Google is forcing me to dump a perfectly good phone
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hungariantoast's recent activity
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Everything must be paid for twice
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Nvidia quietly prepares to abandon $40 billion Arm bid
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Comment on Popular subreddit r/antiwork goes private after Fox interview in ~tech
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Comment on Popular subreddit r/antiwork goes private after Fox interview in ~tech
hungariantoast (edited )Link ParentI don't really know how else to say it: the choice between working a job you hate or being homeless is a coercive one. I think you and I can agree that no person deserves to go without water,...People don't have to drink water. No one literally shoves a tube down your throat and forces you to guzzle until you are satiated. You choose to drink water, because you want to be hydrated and not die.
You could just not drink water, become dehydrated, and die, but dying tends to suck, so drinking water is the better option; ie; it's in your best interests.
I don't really know how else to say it: the choice between working a job you hate or being homeless is a coercive one.
I think you and I can agree that no person deserves to go without water, without food, or without shelter, all of which are necessities for life. Can we also agree a person should not be forced to work a job in order for their basic necessities to be met?
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Comment on Popular subreddit r/antiwork goes private after Fox interview in ~tech
hungariantoast (edited )Link ParentWriting like that, for me at least, undermines any sense of genuine curiosity in the rest of your comment. If you have a point to make, make it. If you have a question to ask, ask it. Please don't...- Exemplary
Whenever the topic of work reform comes up I feel like this is the elephant in the room. I'm not making a complicated argument here, but I have yet to hear someone in the anti-work position offer a compelling, non-handwavey response about the important work that no one is intrinsically motivated to do.
Writing like that, for me at least, undermines any sense of genuine curiosity in the rest of your comment. If you have a point to make, make it. If you have a question to ask, ask it. Please don't handwave at me about how other "anti-work people" have failed to live up to your expectations. At least give me a fair chance to respond to your questions first.
In the current popular model of capitalism, if we ignore coercion for a second, people are incentivized to work jobs by, as you said, profit. Perhaps you have heard the saying "oil trash with oil cash"?
There's no reason, in a capitalist system with work reform or universal basic income, or even in a non-capitalist system, that there would no longer be incentives for people to do things they otherwise might not be interested in.
The difference is that people will not feel coerced into doing jobs they don't want to do, out of threat of starvation or poverty.
So in a country with universal basic income, someone might be incentivized to be a dishwasher at a restaurant, a job I know from personal experience is not very fun, because it will earn them a little bit of extra money.
Someone like my friend's father, might be incentivized to step into a paper mill boiler every day and use an actuating hammer to pound off layers of contaminants while dressed in protective clothing with giant headphones on his head, because it pays enough money to send both his kids to college debt free.
So this is my answer: regardless of whether it's through a capitalist system or not, in an "anti-work world" the nasty jobs people normally won't want to do will still get done because there will be incentives, not coercion, that convinces people to do them.
If you actually want to learn more about anti-work ideas, some excellent places to start:
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Comment on Popular subreddit r/antiwork goes private after Fox interview in ~tech
hungariantoast (edited )Link ParentI wouldn't have time to give this a detailed answer until later today, so I will just say that goods and services don't exist because of any specific economic framework. Fundamentally, with and...I wouldn't have time to give this a detailed answer until later today, so I will just say that goods and services don't exist because of any specific economic framework.
Fundamentally, with and without capitalism, "anti-work" means to me that everyone can essentially be "self employed" and do the labor they want to do, because they want to do it, and not be coerced into working some job because it is necessary for them to afford to purchase basic necessities like water, food, and shelter.
So goods and services still exist, they would just ideally be made or performed by people who wanted to do so.
Ideas like universal basic income are interesting. It seems like a useful and perhaps practical way to let anyone do the work they want (or no work at all), and survive with at least their basic needs fulfilled, without immediately upending capitalism.
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Comment on Popular subreddit r/antiwork goes private after Fox interview in ~tech
hungariantoast (edited )Link ParentThe subreddit was originally about being literally anti-work, disbelieving in and undermining the necessity to have a job in order to survive, to be coerced into a hierarchical job system that...The subreddit was originally about being literally anti-work, disbelieving in and undermining the necessity to have a job in order to survive, to be coerced into a hierarchical job system that makes you subservient to bosses. It's a pretty common idea in left-wing politics.
However, over time and with rising popularity, the overall vibe of the subreddit changed more towards "work reform" than anti-work. I think that's unfortunate, because while "work reform" is certainly good and desperately needed globally, it is inadequate. The ultimate goal should not be "less terrible work", it should be no work at all.
I guess that the subreddit got millions of people thinking about the current global problems with work is a win at least.
/r/antiwork is actually a great example of how radical ideas become diluted as they get more popular, but nonetheless at least still carry some benefit, even as the aspirations of the idea become "softer".
Personally I think /r/antiwork was an overall good thing, and if a more liberal subreddit and idea replaces it but still pushes the idea of work reform, then that's still a win. I personally remain as someone who is literally anti-work though, both within and without a capitalist system.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
hungariantoast Link ParentThat would be Salvage Beacons by kinggath, who is also the author of the Sim Settlements mods that make the settlement system so much more important, fun, and as simple or complex as you want it...That would be Salvage Beacons by kinggath, who is also the author of the Sim Settlements mods that make the settlement system so much more important, fun, and as simple or complex as you want it to be.
If you hate the settlement system in Fallout 4, install Sim Settlements.
If you love the settlement system in Fallout 4, install Sim Settlements.
If you're going to play Fallout 4, install Sim Settlements.
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Python: Please stop screwing over Linux distros
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Comment on Animal Crossing is a decentralized federated social network in ~tech
hungariantoast LinkJust a warning: the author is a TERF and posts content like that to their blog. That's why the topic points to an archived version of the blog post and not the actual blog. The blog post itself is...Just a warning: the author is a TERF and posts content like that to their blog. That's why the topic points to an archived version of the blog post and not the actual blog.
The blog post itself is benign though
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Animal Crossing is a decentralized federated social network
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Comment on FEMA experiences ‘mass exit’ of employees amid surge in disasters in ~enviro
hungariantoast Link ParentAnd just to expand on this... If I came up to a house with a Ring camera, I was not going to get any information. If they were even going to answer the door, they were going to tell me,...It also taught me to fucking hate Ring cameras
And just to expand on this...
If I came up to a house with a Ring camera, I was not going to get any information. If they were even going to answer the door, they were going to tell me, essentially, to fuck off.
Twice was I able to complete an interview for a house with a Ring camera, via the actual inhabitants of the house.
(The usual procedure, if the respondent was not home or would not answer, would be to try to get the information of the household from one of their neighbors. This was a lot easier than you might think. Neighbors talk.)
Anyways, I remember those Ring camera interviews very well. The first one I completed was my first day of working, and I had absolutely no clue that those cameras have microphones and speakers and you can actually talk to people on them like an intercom. That was an interesting day for me.
Unfortunately, both of these people were pretty rude. They acted like I was wasting their oh-so precious time. They both eventually refused to continue answering questions, and all the answers they gave were laced with sarcasm and other remarks.
I was able to get a little bit of satisfaction out of the second interview though. The algorithm really wanted the info on this house for some reason, so I was sent there several days in a row, and finally, after being told to go away in a variety of ways, I guess the guy realized we were not going to stop showing up to his house. That didn't stop him from being a bit of a twat when answering questions, but the defeated vibe he gave off at least made me feel good.
It was only at about the last two weeks of enumeration, during the "zero fucks given" stage, when we were desperate to meet our deadline and literally just wanted to know how many people lived in each home, that I unlocked the secret of getting answers from houses with Ring cameras:
Just knock on the door. Fuck the little camera and it's little doorbell button. Put your thumb over that bitch and knock on that hard wooden door the way god intended. Most of them are too cowardly to not answer. Then, once they smell your desperation, they'll probably give you a headcount so you won't come back tomorrow.
Half-jokes aside, Ring cameras only serve to further increase passive surveillance and drive isolationist and untrustworthy feelings in our neighborhoods. They're an example of technology damaging the very fabric of a community.
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Comment on FEMA experiences ‘mass exit’ of employees amid surge in disasters in ~enviro
hungariantoast Link ParentHaha, no, there was no such clause as far as I know. It was pretty rare, until near the end of the census, to get enough cases to actually pull overtime, if you were just doing the regular "door...Haha, no, there was no such clause as far as I know.
It was pretty rare, until near the end of the census, to get enough cases to actually pull overtime, if you were just doing the regular "door knocking" enumeration. (At least in my area.) It was a lot easier to get overtime if you volunteered to do crowd enumeration for homeless people, or were travelling into some extremely remote areas.
Near the end though, we were allowed essentially unlimited overtime, which paid 1.5 times the normal rate for every hour worked over forty hours. I put in some sixty-hour and eighty-hour weeks near the end, which looked great in my checking account.
Honestly? It was a fun job, it paid very well, and it was not too difficult. I got to get out and explore my local area, meet a bunch of people, and very rarely encountered anyone I would describe as rude or antagonistic. (It also taught me to fucking hate Ring cameras.)
Despite happening during a pandemic, the job was relatively safe. Only a few times did I ever need to enter a person's home, so it was easy to social distance and not risk exposure. We were also issued some very nice masks and the most "no-bullshit" hand sanitizer I have ever encountered.
It was a bit silly to conduct a census during a pandemic, because even if we ignore the health and safety issues, there was (is) a lot of churn happening in the country, but it's also not like the government had a choice. A very important piece of paper from 250 years ago told them they have to do it.
Seriously though, probably my favorite job ever, pretty much the only one I can actually feel good about having done. I will probably do it again (though maybe as a supervisor) in 2030.
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Comment on FEMA experiences ‘mass exit’ of employees amid surge in disasters in ~enviro
hungariantoast Link ParentThat sounds accurate. That's about the rate I was paid as an enumerator for the 2020 census with zero prior experienceIf you don't have the exceptionally specialized experience, they'll pay 60k for the same
That sounds accurate. That's about the rate I was paid as an enumerator for the 2020 census with zero prior experience
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Comment on FEMA experiences ‘mass exit’ of employees amid surge in disasters in ~enviro
hungariantoast LinkHonestly, they should just pay reservists even when they're not deployed. Even if it was literally just the old federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, and you only got paid twenty hours worth a...Honestly, they should just pay reservists even when they're not deployed. Even if it was literally just the old federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, and you only got paid twenty hours worth a week, that'd still be plenty incentive to sustain a very large pool of reservists.
For 10,000 reservists, which is considerably more than they employ now, that would cost the federal government $81,200,000 a year. That's $7.25 an hour, twenty hours a week, twenty-eight payments a year.
Then, when they deploy, pay them at least $25 an hour like they did with census enumerators in 2020.
And if someone refuses to deploy? Terminate their eligibility for any future federal jobs. You could even put them on the IRS' shitlist so they get audited every year, and garnish their wages until they pay back half of what they took as a reservist.
Of course, if you were in the hospital, in jail, there was a recent death in the family, or had some other legitimate reason for not deploying, then that should obviously earn you an exemption.
Yeah, I reckon they'd have more applications for reserve positions than they knew what to do with.
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Comment on Police in this tiny Alabama town suck drivers into legal ‘black hole’ in ~life
hungariantoast LinkFirst and foremost: all cops are bastards Second, there really should be some federally-imposed limit on how much revenue a city or territory can collect as a result of "police work", and any...First and foremost: all cops are bastards
Second, there really should be some federally-imposed limit on how much revenue a city or territory can collect as a result of "police work", and any amount over that limit should be funneled up to the federal government.
And I say it should go to the federal government specifically, because it would probably be such an insignificant amount at that scale that it would not create incentives, compared to if it went to the state government.
Unfortunately that's probably not possible to implement in our deeply flawed federal system.
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Comment on What if phones were actually designed for hands? in ~design
hungariantoast Link ParentYeah, I have been considering going back to an iPhone in the future, but the price and lack of USB-C still annoy me. My current Android phone cost me $200 in 2020. Before that, I owned a Nexus 5X,...Yeah, I have been considering going back to an iPhone in the future, but the price and lack of USB-C still annoy me.
My current Android phone cost me $200 in 2020. Before that, I owned a Nexus 5X, so it was quite an upgrade for me. The display is the same resolution as the iPhone 13, it has a hole-punch camera instead of a notch, and USB-C of course. Sure, it doesn't perform as well as an iPhone, but I don't use my phone for anything intensive anyway. Also, the battery is huge, and will last four days with normal usage.
However, despite how much I like my current phone's hardware, it is not supported by LineageOS, and only received one major Android version update (to Android 11) and will not receive another. So unless I learn how to update and build LineageOS for my current phone, I no longer even get security updates.
I really fucking hate the smartphone duopoly. Both operating systems suck in their own major ways. Android's hardware support is abysmal. For a world so apparently concerned with climate change, waste, and recycling, that we tolerate such pervasive and artificial obsolescence is damning. Apple, on the other hand, should have long ago been forced to allow third-party app stores on iOS.
I hate the smartphone duopoly so much I have taken every reasonable step to minimize my interaction with, and reliance on, my phone. As a result, I really just need something that's cheap, works well enough with my carrier, and can manage a few basic functions. But I want updates! I want a reasonable measure of privacy and security!
Android cannot, and I guess never will, offer that. So an iPhone is my new best option for my new set of wants and needs.
I don't know when I will make the switch. I really don't want to spend a lot of money, which leaves me either buying used phones with questionable battery capacities, or getting a new iPhone SE.
Yet, the SE's design is so dated. It is a hilariously bad phone for a hilariously high price. Apple tax indeed.
Like I mentioned in my other comment, there are rumors of a redesign in 2023. I'm hopeful, I guess. The iPhone 14 also seems to be losing the notch and going for a hole-punch design, but I really don't want to spend that much money on a phone.
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Comment on What if phones were actually designed for hands? in ~design
hungariantoast Link ParentYeah, the first link I clicked on when I searched "iPhone mini sales" says the iPhone 12 mini sold about as many units as the iPhone SE. It cost $100 less than the regular iPhone, but $200 more...Yeah, the first link I clicked on when I searched "iPhone mini sales" says the iPhone 12 mini sold about as many units as the iPhone SE.
It cost $100 less than the regular iPhone, but $200 more than the iPhone SE. It was also released one month after the regular iPhone.
While I like the concept and size of the iPhone mini, I would not be surprised at all if the iPhone 14 does not have a mini version, and then there's the rumor of the iPhone SE redesign coming in 2023.
Honestly, the mini is just in a weird spot in the lineup. It gets its lunch eaten by the models directly above and below it because of that.
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Comment on Looking for any guidance for a near future purchase in ~tech
hungariantoast Link ParentHm well in that case, Android sure has changed a bunch since the last time you owned one. However, for just getting around the States, Google Maps is all you need for the vast majority of...Hm well in that case, Android sure has changed a bunch since the last time you owned one.
However, for just getting around the States, Google Maps is all you need for the vast majority of destinations. Like @Weldawadyathink explained, pretty much any smartphone made in the last ten years can use GPS.
Please keep in mind that, while the availability of jobs grows and shrinks at various times, the ability to go unemployed for more than a few weeks is out of reach for most people.
Now you might think "well those people should just budget better and live below their means" and sure, that's not terrible financial advice. However, it ignores the reality that for most people, wages are still too low, rent is still too high, college is still too expensive and almost always requires taking on debt, etc.
No amount of budgeting or living below their means is going to enable people to go weeks without a job, potentially upending their lives, and damaging their future financial prospects for years to come.
So, the constant need to be employed, to be making money, means that people cannot spend as much time looking for jobs when they are unemployed. It means they cannot be as selective about the job they want to work. It means they are more subservient to their boss, who could fire them at any time.
Also, as of 2016, 7.43% of the United States lived in a food desert. That's 24,000,000 people. If they were a state today, they would be the third most populous state, just ahead of Florida and just behind Texas.
Food deserts are a significant issue for the United States no matter how you measure it. An issue for social justice. An issue for public health. An issue for the economy.