papasquat's recent activity
-
Comment on US Secret Service director quits after Donald Trump shooting in ~news
-
Comment on How do you avoid the "getting started" loop? in ~talk
papasquat (edited )LinkI've got ADHD, and Im on medication for it as well (Adderall, every day), but it still is a problem with me. I've managed to have a pretty successful career by playing to my strengths and trying...I've got ADHD, and Im on medication for it as well (Adderall, every day), but it still is a problem with me.
I've managed to have a pretty successful career by playing to my strengths and trying to work around my weaknesses. The way ADHD manifests for me is that I'm very, very bad at follow through.
If someone offered me a million dollars as long as I did a page of writing every day for a year, or 10,000 dollars to write 100 pages right now, id take the 10k without even thinking about it, because I know I would just flat out not get the million.
Im really bad with things that require me to remember to do things consistently over a long period of time. I have almost a superpower when it comes to focusing on a single thing I'm interested in for hours upon hours. If I enter a flow state, I will stay that way until something breaks me out of it. I won't eat, I won't drink, I won't go to the bathroom.
I managed to teach myself the basics of piano from never touching one over a 12 hour session one night. I've written massive pieces of documentation or applications at work in gigantic multi hour chunks. I know I'm good at working that way.
The key has been structuring my life in such a way that most of my critical tasks play to my strengths, and I work around my weaknesses.
I have two days where I work from home and try to have zero meetings. On those days, I sit down and spend hours reading any email I may have missed or ignored. Then I spent hours turning those emails into notes or to do list items. Then I do every single one of those to do list items I possibly can.
The rest of my week is pure chaos, I'm in meetings constantly, and some of the time in those meetings I comitt to things that I would instantly forget about. I try to write those commitments down.
In jobs where I've had direct reports, I make sure to hire at least one person who is the exact opposite of me. Someone who is consistent, who always comes to work at the same time and leaves at the same time, who never forgets anything and keeps meticulous notes. That person usually becomes my #2 and I task them with keeping me and the team on track as I deal with all of the absurd work requests, last minute emergencies, political conflicts, and delegation of work, all of which I'm excellent at dealing with.
Around once or twice a month, I devote an entire day solely to unfucking my house. That means doing maintenance I've neglected, cleaning up little areas I always procrastinate about, calling service people that I need to call and so on.
If I need to study for something, I gulp down four cups of coffee and just force myself to read the book for 6 hours.Unless I focus and have dedicated distraction free times to do these things, I just will not do them.
When I do have that dedicated time, I find that I get more done in an hour than most people get done in 3 or 4, because I just don't have that gene that allows me to do productive things in the middle of a normal human day. I do them all at once like a deranged meth-head, or not at all.
My life is still a mess at times, but it's sustainable, I have a nice house, I have a successful career as a cybersecurity executive, I have a great relationship.
I used to hate the way my brain works, but I've been able to leverage the positives. Maybe you will too eventually!
-
Comment on US Secret Service director quits after Donald Trump shooting in ~news
papasquat Link ParentWho saw him? Reported to who? Who watched them climb up? What was the view of the roof? How many other similar roofs were in the area? What's the procedure when someone like that is reported? Who...A civilian with a rifle on a low roof, 400 ft away, in plain sight, who was reported multiple times, and had people watch him climb up.
Who saw him? Reported to who? Who watched them climb up? What was the view of the roof? How many other similar roofs were in the area? What's the procedure when someone like that is reported? Who created that procedure? Based on what? If the procedure wasn't followed, why was that procedure not followed? What's the normal amount of involvement in planning an operation at the director level? Who planned the operation? Why were they chosen to plan the operation? How many agents were on site? How many is standard? Who set that standard?
These are all questions that the people who demanded her resignation don't have answers to, because investigations are needed to answer them. They also are some of the questions that would determine whether she was negligent or not.
These operations are never going to make the people they're protecting perfectly safe. That's the goal, but realistically, there's a set budget, a set timeframe, and a set of political objectives the candidate wants to achieve that the people protecting them has to work within. The best they can do is reduce risk as much as possible, with the information they have at the time given those constraints.
I get that this is all a moot point and she was asked to resign as a political move to expediently have a scapegoat and make it appear as if everyone is united on this, but it's not at all fair to Cheatle, and in a more reasonable climate, we'd wait until the facts are in before relieving someone with that much institutional knowledge, who by all accounts seemed like a competent, seasoned agent and director.
-
Comment on US Secret Service director quits after Donald Trump shooting in ~news
papasquat Link ParentMaybe, maybe not. There's no actual investigation to base any of this on. That's the whole point of having an investigation, to answer these questions. If Cheatle was negligent, she should have...Maybe, maybe not. There's no actual investigation to base any of this on. That's the whole point of having an investigation, to answer these questions.
If Cheatle was negligent, she should have been fired. If not, she shouldn't have. They just demanded her resignation on the basis that the president was shot, literally no other facts, because the investigations haven't concluded to provide them.
-
Comment on US Secret Service director quits after Donald Trump shooting in ~news
papasquat Link ParentThe only answers I heard her give were basically "I can't tell you the answer to that until the investigation concludes", which is true. Any questions she answers now would just be speculation,...The only answers I heard her give were basically "I can't tell you the answer to that until the investigation concludes", which is true. Any questions she answers now would just be speculation, and could impede an ongoing investigation.
Also, if its your opinion that any head of the secret service should automatically be fired if the president comes close to being assassinated, it may be worth noting that James Rowley, the head of the secret service when JFK was assassinated was not fired and didn't resign. He had a long successful career, serving under two more presidents after that (successful , obviously) assassination.
-
Comment on US Secret Service director quits after Donald Trump shooting in ~news
papasquat (edited )Link ParentTrump is alive due to extreme luck, but also because of quick reacting, well trained counter snipers that were put into positions with good vantage points to possible shooting positions, and good...Trump is alive due to extreme luck, but also because of quick reacting, well trained counter snipers that were put into positions with good vantage points to possible shooting positions, and good communications to target the shooter.
If the secret service had not been there, there's virtually no way Trump would have survived.
There's no world where every possible firing position is locked down at all times wherever a president goes. It's just not possible.
That's why the investigation is needed to determine did the operation do a reasonable job securing the venue, or was there negligence somewhere. Just because he was shot doesn't mean that someone didn't do their job correctly. It's possible, and maybe even likely that they didn't, but if that's the case, Cheatle shouldn't be the only one fired.
-
Comment on US Secret Service director quits after Donald Trump shooting in ~news
papasquat Link ParentThe kneejerk reaction to fire her was really surprising, especially from the Democrats. The investigations didn't even finish yet. We have no idea what caused the lapse, or if there even was a...The kneejerk reaction to fire her was really surprising, especially from the Democrats. The investigations didn't even finish yet. We have no idea what caused the lapse, or if there even was a lapse to begin with.
Being a presidential candidate carries the risk of being attacked no matter what. The secret service's job is to reduce that risk as much as possible, but ultimately the risk belongs to the candidate themselves. If the only consideration to take into account was Trump's safety, they would just lock him in an armored box and he'd be perfectly safe. That's not what Trump, or any candidate wants though. They want to be seen out and about, interacting with the public, as someone they can relate to, which is directly at odds with security considerations.
Having overwatch, secure areas, reconnaissance of the site, etc will reduce the risk, but it can never eliminate it. The fact is that when you're in an open area, you're vulnerable to being shot from up to a mile or more away. You just cannot guarantee a person's total safety in a situation like that.
Now I don't know why the shooter was able to get so close to trump with a rifle, but neither do the Congressmen that called for Cheatles head, and neither does Cheatle herself.
The investigation isn't complete. It could be that the agents were not following established procedure, it could be that the procedure was wrong, it could be that the measures that would allow the former president to be more secure were denied by Trump's team, or were prohibitively expensive, or literally hundreds of other reasons why what happened happened. It could be that literally every decision that was made was correct with the data available, and they just got unlucky this time.
The point is that we don't know. I hate the reactionary "heads will roll" approach, because it's just an emotional, useless approach that solves nothing. I feel bad for Cheatle, because there's a good chance she did nothing wrong. Protection of VIPs isn't even the secret service's main mission, so I wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't personally involved in this operation at all.
I also really dislike congress framing this as a "total failure".
Trump is alive. After the shot, it seems like they quickly did as they were trained to do, protected Trump, and neutralized the shooter within seconds. Yes, trump was injured and an innocent person was killed, but you had a shooter with a semi automatic rifle firing into a massive crowd of people. It could have been far, far worse.
-
Comment on Kamala Harris lacks charisma and time in ~misc
papasquat Link ParentAbsolutely highly variable throughout the country. I made the comment in another post that life in the US is very different depending on how much wealth you have. It can be either a virtual utopia...Absolutely highly variable throughout the country. I made the comment in another post that life in the US is very different depending on how much wealth you have.
It can be either a virtual utopia that bends to your whim, or a miserable hell hole, depending on your bank account. Part of what makes it a miserable hell hole is that the places where many people can afford to live have terrible crime problems that you wouldn't expect in a first world country.
-
Comment on Kamala Harris lacks charisma and time in ~misc
papasquat Link ParentThe world we live in, earth. It's not my experience in the US currently, but it was at one point, and it's one that many people here still experience. That's a little besides my point though,...The world we live in, earth.
It's not my experience in the US currently, but it was at one point, and it's one that many people here still experience.
That's a little besides my point though, which is that even in countries where crime is lower than it is here, there's a need for a criminal justice system. Murders, rapes, theft, assaults happen in every country on earth. There's a need for people to prosecute these cases, and being the person that did that job doesn't mean you're not a progressive
-
Comment on Kamala Harris lacks charisma and time in ~misc
papasquat Link ParentI'm tired of criticism, often times from the left, that the mere fact that she was a prosecutor means she cannot be progressive. Leftists often live in a fantasy world that works perfectly in...I'm tired of criticism, often times from the left, that the mere fact that she was a prosecutor means she cannot be progressive.
Leftists often live in a fantasy world that works perfectly in their heads that if just we provided healthcare, education, reformed drug laws, and social safety nets, there wouldn't be a need for the criminal justice system and people like DAs and state attorneys are what's keeping us back from that utopia.
There's a semblance of truth there, in that those things would obviously reduce crime, but there has always been, and will always be crime. A justice system will always be necessary, and in an adversarial criminal justice system, there will always need to be an offense to persue justice, just as there will always need to be an defense to guard personal freedoms.
Furthermore, that utopia that leftists often talk about does not exist, anywhere in the world. It's certainly not likely to exist any time soon in the US, because we live in a democratic system with people who don't agree with us, a political establishment, and monied interests. A dose of realpolitik is needed when examining this stuff, especially in the case of Harris.
Sometimes, the political left is so eager to distance themselves from both conservatives and liberals that they throw the baby out with the bathwater, and law and order becomes a dirty phrase and kryptonite to them, when it really isn't, and only is to people who live in an ideal world of theory and ideas instead of the real world where your car gets broken into a couple times a month and you get mugged on your way home from work on a yearly basis.
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentIf you can't work they just won't schedule you. It obviously depends on your contract, but that's kind of the nature of the beast with contracting work. You don't work, you don't get paid.If you can't work they just won't schedule you. It obviously depends on your contract, but that's kind of the nature of the beast with contracting work. You don't work, you don't get paid.
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentPalo Alto and solar winds were arguably worse, because they were cybersecurity incidents, not operational incidents, and both of them could and did result in attackers launching attacks inside...Palo Alto and solar winds were arguably worse, because they were cybersecurity incidents, not operational incidents, and both of them could and did result in attackers launching attacks inside private networks to get persistence, literally move through the network, and exfiltrate confidential data, the effects of which are still being felt. Having to reboot computers is more painful in the short term, but definitely less damaging.
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentThis doesn't have anything to do with cloud stuff. The outage was caused by locally running code, if cloudstrike was entirely on prem you'd have the same issue. This is an auto updating software...This doesn't have anything to do with cloud stuff. The outage was caused by locally running code, if cloudstrike was entirely on prem you'd have the same issue.
This is an auto updating software with no possible way to test or have oversight of the update process issue.
No matter what, your EDR platform is going to be running the same software on all of your agents across the enterprise. Crowdstrike isn't alone in this, but not even having the option of controlling how they're updated is crazy.
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentIt's kind of the norm for this type of security software. Most software patches in an enterprise are handled by a centralized patch management system that are tested on the hardware that...It's kind of the norm for this type of security software. Most software patches in an enterprise are handled by a centralized patch management system that are tested on the hardware that enterprise uses before someone manually kicks off a deploy. EDR software usually automatically updates itself with updated data because cyber threats emerge very quickly, and a zero day can be used to exploit a lot of machines very very quickly. There have been countless attacks that could have been prevented by up to date EDR software, and up until now, there hasn't really been a widespread issue with that kind of software causing massive outages.
I imagine that risk analysis may yield a different outcome after taking this incident into account though.
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentOpen source wouldn't really have fixed this. There are plenty of examples of massive issues caused by open source packages as well (heartbleed, for example). The main cause of this sort of thing...Open source wouldn't really have fixed this. There are plenty of examples of massive issues caused by open source packages as well (heartbleed, for example).
The main cause of this sort of thing having such a wide impact is massive numbers of machines all running the same software. Unfortunately there's really no way around that. It's not like my company is going to write their own EDR platform.
It's just one of those things that have to be factored in when deploying IT systems. All critical functions need a continuity plan in case absolutely nothing works, because sometimes, nothing works.
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentCrowdstrike is an EDR platform. They deploy agents on all endpoints, so servers, workstations, kiosks, signage IoT devices that support it, which is why this thing is such a cluster. I drove past...Crowdstrike is an EDR platform. They deploy agents on all endpoints, so servers, workstations, kiosks, signage IoT devices that support it, which is why this thing is such a cluster.
I drove past a billboard this morning that was BSODed
-
Comment on CrowdStrike code update bricking Windows machines around the world in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentThe company will 100% make it through this. Crowdstrike is probably the market leader in EDR and very well respected in that arena. If this was a consistent pattern I might agree with you, but...The company will 100% make it through this. Crowdstrike is probably the market leader in EDR and very well respected in that arena. If this was a consistent pattern I might agree with you, but there are absolutely zero widely deployed software companies that have been around for any period of time that haven't had some sort of major outage or incident. Solar winds is still around, Palo Alto is still around, and crowdstrike will still be around.
-
Comment on The best and brightest don’t want to stay in Canada. I should know: I’m one of the few in my engineering class who did. in ~life
papasquat Link ParentThe healthcare issue in the US is kind of a moot point with regards to your own self interest if you're an employed software dev. American healthcare is very much you get what you pay for, and...The healthcare issue in the US is kind of a moot point with regards to your own self interest if you're an employed software dev. American healthcare is very much you get what you pay for, and most working developers have lucrative careers with generous benefits packages. I would wager a guess that people in that category receive some of the best healthcare in the entire world; most of the worlds best hospitals are in the US.
The problem with US healthcare isn't that it's bad. It's actually very good. Personally, I have very good insurance, and it enables me to see my GP the same week if I want, and basically any specialist I want within a couple of weeks without needing a referral. I pay 10 bucks to see my GP, and around 30 for a specialist. I usually don't pay anything for drugs. If I had a serious issue, I could go to a world class hospital and get amazing, cutting edge treatments while paying virtually nothing for it.
The problem is that a huge portion of our population can't access care like that, because they can't afford it, and they don't have jobs that subsidize the cost like I do. That's the whole point of the US healthcare system. Gatekeep the world's best healthcare exclusively to the globally wealthy while keeping everyone else out. The system isn't broken, it's working as designed.
That's why conservatives in this country hate the affordable healthcare act. It, at least in a very small way, "breaks" the well tuned machine that they built up over the past 70 years.
That's kind of the US in nutshell. An incredible land of opportunity, comfort, and adventure if you have money, and hell on earth if you don't.
-
Comment on Donald Trump whisked off stage in Pennsylvania after apparent gunshots rang through the crowd in ~news
papasquat Link ParentThere's definitely a difference in lethality. It's pretty routine to survive a gunshot to the torso. It's not nearly as common to survive a gunshot to the head. The reason why militaries aim for...There's definitely a difference in lethality. It's pretty routine to survive a gunshot to the torso. It's not nearly as common to survive a gunshot to the head. The reason why militaries aim for center mass is because most engagements are at a distance where hitting someone in the head is very difficult, and in a battle it doesn't functionally matter if you kill or injured someone. They're a casualty either way, and are no longer going to be an active combatant. In the case of someone injured, they're actually more of an advantage to the army that injured them since they have to be protected and medivacced. The goal of a battle isn't primarily to kill, it's to achieve your objectives.
An assassin has a way different set of objectives to take into account.
-
Comment on Tractor Supply slashes its DEI and climate goals after a right-wing pressure campaign in ~finance
papasquat Link ParentYeah, I wish people would take bud light, tractor supply, and other similar companies into account the next time they celebrate the next token surface level pro LGBT initiative a large corporation...Yeah, I wish people would take bud light, tractor supply, and other similar companies into account the next time they celebrate the next token surface level pro LGBT initiative a large corporation does.
They don't believe in any of this shit. They only do it because they think it'll make you spend more money. If they ever get the slightest whiff that you won't spend more money, they'll reverse course so quickly it'll make your neck snap.
Every single one of these companies would gladly paint swastikas on their company headquarters and wear white hoods to press conferences if it meant their stock price went up by 10% next quarter. Publically traded companies don't have morals by design.
By that point of view, Biden should resign too. The secret service is an executive branch agency. I don't think that should be such a cut and dry rule.