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Andy

@ andrewrgross @slrpnk.net

Posts

90
Comments

801
Joined

3 yr. ago

Moderating

Fully Automated RPG slrpnk.net

8h ago

Instead of everyone leaving NATO, could everyone else just kick the US out?
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Andy @slrpnk.net 8h ago
I wrote a long answer and then accidentally hit the back button and don't have the patience to retype it.
The short version is that Vladimir Putin is responsible for the invasion of Ukraine. I don't want any confusion about that.
NATO's influence was that the US has been advancing against Russia for decades even after their country collapsed, and it was obviously nakedly escalatory. Combined with the US is overall foreign policy, which has always been imperial, we've acted as though putting a gun to someone's head and telling them to stay cool was an actual way of calming things rather than the exact opposite.
I'm not saying that a version of NATO couldn't have done what it claims to do. But that's never been the version that has existed.

15h ago

Is it a red flag that your boss asks you to explain yourself in front of other coworkers?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 15h ago

Yes, 100%. That's more than a red flag. A red flag is a warning sign of a problem. That's just a problem.

15h ago

Brussels plots open source push to pry Europe off Big Tech

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Andy @slrpnk.net 15h ago

Thank fucking God that they're finally waking up. This is long overdue.

15h ago

Instead of everyone leaving NATO, could everyone else just kick the US out?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 15h ago

GoddlessCommie's take is valid.

Nato is the core organizing instrument of western imperialism. Nato is like Israel's Iron Dome missile defense shield. It's easy to look at it and say, 'Well how could anyone object to a tool of defense??' But if you know anything about war then you know that establishing an unbreakable defensive capability is what allows an imperial army to slaughter their weaker targets with impunity.

I'm not co-signing GodlessCommie's point. But we gotta ask: did you like Vietnam? Iraq? Afghanistan? Korea? Venezuela? Nicaragua? Georgia? Libya? Ukraine? Gaza? Because arguably, all of this shit rests upon the conditions established by NATO and US imperialism. So... It's not unreasonable to ask whether NATO has actually fostered peace or just fostered peace for the people who wage wars.

1d ago

we need more users

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Andy @slrpnk.net 1d ago

I think that if we want new folks, it would make a big difference is we organized the equivalent of a new member drive.

Currently, look at a default front page for your home instance and ask how enticing it is to a total newbie. There might be some good stuff, but it's foreign and overwhelming. You feel out of place.

Now imagine if the first Friday of January had been "new subscriber day". People on Reddit and Bluesky are taking about the fediverse and if it's any good. And on Lemmy there's a bunch of posts about finding the best instances and memes about being new on Lemmy. That's a much more inviting beginner experience, and it makes it more likely for folks to come back the next day.

I really think planning for bursts of new folks is the way to welcome people.

2d ago

Why is kissing?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 2d ago

This. Put another way: mammals use our mouths for sensing and manipulating. Note that people naturally use their mouths and noses to kiss and smell babies and pets on places other than their mouths.

If we instinctively use our mouths to kiss things, it's natural that when two people want to do this at the same time they're going to both do it to the other person's mouth.

2d ago

What is the champagne of champagnes?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 2d ago

For what it's worth, I just asked my sommelier husband, and he independently answered Billiecart-Salmon, Runart, and Krug.

4d ago

Bose open-sources its SoundTouch home theater smart speakers ahead of end-of-life

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Andy @slrpnk.net 4d ago

I appreciate the distinction, but open source is always a spectrum, so I think the description is a reasonable application here.

5d ago

Grok Can't Apologize. Grok Isn't Sentient. So Why Do Headlines Keep Saying It Did?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 5d ago

This, 100%.

If I apologize to you, the apology is but the words themselves: it's the contract I make with you. It's a memorandum of understanding of how I fucked up and a promise not to do so again.

LLMs can write words, but they cannot understand their actions or make honest promises to modify their behavior. They cannot be accountable in any way. Blaming them is like an actual scapegoat: a blameless things meant to have a debt if sin transferred to it before it's sacrificed. Expect we're not even getting the sacrifice.

5d ago

How to vote?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 5d ago

That's true. I don't think it's generally a problem, but I do find it funny when you see someone politely correct someone else deep in a chain where no one else is reading, and the correction says "0".

To anyone who downvotes like that: you look like an insecure clown.

6d ago

Can other countries impose sanctions on the US?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 6d ago

Corey Doctorow had a presentation this past week at the C3 hacker conference arguing that all our allies only agreed to be ruled by US tech hegemony in exchange for free trade agreements, and if they want a win-win solution to getting f'd, they should repeal their laws against jailbreaking US tech.

Tech sovereignty is already (finally) an issue the rest of the world is waking up to. I hope they go much farther and faster.

6d ago

the ongoing merger of liberalism and fascism

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Andy @slrpnk.net 6d ago

I'm not saying both sides are equally culpable. Obviously Trump, Biden, Obama, and all of their Sec. of State are the primary villain.

7d ago

the ongoing merger of liberalism and fascism

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Andy @slrpnk.net 7d ago

You know, I've been keeping my mouth shut because I don't know that much about Venezuela...

But now that Maduro's VP has expressed a willingness to cooperate with Trump, I think everyone who disputed the claims that Maduro and Chavismo were corrupt has some explaining to do.

I feel like the leftists who supported Chavismo and the right-wingers who backed US intervention should all go out for drinks and commiserate over their foolishness for thinking that they could overlook their allies obvious corruption. Am I wrong?

1w ago

Guys, have you ever been asked this question: "If your mother and your girlfriend are both drowning, who would you save first?" How would you answer this question?

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Andy @slrpnk.net 1w ago

First, the most honest answer is that it's a shitty question. This 'Sophie's Choice' promise is inherently designed to disrespect someone. In real life, you just react and try to save both, most likely based on who is a better swimmer, is closer, etc.

But the question between who you prioritize is valid. The answer is subjective, of course, but my advice would be that you prioritize your mother over a casual girlfriend/bf, but you prioritize a finance or spouse over your mother. And this isn't hard to explain to Mom. I did. I said, "Hey Mom: remember how Dad always put Grandma in front of you because he was such a wimp, and it made you feel absolutely terrible? Well good news: you raised a better man than she did."

She didn't love it, but she got it. And she respected it.

1w ago

Israel accuses Mamdani of antisemitism on first day as New York mayor

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Andy @slrpnk.net 1w ago

I think this is a non event.

Mamdani has been publicly stating his opposition to the Israeli occupation for years. Israel's government has been accusing him falsely of antisemitism since he became known. And the NY press has tried to rattle him over it since Israel began attempting to smear him, with no effect.

This is like holding a press conference to announce that the Berlin Wall has fallen. Yes. That was the state of affairs yesterday and the day before, and presumably will remain so tomorrow.

This isn't something anyone needs to or will react to.

2w ago

Hacker Congress CCC talk by Cory Doctorow: 'A post-American, enshittification-resistant internet'

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Andy @slrpnk.net 2w ago

It's pretty wild, because this is genuinely great politics and great policy. It's weird that folks haven't realized this and acted on it yet. Fingers crossed.