. Even under the most limited scenario I can support, where Patreon is only a store that only sells goods on behalf of others, they have liability. If the store sells faulty items because of a lack of due diligence, they can still be liable.

    I don't know if I agree with all the discussion by Weldawadyathink, but I wanted to clarify, as I saw it, the point they were making.

    1 vote

  20. Comment on How makers of nonconsensual AI porn make a living on Patreon in ~tech

    atchemey
    Link Parent
    Starbucks doesn't require a background check to shop there. They do require a background check to work or profit from work there.

    Starbucks doesn't require a background check to shop there.

    They do require a background check to work or profit from work there.

    1 vote