thebardingreen

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

This is a Lower Decks episode that badly wants to get made.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

This is what I expect from the anarchist hacker spaces I used to hang out in in Oakland, not from a multibillion dollar company.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

The outpouring of unprompted employee support speaks more to me than anything else and puts me firmly in Altman’s camp. I can only think of a few bosses I’ve had in my life who would that reaction from their teams under these circumstances.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Needs more time travel shenanigans.

https://lemmy.starlightkel.xyz/pictrs/image/b94838db-7fcc-4758-8130-305dfe880585.png

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Oh please. That doesn’t even sound like him.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I don’t think she was my favorite, but she was a lot of fun and we were playing the Iron Skies Drinking Game, so we were schwasted.

https://lemmy.starlightkel.xyz/pictrs/image/82501138-3f30-47cc-8932-75346a23a1e9.png

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

The ONLY reason we have Paramount+ is because my wife wanted to watch some soaps on it (IDK even which ones, I couldn’t be less interested). But I WAS like “Now I can watch Lower Decks! Sweet.”

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I had a roommate who used to make ostrich chili all the time. It was pretty good. Still prefer beef though.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

For me it’s ostrich. I’ve eaten a lot of elk and bison, but they’re so easy to get in my area, I don’t seem exotic (my mom’s freezer is always full of bison hot dogs). I’ve eaten a lot of ostrich too. I had a roommate for several years who loved it and would cook with it all the time (mostly chilli, but he’d also make meatballs and other stuff with it).

My exwife and I once watched some people get served live shrimp at a fancy sushi restaurant. They were squirming around, trying to escape. They (the people) couldn’t figure out what they were supposed to do with them. They asked the chef to demonstrate how to eat them, but he either misunderstood or was just like “lol, white people” and took them back, chopped their heads off, shucked their shells and returned them to the people.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

That’s Montgomery Scott, and he runs the transporters on the Enterprise.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Trombone players can do magical things with their Chad lips.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Beam me up Monty.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

No, I’m pretty sure it’s Malcolm Reynolds and Wash.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

You’re not wrong…

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Man, Unions in America are anaemic. I REALLY wish our labor force would grow that kind of spine and stand up for each other that aggressively.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Step 1: Be black.

Step 2: Walk into the police station and say you’re there to turn yourself in. Say you have something you need to show them.

Step 3: Reach into your jacket.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Yep.

I had a construction worker try to explain to me how Elon Musk is a genius who makes it possible for me to do my job (I work in the Space Industry, NOT for SpaceX) and I should be grateful he’s creating those opportunities for me instead of hating on him. He got really mad about it when I didn’t agree.

He got even angrier when I asked him why someone like him, on the lowest rung of the labor ladder, was simping like that. He had no answer though.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I would never have known if you hadn’t told me. XD

thebardingreen , 7 months ago (edited 7 months ago)

He’s been coached that he’s neck and neck with Trump in the polls.

Centrist democratic old people are NOT following the human suffering in Gaza, their media sources have all taken a VERY pro Israel bent. He can’t lose them by seeming to go “too woke.” So his strategists have told him to be very conservative on the Gaza situation. He needs the centerist old people to win the swing states, no the leftists.

The progressives who REALLY HATE his stance on this are going to vote for him next year no matter WHAT he does with this situation, because the alternative is four more years of Trump.

He might lose a few far leftists who WOULD have voted for him, but this pissed them off too much. But he doesn’t think he needs them as much as he needs the centrist old people in the swing states (he’s sadly probably right, FUCK First Past The Post and FUCK the Electoral Collage).

And he WILL lose some of those centrist old people to Trump (or more likely to staying home) if he doesn’t come across as a Pro Israel Hawk on this issue. Many of them are waffling back and forth…

They’re like “Trump was bad, but this Biden guy also sucks…(for the opposite reasons YOU think he sucks, those are the things we LIKE about him).”

You’re like “Compared to Trump? Really?? Do you remember how shitty Trump was?”

And they’re like, “Yeah, Trump is terrible, but according to my old people news, Biden is really terrible too and I support Israel because I remember the fucking 70s and I’m Islamophobic as fuck and Nancy from my church says it’s all Biblical prophesy anyway and you remember the Eccelstines, right? THEY’RE Jewish and I was talking with Linda at yoga about how bad the terrorism problem is…”

Source:

I’m surrounded by this divide. My liberal ass white bread suburb is a sign warzone right now. People have signs that are a mix of the Israeli flag and the American flag weeping blood (no really, that’s a block away from me on someone’s fence). Other people have “Shame on Israel signs.” We just elected a 100% Democrat city council. The big local political conflict is between the NIMBYs and the “Let’s do something that actually might WORK to address the homeless problem.” The NIMBYs dominated, just like they did last year. I’m going to let you guess where the generational, income and racial gaps are on that issue… and the Israel debate is (mostly) along EXACTLY the same demographic lines.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I don’t think the message of Section 31 has EVER been that it was “good / necessary.” It’s always been cautionary. Like: Even in a Utopia, this thing can exist, people will support it, people will argue it’s necessary. I’ve always thought the message was “Why do we tolerate this shit and you assholes who insist it’s necessary?? Why do we let you get away with it? Why do we pull the wool over our own eyes and look the other way?” It continues to be a good story to make Americans talk about.

In DS9, Section 31’s machinations badly backfired and stealing the cure from them and giving it freely to the Changlings is what ended the war.

In Picard, Section 31’s bullshit literally created a terrorist who brought the Borg back and set them loose on Starfleet, again.

In Disco… IDK. I don’t like Disco and I only half watched that season. They made um… an AI that tried to take over?? I guess, it was bad and Star Fleet was complicit.

One of the most important parts of the story, I think is how even in the Utopia of the Federation, we never see anyone being held accountable for Section 31’s actions. My takeaway from this is “a call to action that perpetually goes unheeded and is never heard in numbers great enough to make a real difference” which is a VERY true and tragic lens for the modern world.

I don’t think I’ve ever thought of S31 as being pushed as a GOOD thing. More like shown to us in the spirit of “Stop, children, what’s that sound, everybody look what’s goin’ down.”

thebardingreen , 7 months ago (edited 7 months ago)

They were always shown as the sort of cool, James Bond/Batman-like agents that everyone admires for getting their hands dirty for the sake of everyone else.

I don’t think I’ve ever encountered anyone but you with this take. I’ve certainly never heard anyone say “Oooh, Section 31 is cool, I admire them,” but I’ve had LOTS of conversations about how uncool they are. The main characters don’t like them, they’re ALWAYS an antagonist / obstacle. I understand that’s what you see, but I don’t think the experience you’re having is very universal.

The lack of accountability for me shows that starfleet does not mind a group above the law, which immediately removes the idea of starfleet/the federation working on democratic principles.

Star Fleet DOESN’T work on democratic principles, it’s absolutely a military organization, with a military hierarchy and agenda, that has a STRONG scientific, exploration and humanitarian mandate.

The FEDERATION works on democratic principals, but Section 31 has ALWAYS been portrayed as an illegal, unsanctioned organization working within Star Fleet, that simply lots of factions and elements with Star Fleet support or align with (Fascists gonna fasc, even in the Utopian future, and people with that mind set are going to be drawn to the closest thing to a military organization around).

It WOULD be nice to see a story where the assholes behind Section 31 are revealed as assholes and held accountable though. I would get behind that.

Yes, it echoes with a lot of modern things. But what is the point of making science fiction if all you show is a world that didn’t evolve in over 300 years?

Um… there’s a LOT wrong with this, as there are all kinds of points to making Science Fiction, and showing all sorts of things. And one of them is VERY MUCH showing the kinds of things that are wrong with our world, starting conversations and raising awareness. There are lots of points to making Science Fiction. You don’t have to like all of them. You don’t have to like Chuck Tingle or Space Raptor Butt Invasion, but it has a point (and it’s actually a really positive one, if you look past all the pounding and dinosaur love).

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Just watch the last season of Picard. Forget the other two seasons and pretend they don’t exist. You don’t need them, the final seasons stands on it’s own.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I really like Qubes actually, and encourage you to play with it.

Keep in mind though, when they talk about hardware compatibility issues, they REALLY mean it. Get a machine you know for a fact is compatible, if possible.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I’ve used it as a daily work driver for almost two years now! It’s actually great for security work. You can spin up a new Qube for each project, or each subsection of your work. I’ve ditched my corporate gig and rebooted my consulting company recently and I just spin up a new Qube for each client and keep all their files in there. You can also create a separate Qube for your personal stuff or for Netflix or whatever, and then shut it down when you’re supposed to be working (creates an extra barrier against distractions).

However, I’ve been a Linux user for 23 years and I’ve used Qubes before (not for work). You DO regularly run into issues, just at this point, they’re all issues I know how to solve pretty quickly. I also dual boot my system between Qubes and Linux Mint. If I have an issue with Qubes I can’t solve quickly, or I break it (both of which have happened several times in recent memory), I can switch to Mint (which isn’t the most secure OS, but it is incredibly stable) so I can just get back to work and then I can fix Qubes when I have the time and bandwidth.

I’m now in the process of figuring out a best way how to handle various secrets and customer data from WIP engagements that are now mangled together on one encrypted VeraCrypt volume

Stop that. :) Your system should be using FDE (which VeraCrypt can do if you’re stuck with Windows). When only part of your system is encrypted it’s EXTREMELY likely that, for the sake of expedience and convenience you’re going to end up parking some sensitive data somewhere NOT encrypted… and then forget you did that… and then…?

thebardingreen , 7 months ago (edited 7 months ago)

The History on Fire podcast by Daniele Bolelli has a TON of episodes about Native American history. Daniele has a thick Italian accent, but he’s a REALLY good storyteller and I enjoy listening to him. Some notable episodes:

The Real History Behind Killers of the Flower Moon.

The Last War Chief: The Story Of Joe Medicine Crow.

The Story of Tom Le Forge, The Real Life Dances With Wolves.

This story isn’t about Native Americans DIRECTLY (although a lot is said about them), it’s about WHY the WAY LESS SHITTY white people who ALSO colonized America DIDN’T make it into the history books the same way as those Pilgrims you mentioned (TRIGGER WARNING: Pilgrims being dicks.) The Wildest Man You’ve Never Heard Of.

These two are multiparters (so 9 episodes in total) that dig into the history of probably the two most famous Native historical figures in North America. It’s worth listening to these two one after the other, as these two men were contemporaries with a long, complex and often tumultuous relationship.

Sitting Bull

Crazy Horse

This one’s another four parter about the conquest of Mexico and the conflict between the Spaniards and the Mexica (Aztecs). People of the Sun.

This three parter explores the parallels between the Sand Creek Massacre (which happened to the Cheyenne people in Colorado) and My Lai (during the Vietnam war). Anything That Moves.

IF you like all that, you might also check out THIS series from Our Fake History, debunking a bunch of historical myths about Pocahontas. Sebastian and Daniele are frequent guests on each other’s shows. Did Pocahontas Really Save John Smith?.

Sebastian also does a series on Columbus (which can’t help but focus on a lot of Native perspectives), so if you want to hate that guy EVEN MORE… Columbus?

EDIT:

This is an Our Fake History with Daniele on as a special guest. Daniele and Sebastian talk about Liver Eating Johnson, a white man / cannibal / Indian killer… or was he and is that ALL made up?

Liver Eating Johnson

EDIT 2:

Also, if you DON’T know about the Navajo Code Talkers, you’d probably be interested.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

The real treasure was the friends Peanut Hamper made along the way…

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Clever girl.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Because of the nature of Trek, it was easy to retcon into an alternate universe. The world building in Star Wars didn’t leave much room for that.

Maybe they can keep ignoring it for another decade, then write it off as a vision from the Dark Side.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

“I wish for whatever I would get if an alternate version of me who were much smarter, kinder, more compassionate, more loving, less selfish, much less short sighted, much more creative and much more prepared to word the perfect wish, WHILE STILL BEING ME with my values, goals, principles and desires were making a wish from an alternate version of YOU who tries to bless wishes, instead of cursing them.”

(also, I know how to fuck this one up)

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

The alternate version of you was kind enough to wish for someone else’s health and happiness, and wanted nothing for themself.

That’s why I specified “still me, with my goals, values, etc.” I KNOW myself and this wouldn’t happen.

What WOULD happen is “You get a machine you cannot understand. You spend days / weeks / years trying to get it to do SOMETHING, ANYTHING, but it never does. Then, one day, after wasting countless hours of your life, you get it to turn on and it immediately causes <terrible, life ruining disaster> before spinning out of control and tearing itself apart.”

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

My wife is disabled and needs wheelchair assistance at airports. Stuff like this happens to her all the time. I was not shocked to see the poster above saying it happens 30% of the time to them. The problem is capitalism, bureaucracy and lack of accountability.

Wheelchair assistance is provided not by the airline, but by the airport, who hires some local company to do it.

These companies without exception are the lowest bidder, and their management is trying to scrape maximum profit by providing minimum service.

This means not enough staff, staff who don’t care because they are woefully underpaid, site supervisors who are incompetent and under trained and wheelchairs that are poorly maintained.

My wife often has to endure wheelchairs that are like that shopping cart I’m sure you’ve pushed that lists to the left / only three wheels touch the ground / makes a “clunk” sound every few steps… These pieces of junk can actually really hurt her and have contributed to at least one ER visit.

So she started speaking up for herself, complaining and asking for better wheelchairs. Well… The assistance staff (who never speak English as a first language and often just can’t even parse what she’s saying) have refused, ignored her, told her other chairs aren’t available when we’re literally looking at chairs just sitting there empty.

I have told the assistance staff to wait with her and our luggage, gone and gotten another chair myself and then switched her into it while they stand there looking like an annoyed goat, not lifting a finger.

This isn’t even counting the absurd number of times there is NO wheel chair assistance at the gate when we arrive, or there are four people who need it but only two chairs, or the gate agents call for a chair and it takes them 45 minutes to come. I have called airlines on her behalf when she’s traveling alone, because she’s stranded in some arrival gate with no assistance, after having to drag herself and her bags off the plane alone and the gate agents have left her there alone. We’ve had shockingly similar experiences in San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento, Denver, Las Vegas and Albuquerque. It’s chronic, and a result of industry cutting corners and doing the bare minimum they can get away with.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

We have like 4 children in our neighbourhood. If an adult showed up at my door in costume, I’d be thrilled to get a visitor, give them candy and offer them booze (it’s also common in my area for homes to offer drinks to parents who are chaperoning their kids).

On a similar note, when my son was about 7, my girlfriend at the time (who was 28) came with us in costume and and went up to houses with him with a candy bag and collected treats. The first couple houses, I actually felt like “this is a little embarrassing” but people just gave her candy and alcohol and I was like “You know what, this is fun!” I realized I was being a stiff adult and should just get over myself (a beer and a couple cup of hot cider with whiskey didn’t hurt my attitude either).

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Before I clicked on this, I was like “He’s a Republican…” and he was!

I ALWAYS want to ask conservatives “Why are the child molesters, rapists and racists ALWAYS on your side, every single time??” But the problem is… the media they consume tells them a different story, so they can’t even engage with that as a fact.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

!worldbuilding

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

It’s not just Russian propaganda unfortunately.

Conservative media as a whole is in a self destructive feedback loop in which -> the craziest lunatics and the angriest ideas get the most market engagement -> thus the media gives them the biggest platform, so they can make the most money -> thus those guys get elected and get talk shows-> thus rewarding both politicians and media companies for spreading anger and madness -> that made us money -> DO IT 10 TIMES MORE -> we found even crazier, angrier lunatics to run for office and host talk shows -> repeat. I’m not sure how to break this. It’s profit driven, like so many of our problems that we can’t solve.

Meanwhile, there are literally well funded, well organized conservative conspiracies to take over the world. NOTHING like that exists on the left. I wish it did. I wish we had an alliance of monied interests on the left who were like “We need to fight these assholes!”

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

“I say there can be no justice, so long as the sodomites are not allowed to practice love as they will!”

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I wish man, I’m doing the electrical for the new Quark’s Express at Star Fleet Academy.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

But if you say “It robs massive companies of their income” it just doesn’t sound compelling.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Panda Security:

https://lemmy.starlightkel.xyz/pictrs/image/8e511243-76e7-4b0d-9708-cec5b1916224.png

This community:

https://lemmy.starlightkel.xyz/pictrs/image/3c0802b2-ef09-4eac-9370-79fc51cc7fa7.png

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Google.

Reddit - I don’t post there any more, but sometimes I still end up there looking for answers and information.

BUT most of all:

LinkedIn - This platform is built to benefit companies, employers and managers, not the masses of people scrambling to use it to get noticed and build their careers. There are so many things that bug me about LinkedIn, but ONE is definitely that I have no real options NOT to use it (without suffering terrible economic penalties if I you know, don’t want to give them my data). I get resentful and anxious every time I look at it.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

Hahahahahahahaha.

thebardingreen , 7 months ago

I run my own Lemmy instance, I already pay $23.00 a month just to be here.

thebardingreen , 8 months ago

Which is too bad. A movie would be the perfect way to wrap up the Ben Sisko story.

thebardingreen , 8 months ago

That being the case, the excellent podcast Our Fake History talks about aliens in Who Built The Pyramids part III (obviously you should listen to part 1 and 2 first). This episode builds on some other episodes (Sebastian debunks all kinds of other garbage historical myths) and some familiar names tend to come up over and over. Who Are The Magicians Of The God and Was There A Real Atlantis are other episodes that might have some relevance to the KIND of arguments your coworkers are likely making.

thebardingreen , 8 months ago

The only appropriate way to respond to this is a link to dragonsfuckingcars… but that I believe would still require a reddit link.

thebardingreen , 8 months ago

Fuck you I won’t what you tell me.