pallas's recent activity
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Comment on Donald Trump Department of Justice is looking at ways to ban transgender Americans from owning guns, sources say in ~lgbt
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Comment on Greek-American musician George Smaragdis dies tragically in Manhattan in ~music
pallas Link ParentI'm not sure it really is a preventable interaction in the context it occurred. Looking around where it occurred, the streets are a mess. The intersection is of two busy one-way streets. It's not...Man, what a tragedy, and he was killed in one of the most preventable interactions between bicycles and cars
I'm not sure it really is a preventable interaction in the context it occurred. Looking around where it occurred, the streets are a mess. The intersection is of two busy one-way streets. It's not quite clear where street parking is legal, but there is a combination of just-off-street back-in parking, in-street restaurant seating, cars seemingly parked legally and illegally, construction equipment blocking parts of the side of the road, and some bike lanes on the cross street that seem to appear and disappear, are at times cut off from visibility to drivers, and seem to end by suddenly appearing to drivers and then immediately being cut off by a one-way to one-way left turn. Some of the photos in Street View have cars crossing the intersection in both directions, and pedestrians crossing in all directions all simultaneously in the intersection. If the article's statement that the cyclist was thrust into oncoming traffic is correct, given the one-way streets, the situation seems like it was even more complicated. But in any case, opening a door in this context seems like it would require looking in all directions at once at all times, and being aware of potentially hundreds of different moving objects, not all of which might be visible from any one glance.
Too often, bicycle policy in many cities around the world is built around creating conditions that require humans to always have perfect, superhuman awareness, consistency and reactions, and then blaming whatever human is unlucky enough to make a human mistake, rather than actually developing infrastructure that makes dangerous situations less likely despite humans being imperfect. That leads to arrangements where accidents will happen, at some rate, simply because there will be some rate of people making mistakes.
I'd compare it to developments around aviation safety with the "pilots are responsible for watching for traffic and avoiding collisions" concept. When it was realized that increasing traffic, speeds, and plane type differences meant that following this rule effectively wasn't always within human capabilities, rather than continuing to simply point to the rule, there were policy, control, and equipment changes made to actually reduce the likelihood of collisions.
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Comment on European Commission internally recommends Signal with disappearing messages in ~tech
pallas (edited )Link ParentTo be honest, I feel like there is an inherent need in many contexts for communications that are not fully recorded, and this is perhaps particularly the case for governance. It is very difficult...To be honest, I feel like there is an inherent need in many contexts for communications that are not fully recorded, and this is perhaps particularly the case for governance. It is very difficult to have open or thoughtful discussions or negotiations knowing that every word you say can be scrutinized years later, often by parties specifically trying to hurt you by interpreting them in as misleading a way possible. That even well-meaning people end up trying to find ways to have those sorts of communications is perhaps evidence of this need. That is perhaps because our culture has not yet adapted to the technological ability to record and have so much information available, and can't reasonably handle exploratory and conversational speech that is given the permanency of carefully-considered text. In my personal experience, when I have been in positions where records of everything were the norm, it tended either to stifle discussion and harm processes, to lead to unofficial communications methods, or to result in later, arguably bad-faith 'gotcha' attempts causing varying amounts of damage.
I feel like it might be a reasonable alternative, instead of pushing people to expensive (in-person discussion) or unsafe (phone, texts, WhatsApp) methods of unrecorded conversations, to accept that it is beneficial despite the problems, encourage safe methods, and try to reasonably limit what conversations are acceptable in those spaces.
On the other hand, pushing this while also pushing to make these communication methods illegal for individuals is very hypocritical.
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Comment on European Commission internally recommends Signal with disappearing messages in ~tech
pallas Link ParentSeveral sources (eg, https://fightchatcontrol.eu/) claim that there is a 'professional secrecy' exemption that would exempt politicians. But actually, looking at the closest thing I can find to an...Several sources (eg, https://fightchatcontrol.eu/) claim that there is a 'professional secrecy' exemption that would exempt politicians.
But actually, looking at the closest thing I can find to an actual text, the exemption is broader-reaching and arguably worse. Essentially, only individuals in their personal lives would be spied on; corporate and government communication would be exempt out of respect for the privacy of confidential communications and trade secrets, and because those spaces would have 'less risk' of CSAM:
In the light of the more limited risk of their use for the purpose of child sexual abuse and the need to preserve confidential information, including classified information, information covered by professional secrecy and trade secrets, electronic communications services that are not publicly available, such as those used for national security purposes, should be excluded from the scope of this Regulation. Accordingly, this Regulation should not apply to interpersonal communications services that are not available to the general public and the use of which is instead restricted to persons involved in the activities of a particular company, organisation, body or authority. (page 11 here)
It seems that the regulation sees any company as more trustworthy than a private individual, and sees any trade secret as more worthy of respect than an individual's personal privacy.
Of course, elsewhere, the regulations will keep that personal information perfectly safe, but here, the regulations apparently won't. And CSAM purveyors who will know that what they are doing is illegal, and that these regulations and exclusions exist will of course not think to use the entire class of corporate communication systems that will be exempt. There's no need to justify this contradiction; it simply exists. That, and the example of "classified information" and "national security purposes" in the motivation turning into any employee of any company and any corporate trade secret in the conclusion is typical of the European hypocrisy around rights and 'fairness' that increasingly frustrates me.
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Comment on European Commission internally recommends Signal with disappearing messages in ~tech
pallas Link ParentMy understanding is that there is no proposal to break E2EE chat for politicians, and presumably their staff as well.My understanding is that there is no proposal to break E2EE chat for politicians, and presumably their staff as well.
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Comment on What useful licenses or certifications are surprisingly cheap and easy to get? in ~talk
pallas LinkThe process of getting a ham license in the US, if you have a background in electronics and/or physics, is surprisingly trivial, especially since the test process is largely broken: all questions...I've also occasionally considered getting a ham radio license, solely because I like a bunch of adjacent electronics topics and it feels like the kind of thing I could be into. (So far, I haven't bothered because the vibes of the community around it don't feel right for me, but I haven't completely abandoned the idea.)
The process of getting a ham license in the US, if you have a background in electronics and/or physics, is surprisingly trivial, especially since the test process is largely broken: all questions are multiple choice, from a small pool, and are publicly released, so a bit of spaced repetition can get you through all three tests with very minimal effort and no real knowledge of ham radio.
But as someone who I expect had the same interest you have, in my experience the vibe problem you mention is significant. It's particularly the case if you're coming from free software and open hardware backgrounds: surprisingly, the culture seems largely opposed to the values of those communities. While it isn't legal for them to be, many major modes are de facto proprietary, and considering they even get what amount to advertisements into the tests, enforcement seems unlikely. Many supposedly open projects are not, in ways that would be seen as unacceptable or illegal in other communities. And the ban on encryption and refusal of the community to accept that standards of privacy and safety have changed in the modern world make the hobby unsettling at best and dangerous at worst.
If you just want to mess with small radios and repeaters in the US, a GMRS license is probably better. If you want to mess with radio, things using non-ham bands, like LoRa, have potentially more interesting communities.
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Comment on I need advice, which laptop would you buy now? in ~tech
pallas Link ParentIt is. At this point, the chassis (almost all the parts, including the bezel), keyboard, touchpad, the speakers and some of the ports are from when I first purchased my (1st-gen) Framework....The fact that you can upgrade individual components, and even better, then reuse the old components by putting them into a shell is huge.
It is. At this point, the chassis (almost all the parts, including the bezel), keyboard, touchpad, the speakers and some of the ports are from when I first purchased my (1st-gen) Framework. Everything else is an improved version of what was there before: the screen, the mainboard, the RAM, the SSD, the webcam and microphone, the battery, even the hinges.
On the other hand, I'm still strongly considering getting an MBP, despite all the disadvantages, because the hardware is just so much better. The only thing that holds me back is the extreme RAM pricing.
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Comment on Rough ride: how Uber quietly took more of driver's fare with its algorithm change in ~transport
pallas (edited )Link ParentI suspect a reason for Uber starting in the US cities it started in is because taxis in those cities were horrible: you could expect extremely limited availability, ridiculous pricing, and...I suspect a reason for Uber starting in the US cities it started in is because taxis in those cities were horrible: you could expect extremely limited availability, ridiculous pricing, and sketchiness at best, and often just complete unusability as a reliable transportation method. In the worst cities, I would not be surprised if Uber wasn't really competing with taxis as much as they were competing against other forms of transportation, because hardly anyone actually used taxis. Before Uber, for example, I can't really remember ever taking a taxi in much of Los Angeles; assuming you could even find or call one, and convince them to take you where you wanted to go, the price would be exorbitant (eg, if I recall, a taxi from the airport could well cost much more than a full, meet-in-the-terminal limo service). Part of this was a complacent industry, and part of it came from a history of American cities historically wanting to discourage taxis for various problematic reasons, but the effect was that Uber was a viable service and taxis weren't.
In cities elsewhere, where taxis were actually usable and used, I expect it was not just regulation that made it more difficult for companies like Uber to succeed. The difference was substantial; in many cases flying across the Atlantic, I'd be going between one airport where taking a taxi seemed like a reasonable option, and another where the very idea of even considering a taxi seemed absurd.
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Comment on Why handwriting matters in ~humanities.languages
pallas Link ParentBeyond this, it seems intended for people who aren't writing in cursive, where the letter forms could well depend on surrounding context.Writing a single letter is more deliberate than writing each letter within a word.
Beyond this, it seems intended for people who aren't writing in cursive, where the letter forms could well depend on surrounding context.
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Comment on Contemplating getting a digital piano to relearn how to play in ~music
pallas LinkI collect pianos and other keyboard instruments. I still play the most on a relatively inexpensive digital piano (Roland FP-30X). Yes, my other instruments at their best sound and feel better than...I collect pianos and other keyboard instruments. I still play the most on a relatively inexpensive digital piano (Roland FP-30X). Yes, my other instruments at their best sound and feel better than the Roland does at its best. But it's far more convenient. It has no quirks, there's no need to worry about tuning and regulation, it's small enough I can have it wherever I want, especially in more comfortable and private spaces, I can put on headphones and play or try out anything I want without any concern about annoying anyone... it really lowers the barrier to just playing around or practising whenever I want. I haven't tried gamified or connected learning systems: just being able to interact with it so comfortably and easily helps me play much more.
And I think it actually makes me play my acoustic instruments more as well. When I play on them now, it is with the benefit of comfortably messing around on the digital piano; I'm already confident that I can play the thing I come to the acoustic piano to play generally, and only need to deal with the instrument's particular quirks. It also means that when I play on the acoustic instruments, what people might hear is much better and less annoying, and just knowing that also makes me more confident.
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Comment on Western graters are terrible in ~food
pallas (edited )LinkThis post is confusing. Yes, a coarse grater will work better for grating coarsely than a fine grater. What does this have to do with being "Western"? Oxo itself makes graters of several sizes,...This post is confusing. Yes, a coarse grater will work better for grating coarsely than a fine grater. What does this have to do with being "Western"?
Oxo itself makes graters of several sizes, and their 15-20 row ones look like relatively fine graters, just above their zesters in fineness. They are simply not designed to do what you're trying to do with them.
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Comment on Is there a sane way to use Git as a glorified sync tool? in ~tech
pallas Link ParentI'd strongly recommend against git-annex for your use cases. From what your needs are, it sounds like specifically and dangerously what you don't want. It is designed for very large directories...I'd strongly recommend against git-annex for your use cases. From what your needs are, it sounds like specifically and dangerously what you don't want. It is designed for very large directories with large files, potentially too large to be on a single machine at once. It is specifically not designed for files to be modified in most circumstances, in the way git would normally be used.
I use it, but in very different situations to what you use git for.
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Comment on Sweden's recycling centres overflowing with clothes after EU-wide ban on throwing away textiles – municipalities eager to have fast fashion giants take responsibility in ~enviro
pallas (edited )Link ParentYes. Evidently Germany actually takes these seriously. One of the maddening things about Ireland is that there is constant talk about these types of laws and about how progressive, fair, and...Waste separation is clearly taken far more seriously here than it is where you live, based on your descriptions, which no doubt has some large knock-on effects when it comes to these new laws.
Yes. Evidently Germany actually takes these seriously. One of the maddening things about Ireland is that there is constant talk about these types of laws and about how progressive, fair, and environmentally conscious the state is, while the reality is often very different, and the state at least seems to have no problem with this duplicity, even when it is particularly brazen. Having been in the US and continental Europe, Ireland often feels more like the US – and a more conservative part of the US than California – than the rest of Europe.
It does at least now appear that, digging through the online guidance enough, there is a note about throwing away unusable textiles in regular waste; it just is rather hidden, and not mentioned on any of the public bins I've seen (I don't see public bins often, as it appears they aren't allowed in my part of the city).
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Comment on Sweden's recycling centres overflowing with clothes after EU-wide ban on throwing away textiles – municipalities eager to have fast fashion giants take responsibility in ~enviro
pallas Link ParentParts of California, at least, seem to require it.Where in the US do you need to separate food waste? I’ve never heard of anything like that.
Parts of California, at least, seem to require it.
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Comment on Thomas Keller asked me to leave the French Laundry. It turned into my most extraordinary night as a critic. in ~food
pallas Link ParentApologies: while I was working on the comment, I hadn't realized that you had replied (3 minutes after I initially posted).It’s rather unfair of you to have edited your response after I had already replied to it.
Apologies: while I was working on the comment, I hadn't realized that you had replied (3 minutes after I initially posted).
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Comment on Sweden's recycling centres overflowing with clothes after EU-wide ban on throwing away textiles – municipalities eager to have fast fashion giants take responsibility in ~enviro
pallas (edited )Link ParentA frustration with these sorts of laws in the EU is that, oftentimes, they seem to be made without particular regard for what the implementations will be like, perhaps with the assumption that...A frustration with these sorts of laws in the EU is that, oftentimes, they seem to be made without particular regard for what the implementations will be like, perhaps with the assumption that people in less usual situations will just ignore them, and the combination of well-meaning broad laws and poor or politically-opposed local implementations makes it difficult to see how the law can be reasonably followed. The broad laws allow for PR for the EU, without bothering to ensure that anything really changes. These are usually laws that I would like to support and follow, which makes it even more dismaying for me.
I actually don't know how I'm supposed to legitimately dispose of textiles when in the EU. I don't buy fast fashion; I buy well-made clothes that I wear until they are unwearable, doing repairs and changing the contexts I wear them in as they age. As a result, I can't dispose of them in normal, legitimate ways. As far as I can tell: (a) I can't legally put them in non-recycling waste, (b) I can't put them in general recycling, because they must go in textile-specific disposal, and (c) every textile-specific disposal I can find requires that the clothes be at least potentially reusable, while I don't dispose of clothes until they are clearly not wearable or repairable. I use some for rags, but after doing that for years, I don't actually need many rags.
Since the beginning of this year, EU countries must have separate textile recycling, alongside existing processes for glass, paper and food waste.
It's frustrating when these statements are made non-critically. At our apartment, in the centre of a EU capital city less than 1km from parliament, (a) glass recycling bins are banned, apparently because they make too much noise, (b) food waste disposal is available via bins on the street, and bins on the street are not allowed, (c) textile recycling, as described above, only accepts textiles that in my view shouldn't be recycled, and like glass recycling, is only reasonably accessible to people who have cars. On the other hand, there is no enforcement of waste separation whatsoever. Our assumption is that no one separates food waste, in particular.
Meanwhile, I have relatives in the US who have had to provide evidence that the reason they don't dispose of any food waste is because they compost everything themselves: the enforcement was such that, even though they were not throwing any food waste into general waste, that they weren't appearing to produce any at all any was enough to raise a question.
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Comment on Thomas Keller asked me to leave the French Laundry. It turned into my most extraordinary night as a critic. in ~food
pallas (edited )Link ParentMy comment: Your reply: Are you arguing that a significant bad review of a restaurant with $500 per person checks would not risk doing significantly more than $2,000 of damage to the restaurant's...My comment:
She has a significant amount of power over him, and could easily do more damage to him than this bill would cost him.
Your reply:
I think that both you and @pallas put way too much emphasis on how much power a critic has.
Are you arguing that a significant bad review of a restaurant with $500 per person checks would not risk doing significantly more than $2,000 of damage to the restaurant's revenue, or are you putting too much emphasis on 'way'? But this article isn't even a restaurant review: it's a specific criticism of Keller, perhaps more in line of your 'mean rumor', except with the weight of an actual journalist behind it.
It's good to have some sympathy for Keller, in that you can understand what he is doing and why.
I'm not sure how my comment describing his actions as 'astonishingly stupid' could be read as having particular sympathy for him. One can be critical of people for reasons other than capital and power dynamics.
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Comment on Thomas Keller asked me to leave the French Laundry. It turned into my most extraordinary night as a critic. in ~food
pallas (edited )Link ParentI'd agree that it was a power play, yes, but the power balance feels more complicated. He undoubtedly has more money, but his fortune and reputation are built on running a Bay Area restaurant that...Even if Keller was unaware of the fact that Fegan can't accept a free meal when on the job, this to me is a clear show of power imbalance
I'd agree that it was a power play, yes, but the power balance feels more complicated. He undoubtedly has more money, but his fortune and reputation are built on running a Bay Area restaurant that is one of the most famous in the world, and she is the restaurant critic of SF's only major newspaper. She has a significant amount of power over him, and could easily do more damage to him than this bill would cost him. In (very justifiably) writing this article, she likely has, intentionally. This is now the lead story on the newspaper's website, with additional stories about it. Even people who might have felt the previous bad reviews of Per Se and French Laundry were trendy attempts to knock down prominent fixtures may see this as rather damning.
To me, his actions come off less as trying to lord himself over her, and more as desperately rash.
And of course the great irony of this is that if Keller had just treated her like a regular patron, this article would not have been written.
I feel it's likely no article would have been written even if he had done everything except the refund. The rest was bizarre, but the refund actually put her in a position where she likely felt some sort of public disclosure was required, at which point an article explaining her side of the story would be one of her best options.
It just seems astonishingly stupid on his part.
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Comment on 'Murderbot' is the best new comedy of 2025. You read that right. in ~tv
pallas (edited )LinkI was somewhat surprised, watching this without having read the books and not having heard much about the show before, that the casting does not work for me. The combination of choosing a...I was somewhat surprised, watching this without having read the books and not having heard much about the show before, that the casting does not work for me. The combination of choosing a recognizable male lead actor who is arguably primarily known for playing particularly masculine roles, changing the story to heavily rely on his face (and heavily using voiceovers with his recognizable voice), and then changing a supporting character to be non-binary because the supporting actor is, making clear that the casting is very much not blind, makes the whole thing feel like something from old Hollywood, with the lead alone in being incongruously in whatever face required.
It makes me feel like the discussions around misgendering are somewhat misdirected. The show feels like it is cynically trying to have a lead acceptable to everyone, trying portray the character as male and then having occasional contrived mentions that the character isn't, so that conservative viewers can hopefully ignore those mentions or see the pronouns as being humans being hostile to non-humans, and enjoy the male Murderbot, while progressive viewers can hopefully be satisfied with the pandering mentions and the supporting character.
It is no wonder that reviewers get confused. After all, show an excerpt of this show to someone who hasn't read the books, hasn't directly been told about the character's gender, and has some knowledge of popular television, and unless they happen on the few particular mentions, they're going to assume the character is male, perhaps even more so if Pin-Lee is in the excerpt. That seems like a fault of the show, not the reviewer.
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Comment on Eurovision 2025: Austria's JJ wins with "Wasted Love" in ~music
pallas Link Parent20 times per credit card number, and it does not appear that there was any check for virtual card numbers. This added to the way the voting mechanism works (12 points from many countries could...The real problem here though is that we're allowed to vote up to 20 times for a single country
20 times per credit card number, and it does not appear that there was any check for virtual card numbers. This added to the way the voting mechanism works (12 points from many countries could require votes merely in the low thousands) means that the system could be easily swayed.
The problem is likely that some form of proportional points allocation would make much more sense, but would be much less entertaining.
Just to preemptively bring up something about this that I often see confused in conversations including the NRA and gun control (for example, throughout the linked thread): while Reagan crafted the Mulford Act as racist legislation aimed at disarming the Black Panthers, the NRA supported it because, prior to the 1977 Revolt at Cincinnati, the NRA was essentially a different organization with different priorities, primarily focused on hunting and marksmanship, and generally supported gun control. It wasn't inconsistent or unusual, it was simply coming from an organization with completely different leadership and views than the NRA we know today.
The pre-1977 NRA supported most of the major federal gun control legislation of the 20th century, up until 1977, including the creation of the FFL system, putting the F in ATF, regulation of machine guns, and so on.