Waldo
@waldo42.bsky.social
History Buff, Engineer, Urbanite, Woodworker, Packer Fan
The answer is 42.
The answer is 42.
Maybe masked agents performing Kavanaugh stops, a national level prop 187, isn't the best idea.
Nearly 2 in 3 Latinos say it's a bad time to be Latino in the U.S. — a spike in pessimism since just last year and a total reversal from three years ago — according to a new @axios.com @ipsosgroup.bsky.social Latino Poll in partnership with @noticiastelemundo.com www.axios.com/2025/11/06/l...
"A bad time to be Latino": Pessimism surges in new Axios-Ipsos poll
Latinos' overall sense of optimism, safety and belonging has plunged across several measures since President Trump took office.
www.axios.com
November 6, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Maybe masked agents performing Kavanaugh stops, a national level prop 187, isn't the best idea.
Collinsworth's love of Rodgers knows no bounds. Years removed from it now as a GB fan, it's just crazy to hear. Every mention of Love is in the context of Rodgers.
October 27, 2025 at 2:35 AM
Collinsworth's love of Rodgers knows no bounds. Years removed from it now as a GB fan, it's just crazy to hear. Every mention of Love is in the context of Rodgers.
Fanduel running commercials to draw little kids' eyes with a blue school bus; aka the Fortnite battle bus.
Absolutely abhorrent.
Absolutely abhorrent.
October 25, 2025 at 3:37 PM
Fanduel running commercials to draw little kids' eyes with a blue school bus; aka the Fortnite battle bus.
Absolutely abhorrent.
Absolutely abhorrent.
This seems bad. Getting a lot of the same vibes that housing was giving off circa 2006, when everyone knew it was a bubble, the question was how bad things were going to get when it popped.
JPMorgan Chase reports that $1.2T of debt is now tied to AI-related companies, making it the largest segment in the investment-grade market (Caleb Mutua/Bloomberg)
Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
October 7, 2025 at 2:47 PM
This seems bad. Getting a lot of the same vibes that housing was giving off circa 2006, when everyone knew it was a bubble, the question was how bad things were going to get when it popped.
Long ago I used to comment on misspellings and grammar issues in construction drawing notes; now I view them as a sign it was written by a thinking human.
I'm feeling a new love for a clumsy sentence or a misspelled word. I imagine a human on the other end. Doing their own typing, like the old days.
I'm thinking about styles of writing that might emerge from this-- analogues to a guacamole I once saw advertised as "hand hacked" at a fancy restaurant.
I'm thinking about styles of writing that might emerge from this-- analogues to a guacamole I once saw advertised as "hand hacked" at a fancy restaurant.
October 1, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Long ago I used to comment on misspellings and grammar issues in construction drawing notes; now I view them as a sign it was written by a thinking human.
Optically pure glass and the lenses it makes possible.
Which means eyeglasses and the telescope. Eyeglasses extend reading and writing potential in the population greatly. The first observations of the telescope (confirming heliocentrism) inspired the scientific method.
Which means eyeglasses and the telescope. Eyeglasses extend reading and writing potential in the population greatly. The first observations of the telescope (confirming heliocentrism) inspired the scientific method.
What’s the simplest non-gun technology you could give the Romans that would still totally reshape the course of global history? I feel like telegraph would do it probably. Maybe steam trains.
This is the truest thing I have ever seen. You cannot imagine how much the Romans would have lost their minds for excel. They literally already started writing our historical chronicles in synchronized columns *by hand*
July 21, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Optically pure glass and the lenses it makes possible.
Which means eyeglasses and the telescope. Eyeglasses extend reading and writing potential in the population greatly. The first observations of the telescope (confirming heliocentrism) inspired the scientific method.
Which means eyeglasses and the telescope. Eyeglasses extend reading and writing potential in the population greatly. The first observations of the telescope (confirming heliocentrism) inspired the scientific method.
Reposted by Waldo
This is an unappreciated downside of the Iranian airstrikes: it revealed capabilities of the MOD and the B-2 itself (both radar x-section and actual combat load/range) and, despite everything working perfectly, appears to have failed to destroy the program despite being built for this use
There's a lot of discussion about cost here and it matters but the thing that arguably matters more is that we just demonstrated inability to bomb Iran's hardened programs with the purpose-built weapons we had
June 24, 2025 at 7:47 PM
This is an unappreciated downside of the Iranian airstrikes: it revealed capabilities of the MOD and the B-2 itself (both radar x-section and actual combat load/range) and, despite everything working perfectly, appears to have failed to destroy the program despite being built for this use
Engineers of real physical things should never have let computer code authors get away with calling themselves engineers.
Engineers, once the crowned royals of tech, are now nervously watching AI vibe its way into their jobs—with vibes, vibes only.
Vibe Coding Is Coming for Engineering Jobs
Engineering was once the most stable and lucrative job in tech. Then AI learned to code.
www.wired.com
June 12, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Engineers of real physical things should never have let computer code authors get away with calling themselves engineers.
Reposted by Waldo
leftists: that thing you teach us in school to be terrified of is happening
historians: that thing is definitely happening
star wars: here is a beat-for-beat breakdown of how the thing happens, but with pew pew lasers. we know you watched it
news outlets: these protesters are out of control
historians: that thing is definitely happening
star wars: here is a beat-for-beat breakdown of how the thing happens, but with pew pew lasers. we know you watched it
news outlets: these protesters are out of control
June 11, 2025 at 12:34 PM
leftists: that thing you teach us in school to be terrified of is happening
historians: that thing is definitely happening
star wars: here is a beat-for-beat breakdown of how the thing happens, but with pew pew lasers. we know you watched it
news outlets: these protesters are out of control
historians: that thing is definitely happening
star wars: here is a beat-for-beat breakdown of how the thing happens, but with pew pew lasers. we know you watched it
news outlets: these protesters are out of control
Reposted by Waldo
REMEMBER THE MAINE!
June 10, 2025 at 2:24 AM
REMEMBER THE MAINE!
Reposted by Waldo
not the main issue here but i'd really appreciate it if democratic politicians spoke out in support of big-city life and culture with the same energy and reverence that all politicians have for small towns
los angeles is "real america" and so are all the other big cities the president hates
los angeles is "real america" and so are all the other big cities the president hates
June 8, 2025 at 10:48 PM
not the main issue here but i'd really appreciate it if democratic politicians spoke out in support of big-city life and culture with the same energy and reverence that all politicians have for small towns
los angeles is "real america" and so are all the other big cities the president hates
los angeles is "real america" and so are all the other big cities the president hates
Great book that I'm just about finished reading. So much of it is incredibly salient to what is happening today in politics.
And by today I mean literally, there's quite a bit about the US occupations of Haiti, a new travel ban was just announced by the admin.
And by today I mean literally, there's quite a bit about the US occupations of Haiti, a new travel ban was just announced by the admin.
With Father's Day on the horizon, I would like to belatedly confirm that GANGSTERS OF CAPITALISM is indeed a Dad Book.
us.macmillan.com/books/978125...
us.macmillan.com/books/978125...
Gangsters of Capitalism
A groundbreaking journey tracing America’s forgotten path to global power―and how its legacies shape our world today―told through the extraordinary lif...
us.macmillan.com
June 5, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Great book that I'm just about finished reading. So much of it is incredibly salient to what is happening today in politics.
And by today I mean literally, there's quite a bit about the US occupations of Haiti, a new travel ban was just announced by the admin.
And by today I mean literally, there's quite a bit about the US occupations of Haiti, a new travel ban was just announced by the admin.
Reposted by Waldo
We did not have any of this drama when Joe Biden’s clone was president.
June 5, 2025 at 7:20 PM
We did not have any of this drama when Joe Biden’s clone was president.
Reposted by Waldo
James Earl Jones explicitly went out of his way to sign over the rights to let his voice be used for Vader in all future media at the continued benefit of his family & for his fans more than 2 yrs before he passed away. He retired from the role & chose to sign it over after learning about the tech.
SAG-AFTRA has filed an unfair labor practice charge against Epic Games for its use of A.I. for Darth Vader’s voice in Fortnite.
May 19, 2025 at 7:24 PM
James Earl Jones explicitly went out of his way to sign over the rights to let his voice be used for Vader in all future media at the continued benefit of his family & for his fans more than 2 yrs before he passed away. He retired from the role & chose to sign it over after learning about the tech.
Reposted by Waldo
It's even worse than this! "No one can be deprived of liberty without due process of law" goes back to Runnymede, far predating the United States. (and further: the barons who wrote the Magna Carta also believed they were merely enshrining in writing rules that already existed since time immemorial)
The U.S. is 250 years old. We should not have to constantly relitigate incredibly basic shit like “everyone is entitled to due process” or “presidents must obey court orders” like these are new or unsettled questions.
May 16, 2025 at 7:19 PM
It's even worse than this! "No one can be deprived of liberty without due process of law" goes back to Runnymede, far predating the United States. (and further: the barons who wrote the Magna Carta also believed they were merely enshrining in writing rules that already existed since time immemorial)
Reposted by Waldo
Two thoughts:
(1) a lot of these folks would like to be actual aristocracy but are settling for digital servants because it's more palatable
(2) there are lots of activities you cannot offload without making you less effective at your job. Research involves the brain equivalent of muscle memory
(1) a lot of these folks would like to be actual aristocracy but are settling for digital servants because it's more palatable
(2) there are lots of activities you cannot offload without making you less effective at your job. Research involves the brain equivalent of muscle memory
If you thought social media had scrambled America’s CEOs just wait until they’re fully cooked by AI apple.news/AJ_ht7MMyT9G...
May 16, 2025 at 2:17 PM
Two thoughts:
(1) a lot of these folks would like to be actual aristocracy but are settling for digital servants because it's more palatable
(2) there are lots of activities you cannot offload without making you less effective at your job. Research involves the brain equivalent of muscle memory
(1) a lot of these folks would like to be actual aristocracy but are settling for digital servants because it's more palatable
(2) there are lots of activities you cannot offload without making you less effective at your job. Research involves the brain equivalent of muscle memory
Another way of looking at this is that AI is a money incinerator and domestic funders are fully tapped out. Especially as it seems the Softbank deal hasn't quite been the boon they were expecting. Much of the LLM ecosystem is desperate for cash.
1/Tariffs coffee but offshore AI? Trump Administration trade policy threatens our most valuable domestic sector -- advanced computing. Middle East deals could also put national security at risk. Welcome to the latest episode of trade omnishambles.
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/15/b...
Outsourcer in Chief: Is Trump Trading Away America’s Tech Future?
www.nytimes.com
May 16, 2025 at 12:42 PM
Another way of looking at this is that AI is a money incinerator and domestic funders are fully tapped out. Especially as it seems the Softbank deal hasn't quite been the boon they were expecting. Much of the LLM ecosystem is desperate for cash.
Reposted by Waldo
When I talk about Democrats fighting to aid fascism, rather than fighting to protect us from it, this is exactly what I’m talking about.
Sen. Blackburn & I made a promise to parents & young people when we started fighting for the Kids Online Safety Act—we will make this bill law. There’s undeniable awareness of the harms caused by Big Tech’s exploitive, addictive algorithms, & inescapable momentum for reform.
Blumenthal, Blackburn, Thune & Schumer Introduce the Kids Online Safety Act | U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn) were joined by U.S. Senate Majority Leader John...
www.blumenthal.senate.gov
May 15, 2025 at 1:53 PM
When I talk about Democrats fighting to aid fascism, rather than fighting to protect us from it, this is exactly what I’m talking about.
Reposted by Waldo
And yet no pundit will come out and say "Republicans need to moderate on trans issues."
Huge news out of Nebraska: Democrat John Ewing just flipped the mayor's office in Omaha, the state's biggest city.
He successfully tied the GOP incumbent to Trump. She responded by claiming Ewing "stands with radicals" on "boys in girls' bathrooms and sports." It didn't work.
Our full writeup -->
He successfully tied the GOP incumbent to Trump. She responded by claiming Ewing "stands with radicals" on "boys in girls' bathrooms and sports." It didn't work.
Our full writeup -->
Democrats just flipped Nebraska's biggest city
And it should make GOP Rep. Don Bacon nervous about next year
www.the-downballot.com
May 14, 2025 at 3:08 AM
And yet no pundit will come out and say "Republicans need to moderate on trans issues."
Reposted by Waldo
OK, this is wild.
In September 2023, geophysicists across the world started monitoring a very odd signal coming from the ground under them.
It was picked up in the Arctic. And Antarctica. It was detected everywhere, every 90 seconds, as regular as a metronome, for *nine days*.
What the HELL?
1/
In September 2023, geophysicists across the world started monitoring a very odd signal coming from the ground under them.
It was picked up in the Arctic. And Antarctica. It was detected everywhere, every 90 seconds, as regular as a metronome, for *nine days*.
What the HELL?
1/
May 12, 2025 at 3:20 PM
OK, this is wild.
In September 2023, geophysicists across the world started monitoring a very odd signal coming from the ground under them.
It was picked up in the Arctic. And Antarctica. It was detected everywhere, every 90 seconds, as regular as a metronome, for *nine days*.
What the HELL?
1/
In September 2023, geophysicists across the world started monitoring a very odd signal coming from the ground under them.
It was picked up in the Arctic. And Antarctica. It was detected everywhere, every 90 seconds, as regular as a metronome, for *nine days*.
What the HELL?
1/
Reposted by Waldo
Pope Leo's first sermon and, uh, his using the phrase "be ever more fully a city set upon a hill" and cf'ing it to Rev 21:10 instead of any of the others before saying "many baptized Christians" are "living in a state of practical atheism" is. Well. Shots fired!
www.npr.org/2025/05/09/g...
www.npr.org/2025/05/09/g...
Read Pope Leo XIV's first homily as pope
During his homily, delivered in Italian, Leo XIV said that Christians must serve a world that is often hostile to their beliefs.
www.npr.org
May 9, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Pope Leo's first sermon and, uh, his using the phrase "be ever more fully a city set upon a hill" and cf'ing it to Rev 21:10 instead of any of the others before saying "many baptized Christians" are "living in a state of practical atheism" is. Well. Shots fired!
www.npr.org/2025/05/09/g...
www.npr.org/2025/05/09/g...
Now do teachers.
Their reddit board has much of the country convinced (non-parents at least) gen A is way, way, way behind previous gens; that reading is a skill rarely in a modern high school.
That the iPad is the scourge of all that is good that has destroyed the minds of a generation.
Their reddit board has much of the country convinced (non-parents at least) gen A is way, way, way behind previous gens; that reading is a skill rarely in a modern high school.
That the iPad is the scourge of all that is good that has destroyed the minds of a generation.
May 5, 2025 at 6:28 PM
Now do teachers.
Their reddit board has much of the country convinced (non-parents at least) gen A is way, way, way behind previous gens; that reading is a skill rarely in a modern high school.
That the iPad is the scourge of all that is good that has destroyed the minds of a generation.
Their reddit board has much of the country convinced (non-parents at least) gen A is way, way, way behind previous gens; that reading is a skill rarely in a modern high school.
That the iPad is the scourge of all that is good that has destroyed the minds of a generation.
Reposted by Waldo
I just ran into someone doing the whole “don’t eat a thing if your great-grandparents wouldn’t recognize it as food” and I’m begging people to know a little food history and understand how far back you have to go to find food without additives.
April 30, 2025 at 7:50 PM
I just ran into someone doing the whole “don’t eat a thing if your great-grandparents wouldn’t recognize it as food” and I’m begging people to know a little food history and understand how far back you have to go to find food without additives.