bkimmel's recent activity
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Comment on Who are your favorite actors? in ~movies
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Comment on Musings on our current system in ~society
bkimmel LinkThe best system was "You live in a large Capitalist nation with other large communist nations around." Billionaires behaved better with the threat of being convicted in a Worker's Tribunal and...The best system was "You live in a large Capitalist nation with other large communist nations around."
Billionaires behaved better with the threat of being convicted in a Worker's Tribunal and being sent off to a gulag. I miss the Soviet Union.
(From the outside though. I would never want to live in a socialist country until there's some evidence that they can exist on a large scale without becoming enormous brutal prisons.)
I'm not sure I ascribe most of the brutality in the world to capitalism, per se. Current conflicts (Gaza/Ukraine, which are contained locally for the most part) notwithstanding, the current era of capitalism (since the fall of the Berlin wall, generally) has largely been the most peaceful (in terms of outright famine and war) and prosperous in recorded history.
It kind of begs the question "which era would you have preferred to live in where despotic committees or some other hereditary mechanism instead of collective demand determined the prices of things"? Because there were plenty of those: people died at 28 and made very little "human progress" for centuries.
Which, again, is not to say that we should ignore the suffering of "marginal" populations (especially refugees) but we should be honest about what is causing their plight and I'm not sure it's necessarily "capitalism".
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Comment on Anyone using Meshtastic/LoRA radio? in ~hobbies
bkimmel Link ParentI watched a bunch of YouTube videos about it. Try "Jeff Geerling Meshtastic" - to see a good rundown of devices and setting them up. It's pretty easy, on the basic level. To just get a node and...I watched a bunch of YouTube videos about it. Try "Jeff Geerling Meshtastic" - to see a good rundown of devices and setting them up. It's pretty easy, on the basic level. To just get a node and set it up is about 15ish dollars, maybe cheaper if you can get it off AliExpress.
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Comment on Anyone using Meshtastic/LoRA radio? in ~hobbies
bkimmel Link ParentI think the things that keep HAM contained to a degree are "licensing" and "no encryption / private conversations". LoRA solves both of those problem. I think it's possible that the following...I think the things that keep HAM contained to a degree are "licensing" and "no encryption / private conversations". LoRA solves both of those problem. I think it's possible that the following factors are all converging in a way that might lead to Mesh/LoRA having a "tipping point" moment in the near future:
- Consumer-friendly devices finally hitting the shelf. Like you said, a lot of HAM radio ends up being about the equipment/gear. There is still a lot of "DIY"-ness to Meshtastic, but that's changing with the new generation of standalones/handhelds like the T-Deck. Jeff Geerling covers this on his Youtube channel ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ry-ck0fhfw ).
- I don't want to support Musk and Zuckerberg's temple of enshittification anymore than I absolutely need to anymore and I bet a lot of other people feel the same way. We're a long way off from the point where LoRA can replace internet communication - especially for things like video, but modern usage of the internet started off with ASCII messages on BBS systems and grew from there so who knows?
- A corollary to "the internet is now irredeemable" is "what to do with kids?". My kid is getting to the age where he will want a way to communicate with his friends - maybe with Meshtastic I could make him a cool way to stay in touch with his friends/parents but keep those conversations safe from Musk/et.al. Wishful thinking, perhaps but I know a lot of parents with the exact same concerns and it's not that far-fetched.
I think there's some other things going for it too, and besides that it's just fun.
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Comment on Anyone using Meshtastic/LoRA radio? in ~hobbies
bkimmel Link ParentI did that too, I think! I "forgot" the Bluetooth device on my phone and it won't let me reconnect. It's early days for this stuff - a lot of the equipment/ui has sharp edges still.I did that too, I think! I "forgot" the Bluetooth device on my phone and it won't let me reconnect. It's early days for this stuff - a lot of the equipment/ui has sharp edges still.
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Anyone using Meshtastic/LoRA radio?
Just wondering if any other tildan electronics/radio hobbyists are playing around with Meshtastic. I got my first two nodes (right under the wire before the tariffs!) and set them up last weekend....
Just wondering if any other tildan electronics/radio hobbyists are playing around with Meshtastic. I got my first two nodes (right under the wire before the tariffs!) and set them up last weekend.
I got my first response today on the public channel from someone else a couple hops away and it honestly feels like 1993 again with that "can anyone read this?"-vibe the first time I posted on a BBS. The more I see how the internet becomes hostile to humans, the more I think something "human community-based" like this is the inevitable future.
Is anyone else on the Mesh yet? Are there a lot of nodes in your community? What do you think Meshtastic will amount to?
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Comment on Is the United States in its Soviet Union era? in ~society
bkimmel Link ParentProof: https://tildes.net/~society/1djn/the_poverty_of_anti_wokeness#comment-bri9 -
Comment on Is the United States in its Soviet Union era? in ~society
bkimmel LinkOMG I am so happy to hear someone else say this. My wife is sick of me pointing at everything over the last 5 or 6 years and shouting "Look! It's late-stage Soviet Union!!!" ad nauseum. Once you...OMG I am so happy to hear someone else say this. My wife is sick of me pointing at everything over the last 5 or 6 years and shouting "Look! It's late-stage Soviet Union!!!" ad nauseum. Once you see it, you can't unsee it. Thank you for making me feel less alone in this.
I've tried to find good books about the end of the SU, haven't really found any I'm really happy with yet.
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Comment on The Democratic National Committee should move HQ to Youngstown, Ohio in ~society
bkimmel Link ParentBut to drive the point home, Traficant was also the most adept populist politicians of the last century outside of perhaps Trump. He was emblematic of "knowing how to speak to people". When I...But to drive the point home, Traficant was also the most adept populist politicians of the last century outside of perhaps Trump. He was emblematic of "knowing how to speak to people". When I worked on Capitol Hill, you know what I saw? Pictures of Jim Traficant everywhere in places where people worked: hole-in-the-wall Greek restaurants, barber shops and places like that. Years after he had been kicked out of Congress, his picture was still up in these places, because the people who worked there loved him.
Just imagine.
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Comment on Analysis - how to effectively oppose Kash Patel nomination and some of Donald Trump's most egregious lies in ~society
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The Democratic National Committee should move HQ to Youngstown, Ohio
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Comment on Should I stay or should I go now? in ~lgbt
bkimmel Link ParentRegarding the "midterm backlash" - that typically happens to the president's party, but I'm less certain of that happening this time. The DOGE policies they are pursuing will be absolutely...Regarding the "midterm backlash" - that typically happens to the president's party, but I'm less certain of that happening this time. The DOGE policies they are pursuing will be absolutely terrible for trying to live safely in the U.S. over the longer term (say 8 - 10 years) but over the short/medium term they could unlock a wave of "real economy" hypergrowth that reinforces the reason a lot of voters turned out for them. If course, the tariffs could lead to a complete economic collapse so :shrug .
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Comment on What’s something that you weren’t supposed to see/hear, but did? in ~talk
bkimmel Link ParentMilitary time is even slightly different from the way the rest of the world reads time, I think. For example "7:00" would be read as "seven o'clock" in a normal 24-hour system, but it would be...Military time is even slightly different from the way the rest of the world reads time, I think. For example "7:00" would be read as "seven o'clock" in a normal 24-hour system, but it would be read as "zero seven-hundred" in military time. I think it's done that way to minimize the opportunities for misperceptions like the NATO Phonetic Alphabet ("alpha hotel foxtrot niner").
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Comment on What are your Christmas movies? in ~movies
bkimmel (edited )LinkThere's a lot of favorites that I try to watch every Christmas: Scrooged, Charlie Brown, Grinch, the Rudolph claymation... But among all of them, the one that is the "most Christmas" for me is A...There's a lot of favorites that I try to watch every Christmas: Scrooged, Charlie Brown, Grinch, the Rudolph claymation...
But among all of them, the one that is the "most Christmas" for me is A Christmas Story. It's just such a great story on so many levels: every character has their own struggles and their own arc.
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Comment on Daniel Penny jury deadlocked on manslaughter charge in subway chokehold case in ~news
bkimmel Link ParentTo me it seems "tragic" but if I'm being stoically honest with myself, if it was my wife with the baby stroller that Neely was menacing I'd want someone to do something like what Penny did there....To me it seems "tragic" but if I'm being stoically honest with myself, if it was my wife with the baby stroller that Neely was menacing I'd want someone to do something like what Penny did there. He didn't step onto that train looking for a fight. If there was some element of pre-meditated vigilantism there, I'd say throw the book at him. He responded to a life-and-death situation someone else precipitated.
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Comment on Favorite "A Christmas Carol" adaptation? in ~movies
bkimmel LinkScrooged, for sure. It holds up even 40 years later, it certainly has to be remembered as one of the most "Bill Murray" performances of Bill Murray.Scrooged, for sure. It holds up even 40 years later, it certainly has to be remembered as one of the most "Bill Murray" performances of Bill Murray.
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Comment on I think I've failed the United States in ~society
bkimmel Link ParentI think the point is spot-on though: "You either hate losing enough to change or hate change enough to keep losing" Part of (I think) OP's point is that saying things like "they can retrain and...I think the point is spot-on though:
"You either hate losing enough to change or hate change enough to keep losing"
Part of (I think) OP's point is that saying things like "they can retrain and find other jobs", "coal mining is never coming back anyways", "immigrants can do those jobs now" and things like that in their local conversations creates the national lens that a lot of people perceive political messaging through. Would you trust someone who said those things about you or your industry/job?
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Comment on Thoughts on a Democratic postmortem in ~society
bkimmel LinkSome of that is true / on the mark. Here's the thing: It's a flat circle. Democrats are good at politics when (and only when) they finally get sick of losing. When they say "we've been in the...Some of that is true / on the mark. Here's the thing:
It's a flat circle. Democrats are good at politics when (and only when) they finally get sick of losing. When they say "we've been in the wilderness long enough, we want to win, and we're willing to make some sacrifices, ignore litmus tests on some of our pet issues, and put up with some people we really don't like that much but are good at winning".
Take, for example 2004: Lost everything -- House, Senate and "W" in the White House. Cue the stories about how "the Democratic party is finished. It will never win another election.". Rahm Emanuel shows up and takes over as chair of the DCCC. Some people on the left grouse a little bit, but everyone is so sick of losing they're willing to let him do what he has to do. He recruits people like Heath Schuler - who is no one's idea of a "model progressive" but holy shit! he wins his district! ... and so do a bunch of other Rahm's "less than progressive ideal" hand-picked candidates. Result: The first woman Speaker of the House takes the gavel after the 2006 election.
The real question is "are you sick enough of losing yet that you're willing to stomach a Heath Shuler"? It's a real fucking "Marshmallow Test" because he's going to do things you find odious: like "opposing abortion rights, same-sex marriage and gun control". But he's also going to vote for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker, which allows Democrats to control the legislative agenda. Because whatever Republican gets that (PVI R+7) seat ends up "opposing abortion rights, same-sex marriage and gun control" and also keeps the gavel out of Pelosi's hands (who will do more than anyone else to support "abortion rights, same-sex marriage and gun control" effectively).
Just like that: in less than 1 election cycle, the Democrats go from "Doomed! Disband the party!" to "Unstoppable force that elects the first black president."
It can happen again, some critical mass in the party just has to decide they hate losing more than they hate Rahm Emanuel and Heath Schuler.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
bkimmel Link ParentMe too! I just started reading Eye of The World and I'm about 3/4 through it. One thing that's on my mind is that I like it, but I'm kinda asking myself "Do I like this enough to commit to all 15...Me too! I just started reading Eye of The World and I'm about 3/4 through it. One thing that's on my mind is that I like it, but I'm kinda asking myself "Do I like this enough to commit to all 15 (or whatever) books?"
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Comment on Elections: ultimately, it’s going to be okay in ~society
bkimmel LinkWhen I worked in politics, there was a quiet observation that was often shared by the grizzled veteran staffers: It was almost always better to lose your first campaign. It centers you and gives...When I worked in politics, there was a quiet observation that was often shared by the grizzled veteran staffers: It was almost always better to lose your first campaign. It centers you and gives you the 1000-yard stare you need to win in a way that almost no other experience can.
Steve Buscemi in pretty much everything, but Big Lebowski and Death of Stalin stand out IMHO.
Neil Patrick Harris Starship Troopers, HIMYM, Dr. Horrible, just great at bringing quirky/dark comedy characters to life.
Patrick Stewart Picard. Probably had more effect on me / my self image than any other actor.