Trapped in Iran
7
votes
nsa's recent activity
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Comment on Global condemnation of 'appalling' coup in Bolivia as military forces socialist president Evo Morales to resign in ~news
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Comment on In defence of America’s prison-industrial complex in ~life
nsa LinkThe link goes to the beta site because it is way better than the old one. If you're blocked by the paywall, click here. While the title's argument is inflammatory, I think the article makes some...The link goes to the beta site because it is way better than the old one. If you're blocked by the paywall, click here.
While the title's argument is inflammatory, I think the article makes some good points that abolishing private prisons won't fix the greater issue, and that, as with all industries, increased competition and regulation could reign in the worst instincts of the private prison industry.
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In defence of America’s prison-industrial complex
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Comment on If we have to choose between compromise and genocide, we will choose our people (Op-ed by commander-in-chief of the Kurds) in ~society
nsa LinkIf the paywall is giving you trouble (its soft so it probably won't), you can open the article in Firefox's reader mode.If the paywall is giving you trouble (its soft so it probably won't), you can open the article in Firefox's reader mode.
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If we have to choose between compromise and genocide, we will choose our people (Op-ed by commander-in-chief of the Kurds)
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Comment on Please recommend me a Linux distribution that is super-stable and never make me install again, but at the same time allows me to have some newer packages with ease (xpost /r/FindMeADistro) in ~comp
nsa Link ParentI mainly use Fedora but I've used Solus. size/age - There was a whole debacle last year when the lead dev basically disappeared (later confirmed he was fine) and they lost control of the...I mainly use Fedora but I've used Solus.
size/age -
There was a whole debacle last year when the lead dev basically disappeared (later confirmed he was fine) and they lost control of the servers/git repos/patreon, and the current devs seem committed to making sure that can't happen again. In some ways the small userbase is an advantage. If you ask a question on the forum, there's a pretty good chance one of the main developers will answer you.packages -
The devs have been pretty clear both that their repo is opinionated (they only want one good application for each purpose) and that users are welcome to suggest a package for addition to the repo. Outside of that, there's support for Flatpak and Snap packages. -
Comment on Please recommend me a Linux distribution that is super-stable and never make me install again, but at the same time allows me to have some newer packages with ease (xpost /r/FindMeADistro) in ~comp
nsa Link ParentThere's always Flatpak - Flathub.org has many popular apps.a few newer packages
There's always Flatpak - Flathub.org has many popular apps.
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Comment on ThinkProgress, a Top Progressive News Site, Has Shut Down in ~news
nsa LinkI never read it but its a shame to lose a credible news source. Although I'd really love to see the end of "conservative" and "progressive" news sites. People with different political opinions...I never read it but its a shame to lose a credible news source. Although I'd really love to see the end of "conservative" and "progressive" news sites. People with different political opinions can't have different facts as they seem to do now.
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Comment on ProtonMail and Huawei: A relationship made in privacy hell in ~tech
nsa Link ParentWasn't there another spying-thing fiasco as well sometime after that? Maybe with Huawei?Wasn't there another spying-thing fiasco as well sometime after that? Maybe with Huawei?
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~health
nsa LinkLike everybody, I never actually read terms of service, but before getting a Fitbit I poured over that document to make sure they weren't going to sell my data to anyone.Like everybody, I never actually read terms of service, but before getting a Fitbit I poured over that document to make sure they weren't going to sell my data to anyone.
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Comment on Reddit is moving to a twitter-like public follower system in ~tech
nsa LinkI actually like this change. It was kind of disconcerting before to see that someone had followed you with no way to stop it or see who they are. There needs to be a way to disable this as well...I actually like this change. It was kind of disconcerting before to see that someone had followed you with no way to stop it or see who they are. There needs to be a way to disable this as well though.
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Comment on Give political power to ordinary people: To fight elite capture of the state, it’s time to consider sortition, or the assignment of political power through lotteries in ~society
nsa Link ParentGood point. However, for a government to function best we need technocrats who have experience. And, despite voters sometimes being swayed by populists with limited understanding of how to govern...It's a common concern, however I'll offer one of the same counterpoints that they make in the article: we currently already do something very similar with trial juries. While that system certainly isn't perfect, it does not appear to suffer from the potential issues you've pointed out, at least not at a systemic level.
Good point. However, for a government to function best we need technocrats who have experience. And, despite voters sometimes being swayed by populists with limited understanding of how to govern properly, voting is a better check. As I said, a hybrid system could work.
I'm curious if you're using "elites" here as synonymous with "expert"? I usually interpret the usage of it as "people who are more interested in power than competency".
I'm using it just basically to refer to the political establishment, anyone who isn't an outsider/populist. I was continuing the terminology from many who are feeling marginalized by politicians they perceive to be elite and thus want radical change to remove them from power when, IMO, the system needs reform (like campaign finance & increased economic mobility) but works pretty well.
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Comment on Give political power to ordinary people: To fight elite capture of the state, it’s time to consider sortition, or the assignment of political power through lotteries in ~society
nsa LinkHonestly I'm pretty fine with elites as long as, of course, we are able to choose which one we want and our chosen elite isn't going to undo democracy. it sucks, but it sucks the least. Giving...Honestly I'm pretty fine with elites as long as, of course, we are able to choose which one we want and our chosen elite isn't going to undo democracy. it sucks, but it sucks the least. Giving political power to regular people through a lottery would likely lead to totally unqualified, malevolent, or obviously corrupt politicians. This sounds a bit like some of our current politicians, but at least we can vote against them.
I think the only way something like this could work is to create an additional legislative branch that selects its members in a lottery or even replace the House of Representatives with it. After all, the House was designed to be a more dynamic branch checked by the senate.
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Should political parties really let anyone run for president?
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Comment on Proposals for new groups - July 2019 in ~tildes.official
nsa Link~Money Covering a wide range of topics from personal finance to entrepreneurship to economics. Some examples could be the earnings of a large corporation, the IMF's economic outlook for Latin...~Money
Covering a wide range of topics from personal finance to entrepreneurship to economics.
Some examples could be the earnings of a large corporation, the IMF's economic outlook for Latin America, and personal finance questions like, well, basically r/personalfinance~Policy
For discussing and debating politics/geopolitics in a friendly way and with a focus on facts.
- Question: What are some downsides of countercyclical government spending?
- Effortpost (either OC on tildes or linking to another website): Why we should let North Korea keep its nukes
Everything could probably be merged back into a related group. Healthcare posts could go to ~health, for example. Anything else would return to ~misc.
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Comment on US Senate intelligence committee unveils election security report in wake of Mueller hearings in ~news
nsa LinkI love The Verge, but it's probably not the best source for stuff like this. Here are a few other articles (non-paywalled and from reliable sources):...I love The Verge, but it's probably not the best source for stuff like this. Here are a few other articles (non-paywalled and from reliable sources):
- https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/senate-report-all-50-states-were-targeted-by-russian-interference-ahead-of-2016-elections
- https://www.npr.org/2019/07/25/745205135/senate-intel-committee-unveils-election-security-report-in-wake-of-mueller-day
- https://www.apnews.com/e8a907c09e24427c968f8e569ff3ddbc
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Comment on Mother upset after son kicked out of class over pledge of allegiance in ~news
nsa Link ParentYou would think she would have had respect for freedom of speech though, though I see how this could have appeared ungrateful.You would think she would have had respect for freedom of speech though, though I see how this could have appeared ungrateful.
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Comment on How do you get your news? in ~news
nsa (edited )LinkAlways Read Every morning I get three digest emails: The Guardian, Reuters, and Economist Espresso. I always read Espresso, and try to get to the others. I also have a subscription to The...Always Read
Every morning I get three digest emails: The Guardian, Reuters, and Economist Espresso. I always read Espresso, and try to get to the others. I also have a subscription to The Economist (weekly).
Sometimes Read
Other than that, I sometimes look at BBC, NPR, PBS, The Conversation, The Diplomat, Vox, and The Week. For opinion/analysis, I go to think tanks, The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, as well as the aforementioned Economist. Reuters, The Guardian, and ProPublica do good investigative journalism.
Tech
I get Ars's Rocket Report every week and The Verge's daily email.
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Comment on Quality news sources in ~news
nsa Link ParentSo I'm really late to the party, but... https://www.wikinews.org/So I'm really late to the party, but... https://www.wikinews.org/
I'm happy he's stepped down, but this is a very delicate situation. This could very easily go way worse; while coups aren't always bad (see Sudan) and in theory are the last line of defense against authoritarianism, they have a habit of becoming military dictatorships, especially in Latin America where the military had wielded outsized political influence for decades. The military needs to stay out of the situation from now on and let the Congress and other state agencies arrange free and fair elections.