𝕿𝖊𝖈𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖘 Bulletin for Friday, February 03, 2023
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Gemini index for the day: gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2023/02/03/
╒═══════════════════ 𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐁𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐒 ════════════════════════════════════╕
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╒═══════════════════ 𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐗 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════╕
⦿ The Collapse of Sirius in a Nutshell: How to Identify the Symptoms and Decide When to Leave | Techrights
⦿ Sirius Finished | Techrights
䷼ Bulletin articles (as HTML) to comment on (requires login):
http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/collapse-of-sirius/#comments
http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/to-quote-final-letter/#comments
䷞ Followed by Daily Links (assorted news picks curated and categorised):
http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/gnu-c-library-2-37/#comments
http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/openssh-9-2/#comments
http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/scummvm-2-7-testing/#comments
䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 52
╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕
(ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/collapse-of-sirius/#comments
Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2023/02/03/collapse-of-sirius/
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Gemini_version_available_♊︎
✐ The_Collapse_of_Sirius_in_a_Nutshell:_How_to_Identify_the_Symptoms_and_Decide
When_to_Leave⠀✐
Posted in Deception, Free/Libre_Software at 1:49 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇SiriUS_no_more⦈_
From Rianne’s_departure_message about Sirius_‘Open_Source’
Summary: Sirius is finished, but it’s important to share the lessons learned
with other people; there might be other “pretenders” out there and they need to
be abandoned
THIS is by no means a complete summary; the Sirius_‘Open_Source’_wiki contains
a more complete overview. However, this is an abbreviated summary focusing on
the issues at hand, rewriting them for an audience that might think about
leaving a toxic employer but isn’t sure why or how. Some readers have asked for
such a summary as they consider doing the same.
We’ve decided to use the existing articles’ index to make this grand summary of
the issues, split suitably for quicker digestion (covering unions, staff health
etc.) and omitting more employer-specific scandals, e.g. illegal contract-
signing (we included a response to my initial refusal/declination and others’),
E-mail clippings as evidence and so on.
“Do not attempt to rationalise staying.”The short story is: do_not_participate
in_lying_and_in_illegal_acts. If you feel like your employer is heading in this
direction, prepare to leave.
Don’t wait too long. Do not attempt to rationalise staying. Your morality is
more important than short-term conveniences like “paying the mortgage” or
“staying with colleagues”.
I joined Sirius 12 years ago (in February of 2011). The CEO was kind to me at
the time. We’ve shared a screenshot from the Internet Archive of the company’s
old site (back when it was a sponsor of the Free Software Foundation). The CEO,
as I found out much later, was hopping from one woman to the next, saddling
them with daughters whom he failed to take care of. He was getting married when
I spoke about joining, marrying a manager in the company — a manager whom he
had already had a child with. It was maybe too late for me to properly
understand the chronology of it, but it seemed benign at the time. It smacked
of nepotism already, but at least the spouse had actual experience as a
manager. Similarly, my wife had a degree in Computer Science. The CEO, as I
recently found out, was also allegedly cheating on his second wife. We’re still
investigating the nature of that as it impacts the company directly. The CEO is
not a good person. I was warned about him being a chronic liar some time around
2006, but I did not fully heed this warning.
“My ‘tenure’ at the company was generally good; nobody complained and I was
“Star of the Week” (10-pound voucher award) about a decade ago. I also have
some other physical certificates that they sent me in recognition (e.g.
laminated finish on paper for my 5-year anniversary).”The company was in
disarray in (or by) 2022. Heck, it was standing on one foot for several years
already (maybe since 2019). In 2021 they sent me a bogus message about
“disciplinary note”, simply because I’d not say “hi, it’s Roy” or something
inane like this over the phone. The management failed to prepare staff and then
tried to blame the staff, which was assigned to handle clerical work using a
truly defective product with impossible demands (answering within 3 rings).
My ‘tenure’ at the company was generally good; nobody complained and I was
“Star of the Week” (10-pound voucher award) about a decade ago. I also have
some other physical certificates that they sent me in recognition (e.g.
laminated finish on paper for my 5-year anniversary).
So what compelled me to leave?
A lot of things.
Above all, the ethics associated with the job became far too problematic. I
wrote about this in my blog last summer and again when I left this past
December. Some clients were truly awful and immoral. I don’t want to name them,
and thankfully I’ve avoided working with/for them. By this point Sirius kept
announcing clients that later turned out to ‘pre’ announcements (or truly
premature as nothing ever came out of it). The managers were desperate to give
a false impression (illusion) of getting business and some of the actual
“business” they attracted is worse than nothing. Some past clients did not wish
to associate with Sirius and at least one past client (telephony sector
company) asked to be removed from the fake “clients” page of Sirius.
I can’t blame those clients. Being associated with Sirius was becoming a
liability to them. Search for ‘The Liar’ in the headlines here; you’ll see what
I mean… don’t tolerate any bosses who keep saying they’re too busy to reply to
E-mail from staff; so what are they doing all day? If they don’t even respond
to staff, then it’s not clear if they’re busy at all; they could just as well
pretend to be “busy” by not doing anything at all, then use that as an excuse
or “evidence” of the busy-ness.
The Liar (nickname) later resorted to using flimsy ‘evidence’. He said, without
any evidence, that I had uttered something “defamatory”; it took two weeks to
actually show something and what they then showed was some side IRC channel
(that nobody reads) stating perfectly factual information about my experiences,
without naming people or any company. It was a chat between just two people and
didn’t reveal anyone’s identity. It was factual and necessary; it was moral to
object to bad ideas. Blind obedience and unquestionable docility should not be
seen as a merit.
“Blind obedience and unquestionable docility should not be seen as a merit.”The
company was, at this point, not even an attractive employer. Set aside the
ethical deficit. It had no actual office (Sirius used to host for clients, not
outsource for them) and had some technical workers compared to “monkeys” (even
treated as such). In recent years it became trivial to show, using documents_in
the_public_domain, that the company was operating like a shell. It was simple
to show it’s getting worse over time and unbearable debt was growing. The
company was going to go under (just a matter of time) and the staff had no
prospects of progression (well, no chance at progression except through
nepotism (like family) or sex); the company was no longer “open source”, except
in name, bragging about ISO certification (see The Inside Story of ISO
‘Certification’ Mill) while gaslighting people who actually value security/
compliance.
If you work in a company such as this, don’t expect it to improve. The people
with greater skills and integrity likely left already. They won’t be coming
back.
Not only did the company ignore the warnings from me (about security problems),
it didn’t even change passwords, alter providers, or self-host an actual “Open
Source” alternative that doesn’t lie about security breaches. Sirius kept
paying huge bills for “clown computing” (instances that were idle almost all
the time) and my suggestion of self-hosting, like we did before, were dismissed
as “hobbyist” by the CEO. So what is to be sold as a service? Outsourcing?
For more information about these things, revisit the parts about “How Carbon
Accounting Became a Cover for Sirius Open Source Ltd.” and “How Sirius Open
Source Ltd. Felt Deep Into Debt” (super dodgy).
“For projects to be done (e.g. programming) one needs a proper daytime job
without distraction and with decent pay.”By the time we left (in 2022) the
company was quite frankly broke and not worth suing for severance. It had
likely plundered some older pensions already (still the subject of an ongoing
probe; photographs_of_letters_from_the_current_pension_provider suggest they
might try this again). This became a cultural, chronic problem. For instance,
the management lied about providing recordings of meetings in 2019, so I
started making my own recordings of such meetings. I could not trust managers’
words. Such chronic lying and false promises are a sign it’s time to leave (or
prepare to leave). I already prepared in 2019, but then COVID-19 happened. The
managers like to tell themselves they did us a favour. But people who are idle
a lot of the time because they work overnight, devoted to complex tasks of
monitoring many things and responding, can never sleep well. This impacts their
physical and mental health. They make personal compromises while getting paid
laughably little. For projects to be done (e.g. programming) one needs a proper
daytime job without distraction and with decent pay.
Sirius Open Wash Ltd. (maybe a suggested name for another — likely third —
shell entity) would be letting Windows users who adore surveillance get
involved in decision-making, grabbing Gates Foundation money to pretend they
have a future (Gates never needed a British company to handle something
thousands of American firms can easily handle). Seeing that the CEO’s and the
company’s Twitter accounts (all of them) have not tweeted anything since last
summer, we suppose no other shell will be created. Sirius is finished. Jobs
were advertised by the company’s account in Twitter last year, but only on
short-term contractual basis. It now says the company is also US-based and says
laughable things like Sirius being American leaders in the area (Sirius has
almost no clients and staff there), simply because the chief absconded,
escaping responsibilities for his family which he ditched (so he can have sex
with another woman, apparently some American he met).
🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴_🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽_⦇Sirius_US⦈_
So he’s likely running away to dodge litigation and maybe dodge payments to the
two former wives and 4 daughters, especially the young ones (early teens at
this time).
This series has attempted to be impersonal (no names), but at some point it can
get trickier. We still try to work around the secrecy of the NDA and figure out
what exactly happened in 2019. █
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⠿⠟⠃⢨⣿⠏⠙⠋⠉⣭⣯⡿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣃⣴⠀⣨⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠈⠉⠻⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣿⡿⣧⡄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢙⣟⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⠢⣀⠀⠐⠪⣻⣦
⠀⠀⠠⣿⡅⠀⠀⢰⣾⣿⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⠛⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠙⠛⠿⣿⣿⣿⣾⡵⠄⣀⠀⠀⠀⣄⣿⡿⣿⣿⣙⢿⡄⠀⠈⠧⣅⢰⣬⣿
⠀⠘⣣⣿⢰⡆⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠙⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⣯⣭⣿⣿⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠹⣿⣿⣷⣆⠄⢀⠐⠀⠙⠘⣷⣻⣿⣿⣿⠗⠀⠀⠰⣯⣿⣿⣿
⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⠃⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⣏⣿⣿⣯⡦⠀⠀⠀⣰⣿⡯⣿⣿⣿⠀⠀⣰⣴⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⠛⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠙⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣦⣀⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣠⣾⡟⠛⠽⠛⠛⢻⡄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢰⣿⣿⣾⣽⣿⣶⡤⠀⠀⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣤⣷⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⠋⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠈⠛⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣟⣿⢗⣶⣿⣿⠛⠛⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠹⢷⣄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣾⣯⢛⣿⣿⣿⣿⢿⣿⣿⡏⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⡷⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠁⠈⢘⠿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠄⣯⣿⣿⠏⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠙⣷⣤⣀⣀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣠⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⠁⠘⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⡿⠃⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⣄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣠⣶⣤⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣬⣿⣿⡟⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣽⣿⣿⣯⡙⠛⠛⠛⠙⣉⡎⣿⣿⣿⣻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠁⠀⠀⠸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣿⣿⣿⣶⣄⠀⠀⢈⣤⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣼⣿⣿⣿⡿⠷⠆⠀⠀⢐⣝⢮⣿⣻⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠋⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠉⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣄⠘⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡀⣦⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⠿⠟⠋⣡⢴⠢⠂⠀⠀⠠⡊⡸⢿⢗⡽⢿⣿⣯⣿⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢰⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣽⣿⣦⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣤⠀⠀⠀⠈⠉⠃⠃⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠂⣿⠑⠍⡈⡷⠃⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠌⣻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⠀⠀⠀⣠⣤⣄⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠃⠀⠀⣼⣽⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢯⢻⣿⣿⣦⠀⠀⠀⠠⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠄⠐⠊⠉⠀⠀⠋⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢨⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⠀⠀⣽⣿⠿⢻⣿⣷⣻⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⢰⣶⣦⣶⢹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⣅⡈⣿⣿⡾⣶⣶⠀⣠⣶⢶⣶⣄⠀⠀⢰⣶⣦⢶⣶⡤⢶⣶⡄⢠⣶⡶⣶⣄⠀⣶⣶⣴⡆⣠⣶⢶⣶⡄⠸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⠀⣠⠿⠉⠀⠈⣻⣿⣷⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⢸⣿⡟⠃⢸⣿⡟⢹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⠀⠀⢸⣿⡇⢸⣿⡇⢸⣿⡇⣾⣿⠁⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⠛⠁⣿⣿⣴⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣶⠁⠀⠀⠀⢰⣷⣆⣽⣿⡿⢿⣿⡇⢸⣿⡇⠀⢸⣿⡇⢸⣿⡇⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⠛⠉⣿⣿⠇⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⠀⠀⢸⣿⡇⢸⣿⡇⢸⣿⡇⣿⣿⡄⣿⣿⠀⣿⣿⠀⠀⣿⣿⠀⣶⣶⠀⠿⠟⢿⣿⣿
⣿⣦⣀⠀⢀⣾⣿⣿⣿⡿⠃⠸⢿⣿⠺⠿⠇⠀⠸⣿⣇⠈⠻⠿⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⡿⠁⠀⠀⠿⠿⠅⠿⠿⠀⠙⠿⠾⠿⠃⠀⠀⠸⠿⠇⠸⠿⠇⠸⠿⠇⠘⠿⠷⠿⠋⠀⠿⠿⠀⠀⠙⠿⠶⠿⠃⠀⠿⠿⣾⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣀⣀⣀⣈⡋⠁⠀⠀⠀⣼⣿⣿⣧⣀⠀⠀⢸⣿⣿⣿⣟⠛⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠸⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠸⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢋⣟⣯⠠⢸⣏⠃⠉⡝⣿⠪⠡⠑⢩⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢠⡤⣤⢤⠤⡤⡤⡤⠤⢤⠤⠤⡤⡤⡤⣤⢤⢤⡤⣤⢤⠤⢤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣧⣴⣤⣠⣖⣴⣼⣄⣸⣯⣥⣧⣥⣮⣤⣴⣧⣴⣤⣴⣧⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⡏⡙⠙⠛⠋⡛⠙⡟⠋⠹⠛⢻⢻⠉⡿⠛⠹⠛⡟⠛⡟⢛⠛⡛⠛⠛⠟⣟⠛⠻⠿⠿⠻⠙⠛⠻⠋⠛⡿⠛⢙⢻⠹⠛⠛⠛⢿⠙⣯⠟⢹⢹⠛⠛⡛⠋⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⡟⣭⡝⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⣻⣻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡟⣝⢽⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⢹⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣟⢹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣶⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠸⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠸⣿⣟⣻⠛⣿⢻⠿⠿⣿⡛⢛⢟⠛⡻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢠⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣴⣿⣿⣾⣷⣷⣶⣶⣴⣽⣾⣾⣶⣷⣷⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣏⢀⣵⣆⢆⣜⣈⡱⣢⣃⣘⣘⡰⣋⣭⣻⡆⣮⠉⢙⡍⠈⠉⣏⡬⡉⣭⠅⣝⢭⡇⣰⢰⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⡟⠛⠿⠛⡟⠛⣿⠿⠿⠿⡿⠿⠿⢿⠿⠿⡟⣿⢿⠛⠛⠿⠿⠻⠟⠿⠿⠛⡿⠿⡿⡟⢻⡿⠟⡿⢿⠻⣿⠿⢿⡿⢿⡿⠿⣿⣿⠻⡿⠿⡟⠿⠿⠿⢿⢿⢿⠿⠿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⡇⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣷⣶⣾⣶⣶⣶⣿⣶⣶⣾⣷⣶⣶⣶⣶⣶⣷⣿⣾⣶⣶⣶⣶⣾⣶⣾⣦⣴⣶⣶⣷⣷⣾⣶⣶⣶⣾⣶⣷⣶⣦⣷⣾⣷⣶⣿⣿⣾⣾⣶⣷⣶⣶⣷⣾⣾⣶⣶⣶⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣇⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣸⡿⣛⡻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⢿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⡿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣍⣵⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⣽⣭⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣭⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣇⣈⣸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣙⣚⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿
䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 303
╒═══════════════════ 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐋𝐄 ═════════════════════════════════════════════════╕
(ℹ) Images, hyperlinks and comments at http://techrights.org/2023/02/03/to-quote-final-letter/#comments
Gemini version at gemini://gemini.techrights.org/2023/02/03/to-quote-final-letter/
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Gemini_version_available_♊︎
✐ Sirius_Finished⠀✐
Posted in Deception, Free/Libre_Software at 1:57 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
Video_download_link | md5sum b8720fc3b41aaa603c06b9b81ba9921c
Sirius Closure and Steps Ahead
Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0
http://techrights.org/videos/sirius-resignation-approved.webm
Summary: Yesterday I was sent a letter approving my resignation from Sirius
‘Open_Source’, two months after I had already announced that I was resigning
with immediate effect; they sent an identical letter to my wife (this time,
unlike before, they remembered to also change the names!!)
THIS is just an update regarding Sirius, as it sent the following yesterday; it
was sent one day after the actual date of the letter (“Acceptance of your
Resignation [...] Please see the attached letter.”) and to quote:
Re: Your resignation has been accepted
Dear Roy,
I write further to my letter of 9th Dec 2022 in which I asked you to
reconsider your resignation and gave you a cooling off period to 16th
Dec 2022. Given that I did not hear from you before the end of the
cooling off period, I could only therefore assume that you did not
wish to retract your resignation.
I am disappointed that you decided not to allow us the opportunity to
attempt to resolve any concerns that led to your resignation, however
I have to respect your decision and it is therefore with regret that
your resignation was accepted, with your final day of employment
being Friday 16th December.
Any accrued holidays you ha not taken will be paid in your final pay,
which should have been processed in the January payment run. Your P45
will be issued as soon as possible after your final pay has been
administered.
We wish you every success in the future.
Yours sincerely,
xxxxxx
CEO, Sirius UK
As I explain in the video above, it seems like a face-saving publicity stunt
from them, pretending all was amicable. We’re meanwhile investigating what
happened to the pensions of all past staff; the Standard Life management is
being super-evasive about it. One might assume it got plundered by Sirius
management, but we’re still trying to find verifiable evidence of that. Now
that British and French workers are staging massive strikes (the latter over
pensions in particular) we urge people all around the world to check that their
pensions haven’t been rendered scams. It seems like a trend. █
䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 386
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⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 02.03.23⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧
Gemini_version_available_♊︎
✐ Links_03/02/2023:_GNU_C_Library_2.37⠀✐
Posted in News_Roundup at 9:31 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇GNOME bluefish⦈
§ Contents⠀➾
* GNU/Linux
o Server
o Applications
o Instructionals/Technical
o Desktop_Environments/WMs
# K_Desktop_Environment/KDE_SC/Qt
* Distributions_and_Operating_Systems
o New_Releases
o BSD
o Gentoo_Family
o Red_Hat_/_IBM
o Devices/Embedded
o Mobile_Systems/Mobile_Applications
* Free,_Libre,_and_Open_Source_Software
o Events
o Web_Browsers/Web_Servers
# Mozilla
o Productivity_Software/LibreOffice/Calligra
o GNU_Projects
o Programming/Development
# Rust
* Leftovers
o Science
o Education
o Hardware
o Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
o Proprietary
o Security
# Privacy/Surveillance
o Defence/Aggression
o Environment
# Energy/Transportation
# Wildlife/Nature
# Overpopulation
o Finance
o AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
o Censorship/Free_Speech
o Freedom_of_Information_/_Freedom_of_the_Press
o Civil_Rights/Policing
o Internet_Policy/Net_Neutrality
o Monopolies
# Patents
* Gemini*_and_Gopher
o Personal
o Politics
o Technical
# Internet/Gemini
* § GNU/Linux⠀➾
o § Server⠀➾
# ⚓ Silicon Angle ☛ Cloud_growth_doesn’t_stop_economy_from
biting_Amazon_and_Alphabet [Ed: Clown computing is a bubble;
people get tired]⠀⇛
The sky is no longer the limit for cloud computing
giants, as the slowing economy strikes at one of
tech’s biggest growth stories of the past decade.
§ Applications⠀➾
* ⚓ Linux Links ☛ 8_Best_Free_and_Open_Source_Terminal-Based_Music
Players⠀⇛
All music libraries are different, and the right open source
music player can make a world of difference – especially if
you’ve a large collection. We recommend the best terminal-based
music players.
* ⚓ 9to5Linux ☛ OBS_Studio_29.0.1_Is_Out_to_Fix_Linux_Crash_on_Wayland,_X11
Capture_Issue⠀⇛
OBS Studio 29.0.1 open-source and free software for live
streaming and screen recording is now available for download as
a “hotfix” release that addresses several issues discovered in
OBS Studio 29.0.
There are several Linux-specific fixes in OBS Studio 29.0.1,
including a crash when using Wayland and trying to use the
automatic scene switcher, an issue where screen capturing
wouldn’t work correctly on X11, a bug where overriding the
theme could cause OBS Studio to fail to start, as well as a
software rendering issue.
* ⚓ Linux Links ☛ Best_Free_and_Open_Source_Alternatives_to_Corel_Pinnacle
Studio⠀⇛
Corel has dabbled with Linux over the years. For example they
produced Corel Linux, a Debian-based distribution which bundled
Corel WordPerfect Office for Linux. While Corel effectively
abandoned its Linux business in 2001 they are not completely
Linux-phobic. For example, AfterShot Pro has an up to date
Linux version albeit its proprietary software.
This series looks at the best free and open source alternatives
to products offered by Corel.
§ Instructionals/Technical⠀➾
* ⚓ DebugPoint ☛ How_to_Enable_‘Dark_Mode’_in_LibreOffice⠀⇛
Tutorial for you on how to enable dark mode in LibreOffice in
Ubuntu, Linux and Windows systems. LibreOffice, the free and
open-source office productivity software, is used by millions
worldwide. This cross-platform software runs on Windows, Linux,
and other distributions. Millions of users around the world use
LibreOffice.
* ⚓ Creating_a_multi-node_cluster_with_KinD⠀⇛
Introduction Kubernetes is an open-source platform that
automates the deployment, scaling, and management of
containerized applications. KinD (Kubernetes in Docker) is a
tool that can be used to create a local Kubernetes cluster for
testing and development purposes.
* ⚓ Creating_a_single-node_cluster_with_Minikube⠀⇛
Kubernetes is an open-source platform that provides container
orchestration services, making it easier to manage containers,
networks, and storage.
* ⚓ Kubernetes_Clusters_Overview⠀⇛
Kubernetes is an open-source platform that automates the
deployment, scaling, and management of containerized
applications. It has become the de facto standard for managing
containers and has been widely adopted by organizations around
the world.
* ⚓ ID Root ☛ How_To_Install_GRV_on_Ubuntu_22.04_LTS⠀⇛
In this tutorial, we will show you how to install GRV on Ubuntu
22.04 LTS.
* ⚓ Linux Shell Tips ☛ The_Ultimate_Docker_Commands_Cheat_Sheet_for_Linux⠀⇛
Do you want a containerized application? Get Docker, which is
the most preferred platform that helps you design, deploy, and
execute programs as lightweight
* ⚓ Linux Capable ☛ How_to_Install_Rust_on_Linux_Mint_21_or_20⠀⇛
Rust is a modern and highly efficient systems programming
language that has been gaining popularity among developers for
its performance, security, and ability to handle complex
programming tasks. It has quickly become one of the most
sought-after languages in the development and programming
community.
* ⚓ TecMint ☛ How_to_List_and_Extract_tar.xz_File_in_Linux⠀⇛
A tar.xz file extension shows that the file is a tar archive
file compressed using the XZ compression tool. In this guide,
we will cover various examples of how to list contests of a
* ⚓ Displaying_routing_information_in_Linux⠀⇛
As a Linux user, you may come across a scenario where you need
to access information about your network routing. This
information can be very useful for troubleshooting, monitoring,
and security purposes. In this article, we will learn how to
display routing information in Linux and understand the output.
* ⚓ Displaying_interface_IP_information_in_Linux⠀⇛
Linux is a popular open-source operating system that is widely
used by developers, system administrators, and home users. One
of the many advantages of using Linux is the availability of
powerful command-line tools that can be used to perform various
tasks, including managing network interfaces.
* ⚓ DebugPoint ☛ 10_Things_to_Do_After_Installing_elementary_OS_7_“Horus”⠀⇛
After much rumour and speculation, elementary OS 7 “Horus” is
finally released, based on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS “Jammy Jellyfish”.
This release is moderate in terms of features and updates. In a
nutshell, it’s more of a stepping stone for future releases as
per as the core features go.
That said, if you have already finished installing elementary
OS 7, then you might consider the following tips to customize
and explore this beautiful Linux distribution.
§ Desktop Environments/WMs⠀➾
* § K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt⠀➾
o ⚓ KDE_Gear_22.12.2_available_on_Fedora_37⠀⇛
After theannouncementupstream, Fedora’s@kde-sigfollows up
by making KDE Gear 22.12.2 available on Fedora 37.
As per Fedora’s policy, the software will first land
onupdates-testingand after receiving feedback and karma
it will land on theupdatesrepository.
If you want to help, make sure to follow the instructions
on theupdate. You only need to run:
sudo dnf upgrade --enablerepo=updates-testing --refresh -
-advisory=FEDORA-2023-17c31eabf7
Feel free to join us at ourMatrix_room!.
o ⚓ Volker Krause ☛ December/January_in_KDE_Itinerary⠀⇛
There has been plenty of activity aroundKDE
Itinerarysince thelast_summary_posttwo month ago,
including work to leverage train onboard APIs and
improved event support.
§ Distributions and Operating Systems⠀➾
* § New Releases⠀➾
o ⚓ Linuxiac ☛ elementary_OS_7_Takes_Its_Place_Among_the_Best_Linux
Desktops⠀⇛
The anticipated elementary OS 7 “Horus” release is here,
continuing to compete for the prize of best Linux
desktop. Here’s our review!
Hundreds of distributions compete to become the preferred
choice for Linux users in the desktop segment. Each has a
different vision and approach for achieving this, which
is wonderful because diversity and choice are two major
aspects that make Linux attractive to all of us.
Elementary OS is a bright star in this constellation. It
is a Ubuntu-based Linux distro designed to provide a
visually appealing and user-friendly experience for
desktop and laptop computers. It has its desktop
environment named Pantheon, its own set of applications,
and third-party software compatible with Ubuntu.
o ⚓ Make Use Of ☛ elementary_OS_7_Is_Now_Available:_Here’s_What’s
New⠀⇛
After over a year since the previous release, elementary
OS 7 “Horus” has arrived. Much has changed in that time,
and the Linux landscape looks quite a bit different.
On the surface, version 7.0 isn’t a substantial release.
So let’s dive into what’s new and see what stands out.
* § BSD⠀➾
o ⚓ Benny Siegert ☛ pkgsrc_and_a_Call_for_Action⠀⇛
I have been a pkgsrc developer for several years. For
what it’s worth, I think pkgsrc is wonderful: a large
selection of third-party software, packaged so that it is
easy to install with a single command — either building
everything from source, or relying on binary packages.
pkgsrc supports dozens of OSes — not just NetBSD but also
other BSDs, macOS, Linux, Illumos and more.
On the other hand, unfortunately, pkgsrc and NetBSD in
general are suffering from what I would call a loss of
mindshare.
* § Gentoo Family⠀➾
o ⚓ It’s FOSS ☛ 7_Best_Gentoo-Based_Linux_Distributions⠀⇛
Gentoo Linux is one of the best Linux distributions for
advanced users. Want something similar but maybe easier?
Gentoo-based distros are your solution.
Gentoo Linux is famous for its package manager, Portage,
which allows you to customize every package per your
requirements and build/configure things from the ground
up. This way, you get to optimize your system experience
in the best possible way.
However, it is understandable that not everyone prefers
using Gentoo Linux because of its learning curve or the
effort required to set it up…
* § Red Hat / IBM⠀➾
o ⚓ Enterprisers Project ☛ 6_sustainability_strategies_that_help
reduce_costs⠀⇛
o ⚓ Red Hat Official ☛ Customer_success_stories:_How_Red_Hat_products
and_services_enable_innovation_in_telecommunications_and_IT
organizations⠀⇛
o ⚓ Ericsson,_Red_Hat_support_Spark’s_5G_SA_trial_in_New_Zealand⠀⇛
o ⚓ Red Hat Official ☛ Red_Hat_Launches_Ansible_Automation_Platform
on_Google_Cloud⠀⇛
o ⚓ Silicon Angle ☛ SAP_endorses_Red_Hat_Linux_as_strategic_cloud
platform⠀⇛
o ⚓ Red Hat Official ☛ Red_Hat_and_Oracle_Expand_Collaboration_to
Bring_Red_Hat_Enterprise_Linux_to_Oracle_Cloud_Infrastructure⠀⇛
* § Devices/Embedded⠀➾
o ⚓ Linux Gizmos ☛ AtomS3_Lite_ESP32S3_Dev_Kit_introduced_at_$7.50⠀⇛
M5Stack just launched a miniature embedded device based
on the ESP32-S4FN3 Microcontroller.
o ⚓ Linux Gizmos ☛ Pixhawk_V6X_flight_controller_integrates_3
redundant_IMUs_and_2_redundant_barometer_sensors⠀⇛
The Pixhawk V6X is a flight controller platform designed
in collaboration with CUAV and the PX4 team. This device
follows the Pixhawk FMUv6X standard, Bus standard and
Connector standard.
o ⚓ Hackaday ☛ A_Disposable_Dumper_For_ROM_Chips_With_A_Pi_Pico⠀⇛
ROM dumping is vital for preserving old hardware, and
we’ve seen many hacks dedicated to letting someone dump a
ROM and send its contents to some hacker stuck…
o ⚓ CNX Software ☛ Nordic_Semi_nRF7002_DK_low-power_dual-band_WiFi_6
IoT_development_kit_launched_for_$56_and_up⠀⇛
Nordic Semi nRF7002 DK is an IoT development kit based on
the nRF5340 dual-core Cortex-M33 multi-protocol wireless
SoC and nRF7002 companion chip adding low-power dual-band
(2.4GHz and 5.0 GHz) WiFi 6 connectivity.
o ⚓ CNX Software ☛ Beken_BK7256_320_MHz_dual-core_RISC-V_IoT_MCU
offers_WiFi_6,_Bluetooth_5.2,_JPEG_video_encoder/decoder⠀⇛
Until now, I had only heard about Beken Bluetooth audio
chips, but I’ve just been informed the company is also
making WiFi chips such as the BK7256 that are notably
found in some Tuya Smart Home modules.
* § Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications⠀➾
o ⚓ Computer World ☛ 5_more_out-of-sight_options_to_supercharge
Google_Assistant_on_Android_|_Computerworld⠀⇛
o ⚓ Gizmo China ☛ OnePlus_11_Will_Get_4_Years_of_Android_&_5_Years_of
Security_Updates⠀⇛
o ⚓ Phone Arena ☛ Your_Android_phone_may_become_able_to_act_as_USB
camera_–_PhoneArena⠀⇛
o ⚓ Dignited ☛ How_to_use_Android_Apps_on_Chromebook_–_Dignited⠀⇛
o ⚓ Finally!_Fairphone_2_comes_to_play_with_Android_12_–_Phandroid⠀⇛
o ⚓ 9to5Google ☛ Custom_ROM_brings_Android_13_to_Galaxy_S9_and_Note
9⠀⇛
o ⚓ Gizmo China ☛ Realme_GT_Neo2_Gets_Stable_Android_13_Update_in
China⠀⇛
o ⚓ SamMobile ☛ Samsung_Galaxy_XCover_6_Pro_gets_Android_13_update_in
the_US_–_SamMobile⠀⇛
o ⚓ India Times ☛ Google_may_introduce_Apple’s_Continuity_Camera
rival_with_Android_14_–_Times_of_India⠀⇛
o ⚓ XDA ☛ Noble_ROM_3.0_brings_One_UI_5_with_Android_13_to_the
Samsung_Galaxy_S9_and_Galaxy_Note_9⠀⇛
o ⚓ India Today ☛ Android_14_to_let_you_use_your_smartphone_as
webcam,_here_is_everything_we_know_–_India_Today⠀⇛
o ⚓ TechTarget ☛ How_long_should_you_support_Android_phones_in_the
enterprise?_|_TechTarget⠀⇛
o ⚓ Online Tech Tips ☛ How_to_Lock_Apps_on_Your_Android_Smartphone⠀⇛
o ⚓ CNET ☛ Delete_Your_Android_Web_Browser’s_Cookies,_Cache_to
Quickly_Remove_Junk_Files_–_CNET⠀⇛
o ⚓ Android Police ☛ Android’s_working_on_its_own_Continuity_Camera
to_turn_your_phone_into_a_webcam⠀⇛
o ⚓ 8_Best_Fixes_for_‘No_SIM_Card’_Error_on_Android_–_Guiding_Tech⠀⇛
§ Free, Libre, and Open Source Software⠀➾
* ⚓ OpenSource.com ☛ How_I_apply_open_source_principles_to_filmmaking⠀⇛
On the other hand, film productions often record hours of
footage and audio but only use a small percentage of those in
the film. Footage that might not have an immediate use for a
film’s production house can be useful for others. In my case,
many interviewed marginalized communities have a moral
ownership over the footage. But researchers and others who
interview them do not always provide communities with direct
and open access. For these ethical and practical reasons, it is
a good idea to share footage and the film under an open license
and inform the communities interviewed or featured.
There are many reasons filmmakers cannot release films under an
open license, but this post is for those who somehow can. I
often imagined what the open source equivalent would be for
films that adhere to the Openness philosophy. Enter “Open
Filmmaking,” a framework that encourages releasing the source
code of a film, i.e., footage under open licenses, and actively
uses other practices such as open source software and open
multimedia resources.
In my two recent documentary film projects, “The Volunteer
Archivists” and “Nani Ma,” I utilized media with open licenses
and various open source software (FLOSS). The films explore the
areas of citizen science, archiving public domain text,
documentation of oral history, and the use of open licenses and
open source, as well as volunteerism.
* ⚓ It’s FOSS ☛ FOSS_Weekly_#23.05:_LibreOffice_7.5,_New_Fedora_Spin,
Fixing_Common_Ubuntu_Issues_and_More⠀⇛
This edition is focused on solving common annoyances in Ubuntu
these days.
* ⚓ Jon Udell ☛ Mapping_the_wider_Fediverse⠀⇛
I began this journey convinced that Steampipe could help the
Fediverse evolve, but not sure exactly how. My first thought
was to use Steampipe’s API-wrangling superpower to study
patterns of communication (and conflict) across the Fediverse.
* ⚓ Venture Beat ☛ Bringing_order_to_data_lakehouses,_Onehouse_is_expanding
its_Apache_Hudi_technology_with_$25M_raise⠀⇛
Managed data lakehouse vendor Onehouse has raised $25M in a
series A to advance its technology efforts based on Apache
Hudi.
* § Events⠀➾
o ⚓ Linux Journal ☛ SoCal_Linux_Expo_Back_For_20th_Anniversary⠀⇛
This 4-day annual event brings together the vibrant Open
Source user community, tech industry leaders, developers,
users and many more. Session track themes have included
security, developer, embedded, medical and legal to name
a few. The expert speakers have never failed to impress
and inform. Your biggest challenge will likely be trying
to pick which session to attend. One certainty:
Saturday’s keynote by Arun Gupta will be standing room
only.
* § Web Browsers/Web Servers⠀➾
o § Mozilla⠀➾
# ⚓ Mozilla ☛ Mozilla:About:Community:_Meet_us_at_FOSDEM_2023⠀⇛
Hello everyone,
It is that time of the year, and we are off to
Brussels for FOSDEM 2023!
FOSDEM is a central appointment for the Open Source
community.
# ⚓ Karl_Dubost:_Blade_Runner_2023⠀⇛
Webcompat engineers will never be over their craft.
I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Large
websites broken off the shoulder of developer
tools. I watched Compat-beams glitter in the dark
near the Interoperability Gate. All those moments
will be lost in time, like tears in rain.Time_to
die.
In other news:Pushing_Interop_Forward_in_2023
# ⚓ The_Servo_Blog:_Servo_2023_Roadmap⠀⇛
As we move forward with ourrenewed_project
activity, we would like to share more details about
our plans for 2023.
* § Productivity Software/LibreOffice/Calligra⠀➾
o ⚓ DebugPoint ☛ LibreOffice_7.5:_Top_New_Features_&_Release_Info⠀⇛
Feature highlights of LibreOffice 7.5 across Calc,
Writer, Impress and common updates. The LibreOffice 7.5
release is loaded with features and improvements across
modules. The changes include feature updates, bug fixes,
Microsoft Office compatibility, export features, macro
programming improvements and many more.
o ⚓ Ubuntu Handbook ☛ LibreOffice_7.5_Released_with_New_App_Icons,
Improved_Dark_Mode_Support⠀⇛
LibreOffice, the default office suite in most Linux,
announced the new 7.5 feature release today! The new
release has greatly improved the dark mode support. It
now has fully dark appearance, instead of leaving the
document background white in dark mode.
o ⚓ Video:_New_Features_in_LibreOffice_7.5⠀⇛
A quick look at some of the new features in LibreOffice
7.5, which we announced yesterday!
* § GNU Projects⠀➾
o ⚓ GNU ☛ libc_@_Savannah:_The_GNU_C_Library_version_2.37_is_now
available⠀⇛
The GNU C Library
=================
The GNU C Library version 2.37 is now available.
The GNU C Library is used astheC library in the GNU
system and
in GNU/Linux systems, as well as many other systems that
use Linux
as the kernel.
The GNU C Library is primarily designed to be a portable
and high performance C library. It follows all relevant
standards including ISO C11 and POSIX.1-2017. It is also
internationalized and has one of the most complete
internationalization interfaces known.
The GNU C Library webpage is athttp://www.gnu.org/
software/libc/
Packages for the 2.37 release may be downloaded from:
http://ftpmirror.gnu.org/libc/
http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/libc/
The mirror list is athttp://www.gnu.org/order/ftp.html
Distributions are encouraged to track the release/
* branches
corresponding to the releases they are using. The
release
branches will be updated with conservative bug fixes and
new
features while retaining backwards compatibility.
NEWS for version 2.37
=====================
Major new features:
# The getent tool now supports the –no-addrconfig
option. The output of
getent with –no-addrconfig may contain addresses of
families not
configured on the current host i.e. as-if you had not
passed
AI_ADDRCONFIG to getaddrinfo calls.
Deprecated and removed features, and other changes
affecting compatibility:
# The dynamic linker no longer loads shared objects
from the “tls”
subdirectories on the library search path or the
subdirectory that
corresponds to the AT_PLATFORM system name, or employs
the legacy AT_HWCAP
search mechanism, which was deprecated in version 2.33.
Security related changes:
CVE-2022-39046: When the syslog function is passed a
crafted input
string larger than 1024 bytes, it reads uninitialized
memory from the
heap and prints it to the target log file, potentially
revealing a
portion of the contents of the heap.
The following bugs are resolved with this release:
[12154] network: Cannot resolve hosts which have wildcard
aliases
[12165] libc: readdir: Do not skip entries with zero
d_ino values
[19444] build: build failures with -O1 due to -Wmaybe-
uninitialized
[24774] nptl: pthread_rwlock_timedwrlock stalls on ARM
[24816] nss: nss/tst-nss-files-hosts-long fails when no
interface has
AF_INET6 address (ie docker)
[27087] stdio: PowerPC: Redefinition error with Clang
from IEEE
redirection headers
[28846] network: CMSG_NXTHDR may trigger -Wstrict-
overflow warning
[28937] dynamic-link: New DSO dependency sorter does not
put new map
first if in a cycle
[29249] libc: csu/libc-tls.c:202: undefined reference to
`_startup_fatal_not_constant’
[29305] network: Inefficient buffer space usage in
nss_dns for
gethostbyname and other functions
[29375] libc: don’t hide MAP_ANONYMOUS behind _GNU_SOURCE
[29402] nscd: nscd: No such file or directory
[29415] nscd: getaddrinfo with AI_ADDRCONFIG returns
addresses with
wrong family
[29427] dynamic-link: Inconsistency detected by ld.so:
dl-printf.c:
200: _dl_debug_vdprintf: Assertion `! “invalid format
specifier”‘
failed!
[29463] math: math/test-float128-y1 fails on x86_64
[29485] build: Make hangs when the test misc/tst-pidfile
returns
FAIL_UNSUPPORTED
[29490] dynamic-link: [bisected] new __brk_call causes
dynamic loader
segfault on alpha
[29499] build: Check failed on misc/tst-glibcsyscalls
while building
for RISCV64 on a unmatched hardware
[29501] build: Check failed on stdlib/tst-strfrom while
building for
RISCV64 on a unmatched hardware
[29502] libc: alpha sys/acct.h out of date
[29514] build: Need to use -fPIE not -fpie
[29528] dynamic-link: __libc_early_init not called after
dlmopen that
reuses namespace
[29536] libc: syslog fail to create large messages (CVE-
2022-39046)
[29537] libc: [2.34 regression]: Alignment issue on m68k
when using
futexes on qemu-user
[29539] libc: LD_TRACE_LOADED_OBJECTS changed how vDSO
library are
printed
[29544] libc: Regression in syslog(3) calls breaks RFC
due to extra
whitespace
[29564] build: Incorrect way to change MAKEFLAGS in
Makerules
[29576] build: librtld.os: in function
`_dl_start_profile’:
(.text+0×9444): undefined reference to `strcpy’
[29578] libc: Definition of SUN_LEN() is wrong
[29583] build: iconv failures on 32bit platform due to
missing large
file support
[29600] dynamic-link: dlmopen hangs after loading certain
libraries
[29604] localedata: Update locale data to Unicode 15.0.0
[29605] nscd: Regression in NSCD backend of getaddrinfo
[29607] nscd: nscd repeatably crashes calling
__strlen_avx2 when hosts
cache is enabled
[29611] string: Optimized AVX2 string functions
unconditionally use
BMI2 instructions
[29624] malloc: errno is not cleared when entering main
[29638] libc: stdlib: arc4random fallback is never used
[29657] libc: Incorrect struct stat for 64-bit time on
linux/generic
platforms
[29698] build: Configuring for AArch32 on ARMv8+ disables
optimizations
[29727] locale: __strtol_internal out-of-bounds read when
parsing
thousands grouping
[29730] libc: broken y2038 support in fstatat on MIPS N64
[29746] libc: ppoll() does not switch to __ppoll64 when
-D_TIME_BITS=64 and -D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=2 is given on 32bit
[29771] libc: Restore IPC_64 support in sysvipc *ctl
functions
[29780] build: possible parallel make issue in glibc-2.36
(siglist-
aux.S: No such file or directory)
[29864] libc: __libc_start_main() should obtain program
headers
address (_dl_phdr) from the auxv, not the ELF header.
[29951] time: daylight variable not set correctly if last
DST change
coincides with offset change
[30039] stdio: __vsprintf_internal does not handle
unspecified buffer
length in fortify mode
Release Notes
=============
https://sourceware.org/glibc/wiki/Release/2.37
Contributors
============
This release was made possible by the contributions of
many people.
The maintainers are grateful to everyone who has
contributed
changes or bug reports. These include:
Adhemerval Zanella
Adhemerval Zanella Netto
Alan Modra
Alistair Francis
Andreas K. Hüttel
Andreas Schwab
Arjun Shankar
Aurelien Jarno
Carlos Eduardo Seo
Carlos O’Donell
Chenghua Xu
Cristian Rodríguez
Damien Zammit
Fabian Vogt
Fangrui Song
Felix Riemann
Flavio Cruz
Florian Weimer
H.J. Lu
Jakub Wilk
Javier Pello
John David Anglin
Joseph Myers
Jörg Sonnenberger
Kito Cheng
Letu Ren
Lucas A. M. Magalhaes
Ludovic Courtès
Martin Jansa
Martin Joerg
Michael Hudson-Doyle
Mike FABIAN
Noah Goldstein
Paul Eggert
Paul Pluzhnikov
Qingqing Li
Rajalakshmi Srinivasaraghavan
Raphael Moreira Zinsly
Richard Henderson
Sajan Karumanchi
Samuel Thibault
Sergei Trofimovich
Sergey Bugaev
Shahab Vahedi
Siddhesh Poyarekar
Stefan Liebler
Sunil K Pandey
Szabolcs Nagy
Tom Honermann
Tulio Magno Quites Machado Filho
Vladislav Khmelevsky
Wilco Dijkstra
Xi Ruoyao
Xiaolin Tang
Xiaoming Ni
Xing Li
Yu Chien Peter Lin
YunQiang Su
Zong Li
caiyinyu
fanquake
Łukasz Stelmach
наб
We would like to call out the following and thank them
for their
tireless patch review:
Adhemerval Zanella
Arjun Shankar
Aurelien Jarno
Carlos O’Donell
Cristian Rodríguez
DJ Delorie
Fangrui Song
Florian Weimer
H.J. Lu
Noah Goldstein
Palmer Dabbelt
Paul E. Murphy
Philippe Mathieu-Daudé
Premachandra Mallappa
Sam James
Siddhesh Poyarekar
Sunil K Pandey
Szabolcs Nagy
Tulio Magno Quites Machado Filho
Wilco Dijkstra
Yann Droneaud
* § Programming/Development⠀➾
o ⚓ Remi Collet ☛ Remi_Collet:_PHP_version_8.1.15_and_8.2.2⠀⇛
RPMs ofPHP version 8.2.2are available inremi-
modularrepository forFedora≥ 35 andEnterprise Linux≥ 8
(RHEL, Alma, CentOS, Rocky…) and inremi-php82repository
for EL 7.
o ⚓ Fedora Magazine ☛ Fedora_Magazine:_Announcing_the_Display/HDR
hackfest⠀⇛
This is Carlos Soriano, Engineering Manager at the GPU
team at Red Hat. I’m here together with Sebastian Wick,
primary HDR developer at Red Hat, and Niels de Graef, GPU
team Product Owner at Red Hat, to announce that we’re
organizing theDisplay/HDR_hackfestin Brno in the Czech
Replublic, April 24-26! The focus will be on planning and
development of the technical infrastructure needed for
various display technologies, specifically those that
need GNOME Shell to work in tandem with the GPU stack.
One of the main examples of this is HDR support, which we
know you have all been waiting for!
o § Rust⠀➾
# ⚓ Hubert Figuière ☛ Hubert_Figuière:_Niepce_January_2023
updates⠀⇛
This is the January 2023 update.
We start the year by a Rust implementation of the
file import. It landed very early as the final
stretch of work in 2022.
§ Leftovers⠀➾
* ⚓ Axios ☛ Fully_autonomous_passenger_planes_are_inching_closer_to
takeoff⠀⇛
The world’s biggest commercial aircraft makers seem
increasingly convinced that autonomous passenger flight is a
question of when, not if.
* ⚓ The Strategist ☛ Making_the_most_of_AUKUS’s_second_pillar⠀⇛
From its inception, the AUKUS pact has been wrapped in
expectations. Fundamentally, it is a technology and capability
agreement—an accelerator.
* ⚓ Matt_Brown:_2023_Writing_Plan⠀⇛
To achieve mygoalof publishing one high-quality piece of
writing per week this year, I’ve put together a draft writing
plan and a few organisational notes.
* § Science⠀➾
o ⚓ Science Alert ☛ Bar_Graphs_Induce_a_Hidden_Bias_in
Interpretation,_Experiment_Shows⠀⇛
Looks can be deceiving.
* § Education⠀➾
o ⚓ The Age AU ☛ How_to_improve_education:_just_ask_the_teachers⠀⇛
Readers discuss the shortage of teachers in schools.
o ⚓ The Age AU ☛ I_was_a_school_refuser_for_years_–_now_I_have_five
university_degrees⠀⇛
School refusal is complex and each child’s reasons are
different. My experience only makes sense to me decades
later. Shaming parents is cheap and counter-productive.
* § Hardware⠀➾
o ⚓ Tom’s Hardware ☛ China’s_Origin_Quantum_Delivers_a_Commercial_24-
Qubit_Quantum_Computer⠀⇛
Origin Quantum develops China’s first quantum computer,
ships it with OS, software, and cloud computing platform.
* § Health/Nutrition/Agriculture⠀➾
o ⚓ The Straits Times ☛ Pacific_nation_of_Micronesia_drops_protest
over_release_of_Fukushima_water⠀⇛
Japan is due to release water from the destroyed
Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea as soon as this
spring.
o ⚓ The Straits Times ☛ Australia_to_legalise_Ecstasy,_magic
mushrooms_for_medical_use_from_July⠀⇛
The substances will be lawful from July.
o ⚓ US News And World Report ☛ Safe_Injection_Sites_Gain_a_Foothold
in_U.S.⠀⇛
The path to supervised drug use in the U.S. has been
marked with fits and starts, but momentum may be growing.
o ⚓ Michael West Media ☛ Healthcare_system_on_national_cabinet’s_new
year_agenda⠀⇛
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will meet with state and
territory leaders to consider a plan to solve challenges
within Australia’s healthcare system.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ The_Teenager_Leading_the_Smartphone_Liberation
Movement⠀⇛
Logan Lane gave up her smartphone. That changed her life.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ The_Unlikely_New_TikTok_Influencers:_Old-School
Watch_Dealers⠀⇛
Their rapid-fire haggling in Manhattan’s diamond district
teases the fantasy of making a market, rather than just
being subject to it.
o ⚓ Michael West Media ☛ Businesses_progress_suit_over_Vic_COVID-19
lockdown⠀⇛
Thousands of Victorian businesses who are continuing to
suffer the financial impact of COVID-19 lockdowns are one
step closer to having their class action case against the
state heard.
o ⚓ Engadget ☛ Columbia_researchers_bioprint_seamless_3D_skin_grafts
for_burn_patients⠀⇛
The science of grafting skin has come a long way from the
days of scraping it off one part of a patient’s body and
slapping it back on somewhere else to cover a nasty burn
or injury.
o ⚓ Engadget ☛ Amazon_told_lawmakers_it_wouldn’t_build_warehouse
storm_shelters⠀⇛
Amazon told lawmakers it wouldn’t build storm shelters in
its warehouses after a December 2021 tornadokilled_six
employeesat an Illinois location. Although the company
changed its severe-weather response strategy after the
incident, it essentially told the elected officials that
since building storm shelters isn’t required by law, it
won’t do that.
The company responded to lawmakers Senator Elizabeth
Warren (D-MA) and Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-
Cortez (D-NY) and Cori Bush (D-MO), whosent_a_letteron
December 15th, questioning the company’s lack of storm
shelters or safe rooms at its warehouses.
o ⚓ Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Covid-19:_Hong_Kong_drops_vaccination
requirement_for_all_international_arrivals⠀⇛
Hong Kong has dropped its Covid-19 vaccination
requirement for non-residents, meaning that unvaccinated
tourists can enter the city again from Monday.
o ⚓ Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Covid_PCR_test_requirement_for_cross-
border_travel_between_Hong_Kong_and_mainland_China_scrapped_from
Monday⠀⇛
Travellers crossing the border between Hong Kong and
mainland China will no longer be required to produce a
negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) Covid-19 test
result from Monday.
o ⚓ teleSUR ☛ WHO_Reports_Exponential_Increase_in_Deaths_From_COVID-
19⠀⇛
According to the agency, in the last 28 days of the
current year, the number of deaths has increased by 65
percent compared to the previous 28 days.
* § Proprietary⠀➾
o ⚓ DaemonFC (Ryan Farmer) ☛ ChatGPT_can’t_answer_simple_math
questions_for_NPR_while_another_“AI”_builds_“rocket_engines”_with
unnecessary_parts,_which_would_explode._(With_“ChatGPT_Richard
Stallman”_as_a_special_guest)⠀⇛
ChatGPT can’t answer simple math questions for NPR while
another “AI” builds “rocket engines” with unnecessary
parts, which would explode. OpenAI didn’t respond to NPR,
but released a new version with “improved math accuracy”
that was only marginally better.
o ⚓ DaemonFC (Ryan Farmer) ☛ ChatGPT_apologizes_for_being_wrong_when
it_wasn’t_wrong.⠀⇛
ChatGPT apologizes for being wrong when it wasn’t wrong.
Me: What is the Mandela Effect? The Mandela Effect refers
to a phenomenon where a significant number of people
believe an event or fact occurred differently from how it
is recorded in history.
* § Security⠀➾
o § Privacy/Surveillance⠀➾
# ⚓ New York Times ☛ GoodRx_Leaked_User_Health_Data_to_Facebook
and_Google,_F.T.C._Says⠀⇛
The popular drug discount app deceptively shared
details on users’ illnesses and medicines with ad
firms, regulators said in a legal complaint.
# ⚓ Engadget ☛ Documents_show_Meta_paid_for_data_scraping
despite_years_of_denouncing_it⠀⇛
Meta has routinelyfought_data_scrapers, but it also
participated in that practice itself — if not
necessarily for the same reasons.
* § Defence/Aggression⠀➾
o ⚓ Federal News Network ☛ Biden,_Black_caucus_agree_on_path_forward
on_police_reform⠀⇛
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus have left a
meeting with President Joe Biden and Vice President
Kamala Harris with an agreement on how to address the
issue of policing in America after the recent killing of
Tyre Nichols. Rep. Steven Horsford, the chairman of the
Black Caucus, told reporters “the focus will always be on
public safety.” The group of Black lawmakers did not
disclose details about the agreement made in the room but
said there will be more information about the legislative
package in the days ahead. Horsford says, “This is going
to require all of us, including Republicans, to get
across the finish line.”
o ⚓ AntiWar ☛ Fact_Checking_Zelensky_on_Non-Alignment⠀⇛
o ⚓ Gizmodo ☛ China_Says_It’s_Checking_Whether_It_Sent_Spy_Balloon_to
Montana⠀⇛
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a…Chinese_spy
balloon?According to China, the answer could be “maybe.”
o ⚓ New Yorker ☛ The_Ukraine_Crackup_in_the_G.O.P.⠀⇛
Republicans aren’t united with one another, never mind
with Joe Biden.
o ⚓ US News And World Report ☛ China_Objects_to_More_Nuclear_Sub
Talks_Among_UK,_U.S,_Australia⠀⇛
BEIJING (Reuters) – China “firmly objects” to further
cooperation between Britain, U.S. and Australia on
nuclear submarines, its foreign ministry…
o ⚓ New Yorker ☛ How_the_Memphis_Police_Controlled_the_Narrative_of
Tyre_Nichols’s_Killing⠀⇛
Doreen St. Félix, a writer and critic, discusses the
public’s relationship to police brutality videos, and law
enforcement’s illusion of transparency.
o ⚓ Atlantic Council ☛ In_2022,_the_war_in_Ukraine_awakened_Europe.
Here’s_how_it_must_adapt_in_2023.⠀⇛
How will the EU continue to bolster its security? Can
Brussels forge a new path toward better relations with
its partners? Our experts give their recommendations on
how to get there.
o ⚓ Atlantic Council ☛ Implementing_NATO’s_Strategic_Concept_on
China⠀⇛
Allies made it clear that they consider Russia their most
immediate and direct threat. Yet they also made headlines
by addressing challenges emanating from the People’s
Republic of China (PRC).
o ⚓ RFERL ☛ Netanyahu_Open_To_Providing_Military_Aid_To_Ukraine,
Including_‘Iron_Dome’_Missile_Defense_System⠀⇛
Israel does not reject sending military aid to Ukraine,
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on February 1.
o ⚓ RFA ☛ Myanmar_navy_arrests_36_Rohingya_in_Rakhine_state⠀⇛
They were caught at a port as they boarded a boat to try
to reach Malaysia, locals say.
o ⚓ RFA ☛ China’s_coast_guard_‘monitors’_Philippine_navy_ship_in
disputed_territory⠀⇛
A US aircraft carrier is also in the region as the
country’s defense secretary visits Manila.
o ⚓ LRT ☛ Baltics,_Poland_call_on_IOC_to_bar_Russian_and_Belarusian
athletes_from_Olympics⠀⇛
The Baltic and Polish sports ministers on Thursday called
on international sports federations and the International
Olympic Committee (IOC) to bar Russian and Belarusian
athletes from international competitions.
o ⚓ RFA ☛ North_Korean_young_people_ordered_to_serve_3_years_in
military’s_manual_service_corps⠀⇛
As so-called ‘stormtroopers’ they will provide labor for
mining, construction work, and other government projects.
o ⚓ RFA ☛ Former_Vietnamese_Coast_Guard_commander_convicted_of
embezzlment⠀⇛
Nguyen Van Son is accused of stealing more than US$2
million
o ⚓ RFERL ☛ Ukraine’s_Allies_Push_IMF_To_Approve_$14_Billion-$16
Billion_Loan⠀⇛
Ukraine’s allies are pushing the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) to finalize plans for a multibillion-dollar
lending program.
o ⚓ RFERL ☛ Russians_Pressing_In_Multiple_Directions_In_Donetsk_Amid
Signs_Of_Major_Offensive,_Ukraine_Says⠀⇛
Russian troops are not slowing their push in several
areas of the Donetsk region despite suffering heavy
losses, the Ukrainian military said on February 3, amid
indications that Moscow is preparing for a major push in
the east to break months of stalemate.
o ⚓ RFERL ☛ Special_Kosovo_Court_Upholds_Most_Convictions_Of_Two
Veterans⠀⇛
Appeals judges at a European Union-backed court have
upheld most of the convictions of two leaders of a Kosovo
war veterans’ association who were found guilty last year
of witness intimidation and obstructing justice.
o ⚓ teleSUR ☛ Japan_Records_First_Increase_in_Crime_in_Two_Decades⠀⇛
“One of the factors would be street crime,” said Japanese
Executive spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno.
o ⚓ CNN ☛ Video_shows_scene_in_the_‘eye_of_the_storm’_of_Russia’s
invasion⠀⇛
CNN’s Frederick Pleitgen reports from Kramatorsk,
Ukraine, where civilians are facing missile strikes from
Russia.
o ⚓ CNN ☛ China_and_Russia_are_as_close_as_ever,_and_that’s_a_problem
for_the_US⠀⇛
When Antony Blinken touches down in Beijing in the coming
days for the first visit to China by a US secretary of
state since 2018, he will be cutting a stark contrast to
the scene in the Chinese capital one year earlier.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ Soaring_Russian_Death_Toll_in_Ukraine_Gives_Grim
Insight_Into_the_War⠀⇛
Moscow is sending poorly trained recruits, including
convicts, to the front lines in eastern Ukraine to pave
the way for more seasoned fighters, U.S. and allied
officials say.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ China_and_the_U.S._Are_Wooing_Indonesia,
and Beijing_Has_the_Edge⠀⇛
The resource-laden nation of nearly 300 million is a big
prize in the strategic battle between the United States
and China for influence in Asia.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ Symbolic_Support_Is_Likely_as_Zelensky_Meets
With_E.U._Leaders⠀⇛
President Volodymyr Zelensky wants commitments for
Ukraine’s membership in the bloc, but diplomats and
officials say that concrete announcements are unlikely.
* § Environment⠀➾
o ⚓ Michael West Media ☛ NZ_floods_add_to_PM’s_inflation_challenge
ahead_of_vote⠀⇛
The worst flooding in New Zealand’s biggest city Auckland
has increased inflationary pressure and posed a fresh
cost-of-living headache for Prime Minister Chris Hipkins
as he tries to win back support for his party ahead of an
election.
o ⚓ The Kent Stater ☛ The_coldest_wind_chills_in_decades_will_thrash
New_England_as_8_deaths_are_now_linked_to_an_ice_storm_in_the
South⠀⇛
CNN— Dangerous wind chills as cold as 50 degrees
Fahrenheit below zero are set to blast the Northeast as
the number of deaths linked to an ice storm in the South
rose to eight.
o § Energy/Transportation⠀➾
# ⚓ Latvia ☛ Latvia_gets_another_new_electric_train⠀⇛
The seventh new electric train has been delivered
to Latvia, the head of ‘Passenger Train’ (Pasažieru
vilciens, PV) corporate relations department Sigita
Zviedre told LETA on February 3.
# ⚓ US News And World Report ☛ U.S._Prosecutors_Probe
Silvergate’s_Dealings_With_FTX,_Alameda_-Source⠀⇛
(Reuters) – Federal prosecutors in Washington are
probing Silvergate Capital Corp and its dealings
with bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and Alameda…
# ⚓ US News And World Report ☛ Sam_Bankman-Fried_in_Talks_to
Resolve_Bail_Dispute,_Lawyer_Says⠀⇛
Sam Bankman-Fried is in talks with U.S. prosecutors
to resolve a dispute over the FTX cryptocurrency
exchange…
# ⚓ LRT ☛ Lithuanian_court_refuses_to_hear_Rosneft’s_lawsuit
due_to_‘EU_principles’⠀⇛
A Lithuanian court has dismissed a case in which
the Russian oil group Rosneft sought restitution
for real estate transactions of Mogita, a Kaunas-
based oil wholesaler undergoing bankruptcy
proceedings.
# ⚓ Copenhagen Post ☛ Denmark_and_UN_team_up_to_heat_Ukrainian
homes⠀⇛
The embattled city of Mykolaiv a recipient of some
much-needed relief through a Danish partnership
with UNOPS
# ⚓ Quartz ☛ International_air_travel_to_Africa_is_rebounding
[Ed: A source of pollution for no practical purposes would
only be celebrated by unbridled capitalism]⠀⇛
The return of Chinese tourists to Africa and a full
resumption of operations on international routes by
African airlines are the latest indicators of a
rebounding tourism industry, badly hit by the
covid-19 pandemic two years ago.
o § Wildlife/Nature⠀➾
# ⚓ Science Alert ☛ This_Small_Australian_Marsupial_Is_Quite
Literally_Dying_For_Sex⠀⇛
An uncontrollable urge.
# ⚓ Gizmodo ☛ Dallas_Zoo_Is_Offering_a_$25,000_Reward_for
Information_on_Who_Stole_Its_Monkeys⠀⇛
# ⚓ IDA ☛ City_of_Rocks_National_Reserve_Achieves_International
Dark_Sky_Park_Certification⠀⇛
# ⚓ New York Times ☛ Window_Stickers_to_Prevent_Bird_Strikes
Only_Work_One_Way⠀⇛
Every year, hundreds of millions of birds die in
the United States from flying into glass. New
research shows how to prevent some of those deaths.
# ⚓ Brazil_to_sink_São_Paulo_aircraft_carrier_in_Atlantic [Ed:
Massive human pollution, treating the planet as a garage
dump]⠀⇛
A company in Türkiye had got the contract to
dismantle the ship containing tons of asbestos.
After months of protests from environmental groups,
the government revoked permission for the ship to
enter Türkiye’s territorial waters.
o § Overpopulation⠀➾
# ⚓ Science Alert ☛ Astronomers_Find_What_May_Be_a_Habitable
World_31_Light-Years_Away⠀⇛
Could it be?
* § Finance⠀➾
o ⚓ NYPost ☛ Landlord_more_than_doubles_tenant’s_rent_to_$2.2K,
leading_to_fiery_social_media_backlash⠀⇛
Bolufe informs the woman if she doesn’t want to stay at
the property for the new price, he’ll have to put in a
“30-day notice,” and she can “leave peacefully, on time.”
o ⚓ Axios ☛ Tech_earnings_reveal_a_powerful_industry_taking_some
licks⠀⇛
This week’s earnings reports confirmed that Big Tech
companies are taking a hit from a slowing economy — but
also that they’re still raking in tons of money.
o ⚓ US News And World Report ☛ Apple_Suffers_1st_Quarterly_Sales
Decline_in_Nearly_4_Years⠀⇛
Apple has posted its first quarterly revenue drop in
nearly four years
o ⚓ Helsinki Times ☛ Finland_suspends_visa_issuance_to_Thai_berry
pickers,_citing_human_trafficking_concerns⠀⇛
THE MINISTRY for Foreign Affairs on Thursday revealed the
issuance of visas for wild berry pickers has been
suspended indefinitely at the Finnish Embassy in Bangkok,
Thailand.
The decision was made on grounds of numerous ambiguities
related to wild-berry picking, including the extent of
unreliable information in visa applications, risk of
human trafficking, ongoing criminal investigation and
possible revisions to the status of berry pickers.
o ⚓ Danish_bank_posts_loss_after_US_money_laundering_fine⠀⇛
Danske Bank reported heavy losses for 2022 on Thursday as
Denmark’s biggest lender was hit by huge fines in the
United
States and at home over money laundering.
o ⚓ Copenhagen_Municipality_to_trial_four-day_working_week⠀⇛
Selected municipal staff in Copenhagen will soon be able
to choose to distribute their weekly working hours over
four days in a new trial scheme.
o ⚓ Helsinki Times ☛ OP:_Finland_to_tip_into_a_mild_recession_in
2023⠀⇛
THE FINNISH ECONOMYwill slide into a recession this year
despite the alleviation of concerns about the energy
crisis, predicts OP Financial Group.
The Finnish financial group revealed yesterday that it
expects the national economy to contract by half a per
cent in 2023 and grow by half a per cent in 2024.
Although the forecast has only undergone minor tweaks
since last summer, it should not be read as an indication
that the economic outlook is clear, toldReijo Heiskanen,
the chief economist at OP.
o ⚓ Michael West Media ☛ Post-pandemic_bounce_temporary_as_rate_rises
threaten⠀⇛
The investment outlook has darkened as further rate rises
threaten to tip Australia into an unnecessary recession,
according to a leading forecaster.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ Ford_Lost_$2_Billion_in_2022_as_Some_Investments
Soured⠀⇛
The company’s financial performance was hurt by its stake
in Rivian, an electric truck company, and an autonomous
car business.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ Apple_Revenue_and_Profit_Down_as_iPhone_Sales
Slow⠀⇛
The iPhone maker said sales of its flagship product were
down 8 percent as it dealt with a factory shutdown and
worries about rising inflation.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ Tech’s_Biggest_Companies_Discover_Austerity,_to
the_Relief_of_Investors⠀⇛
After years of expansion and billions in profits, Big
Tech is pulling back from its famously lavish spending as
a long boom finally ends.
o ⚓ Modern Diplomacy ☛ The_Crippled_Economy⠀⇛
Lack of money is the root of all evils. Facts do not
seize to exist because they’re ignored.
o ⚓ France24 ☛ Alphabet,_Amazon_and_Apple_results:_Tech_earnings_hit
by_gloom⠀⇛
Google and Apple on Thursday reported downbeat results
for the last quarter of 2022 as Amazon beat expectations,
but warned that the coming months would be uncertain in a
difficult moment for Big Tech.
o ⚓ Quartz ☛ Apple_and_Starbucks_couldn’t_rise_above_China’s_zero-
covid_policy⠀⇛
* § AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics⠀➾
o ⚓ Hackaday ☛ End_Of_An_Automation_Era_As_Twitter_Closes_Its_Doors
To_Free_API_Access⠀⇛
Over the last few months since Elon Musk bought Twitter
there has been a lot of comment and reaction, but not
much with relevance to Hackaday readers.
o ⚓ Gizmodo ☛ Kiss_Some_of_Your_Favorite_Twitter_Bots_Goodbye⠀⇛
Elon Musk’sTwitter_has_debts_to_pay. And in the
billionaire’s quest to monetize everything about his
recently acquired social media site, Twitter is set to
start charging for access to its Application Program
Interface (API).
o ⚓ France24 ☛ EU_parliament_lifts_protective_immunity_of_two_MPs
linked_to_‘Qatargate’_graft_scandal⠀⇛
The European Union’s parliament on Thursday removed the
protective immunity of two lawmakers linked to one of the
bloc’s biggest-ever corruption scandals, paving the way
for them to be questioned by Belgian investigators.
o ⚓ The Straits Times ☛ Disgraced_ex-South_Korea_minister_gets_two
years_jail_over_graft_scandal⠀⇛
The former justice minister had forged documents to help
his children gain admission into prestigious high schools
o ⚓ JURIST ☛ European_Parliament_lifts_immunity_of_two_additional
lawmakers_linked_to_Qatar_bribery_scandal⠀⇛
The European Parliament Thursday stripped two additional
European lawmakers of their immunity from prosecution.
Belgian authorities may now question the lawmakers in
their investigation into a cash-for-influence bribery
scandal linked to Qatar and Morocco.
o ⚓ New York Times ☛ A_U.S._Ambassador_Finds_Himself_on_Hostile
Ground_in_Hungary⠀⇛
David Pressman, a gay human rights lawyer, has been
accused by pro-government media in Hungary of undermining
traditional values, violating diplomatic conventions and
meddling in the judiciary.
o ⚓ RFERL ☛ Bulgarian_President_Dissolves_Parliament,_Sets_Early
Elections_For_April_2⠀⇛
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has signed a decree
dissolving the parliament and setting April 2 as the date
for early elections — the country’s fifth in two years —
after an inconclusive October vote failed to produce a
government.
o ⚓ Federal News Network ☛ Ally_claims_Bolsonaro_plotted_coup_to
block_Lula_presidency⠀⇛
A Brazilian magazine has released audio of a senator
claiming then President Jair Bolsonaro sought help in a
plot to annul the October elections and keep himself in
power.
o ⚓ Quartz ☛ Uruguay_has_the_strongest_democracy_in_the_Americas,
while_the_US_lags_far_behind⠀⇛
o § Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda⠀➾
# ⚓ Modern Diplomacy ☛ Misinformation_Backfire_on_the_COVID-19
Vaccine_–_Exposed⠀⇛
The Government of Canada continues a relentless
effort to denigrate opposition to COVID-19 vaccines
by sourcing The Council of Canadian Academies (CCA)
to report on misinformation or supposed ‘bad
actors’ contributing to a lack of adherence to
public health measures and to vaccine hesitancy.
# ⚓ Reason ☛ Getting_Trump_Was_More_Important_to_Some
Journalists_Than_Getting_the_Story_Right⠀⇛
The botched pursuit of the Russiagate story
illustrates how the media shed credibility.
* § Censorship/Free Speech⠀➾
o ⚓ Reason ☛ Gag_Order_Bans_Political_Tweeter_from_Naming_Man_Who
Accused_American_Conservative_Union_President_of_Groping⠀⇛
Plaintiff, a Republican political operative, had sued the
ACU president for allegedly groping him: In his time
involved with the Republican Party, plaintiff “has served
political campaigns and political committees as a field
coordinator, field director, grassroots director, and
political director, among others.”
o ⚓ Ankara_prosecutors_investigate_Quran-burning_incidents_in_Sweden,
Netherlands⠀⇛
Diplomatic missions of several countries in Türkiye have
warned their citizens against possible retaliatory
attacks.
o ⚓ CNN ☛ Tom_Jones_hit_‘Delilah’_banned_from_Wales_rugby_matches_due
to_‘problematic’_nature_of_song⠀⇛
Choirs have been banned from performing Tom Jones’ hit
“Delilah” during Wales’ international rugby matches at
the Principality Stadium in Cardiff due to the song’s
“problematic” nature, the UK’s PA Media reported.
* § Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press⠀➾
o ⚓ HRW ☛ Burundi:_Journalist’s_Conviction_Violates_Free_Speech
Rights⠀⇛
* § Civil Rights/Policing⠀➾
o ⚓ Reason ☛ Don’t_Expect_Government_To_Save_You_From_the
Terminator⠀⇛
As artificial intelligence advances, how worried should
we be about the rise of the machines?
o ⚓ France24 ☛ Iran:_‘Sham’_courts_hand_out_severe_sentences_for
passive_protest⠀⇛
After months of strikes and protests in Iran, thousands
of people have been arrested and now face harsh sentences
by the courts, including death. Activists, journalists
and lawyers have received long prison terms for
supporting the demonstrations or expressing their
opposition to the regime, even passively. Activists and
NGOs say that the Iranian judiciary is increasing the
pressure on those arrested, handing out absurd charges,
forcing confessions through extortion and torturing
detainees.
o ⚓ Mexico News Daily ☛ Human_rights_commission_proposes_structural
reform_to_‘reaffirm_autonomy’⠀⇛
The human rights NGO Centro Prodh criticized the
initiative, saying focusing on militarization,
disappearances and impunity is more important.
* § Internet Policy/Net Neutrality⠀➾
o ⚓ Internet Freedom Foundation ☛ Previously_under-utilised_budgets
make_us_wary_of_the_increased_allocation_in_the_2023-2024_Budget⠀⇛
This blog post includes the analyse of the 2023-24 Budget
as well as its comparison with the 2022-2023 budget and
revised estimates. While Increased allocations in the
2023-24 Budget is a positive sign, there are some
disappointing lows as well.
* § Monopolies⠀➾
o ⚓ Reason ☛ More_Cracks_in_the_FTC’s_Aggressive_Antitrust_Plans,_as
Court_Refuses_To_Ban_Meta_From_Buying_V.R._Fitness_App⠀⇛
o ⚓ Gizmodo ☛ Judge_Rebukes_FTC_and_Greenlights_Meta’s_$400_Million
Within_Acquisition⠀⇛
A federal judge in California has rejected the Federal
Trade Commission’s attempt to block Meta from acquiring
virtual reality startup Within for an estimated $400
million.
o ⚓ Gizmodo ☛ An_FTC_Power_Grab_Could_Save_Your_Medical_Secrets⠀⇛
Want to save money on drugs? You could head to
GoodRx.com. Type in the name of a medication, and the
company will give you a coupon to use at a pharmacy. But
there’s a little problem, one that GoodRxforgot_to_tell
its_customersabout.
o § Patents⠀➾
# ⚓ Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ ‘My_main_regret_is_that_the_Unitary
Patent_Package_will_not_cover_all_European_countries’ [Ed:
Another propaganda headline from Kluwer, with a loaded
statement. There is no UPC. UPC is illegal. Brexit alone
means that UPC is already dead. This is 'lobbyism' disguised
as journalism.]⠀⇛
§ Gemini* and Gopher⠀➾
* § Personal⠀➾
o ⚓ 🔤SpellBinding:_WEFKLUA_Wordo:_FLING⠀⇛
o ⚓ I_have_credit_card_nostalgia._WTF?⠀⇛
I’m aware that cards with no (visible) number exist, but
mine still have embossed numbers. The embossing was
actually useful to me twice in the last couple of years.
Once I went with someone to a pub in a small village for
dinner. At first I thought it was closed because the
lights were out. Then I saw the candles. There was a
power cut, but the pub was still open. So we went inside
and ordered some food and drink. The landlady was very
cross with the power company, but also determined that
she should stay open. And she had a plan. Instead of
regular card payments, she had the mechanical card
printing device that used to copy the embossed card
details onto a paper payment slip. It worked, and I had
to sign a credit card slip for the first time in many
years.
* § Politics⠀➾
o ⚓ The_progression_to_numberless_credit/debit_cards⠀⇛
on them (like Wise’s Eco card) are part of a wider trend
in the credit/debit card industry and are more generally
called “numberless cards” (with the Apple Card, Curve
Investor and Chase [UK] cards being other well known
examples). While they clearly do have an account number
associated with them it is not visible on the card itself
(unlike traditional cards).
Cards have gone through three quick phrases in recent
years: removal of embossing, numbers moved to the back,
no numbers. These are all sort of linked, with each step
leading to the next one making more sense. In my own
wallet I have cards that are embossed, not embossed with
numbers on the front, and not embossed with numbers on
the back. How long before I too have a numberless card
and will I have all four forms at the same time?
* § Technical⠀➾
o § Internet/Gemini⠀➾
# ⚓ Back_or_Front_End?⠀⇛
My current projects, my job search, and a
conversation I had today all have got me thinking
about this question lately. Which part of a project
do I like to work on the most? What kind of team
can I best contribute to?
I get enjoyment out of both but lean towards back
end where all the server and database stuff lives.
I guess one part is the correctness of it. You can
pretty easily quantify whether something works and
how well. Does it pass all the tests? Does it fit
the requirements and constraints? Is performance
good enough? It’s all generally clear-cut yes or no
where a yes means an instant dopamine hit for the
programmer.
=> =============================================================================
World Wide Web but a lot lighter.
䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 2453
╒═══════════════════ 𝐃𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐘 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒 ═════════════════════════════════════════════╕
⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 02.03.23⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧
Gemini_version_available_♊︎
✐ Links_03/02/2023:_OpenSSH_9.2_and_OBS_Studio_29.0.1⠀✐
Posted in News_Roundup at 1:02 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇GNOME bluefish⦈
§ Contents⠀➾
* GNU/Linux
o Applications
o Instructionals/Technical
o WINE_or_Emulation
o Games
* Distributions_and_Operating_Systems
o BSD
o Open_Hardware/Modding
* Free,_Libre,_and_Open_Source_Software
o Openness/Sharing/Collaboration
# Open_Access/Content
o Programming/Development
# Python
* Leftovers
o Education
o Hardware
o Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
o Proprietary
o Security
# Integrity/Availability/Authenticity
# Privacy/Surveillance
o Defence/Aggression
o Transparency/Investigative_Reporting
o Environment
# Energy/Transportation
o Finance
o AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
o Censorship/Free_Speech
o Freedom_of_Information_/_Freedom_of_the_Press
o Civil_Rights/Policing
o Monopolies
# Patents
# Copyrights
* § GNU/Linux⠀➾
o § Applications⠀➾
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ OBS_Studio_29.0.1_rolls_out_with_many_bug
fixes⠀⇛
OBS Studio 29.0.1 is out now and a worthwhile
upgrade for any of you doing video content on
Linux, as it fixes many problems from the previous
release.
# ⚓ Gajim_1.7.0_–_Gajim⠀⇛
o § Instructionals/Technical⠀➾
# ⚓ HowTo Forge ☛ How_to_Install_Java_OpenJDK_and_Oracle_JDK_on
Ubuntu_22.04⠀⇛
Java is one of the most powerful programming
languages. This post will show you how to install
OpenJDK and Oracle JDK on Ubuntu 22.04.
# ⚓ TecAdmin ☛ How_to_Automate_Journalctl_Log_Cleanup_on
Linux⠀⇛
Journalctl is a command-line utility for viewing
system logs in Linux distributions that use
Systemd. It’s an essential tool for system
administrators to diagnose problems, monitor system
performance, and track changes to the system.
# ⚓ HowTo Forge ☛ Install_and_Use_nmon_Tool_To_Monitor_Linux
Systems⠀⇛
Nmon is a simple, lightweight, and handy tool that
lets you see what’s going on in your server. Nmon
provides a simple ncurses interface to display the
Linux system resources usage like CPU, memory,
network, disks, file system, NFS, top processes,
resources, and more.
# ⚓ HowTo Forge ☛ How_to_Install_GlusterFS_Scalable_Network
Filesystem_on_Debian_11⠀⇛
GlusterFS or Gluster File System is a free and
open-source distributed file system developed by
RedHat. In this tutorial, you will install
GlusterFS – distributed and scalable network
filesystem – on Debian 11 servers.
# ⚓ HowTo Forge ☛ How_to_install_PHP_5.6_and_7.0_–_8.2_with
PHP-FPM_and_FastCGI_mode_for_ISPConfig_3.2_with_apt_on_Ubuntu
18.04_–_22.04⠀⇛
When using ISPConfig, by default, you only have the
main PHP version for your distribution. This guide
will take you through installing additional PHP
versions (5.6, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 8.1, and
8.2) on a Ubuntu server with ISPConfig.
# ⚓ Manuel Matuzovic ☛ Day_95:_the_color-mix()_function⠀⇛
The color-mix() function takes two colors and
returns the result of mixing them, in a given color
space, by a specified amount.
# ⚓ Manuel Matuzovic ☛ Day_94:_the_accent-color_property⠀⇛
The accent-color CSS property allows us to specify
the accent color for user-interface controls
generated by an element.
# ⚓ Manuel Matuzovic ☛ Day_93:_the_lch()_color_function⠀⇛
The lch() color function allows you to pick colors
from the CIELAB color space, which is device-
independant and covers the entire gamut (range) of
human color perception.
# ⚓ Yoshua Wuyts ☛ Using_HTML_As_A_Compile_Target⠀⇛
o § WINE or Emulation⠀➾
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ Wine_8.1_released_starting_another_year_of
Windows_to_Linux_translation_work⠀⇛
The Wine 8.1 development release is now available,
starting off another year of new features landing
usually bi-weekly for the Windows translation layer
used in Proton.
o § Games⠀➾
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ Handshakes_is_a_free_sokoban_puzzler_about
two_hands_meeting⠀⇛
Sometimes a good firm handshake is what’s needed
and someone decided to turn that idea into a free
puzzle game with Handshakes.
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ Prison_Architect:_Jungle_Pack_releases_soon
with_another_free_update⠀⇛
Paradox continue the DLC train here with Prison
Architect: Jungle Pack announced for release on
February 7th along with a free update for all
players.
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ Inspired_by_the_classic_SimTower,_build_up
high_with_Property_Pro⠀⇛
Property Pro is an upcoming game from SimDevs, with
an aim to capture the classic feel of SimTower from
the 90s. With a hint of the character styling from
Prison Architect and RimWorld, the idea sounds
good.
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ Going_to_live_my_dream_of_Fifth_Element
flying_cars_in_MiLE_HiGH_TAXi⠀⇛
Remember the classic sci-fi movie Fifth Element? I
sure do and I only watched it again recently, where
memories came flowing back of how I used to want
those flying cars. Well, one game developer clearly
loved it too and they’re soon releasing MiLE HiGH
TAXi.
# ⚓ GamingOnLinux ☛ Nordic_Ashes:_Survivors_of_Ragnarok_is_a
Norse_inspired_horde_survival_rogue-lite⠀⇛
Nordic Ashes: Survivors of Ragnarok is yet another
survivor game in the spirit of Vampire Survivors,
except this has a Nordic theme to it and it’s now
on Steam with Native Linux support. It’s also Steam
Deck Verified.
* § Distributions and Operating Systems⠀➾
o ⚓ Martijn Braam ☛ Alpine_Linux_is_pretty_neat⠀⇛
I’ve used various Linux distributions in the past,
starting with a Knoppix live CD a long time ago. For a
long time I was an Ubuntu user (with compiz-fusion
ofcourse), then I used Arch Linux for years thinking it
was the perfect distribution. Due to postmarketOS I found
out about Alpine Linux and now after using that for some
years I think I should write a post about it.
o § BSD⠀➾
# ⚓ Undeadly ☛ OpenSSH_9.2/9.2p1_released!⠀⇛
As should be of no surprise to undeadly readers,
OpenSSH is a 100% complete SSH protocol 2.0
implementation and includes sftp client and server
support.
# ⚓ OpenSSH ☛ OpenSSH_9.2_was_released_on_2023-02-02⠀⇛
This release contains fixes for two security
problems and a memory safety problem. The memory
safety problem is not believed to be exploitable,
but we report most network-reachable memory faults
as security bugs.
o § Open Hardware/Modding⠀➾
# ⚓ Eta ☛ Reversing_UK_mobile_rail_tickets⠀⇛
But what data is inside the barcode of a mobile
ticket, and how do they work? Could people who
aren’t ticket inspectors get the data out of them?
It turns out that the answer is a bit more
interesting than I initially expected!
# ⚓ Hackaday ☛ Building_An_All-in-One_Desktop_Out_Of_Framework
Parts⠀⇛
The Framework laptop prides itself on having
reusable parts, and hackers all around routinely
challenge the claims by building projects reusing
them. Yet again, [whatthefilament] puts the
Framework hardware to the test, by taking all the
laptop internals and building an AiO (All-in-One)
desktop computer with it. Hot on the heels of his
Framework tablet project we covered a few months
ago, this desktop reuses as much as possible – the
mainboard, the display and the expansion cards in
particular, and even one of the hinges is reused
for adjusting the monitor’s angle.
* § Free, Libre, and Open Source Software⠀➾
o ⚓ OpenSource.com ☛ How_upstream_contributions_power_scientific
research⠀⇛
Horizon Europe emphasizes open science and open source
technology. The program evolved from Horizon 2020, which
provided financial support for research projects that
promoted industrial competitiveness, advanced scientific
excellence, or solved social challenges through the
process of “open science.”
Open science is an approach to the scientific process
based on open cooperative work, tools, and diffusing
knowledge found in the Horizon Europe Regulation and
Model Grant Agreement. This open science approach aligns
with open source principles that provide a structure for
such cooperation.
o ⚓ Techdirt ☛ Elon’s_New_API_Pricing_Plan_Seems_Perfectly_Designed…
To_Help_Send_More_Users_And_Developers_To_Mastodon⠀⇛
Huh. It had actually felt like quite some time since Elon
Musk had last done something so stupid as to send a new
bunch of users to Mastodon. But, apparently he can’t go
that long without helping to do so. Last night, I had
actually started working on a story about how developers
were increasingly moving from Twitter to Mastodon,
following the ridiculously, poorly communicated decision
to shutdown API access for companies building Twitter
clients (from which many original Twitter innovations
arose).
o § Openness/Sharing/Collaboration⠀➾
# § Open Access/Content⠀➾
# ⚓ Times Higher Education ☛ Scottish_university_press
slashes_open_access_monograph_costs⠀⇛
The new academic press, which is already
assessing pitches for books nearing
completion that will be ready for publication
in 2023-24, will also create opportunities
for scholars to publish their work in a
longer form, added Ms Walker.
“As a not-for-profit, we don’t have the same
limitations on what we can publish – we can
publish things that might not be as
commercially viable [with a traditional
publisher] or we think about helping early
career researchers to find an audience,” she
said.
o § Programming/Development⠀➾
# ⚓ Diziet ☛ derive-adhoc:_powerful_pattern-based_derive_macros
for_Rust⠀⇛
Have you ever wished that you could that could
write a new derive macro without having to mess
with procedural macros?
# ⚓ University of Toronto ☛ C_was_not_created_as_an_abstract
machine_(of_course)⠀⇛
This is simultaneously true and false. It’s
absolutely true that the semantics of formal
standard C are defined in terms of an abstract
(virtual) machine, instead of any physical machine.
The determined refusal of the specification to tie
this abstract machine in concrete CPUs is the
source of a significant amount of frustration in
people who would like, for example, for there to be
some semantics attached to what happens when you
dereference an invalid pointer. They note that
actual CPUs running C code all have defined
semantics, so why can’t C? But, well, as is
frequently said, C Is Not a Low-level Language
(via) and the semantics of C don’t correspond
exactly to CPU semantics. So I agree with nytpu’s
overall sentiments, as I understand them.
# § Python⠀➾
# ⚓ Python Speed ☛ Don’t_bother_trying_to_estimate_Pandas
memory_usage⠀⇛
* § Leftovers⠀➾
o ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ SDS_Redux…No,_the_BOOK⠀⇛
The 50th anniversary edition of SDS, the classic story of
the 1960s Students for a Democratic Society, has just
been published, with a new introduction by me, and an
enlarged index in which many modern-day politicos will
find their names. A handsome paperbound edition, a hefty
769 pages for only $24.95, it was published as an act of
love by the New York City-based Autonomedia, which had
also earlier published my No More Mushrooms: Thoughts on
Life Without Government.
In retrospect, we can see that, although the organization
collapsed after just ten years of existence, it did make
a mark. As I say in the introduction, it was “a major
factor in the creation of a New Left in America,” which
was no small thing given that the only left politics up
until then was a moldy Marxism, a kind of Maoism, and an
anti-Soviet socialism, none of which took hold in this
country or was likely to. This was a homegrown politics,
taking its impulses not from Europe but from
dissatisfactions and distortions in the American
experience
o ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ William_Anthony_(1934-2022)_RIP⠀⇛
Many years ago, so I remember as if it were yesterday, I
went to one of those small Chelsea galleries on an upper
floor off of tenth avenue, looked at an image parodying
Andy Warhol’s Brillo Box and laughed aloud. And was
jokingly rebuked: ’Don’t you know that this is an art
gallery?’, the person at the desk asked me. That’s how I
came to meet Bill Anthony, who became a friend. And
that’s why, to the right above the computer on which I am
writing, I have his drawing after Jean Auguste Dominique
Ingres, Gianciotto Discovers Paolo and Francesca, (1819).
But where Ingres’ two doomed Italian lovers are
impossibly elegant, Anthony shows the most awkward two
people imaginable making out. For reasons that I don’t
claim to fully understand, humor in visual art is a
surprisingly neglected topic. Now and then, I see a
painting that is unintentionally funny, but I cannot
think of another artist who like Anthony made a career
from presenting visual humor.
Always mischievous, but never malicious, Anthony got the
ideas for his art from teaching beginning drawing
students. They drew heads too large, arms and legs too
small, and so he appropriated their style for his
parodies of old master, modernist and contemporary art.
Thus in his Men of Avignon (1997) Picasso’s women are
replaced by five skinny naked man. In his Just What is
it? (2021), Richard Hamilton’s famous pop image Just What
is It That Makes Today’s Homes So Different, so
Appealing? (1956) is redone with a female body builder
replacing Hamilton’s male weight lifter, and Anthony’s
own art on the walls replacing Hamilton’s examples. The
Red Studio (1994) redoes Matisse’s The Red Studio (1911),
with the pictures within the picture done, naturally!, in
Anthony’s inimitable style. And in Dance (2016), six
happily moronic looking pink dancers take the pose of
Matisse graceful figures in Dance (1909-1910). The
ungainly Giorgione Girl (2008) satirizes Giorgione’s
great The Sleeping Venus (1510); Balthus Baby (2000)
turns that painter’s pubescent femme fatale into a
simpleton; and Laocoon (2011) redoes the very famous
ancient Greek sculpture, Laocoön, with the three
emaciated men struggling with a skinny blue snake. These
examples all come from a recent book, Deviant
Draftsmanship. And Anthony also did political history, in
his earlier books War is Swell: A kids Idiotic Vision of
WWII (2000) and Biblical Stories (1978), a book that
impressed Warhol. And he presented politics, as in his
politically incorrect Requiem for a Retard (2019), in
which a man about to be electrocuted who is eating his
last meal asks, ‘What’s for dessert?’ And I love his
three drawings (1996), The Effects of Masturbation on
Boys (blindness, hairy palms, insanity). Anthony also did
caricatures of well known images by Caravaggio, Giorgio
de Chirico, Degas, Ensor, Eric Fischl, Gainsborough,
David Hockney, Magritte, Sigmar Polke and Tom of Finland.
No artist, however famous or dignified, was beyond his
reach. Like one of the great old masters, he thus created
in his art a whole parallel universe, with everyone
ungainly. All of his figures, male or female, look silly;
every one of them appears to be a complete idiot.
o ⚓ Hackaday ☛ Build_A_Circuit_Sculpture-Style_VU_Meter_For_Music⠀⇛
One of the coolest things any sound system can have is
some kind of musical visualization. Thumping level meters
that pump with the volume are a great example, and were
particularly popular in the 1980s. Now, you can build a
rainbow set with great response, thanks to this guide
from [Invexlab World].
o ⚓ Hackaday ☛ Brass_Hardware_Makes_For_Pretty_Potentiometer_Knobs⠀⇛
Knobs and switches can make or break the aesthetic and
tactile appeal of a project. Fine hi-fi hardware goes
hard on these details, while cheap knock-off guitar
pedals often go the other way. If you’re looking for a
unique, cheap, and compelling solution for potentiometer
knobs, you might like to consider using converted brass
hardware for the job.
o § Education⠀➾
# ⚓ ACM ☛ Combining_Augmented_and_Virtual_Reality_Experiences
for_Immersive_Fire_Drills⠀⇛
This paper presented a training application that
combines the strengths of AR and VR for realistic
fire suppression and evacuation training.
Specifically, the fire-training environment was
constructed by accurately detecting the 3D
information of real objects to improve the
immersive experience of the training. By applying
the actually used fire training tool to the
tangible interface, the training effect was
increased and this was verified. Finally, a method
for freely switching between AR and VR experiences
in one device as presented. The proposed system
still has limitations that can only be used on a
few devices. In the future, we plan to develop
human-like AI agents that can respond to various
training scenarios alongside the trainee, further
reducing risk and reducing the cost of human
participants.
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Sanders_Vows_to_Work_on_Raising_“Pathetically
Low”_Teacher_Salaries⠀⇛
# ⚓ Democracy Now ☛ Keeanga-Yamahtta_Taylor,_Khalil_Gibran
Muhammad_&_E._Patrick_Johnson_on_the_Fight_over_Black
History⠀⇛
We host a roundtable with three leading Black
scholars about the College Board’s decision to
revise its curriculum for an Advanced Placement
course in African American studies after criticism
from Republicans like Florida Governor Ron
DeSantis. The revised curriculum removes Black
Lives Matter, slavery reparations and queer theory
as required topics, while it adds a section on
Black conservatism. The College Board, the
nonprofit organization that administers Advanced
Placement courses across the country, denies that
it buckled to political pressure. “Florida is a
laboratory of fascism at this point,” says Khalil
Gibran Muhammad, professor of history, race and
public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. We
also speak with two scholars whose writings are
among those purged from the revised curriculum:
Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, professor of African
American studies at Northwestern University, and E.
Patrick Johnson, dean of Northwestern’s School of
Communication and a pioneer in the formation of
Black sexuality studies as a field of scholarship.
# ⚓ Scheerpost ☛ New_Advanced_Placement_African_American
Studies_Course_is_Watered_Down_Version_of_Itself⠀⇛
On February 1, 2023– the first day of Black History
Month – the College Board released the framework
for its new Advanced Placement African American
Studies course. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a
Republican, has criticized the pilot version of the
African American studies course as lacking
educational […]
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Teach_Black_History…Don’t_Ban_It⠀⇛
When Republican President Gerald Ford officially
recognized Black History Month in 1976, he called
on Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the
too-often neglected accomplishments of Black
Americans.”
He also acknowledged that Black Americans had shown
“courage and perseverance” when our country had
failed to live up to its own ideals.
o § Hardware⠀➾
# ⚓ Hackaday ☛ The_Struggle_Of_Keeping_A_1950s_Candlepin
Bowling_System_Working⠀⇛
When we hear the term ‘bowling’, most of us think
of what is known as ten-pin bowling, yet this is
only one of the many variations. Candlepin bowling
— so called because of the distinctive pin shape —
has been around since 1880, yet is mostly played
within the US New England and Canadian Maritime
provinces. Because of how relatively uncommon it
is, candlepin bowling alleys such as the one that
[Autumn Mowery]’s family runs is struggling to keep
the system working, much of it due to a lack of
spare parts.
o § Health/Nutrition/Agriculture⠀➾
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Forever_Chemicals,_Everywhere⠀⇛
Forever Chemicals are found everywhere from the
depths of the Mariana Trench to the mountaintop of
Mt. Everest. Following 80 years of manufacturing
various PFAS chemicals, the world is swimming in
chemical permanence. And yes, it is a toxic price
society pays for modern-day conveniences — made
easy!
But maybe it would be better if “products made easy
by PFASs” were made the old-fashioned way, pre-1940
sans dangerous chemicals. After all, several
civilizations of the world got along just fine over
thousands of years without PFAS chemicals. For
example, the BBC documentary: The Story of India by
Michael Wood: Archeological discoveries have
revealed advanced technological artifacts found at
Rakhigarhi, an Indus Valley site 8,000 years old.
Indus cities had elaborate planning for drainage
systems, housebuilding, and street construction
with plentiful evidence of transcendent cultural
affairs.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Our_Planet_Versus_Plastic_Bags:_a_Tale_of
Two_Cities⠀⇛
With oceans, countries, populations, and
governments inundated by a plague of plastic
worldwide, it may be useful to focus on the single-
use plastic bag choices made by two cities, in the
same U.S. state, located at a distance of only 64
miles (104 km) from each other. Both Santa Fe and
Albuquerque share many qualities and conditions,
foremost among them a distinctive cultural mix of
American, Hispanic/Latino, and Native American
citizens. But the two communities are also
dissimilar, and this is reflected in the way they
have dealt with the plastic bag dilemma.
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the United
States. It is the seat of the New Mexico government
and is home to the country’s third-largest art
market. It calls itself “the City Different” and
has more than 250 art galleries and dealers, a
dozenstate and private museums, and a world-class
opera, for its more than 88,000residents.
# ⚓ VOA News ☛ Australia_to_Legalize_MDMA_And_Magic_Mushrooms
for_Medical_Use⠀⇛
Psychedelics have been used by Indigenous peoples
for millennia, but Western researchers only started
seriously looking into their potential uses in the
middle of the last century.
The drugs became symbols of the counterculture
movement of the 1960s and were banned.
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ Can_Psychedelics_Solve_the_Youth_Mental_Health
Crisis?⠀⇛
As a high school freshman, Aiden McDonnell began
exploring dissociative drugs with the help of well-
connected friends: first with DMX, a cough
suppressant often found in over-the-counter
medicine, and later with magic mushrooms and LSD.
His initial experiences with these
substances—typically labeled “psychedelic” for
their visual or illusory effects—were “not fun” and
spawned regrets over losing “the innocence of
childhood,” said McDonnell. “That’s probably not
the best when you haven’t even started figuring
stuff out.”
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ ‘People_Are_Dying’:_Nearly_14,000_Nigerians
Sue_Shell_Over_Devastating_Oil_Spills⠀⇛
More than 13,650 Nigerians have filed claims
against Shell for years of unremedied oil spills
that are causing ecological destruction, disease,
and death.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ GOP_AGs_Threaten_Pharmacies_If_They
Dispense_Abortion_Pills_by_Mail⠀⇛
A month after the two largest pharmacy chains in
the United States announced their efforts to become
certified to dispense abortion pills by mail, in
accordance with a new Food and Drug Administration
rule, the Republican attorneys general of 20 states
on Wednesday warned the companies that providing
the medications by mail in their states could
result in legal action against them.
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ 20_GOP_Attorneys_General_Threaten_Pharmacies_If
They_Mail_Abortion_Pills⠀⇛
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Abortion_Clinic_Sues_West_Virginia_Over_Anti-
Abortion_Law⠀⇛
# ⚓ The Revelator ☛ United_States_Includes_Dam_Emissions_in_UN
Climate_Reporting_for_the_First_Time⠀⇛
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ Russian_dairy_producers_start_labeling_milk_in
kilograms_to_hide_package_downsizing_—_Meduza⠀⇛
Russian dairy producers have begun labeling
containers of milk by their mass rather than by
their volume, RBC has reported.
# ⚓ Scheerpost ☛ ‘We’re_Still_Gonna_Say_No’:_Inside
UnitedHealthcare’s_Effort_to_Deny_Coverage_to_Chronically_Ill
Patient⠀⇛
After a college student finally found a treatment
that worked, the insurance giant decided it
wouldn’t pay for the costly drugs. His fight to get
coverage exposed the insurer’s hidden procedures
for rejecting claims.
o § Proprietary⠀➾
# ⚓ Techdirt ☛ OpenAI_Wants_To_Help_You_Figure_Out_If_Text_Was
Written_By_OpenAI;_But_What_Happens_When_It’s_Wrong?⠀⇛
With the rise of ChatGPT over the past few months,
the inevitable moral panics have begun. We’ve seen
a bunch of people freaking out about how ChatGPT
will be used by students to do their homework, how
it will replace certain jobs, and other claims.
Most of these are totally overblown. While some
cooler heads have prevailed, and argued (correctly)
that schools need to learn to teach with ChatGPT,
rather than against it, the screaming about ChatGPT
in schools is likely to continue.
# ⚓ Techdirt ☛ It_Took_Months_For_Anker_To_Finally_Admit_Its
Eufy_Cameras_Weren’t_Really_Secure⠀⇛
Last November, The Verge discovered that Anker, the
maker of popular USB chargers and the Eufy line of
“smart” cameras, had a bit of a security issue.
Despite the fact the company advertised its Eufy
cameras as having “end-to-end” military-grade
encryption, security researcher Paul Moore and a
hacker named Wasabi found it was pretty easy to
intercept user video streams.
# ⚓ Hackaday ☛ This_Week_In_Security:_Github,_Google,_And
Realtek⠀⇛
GitHub Desktop may have stopped working for you
yesterday, Febuary 2nd. The reason was an
unauthorized access to some decidedly non-public
repositories. The most serious bit of information
that escaped was code signing certificates, notably
used for GitHub Desktop and Atom. Those
certificates were password protected, so it’s
unlikely they’ve been abused yet. Even so, Github
is taking the proper steps of revoking those
certificates.
# ⚓ IT Wire ☛ Red_Hat_Launches_Ansible_Automation_Platform_on
Google_Cloud⠀⇛
Red Hat says organisations can deploy Red Hat’s
self-managed offering directly from the Google
Cloud Marketplace to quickly start automating the
management of their Google Cloud resources.
# ⚓ Jan Schaumann ☛ AWS_IAM_and_Cost_Explorer_CLI_Setup⠀⇛
While using Amazon EC2 for my class on System
Administration, students often leave resources
running unchecked, leading to an unexpectedly high
bill. In order to help them keep track of their
costs, I put together a simple shell function to
display the current usage.
While the command itself (shown at the end of this
post) is trivial by itself, creating the required
AWS resources to allow for access via the command-
line — our preferred mandated AWS access method —
is not completely obvious for novice or even only
occasional AWS users, so I figured I’d document
this here, both for my students as well as for
myself.
# ⚓ Tim Bray ☛ Amazon_Q4_2022_Financials⠀⇛
“Profit” is an accounting abstraction, what
concerns me more would be the negative free cash
flow of $19.8B over the course of 2022. Perhaps
someone more finance-literate could offer a good
reason why this shouldn’t be a worry?
o § Security⠀➾
# ⚓ Scoop News Group ☛ Sanctioned_Iranian_hackers_behind
Charlie_Hebdo_breach,_Microsoft_says [Ed: Microsoft is to
blame for loads of security breaches, not the expert to be
approached for blame-shifting explanations (blaming nations
rather than the holes)]⠀⇛
U.S. officials sanctioned members of the hacking
group after they attempted to interfere in the 2020
U.S. presidential election.
# § Integrity/Availability/Authenticity⠀➾
# ⚓ Devever ☛ Against_risk-based_authentication_(or,_why
I_wouldn’t_trust_Google_Cloud)⠀⇛
Fundamentally, the issue here comes down to
the fact that an accounts system for critical
infrastructure needs to fulfill two
objectives:
It must be possible for authorized users to
gain access.
It must not be possible for unauthorized
users to gain access.
“Risk-based” authentication essentially tries
too hard to fulfil the second objective in a
way that compromises on the former.
# ⚓ William ☛ How_Hype_Will_Turn_Your_Security_Key_Into
Junk⠀⇛
To understand the problem, we need to
understand what a discoverable/resident key
is.
You have probably seen that most keys support
an ‘unlimited’ number of accounts. This is
achieved by sending a “key wrapped key” to
the security key. When the Relying Party
(Authentication Server) wants to authenticate
your security key, it will provide you a
“credential id”. That credential ID is an
encrypted blob that only your security key
can decrypt. If your security key can decrypt
that blob it yields a private key that is
specific to that single RP that you can use
for signatures.
# § Privacy/Surveillance⠀➾
# ⚓ NBC ☛ Patrons_of_NYC_gay_bar_incapacitated_and_robbed
of_thousands_via_facial_recognition_on_their_phones⠀⇛
Police believe the criminals used facial
recognition to access the victims’ phones and
funds once they were incapacitated, according
to Capt. Robert Gault of the city’s 10th
Precinct, who spoke about the incidents at a
police community council meeting last week.
# ⚓ Idiomdrottning ☛ When_the_EU_wanted_to_own_all
computers⠀⇛
Their desire to monitor 100% of all
communication is understandable, it’s for a
good cause, but the only way to do that
technically is if the are the admin user on
every single computer (because otherwise
people can still chat over Omemo, PGP,
Matrix, or SSH+talk).
So no more passwords, SSL certs, bank login,
no more free operating systems, no more Jitsi
or SSH or HTTPS. This law literally breaks
all computing and the entire Internet. Which,
if that’s what they really intend to do, they
should just say so explicitly. The EU
anti–all-computers-ever law. I can kind of
see the appeal but I doubt business &
politicians would, if they really understood
that that was the ramifications.
o § Defence/Aggression⠀➾
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Trump_Shares_Post_Urging_Followers_to_Physically
Fight_for_Him_to_Win_Nomination⠀⇛
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Noam_Chomsky:_Right-Wing_Insurrection_in_Brazil
Held_Strong_Echoes_of_January_6⠀⇛
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ ‘My_pebble_on_the_scale’:_A_former_Team_Navalny
activist_is_back_in_Russia_to_collect_signatures_against_the
war_—_Meduza⠀⇛
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ ‘Death_Sentence_for_Women_and_Families’:_US
Court_Blocks_Domestic_Violence_Gun_Ban⠀⇛
The right-wing 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on
Thursday struck down a federal law barring people
with domestic violence restraining orders from
owning firearms, a ruling that gun control
advocates said will cost lives.
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ January_6_Report_Obscured_the_Role_of_Racism_in
the_“Stop_the_Steal”_Movement⠀⇛
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Atlanta’s_“Cop_City”_Moves_Forward_as_19_People
Face_Domestic_Terrorism_Charges⠀⇛
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ To_the_Viktor_goes_the_oil_Hungary’s_government
appears_set_on_maintaining_its_cozy_relationship_with_Moscow.
But_at_what_cost?_—_Meduza⠀⇛
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ ‘A_lunar_landscape_with_residents_who_hate_us’
Russian_military_source_tells_Novaya_Gazeta_that_Moscow_is
gearing_up_for_a_new_offensive_—_Meduza⠀⇛
Russia is preparing to launch a new offensive in
Ukraine, Novaya Gazeta Europe reported on Friday,
citing a source from the Russian military.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Democrats_Introduce_Bill_to_Ban_‘Grotesque’
Marketing_of_Assault_Weapons_to_Kids⠀⇛
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey on Thursday introduced
legislation to outlaw the marketing of firearms to
children amid growing outrage from federal
lawmakers, gun violence prevention advocates, and
parents over a weapon for kids inspired by the AR-
15.
# ⚓ Techdirt ☛ Charter’s_$7_Billion_Penalty_For_Murdering_An
Elderly_Customer_Reduced_To_$262_Million⠀⇛
Last August, cable giant Charter Communications
(Spectrum) was slapped with a $7 billion lawsuit
after one of the company’s cable technicians
murdered an 83-year-old customer after hours.
The lawsuit (pdf) claims that Charter had
eliminated a more rigorous screening process when
they merged with Time Warner Cable, letting the
employee and his history slip through the cracks.
# ⚓ Wired ☛ The_Kremlin_Has_Entered_the_Chat⠀⇛
# ⚓ RTL ☛ Pentagon_tracking_Chinese_spy_balloon_over_US⠀⇛
The official added that the balloon had flown over
the northwest United States, where there are
sensitive airbases and nuclear missiles in
underground silos, but that the Pentagon did not
believe it constituted a particularly dangerous
intelligence threat.
# ⚓ VOA News ☛ Suspected_Chinese_Spy_Balloon_Spotted_Over
Western_US,_Pentagon_Says⠀⇛
The balloon above Montana was not the first Chinese
balloon spotted in the U.S, but this one seems to
be hovering over locations longer than before,
according to a military official.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ How_the_U.S._Border_Arrived_in_Kenya⠀⇛
When I got in the car in Nairobi to go to the
Maasai Mara in the Kenya-Tanzania borderlands, it
was hard to imagine that I was going to a place
touched by U.S. border operations, but it was true.
The United States, as I learned when I was
researching my 2019 book Empire of Borders: The
Expansion of the U.S. Border Around the World, has
a Customs and Border Protection attaché at its
Kenya embassy. This is one of 23 such attachés that
the U.S. has across the world, in various places,
including Bogotá, Mexico City, and New Delhi. The
border, in other words, has far more reach than you
might think.
The U.S. has long been pushing its borders out to
places across the globe. Perhaps the most well-
known cases are the Mexico-Guatemala and the
Dominican Republic-Haiti frontiers (as The Border
Chronicle detailed last year), along with others in
Latin America and the Caribbean. As former DHS
secretary John Kelly put it in 2017, “Border
security cannot be attempted as an endless series
of ‘goal line stands’ on the one-foot line at the
ports of entry or along the thousands of miles of
border between this country and Mexico. … I believe
the defense of the Southwest border starts 1,500
miles to the south, with Peru.”
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Philanthropic_Violence_in_Nigeria⠀⇛
Murder is something that comes easily to
capitalists, and their political system is caked
with the blood of ordinary workers whose lives fall
apart under the hammer blows of oppression. In the
eternal quest for cheap oil and colossal profits,
power-hungry elites drain our planet of its living
sap, justifying their destruction of our
environment and our lives with a brazen cynicism
that remains foreign to the ranks of the working-
class. Nigeria is one such country whose immense
mineral wealth has meant that the lives of its 200
million people are held back by the violence of
capitalism. Yet amidst a country of deep hardship,
the heroic resistance of ordinary people continues
undeterred.
The peoples’ struggle continues
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ Ukraine_opens_criminal_case_against_Wagner_Group
founder_Evgeny_Prigozhin_—_Meduza⠀⇛
The Ukrainian Prosecutor General’s Office has filed
criminal charges against Evgeny Prigozhin, the
founder of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group,
according to the agency’s press service. Prigozhin
stands accused of encroaching on Ukraine’s
territorial integrity and waging an aggressive war.
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ Duma_deputies_submit_draft_legislation_that_would
allow_military_personnel_to_be_jailed_without_trial_—
Meduza⠀⇛
State Duma deputies Andrey Kartopolov and Andrey
Krasov introduced a draft bill that would, if it
passes, allow military personnel to be jailed
without a court ruling.
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ Tolstoy,_Pushkin,_and_Marshak_briefly_labeled
‘foreign_agents’_on_major_Russian_bookseller’s_website_—
Meduza⠀⇛
Multiple Russian writers, including Leo Tolstoy,
Samuil Marshak, and Alexander Pushkin, were
reportedly labeled as “foreign agents” on the
website of Labyrinth, one of Russia’s largest
online bookstores, on Friday.
# ⚓ Defence Web ☛ Nigeria_orders_more_vessels_from_France’s
Ocea⠀⇛
France’s Ocea has received another order from
Nigeria, this time for nine vessels for the
Nigerian Navy.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Tyre_Nichols_and_the_Need_for_a_Cultural
Revolution⠀⇛
The death of Tyre Nichols will be added to a long
list of Black, Brown and White U.S. citizens
innocently subjected to overwhelming force by those
entrusted to protect them. The video of the young
man being beaten by five Black policemen will lead
to renewed cries of “Enough, enough.” Calls for
local, state, and federal laws will be heard, and
maybe some legislation will be passed. But the
fundamental issues behind the excessive use of
force by police officers in the United States will
go unheeded. That would involve a cultural
revolution, a fundamental change in the nature of
law enforcement.
We are familiar with different types of
revolutions. Political revolutions, like the French
Revolution or a coup d’état, are easy to observe.
People are in power one day and gone the next.
Scientific revolutions may also be dramatic. The
discovery and mapping of DNA would be another
example as would the work of Copernicus, Newton,
and Einstein.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Goodbye,_Tyre⠀⇛
When Tyre Nichols woke up the morning of the last
day of his life, I feel certain that he wasn’t
thinking about racism or the chance that it might
be his end, though he’d likely had “the talk” from
his parents at an early age. He’d pushed it back,
seeking peace and joy in a life he shared with
friends, family, and his community. To do otherwise
would create a constant state of fear, precluding
any quality of life, the ability to just get
through it all and grow up.
I feel this as a Black mother.
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ The_Crisis_Killing_Black_Women⠀⇛
For as long as the CDC and other health
organizations have collected data on suicide,
they’ve reported that suicide rates among Black
people are the lowest among any racial category,
and Black women and girls, more specifically, are
least likely to end their lives of all demographic
groups. It’s a statistical finding so
counterintuitive that researchers dubbed it the
racial/gender “suicide paradox”—that despite
enduring more simultaneous marginalizing
oppressions than any other group, Black women,
instead of taking their lives at rates that
surpass, or even equal, more privileged identities,
just keep on keepin’ on. This idea—that suicide is
correlated with whiteness, negatively correlated
with Blackness, and irrelevant to Black
femaleness—crept out of the sociology and mental
health realms to establish itself within the
broader American cultural psyche. Black women’s
purported immunity to suicide has been regarded as
such an open-and-shut case that studies on Black
female suicidality are extremely scant. Corrections
to that dangerous oversight have been slow to take
hold, even in recent years, as Black teenage girls
and young women have begun killing themselves at
unprecedented rates.
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ Deadly_Violence_Against_Protesters_Is_the_New
Normal⠀⇛
On the morning of January 18, agents from nine
agencies, including the FBI and its local
counterpart, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation,
descended on a section of Atlanta’s South River
Forest occupied by activists. For the past two
years, hundreds had lived in the section of the
Weelaunee forest, in tents and treehouses, in order
to block its planned conversion into a police
training facility—a “Cop City” complete with a mock
village, firing ranges, and a Black Hawk landing
pad. That morning, the agents were under orders to
“eliminate the future Atlanta Public Safety
Training Center of criminal activity.”
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Rage_Against_the_War_Machine:_A_Call_for_a
National_Strike_to_End_the_War⠀⇛
As many others probably are, I’m very much
concerned that the current trajectory of the war in
Ukraine is leading us toward thermo nuclear war.
Global nuclear holocaust followed by nuclear winter
is a terrifying prospect for the future of
humanity, threatening its very existence, future
generations, and the existence of all life on this
planet. And the thing is, even though I know that
this prospect is increasingly becoming the reality,
I just don’t want to accept it. Yet, at the same
time, I feel so paralyzed, so helpless to do
anything about it. Who am I? I’m just one person.
What can I do?
Well, I’m not just one person, am I? So, what are
“we” going to do about it? How can “we” stop this
war machine from its destructive path? Once the
automated systems are initiated, it’s almost
impossible to stop the sequences that will follow.
It will all happen very quickly. In around half an
hour or so, much of the world will be completely
destroyed. It has been estimated, that, if any,
only 1% of humanity will survive, but then there’s
the follow up of nuclear winter, which will last
for a year afterwards. I don’t think I need to go
on to describe the horrors of that, but we need to
understand the incredibly foolish risk these madmen
are taking now with their war machine. It’s not a
game! These scoundrels and devils, who are of a
similar mentality as that of Nazis, are risking our
lives and the lives of our children and their
children, our friends and families, future
generations, and all life on the planet. And for
what? So that the filthy rich war pigs of the MIC
can get filthier, more corrupt, and fantastically
wealthy? So, why are “we” the people even in this
game? How does this benefit the American people? It
doesn’t! None of it does!
# ⚓ Atlantic Council ☛ #BritainDebrief_–_How_grave_is_Britain’s
stagnation?_A_debrief_from_Dr._Adam_Tooze⠀⇛
Ben Judah spoke with Professor Adam Tooze, Director
of the European Institute and Kathryn and Shelby
Cullom Davis Professor of History at Columbia
University on how Britain’s economic crisis looks
from a historical perspective.
# ⚓ Atlantic Council ☛ #BritainDebrief_–_How_does_the_Western
price_cap_on_oil_work?_|_A_Debrief_from_Eddie_Fishman⠀⇛
Ben Judah spoke with Eddie Fishman, Senior Policy
Scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy at
Columbia University, to discuss the price cap.
# ⚓ France24 ☛ Live:_Ukraine’s_Zelensky_vows_to_hasten_EU
membership_after_Kyiv_summit⠀⇛
Ukraine will not waste “a single day” bringing EU
membership closer, President Volodymyr Zelensky
told a joint press conference with EU leaders on
Friday after a summit in Kyiv. Earlier, EU Council
President Charles Michel said the Russian invasion
of Ukraine was a decisive moment for the European
bloc in an exclusive interview with FRANCE
24. Follow our live blog for all the latest
developments. All times are Paris time (GMT+1).
# ⚓ France24 ☛ US_pressures_allies_to_expel_Russia’s_Wagner
mercenaries_from_Libya,_Sudan⠀⇛
The United States has stepped up pressure on Middle
East allies to expel the Wagner Group, a military
contractor with close ties to Russia’s president,
from chaos-stricken Libya and Sudan where it
expanded in recent years, regional officials told
The Associated Press.
# ⚓ FAIR ☛ You_Don’t_Stop_Police_Killings_by_Calling_them
‘Fatal_Encounters’⠀⇛
It’s hard to find words after yet another brutal
police killing of a Black person, this time of 29-
year-old Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tennessee,
captured in horrifying detail on video footage
released last week. But the words we use—and in
that “we,” the journalists who frame these stories
figure critically—if we actually want to not just
be sad about, but end state-sanctioned racist
murders, those words must not downplay or soften
the hard reality with euphemism and vaguery.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Brazil_Set_to_Sink_‘Toxic’_Aircraft_Carrier
at_Sea_Despite_Environmental_Concerns⠀⇛
The former flagship of Brazil’s navy—an ex-French
aircraft carrier built in the late 1950s that
environmentalists estimate contains hundreds of
tons of highly carcinogenic chemicals—will be
scuttled at sea after being denied permission to be
scrapped in Turkey, Brazilian naval officials said
on Wednesday.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Diplomatic_Cables_Prove_Top_U.S._Officials
Knew_They_Were_Crossing_Russia’s_Red_Lines_on_NATO
Expansion⠀⇛
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Ukraine’s_Reckless_Nuclear_Response⠀⇛
The ongoing war in Ukraine is not exactly a
conducive environment to building new nuclear power
plants. (Photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine/
Wikimedia Commons)
Obviously, if your country has been invaded by a
foreign power, putting your 15 commercial nuclear
reactors at risk of destruction that could lead to
a massive radioactive release, rendering your
country and others beyond uninhabitable, there is
only one clear solution: load up with more new
nuclear power plants.
# ⚓ Scheerpost ☛ Nuclear_War_Imminent?⠀⇛
Retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel William J.
Astore who served in the nuclear missile command
fears the end of human life through nuclear war is
more likely than in the Cold War era.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Eric_Draitser’s_Disturbing_Review_of_“War
In_Ukraine”⠀⇛
I generally admire Eric Draitser’s knowledgeable,
sharp-edged commentaries on international affairs,
which are equally critical of U.S. imperialism and
other forms of colonial and neocolonial oppression.
Nevertheless, something bizarre happens in Eric’s
review of War in Ukraine: Making Sense of a
Senseless Conflict by Medea Benjamin and Nicholas
Davies. Having criticized those authors, with some
justification, for oversimplifying a complex
conflict, he then produces a radically
oversimplified response which amounts, in effect,
to joining the U.S./NATO camp and underwriting the
Zelensky regime’s drive for “victory.”
The review begins by accusing Benjamin and Davies
of presenting a one-dimensional view of the war
that is too close to the official Russian narrative
used to justify the invasion of Ukraine in February
2022. Draitser scores some points here; this
history, strongly influenced by the authors’
opposition to the role of the U.S. and NATO in
helping create the conditions for the conflict and
then escalating it, ignores certain complexifying
facts and tends to relieve Putin of all
responsibility for the invasion. But he does not
advocate a shared responsibility for the conflict
and a shared duty to end it. His conclusion (which
he labels a “sound leftist position”) is that
Ukraine needs to win the war and the Russians need
to lose it.
o § Transparency/Investigative Reporting⠀➾
# ⚓ EFF ☛ EFF,_ACLU_Seek_to_Protect_the_Public’s_Right_to
Access_Judicial_Records⠀⇛
The SCA authorizes the government to access, among
other things, the content of a subscriber’s
electronic communications by obtaining a warrant.
SCA warrants and related court records, including
dockets, are routinely filed and maintained under
seal in federal district courts around the country
without any reason as to why such secrecy is
necessary. In October 2022, the Minnesota District
Court denied RCFP’s request to unseal this
information, stating that RCFP “does not allege
that it has any intent, much less an imminent
intent, to access or inspect any of the materials
that it seeks to unseal.”
As the ACLU and EFF’s brief to the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Eighth Circuit explains, the lower
court’s decision wrongfully cuts off court access
in cases where, historically, access has proved
important. “The Reporters Committee’s unsealing
petition is a prime example of how secrecy can
frustrate the public’s ability to even learn about
the existence of certain judicial records, in this
case, law enforcement requests for court
authorization to engage in surveillance or to
obtain people’s private data,” the brief reads.
Keeping this information under seal implicates
“people’s free speech and privacy rights, both in
the physical world and digitally.”
In most places, the press and public have no way of
knowing how many SCA warrants the government
applies for, what kinds of records it’s seeking,
what information the government presented to
support its warrant applications, and how many of
the applications are granted or denied.
# ⚓ The Dissenter ☛ Swedish_Prosecutors_Destroyed_Assange
Documents⠀⇛
o § Environment⠀➾
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Because_1.5C_Goal_‘Not_Plausible,’_Study
Says_Deep_Social_Change_Should_Be_Focus⠀⇛
Scientists at the University of Hamburg in Germany
argued Wednesday that meeting the 2015 Paris
climate agreement’s goal of limiting planetary
heating to 1.5°C is “currently not plausible”—but
warned that despairing over climate “tipping
points” risks taking attention away from “the best
hope for shaping a positive climate future… the
ability of society to make fundamental changes.”
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ Should_We_Start_Preparing_for_the_Evacuation
of_Miami?⠀⇛
The Miami-Dade County government has some clever
mapping tools to help people visualize the
impending climate risks—rising seas, swelling
groundwater, flooded buildings. But too much detail
can distract from the bigger picture: Miami is
drowning.1
# § Energy/Transportation⠀➾
# ⚓ DeSmog ☛ Carbon_Capture_Project_Is_‘Band-Aid’_to
Greenwash_$10_Billion_LNG_Plant,_Locals_Say⠀⇛
This story is a collaboration between
Floodlight and DeSmog
As the Mexican Día de los Muertos, or Day of
the Dead, festivities drew to a close, Dina
Nuñez called to order a meeting of women
grassroots activists in a modest home in the
heart of Port Isabel, Texas. Top of her
agenda: how to stop a Houston-based oil and
gas company from building a $10 billion
project to export liquefied natural gas on a
nearby stretch of coast.
o § Finance⠀➾
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ The_‘Soft_Landing_&_No_Recession’_Spin_Is
In⠀⇛
The spin by mainstream economists and business
pundits is in: ‘soft landing’ & no recession 2023.
But consider this: after the 2020 US economy crash
and the US $8 trillion fiscal-monetary stimulus
($4T by Fed and $4T in Covid relief programs and
Investment subsidies for corporations by Congress),
the US economy grew only 5.4% YoY in 2021 (YoY=from
Dec. 31, 2020 through Dec. 31, 2021).
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ One_Against_All⠀⇛
A few weeks after Emmanuel Macron became president,
one of his supporters, the current chairman of the
National Assembly foreign affairs committee, summed
up the economic and social orientation to come:
‘Objectively, the problems of this country require
solutions favourable to high earners’ (1). Since
then, the privileged have shown their gratitude to
their benefactor: between the first round of the
2017 presidential election and the first round in
2022, Macron saw his support among the richest go
from 34% to 48%. When in power, the left has rarely
demonstrated such bravura in satisfying its voters.
As Macron has also increased his popularity among
the over-65s during his presidency, it’s easy to
gauge the extent of the ‘courage’ he boasts about
as he attempts to convince the country to accept a
pension ‘reform’ whose main victims will be the
working classes, who overwhelmingly voted against
him. While his challenge to welfare benefits will
spare the wealthy, and pensioners (even the best-
off), it will force workers, whose healthy life
expectancy is ten years less than that of senior
executives, to work for an additional two years
(2). The finishing line for those who are so often
left worn out, exhausted and broken by work is once
again being pushed further away. Compulsory labour
will eat up the time for rest, personal projects,
or simply deciding what to commit to.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Don’t_Let_Politicians_Cut_Housing_Aid⠀⇛
We all need physical safety before we can do
anything else. Without a roof over our heads, that
sense of security is impossible. And with two small
children in tow, things get scary.
And after fleeing a dangerous domestic situation
with my baby and 9-year-old son, with no home but
the small moving truck I had rented to escape, I
still felt unsafe and terrified.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Egalitarian_Paradise_Lost:_David_Graeber
and_the_Pirates_of_Madagascar⠀⇛
The search across the globe and in history for
egalitarian societies turns up some strange finds.
One anthropologist, the well-known, radical,
recently deceased, best-selling author and a
founder of the Occupy movement at Zuccotti Park,
David Graeber, discovered such a world in
Madagascar, in the settlements of seventeenth- and
eighteenth-century pirates, recording his
observations in a posthumous book, Pirate
Enlightenment, Or the Real Libertalia. This
portrait of a vanished almost-utopia is no
idealization; Graeber lays it out in detail, but
the conclusion is unavoidable: citizens of these
pirate port towns had far more freedom than your
average twenty-first century American prole moiling
long hours for monopoly corporations. They also
appear to have enjoyed a lot more happiness, you
know, that thing we Americans are supposedly free
to pursue.
They had more democracy as well: decisions were
debated and the majority ruled, unlike this
country, where citizens express their preference
through the franchise, but somehow when their
representatives arrive in the capital the only
people they listen to are their donors, and only
the richest ones, at that. The pirates off the
coast of Africa had no such problems. Had any such
tyrannical oligarch of the sort who rule the world
from Washington appeared in Madagascar, the pirates
would have cut his throat. When they made a choice
democratically, it was carried out.
# ⚓ Engadget ☛ The_Morning_After:_Apple’s_record_service
revenue_couldn’t_make_up_for_falling_hardware_sales⠀⇛
After the last few years of nonstop growth, Apple
reported revenue of $117.2 billion for its first
fiscal quarter, which is five percent down year
over year, marking the first time Apple’s revenue
has dipped since 2019.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ If_It’s_“Not_a_Negotiation,”_Don’t_Treat_It
Like_One⠀⇛
On Wednesday afternoon, President Joe Biden met
with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on the debt
ceiling.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ 60_Years_of_No_Progress_on_Black-White
Unemployment_Equity⠀⇛
Regardless of whether economic conditions are good
or bad, Black jobseekers are less likely to find
work. From 1963 to 2022, the Black unemployment
rate has been roughly twice the White unemployment
rate. There have been times when the Black-to-White
unemployment-rate ratio was somewhat higher and
times when it was somewhat lower, but the average
of the ratios over this period is 2.1. This means
that, if one looks at the unemployment-rate ratio
alone, there has been no progress in providing
equal employment opportunity for African Americans
over the last 59 years. The last Congress did
nothing to directly address this disparity, so
there is no reason to expect it to narrow this
year.
Anti-Black discrimination in hiring plays a major
role in this permanent inequality. The strongest
evidence for discrimination can be found in field
experiments where researchers have Black and White
“testers” apply for jobs presenting similar
qualifications or where they send out similar
resumes with stereotypically “Black” and “White”
names. A meta-analysis of 28 of these experiments
over a 25-year period found consistent
discrimination against Black applicants. There need
to be stronger anti-discrimination policies and
enforcement if the United States hopes to have
equal opportunity in employment for all.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ How_Corporations_Hope_to_Eviscerate
Workers’_Right_to_Strike⠀⇛
Joe Oliveira and his coworkers relied greatly on
donations of food and gift cards after going on an
unfair labor practice strike against multibillion-
dollar specialty steelmaker ATI in 2021.
They cut household expenses to the bone, burned
through their savings despite the public’s generous
support of their cause, and held fundraisers to
help one another cover mortgages and car payments
during three and a half months on the picket line.
o § AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics⠀➾
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Gaetz_Wants_Reading_of_Pledge_of_Allegiance
Before_Judiciary_Committee_Meetings⠀⇛
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Barbara_Lee_Runnng_for_Feinstein’s_Senate
Seat⠀⇛
Rep. Barbara Lee, 76, announced Jan. 11 that she’s
running for the Democratic Party nomination to
succeed 89-year-old Sen. Dianne Feinstein (whose
memory is but a memory). Southern California
Congresswoman Katie Porter, 40, had previously
announced, and pompous, sanctimonious Rep. Adam
Schiff 62, entered the race soon after Lee.
Schiff, a closeted neo-con, will be the best-
funded candidate and be seen as a ”centrist.” Lee
and Porter are both members of the Congressional
Progressive Caucus and likely to split the lib-lab
vote, enabling Schiff to slide into the nomination.
It feels like the fix is already in.
Joe Garofoli, who covers electoral politics for the
SF Chronicle, expects Lee to be age-baited, albeit
discreetly. Porter described herself as the
candidate best-suited for “fighting the battles of
tomorrow” during a recent speech to the 500-member
Democrats of Rossmoor (an upscale retirement
community in Walnut Creek).
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ ‘Woke’_is_Not_Awake:_to_Confound_the_Great
Ones_We_Need_Our_“Base(ness)”⠀⇛
My friends Pete, Ellen and Mark have been fighting
a plan by Stewart’s Shops to build a gas station/
convenience store in the midst of their (desirable,
mostly white) South Utica neighborhoods. The matter
came to a vote before the city’s Planning Board
last week, in front of a fairly big turnout of
opposition. Stewart’s won 3-2. Ellen told me the
chair of the planning board, a neighbor of theirs
who lives a bit further from the Stewart’s proposed
location, said to them a couple of weeks ago in
honest consternation, “I don’t see the problem.”
Apparently, even after 21 people explained the
problem last week, he still didn’t.
Pete and Ellen have told me more than once how hard
it’s been to enlist their neighbors in the
opposition effort. The time of day for which
important meetings are scheduled is generally
prohibitive for working people (except for the
Stewart’s rep!) But my conclusion is the middle
class, riding the American Dream, has caved in to
inevitability (yes, because they could afford to).
The resulting spiritlessness has cost them their
political clout which will only return if people on
the left regain the kind of “underdog,” chip-on-
the-shoulder spirit that keeps a skeptical eye on
corporate, big-moneyed interests that favor the few
over the many, including, prominently, the war-
making interests of Empire.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ The_Colonization_of_Deserts_from_Arabia_to
Arizona⠀⇛
The first time I remember seeing a desert and
beholding its stillness and vastness was in 1963
through a window at the airport in Riyadh, Saudi
Arabia. Our family was on its way to Peshawar,
Pakistan (then West Pakistan). I was eight years
old and was actually more impressed with the
scimitars and machine guns the security in the
airport were armed with. However, it is the miles
and miles of snow-white sand I remember more
vividly today. I think the next time I saw the
desert was when a friend and I hitchhiked across
Arizona to Palm Springs in December 1977. Over the
next few years I would cross parts of the desert in
the US southwest at least a half dozen more times.
Some of those times I would be the only human
around for hundreds of miles. The heat of the day
was replaced by a relative coolness but the absence
of warm-blooded life remained. I’m certain there
were birds and perhaps even mammals out and about
in the darkness, but I never saw nor heard them
despite the quietude I was temporarily existing in.
Now, on the rare occasion I watch old Western films
and television shows, I find the feeling of
aloneness I experienced in the desert tickling my
consciousness.
The desert is a part of earth that resists
colonization. Yet, humans continue to attempt just
that. The advance of technology feeds these
attempts, adding to a hubris that not only has
destroyed human civilizations in the desert, but
has also destroyed the ecological systems that
support its unique ecology. Sometimes the impetus
for these so-called improvements to the desert are
part of a desire to benefit humanity, but most
often they are intentionally designed to benefit
only certain strata of human society. As in most
other scenarios with similar intentions, those
beneficiaries are the rich and powerful.
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Bernie_Sanders_Urges_DNC_to_Stop_Allowing_Super
PAC_Spending_in_Primaries⠀⇛
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ On_Targeting_an_Arab_Woman⠀⇛
On the evening of January 11, 2023, I checked my
university email to find The Washington Free Beacon
asking me to “comment on” a Title VI complaint that
they had knowledge was to be filed against the
George Washington University (GW) by pro-Israel
advocacy group StandWithUs the following day. The
complaint alleges that GW “discriminated against
first-year Jewish and Israeli students in its
professional psychology program” (sic). As an Arab
woman professor teaching in the United States, I am
accustomed to demands to prove that I am not
antisemitic as a precondition to engaging
relationally. Similarly, as someone who has been
involved in abolitionist and anti-oppressive
movements in the field of psychology for years, I
immediately recognized that I was the next target
of choice. In recent years, right-wing advocacy
groups have intensified their harassment, red-
baiting and attack campaigns, vilifying academics
(and clinicians) who critically engage settler-
colonialism, white supremacy, anti-blackness,
gender (especially trans issues), sexuality,
disability, reproductive rights.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ “There’s_Always_Hope”:_On_Biden,_Crump,_and
Pie_in_the_Sky⠀⇛
Few things in the insipid dark comedy of US
bourgeois politics are more sickening than the
recurrent invocation of hope for change within the
killing confines of the reigning oppression system.
“We Just Might be Able to Get Police Reform”
# ⚓ Insight Hungary ☛ Hungary_is_the_most_corrupt_country_in
the_EU,_study_finds⠀⇛
Hungary is perceived as the most corrupt country in
the European Union, according to Transparency
International’s latest report. Hungary dropped four
places over the past year to 77th, according to the
organization’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI)
replacing Bulgaria. On a global scale, with an
average score of 66, Western Europe and the EU is
the top-scoring region in the CPI.
According to the report, evidence is “mounting
against the Hungarian political elites for
their misuse of both state and EU funds”. Following
a recent agreement with the EU, conditions for
Hungary to access €5.8 billion in recovery funds
include institutional reforms to strengthen
judicial independence and the fight against
corruption. Part of EU funds has been suspended due
to corruption concerns.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ America_and_the_Occupying_Police_Army⠀⇛
America, America . . . God kicks thee in the head.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Uh_Oh,_Here_Comes_the_Occupying_Army⠀⇛
The twisted irony here — the irony of the brutal
murder of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tennessee last
month — is that his killers were the ones hired and
trained to keep the city safe. Instead, they
created half an hour of hell for the young man,
kicking and beating and tasing him to death a short
distance away from his mother’s house, after a
random, and perhaps unjustified, traffic stop.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Inconvenient_Truths_2.0⠀⇛
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Ilhan_Omar_Vows_to_Continue_Speaking_Out
Against_Israel’s_Abuse_of_Palestinians⠀⇛
Rep. Ilhan Omar vowed Thursday that the House GOP’s
vote to remove her from the chamber’s foreign
affairs panel would not stop her from criticizing
Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, a pledge that
came after the Israeli government carried out its
latest bombing campaign in the occupied Gaza Strip.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ The_GOP’s_Bigoted_Attack_on_Ilhan_Omar_Is
Slanderous_and_Despicable⠀⇛
Ilhan Omar is again in the news, a convenient
target for reactionary Republicans, i.e., virtually
all Republicans, seeking to discredit the left. The
current Republican effort links her with two other
Congressional liberal Democrats, Adam Schiff and
Eric Swalwell who, like her, are being removed from
their committee assignments by MAGA House Speaker
Kevin McCarthy, in retaliation for Nancy Pelosi’s
2021 removals of Republicans Marjorie Taylor Greene
and Paul Gosar. McCarthy’s act of retribution comes
as no surprise, since he promised this back in
November 2021. It is no less dangerous for this.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ ‘I_Didn’t_Come_to_Congress_to_Be_Silent,’
Says_Omar_as_GOP_Removes_Her_From_Foreign_Affairs_Panel⠀⇛
House Republicans on Thursday voted to remove Rep.
Ilhan Omar from the chamber’s foreign affairs
committee, a step that prompted fury from
Democratic lawmakers who called the GOP’s
resolution an act of “unbelievable bigotry.”
# ⚓ TruthOut ☛ Republicans_Vote_to_Remove_Ilhan_Omar_From
Committee⠀⇛
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ Kari_Lake_May_Have_Committed_a_Felony⠀⇛
Kari Lake just might be the election-denying gift
who keeps on giving. For nearly three months, Lake
has spun one wild conspiracy theory after another
to explain how and why she lost the Arizona
gubernatorial race. Earlier this week, she tweeted
out a series of images of voters’ signatures—a
“BOMBSHELL DISCOVERY,” the failed candidate
announced—claiming that they showed a mismatch
between the signatures Arizona has on file and
those that ended up on ballots. Lake claimed that
40,000 people had voted illegally, using signatures
that didn’t match those on file.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ The_Migrant_“Crisis”_and_10_Misperceptions
About_Immigration⠀⇛
For years, there has been much consternation and
news coverage over the southern border. The former
president—Biden’s predecessor—and his inane and
racist “Build the wall” campaign had his supporters
in a state of disquiet. He actually and openly
admitted that he used it at a rally and the crowd
loved it, so he just kept saying it.
Even if you take a cursory look at the news, it’s a
sure bet that you have seen headlines about an
“unprecedented migrant crisis.” On social media,
memes about “invasions” from countries south of the
border by those who refuse to “wait in line” are
also common.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ I_Am_Muslim._I_Am_an_Immigrant._I_Am_From
Africa._Is_Anyone_Surprised_I_Am_a_GOP_Target?⠀⇛
The following are the remarks, as prepared for
delivery on the floor of the U.S. House of
Representatives, of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) in
opposition to a Republican resolution barring her
appointment to the House Foreign Affairs Committee
on February 2, 2023.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Manchin_Joins_With_Cruz_on_‘Absurd’_Bill_to
Protect_Toxic_Gas_Stoves⠀⇛
Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and right-wing
Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia on
Thursday introduced legislation that would prevent
a federal agency from banning gas stoves.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Climate_Movement_‘Ready_to_Kill’_Dirty_Deal
Again_as_Manchin_Signals_Revival⠀⇛
The U.S. climate movement this week vowed to keep
fighting against Sen. Joe Manchin’s thrice-defeated
“dirty deal” after the West Virginia Democrat
indicated he intends to work with House Republicans
to force through fossil fuel-friendly permitting
reforms.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Rights_Groups_Gear_Up_for_Fight_as_Oklahoma
GOP_Advances_15_Anti-Trans_Healthcare_Bills⠀⇛
Civil rights advocates on Thursday sharpened their
focus on the Republican-controlled Oklahoma
Legislature as lawmakers prepare to convene on
February 6, beginning a session during which
they’re set to consider no fewer than 15 proposals
attacking transgender people’s right to obtain
healthcare.
# ⚓ Common Dreams ☛ Progressives_Warn_Anti-Socialism_Resolution
Backed_by_109_House_Dems_Is_Step_Toward_Slashing_Safety_Net⠀⇛
More than 100 U.S. House Democrats—including some
of the wealthiest members of Congress—joined with
Republican lawmakers on Thursday in passing a
resolution “denouncing the horrors of socialism,” a
largely symbolic gesture that opponents warned is
nonetheless a step toward slashing Social Security,
Medicare, and other safety net programs.
# ⚓ Lee Yingtong Li ☛ Simulating_plausible_ballot_paper
preferences_from_STV_count_sheets⠀⇛
The key assumption in this model, which enables
plausible ballot paper preference data to be
simulated, is that the probability of a candidate A
being followed by a candidate B in a voter’s
preferences is approximately equal to the
probability of a ballot paper being transferred
from candidate A to candidate B.
We can then imagine a Markov chain, where the nodes
are candidates in the election, and the transition
probabilities are the probabilities identified
above. We can then simulate ballot paper preference
data by repeatedly executing random walks on the
Markov chain.
# ⚓ Computer World ☛ PayPal_to_lay_off_2,000_employees⠀⇛
In a message shared with PayPal employees and since
posted on the company’s online newsroom, President
and CEO Dan Schulman said while PayPal had made
“significant progress…to address the challenging
macro-economic environment” over the past year, “we
have more work to do.”
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ Ilhan_Omar_Will_Not_Be_Silenced⠀⇛
After Ilhan Omar was elected to Congress in 2018,
she explained why one of her first priorities as a
member of the U.S. House of Representatives was to
serve on the Committee on Foreign Affairs. While
the Minnesota Democrat was intent on representing
her constituents in Minneapolis, and on addressing
all the pressing domestic policy concerns that tend
to dominate coverage of Congress, she told me that
“you can’t really speak to domestic policy without
first having a conversation about our foreign
policy.”
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ Forced_Migration_Thanks_to_Industrialized
Nations⠀⇛
# ⚓ Telex (Hungary) ☛ Orbán:_The_development_of_the_armed
forces_must_not_slow_down⠀⇛
# § Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda⠀➾
# ⚓ Telex (Hungary) ☛ Fact-check:_One_million_Ukrainian
refugees_are_not_to_blame_for_Hungary’s_record-high
inflation⠀⇛
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ Russia’s_Higher_Education_Ministry_preparing
new_‘patriotic’_history_course_for_non-history_majors_—
Meduza⠀⇛
Russia’s Science and Higher Education
Ministry has approved a plan to introduce a
new history course for non-history majors in
colleges and universities.
o § Censorship/Free Speech⠀➾
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ ‘If_the_wrong_person_finds_out,_they_might_kill
me’_Gay_Uzbek_men_describe_life_in_a_country_where_their
sexuality_is_a_crime_—_Meduza⠀⇛
Late last year, just one month after Russia banned
“propaganda of non-traditional sexual
relationships,” Uzbekistan’s presidential
administration put up a bill for public discussion
that would do the same. The copycat legislation
threatens to further complicate the lives of LGBTQ+
people in a country where “sodomy” is still
classified as a criminal offense. To learn how
Uzbekistan’s existing anti-gay laws affect people
on the ground, the independent outlet Mediazona
Central Asia spoke with gay men there about the
discrimination they face, the danger that coming
out to friends entails, and their expectations for
their country’s future.
# ⚓ Techdirt ☛ Moving_Company_That_Threatened_People_With
$1,000_A_Day_Fees_For_Negative_Reviews_To_Pay_$125,000
Settlement⠀⇛
If you’re a good company, you try to make customers
happy and deal honestly with their complaints. If
you’re Liberty Bell Moving and Storage, Inc., you
threaten unhappy customers with lawsuits and
steadily escalating fees for expressing their
displeasure with your service.
# ⚓ Techdirt ☛ Trump_Files_Ridiculous_Copyright_Lawsuit_Over
Bob_Woodward’s_Audio_Book⠀⇛
Believe it or not, there are some interesting, if
confusing, unsettled copyright law questions
regarding interviews. A few times in the past we’ve
written about the subjects of interviews claiming
copyright over those interviews (or the estate’s of
deceased individuals making such claims). There was
even a law journal article a few years back
exploring this topic. As that piece notes, because
courts have been a bit all over the map in looking
at the issue, it has allowed interviewees to “chill
journalistic speech.”
# ⚓ GigaZine ☛ There_is_a_high_possibility_that_open_source_OS
such_as_Linux_will_become_illegal_due_to_the_EU’s_“chat
regulation_law”⠀⇛
The chat regulation law is a bill submitted to the
European Parliament in May 2022, and aims to oblige
providers of email and chat services to “constantly
monitor communication content” and “implement age
verification”. . Since this bill requires the
monitoring of communication content regardless of
whether communication is encrypted, there are many
voices who oppose the bill on the grounds that it
“infringes on privacy” and “increases the risk of
misjudgment due to false reports.” has been
submitted.
# ⚓ Mullvad VPN ☛ EU_chat_control_law_will_ban_open_source
operating_systems [iophk: Most of the legislators certainly
didn't think about it or even know enough to have thoughts on
the topic. However, those few that did were mostly in the
pocket of Microsoft.]⠀⇛
The proposed Chat control EU law will not only
seize totalitarian control of all private
communication. It will also ban open source
operating systems as an unintended consequence.
The EU is currently in the process of enacting the
chat control law. It has been criticized for
creating an EU-wide centralized mass surveillance
and censorship system and enabling government
eavesdropping on all private communication. But one
little talked about consequence of the proposed law
is that it makes practically all existing open
source operating systems illegal, including all
major Linux distributions. It would also
effectively ban the F-Droid open source Android app
archive.
Article 6 of the law requires all “software
application stores” to: [...]
# ⚓ Student Free Press Association ☛ MIT_faculty_‘increasingly
afraid_to_express_their_views,’_survey_finds⠀⇛
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology continues
to support a campus community that stymies academic
freedom and free speech, a newly released
Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
survey report states.
# ⚓ Andre Franca ☛ Using_Cloudflare_for_Dynamic_URL_Redirects⠀⇛
My blog is already hosted on Cloudflare, so it made
sense to me to use it for the redirects too. I
checked their documentation to see if somenthing
similiar could be achieved. And it is, in fact,
really simple and free. [sic]
o § Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press⠀➾
# ⚓ Meduza ☛ Former_Meduza_correspondent_Ilya_Azar_suspected_of
‘discrediting’_Russian_military,_may_face_charges_for_anti-
war_statements_—_Meduza⠀⇛
The Russian journalist Ilya Azar has come under
scrutiny from the Investigative Committee, in
connection with what he wrote on Facebook last
June, 100 days into the Ukraine invasion:
# ⚓ Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Sedition_trial_against_Hong_Kong
outlet_Stand_News_adjourned_again_after_prosecution_submits
new_documents⠀⇛
The sedition trial against shuttered Hong Kong
media outlet Stand News was adjourned again on
Friday after the prosecution submitted four new
boxes of materials, a move that was criticised by
the defence.
o § Civil Rights/Policing⠀➾
# ⚓ The Nation ☛ What_We_Can_Do_Right_Now_to_Stop_Anti-Asian
Violence⠀⇛
In March 2021, I attended a community vigil in the
majority-Asian city of Monterey Park, Calif., for
the Asian massage workers who had been murdered in
Atlanta. Last month, I returned to the same site
for another vigil honoring Asians who had been
killed in a mass shooting—but this time, the
massacre had taken place just blocks from where I
stood.
# ⚓ Pro Publica ☛ How_to_Report_on_the_Repatriation_of_Native
American_Remains⠀⇛
In 1990, Congress passed the Native American Graves
Protection and Repatriation Act, which pushed for
museums, universities and other organizations that
possessed Native American human remains to return
them to Indigenous communities. But our reporting
shows that many institutions still hold many of
those remains in their collections. Last month,
ProPublica published a database that allows you to
search the repatriation records of these hundreds
of institutions.
But the full story of repatriation goes beyond the
numbers, as illustrated by our story about a state
museum in Illinois that was built on Native
American burial mounds. This guide is for
reporters who want to take a deeper dive on
repatriation at institutions in their area.
# ⚓ Pro Publica ☛ Native_Hawaiians_Say_They_Can’t_Get_Home
Loans_in_This_Area⠀⇛
Can the federal government underwrite mortgages for
homes in Hawaii on a spot where there may be buried
bombs from World War II?
The answer depends on which federal program insures
the loans. When it comes to the one for Native
Hawaiians, the answer has been an emphatic no. But
when it comes to more traditional mortgages for the
general public, a different federal program has
been saying yes.
# ⚓ HRW ☛ Allegations_of_Bangladesh_Police_Torture,_Illegal
Detentions⠀⇛
# ⚓ Scheerpost ☛ John_Kiriakou:_Silencing_Another_Jailed
Whistleblower⠀⇛
The U.S. prison system has put Marty Gottesfeld in
one of their modern-day dungeons and cut off his
email. But this whistleblower is a fierce fighter
for his rights and one day he’ll be doing the same
for others.
# ⚓ Craig Murray ☛ Propaganda_and_Belief⠀⇛
It is nearly 20 years since I blew the whistle on
British Government complicity in torture and the
extraordinary rendition programme, under which
thousands of people were deliberately tortured as a
systematic act of government policy.
# ⚓ Counter Punch ☛ Racial_Justice,_Voting_Rights,_and
Authoritarianism⠀⇛
The fundamental right to vote has been a core value
of Black politics since the colonial era — and so
has the effort to suppress that vote right up to
the present moment. In fact, the history of the
suppression of Black voters is a first-rate horror
story that as yet shows no sign of ending.
While Democrats and progressives justifiably
celebrated the humbling defeat of some of the most
notorious election-denying Republican candidates in
the 2022 midterms, the GOP campaign to quell and
marginalize Black voters has only continued with an
all-too-striking vigor. In 2023, attacks on voting
rights are melding with the increasingly
authoritarian thrust of a Republican Party ever
more aligned with far-right extremists and outright
white supremacists.
# ⚓ JURIST ☛ US_federal_court:_law_prohibiting_individuals
subject_to_domestic_violence_restraining_orders_from_owning_a
gun_unconstitutional⠀⇛
A US Circuit Court Thursday declared the law
preventing those subject to a domestic violence
restraining order from owning a gun,
unconstitutional. In the case of United States v.
Rahimi, the US Appeals Court for the Fifth Circuit
found that the law was an unconstitutional
restraint on Americans’ Second Amendment rights to
own a firearm.
# ⚓ Democracy Now ☛ “We_Want_to_Be_Treated_Like_Human_Beings”:
Evicted_Asylum_Seeker_in_NYC_Requests_Housing,_Job_Permits⠀⇛
This week, New York City police evicted an
encampment of asylum seekers outside the Watson
Hotel who were protesting plans to house them in a
remote, crowded and cold facility. Mayor Eric Adams
suggested the protesters were “agitators,” not
migrants themselves. We speak to a Venezuelan
asylum seeker named Ruben, who was evicted from the
hotel, and Desiree Joy Frías, a community organizer
with South Bronx Mutual Aid, which has been deeply
involved in supporting the asylum seekers arriving
in the city.
o § Monopolies⠀➾
# § Patents⠀➾
# ⚓ JUVE ☛ Patent_judge_David_Kitchin_announces
retirement_from_Supreme_Court [Ed: Meanwhile JUVE
promotes an illegal and unconstitutional kangaroo
courts for patents -- one that is tightly controlled by
criminals and industry moles at the EPO]⠀⇛
David Kitchin (67) is set to retire from his
role as a UK Supreme Court judge on 29
September 2023, the court has announced on
its website. He says, “It has been an
enormous privilege and pleasure to serve as a
full time Justice of the Court.
# ⚓ JUVE ☛ Advanced_Bionics_and_De_Brauw_successful
against_MED-EL_over_cochlear_implant [Ed: Another fine
example of a totally frivolous patent lawsuit, based on
one of hundreds of thousands of fake European Patents
(that should never have been granted)]⠀⇛
Advanced Bionics’ important hearing aid
product “HiRes™ Ultra 3D Cochlear Implant”
does not infringe competitor MED-EL’s
European patent EP 31 38 605.
# § Copyrights⠀➾
# ⚓ Techdirt ☛ Why_The_Failure_By_Funders_To_Require
Academics_To_Retain_Copyright_In_Their_Papers_Is_The
Biggest_Obstacle_To_Open_Access_Today⠀⇛
Back in August last year, Techdirt covered a
major announcement by the US government that
all taxpayer-supported research should be
immediately available to the public at no
cost. As Mike wrote at the time, this is
really big, not least for the following key
element mentioned in the press release:
# ⚓ Digital Music News ☛ CAA_Is_Now_Repping_Virtual
Artists_—_Deal_With_Web3_Label_Hume_Finalized⠀⇛
CAA aims to create opportunities for Hume’s
roster of virtual artists with top brands.
Are broader audiences ready for this? Virtual
artist experiment FN Meka went down in
flames, a new cast of unreal musicians is
rising. Now, web3 entertainment company Hume
has signed with leading entertainment and
sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
# ⚓ Torrent Freak ☛ ACE_Delivers_Major_Blow_to_Spanish
Private_Torrent_Site_Scene⠀⇛
With the rise of pirate streaming sites,
illegal IPTV services, and legal platforms
such as Netflix, even torrent sites have been
feeling the pinch. In Spain, two private
trackers took the decision to merge and
reappear as one under fresh branding. Action
by the Alliance for Creativity and
Entertainment means that Spain’s leading
private torrent community has permanently
closed.
# ⚓ Torrent Freak ☛ Omi_in_a_Hellcat_“Said_He’d_Kill_Me”
Pirate_IPTV_Co-Defendant_Tells_Court⠀⇛
After the FBI shut down his Gears pirate IPTV
empire, YouTuber Bill Omar Carrasquillo, aka
Omi in a Hellcat, pleaded guilty along with
two co-defendants. One was hired by
Carrasquillo to work on the service from
home. His sentencing memorandum claims that
when he tried to quit, gunmen threatened him
on two occasions after Carrasquillo said he
would kill him.
=> =============================================================================
World Wide Web but a lot lighter.
䷩ 𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 5010
╒═══════════════════ 𝐃𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐘 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒 ═════════════════════════════════════════════╕
⠀⌧ █▇▆▅▄▃▂▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁ 02.03.23⠀▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▂▃▄▅▆▇█ ⌧
Gemini_version_available_♊︎
✐ Links_03/02/2023:_Proton_7.0-6_Released,_ScummVM_2.7_Testing⠀✐
Posted in News_Roundup at 9:36 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
🄸🄼🄰🄶🄴 🄳🄴🅂🄲🅁🄸🄿🅃🄸🄾🄽 ⦇GNOME bluefish⦈
§ Contents⠀➾
* GNU/Linux
o Applications
o Instructionals/Technical
o Games
o Desktop_Environments/WMs
# K_Desktop_Environment/KDE_SC/Qt
# GNOME_Desktop/GTK
* Distributions_and_Operating_Systems
o New_Releases
o Fedora_Family_/_IBM
o Canonical/Ubuntu_Family
o Mobile_Systems/Mobile_Applications
* Free,_Libre,_and_Open_Source_Software
o Web_Browsers/Web_Servers
* Leftovers
o Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
o Security
# Privacy/Surveillance
o Defence/Aggression
o Transparency/Investigative_Reporting
o Environment
# Energy/Transportation
# Wildlife/Nature
o Finance
o AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
o Censorship/Free_Speech
o Civil_Rights/Policing
o Internet_Policy/Net_Neutrality
o Monopolies
# Trademarks
# Copyrights
* Gemini*_and_Gopher
o Personal
o Technical
# Internet/Gemini
* § GNU/Linux⠀➾
o § Applications⠀➾
# ⚓ CTparental:_Linux_Parental_Control_Software_With_Category-
Based_Website_Filtering,_Computer_Usage_Limits_–_Linux
Uprising_Blog⠀⇛
CTparental is a free and open-source parental
control software for Linux. It helps parents
control their children’s online activities, such as
the websites they visit, and the amount of time
they spend on the computer.
The tool uses a web UI to control its various
settings, and it features blacklist / whitelist
website filtering, computer access time, the
ability to force safesearch for websites such as
Google, YouTube, DuckDuckGo and Bing, and more.
o § Instructionals/Technical⠀➾
# ⚓ DebugPoint ☛ How_to_Install_elementary_Tweaks_Tool⠀⇛
This quick tutorial demonstrates the steps to
install elementary Tweaks tool/Pantheon Tweaks
Tool. The elementary Tweaks tool is a handy utility
specially designed for elementary OS. It gives you
various options to change certain settings for
elementary.
# ⚓ Citizix ☛ How_to_install_and_configure_Redpanda_on_Ubuntu
22.04⠀⇛
Redpanda is a Kafka®-compatible streaming data
platform that boasts of being 10x faster and 6x
more cost efficient. It is also JVM-free,
ZooKeeper-free, Jepsen-tested and source available.
It is distributed as a single binary with
everything thus allowing you to deploy in minutes.
It works natively with Kafka tools.
o § Games⠀➾
# ⚓ ScummVM ☛ ScummVM_2.7.0:_Call_for_testing!⠀⇛
A few months have passed since we released ScummVM
2.6.1. It’s time to prepare for a new release!
Our lovely developers added support, yet again, for
a bunch of new ancient games that require testing:
# Soldier Boyz
# GLK Scott Adams Interactive Fiction games
(C64 and ZX Spectrum)
# GLK Scott Adams adventures 1-12 (TI99/4A
format)
# Obsidian
# Pink Panther: Passport to Peril
# Pink Panther: Hokus Pokus Pink
# Driller/Space Station Oblivion
# Halls of the Dead: Faery Tale Adventure II
# ⚓ 9to5Linux ☛ Proton_7.0-6_Released_with_Support_for
UNCHARTED:_Legacy_of_Thieves_Collection⠀⇛
Proton 7.0-6 is here with support for new games,
including the critically acclaimed UNCHARTED:
Legacy of Thieves Collection, as well as Gotham
Knights, Heroes of the Dark, King under the
Mountain, NinNinDays2, Super Arcade Racing, 雀姬
(Mahjong ladies), and Crazy Machines 3.
This new Proton release also brings improvements to
video games that were already supported, such as
Septerra Core, Persona 5 Royal, Vampire Survivors,
Super House of Dead Ninjas, Enemy Mind, Out There
Somewhere, Zeepkist, Overcooked! All You Can Eat,
Quake III: Arena, Quake III: Team Arena, Marvel
Snap, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, and Spyro Reignited
Trilogy.
o § Desktop Environments/WMs⠀➾
# § K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt⠀➾
# ⚓ Scarlett_Gately_Moore:_KDE_Snaps,_snapcraft,_Debian
packages.⠀⇛
In the snap world, I have been busy trying to
solve the problem of core20 snaps needing
security updates and focal is no longer
supported in KDE Neon.
# § GNOME Desktop/GTK⠀➾
# ⚓ This Week in GNOME ☛ Felix_Häcker:_#81_FOSDEM
Weekend⠀⇛
Update on what happened across the GNOME
project in the week from January 27 to
February 03.
# ⚓ Daniel_García_Moreno:_Hackweek_2023⠀⇛
Hack_Weekis the time SUSE employees
experiment, innovate & learn interruption-
free for a whole week! Across teams or alone,
but always without limits.
* § Distributions and Operating Systems⠀➾
o ⚓ It’s FOSS ☛ Escuelas_Linux_8.0:_A_Major_Upgrade_for_the_25th
Anniversary⠀⇛
Escuelas Linux is a unique distribution that focuses on
the educational side of things, with the likes of Bodhi
Linux, Ubuntu, and Debian powering it.
It features a comprehensive set of educational software
and resources that are of use to schools, colleges, and
even universities.
In a recent announcement, they introduced the 25th-
anniversary edition of Escuelas Linux and also thanked
the many people who contribute to the Linux ecosystem.
o ⚓ Barry Kauler ☛ Back_from_holiday_got_some_catching_up_to_do⠀⇛
I took one of my laptops, and did some work on EasyOS,
but mostly was in holiday-mode. Here are commits for
woofQ, I was away from Jan 26 to now:
https://github.com/bkauler/woofq/commits/
b267f9a1f6daaf2bb8e342440de7e700b28e9884
While away, thought a bit more about non-English
translation, and
just now have posed a question on the Puppy Forum:
https://forum.puppylinux.com/viewtopic.php?t=7943
Have lots of to-do notes scribbled on pieces of paper,
will need
to organize and prioritize them.
o § New Releases⠀➾
# ⚓ Linuxiac ☛ Slax_Linux_15.0.1_and_11.6:_Experience_the_Power
of_Simplicity⠀⇛
Using Fluxbox window manager, Slax is a minimalist,
modular, and portable Linux distribution. It is
designed to run from a USB stick or other removable
media, making it easy to carry around and use on
any computer. In addition, the distro has a small
footprint and is customizable, allowing users to
add or remove modules as needed to create a
customized operating system.
If you run Slax from a read-only media, such as a
CD/DVD, it only saves system modifications in
memory, which you lose when rebooting. However, if
you start Slax from writable media, such as a USB
drive, any changes to the operating system are
preserved and restored the next time you boot.
Yesterday, the distribution’s primary developer,
Tomas Matejicek, announced the release of two new
Slax versions. So let’s have a look at what’s new.
o § Fedora Family / IBM⠀➾
# ⚓ Fedora Project ☛ Fedora_Community_Blog:_Friday’s_Fedora
Facts:_2023-05⠀⇛
o § Canonical/Ubuntu Family⠀➾
# ⚓ OMG Ubuntu ☛ Enable_This_Nautilus_Setting_to_Move_Files
Faster_on_Ubuntu⠀⇛
On Fedora I can drag a file over a folder in
Nautilus and, if I don’t let go, the folder I’m
hovering over opens right there, where I am, not in
an extra window or a new tab. macOS also has a
similar feature in its file manager Finder called
“spring loaded folders” (and gives users options to
control the hover duration to trigger it).
Written out in words this feature sounds
cumbersome, so here’s a GIF to demonstrate it…
o § Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications⠀➾
# ⚓ Your_Android_Phone_is_Turning_Into_a_USB_Webcam⠀⇛
# ⚓ Android Police ☛ Fairphone_4_gets_its_long_overdue_Android
12_update⠀⇛
# ⚓ XDA ☛ Your_Android_phone_may_seamlessly_work_as_a_webcam
with_upcoming_software_update⠀⇛
# ⚓ Notebook Check ☛ Razer_Edge:_Teardown_video_reveals_new
Android_gaming_handheld_internals_following_release_–
NotebookCheck.net_News⠀⇛
# ⚓ Notebook Check ☛ OnePlus_Ace_2_teased_as_brand-first
“triple-chip”_Android_smartphons_–_NotebookCheck.net_News⠀⇛
* § Free, Libre, and Open Source Software⠀➾
o § Web Browsers/Web Servers⠀➾
# ⚓ Make Use Of ☛ Carbonyl_Lets_You_Use_a_Graphical_Web_Browser
in_Your_Linux_Terminal⠀⇛
Browsing the internet in your terminal is cool, but
limited. Image support can be sketchy, and
JavaScript may as well not exist. If you plan on
consuming media, you’re out of luck.
Carbonyl is a Chromium fork for your terminal. It’s
a full-fat browser that adheres to, and is
compatible with modern standards, meaning that
pages behave as they should, and you can even watch
streaming video, within the Linux terminal!
* § Leftovers⠀➾
o ⚓ World Economic Forum ☛ Tech_Power_and_Cooperation⠀⇛
o ⚓ Black_Hand:_The_Devil_Himself⠀⇛
How an elite London night club fell under the control of
an intelligence-linked sex blackmail agent, self-
described satanist and antique dealer named Horace
Dibben.
o ⚓ Federal News Network ☛ Lauded_rebel_fashion_designer_Paco_Rabanne
dies_at_age_88⠀⇛
Spanish-born fashion designer Paco Rabanne has died at
age 88. The company that owns the Rabanne brand on Friday
announced the death of the designer known for perfumes
and metallic, space-age fashions. Fashion and beauty
company Puig described Rabanne as a “visionary designer”
and “among the most seminal fashion figures of the 20th
century.” Rabanne’s fashion house shows its collections
in Paris and is scheduled to unveil the brand’s latest
ready-to-wear designs during the upcoming Feb. 27-March 3
fashion week. Coco Chanel reportedly called Rabanne “the
metallurgist of fashion.” He used various kinds of metal
in his designs, including the chain-like mail associated
with Medieval knights.
o ⚓ Latvia ☛ Only_400_Russian_citizens_have_registered_for_Latvian
language_test⠀⇛
This year, thousands of citizens of the Russian
Federation residing in Latvia will have to pass a
language test to extend their residency permits in
Latvia. The Citizenship and Migration Affairs Office
(PMLP) has intended to send out reminders to all these
people, which has caused some controversy in society,
Latvian Television reported on February 2.
o ⚓ Jim Nielsen ☛ CORS,_CORB,_CORP,_COOP,_COEP,_C…⠀⇛
I recently watched“A_Hipster_History_of_CORS”, a talk
from Strange Loop 2022 by Devdatta Akhawe, Head of
Security at Figma. Devdatta does a great job of taking a
complex, even boring, subject like CORS and weaves it
into a funny, interesting narrative history. He connected
many previously disparate dots in my head, making me go
“Ah-ha! That’s why things are the way they are on the
web.”
For example, when working on myReadlistsproject, I ran
into an issue where I couldn’t use JavaScript to read the
contents of an image fetched from a third-party website.
I couldn’t understand why there was a limitation there.
“I fetch images all the time with<img src="...">but I
guess JavaScript’s not gonna let me?”
o ⚓ Axios ☛ Office_occupancy_crosses_50%,_a_post-pandemic_high [Ed:
People are being herded back into cages in spite of health risks]⠀⇛
Office_occupancyhit a new post-pandemic record this week,
at 50.4%, according to swipe data from Kastle Systems.
Why it matters:Are the offices half-full or half-empty?
Some executives might see crossing the 50% milestone as a
sign of a comeback. But the figure has largely plateaued
since September, hinting at a new reality where people
work from home a lot more.
o ⚓ Marcy Wheeler ☛ The_Rise_Of_Cities_In_Eurasia⠀⇛
The earliest large settlements didn’t have monarchs.
o ⚓ The Straits Times ☛ Seoul_city_to_crack_down_on_teen_use_of_‘room
cafes’⠀⇛
These businesses provide private spaces and simple food,
but some teenagers are reportedly using them for sex and
booze.
o ⚓ The Straits Times ☛ China_hotel,_catering_job_openings_surge_on
post-Covid_demand_recovery⠀⇛
There’s also high demand now for drivers, plane and train
crews, and tourism and factory workers.
o ⚓ The Straits Times ☛ China_to_fully_resume_travel_with_Hong_Kong,
Macau_on_Feb_6⠀⇛
Group tours between China and Hong Kong and Macau will
resume.
o ⚓ The Age AU ☛ The_easy_work_option_might_not_always_be_the_best⠀⇛
Inevitably, any career decision comes with a degree of
uncertainty and risk. It is often our appetite for
certainty that can derail us.
o ⚓ The Age AU ☛ The_workplace_rights_of_arts_workers_can_no_longer
be_ignored⠀⇛
The Albanese government’s new Centre for Arts and
Entertainment Workplaces can strengthen the arts sector
by improving the pay, safety and welfare of its workers.
o § Health/Nutrition/Agriculture⠀➾
# ⚓ Science Alert ☛ Scientists_Discover_Ants_Can_Sniff_Out
Cancer_in_Urine⠀⇛
This is incredible.
# ⚓ Vice Media Group ☛ CYBER:_One_Man’s_Obsession_With_Being_18
Forever⠀⇛
Tech CEO Bryan Johnson wants to reverse the aging
process. Is it even possible?
# ⚓ uni Michigan ☛ Brain_health,_concussions,_sports:_A_long-
term_connection?⠀⇛
The Michigan Alumni Brain Health Study will examine
whether sport participation and concussions are
associated with later-life brain health in former
U-M athletes and nonathletes.
# ⚓ Axios ☛ Most_Americans_support_a_tobacco_ban⠀⇛
The majority of Americans (57%) support a ban on
the sale of all tobacco products and even more
support blocking sales of menthol cigarettes (62%),
aCDC_studypublished inPreventing Chronic
Diseasefound.
Driving the news:Researchers asked nearly 6,500
people in 2021 about what extent they might support
prohibiting tobacco sales.
===================================================
What they’re saying:“These findings can inform
federal, state, and local efforts to prohibit all
tobacco product sales, including menthol
cigarettes, reduce tobacco use and tobacco-related
disparities, and advance health equity,” the
researchers wrote.
o § Security⠀➾
# ⚓ Federal News Network ☛ Feds_say_cyberattack_caused_suicide
helpline’s_outage⠀⇛
A cyberattack caused a nearly daylong outage of the
nation’s new 988 mental health helpline late last
year, federal officials tell The Associated Press.
Lawmakers are now calling for the federal agency
that oversees the program to prevent future
attacks.
# ⚓ Security Week ☛ Former_Ubiquiti_Employee_Who_Posed_as
Hacker_Pleads_Guilty⠀⇛
Former Ubiquiti employee Nickolas Sharp has
admitted in court to abusing company-provided
credentials to steal data and then attempting to
extort Ubiquiti.
# ⚓ Security Week ☛ Atlassian_Warns_of_Critical_Jira_Service
Management_Vulnerability⠀⇛
A critical authentication vulnerability in Jira
Service Management Server and Data Center allows
attackers to impersonate users.
# ⚓ Security Week ☛ High-Severity_Privilege_Escalation
Vulnerability_Patched_in_VMware_Workstation⠀⇛
VMware patches CVE-2023-20854, a vulnerability that
can be exploited by a malicious hacker to delete
arbitrary files.
# ⚓ Data Breaches ☛ Nonstop_Health_data_and_source_code_appear
to_have_been_leaked_on_hacking_forum⠀⇛
Nonstop Health offers health insurance solutions to
employers who have more than 50 employees receiving
benefits.
# ⚓ Security Week ☛ Exploitation_of_Oracle_E-Business_Suite
Vulnerability_Starts_After_PoC_Publication⠀⇛
Critical Oracle E-Business Suite vulnerability
exploited in attacks shortly after PoC is
published.
# ⚓ Security Week ☛ GoAnywhere_MFT_Users_Warned_of_Zero-Day
Exploit⠀⇛
GoAnywhere MFT users warned about a zero-day remote
code injection exploit that can be targeted
directly from the internet
# ⚓ SANS ☛ VMware_workstation_17.0.1_fixes_arbitrary_file
deletion_issue_–_https://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/
VMSA-2023-0003.html,_(Fri,_Feb_3rd)⠀⇛
# ⚓ Tallahassee_Memorial_hospital_victim_of_suspected
ransomware_attack⠀⇛
Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare is postponing all
non-emergency patient procedures as officials
manage an Information Technology security issue
that occurred late Thursday night, according to a
memo from the hospital.
As of 1 p.m. Friday, the hospital also had canceled
non-emergency procedures for Monday, Feb. 6.
The IT security breach is a suspected ransomware
attack, according to sources with knowledge of the
situation.
# § Privacy/Surveillance⠀➾
# ⚓ Bruce Schneier ☛ Manipulating_Weights_in_Face-
Recognition_AI_Systems⠀⇛
Interesting research: “Facial_Misrecognition
Systems:_Simple_Weight_Manipulations_Force
DNNs_to_Err_Only_on_Specific_Persons
o § Defence/Aggression⠀➾
# ⚓ US News And World Report ☛ Latvia_Says_Traders_Use_Turkey,
Kazakhstan,_Armenia_to_Dodge_Russia_Sanctions⠀⇛
By Andrius SytasVILNIUS (Reuters) – Traders are
using Turkey, K
# ⚓ YLE ☛ Bloomberg:_Turkey_could_approve_Finland’s_Nato_bid_by
March⠀⇛
Finland has done enough to resolve Turkey’s
security concerns, anonymous sources told the news
agency.
# ⚓ Latvia ☛ Latvian_sports_officials_criticize_IOC’s_“pressure
and_manipulation”_over_Russian_athletes_issue⠀⇛
Representatives of Latvian sports organizations and
athletes who participated in teleconferences
organized by the International Olympic Committee
(IOC) got the impression that IOC President Thomas
Bach was aiming to achieve a result already decided
upon – namely, to allow athletes from the aggressor
states Russia and Belarus to compete at the Olympic
Games in Paris next year.
# ⚓ Atlantic Council ☛ The_Islamic_Republic_is_on_the_path_to
committing_a_mass_atrocity._The_world_should_pay_attention.⠀⇛
The persistent and systematic nature of the Baha’i
experience strongly suggests that it would be
worthwhile to freshly examination the community’s
vulnerability in the current context to determine
whether this already beleaguered community is at
increased risk of larger-scale abuses.
# ⚓ Atlantic Council ☛ Russian_War_Report:_Satellite_imagery
indicates_a_build-up_of_air_defense_missile_systems_in
southern_Russia⠀⇛
Satellite imagery suggests the build-up of air
defense missile systems in southern Russia while
Ukraine warns of a potential spring Russian
offensive.
# ⚓ RFA ☛ Chinese_authorities_impose_communications_crackdown
on_Tibetans_in_Drago_county⠀⇛
They are subjecting residents to random cell phone
checks.
# ⚓ LRT ☛ Lithuania_threatens_to_boycott_OSCE_event_if_Russian
MPs_are_invited⠀⇛
The Lithuanian delegation will not take part in the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Europe Parliamentary Assembly session, if Russian
lawmakers are allowed to attend it, Vilija
Aleknaitė-Abramikienė, who leads the Lithuanian the
delegation, says.
# ⚓ LRT ☛ Russian_propagandist_attacks_Lithuania:_‘Why_do_we
put_up_with_their_existence?’⠀⇛
Russian propagandist Vladimir Solovyov on his TV
show on the Rossiya-1 channel attacked Western
countries supplying Ukraine with weapons and
threatened that “they’ll give everything, until we
deal with them harshly and clearly”, according to a
report by Newsweek.
# ⚓ RFA ☛ Bloody_toll:_At_least_363_women_killed_in_Myanmar_by
junta_troops_since_coup⠀⇛
The women died mostly from small arms fire,
artillery blasts and torture.
# ⚓ RFERL ☛ Germany_Confirms_Approval_Of_Leopard_1_Tank
Deliveries_To_Ukraine⠀⇛
Germany has approved the export of Leopard 1 battle
tanks to Ukraine from industry stocks, a government
spokesperson said on February 3 at a regular news
conference in Berlin.
o § Transparency/Investigative Reporting⠀➾
# ⚓ American Oversight ☛ D.C._Circuit_Court_rules_that_Justice
Dept._Improperly_Withheld_Bureau_of_Prisons_Records⠀⇛
o § Environment⠀➾
# § Energy/Transportation⠀➾
# ⚓ RFERL ☛ EU_Agrees_On_Price_Caps_On_Russian_Refined
Oil_Products⠀⇛
European Union countries agreed to set price
caps on Russian refined oil products to limit
Moscow’s funds for its invasion of Ukraine,
the EU said on February 3.
# § Wildlife/Nature⠀➾
# ⚓ Federal News Network ☛ Police:_Monkey_thief_charged
with_other_crimes_at_Dallas_Zoo⠀⇛
Police say the man charged in the taking of
two emperor tamarin monkeys from the Dallas
Zoo has also been charged in two other recent
incidents there involving holes that were cut
in the fences for animal enclosures. Dallas
police spokeswoman Kristin Lowman said during
a news conference Friday that 24-year-old
Davion Irvin has been charged with two counts
of burglary to a building in connection with
the cutting of the enclosure fences for a
clouded leopard and langur monkeys.
o § Finance⠀➾
# ⚓ CNN ☛ Japan’s_workers_haven’t_had_a_raise_in_30_years.
Companies_are_under_pressure_to_pay_up⠀⇛
null
# ⚓ Quartz ☛ The_media_got_the_layoff_story_wrong⠀⇛
Today’sastonishing_employment_number—US government
statisticians estimate more than half a million
jobs were added to the economy, nearly three times
what was expected—highlight the problem with
coverage of corporate layoffs.
# ⚓ Engadget ☛ All_the_big_tech_layoffs_of_2023⠀⇛
The tech industry is reeling from the combination
of a rough economy, the COVID-19 pandemic, and not
to mention some obvious business missteps. And
while that led to job cuts in 2022, the headcount
reductions have unfortunately ramped up in 2023. It
can be tough to keep track of these moves, so we’ve
compiled all the major layoffs in one place and
will update as the situation evolves.
# ⚓ The Washington Post ☛ Silicon_Valley’s_golden_age_is_fading
as_Google,_Meta_cut_workers⠀⇛
o § AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics⠀➾
# ⚓ Spiegel ☛ Pressure_and_Fences:_EU_Wants_To_Seal_Itself_Off
from_Refugees⠀⇛
More refugees are arriving in Germany than at any
time in recent years, and districts and cities are
overwhelmed. But the system for redistributing
migrants among EU states is unlikely to be improved
anytime soon, with leaders instead increasingly
betting on deportations and exclusion.
# ⚓ Press Gazette ☛ Health,_sex,_money:_Lord_Rothermere_toasts
Daily_Mail_founder’s_winning_formula⠀⇛
Despite the free-flowing champagne, on Tuesday
night Rothermere appeared to be a beer man.
# ⚓ Vice Media Group ☛ Twitter’s_Latest_Chaotic_Move_Will_Kill
the_Site’s_Best_Bots,_Account_Owners_Say⠀⇛
From Virginia Woolf quotes, to anime, to images of
fruit, bot account owners are saying their goodbyes
as Twitter plans to charge for its API.
# ⚓ Press Gazette ☛ News_UK_proposes_merger_of_Scottish_Times
and_Sunday_Times_into_seven-day_operation⠀⇛
A legal obligation for The Times and Sunday Times
to remain separate was removed last year.
o § Censorship/Free Speech⠀➾
# ⚓ FAIR ☛ Facebook_Protects_Nazis_to_Protect_Ukraine_Proxy
War⠀⇛
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, announced on
January 19 that the company no longer considers
Ukraine’s Azov Regiment to be a “dangerous
organization.” The far-right paramilitary group
grew out of the street gangs that helped topple
Ukraine’s president in the US-backed 2014 coup.
o § Civil Rights/Policing⠀➾
# ⚓ teleSUR ☛ UK_Train_Unions’_New_Strike_Suspends_Service_Of
15_Lines⠀⇛
“Train drivers have not had a pay rise in four
years. What option do we have but striking?,”
Workers’ leader Whelan said.
# ⚓ YLE ☛ Helsinki_saw_‘exceptional’_number_of_protests_in
2022⠀⇛
Protestors hit the streets to demonstrate about
issues like Russia’s attack on Ukraine, climate
change, as well as rising petrol prices.
# ⚓ Women_in_solidarity_action_call_on_Barutçu_Tekstil_boss:
Reinstate_laid-off_workers⠀⇛
Women workers were laid off in Barutçu Tekstil in
Bursa after they joined a trade union. Feminist
Rebellion Against Poverty and the women’s committee
of the union visited the women who are on day 111
of their sit-in in front of the factory.
# ⚓ YLE ☛ CEO_departs_firm_at_centre_of_Helsinki_City_salary
debacle⠀⇛
Some workers reported being underpaid, overpaid and
even not being paid at all over the course of
several salary cycles.
# ⚓ YLE ☛ Study:_Immigration_needs_tripling_to_maintain
Finland’s_labour_force⠀⇛
The business-backed think tank Etla Economic
Research Institute calculates that yearly net
migration of 44,000 people is needed to stabilize
the size of Finland’s labour force.
# ⚓ Copenhagen Post ☛ Record_waiting_time_in_courts_for_victims
seeking_justice⠀⇛
With case processing time having doubled since
2007, justice minister Peter Hummelgaard faced a
barrage of criticism in Parliament
# ⚓ MIT Technology Review ☛ A_Massachusetts_bill_could_allow
prisoners_to_swap_their_organs_for_their_freedom⠀⇛
This article is from The Checkup, MIT Technology
Review’s weekly biotech newsletter. To receive it
in your inbox every Thursday, sign up here. What is
the value of a human organ? It’s a question that’s
been on my mind since I heard about a disturbing
proposed change to the law in Massachusetts that
would allow…
# ⚓ Copenhagen_changes_name_of_new_baby_‘mothers’_groups’_to
allow_groups_with_dads⠀⇛
Neonatal mothers’ groups known as mødregrupper in
Copenhagen will be given a new name, barselsgrupper
(‘parental leave groups’) in a move that is hoped
will get dads involved during their parental leave.
# ⚓ The Local SE ☛ Italian_PM_Meloni_in_Stockholm_to_discuss
migration_with_Swedish_PM⠀⇛
Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s Prime Minister, is visiting
Stockholm on Friday to meet Swedish Prime Minister
Ulf Kristersson and discuss EU issues, including
migration.
o § Internet Policy/Net Neutrality⠀➾
# ⚓ Michael Geist ☛ Senate_Passes_Updated_Bill_C-11_as_Heritage
Minister_Rodriguez_Suggests_Government_Will_Reject_Any
Amendments_that_Have_an_Impact⠀⇛
Bill C-11 entered what may be its final phase
yesterday with a near split screen: at the Prime
Time conference held at the Westin Hotel in Ottawa
was Heritage Minister Pablo Rodrigueztelling_an
industry_audiencethat he would reject any Senate
amendments that have an impact, stating “there are
amendments that have zero impact on the bill and
other that may have some and we will not accept
them.”
# ⚓ Helsinki Times ☛ Finland_applies_for_EUR_61.5_million_in_EU
funding_for_communications_projects⠀⇛
Finnish operators applyfor a total of EUR 61.5
million in funding from the European Commission
under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for five
communications projects. On 2 February 2023, the
Ministerial Finance Committee endorsed the
applications.
o § Monopolies⠀➾
# ⚓ Quartz ☛ The_FTC_is_preparing_a_wide-ranging_antitrust
lawsuit_against_Amazon [Ed: Citing Bill Gates-bribed
publisher; does this help distract from Microsoft's many
crimes?]⠀⇛
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) isreportedly
preparingan antitrust lawsuit against Amazon.
# ⚓ Quartz ☛ What_the_YouTube_strike_means_for_Big_Tech’s
return_to_office_plans⠀⇛
A group of YouTube contractors went on strike today
outside the Google office in Austin, Texas, after
the tech giant announced a return to office by Feb.
6. The workers are employed by Cognizant, which is
a subcontractor for Google parent company Alphabet.
# ⚓ Engadget ☛ YouTube_Music_workers_strike_at_Google’s_Austin
offices⠀⇛
YouTube Music workers in the Austin, TX area who
voted to unionize are striking. TheAlphabet_Works
Union-CWA_(AWU-CWA), which represents the
contractors, says this is the first time a group of
Google-affiliated workers has gone on strike.
Cognizant, an Alphabet subcontractor, staffs the
(more than 40) striking workers. They say
Alphabet’s current return-to-office date of
February 6th threatens their safety and livelihoods
since their $19-per-hour pay makes it hard to
afford relocation, travel and healthcare costs. The
AWU-CWA says most contractors were hired to work
remotely, and nearly a quarter of them don’t live
in Texas.
# ⚓ New York Times ☛ Why_Apple_Watches_Keep_Calling_911⠀⇛
Dispatchers for 911 are being inundated with false,
automated distress calls from Apple devices owned
by skiers who are very much alive.
# § Trademarks⠀➾
# ⚓ Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Trademark_Registration:
100%_THAT_BITCH⠀⇛
The phrase comes from Lizzo’s 2017 song Truth
Hurts (remade in 2019) that has become a
viral sleeper hit. The original line in the
song is “I just took a DNA test, turns out
I’m 100% that bitch.” But Lizzo herself did
not create the phrase. Rather, Lizzo
apparently saw a social media meme about
being 100% that bitch and then added it to
her song. The examining attorney concluded
that “evidence that consumers may associate
the phrase with the famous singer/song
because it was a lyric in the singer’s song
does not entitle the applicant as a singer-
songwriter to appropriate for itself
exclusive use of the phrase.”
On appeal, the TTAB reversed the refusal.
Unlike patents and copyrights, trademark law
is not designed to reward the creative
endeavor of invention or authorship.
# § Copyrights⠀➾
# ⚓ MIT Technology Review ☛ AI_models_spit_out_photos_of
real_people_and_copyrighted_images⠀⇛
Popular image generation models can be
prompted to produce identifiable photos of
real people, potentially threatening their
privacy, according to new research. The work
also shows that these AI systems can be made
to regurgitate exact copies of medical images
and copyrighted work by artists.
* § Gemini* and Gopher⠀➾
o § Personal⠀➾
# ⚓ Sitting_in_O’Hare⠀⇛
The first part of my weekwas spent in Adams,
Massachussets. I flew into Albany, New York on
Sunday. Oddly, this location’s scenery reminded me
of Colorado around the Glennwood Springs/Aspen
area. Not an exact match, but it reminded me of it
strongly. It makes sense since this too is a ski
area.
I stayed in a high rise hotel. Odd since I was in
the small town of Pittsfield. I never expect to see
a high-storey building in a small town. This hotel
was very hostile to its guests especially with the
parking situation. The parking garage was closed
“for renovations.” I put that in quotes because
there were no construction workers to be found the
entire time I was there. The available parking was
a block away at a bank. They “offered” valet
service for the parking. I put that in quotes
because the valet service started at 0730 and I had
to be out and about before that every single day I
was there.
# ⚓ Fountain_Pens⠀⇛
Recently I have gone fountain pen mad. It all
started from seeing the
Muji fountain pen. It is an aluminium affair which
has a knurled pen
grip area and feels very industrial chic. At a low
low price of 18,
it was a bit of a no brainer. Something clicked and
I felt a need to
find out more. Queue reading reviews and watching
videos. Then I fell
into the rabbit hole.
# ⚓ Album_#165:_Let’s_Stay_Together⠀⇛
Al Green pops up frequently enough on DJ Time
Traveller’s weekly radio show that I’m familiar-
ish, but this was the first album I’ve listened to.
It’s starts strong and keeps going. His voice is
versatile. The instrumentation never veers too far
in to sappiness, nor does it ever really take
centre stage. From start to finish, it’s a pleasure
to listen to.
# ⚓ minimalism⠀⇛
Perhaps one problem with minimalism isn’t what it
removes, but what it leaves: the computer, with all
it’s storage, and access to the internet. Don’t get
me wrong: I’m not one for rolling back the
internet, but I am one for not being sucked into
and controlled by the internet. How do we solve
this?
# ⚓ Learn_better⠀⇛
Better learning is not reading a book in order
it’s going backwards in a course when you’re not
sure
it’s writing to the author when you think he’s
wrong
It’s summarising
o § Technical⠀➾
# ⚓ Finally,_I_switched_over_to_OpenBSD⠀⇛
I have been wanting to move my daily driver over to
one of the BSDs for
some time now, I have written in the past about my
experience’s with
FreeBSD [0]. At the time, the limiting factor was
the hardware I was
running and the issues that caused. However, now
that I have the mini-pc
new hardware I thought this would a good week to
try it out. One evening
I took the plunge, backed up $HOME on my current
Alpine Linux setup and
installed OpenBSD. It was super simple, and I was
up and running in
a shell within 15 minutes.
# § Internet/Gemini⠀➾
# ⚓ Getting_rid_of_google:_The_*really*_easy_stuff_and
why_I_may_have_wrote_my_previous_post_a_bit_too_fast⠀⇛
So I haven’t updated in a bit, but I still
wanted to start things off by finishing my
series of posts on getting rid of google and
reduce internet surveillance.
Here, I’ll discuss hoping out of Youtube
(well, more or less) and Gmail and explain
where I really was too hasty last time,
before giving some first thoughts on it all.
# ⚓ Zaibatsu_downtime_notice⠀⇛
On Saturday the 11th of February, the Mare
Tranquillitatis People’s
Circumlunar Zaibatsu
(zaibatsu.circumlunar.space) will be taken
offline for an operating system upgrade. This
phlog (and all the
others hosted here!) will obviously be
unavailable during this time.
I will endeavour to keep the Gopher downtime
as short as possible!
# ⚓ And_into_February⠀⇛
I originally started this entry at 09:40 this
morning, because I knew I’d be
too tired this evening after work. Here I am
finishing the entry at 21:27. It
has been this way lately: finish work, have
dinner, then tea, entertain two
cats, and then it’s time for bed. I must be
getting old, because I’m usually
awake quite early, therefore I go to bed
early.
=> =============================================================================
World Wide Web but a lot lighter.
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